Chasing after her husband? Is it even possible to win him back?

"The smell of spices, is that it..." Ao Xiu sighed softly, his dark vertical pupils fixed on the backs of Ning Qiu Ning and her two companions. "I think I understand. Give the order to send the brothers out along the route they took, and keep an eye on every household. Since they used this method, there must be Yan people passing through this route. It's a bit of a task, so tell the brothers to pay more attention."

"Don't worry, sir. I've already instructed the brothers to disperse."

Ao Xiu nodded slightly, his gaze fixed on the mansion in the distance. Ning Qiu Ning had finished her conversation with the bronze fang beast, and at that moment, the bronze fang beast guarding the gate was leading the three members of the Supreme Sword Sect through the mansion gate.

You should realize you've been used, right?

Ning Qiuning?

Chapter 62, Ning Qiuning's Subtle Changes

In the residence of Prince Zou, the young man who was sitting cross-legged in his mind, deducing the thunder magic, was suddenly awakened by a knock on the door.

Outside, the young man slowly rose to his feet, while in his mind's eye, he bowed slightly to the phantom formed by the gathering of lightning.

A gentle breeze stirs the door, and it opens wide.

"Young Master, the Bronze Beast reports that Ning Qiu Ning requests an audience, saying she has information about the people of Yan Kingdom to tell you." Hong Zhu's expression was somewhat subtle as she cautiously probed Chu Xun Feng's mood.

However, the young man's poker face remained expressionless, without even a change in expression. "...Go and tell Prince Zou the news as well. After all, we are still on someone else's territory. Invite them to the reception room."

"Yes," Hongzhu replied and turned to make the arrangements.

Chu Xunfeng straightened his slightly wrinkled jacket and headed towards the reception room.

"Old Wang, make some tea."

"Yes, young master." The middle-aged ghost clan member expertly boiled water and brewed tea.

Intelligence about the Yan people...

It seems that the Fifth Seat has carried out the strict house arrest quite well, but I wonder if Ning Qiu Ning has helped the Yan people pass on the information.

Ao Xiu had met Ning Qiu Ning before. She had left the territory of the Fifth Seat, so there was no reason for the Snake Lord to let her go.

He pondered what changes Ning Qiu Ning's arrival signified, but unexpectedly, instead of Ning Qiu Ning, he was greeted by Prince Zou.

"Your Highness?" The young man holding the teacup looked at the middle-aged man with a puzzled expression.

"I'm a little curious, but don't worry about me. I'll just have some tea over here." Prince Zou wasn't dressed in any particularly luxurious manner, and with that smile, he looked quite like a friendly older brother next door.

However, in Chu Xunfeng's eyes, the smile of Prince Zou was somewhat fake, and his emotions were not as gentle as they appeared, which puzzled Chu Xunfeng.

"Please do as you please." Chu Xunfeng didn't intend to persuade Prince Zou to leave. After all, it was his territory, and he didn't intend to have any personal dealings with Ning Qiu Ning. Being observed by others didn't bother him.

"Young Master, Miss Ning and her two companions have arrived." Hongzhu led the three members of the Supreme Sword Sect into the reception room, then approached Old Wang and began preparing tea with him.

"Sit down." Chu Xunfeng gestured for the three of them to sit in the guest seats.

Ning Qiu Ning and the other two noticed the middle-aged man sitting on Chu Xun Feng's other side, but no one paid attention to this man who had no cultivation and whose clothes and demeanor were very ordinary.

"Miss Ning, did you tell the bronze beast that you have information about the Yan people to tell me?" Chu Xunfeng put down his teacup.

"Yes, a man named Luo Ze approached me and gave me a letter, asking me to deliver it to a designated place." Ning Qiu Ning took out a letter from her storage magic item.

When Old Wang served tea to the three members of the Supreme Sword Sect, he took the envelope from Ning Qiu Ning and handed it to Chu Xun Feng.

The young man gently shook the envelope, allowing the system to scan it as well, but no residual energy was detected.

Open the envelope and unfold the letter.

Chu Xunfeng raised an eyebrow, a smile involuntarily appearing on his face.

Seeing the obvious change in Chu Xunfeng's expression, Ning Qiuning couldn't help but ask, "Is it useful information?"

“It really worked.” Chu Xunfeng nodded, not holding back his words. “Luo Ze wrote it specifically for me. It seems he already knew you would give me the letter.”

Ning Qiu Ning's elation sank slightly. "Did it help Brother Chu...Young Master?"

Ning Qiu Ning's subsequent change of words made Chu Xun Feng raise his eyes to look at the girl with her lips slightly pursed.

"Wait a moment." Chu Xunfeng closed his eyes and gently tapped his forehead with his right hand.

[System, Ning Qiuning, or perhaps write a letter mentioning any substances uncommon among the Ghost Clan?]

[Scanning... Substances uncommon among the Oni race; through comparison, three types of substances with extremely low occurrence rates have been identified.]

[Small amounts of sand, mineral powder residue, and dried powder from the leaves and fruits of seven different special plants.]

Dry powder from the leaves and fruits of special plants... Yan Guo...

Is it a spice?

The young man opened his eyes, brought his right hand to his nose and sniffed it gently... Sure enough, it smelled like curry.

Chu Xunfeng couldn't identify the specific ingredients of the spices.

However, the spies of Yan Kingdom will surely be able to discern the meaning behind these spices.

“It really helps.” Chu Xunfeng put his hand down. “It’s spices, spices from the Yan Kingdom.”

"The people of Yan have a habit of using spices to convey information. It's a pity that even after decades, the bronze beast has not been able to find the pattern." Prince Zou casually tossed aside the covered bowl and entered the conversation.

“No rules are needed. As long as we understand our opponents well and have a clear understanding of Luo Ze and his group’s situation, that’s enough.” Chu Xunfeng smiled and placed the envelope and letter beside him. “We don’t need to worry about that person’s strength. Luo Ze himself is also taking a gamble. Now we’ll see whose methods are more sophisticated.”

With the Dark Star Pavilion's people and Snake Lord's command, Chu Xunfeng didn't feel that his side was inferior to the spies from Yan Kingdom.

"It may be different from what you think, but it is indeed useful information. Thank you for making this trip." Chu Xunfeng looked at Ning Qiuning.

“Young Master Chu, there’s no need to be so polite…” Ning Qiu Ning stood up, her smile tinged with loneliness. “I owe you so much, this little bit is far from enough to repay you.”

Chu Xunfeng looked at Ning Qiuning with some surprise, but after a long while, he shook his head, "Let bygones be bygones..."

Ning Qiu Ning smiled but didn't reply. "Then, we'll be going now."

Ning Qiu Ning didn't linger. She simply greeted her maid and senior sister before leaving the reception room and, led by the bronze beast, departed from the residence of Prince Zou.

"Changed her personality?" Chu Xunfeng squinted, tapping his fingers on the armrest of the chair. "Or did Li Anshan point her in the right direction?"

No matter how resourceful and insightful Chu Xunfeng was, he was not omniscient or omnipotent.

"This woman doesn't seem as bad as the rumors say." Prince Zou turned to look at Chu Xunfeng, seemingly trying to find out Chu Xunfeng's attitude towards Ning Qiu Ning.

"People always change, whether it's me or her." Recalling the unusual arrival of Prince Zou in the reception room, and even the possibility that he had changed his clothes, Chu Xunfeng frowned slightly.

"His Highness the Prince seems to be quite interested in Ning Qiu Ning?"

“To be precise, I am very concerned about the Ning family in Liucheng, Bianzhou.” Prince Zou picked up a teacup filled with hot water. “The Ning family still owes your Chu family a debt, and even owes me an explanation.”

The prince raised his head, squinting his eyes. "The Chu family was executed, and your father entrusted his only son to me... Yet we only met a few days ago."

“Something must have gone wrong, and things didn’t go as your father planned.”

"I've known him for ten years, and his plans have rarely gone wrong... and every time they do, it always comes down to one thing..."

"Human nature, is that it?" Chu Xunfeng picked up his teacup and took a sip.

Prince Zou did not reply, but...

Chapter Sixty-Three: The Secret from More Than a Decade Ago

As the saying goes, a thousand plans and a thousand schemes cannot withstand a moment of impulse.

Even Chu Xunfeng, who was skilled at manipulating people's hearts, dared not say that he was perfect in his planning. On the contrary, most of his calculations were based on human nature rather than exploiting people's hearts.

The better one is at calculating, the more one understands that the human heart is something that cannot be fully calculated.

As the saying goes, "A common man's anger can spill blood five steps away," and "Those who have nothing to lose are not afraid of those who have something to lose." The more cunning and calculating one is, the easier it is for a subtle mistake in a certain link to lead to complete defeat.

A remark by Prince Zou further solidified Chu Xunfeng's belief in his own principles, but...

"Does Your Highness mean that the Chu family was exterminated, and I fled as a child, and should have been secretly sent to the capital?" Chu Xunfeng put down his teacup and looked at Prince Zou.

"At least your father's letter to me indicated his plans."

"But I stayed in Liucheng the whole time, and was even sent to the Ning family." Chu Xunfeng calmly participated in the analysis.

“Perhaps your father’s backup plan was the Ning family?” Prince Zou raised his eyebrows and glanced at Chu Xunfeng. “At least I really didn’t know that your father had left a backup plan for you. After all, as far as I was concerned at the time, the Chu family really had no backup plan left.”

“After all, he was pushed out to take the blow…” Chu Xunfeng said subconsciously, then realized that it was inappropriate to say such a thing in front of Prince Zou, so he changed his words, “Or perhaps, it was because my father arranged a backup plan that no one knew about that I was willing to stand up and take the emperor’s knife.”

"So first, we'll eliminate the officialdom that might leave loose ends, and second, since I wasn't originally qualified to cultivate, we'll also exclude the forces of cultivators..." Chu Xunfeng continued to mutter to himself, "So, the ones who will ultimately take over will most likely be the local gentry and heroes."

"A servant?" Prince Zou changed his tone again. "Could it be a servant of your Chu family?"

"High-ranking officials are executed along with their entire families. As for ordinary servants, unless they are trained from a young age, who would dare to associate with me, a child whom the emperor has ordered to be beheaded, or even help me escape the pursuit?" Chu Xunfeng had a clear understanding of human nature, so he thought what Prince Zou said was impossible.

"Then it can only be the Ning family." Prince Zou raised his gaze to Chu Xunfeng. "What do you plan to do?"

"What should I do?" Chu Xunfeng picked up his teacup again and took a sip of tea. "Your Highness, don't forget that I am still a wanted criminal by the court. If the Ning family had betrayed my father's wishes and chosen to keep me, they would have been punished."

"If they were just implicated... Before I became a cultivator, the wealth I created for the Ning family, while not exactly settling all grudges, I never felt I owed them anything. The reason I was able to become a cultivator and make a name for myself is ultimately thanks to their 'contribution'."

"If the Ning family treats me sincerely, I will return that sincerity to them. If everything develops as I once wished, with Ning Qiu Ning and I working together and backed by a top-tier sect in Bianzhou like the Supreme Sword Sect, how could the Emperor's warrant possibly affect the Ning family's stability?"

The prince was slightly taken aback, then found it quite amusing and shook his head.

Indeed, given Chu Xunfeng's talent and ability, even if he didn't pursue cultivation, if he embarked on an official career, his ultimate goal would likely be a high-ranking official in the imperial court, or even a prime minister.

"In the end, it's all about retribution. Although it's retribution in this life, not my own, it doesn't really matter to me." Chu Xunfeng was very open-minded, or rather, people like him have always been very open-minded.

After all, I've seen too many people who scheme and plot but end up harming themselves.

Chu Xunfeng felt that it was good enough that some people got what they deserved, and he didn't care about the details behind it all.