Jun Xin didn't pick up the whip.
This time, she didn't even bother to refute.
Suddenly, she recalled.
When they were outside the city, Yuan Xin had beamed at her.
She turned around and boasted to Feng Zhan,
"See? I told you my adoptive father loves me the most in the world. He won't blame me. You're just being petty."
Feng Zhan, looking equally confused, sensed something amiss.
Then he said,
"You need to be careful. His kindness might be a ploy to trap you in the Yuan family's iron cage. There's a saying, 'first show courtesy, then resort to force'. Watch out for the trap."
Jun Xin didn't believe him.
She thought Feng Zhan was just scaring her.
The master was her adoptive father, who had doted on her for years. How could he be as calculating as Feng Zhan had described?
So, heedless of everything, Jun Xin returned to the Yuan family.
But now, lying on the ground, the pain in her body told Jun Xin that Feng Zhan had been right.
This man, who resented her, had still tried to dissuade her from jumping into the Yuan family's pit of fire.
Jun Xin regretted it.
Now, all of Feng Zhan's words had been proven true.
She knew that everything she had done before was wrong. She was just a pawn, a knife in Yuan Xin's hand. The world would only hold her accountable for all the dirty deeds.
Jun Xin traced the whip marks on her body.
Despite the wounds, she smiled.
Tears mingled with her smile, making her look even more poignant.
"Adoptive father, why?"
"What?"
"Why did you deceive me?"
There was a smile on her lips, but an unwavering determination in her eyes.
Yuan Xin had raised Jun Xin since she was a child. He had taught her how to conduct herself. He had told her that if she didn't like someone, she could kill them.
Those who made her unhappy could die. It didn't matter.
He had doted on her, only to push her into the pit of fire today.
"Sister Jun Xin, those who commit mistakes in the Yuan family must be punished. How? You made a mistake, and you think you can be an exception? Have you forgotten how you dealt with your fellow disciples before?"
"Shut up. I'm not asking you."
Jun Xin supported herself on the table and stood up.
She stared fixedly at Yuan Xin and said, "You're going to sacrifice me, aren't you?"
The word "sacrifice" left everyone, except Miao Xi and Yuan Xin, looking at each other in confusion.
Yuan Xin suddenly stood up.
"Everyone, except Miao Xi, leave first."
"Leave? Afraid your deeds will be exposed?"
"Get out!"
Those people quickly stood up and left.
Feng Zhan didn't move. He remained where he was.
While others were rushing out in a panic, he stood there like a rock.
Jun Xin walked up to him.
She looked at this man.
She stood on tiptoe, wrapped her arms around him, and kissed his neck gently through the veil of his hat.
Feng Zhan stiffened. Then he heard Jun Xin's soft voice.
"I was hasty. I'm sorry for those people."
"Leave."
"Also, take care of Xiao Die for me. My contract with it is over."
After that, Jun Xin suddenly pushed Feng Zhan towards the crowd. Caught in the jostling, he was carried out of the room.
There was a bottle of pills in Feng Zhan's hand.
He knew what it was.
The door slammed shut in front of him. Feng Zhan sighed. He knew that this girl had made a decision, a decision that would change her life.
She had been spoiled all her life, but deep down, she had her own stubbornness.
Actually, when she entered the Yuan family, Jun Xin had gone to Yuan Xin's study to look for him and found a bottle of potion on his desk.
The potion was used to attract divine beasts.
But to attract a divine beast, a sacrificial body was needed. The stronger the body, the more powerful the divine beast would be.
Jun Xin had guessed it, so when she came out of the study, there was a hint of hesitation on her face.
In the end, she still chose to trust Yuan Xin.
"What a silly girl."
Feng Zhan took the antidote.
He knew that although Jun Xin had been bad, the look in her eyes at the end was full of kindness. She hadn't deceived him, nor would she harm him.
But once a person made a mistake, they had to pay the price.
This was the cause that Jun Xin had created, and today, she had to taste the bitter fruit.
Suddenly, the meeting room was enveloped in a strong light.
Inside the inner chamber.
Yuan Xin shed his kind facade that he had maintained for years.
There was no trace of a smile on his face.
"You've known for a long time?"
"Before, I just guessed. But I thought that in this world, the only one who could truly be kind to me was you, adoptive father. I've always regarded you as my real father. I've been on guard against everyone. I've hated everyone, but I've never disrespected you."
Yuan Xin lowered his eyes.
Jun Xin said, "Adoptive father, you've been planning this for a long time, haven't you?"
Yuan Xin pondered for a moment and then said, "Yes."
"Why? Is it because I failed to protect the Twelve Courtyards of Youzhou?"
Jun Xin wiped the tears from her face and looked at Yuan Xin with hope in her eyes.
She continued, "If that's the case, I'm willing to be punished. I really am. I won't complain even if you whip me a hundred more times."
Yuan Xin's expression twitched slightly.
He didn't say a word.
But Miao Xi stepped forward.
"The master has long known the culprit behind the attack on the Twelve Courtyards of Youzhou. It was an ancient divine beast, the phoenix, the king of all birds. Jun Xin, even if you were to sacrifice your life, you wouldn't be a match for the phoenix."
"Phoenix? The phoenix—"
Jun Xin murmured and took a step back.
Yuan Xin said, "The Mirror Moon Palace was also attacked. The fire was caused by the Glass Fire, a technique of the divine beast phoenix."
Jun Xin understood.
"So, from the very beginning, you knew that the phoenix had attacked the Mirror Moon Palace and the Twelve Courtyards of Youzhou. You went to the Mirror Moon Palace to save Miao Xi, while my Cloud and Smoke Alliance was destroyed. Am I right?"
She had thought, thought it was Lin Lang of the Seven Star Alliance who had helped Miao Xi. It turned out that it was Yuan Xin.
He was afraid that she wouldn't come back, so he deliberately spread the rumor that it was Lin Lang who had helped the Mirror Moon Palace.
What a clever scheme.
Jun Xin felt that she had been stupid all her life. She had never been as clear-headed as she was now.
No wonder, even after the Twelve Courtyards of Youzhou were destroyed, the adoptive father had personally gone to the outskirts of Shengjing City to greet her. It wasn't because he was worried about her safety, but because he was afraid that she would notice something and not come to the Yuan family. Without a host for the potion, he wouldn't be able to attract the divine beast.
"Why?"
"For no reason. The master of the An family is my aunt. I'm her only niece. My aunt loves me, so the master naturally loves me too."
In the end, it all came down to An Susu.