The atmosphere was strange.
After a while, Su Lingxi asked, “Lord Yu, was there something you came to say?”
That formal title again. Yu Lin’an felt even more awkward.
He said, “The Imperial Mentor’s residence returned the two men to the north courtyard this morning, unharmed. What happened last night was our—”
“It’s fine.”
Su Lingxi replied with grace, and genuinely didn’t mind.
“The Deputy Commander wasn’t wrong. Things like that happen often at the Imperial Mentor’s residence. Now that the matter’s been brought into the open and explained, there’s no need for an apology. I don’t take it to heart.”
But the thing was—they weren’t the same as those court geezers who actually meant harm. Why group them together?
Yu Lin’an was frustrated by her polished official speech.
This wasn’t how things worked in Fuyu.
This wasn’t how Su Lingxi used to talk.
He would rather she still be the same—someone who’d drag them from the clouds straight into the ocean.
Telling her now that they were friends, real friends, close friends from long ago—would she even believe it ten percent?
Seeing Su Lingxi had no intention of continuing the conversation, Yu Lin’an stood up, frustrated.
He decided to go back and gather every bit of demon-related information he could find.
Practical help was the real way to knock on someone’s heart.
Better than empty words.
Just then, Xi Liu hurried in.
As Yu Lin’an stepped out, this trusted servant of the Imperial Mentor gave him a nod, then reported in a low voice—not quite hushed, perhaps because it had already become widely known—“My lord, someone from the Duke of Xuan’s household is here.”
Su Lingxi responded with a soft hum, head still lowered over her desk.
“Don’t let them in.”
Xi Liu and Yu Lin’an exited the southern courtyard together.
Taking the long way to the north courtyard meant passing the main gate.
From quite a distance, Yu Lin’an heard a loud commotion.
The Demon Suppression Bureau was always lively, with teams coming and going from across the land.
But crying and cursing were not part of the usual soundscape.
He thought it was just some political dispute.
Then he looked up—and there stood Lin Yu, coldly posted at the gate.
Yu Lin’an looked up at the bright sky.
How rare.
Lin Yu wasn’t sleeping at this hour.
Still skeptical, he tucked away his spirit orb and walked over.
He soon saw a carriage parked at the entrance.
A man and a woman stood outside—the woman sobbing into her sleeve, the man in his fifties, dignified and richly dressed, with a straight back and a powerful voice.
After listening for a moment, Yu Lin’an understood why even Lin Yu was here.
The way mortals cursed—bloody and vicious—was simply too shocking for those from Fuyu.
Lin Yu, having heard enough, raised her sword sheath and knocked on the copper door, sending out a deep, resonant clang like a bell.
The dark shadows under her eyes stood out starkly in the sunlight—like fresh bruises.
“Old bastard.”
Lin Yu shoved aside the guards like dumplings.
In just a few strides, she was in front of the old man.
With a loud thud, she jabbed the sword sheath under his chin and forced it upward.
Her voice was cold and flat: “If you want to curse, curse. But why bring up Fuyu?”
Yu Lin’an felt a disaster coming.
Before he could stop her, Lin Yu’s eyes scanned for a weak point—then smack, she knocked the man unconscious.
The chaos stopped dead.
Lin Yu didn’t give anyone another glance.
She hugged her sword and walked away.
And so, not even two hours later, Yu Lin’an returned with Xi Liu.
Su Lingxi, hearing what had happened, was a little surprised.
“Knocked him out?”
Xi Liu recounted the entire incident.
Su Lingxi turned to Yu Lin’an.
“She’s… a bit odd,” Yu Lin’an said after a moment.
“Not close to any of us. We wouldn’t lay hands on court officials, but she probably didn’t care. She’s an exception.”
He paused.
“That man… he mentioned Fuyu when talking about you. She probably couldn’t stand it.”
“Like this.
A reclusive personality,
No wonder she was so harsh when she spoke yesterday.
She goes her own way, fiercely protective of Fuyu.
Then in her eyes, someone like me who has wronged Fuyu must be utterly unforgivable.
Su Lingxi filled in these details in her mind about the character of Linyu.
After speaking, Yu Lin’an’s expression still looked terrible.
He held back, but in the end couldn’t help glancing at Su Lingxi and said, “That old bastard was spewing filth—**
You just let him curse you like that?”
Su Lingxi was momentarily stunned, thinking he had come up with some new nonsense again.
She turned to Xiliu and asked, “What did he say this time?”
Xiliu braced herself and recounted.
In truth, it was the same things over and over again—accusations of disrespect to ruler and family, grave betrayal, seducing those in power, manipulating authority under the guise of the Demon Suppression Division, seeking personal revenge, endangering the nation and its people.
He mocked her for having no place to return to in this life—no parents, no children, no mentors, no friends or kin—just wandering, exiled, surviving on scraps.
There are only so many curses in the world.
He’d used them all over the past three years. What new tricks could he possibly come up with?
Funny, really.
Without Su Lingxi, even ten dynasties later, people might never have witnessed such vulgar and blatant face-offs between officials.
She was the pioneer—and once opened, there was no stopping it.
“Cliché nonsense.”
Su Lingxi’s expression barely changed after hearing it.
Calmly, she looked back at Yu Lin’an and said, “There’s a crowd outside the Imperial Tutor’s residence every day, one after another.
As for all that talk, let them say what they will for now. I don’t have time to settle scores with them.”
This time, Yu Lin’an couldn’t sit still.
Even if he didn’t want to believe it, he had to defend himself:
“We’re not like those people at all.”
Of course they weren’t.
This was Yu Lin’an’s first time coming to the human world.
After what happened fourteen years ago, everyone connected to Su Lingxi and the Twelve Witches had been ordered to stay quiet for a long time.
During that time, no excuse could get them out of the “gate.”
Until the demon cabinet incident this time—those elites in Fuyu with sufficient ability could apply to come. He hadn’t even hesitated.
Even if it meant doing grunt work.
Fourteen years was not a short time.
Those who lost family had found new ones.
Those who lost love had slowly let go, perhaps even found new bonds.
He had lost friends—but over the years, had made new ones.
Time takes everything—but also heals everything.
Yu Lin’an realized he had taken too much for granted.
He even thought—so what if fourteen years had passed?
So what if someone was removed from the register, or forgotten?
A friend is a friend.
Now that they were both in the human world, couldn’t they reconnect through contact and understanding?
Maybe he hadn’t changed much.
But Su Lingxi had.
Forced to, by countless such old bastards.
How could they say she had no parents, no mentors, no friends or kin?
Yu Lin’an’s throat felt tight and uncomfortable.
Seeing Su Lingxi only raise an eyebrow with no clear response, he stayed silent for a while, then asked,
“Do they curse you like that often?”
Su Lingxi didn’t reply.
You couldn’t tell from her face, but from the look on Xiliu’s, it was clear—this really wasn’t anything new.
Yu Lin’an opened his mouth and said,
“If you ever need help, come to me.
We used to know each other. We got along pretty well. I’m not lying.”
This genuinely surprised Su Lingxi.
Such an easy, inexplicable promise.
She gave Yu Lin’an a polite thanks, then lifted her gaze, speaking seriously:
“If you can find any records related to the demons, please give them to the Demon Suppression Division. We will repay you handsomely.
But do not interfere in court matters.”
Yu Lin’an indicated he understood.
As the Imperial Tutor, he was tied to too many things, bound by countless constraints.
Even if something happened, he had to give an explanation to the Human Emperor.
He looked at Su Lingxi’s face. He wanted to tell her that Ye Zhuxu was about to arrive.
He had always been dark and volatile, only acting like a normal person in front of her.
After she left, he completely lost it—his cultivation skyrocketed like madness, his swordsmanship reaching an extreme.
Now, no one could predict what he’d do.
No one could understand him.
He was a dangerously indifferent extremist.
Just the mention of his name silenced even the proudest prodigies of Fuyu.
In short—what would happen when they met again?
No one could say for sure.
If he told her now, whether she believed him or not, whether she took action or not, it might still push the already unpredictable situation further out of control.
So he opened his mouth, then shut it again.
He’d wait for a better opportunity in the coming days, and bring it up indirectly.
With this thought, Yu Lin’an left the Southern Courtyard.
Once he was gone, Xiliu stepped forward and whispered in Su Lingxi’s ear:
“My lady, the person has been returned.”
“Good.”
Su Lingxi turned and walked past the desk, saying, “Let’s head to the palace to report to His Majesty.”
Xiliu answered yes, silently thinking:
Here we go again—time to tattletale on each other.
The Imperial Tutor never bothered to do this part himself.
She said,
“The Duke of Xuan’s household ignored the rules of the Demon Suppression Division. With enemies at the gate, he allowed his grandson to come into contact with demons and even incited his son to sow discord between Fuyu and the Division—his intentions are heinous.
My lady, is that an acceptable wording?”
Su Lingxi didn’t dwell on it.
She replied with a soft “mm” and asked, “And how’s the protagonist of today’s farce doing?”
Xiliu:
“All good. No unexpected incidents.”
Su Lingxi turned, lifting the lid of a long, narrow wooden box on the desk.
She picked out a small, finger-length bone knife, pure white and translucent.
The sharp tip twirled lightly in her fingers, flashing dazzlingly.
She pressed the blade against her fingertip and walked out.
“Let’s go. Time to check on him.”
***
On the way back to the Northern Courtyard, Yu Lin’an’s spiritual orb began to flash repeatedly in his hand.
He tapped it open, and in the next instant, his eyelid twitched violently—his heart suddenly tightened.
He looked up to calculate the time, wiped his face.
How did he arrive so fast?!