Chapter 1821: "Secretly Conspiring (1)"
"You are very intelligent." Jun Wu Xie did not hide her admiration for Yue Ye.
At that age, and able to see things so clearly, Yue Ye was definitely smarter than what she was showing to people outside. Wasn't the pretense she put up before everyone a form of self defense? It might be that even Yue Yi was not aware that his little sister was stronger than he had imagined.
"Thank you. But since you came all the way here to find me, it wouldn't just be to praise me would it?" Yue Ye asked as she looked at Jun Wu Xie, not feeling the slightest complacent from the praise.
"To poison the Shadow Moon Palace Lord, was all your own idea?" Although Jun Wu Xie asked that, but she already knew the real answer in her heart.
"I've said it. If you seek to know more from my mouth, you need to bring out your sincerity." At that moment, Yue Ye was completely unlike a twelve year old little girl. Her eyes were clear, and they were filled with a steadiness that would not belong to someone her age.
Jun Wu Xie shrugged her shoulders and said: "Sure. I am not Chang Huan, Chang Huan is already dead. I am impersonating him because I seek to destroy the Shadow Moon Palace. It's just that simple."
Yue Ye's mouth fell slightly agape. It was feared that even she had not thought that Jun Wu Xie's reply could really be so simply direct and brutal.
But seeking to destroy the Shadow Moon Palace, was it that simple? !
Even for Yue Ye, she had been shocked by the casual indifference in Jun Wu Xie's words.
She crinkled up her little nose and looked at Jun Wu Xie gaugingly up and down.
"Destroy the Shadow Moon Palace? Just you alone? Aren't you thinking too simply of the Shadow Moon Palace?" She could not deny that Jun Wu Xie was so much more outstanding than Chang Huan, but even if the Shadow Moon Palace's might was not that powerful, but it was still one of the Twelve Palaces. If it could be so easily destroyed, it would not have remained in existence till now. Wasn't Jun Wu Xie's words taking it all a little too casually?
"Is it that difficult?" Jun Wu Xie asked, an eyebrow lifting up, her entire being exuding a highly shocking sense of calm and composure.
Yue Ye bit on her lip and the gaze she was looking at Jun Wu Xie with became rather complicated. It was only after a while that she then said: "The poison in the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's body was my doing....."
It was just as Jun Wu Xie had guessed. The Shadow Moon Palace Lord had felt "unwell" was all due to Yue Ye's "credit". The Shadow Moon Palace Lord paid great attention on his own safety and even the Elders in the palace were not able to interfere with all the needs of his daily life. But Yue Ye was the only exception who would be occasionally summoned by the Shadow Moon Palace Lord, which gave her a very good opportunity to strike.
In truth, Yue Ye had been a lot more mature than the average child and starting from the time she started to understand things, she already knew what kind of a situation Yue Yi and her were in within the Shadow Moon Palace. She was even more acutely aware that her existence was a chip Elder Yue used to control Yue Yi and the one whom she addressed as Grandfather was never a kin to her, but a demonic monster.
She understood the various dangers she herself was in but the too young Yue Ye was unable to change all of it. Till one time by accident, she came upon an opportunity that she had never had before.
She began to learn about various things that had to do with poison, and started to plant the herbs she needed in her own little yard. Because she was always under Elder Yue's sphere of control, it was not possible for her to obtain and kind of seeds that contained lethal poison. That was why she had come to make use of the properties of herbs that clashed and repelled against each other.
Yue Ye wanted to leave the Shadow Moon Palace together with Yue Yi, and everyone in the Shadow Moon Palace all became obstacles for them to escape from the demonic monster's lair.
Elder Yue, the Shadow Moon Palace Lord, and all the disciples.....
Chapter 1822: "Secretly Conspiring (2)"
Yue Ye had started to poison the Shadow Moon Palace Lord from a few years ago, to wreck and wear down his body bit by bit, waiting for that one day when the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's death came and the Shadow Moon Palace was in chaos, the two siblings would then be able to take the opportunity to escape for this demonic lair.
But the appearance of Jun Wu Xie had completely messed up Yue Ye's plan. Seeing with her eyes that the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's condition was actually gradually becoming better with the Melted Snow Elixir that Jun Wu Xie had presented and her own plans could possibly amount to nothing but wasted effort, Yue Ye could not sit back and do nothing.
And at that time, Elder Yue had also similarly been thrown into a frenzy with the appearance of Jun Wu Xie and had attempted to make use Yue Ye to frame Jun Wu Xie. Yue Ye had then gone with the flow and thought to poison Jun Wu Xie, which brought about the deaths of a whole pool of koi.
The intent to murder Jun Wu Xie had already risen in Yue Ye. She had worked painstakingly on it for so many years and seeing that her plan was about to succeed, how could she now be expected to give up on that only chance that she had?
But Yue Yi's words had caused Yue Ye to hesitate.
Yue Ye had seen all the kinds of ugly truths hidden within the Shadow Moon Palace and except for her own elder brother, she trusted no one else.
And the only one person she cared about was also just Yue Yi.
Yue Yi had said that Jun Wu Xie was his benefactor who saved his life. That had caused Yue Ye to be conflicted for a quite a while before she gave up on the plan to murder Jun Wu Xie, and instead change it to putting in drugs in the fragrance sachet, to just temporarily deprive Jun Wu Xie of any chances of messing things up for her.
A pity.....
All her plans had been uncovered by Jun Wu Xie easily.
"It's true that I had thought of killing you in the beginning, but you saved my brother's life. My elder brother is the only person I care about in this world and since you saved his life, that would then mean I owe you a life." Yue Ye said as she looked at Jun Wu Xie seriously.
Jun Wu Xie knew Yue Ye was not joking. Her understanding of Medicine allowed Jun Wu Xie to realize the kind of gift Yue Ye possessed towards poison and Yue Ye was still so young. If in the future, she is given enough time, the poisons that she would be able to create would definitely astound the world.
One who could patiently endure it for so many years in the Shadow Moon Palace and was even able to secretly slowly assassinate the Shadow Moon Palace Lord at such a young age, Yue Ye's abilities definitely surpassed every one of her peers.
If Yue Ye was not faced with Jun Wu Xie this time, it was highly probable that she would have already succeeded.
"Our objectives are the same. You want to destroy the Shadow Moon Palace and I want freedom. If it's possible, we can also work together. I am thinking, that this is the reason you are here to see me for right? Afterall, seeking to destroy the Shadow Moon Palace would be fastest if you strike directly at the Palace Lord, and I am your most suitable candidate." Yue Ye slowly revealed her plans as she spoke, not because she was naively trusting others so easily, but because Yue Ye had already realized that Jun Wu Xie had guessed everything in her heart, or she would not have come right here knocking on her door.
Jun Wu Xie's arrival, already showed Yue Ye that she no longer had much in the way of secrets before Jun Wu Xie.
As someone who was able to neutralize her poison, Jun Wu Xie's abilities could not be doubted. If she continued to try any tricks at this point, Yue Ye knew that the one on the losing end would surely be her.
"I like to work with intelligent people." Jun Wu Xie was highly satisfied with Yue Ye's performance, and it could be said that Yue Ye's intelligence was higher than most people. She had spoken honestly on many things, but had at the same time withheld a part as secret.
Like her knowledge in poison for example, from where it had come from was not mentioned by Yue Ye at all.
But Jun Wu Xie did not mind it.
She had gotten what she came here for.
There was one point about what Yue Ye did that Jun Wu Xie greatly admired. And that was she kept grudges and grace distinctly separated. From Yue Ye's point of view, Jun Wu Xie was a tiger who stood in the way of her plans, but because of what Yue Yi said, she then decided to change her plan.
Chapter 1823: "Secretly Conspiring (3)"
Still holding a shred of conscience, truly rare and hard to come by.
Despite the fact that she was still so young, and was growing up in such a harsh environment, Yue Ye was still keeping strictly to her own bottomline, which was a point that Jun Wu Xie greatly admired.
"Even if you praise me, but certain things that have to be made clear must still be clearly spelt out. I can accomodate my actions to your plans but that has to be after I am made aware of the entire process. And regardless whether you are seeking to destroy the Shadow Moon Palace or to kill someone, you must not drag my elder brother into it, or there is no need to even start any form of cooperation between us." Yue Ye said as she drew in a deep breath. Jun Wu Xie's demeanor was highly indifferent and that made it difficult for Yue Ye to grasp what Jun Wu Xie was thinking. Even when Jun Wu Xie had already clearly stated her personal agenda, but from what Yue Ye could see, where Jun Wu Xie had originated from and what she was going to do was unclear to everyone.
She could give it her all, but no harm must come to Yue Yi.
"Alright." Jun Wu Xie nodded.
Yue Ye then breathed out in relief.
"Then, what do you need me to do?" Yue Ye breathed in deeply to ask as she looked at Jun Wu Xie. In truth, this face she was showing, was only seen by Jun Wu Xie alone. Before everyone else, she had always been that timid and shy Yue Ye.
"Elder Yue wanted to use you against me?" Jun Wu Xie asked with an eyebrow lifted up. If she recalled it correctly, in Elder Yue's mind, Yue Ye was merely a cowardly and bashful little girl.
Yue Ye nodded.
"How?" Jun Wu Xie continued to ask.
Yue Ye continued to look at Jun Wu Xie and her gaze then slowly fell to the floor, her little face tinged with a slight paleness. She was silent for quite awhile before she slowly opened her tiny mouth, but her gaze did not shift from the ground before her.
"I am the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's plaything."
Jun Wu Xie was slightly taken aback.
"Mm, it can be put in this way. The Shadow Moon Palace Lord has the same kind of urges like Elder Yue. The only difference is that the Shadow Moon Palace Lord only likes young little girls while Elder Yue is a little less inhibited. After Elder Yue came to know of the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's preferences, he put my elder brother behind closed door cultivation and he brought me to go see the Shadow Moon Palace Lord. But as the Shadow Moon Palace Lord encountered some problems while practising cultivation at that time, he was feeling rather unwell, and hence he could only let his hands roam a little....."
Yue Ye voice was soft, and rather monotonous. There was no hatred no aggrievement, so calm that it sounded like she was describing something that had happened to someone else.
Elder Yue's intentions were clear, and the Shadow Moon Palace Lord liked Yue Ye very well. The little courtyard that Yue Ye was living in now had been privately arranged for by the Shadow Moon Palace Lord and it could be said that the Shadow Moon Palace Lord treated Yue Ye like he was grooming her to become a girl that he wished for her to become, and was just waiting for himself to recover before he would enjoy this highly delicious fruit.
In the Shadow Moon Palace, absolutely no one dared to go provoke Yue Ye, especially all the male disciples.
As the one that the Shadow Moon Palace Lord had his eye set upon, her chastity must be ensured.
And Elder Yue had wanted to make use of Yue Ye, to accuse Jun Wu Xie of taking liberties of her. Yue Ye would only need to speak out, and the Shadow Moon Palace Lord would definitely fly into a rage, and even if Jun Wu Xie had won credit for presenting up the Melted Snow Elixir, it would not be enough to negate such a grave mistake.
Even if the Shadow Moon Palace Lord did not take Jun Wu Xie's life, he would no longer look upon Jun Wu Xie with favour.
With that, Elder Yue would have achieved his aim of suppressing Jun Wu Xie.
Jun Wu Xie listened quietly till the end, and Yue Ye did not once lift her head throughout. It was only after she finished speaking that she raised her little face up, the clean and clear face emotionless, showing a steadiness that completely did not match her age at all.
Chapter 1824: "Secretly Conspiring (4)"
"But I was thinking at that time if I were to just kill you off, Elder Yue would surely be happier and I would be able to rid myself of a problem." Yue Ye said, her eyes blinking at Jun Wu Xie, like she was completely unaware of just how vicious the words that had come out of her mouth had been.
Jun Wu Xie did not mind it in the slightest.
"I am thinking, that I should prepare a gift in return for Elder Yue." Jun Wu Xie said with her eyes narrowed. To deal with her, Elder Yue had really gone out of the way to wreck his brains. If Yue Ye had really done that, the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's rage could very well be imagined. Punishing Jun Wu Xie would naturally be a given, but the matter would definitely also implicate Yue Ye and it was no guarantee that Yue Ye would not have to suffer for it as well.
Elder Yue had presented Yue Ye up to the Shadow Moon Palace Lord all because he wanted to plant a pawn by the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's side.
But in order to deal with her, Elder Yue had not hesitated to even make use of his pawn, Yue Ye.
It could be well imagined, just how much hatred he harboured against Jun Wu Xie, and he just couldn't to get rid of her.
"What do you want to do?" Yue Ye asked Jun Wu Xie.
Jun Wu Xie curled up the ends of her mouth and beckoned at Yue Ye.
Yue Ye went walking over.
Jun Wu Xie whispered softly beside Yue Ye's ear and the expression on Yue Ye's face went from doubtful to surprise.
"You're sure?" Yue Ye asked, looking at Jun Wu Xie. She had thought that she was already rather maniacal herself, and she had not expected that she would come to meet someone who was more of a lunatic than she was!
Jun Wu Xie nodded her head. She had already explained things rather adequately and she then stood up.
"Everything can be carried out based on what we've already discussed and you will only need to be responsible for your own tasks. As for the parts that I need to do, I will deal with them properly."
"Alright." Yue Ye answered simply.
Jun Wu Xie turned around and walked out from Yue Ye's room, and she left the fragrance sachet she brought here behind on the table in Yue Ye's room.
It was until Jun Wu Xie had left, that Yue Ye came walking to the side of the table and picked up the fragrance sachet that had been picked open. She carefully picked out the tiny pills the size of rice grains and put them safely in a bottle before she used a needle and thread to sew up the opening on the fragrance sachet once again.
Her hand clasping the sewed up fragrance sachet, Yue Ye's brows creased up slightly together.
She had tried very hard to appear calm earlier, but only she herself knew that her hands that had been hidden within her sleeves had been all covered in sweat.
Towards her abilities in poisons, Yue Ye was highly confident, or it would have been possible that the Shadow Moon Palace Lord to be poisoned for so many years without her being discovered by anyone.
But she had struck at Jun Wu Xie twice and she had not once succeeded. She had been seen through by Jun Wu Xie in the shortest period of time and Yue Ye was almost certain that before Jun Wu Xie came to look for her, Jun Wu Xie had already guessed a large part of the truth.
This was the smartest person Yue Ye had ever encountered in her life and she looked to be a serene and tranquil person but possessed a pair of eyes that could see right into people's hearts.
Dealing with people like that, was highly strenuous for her.
No matter how intelligent Yue Ye was, she was afterall still a little fella who was merely twelve year old, caught within the demonic lair that was the Shadow Moon Palace, forced to quickly grow up that made her know more things than her other peers, but all that was still not enough for her to be pitted against Jun Wu Xie.
It was only till that moment that Yue Ye finally regained her senses. She had told Jun Wu Xie a lot, almost coming completely clean with everything about herself.
But from Jun Wu Xie's mouth, the only she got was Jun Wu Xie's objective in coming to the Shadow Moon Palace.
Besides that.....
There was absolutely nothing.
"Why do I seem to feel like I've been had?" Yue Ye said gloomily, as she wrinkled her nose.
Chapter 1825: "Flagrant Framing (1)"
Truth to be told.....
Yue Ye had indeed been defrauded by Jun Wu Xie.
Not to mention having muddlely come clean on everything about herself, at the end of it all what she got in exchange from Jun Wu Xie was just useless information.
Even if Jun Wu Xie had not said it, Yue Ye would have guessed on her own that Jun Wu Xie's objectives were against the Shadow Moon Palace.
Always having prided herself as smarter than others, Yue Ye was for once made to look stupid, being led the entire time by Jun Wu Xie to say things that she both should and shouldn't have said.
It must be said.....
For these two young girls who had similarly matured early, Jun Wu Xie still firmly surpassed Yue Ye by a stretch.
Of course, Yue Ye was also the only one person, who after having made an attempt on Jun Wu Xie's life, got discovered, and was not toyed to death by Jun Wu Xie, but had instead become Jun Wu Xie's ally.
Speaking from another perspective, Yue Ye could be considered to be very lucky.
After Jun Wu Xie walked out from Yue Ye's little courtyard, she went back to her room.
Two days passed in the blink of an eye and Elder Yue frequently came in and out from Yue Ye's little courtyard, while assigning several tasks to Yue Yi at the same time, to not give Yue Yi any spare time to go see Yue Ye.
One day in the evening, the light of dusk spilled across the land as Yue Ye slowly came to Jun Wu Xie's little courtyard.
Jun Wu Xie raised her head and looked at the little girl bathed within the dusk's golden light, and she put down the book she had been flipping through.
"Senior Chang Huan, can I come in and have a seat?" Yue Ye asked as she blinked her eyes while looking at Jun Wu Xie, her tone of voice highly innocent but that pair of large eyes on her face were almost unnoticeably glancing behind her, at the entrance of the courtyard.
Jun Wu Xie noticed that brief instant of a signal from Yue Ye and slowly lowered her eyes as she said indifferently: "You may."
Yue Ye's face carried a timid smile as she walked towards Jun Wu Xie, and then sat down just beside her.
"Senior Chang Huan, I heard that when you were at the Pure Grace Palace, you took great care of my Big Brother and I had not had the opportunity to thank you all this while. It just happened that I brought some little snacks from the kitchen over here and if Senior Chang Huan does not mind them, then please have some." While saying that, Yue Ye put the box of snacks she was carrying in her hands down on the table, her face nervous as she looked at Jun Wu Xie.
Jun Wu Xie opened the box and reached her hand out for a piece. Before she had even put it in her mouth, Yue Ye who was seated beside her suddenly screamed out.
"Senior Chang Huan! What do you think you are doing?"
Yue Ye's face had changed drastically as she just stood up from the stone bench on her own, ignoring Jun Wu Xie completely as she reached her hand out to pull and tear at the clothes upon her own body.
With a loud split, Yue Ye's sleeve was forcefully torn off by herself.
Jun Wu Xie watched everything that was happening before her calmly, without the slightest ripple of emotion in her eyes.
Yue Ye's voice was pitiful and highly flustered, and if one did not see what was happening within the courtyard but just heard that scream, anyone would immediately assume that she had met with a mishap.
Accompanying Yue Ye's pitiful cry, several men dressed in the Shadow Moon Palace's uniform suddenly came rushing in!
"Save me!" Yue Ye wailed as she ran away from beside Jun Wu Xie, crystalline tears flowing down her clear little face, the little figure trembling slightly like she had just suffered aggrievement as vast as the Heavens, sobbing like a pear blossom in rain as she hid behind the intruders.
"Chang Huan! How brazenly bold of you! You actually dared to take liberties against Yue Ye!" The leader of the group of Shadow Moon Palace disciples shouted as he glared at Jun Wu Xie.
Jun Wu Xie was calm as she watched all of this, her gaze then falling upon Yue Ye hidden behind the group of people.
It must be said, that Yue Ye's acting was truly exquisite.
Just seeing the way she looked, she was truly highly pitiful.
Chapter 1826: "Flagrant Framing (2)"
Jun Wu Xie was calm as she watched all of this, her gaze then falling upon Yue Ye hidden behind the group of people.
It must be said, that Yue Ye's acting was truly exquisite.
Just seeing the way she looked, she was truly highly pitiful.
The several Shadow Moon disciples did not wait for an explanation before they surrounded Jun Wu Xie heavily. From the start to end, there wasn't much of an expression on Jun Wu Xie's face, but she just watched the whole clumsy display of a set up with a cold gaze.
There was not a single semblance of technique to speak of at all but just carried with flagrantly impunity.
"Chang Huan." An old sounding voice suddenly sounded, and Elder Yue came walking in slowly through the entrance to the courtyard. Staring at Jun Wu Xie who was well surrounded, the venom in his eyes was completely undisguised.
"Tell me, why are you always up to no good? When you wounded those disciples in the palace before, the Palace Lord forgave you for it. When you broke out from the dungeon, the Palace Lord had also forgiven you for that. But now you have actually committed such a nefarious deed, bankrupt of all moral decency. It seems that your abominable nature would not change and I would really like to see whether the Palace Lord will continue to forgive you in this matter." Elder Yue said with the edges of his mouth curled up, looking at Jun Wu Xie wickedly. He did not believe that Jun Wu Xie would still be able to escape unscathed in this round.
In order to frame Jun Wu Xie, he had even implicated Yue Ye into it. Having paid such a high price, all just to break off this wing of Elder Ying's.
Once Jun Wu Xie was crushed, then Elder Ying would definitely be dragged into it, and along with that, his status and position in the Shadow Moon Palace would be completely toppled. Never would he then have the chance to climb back up.
With this step, Elder Yue was highly confident. He did not believe that Jun Wu Xie could possibly still turn things around.
"I would now like to see if you still have anything to say for yourself." Elder Yue sneered.
Jun Wu Xie looked at Elder Yue looking triumphant with glee, while she remained uncannily composed.
"You are that confident?" Jun Wu Xie said slowly.
"It's not that I'm confident, but it's just that you have been repeatedly courting death. Yue Ye is so innocent and pure, how could she possibly lie? Look at how pitiful she looks, anyone seeing that will feel anguished. Moreover, so many of us here saw you committing the deed, could this many of us here all be wrong?" Elder Yue said unperturbed, the glee in his tone of voice undisguised.
This time, he came here with utmost confidence that he would be able to push Jun Wu Xie over into the abyss, and no matter how articulate Jun Wu Xie was, there was no way of arguing her way out of this.
Yue Ye was still so young, and was highly timid, which the Shadow Moon Palace Lord knew very well. No one would ever believe that Yue Ye could possibly frame anyone.
"Alright then." Jun Wu Xie stood up.
The disciples surrounding her immediately retreated a few steps. Even though their objective today was clear, but Jun Wu Xie's powers still made them rather fearful.
"I'll go with you to see the Palace Lord." Since Elder Yue wanted to play so badly, then she would play with him good and proper.
Only wishing that he had better not regret it.
Elder Yue saw Jun Wu Xie's reaction with satisfaction, his head lifted slightly.
"Then shall we go? There is no need for you to drag it out any longer. Elder Ying has been sent out of the palace on an inspection by the Palace Lord, and he will not be returning for quite a while. No one will be able to save you." Elder Yue said with a laugh.
Upon saying that, Elder Yue turned himself around and walked towards the outside of the courtyard, and before he left, he pulled the still sobbing Yue Ye along with him.
Yue Ye was dragged along by Elder Yue to leave. She turned her head to look at Jun Wu Xie as she continued to sob, and in those large eyes that were brimming with tears, a peculiar glint flashed briefly, but was quickly concealed by Yue Ye.
Jun Wu Xie walked out of her own courtyard while being watched and escorted by a bunch of the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's disciples, following behind Elder Yue as they made their way towards the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's main palace hall.
What kind of a show would be waiting for her there?
She would just wait and see.
Chapter 1827: "Flagrant Framing (3)"
In the Shadow Moon Palace's main hall, the Shadow Moon Place Lord was glowing radiantly as he sat in the ruling seat. As his health had gradually turned for the better, it allowed the Shadow Moon Palace Lord who had been dispirited for so long seem to feel like he had regained back his condition from a few years back and his body no longer felt so lethargic.
No Palace Lord would refuse such a perfect condition of health and he wished for nothing more than to grasp at this period of time, and pick up all the pieces he had neglected these past few years.
Over the past few days, the Shadow Moon Palace Lord had been in good spirits and he had been smiling a lot more as well.
But someone just had to come disturb the great spirits that had been so hard to come by.
Currently perusing the reports of the Shadow Moon Palace, the Shadow Moon Palace Lord suddenly heard someone announcing an arrival and he raised up his head to look at the person who made the announcement.
"What is it this time? Do you need to be so flustered?" The Shadow Moon Palace Lord asked as his brows creased together. He had seldom been involved with the Shadow Moon Palace's affairs the past few years and most of it had been handed over to Elder Yue and Elder Ying. Now that he was taking over once again, although he was exhilarated, but wanting to get a complete grasp of everything still took quite a lot out of him.
"My Lord..... Elder Yue brought some men here, and they said that the matter concerns Chang Huan."
"It's Elder Yue again?" The Shadow Moon Palace Lord furrowed his brows slightly. Elder Yue had been with the Shadow Moon Palace a longer time than he had. It could even be said that Elder Yue had watched him grow up and even after he became the Palace Lord, he was still highly respectful to Elder Yue. But he was no fool and he could naturally see that Elder Yue had repeatedly tried to pick on Jun Wu Xie.
With Jun Wu Xie, the Shadow Moon Palace Lord was highly satisfied with her. A youth that was highly gifted and unwaveringly loyal, which was just what the Shadow Moon Palace needed the most. Additionally, the Melted Snow Elixir that Jun Wu Xie presented to him had been extremely helpful to him and the Shadow Moon Palace Lord was very fond of this young disciple in his heart.
With Elder Yue trying to make things difficult for Jun Wu Xie, it had more or less made the Shadow Moon Palace Lord think it unsuitable.
"Alright, let them come in." The Shadow Moon Palace Lord gave a wave of his hand, and then put the scroll he was holding aside.
Very soon, Elder Yue came striding into the palace hall, and at his side, with a pale and ashen looking Yue Ye, her clothes in a state of disarray.
The Shadow Moon Palace Lord had been smiling, but when he saw the wrecked state that Yue Ye was in, the smile at the corners of his mouth immediately disappeared without a trace left.
"My Lord!" Elder Yue knelt down and howled.
Yue Ye then followed suit and knelt, trembling slightly.
And stepping into the palace hall right behind, Jun Wu Xie who was lined by a bunch of disciples watching over her then peacefully knelt in the middle of the hall.
"Elder Yue, what is going on here?" The Shadow Moon Palace Lord asked, a tinge of impatience shrouding over his heart, as the situation before his eyes made him feel that something was wrong.
"My Lord! I beg for you to address this for Little Ye! Although Little Ye is not your subordinate's biological granddaughter, but I have brought her up by my side from when she was still very young, and I treat her no differently than if she was of my blood. Your subordinate has always doted on Little Ye very much and had never thought that Little Ye would come to suffer such humiliation today. I implore for my Lord to right the wrong done upon Little Ye!" Without a word about anything else, Elder Yue had immediately howled for justice to be done for the aggrievement suffered before the Shadow Moon Palace Lord, the highly rueful and mournful cry in desperate plea, sounding very emotionally moving.
"What kind of humiliation did Little Ye suffer?" As expected, after the Shadow Moon Palace Lord heard that Yue Ye had suffered humiliation, his face had changed drastically, his eyes filling up with rage.
Elder Yue made a grand gesture of raising up a hand, to point it straight at Jun Wu Xie who was kneeling on one side of him, and his voice filled with raging hatred, he said: "It's Chang Huan! Chang Huan took advantage of the fact that he enjoyed the favour my Lord bestowed upon him, and grew so arrogant that thinks everyone has to bow down to him, that he actually attempted to take liberties with Little Ye! If your subordinate had not managed to rush there in time, I'm afraid....."
Chapter 1828: "Flagrant Framing (4)"
"What did you say! ?" The Shadow Moon Palace Lord glared with his eyes widened, his shocked gaze sweeping between Yue Ye and Jun Wu Xie.
"My Lord! Your subordinate has also been helpless against it! Chang Huan had prided himself to have won credit by presenting my Lord with the medicine and had been getting more brazen and wilful with his actions over the recent period. Your subordinate knows that he is highly valued by my Lord and the fact that he is also a disciple groomed by Elder Ying made me not dare to exert any control upon him. But today, as Little Ye thought to go thank Chang Huan on her elder brother's behalf, no one could have expected that when she had just reached Chang Huan's residence, Chang Huan had immediately lost his sensibilities and set his claws all over Little Ye, seeking to take liberties with her. It was fortunate that the disciple that escorted Little Ye there noticed that something was amiss and he was injured by Chang Huan when he stepped up to stop him. Your subordinate had then immediately rushed over upon hearing of the news." Elder Yue harshly criticised Jun Wu Xie's wilful impudence. And at the moment his voice dropped, a highly battered and badly bruised youth came walking into the palace hall to kneel down, timelily corroborating with Elder Yue's words.
Jun Wu Xie swept her gaze over to look at the youth kneeling there with his shining bruises and a chill rose inside her eyes. From the moment Yue Ye had come into her little courtyard till the time she was "invited" to come to the main palace hall, she had not ever met this disciple, but Elder Yue was forcibly pinning the responsibility for this person's injuries, right onto her head.
In order to bring her down, Elder Yue had really gone to great lengths.
To have arranged everything so appropriately for every single crime she was being accused of.
"Reporting to my Lord..... your disciple wanted to stop Chang Huan, but was not a match for him at all, and hence had....." The injured disciple was shaking as he knelt there on the floor, not daring to even raise up his head, looking like he had been overcome with terror from the beating that Jun Wu Xie had given him.
The words of that disciple had been filled with trembles and it was not merely due to him being too heavily injured, but it was also from fear.
A green vein throbbed violently on the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's forehead, his eyes imbued with rage as he stared at Jun Wu Xie kneeling in the palace hall.
Elder Yue's words, the disciple's words, and the pitiful state that Yue Ye was in all seemed to be pinning the crime dead set upon Jun Wu Xie, not giving her the slightest chance to retaliate in the slightest.
"Chang Huan, is what they are all saying true?" The Shadow Moon Palace Lord asked through gritted teeth as he stared at Jun Wu Xie. If the incident today had fallen upon any other disciple, he would not have even asked a single word but would have immediately have the person executed.
But even then, the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's rage was already clearly evident in his tone.
Jun Wu Xie raised her head slowly, her gaze calm as she looked at the Shadow Moon Palace Lord who was trying very hard to suppress his rage.
"What does my Lord think?" Jun Wu Xie queried instead of answering.
The expression on the face of the Shadow Moon Palace Lord then became uglier.
Was Chang Huan turning around and questioning him instead! ?
Elder Yue snickered inside his heart. If Jun Wu Xie was to weep and cry for mercy, pleading for a redress of the grievance he was suffering, it must be able to appease the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's rage a little. But with such direct and candid words being used, it was as good as her questioning the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's judgement, which would not only serve no effect in helping herself, but cause the fire in the Shadow Moon Palace Lord's heart to burn more intensely!
"Chang Huan! Even when you're before the Palace Lord you still dare to be so impetuous! ? When the Palace Lord asks you a question, you will just need to answer it properly! Could you have forgotten your own identity? How dare you question the Palace Lord!" Elder Yue's face was cold and hard as he berated Jun Wu Xie, his heart wishing that Jun Wu Xie would become even more audacious, to make the Shadow Moon Palace Lord completely vexed with him.
Jun Wu Xie could not even be bothered to look at Elder Yue at all but just fixed her gaze upon the Shadow Moon Palace Lord and said in a tone that was neither servile nor hostile: "Is there even anything that I need to explain for? My Lord is both brilliant and wise and would naturally have your own judgement. For things that I have never done, I am of the belief that my Lord would declare me innocent."
Chapter 1829: "Flagrant Framing (5)"
Jun Wu Xie could not even be bothered to look at Elder Yue at all but just fixed her gaze upon the Shadow Moon Palace Lord and said in a tone that was neither servile nor hostile: "Is there even anything that I need to explain for? My Lord is both brilliant and wise and would naturally have your own judgement. For things that I have never done, I am of the belief that my Lord would declare me innocent."
"....." Elder Yue's eyes flared wide to stare incredulously at Jun Wu Xie. Things have already reached such a stage and Jun Wu Xie could still say such words so calmly, which was truly beyond what he could have expected.
There was no rebuttal, and no rage. The wasn't even the kind of indignant fury when one was being falsely accused and Jun Wu Xie was just merely showing her belief in the Shadow Moon Palace Lord in the most calm demeanor.
Elder Yue had thought Jun Wu Xie would dig her own grave but just that one statement had changed the situation completely.
Her calmness and the words she said to the Shadow Moon Palace Lord was imperceptibly telling the Shadow Moon Palace something.
It made the Shadow Moon Palace Lord have no choice but to do everything he could to calm himself down, to seriously reassess the veracity of the entire situation, and not allow himself to be led just by a bellyful of rage.
When faced with a disciple who possessed such high gift and had helped him greatly before to say such words relaying his strong trust, even if the Shadow Moon Palace Lord felt very much like exploding in rage, he would have to think hard about it first.
A disciple who had such a grave accusation pinned onto him was could still be so calm, the Palace Lord just could not help but start to think whether there could have been a misunderstanding within.
The Shadow Moon Palace Lord drew in a deep breath and leaned back in his ruling seat, his eyes narrowed as he looked at the cold and indifferent Jun Wu Xie.
If he were to just carelessly declare Jun Wu Xie's guilt, it would also bring harm upon the trust and authourity he commanded as the Melted Snow Elixir that Jun Wu Xie presented to him before had helped him greatly afterall, and that was no secret throughout the Shadow Moon Palace.
"Chang Huan, since you believe in my judgement and you feel that you are innocent, then shouldn't you tell me of everything that happened in this incident completely? I am willing to believe in your character, but as so many people are willing to stand as witnesses and if you do not explain a thing or two, basing it just on my trust in you alone will not be able to convince the masses." The Shadow Moon Palace Lord had taken a great deal of effort before he was willing to suppress the fiery rage he felt in his heart.
Yue Ye's relationship with him, in the entire Shadow Moon Palace, only Elder Yue alone knew.
Even if the rage was raging in flames in his heart, he could not let it show too obviously.
The flames that had initially been poised to spread, was gradually quenched by just a few words from Jun Wu Xie. The rage that Elder Yue had sought to fan and incite in the Shadow Moon Palace Lord for him to execute Jun Wu Xie in the shortest time possible had gone down the drain.
And all of this, had long been within Jun Wu Xie's control.
Elder Yue had wanted to use the feelings that the Shadow Moon Palace Lord held towards Yue Ye to frame her. But Elder Yue had forgotten just one point. And that was the guilty conscience and shame that the Shadow Moon Palace Lord felt!
As the Palace Lord of the Shadow Moon Palace, it was very normal that he would have a girl he likes. But when the target of his affections was a little girl that was just twelve years of age, that normality became a strange situation. Even when he was the Palace Lord, he would not dare to reveal his heart's true desires or how would he be able to uphold his reputation?
The very thing that Elder Yue wanted to use against her, had coincidentally been reversed by Jun Wu Xie to retaliate against him.
And it was because of that layer of relations that made the Shadow Moon Palace Lord still hold certain misgivings despite the raging fury he felt, to have no choice but to look into it completely, before making a decision on it.
"I have never harmed Yue Ye. Yue Ye had indeed come to thank me, but what Elder Yue accused me of just now, I did not do it." Jun Wu Xie said as she looked at the Shadow Moon Palace Lord calmly. The Shadow Moon Palace Lord's head had by this time cleared up, awoken from the blinding rage.
And now after this.....
It's her turn to retaliate!
Chapter 1830: "Retaliation (1)"
"Chang Huan, you're still thinking to deny it? Don't tell me that Little Ye's clothes were torn by herself? And this person's injuries were self inflicted? Do you really think that everyone here is blind and were not able to see what you did?" Elder Yue hurried to harp and push the matter further seeing that Jun Wu Xie was bringing stability into the situation.
Jun Wu Xie glanced at Elder Yue, laughing coldly to herself in her heart.
[Isn't what he said all true?]
[Whether that disciple had inflicted his injuries on himself, she could not be certain, but, for Yue Ye's clothes, wasn't it ripped up by herself?]
[Thinking to falsely accuse her like this, you just wait!]
"My Lord, Yue Ye's clothes were not ripped up by herself and it was not done by any of the disciples but was actually by Elder Yue." Jun Wu Xie threw out that shocking statement all of a sudden.
"What?" With that, even the Shadow Moon Palace Lord was completely stunned.
[What is happening here?]
[Jun Wu Xie was actually claiming that Yue Ye's clothes were ripped by Elder Yue?]
[Did he hear that correctly?]
Elder Yue's face flushed a deep red with anger from Jun Wu Xie's words as he raised a hand to point at Jun Wu Xie and shouted: "What kind of a atrocious lie is this little bastard here spouting! ? Little Ye is my granddaughter so how would I....."
"Whether you will or not, you have already done it. And you cannot now just turn it around to pin it upon me head only because I stumbled upon you committing such a nefarious deed. Elder Yue, do you know how many people are clearly aware of the kind of things you secretly do in the Shadow Moon Palace? Have you really sincerely treated Yue Ye and Yue Yi as your granddaughter and grandson?" Jun Wu Xie asked as she stared coldly at Elder Yue.
[This time, he came to court his own death, and there was no one else for him to blame.]
"What nonsense are you saying! ?" Elder Yue's heart was greatly startled. He had never thought that Jun Wu Xie would suddenly point up his unusual inclinations at a time like this.
Elder Yue's pedophilia was no longer that much of a secret in the Shadow Moon Palace and not only the Palace Lord and the various Elders knew about it, but some of the disciples who had been in the Shadow Moon Palace for a longer period of time have also heard something about it as well.
In the beginning, the victims of Elder Yue's oppression were all done under the cover of adoption and it was because of Yue Yi's gifted talent that made Elder Yue reluctant to waste such a good pawn that he then simply turned and set his sight upon the younger disciples within the palace. All these disciples had lost their lives not too long after, unable to endure through Elder Yue's evil claws. In the Shadow Moon Palace, young disciples often went missing and everyone turned a blind eye to these incidents and they did not dare to even bring it up at all.
But though unspoken of, everyone knew in the hearts just what it really was.
"I'm spouting nonsense? Elder Yue, I would like to ask you one thing. When I went with Senior Yue Yi to the Pure Grace Palace, why were there so many hidden scars from old wounds on his body?" Jun Wu Xie asked with an eyebrow arched, revealing what she saw when she had treated Yue Yi's injuries back in the Pure Grace Palace.
"Lies!" Elder Yue was feeling rather flustered.
Jun Wu Xie gave a cold laugh and then raised her head to look at the Shadow Moon Palace Lord.
"My Lord, in regards to Elder Yue's inclinations and preferences, your disciple should not be commenting on it. But your disciple really just cannot bear to see Elder Yue bullying such a young and innocent little girl and I had not thought that a single moment of your disciple's nosiness had instead led Elder Yue to exact revenge upon me in such a manner. My Lord can look into the truth of the matter carefully as your disciple's conscience is clear." In order to send someone to his doom, one did not need to spell everything out too clearly, but merely to plant the seed of suspicion, and then just wait for it to sprout and grow.
Elder Yue had never in his dreams ever thought that Jun Wu Xie could be so composed in thought, even in a situation that was so highly disadvantageous to her, that she would still able to turn things around to bite back into him, latching tightly right onto Elder Yue's faults so hard that Elder Yue could not even say a thing in rebuttal.