"My heavens! It's the Jade Butterfly!"
King Ji and Jun Mohan exclaimed in shock.
"I can't believe Uncle was willing to give you the Jade Butterfly he's treasured for over ten years. It's truly incredible," King Ji said, astonished.
"Jade Butterfly?"
After hearing King Ji's words, Leng Ruoli examined the small wooden box more closely. Inside, a small butterfly glittered, a dazzling array of colors. No, it was a plant that looked like a butterfly.
"Yes, Consort Leng. This is the only Jade Butterfly on the entire continent. Factions nearly erupted into war over it back then. Later, my uncle stumbled upon it by chance, and he's kept it as a treasured possession for over ten years. Even my aunt and cousins don't know my uncle possessed a Jade Butterfly. My uncle only told me in secret, otherwise, I wouldn't have known he had one," King Ji sighed with a smile.
"If this Jade Butterfly is so precious, what exactly does it do?" Leng Ruoli furrowed her brows slightly and couldn't help but ask.
Hearing this, King Ji shook his head.
"Well, I only know it's an exceptionally rare medicinal herb for detoxifying. As for what kind of poisons it can cure, I'm not sure," King Ji replied truthfully.
"Li'er, quickly put away the Jade Butterfly. If word of this gets out, it will bring you immense trouble," Jun Mohan suddenly reminded her.
"Indeed, Consort Leng. You must not let anyone know you have this. It will truly bring you endless trouble," King Ji quickly chimed in.
"Alright!"
Leng Ruoli nodded in agreement upon hearing their words and immediately took the small wooden box containing the Jade Butterfly from the stone table, placing it into her sleeve and then into her system space.
"Consort Leng, forgive my presumption, but may I ask if you have a portrait of your mother?" King Ji asked after a moment of thought.
"King Ji, for what purpose do you require a portrait of my mother?" Leng Ruoli asked, her delicate eyebrows slightly knitted in confusion.
"Consort Leng, I have no other reason than to confirm someone's identity," King Ji quickly explained.
Upon hearing this, Leng Ruoli pondered for a moment and then said solemnly, "Yes! I have a portrait my father painted recently based on his memory of my mother."
"Then, Consort Leng, could you please lend it to me for a look? Just one look, so I can confirm that person's identity," King Ji pleaded.
Leng Ruoli could tell that King Ji had no ill intentions, so she agreed to his request and allowed him to see the portrait of the original owner's mother.
Afterward, she called her little maid.
"Xing'er, Xing'er, come to my chambers and bring me the portrait from under my dressing table," Leng Ruoli commanded loudly.
"Yes, Consort!"
Xing'er, who was standing at a distance, heard Leng Ruoli's words and immediately responded.
In truth, Leng Ruoli also had a portrait of the original owner's mother painted by Zhou Baiyu in her space. However, the painting Zhou Baiyu had given her only depicted the side profile of the original owner's mother, so her entire face could not be seen.
A few minutes later, Xing'er arrived before Leng Ruoli with a scroll painting. Leng Ruoli took it and carefully unrolled it. Instantly, a peerlessly beautiful woman appeared before them.
"It's her, it's her, it's really her. I never imagined that the woman who saved my uncle and me all those years ago was truly Consort Leng's mother," King Ji murmured to himself.
Everyone listened to King Ji's words, their minds filled with confusion.
"King Ji, what's wrong?" Leng Ruoli asked, puzzled.
"Consort Leng, over ten years ago, your mother saved my life and my uncle Shangguan Yi's life," King Ji said, his words astonishing.
"My mother saved your life and your uncle's life over ten years ago? What exactly happened?" Leng Ruoli asked, even more bewildered.
"More than a decade ago, Nan Zhao and Tian Wu Kingdom engaged in several wars. At that time, our Nan Zhao kingdom's court was in turmoil, and we were defeated multiple times by your Tian Wu Kingdom."
King Ji paused as he spoke.
"My uncle, Shangguan Yi, was a副将 (fùjiàng - deputy general) back then. Shortly after the war began, my father ordered him to the front lines. As for me, because I was fond of adventuring, I disguised myself as a soldier and followed my uncle to the battlefield. However, not long after, my identity was discovered by one of my uncle's subordinates. Later, because the commander disregarded my uncle's advice and forcibly marched out to fight the soldiers led by General Su Xun of Tian Wu Kingdom."
"As a result, our commander and his troops were no match for the soldiers led by General Su Xun of Tian Wu, suffering a crushing defeat. The commander's head was even severed by General Su Xun as a tribute to the Tian Wu Kingdom soldiers who had died in that war."
"My uncle's forces did not have enough men to support the upcoming battles, so he had to write to Bian Jing requesting reinforcements. In the end, we did not receive any reinforcements, but instead, a group of assassins came to assassinate my uncle Shangguan Yi and me. In this assassination attempt, I narrowly escaped death. It was my uncle who unhesitatingly blocked an arrow for me, saving my life. However, our surrounding soldiers and guards were ultimately no match for those assassins."
At this point, King Ji paused again.
"They were all killed by the assassins, and I was also severely wounded. At that moment, my uncle and I were surrounded by those masked figures. We thought we were doomed. Suddenly, a woman of peerless beauty flew out from the forest. That woman looked exactly like the woman in this portrait and bore a strong resemblance to you, Consort Leng. At that time, she was accompanied by several martial arts experts who quickly eliminated the assassins targeting me and my uncle. They also had people tend to our wounds and gave both my uncle and me two Jade Dew Pills each, which allowed us to survive."
"However, during our treatment, my uncle and I also noticed that the woman who saved us was also severely injured, and she seemed to be poisoned. Within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, her once beautiful, clear, and bright black eyes had turned into blood-red eyes. Her eyes looked very terrifying, and she was clearly enduring great pain, which startled both my uncle and me. Later, after seeing that we were alright, she led her people away."
King Ji meticulously recounted the events of that year.
His story left everyone sighing.
"King Ji, you're saying the woman who looked so much like my mother was poisoned, and it caused her black eyes to turn blood-red?" Leng Ruoli asked, her brow furrowed.
"Yes, the woman who saved us seemed to be poisoned. According to my uncle, that woman had been afflicted with a rare poison, but my uncle didn't tell me what kind of poison it was," King Ji replied truthfully.