“Eh…?”
Lu Qiancha was stunned by the question, her small face written with bewilderment.
Feeling a bit guilty, she shrank her neck and asked weakly, “Um, Sister Yuanjun, could you remind me where I left off last time?”
She had completely forgotten.
“Xiao Qiancha — “
Huang Hua immediately covered her face with her sleeve, her shoulders trembling slightly. Her voice carried an exaggerated sob as if she had suffered a great betrayal.
“Wuwuwu, is the story I have been looking forward to for so long not in Xiao Qiancha’s heart? This is truly heartbreaking…”
“No, no.” Lu Qiancha instantly panicked, her small head shaking like a rattle as she hurriedly defended herself.
“I… I just forgot which specific plot point I reached. It would be such a hassle to repeat it. Besides, Sister Yuanjun, you…”
Halfway through her sentence, she caught a glimpse through the gaps in Huang Hua’s fingers. There were no tears; instead, there was a sly, faint smile as the woman watched her reaction with great interest.
“Hmph — “
Lu Qiancha let out a dissatisfied sound. “Sister Yuanjun…”
“Alright, alright, I’ll stop teasing you.” Huang Hua waved her hand, then said with a smile, “Last time, you reached the part where the Queen, bewitched by the immortal-communicating conch, developed evil intentions and wanted to get rid of Ash Cinderella, the daughter of the minister of works.”
Lu Qiancha blinked and muttered, ‘What a good memory.’
However, Lu Qiancha only remembered the general outline of the story. She could only brace herself and continue based on her vague memories and improvisation.
“Next, in order to pull up the roots, the Queen secretly found seven talented experts with various skills and sent them to assassinate Ash Cinderella.”
“These seven assassins took advantage of a dark and windy night to quietly sneak into Ash Cinderella’s bedroom. Unexpectedly, as soon as they entered, they were stopped by a loyal guard by Ash Cinderella’s side.”
“Seeing their tracks exposed, the assassins stopped trying to hide. The leader, known as the Angry-faced Vajra, was said to be able to use the law of heaven and earth with unparalleled power. He was the first to attack, his eyes wide with rage as he let out a thunderous roar — “
Lu Qiancha even cleared her throat specifically to mimic the rough shout, “Tai! Take this — !”
“And then?” Huang Hua followed up, her eyes full of curiosity.
“And then?” Lu Qiancha spread her hands with an innocent face. “There was a loud *boom*. The Angry-faced Vajra’s law of heaven and earth grew too large, and his head slammed into the ceiling beam with a *clack*.”
“His eyes rolled back on the spot, and with a *thud*, he fell straight to the ground like a small mountain, unconscious.”
“Pfft — ” An uncontrollable giggle suddenly came from Huang Hua’s side.
Lu Qiancha followed the sound and saw a young maid beside Huang Hua covering her mouth, her shoulders shaking.
She was clearly amused by the lead assassin who had fainted before the battle even began.
Huang Hua slowly turned her head with an expressionless face, her eyes glancing over coldly.
The giggling maid’s face instantly turned pale. She fell to her knees with a *thud*, her voice trembling. “Yuanjun, forgive me! I have lost my manners! I will go receive my punishment now!”
“It is fine.” Huang Hua’s voice revealed no emotion. She simply waved her jade hand casually, but her gaze swept across all the standing figures in the hall.
“All of you, leave. I wish to be alone with the little one for a while.”
“As you command.”
The maids felt as if they had been granted a grand pardon. They bowed one after another, and their figures vanished like mist into the cold Moon palace. Soon, only Lu Qiancha and Huang Hua remained in the hall.
“Here.” Huang Hua personally refilled a cup of steaming immortal tea for Lu Qiancha and pushed it toward her.
She leaned forward slightly, her eyes sparkling with pure interest. “It is quiet now, and no one will disturb us. Xiao Qiancha, hurry and continue.”
“Ahem.”
Lu Qiancha unceremoniously picked up the teacup and took a large gulp. After clearing her throat and regaining some of her momentum as a storyteller, she continued, “Once the eldest brother fell, the second brother grew anxious.”
“Filled with grief and indignation, he roared at the guard with bloodshot eyes, ‘Scoundrel, I will make you pay for my brother’s life!’ After shouting, he charged forward with a scream.”
“This second brother is known as the divine calculator. It is said that his ears can hear the sounds of heaven and earth, and his eyes can pierce through the mysteries of yin and yang. He is best at predicting the future and seizing the initiative.”
“He rushed in front of the guard, remaining calm with a profound look. He raised his hand to calculate with his fingers and spoke with full confidence, ‘Hmph, this divine calculator has already seen through your movements. Your next move will surely be — a right hook to my nose and a left punch to my stomach.'”
Lu Qiancha paused and mimicked the guard scratching his head in confusion.
“When the guard heard this, he was stunned for a moment. Then, he said, ‘Oh.’ Immediately after, he honestly followed through with a *bang!* A right hook accurately hit the divine calculator’s nose.”
“*Thud!* Another left punch slammed into his stomach. It hit the divine calculator so hard that he saw stars. He curled up on the ground clutching his stomach, moaning and unable to get up.”
Next, Lu Qiancha vividly described the process of the remaining people’s defeat.
Until the very last person. Lu Qiancha took another sip of tea to moisten her throat.
“…Finally, it was the turn of the youngest of the seven assassins, the seventh brother. This seventh brother, known as Linglingqi, had a powerful magical artifact called the purple gold gourd.”
“It is said that as long as he calls out the opponent’s name and they answer, they will be sucked inside and turned into a pool of gore in an instant.”
“Linglingqi suppressed his fear and tremblingly held up the treasure gourd, shouting at the guard, ‘Tai! You evil scoundrel who harmed my brothers. If I call your name, do you dare to answer?'”
Lu Qiancha mimicked the guard scratching his head again. “The guard acted as if he didn’t hear clearly, or perhaps he was just too lazy to bother.”
“He took a large step forward and, without a word, landed a *clatter* of a punch. He cleanly knocked down Linglingqi while he was still posing, sending him to join his brothers.”
“Later, such a large commotion finally alerted the minister of works. He saw seven assassins in strange clothes lying unconscious in his home. Upon investigation, he discovered that the mastermind was actually the Queen.”
“The Lord minister was furious. He wrote a tearful complaint overnight and impeached the Queen in court the next morning.”
“This shocking case finally made the Queen, who was obsessed with the immortal-communicating conch, realize her mistake.”
“She destroyed the evil object that had confused her heart in public and repented to the King and the people with bitter tears.”
“From then on, the kingdom corrected its ways. The ruler and ministers were of one mind, the people lived in peace and happiness, and the country became increasingly prosperous.”
Lu Qiancha exhaled deeply and collapsed onto the table like a noodle. Although she felt there were some discrepancies from the story in her past life, the difference shouldn’t be too large.
She looked up at Huang Hua, waiting for her comment.
“This story is indeed interesting.”
Huang Hua looked at Lu Qiancha with a faint smile. With a wave of her wide sleeve, a bamboo scroll appeared on the table. “This is what you wanted. For a friendship price, how about 500 faith incense?”