After taking a bath and changing clothes, her heart was still pounding non-stop.
She witnessed Tang Rao almost being killed by the Eight Great Vajra. If it weren't for Wang Han and the ancestors who stepped in to save him, the Kao Shan Sect would have been in chaos by now. And if sothing truly happened to Tang Rao, the entire Kao Shan Sect would be leaderless, and her goal would be achieved, while the Qin Family would no longer use the fact that Qin Qing is their daughter, raised by them with difficulty, to morally blackmail her.
The guilt on Qin Qing's conscience would gradually disappear with the help of the Qin Family killing Tang Rao.
"Miss, are you alright? You look so pale. Should I call a doctor to check on you?"
Chun Ping poured out the bathwater for Qin Qing before standing behind her again, looking concerned.
"No need, but it's ti to report back to Grandpa. There was a hiccup in this mission, soone forcibly intervened, and the mission failed. I hope Grandpa can forgive , right?"
When Qin Qing called him Grandpa, there was always a hint of reluctance.
The old man who had always been a majestic figure in her mind was now just a snake-hearted man with grand ambitions. It's one thing for him to want to take shortcuts, but he also wanted to drag Qin Qing down and bury her happiness in the dirt.
All of this was Qin Qing's own doing. When Elder Qin found her, she should have bravely said no for the sake of her feelings, but she didn't. She put family first and was willing to sacrifice a lifeti of happiness to help the Qin Family accomplish what they wanted.
"Will doing this really make you happy, Miss? If it won't, then we shouldn't go on. We shouldn't destroy everything about ourselves and our loved ones for that family, right?"
Although Chun Ping was sent by the old man to serve Qin Qing for a period of ti, she saw clearly how Qin Qing felt about Tang Rao. Chun Ping knew all too well about Qin Qing's turmoil and conflict. As a woman herself, this ti Chun Ping didn't try to advise Qin Qing from the perspective of being the old man's maid, but from a woman's perspective, telling her that there's still ti to stop before it's too late, before they have gone too far down the wrong path.
Tang Rao would never forgive a traitor. By then, it wouldn't be Tang Rao dying, but Qin Qing. Would this couple really co to the point of watching each other die?
Moved by Chun Ping's words, tears welled up in Qin Qing's eyes and she couldn't hold them back any longer.
"Chun Ping, you're not in my position; you don't understand what it's like to be unable to help yourself. Do you think that if I just tell Grandpa that I don't want to do it anymore because I can't bear to leave Tang Rao, Grandpa will let go?"
Even as the daughter of the Qin Family, once she's of no value, the Qin Family won't protect her. Especially after Qin Qing learned such a big secret, she had no choice but to either get deeply involved in the conspiracy with them or beco a discarded chess piece on the Qin Family's path of expansion. The fate of a chess piece, of course, is to be discarded.
"Miss, does it really have to co to that?"
Watching Qin Qing cry, Chun Ping couldn't help but cry as well.
However, after Qin Qing decided to stand with the Qin Family, Chun Ping thought about what would happen if the mission failed and Qin Qing was retaliated against by Tang Rao. At that ti, they, as the maids, would also beco sacrificial pawns of the Qin Family.
Each of them had their own thoughts and plans, but the mistress and servant never truly aligned or stood on the sa side.
"Yes, this path will definitely continue. If you're scared, you still have room to maneuver and can return to the Qin Family to serve my grandfather."
Chun Ping indeed wanted to return; the Qin Family was a place far from death, unlike being by Qin Qing's side, where there was constant danger of losing one's life. But can she say she wants to return to the Qin Family? No, unless she wanted to go back right now.
Feigning resolve, Chun Ping said, "Miss, what are you saying? Since I'm here to serve you, I've made up my mind to move forward and retreat with you. Whatever you ask of , I'll do without a single complaint."
She almost raised her right hand to swear to the Heavenly Dao to express her determination to stay by Qin Qing's side.
"What if I tell you to kill Tang Rao right now?"
Qin Qing's face no longer showed any tears, it was cold and grim, fully determined to find a way out once she reached the end of the road.
She just stared at Chun Ping, observing her every expression and action once she ntioned killing Tang Rao.
After watching Chun Ping for a long ti, Qin Qing finally put away her resolute look and turned around with a bright smile, saying, "I'm joking with you, Chun Ping, don't take it seriously."
Being frightened by her mistress, the maid fell to the ground, her legs weak, not daring to look Qin Qing in the eye.
Even if she's foolish, Qin Qing knew Chun Ping was guilty, but Chun Ping also knew the secret of the Qin Family. From the mont she learned the secret, her fate was like Qin Qing's, do the task or die, there was no other choice.
"Chun Ping, you're a sensible person, you know how to choose. Let remind you, one who understands the tis is a great person. Don't make wrong choices just because I did, and lead yourself astray."
If Qin Qing made a wrong choice, Elder Qin would naturally punish her, but if Qin Qing found out she was betrayed by her maid, the first person she would want to kill would be the one sitting on the ground.
"Chun Ping understands, Chun Ping will keep Miss's best interests at heart and will never betray Miss."
After speaking, she forced her numb legs to kowtow three tis in front of Qin Qing, only then did it lessen so of the anger in Qin Qing's heart.
"Get up, don't let people outside think I enjoy abusing my servants if they see you kneeling here."
Seeing Qin Qing's expression soften, Chun Ping trembled as she got up off the ground. As she exited, she was still a bit dazed.
It turned out Miss wasn't lacking cruelty; she just didn't show it in front of others.
The look she had earlier, as if wanting to kill soone, made Chun Ping's spine tingle, like another person had appeared within Qin Qing.
After Chun Ping left the room, Qin Qing didn't move. She sat under the eaves in a shaded place, staring blankly at the blue sky and white clouds. Occasionally the wind blew, lifting her hair, and she suddenly felt the whole world seed a bit unreal.
She recalled her grandfather urging her repeatedly to open the array and secretly bring those eight people into the Kao Shan Sect. He also said that if she didn't want to personally kill Tang Rao, this was the only way to avoid doing it herself.
Not wanting to personally kill Tang Rao, she could only act like a puppet, doing whatever her grandfather demanded, personally leading the eight people in, then sneaking away to hide and watch the Eight Great Vajra deal with Tang Rao.
Once the mission failed, she would quietly return.
She thought her little actions were flawless, but Qin Qing didn't know her deeds had already been caught by Wang Han and the others.
Even Tang Rao began to suspect Qin Qing.
"I hope what I'm doing is right."
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