Chapter 43: Madwoman – Sister Isn’t Crazy, Sister’s Doing Great Part 2

“Most of those General Bureau criminals have Demon Poison in them and are locked year-round in damp, dark prisons without sunlight. For the mastermind to quietly collect Demon Poison, they’re the perfect targets. Extracting the Demon Poison would also stabilize their minds. Once they pass the General Bureau’s assessments and get released, they can roam as low-level General Bureau employees, helping the mastermind achieve their goals.”

Shen Minghuan’s speculation seemed spot on.

It was indeed the case.

Demons and humans had different baselines, so demon-on-demon killings didn’t carry heavy sentences. It depended on numbers and motives. As long as it wasn’t a death sentence, they could redeem themselves through labor and punishment.

Qiao Yan was a prime example.

Her family had incited Embracing Snow Clan unrest and was suspected of harming Ye clansmen.

But the latter lacked solid evidence, and for the former, she wasn’t the ringleader. She had the blood of a few Rabbit Demons on her hands, but ultimately avoided execution. After enduring heavy punishment, she passed tests through labor and mental stability, got released, and secured a General Bureau job.

Though it took her centuries to climb out of prison and gain an identity there, for demons, a few centuries wasn’t too long.

If the mastermind could incite Qiao Yan, they could very well have incited other released prisoners too.

Shen Minghuan had held her high position for so long not just through ruthlessness but also sharp wits. “I just got details from the Investigation Department too. They managed to silently kill Ye Lan with that crude method—who knows how many Ye clansmen they harmed before her.”

“If they’d listened to me back then and executed everyone linked to physician deaths or remotely suspicious, evidence or not…” Shen Minghuan’s voice trailed off. She deliberately glanced at Ye Xi before continuing. “Your Ye Clan might have lost fewer people.”

“To me, not only the criminals from our Embracing Snow Clan, but all the prisoners held by the other clans should be killed outright. They don’t deserve redemption.”

Shen Minghuan’s killing intent was evident, and it somewhat swayed Ye Xi.

She was now deep in the midst of this mess, unable to take a single step without caution, and she might be ambushed at any moment. Rather than living in constant fear, it was better to strike first.

If she could make the first move before others acted against her, she wouldn’t have to worry about implicating Shen Mingjin. With You Nian by her side now, she could store solid evidence at any time. Even if she struck preemptively, as long as the other party had something shady going on, she could obtain proof. But her own strength seemed insufficient.

Shen Mingjin rarely managed Embracing Snow Clan affairs. She had always done her duty as a mediator. Seeing Shen Minghuan’s proposal that ignored consequences entirely, she still couldn’t hold back her advice: “Shen Minghuan, random killing without evidence really will cause chaos. As Embracing Snow Clan Leader, you can’t act purely on personal wishes.”

Shen Minghuan didn’t respond to Shen Mingjin. Instead, she suddenly turned to the pensive Ye Xi. “Ye Xi, I think you agree with me.”

Seeing that Ye Xi didn’t refute her, she laughed wildly. “We’re very alike.”

“No, I’m not like you.”

Ye Xi didn’t deny that she found some truth in Shen Minghuan’s words, but she also knew full well how crucial evidence was in a world governed by rules.

“Clan Leader!” Wen Mizhen acted as if she couldn’t hear Ye Xi’s rebuttal. Ever since Shen Minghuan had said she and Ye Xi were alike, she had been consumed by intense jealousy. “Ye Xi is just an ordinary person. She has no right to be compared to you.”

Shen Minghuan didn’t even look down at Wen Mizhen. She calmly arranged Wen Mizhen’s fate: “Wen Secretary, from tomorrow onward you don’t need to come to work anymore. I’ll arrange for you to reside in Plume Garment Garden and assign enough little demons to care for you.”

Ye Xi immediately understood that the “care” Shen Minghuan mentioned meant surveillance.

Shen Mingjin and Wen Mizhen heard it too.

Wen Mizhen crawled forward a little and grabbed Shen Minghuan’s pant leg. “Clan Leader, you can’t do this to me.”

“You’ve meddled too much.” Shen Minghuan lowered her gaze slightly. “You want to control my little sister, and now you want to control me too.”

“I didn’t, I…”

Shen Minghuan was a ruthless demon. After speaking, she didn’t give Wen Mizhen a chance to defend herself.

She picked Wen Mizhen up and hurled her out with force.

Soon, the demons who had been following her and guarding outside rushed in to drag Wen Mizhen away. From then on, the rest of her life would be lived under surveillance, and she would be executed immediately if anything went wrong.

Shen Mingjin also thought Wen Mizhen should leave her position. As Si Ruoling’s secretary, she didn’t really heed Si Ruoling’s words, offending her repeatedly one after another, even attacking Ye Xi for selfish desires. But Shen Mingjin was inherently soft-hearted, a snake who had known Wen Mizhen for so long. Seeing her collapse in despair, she felt a bit reluctant. “Shen Minghuan, why do you always have to take things to such extremes? Firing her would have been enough—why surveillance too?”

“She’s worked by Big Sis’s side for centuries and knows too many of our secrets. I can’t give her a chance to bite us back.” Shen Minghuan grabbed Shen Mingjin’s wrist, a flash of warning in her eyes. “Little Sis, do you know how many demons would scheme against you if the secret of your body were leaked?”

Shen Mingjin broke free from Shen Minghuan’s grip. “If you let me live independently instead of dragging me back every time, those demons around you wouldn’t know the secret of my body.”

“I’m doing it for your good. You need a companion. All the things I’ve done are to let you have a satisfactory partner.”

“Heh.” Before Shen Mingjin could speak, Ye Xi laughed first.

She genuinely found Shen Minghuan amusing. Not all grievances and pains could be resolved with a simple “for your own good.” Moreover, a large part of Shen Mingjin’s pain stemmed from her, making the phrase especially ironic coming from Shen Minghuan’s mouth.

The love Shen Minghuan gave to Shen Mingjin was like a broken air conditioner in an old house during winter—turning it on brought no warmth, and leaving it off was even colder.

Its internal parts were faulty too, so whenever it started, it made an unbearable racket. Listening to it for too long felt like it would pierce one’s eardrums. Being too outdated, it couldn’t be repaired, and due to poverty, it couldn’t be replaced.

Hearing Ye Xi’s laughter, Shen Minghuan turned an inquiring gaze toward her and suddenly noticed Ye Xi looking at her right arm.

Realizing something, her face twisted instantly. “Are you standing up for my little sis?”

Provoked, Shen Minghuan conjured a short blade and handed it to Ye Xi. “I’ll indulge you.”

“Shen Minghuan, calm down.”

Ignoring Shen Mingjin’s obstruction, Shen Minghuan’s eyes turned red, her normal pupils shifting to vertical slits. She forced the short blade into Ye Xi’s hand and guided it toward her arm. “Come on, do it! Don’t just talk!”

Ye Xi felt a momentary temptation but first looked questioningly at Shen Mingjin.

Shen Mingjin didn’t catch Ye Xi’s glance; she was trying to stop the suddenly deranged Shen Minghuan.

“Don’t block me.” Shen Minghuan shook off Shen Mingjin’s hand and gripped Ye Xi’s tightly, stabbing fiercely into her own right arm. She screamed madly at Ye Xi, “Ye Xi, don’t you have any strength? Stab deeper! Hurry up and do it!”

As she spoke, Shen Minghuan dragged Ye Xi’s hand to stab even deeper.

Without confirming Shen Mingjin’s intentions, Ye Xi hadn’t used any force at all.

She was forcibly dragged by Shen Minghuan, compelled to grip and thrust the blade.

Unlike ordinary demons, Shen Minghuan had freakishly immense strength and easily overpowered Ye Xi.

Shen Minghuan was especially vicious to herself, showing no mercy—whether to evoke Shen Mingjin’s sympathy or because she had truly gone mad.

The short blade pierced through Shen Minghuan’s arm and sank deeper. Shen Minghuan even lifted it upward slightly, and Ye Xi heard the blade scraping against bone.

Blood flowed down the arm and blade, splattering Ye Xi’s hand with Shen Minghuan’s blood.

Shen Minghuan’s vertical pupils turned blood-red as she descended into madness, repeatedly pressing the blade downward.

She truly seemed insane.

Thoroughly so.

The guards outside caught the scent of blood and, sensing Shen Minghuan was injured, burst in.

They moved to act against Ye Xi but were stopped by Shen Mingjin. Seeing it was her, the guards saluted her in unison. “Miss Mingjin!”

“My sister, she…” Shen Mingjin wanted to explain a bit to preserve Shen Minghuan’s image outside, but remembering these were Shen Minghuan’s trusted subordinates, she changed her mind.

Exhausted, Shen Mingjin directed the guards. “Pull her away and take her out of here. Have her adjust her emotions before showing up again. Don’t let the General Bureau people see her like this.”

“Yes!”

The guards were far more clear-headed than Wen Mizhen. They didn’t take advantage of their acquaintance with Shen Mingjin or her bodily secret to act out. Obeying her orders, they sprang into action.

They pried Shen Minghuan away and hoisted her off, vanishing immediately.

The bloodstained short blade was left behind, slipping from Ye Xi’s hand and clattering heavily to the floor.

Ye Xi hadn’t expected Shen Minghuan to suddenly go berserk. She wasn’t frightened, but she did think Shen Minghuan was a bit off.

“Ye Xi.”

Hearing Shen Mingjin’s voice, Ye Xi pulled her thoughts from that scene. “Sister, it wasn’t on purpose.”

“I know.” Shen Mingjin didn’t blame Ye Xi. She checked Ye Xi’s palm, confirming no cuts from the blade, and calmly explained the facts. “She often does this when apologizing to me.”

“Often?”

“She’s a madwoman.” Shen Mingjin’s voice paused for a long time before she continued, “Everyone in our family is.”

Without thinking, Ye Xi refuted her. “Sister isn’t.”

Shen Mingjin lifted her gaze from Ye Xi’s palm and slowly settled it on her face.

Ye Xi had hesitated over the direction of her feelings but never doubted Shen Mingjin’s character as a snake. She firmly told Shen Mingjin, “Sister is good. Especially, especially good.”

“Ye Xi…”

“Sister, you are good.” Ye Xi cut off Shen Mingjin, stopping her from further declaring that her family’s bloodline truly had issues. “Sister, with what happened in Wanghe Village, my assessment might change locations.”

Ye Xi clasped her hands to her chest, eyes sparkling with stars as she gazed beseechingly at Shen Mingjin. “Beautiful and kind Sister, you’re so good—you’ll definitely accompany me to the new assessment site, right?”

After noticing Shen Mingjin’s off mood, she no longer showed vulnerability or sadness. She transformed back into that bright, radiant sun, deliberately acting cute to coax Shen Mingjin.

Her auxiliary ability detected the lingering grief, so Shen Mingjin knew Ye Xi was deceiving her again with her bright facade. But she willingly swallowed the honey of the lie. “Ye Xi, I’ll always do my utmost to protect you.”

“Sister is the best!”

Shen Mingjin couldn’t quite tell which of Ye Xi’s words were true and which were false. She didn’t want to distinguish so clearly anymore. She was even beginning to forget the distance she had vowed to maintain.

In truth, Shen Mingjin was conflicted in this relationship.

On one hand, she wanted to keep distance and just be friends with Ye Xi. On the other, she was drawn to the occasional brilliance Ye Xi revealed…