After walking for two more hours, the forest stretched out in front of them. Madam Cao knew they had traveled far beyond Beixing Sect territory. Since Dong Lanying had fallen asleep on her back, Madam Cao continued carrying the young woman, heading toward the path leading into the forest with a gentle smile on her face.
The crunch of the dried leaves and bark beneath Madam Cao's feet eventually woke Dong Lanying. "Madam Cao, where are we?" she asked.
"We are two hours away from Beixing Sect," Madam Cao replied.
Feeling intensely sorry that Madam Cao had carried her for so long, Dong Lanying insisted, "Madam Cao, you can let me off here and go back."
Madam Cao looked back and saw no sign of pursuit, believing this to be the safest point. She walked to a small boulder and carefully set Dong Lanying down. She looked at her sadly and said, "Dong guniang, you should be safe now."
"Cao furen, thank you so much. I'm sorry for the inconvenience," Dong Lanying replied sincerely.
Madam Cao smiled faintly. "The prayer for the pity of Guying has not been ignored." She reached into her robe and handed Dong Lanying a piece of clear jade with the name Mingyu inscribed on it. "Take this."
"What is this?" Dong Lanying asked.
"Take it as something to remember me by," Madam Cao said. She looked at Dong Lanying. "Dong guniang, if you don't mind, can I ask for one of your earrings?"
Dong Lanying reached around her neck and took out a small jade ring on a red rope. She tied the rope around Madam Cao's neck. "I have had this as long as I can remember. This is better than earrings," she said, giving the woman something precious.
Madam Cao clutched the green jade ring. "Take good care of yourself." She turned and began to walk away, tears streaming down her face.
Then, from a distance, she spotted Cao Wenyan and twenty men rushing toward them. Madam Cao instantly turned and hurried back to Dong Lanying's side. "Dong guniang!" she cried out.
Dong Lanying stopped, sensing the panic. "What's wrong?"
Madam Cao cried out, "Wenyan and his men are coming. Go hide!"
As soon as Madam Cao finished her sentence, Cao Wenyan flew from his horse and delivered a severe kick to Dong Lanying's chest. Dong Lanying slid forty feet, hitting a tree before collapsing to the ground, where she vomited blood.
Madam Cao cried, "Dong guniang!" She rushed past her son and knelt beside Dong Lanying, pushing Cao Wenyan away.
Cao Wenyan was stunned by his mother's behavior. He knew she had always been detached, but for Dong Lanying, she was openly weeping.
Madam Cao took out her handkerchief and wiped the blood from the corner of Dong Lanying's mouth. She sniffed the odorous blood, then looked up at Cao Wenyan, her voice cold. "Give her the antidote."
"Mother, she is our enemy. She tried to kill Father many times and destroy the branches our sect," Cao Wenyan argued.
"I don't care," Madam Cao stated fiercely. She stretched out her hand. "Give her the antidote!"
Cao Wenyan stiffened. "I'm sorry, Mother. I can't decide on this."
Madam Cao quickly got up and slapped Cao Wenyan. She frantically searched his robe, found the ceramic bottle, and poured out a black pill—the antidote. She rushed back to Dong Lanying.
"Dong guniang, you take this. You are poisoned by the Seven Colors Pill," Madam Cao urged.
Cao Wenyan was furious and heartbroken; his mother, who had never once raised her hand to him, had just struck him. He clenched his sword, drew it, and rushed directly toward Dong Lanying. To his shock, Madam Cao immediately jumped up and blocked his sword. The tip of the sword pierced Madam Cao's gray robe, drawing a trace of blood.
Cao Wenyan retracted the sword, staring at the drop of blood. "Mother, why do you want to protect her?" he demanded.
Madam Cao pleaded, "Wenyan, you can kill anyone in this world, but you can't kill her. Please, let her go."
"I already told you; I can't let her go," he refused.
"As your mother, I beg you to let her go," she insisted.
"I can't. She is father's enemy, the daughter of Dong Shun," Cao Wenyan retorted.
Madam Cao cried out the terrifying truth. "Because she is Dong Shun's daughter, that is why you cannot kill her!"
Cao Wenyan shouted angrily, "Mother, why do you want to protect her so much? Anyway, I will kill her today!"
Madam Cao knelt on her knees, looking up at him. "Cao gongzi, please let Dong guniang go," she pleaded, using a formal address.
Cao Wenyan immediately knelt in front of her. "Mother, don't be like this. Please get up."
"If you don't promise me, I will not get up," Madam Cao warned.
Cao Wenyan stood up, desperate and unable to yield. "I'm sorry, mother, I can't."
Madam Cao quickly backed away and hugged Dong Lanying tightly. She cried as she looked at Cao Wenyan. "If you want to kill her, then you kill me first. This time, I won't let anyone take my Mingyu away from me!"
Dong Lanying's lips trembled in confusion. "What are you doing?"
Madam Cao cried against her. "Mingyu, please don't hate your mother. I was too weak at the time. That evil Cao Fengge took you away from me. No matter what happens, today, I won't let anyone take you away from me. I'm so sorry."
Cao Wenyan threw his sword on the ground in disbelief. He was as shocked as Dong Lanying. "How is it possible?"
Madam Cao then offered proof. "Mingyu, I am afraid that one day if we meet, I might not recognize you. So, I took the candle and burned your right ankle."
Dong Lanying was reeling from the trauma. "You are my mother? Father told me my mother is dead!"
Madam Cao cried, "No, I am your mother. You are my Mingyu."
Dong Lanying looked up and saw Cao Fengge walking toward them. She gently moved Madam Cao's hands away and limped toward Cao Fengge. She stopped in front of him and asked, her voice broken, "Is she my mother?"
Cao Fengge's face was unreadable. "Yes, she is your mother."
Dong Lanying's entire life was a lie, exposed by the arrival of Cao Fengge.
"Why did you say that my mother is dead?" Dong Lanying demanded, trembling with fury and betrayal.
Cao Fengge's face remained impassive. "You are my secret chess on the chessboard of the martial arts world. If you know your mother is still alive, your performance will not be as effective."
Dong Lanying's voice shook. "You told me that Xue Longwei and Xue Luxia killed my mother!"
"Lanying, I did all this to give you the best in the future," Cao Fengge claimed.
Dong Lanying sobbed, the full weight of her actions crashing down. "You lied to me. I have been living in lies for all these years. Because of your lies, I opened the trap to Butterfly Island. Because of your lies, my master, shimu, and my juniors must die." She dropped to her knees. "Rou'er, shijie is sorry to you." She closed her eyes, recalling the confused look in Shi Rou's eyes as she plunged the sword into her.
Madam Cao rushed to her, helping her up. "Mingyu, this is all my fault. If I was strong enough, I would never have let your demon father take you away," she wept.
Dong Lanying wiped her tears and looked directly at Cao Fengge. "For you, I am just a piece of chess you put on the chessboard, am I right?"
Cao Wenyan, utterly confused, interjected, "You always knew he is your father?" He turned to his father. "Father, that masked man I saw in Beixing Sect that time, that you said was an important piece of chess, is that her?"
Cao Fengge smiled, expressionless. "Yes, without her, how would Wang Zedong know that Kuo Jin Song's internal energy was cut in half and Mu Dishi was in Jinfeng Sect?" He laughed again. "That silly old fox Yuan thought he could defeat me, but instead he fell into my trap, because Lanying is my secret chess, I put beside him."
Dong Lanying made her final, painful choice. "From now on, I will no longer be your pawn, and I will no longer be used by you. The blood inside my veins belongs to the Cao, so whatever I've done for you in the past, take it as a thank you for giving me life. I will not reveal your secrets. If you feel that it is not safe enough, then kill me. I would rather follow shifu, shimu, and my juniors. They are the ones who loved me, and they are my real family, but I am so ruthless that I am the one who killed them." She cried openly. "I don't even have the courage to face Horan anymore."
Madam Cao stepped forward, fiercely protective. "Cao Fengge, if you hurt my daughter, I will reveal your secrets to the world!"
Cao Fengge offered a compromise. "Lanying, you can stay here in Beixing Sect."
Dong Lanying turned to Madam Cao, demanding loyalty. "Mother, are you going with him or me?"
Madam Cao's choice was swift. "Mingyu, Mother will accompany you." She looked at Cao Wenyan. "Wenyan, do you want to go with us?"
Cao Wenyan shook his head sadly. "Sorry, Mother, but I am a Cao. I have responsibilities."
Madam Cao was resigned. "Well, if you think the responsibilities are too great, then you come find us. We will be going back to stay with your grandfather."
Cao Wenyan managed a small smile. "Mother, take care of yourself."
Cao Fengge gave a final threat to his wife. "Furen, you know what will happen if you speak."
Madam Cao looked at him with cold loathing. "Cao Fengge, let us never meet each other again. Even after dirt covers our eyes, I still don't want to see you. The karma you created will eventually catch up to you." She grabbed Dong Lanying's left arm. "Mingyu, let's go to stay with your grandfather." The mother and daughter walked away and disappeared down the mountain path.
As Dong Lanying and Madam Cao disappeared, Cao Wenyan asked his father, still reeling from the shock. "Father, if Lanying is my sister, what about Yanmei?"
Cao Fengge leaned against Cao Wenyan's ear, whispering his final, monstrous secret. "Yanmei is my other secret chess. She is my bargain chip with Dong Shun." He looked at his son with a chilling certainty. "Don't be too attached to her. She will die sooner or later so that we can live."
Cao Wenyan knelt down, his composure shattered. "Father, please don't hurt Yanmei."
Cao Fengge was unmoved. "My purpose for raising her is to use her as my bargaining chip." He began to walk away, his voice chillingly final. "When the time comes, I will not hesitate to kill her."
Cao Yanmei, who had been hiding behind a rock, didn't make a single sound. She watched Cao Fengge, Cao Wenyan, Red Mice, and the others leave. Only when she was certain they were gone did she allow herself to breathe, then she began to sob uncontrollably. She felt utterly scared and lonely. Her mother had left with Dong Lanying. Her father was planning her death. Her brother had been unable to stop their father.
Cao Yanmei wept, whispering a name of someone she hoped could save her. "Yongzheng... Yongzheng, where are you?"
She wiped her tears, stood up on shaking legs, and began to walk. She headed toward the only place she thought she might find sanctuary or help: Tianshan.