Just moments before, Wang Li had also been disgusted by the potential filth on Su Qing.
That was why she had told Su Qing to postpone his task of washing her for a few days.
This delighted Su Qing.
'After all, what's so appealing about someone as flat as a runway?'
More importantly, Su Qing didn't dare move a muscle while washing her.
This way, he could also conserve some energy and mental focus.
Not long after, Su Qing cleaned the large wooden tub and the food box, then left in silence.
Wang Li's curiosity about him was minimal.
And Su Qing didn't dare do anything to draw more attention to himself.
He needed to practice his martial arts now.
...
「Three days later.」
Realm: Third-class [First Layer Cyan Snake Posture: Entry Level (46/500)]
Watching the diligent Su Qing wash her, Wang Li asked, "Wang Qi, isn't there anything you want to say to me?"
'This Wang Qi before me... in just a week, he's not so scrawny anymore.'
'More importantly, the fellow hasn't overstepped his bounds in the slightest.'
'Truly a rare find.'
'Wang Li had recently heard many of her clan sisters complaining that their servants were despicable and always trying to grope them.'
'One servant was even completely drained dry by a clan sister.'
It could be said that in these past few days, only a handful of servants remained honest and well-behaved.
'And Su Qing was one of them.'
'But Wang Li knew Su Qing was different. At the very least, his perspective was highly unusual.'
Hearing this, Su Qing was puzzled. He bowed to Wang Li and said, "My lady, I don't understand."
"You don't understand?"
"You possess a sense of decorum that most people lack. It's rare to find someone who adheres to propriety so strictly, even among the disciples of my Wang Family."
Wang Li felt Su Qing's touch as he helped her dress, letting him move her arms as he wished.
"I wouldn't dare. Adhering to propriety is simply a means of survival."
Su Qing said in a low voice. In the past few days, he had managed to 'collect' Wang Li's Swordsmanship.
'But it was a Swordsmanship designed for a woman's body. Some of the Step Techniques were awkward and restricted his leg movements, so he had no choice but to continue practicing the Cyan Snake Posture.'
'In another four days, he would be able to synthesize the First Layer Cyan Snake Posture again.'
"Never mind. If you want to live, you'd best be honest with me. I might even protect you. Otherwise..."
"In one year, you will die for certain!"
Wang Li spoke casually, but her words sent a chill down Su Qing's spine.
'Does Wang Li want to kill me?'
'No, she said she could protect me!'
'Does the Wang Family plan to kill all of us servants?'
'They really don't treat slaves' lives as human lives, do they?'
"My lady, could you please explain in more detail?"
This time, Su Qing spoke with a bit more confidence. 'It's a showdown, after all. If you don't sound confident, your opponent won't believe you.'
"So it seems you won't reveal your secrets unless I speak first?"
"Believe me when I say this: all I have to do is declare that I don't like you, and you know what the consequences will be."
Wang Li said, her own voice full of confidence.
Su Qing, on the other hand, was inwardly baffled.
'This woman is making me out to be far more mysterious than I am, isn't she?'
'How did she even come up with this idea?'
Su Qing began, "My family were physicians."
"That's why I know a little more about propriety."
'Since Wang Li wants to hear lies, then I'll give her lies,' Su Qing thought as he answered.
'No one would believe the truth anyway.'
"I can only identify a few simple medicinal herbs, my lady."
Su Qing looked at Wang Li in confusion.
"And your former surname?"
"My surname is Su, my given name is Qing, and my style name... is Changqing."
'If you're going to lie,' Su Qing thought, 'you have to make it a complete one.'
'I even gave myself a style name. Surely she has to believe me now, right?'
"It sounds much nicer than the names of the other servants. Fitting for a family of physicians."
"You're literate?"
"I'm barely literate. After my family's decline, my parents passed away when I was eight."
Su Qing began to spin another lie.
"Hmm, a family of physicians?" Wang Li sized up Su Qing.
"Have you been practicing martial arts?"
"No."
SMACK!
The moment Su Qing said no, Wang Li slapped him on the back of the head, forcing it down.
It stung!
"You have been practicing. Don't you realize that your body's virile energy and the spirit in your eyes have both grown sharper?"
Wang Li sneered, "Do you take me for a fool, or are you the one who's foolish, Wang Qi?"
"Do you know the consequences for a servant who practices martial arts without permission?"
At that, Su Qing's pupils contracted. Wang Li's earlier movement had been far faster than his own.
'But the key was her threat.'
'It made him want to fly into a rage, kill the woman before him, and walk away without a care.'
'Damn it! Why didn't I get an all-powerful Golden Finger that could obliterate anything? All I got was this Synthesizer that needs materials to work.'
'And the Cultivation speed is so slow, too.'
Right now, the Synthesizer showed his strength was at the Third-class level, but he had no combat techniques.
Su Qing took a few steps back, blocking the doorway.
"What do you want?"
Su Qing looked at Wang Li calmly. Her expression irritated him immensely.
But the Wang Family had helped him; they'd helped him escape the human traffickers' cage.
But this constant talk of death...
Today, Su Qing was going to show this woman the meaning of "a common man's fury spills blood for Five Steps." As long as he didn't die, he was fully prepared to trade injury for injury.
"Is this your true face?"
Seeing Su Qing's ice-cold expression, Wang Li couldn't help but force a composed smile, even as she discreetly tried to back away.
She had questioned him on a whim, without notifying anyone else in the family.
If Su Qing attacked recklessly, Wang Li knew she would have a hard time dealing with someone who had nothing to lose.
"We have no grievances with each other. You just had to be my master. Why was this necessary?"
Su Qing said calmly, a small black pill appearing in his hand.
This was a move born of desperation. His strength was insufficient, and in truth, he was afraid.
Wang Li was confused.
Her body tensed.
She was still not fully dressed. Her gaze flickered towards her pillow; there was a small dagger hidden beneath it.
"Don't move. This thing in my hand is a poison I concocted myself."
"With just a gentle squeeze, it will turn into an invisible, odorless powder. It will fill the room... Care to see if you get poisoned?"
Su Qing said coolly.
Wang Li averted her gaze from the pillow and fixed it on the black pill in Su Qing's hand.
"I don't think we need to be enemies, do we?"
"If you're willing, I can help you leave the Wang Family."
Su Qing let out a cold laugh. "Help me leave the Wang Family? The moment you step outside, you'll be screaming for help."
"Not helping me leave the Wang Family, right?"
Su Qing wasn't so idiotic as to entrust his fate to Wang Li.
Wang Li was also wary of the Wang Qi before her, especially of the object in his hand.
'If I'd known it would come to this, why did I have to ask all those questions? Now look, Wang Qi has become a huge threat to me.'
"You want to live, and so do I."
"Now, you'd best back off. I just want to leave the Wang Family."
"We have no quarrel. The Wang Family helped me escape from the traffickers, and I've served you all this time. Do I have to knock you unconscious, or will you do it yourself?"
Su Qing stated calmly.
"If I pass out, won't that just let you have your way?" Wang Li refused outright.
In a situation like this, neither was willing to hand the advantage to the other.
"Then we'll just wait it out. Once night falls, I'm leaving."
"You don't want us to die together, do you? Even I don't have the antidote for this pill."
Su Qing gave the young woman before him a meaningful look, but there wasn't a trace of lewdness in his eyes.
'Now that he had his Golden Finger, he had no interest in such matters. She was just a woman. Once he became strong, women like Wang Li would be his for the taking—and they would come to him willingly.'
...