Ex-Wife is a Big Villainess

```

"The court plans to establish a new branch within the Liushan Division."

The masked figure's voice was as raspy and unpleasant as a screech owl's, "Ran Qingchen has been appointed to supervise the new branch and will go to Qingzhou to investigate that case, and you can take advantage of this opportunity."

"You know about this too." Jiang Shouzhong stared at the masked bird man with a somewhat strange expression, "I feel like you're someone from the palace, clued into every secret."

The masked figure offered no explanation but instead asked, "Are you interested in Ran Qingchen?"

"No."

Jiang Shouzhong shook his head without a hint of hesitation.

Not to mention that his "Jiang Mo" identity was a fake, even if it were real, with the current progress between the two, he estimated it would take ten years to cultivate any sort of affection.

To have been married for half a year and only met twice was ludicrous.

Besides, he could never forget that fleeting red figure that softly danced in his heart.

No one could replace her spot.

"Hmph."

The masked figure snorted through his nostrils, it was unclear whether it was mockery or some other emotion. The look he gave the man softened slightly, but his tone remained indifferent, "Remember what you should do, and don't get lost in childish sentiments every day!"

With that, the door "clicked" shut, and the figure disappeared inside the room, leaving only a whiff of cold air causing the lamp on the table to flicker slightly.

"That tone, people who didn't know better might think you're my wife, so meddlesome," mumbled Jiang Shouzhong.

He really wanted to complain about this masked bird person.

They had known each other for half a year and had even survived life-and-death situations together, yet to this day, the masked figure refused to remove that bird mask and even continued to disguise his voice.

All he knew was that the person was called Yeying.

If it weren't for that accidental touch of the other's overly dramatic pectoral muscle, he would have thought this guy was a man.

Of course, complaints aside, there was still gratitude in his heart.

If the other person hadn't dragged his drunken self into that stone coffin inside the Mountain God Temple, he might have avoided the demon's massacre, but he couldn't have escaped the mountain torrent and mudslide.

Saving a life is like giving birth to a new parent.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have followed the other's arrangements, changed his name to "Jiang Mo," and boldly went to the Ran Family with the marriage document that person had given him.

Truthfully, he hadn't thought the Ran Family would acknowledge the marriage contract, especially since the family head's brows knotted like ropes when he saw the marriage document, nearly throwing him out.

Fortunately, Yeying had also given him a jade pendant, and when the old madam saw the pendant, she really did marry off her best daughter to him.

So Jiang Shouzhong had always been curious, what is the relation between the woman called "Yeying" and the "Jiang Mo" on the marriage document?

Relative?

Or some kind of friend?

He found it even more puzzling why she wanted him to impersonate "Jiang Mo" to marry into the Ran Family.

And where had the real "Jiang Mo" from the marriage document gone?

Was he dead?

Jiang Shouzhong couldn't figure it out and was too lazy to ponder further. He stood up and went to the wardrobe, where he opened a hidden compartment.

Inside the compartment was a jade hairpin.

And a letter.

On the envelope, the graceful characters "Divorce Letter" stood out sharply.

Jiang Shouzhong picked up the beautiful jade hairpin.

Ye normally wore this jade hairpin every day.

It was her treasured item.

It was said to be the only relic left to her by her mother.

At the time, he hadn't been able to find any bodies, so he kept a sliver of hope, but when he saw the jade hairpin among the mud and the flesh, his heart plunged into despair.

Jiang Shouzhong clenched the jade hairpin tightly in his hand, his dark eyes burning with a faint hatred, "Ye, if my investigation finds that someone was indeed behind the massacre in the village, I will avenge you! No matter who that person is!"

After a while, the man's gaze fell again on the divorce letter.

All the deep sorrow and hatred gradually entwined into a scorching thread of grief.

"Hong'er, perhaps you've regained your memory, and that's why you chose to leave in such a manner," the man sighed quietly to himself, "It's better that you left...maybe our meeting was a mistake from the start."

...

Under the old locust tree at Xing'an Lane.

Li Guanshi stood with his hands behind his back, staring up into the sky.

In the desolate cold night, the ancient locust tree resembled a demon Asura, its bare branches extending in all directions, grotesque and twisted as if flayed by time.

```

"If you can't hold it down, why keep struggling? Isn't it tiring?"

Li Guanshi's lips curled into a sneer.

She gently stamped her foot.

All at once, everything fell silent, and the ambient noise vanished.

Falling snow hung suspended, the biting wind ceased, swaying branches and locust leaves froze in place, and silence enveloped the world.

This realm seemed locked in time.

The stillness lasted but a few breaths before things returned to normal. The locust leaves that clung to their branches through all seasons finally succumbed to the weight, detaching and drifting slowly to the ground.

In an instant, the cursed house beside them erupted with a malevolent aura, and a bloody light split the clouds.

"Li Guanshi!"

Suddenly, a deliberately suppressed roar burst forth like thunder, cutting through the howling wind and snow.

Watching the cursed house slowly calm down, Li Guanshi murmured in a pained tone, "I almost forgot, everyone from Pingyang the Mo Family is dead."

Although the house's malevolence was quickly suppressed, a streak of red light managed to escape.

She turned her gaze toward the palace, the scorn at the corners of her mouth and eyes growing colder, "Back then, the prophecy of 'the Mo Family of Pingyang possesses the Dragon Slaying Skill' from Zhuge Xuanji frightened your master so much he couldn't sit comfortably on his throne. In the end, the Mo Family was exterminated. Your contribution as the executioner was not insignificant."

The night was silent, with only the sobbing of the wind and snow. No one responded.

Li Guanshi's lips were slightly pursed as she caressed her sharp, delicate chin and mused to herself, "It would be interesting if there were still some remnants of the Mo Family... "

The woman lifted her head, the mist veiling her face dispersed, revealing a stunningly beautiful visage that could enchant all beings. Her smile blossomed, "Right, Zhao Wuxiu, the unparalleled in the world?"

...

In the distance, the red light that escaped from the cursed house plunged into a lake.

A woman dressed in a bright red wedding gown slowly rose to the surface, her long hair spreading out like seaweed for several meters.

Her complexion was pale, and her features were exquisitely beautiful.

"Mr. Mo, I have suffered much waiting for you. Where on earth are you?"

The woman's dark, hollow eyes swept over the Capital, filled with sorrow, as tears streaked down her cheeks.

The woman in red covered her face, her slender shoulders trembling slightly, as if laughing and crying, lamenting and beseeching, her muffled sobs intermittently breaking through her throat and spilling through her fingers.

"Mr. Mo, I no longer wish to wait."

The woman in red's fingers curled, her sharp nails piercing the skin as she violently tore downwards.

Her beautiful face was instantly covered in blood, revealing white bones beneath.

Cold winds howled over the abandoned ruins, above the crying lake.

A moment later, the body of another woman, weighed down by stones, floated slowly to the surface of the lake.

She was a woman of ordinary appearance.

The woman in red spoke softly, "Go find your husband."

The ordinary woman opened her eyes, first looking at the woman in red with reverence, then turned her gaze towards somewhere, and sneered, "My lord, I am coming to you."

...

Deep into the night, Jiang Shouzhong turned off the lights and went to sleep.

The ancient family book that Zhang Lang had mentioned had already been found. It was called the "Tianyuan River Map Book."

The content was complex and arcane, indeed appearing to be a book about cultivating one's character and virtue.

He flipped through it casually and then tossed it aside, no longer wishing to look at it.

After lying down for a while, Jiang Shouzhong suddenly sat up with his hands joined in prayer, pressing his fingertips to his forehead as he entreated, "Amitabha, Buddha of Infinite Life, please don't let me have that strange dream again tonight. Who in their right mind would have a thing for another man's wife!"

After Jiang Shouzhong fell asleep, the ancient book that had been carelessly thrown onto the table suddenly flipped open by itself.

A pale hand crawled out from the pages of the book!

This hand had exceptionally long nails.

Sharp as knives!

It reached out slowly towards Jiang Shouzhong.

But the next moment, the jade hairpin on the table emitted a faint, buzzing sound of sword Qi.

The pale hand swiftly retracted back into the book, as quietly as if it were the hand of a thief caught in the act.

The jade hairpin rose into the air, circling the old book continuously, trailing a tail of glittering sword Qi.

Like a boss on patrol.

Eventually, the pale hand cautiously reached out again and obediently closed the book, quieting once and for all.

Only then did the jade hairpin return to the table, falling back into silence.