SLLBTT Chapter 72
Translated by Q the Panda (ko-fi)
⋇⊶⊰Chapter 72⊱⊷⋇
Upon seeing Liu Jiao holding the antidote to the exclusive scorpion poison, Queen Ming exclaimed, "You..."
Before Queen Ming could finish expressing his thoughts, blood splattered from his back.
Liu Jiao stood in shock, witnessing Bai Lingling's surprise attack on Queen Ming from behind.
Queen Ming fell to the ground, coughing up blood.
Bai Lingling looked at Liu Jiao and said, "Let's go."
"Go?" Liu Jiao asked in confusion, "Where to?"
"To save Leng Jiao."
Liu Jiao was bewildered. "But... didn't the Great King go there already?"
Bai Lingling responded, "Yes, but isn't the antidote with you?"
Liu Jiao paused and said, "Oh, right."
Bai Lingling, impatient to explain, grabbed Liu Jiao by the neck and ran outside.
With Liu Jiao's neck in a grip, he yelled, "Don't grab my neck! I can walk by myself!"
Bai Lingling hoisted Liu Jiao onto his shoulder and rushed to Qingque Terrace's shrine.
Upon reaching the shrine, Bai Lingling set Liu Jiao down. The shrine was dimly lit, with short red candles casting a flickering glow. The air was filled with the scent of burning incense. Guards lay scattered on the floor, subdued, adding to the eerie atmosphere.
Bai Lingling stepped forward, lifting the curtain of the inner chamber. A white lamb was convulsing on the ground, its hooves trembling, seemingly on the verge of collapse. The Snow Wolf King stood nearby, his expression calm.
Bai Lingling, alarmed, pulled Liu Jiao. "Hurry, save him!"
The Snow Wolf King raised his leg and kicked the lamb's head, causing it to faint instantly.
Bai Lingling, infuriated, exclaimed, "Xiao Baibai!" and was about to attack when Leng Jiao entered through a side door.
"Huh?" Bai Lingling was momentarily stunned.
Liu Jiao looked at the lamb on the ground and asked, "Who's this?"
Leng Jiao replied, "Isn't this the lamb raised by the Queen Dowager?"
"Why does the Queen Dowager raise lamb?"
"Lord Bai enjoys eating roasted whole lamb," replied Leng Jiao.
Bai Lingling stared at Leng Jiao without speaking, standing there like a motionless statue.
Liu Jiao walked over, pulling Leng Jiao and asking, "Jiao'er, are you okay? Queen Ming said you were poisoned, and I was worried!"
Leng Jiao answered, "I'm fine. The Great King came to rescue me. I just don't know why you all came too."
Bai Lingling slowly moved beside Leng Jiao, and asked with trembling lips, "Do you... do you recognize me?"
Leng Jiao looked up at Bai Lingling and said, "You are Lord Bai. Of course, I recognize you."
The Snow Wolf King, hands behind his back, glanced at Bai Lingling and asked, "Where is Queen Ming?"
"Hmm, he's still in the main hall of the Qingque Terrace," Bai Lingling answered.
"I'll go check. We can't let him slip away," said the Snow Wolf King.
Continuing, the Snow Wolf King instructed, "Xiao Jiao, you stay here with Leng Jiao. Bai Lingling and I will go check on the Queen Dowager."
Liu Jiao nodded in agreement.
After speaking, the Snow Wolf King and Bai Lingling left the shrine, strolling slowly towards the main hall of the Qingque Terrace. Bai Lingling glanced at the Snow Wolf King and said, "You're not in a hurry. Walking so leisurely."
"He can't escape," the Snow Wolf King said calmly.
They returned to the main hall, finding Queen Ming bleeding under the steps, his white hair like snow, blood flowing profusely.
"You're quite ruthless," the Snow Wolf King commented.
Bai Lingling replied, "It's the nature of a wolf."
"So, is falling deeply in love also the nature of a wolf?" the Snow Wolf King suddenly asked.
Bai Lingling remained silent, looking towards Queen Ming.
Queen Ming, with resentment, stared at Bai Lingling, "You... You knew early on?"
"I knew everything I needed to know."
The Snow Wolf King, hands behind his back, stood below the steps, looking at Queen Ming. "The snake sent to kill me, was it your doing?"
Queen Ming sneered, "Do you have evidence? Now there's irrefutable proof that the snake demon sent to assassinate the Great King was sent by Master Kongque. And Master Kongque is a co-conspirator with Bai Lingling in a rebellion. You can kill me, but you can't spare Bai Lingling either."
"At first, I found it strange. Why send a giant snake to kill me? The snake's venom can't harm me," the Snow Wolf King pondered, "Anyone who knows me even a little should be aware of this. So, initially, I didn't suspect Bai Lingling, nor did I suspect you."
Queen Ming said, "Perhaps Master Kongque was unaware?"
"If Master Kongque and Bai Lingling were conspirators, wouldn't they have discussed the assassination plan beforehand? If it was planned, why would Bai Lingling agree to an impractical scheme to assassinate me?" the Snow Wolf King countered. "So, I find it suspicious."
Queen Ming slowly curled his lips. "So, have you figured it out now?"
"I have. Although the snake's attempt at the Temple of the Heavenly Emperor seemed well-planned, the schemer never intended to actually kill me," the Snow Wolf King responded. "That's the reason. They wanted to raise suspicion by using a seemingly difficult but impossible assassination plan."
"Suspicion of what?"
"Suspicion of Poisonous Me, leading to an investigation of Master Kongque. Then, following the thread, discovering the close friendship between Master Kongque and Bai Lingling," the Snow Wolf King answered. "Isn't that your goal? To make me suspect Bai Lingling's involvement in the rebellion."
Queen Ming laughed. "It's quite amusing. Bai Lingling is indeed plotting a rebellion. Since Liu Jiao managed to jump out of the rebellion-themed delivery box, doesn't that prove you have evidence of Bai Lingling's treason?"
"Is it true?" the Snow Wolf King asked Bai Lingling, "Are you really plotting against me?"
Bai Lingling looked calmly at the Snow Wolf King, not uttering a word.
The Snow Wolf King continued, "Bai Lingling doesn't even bother managing his own fief, or sign in for daily game tasks. Can someone like him truly aspire to be a king and diligently fulfill governing duties every day?"
Queen Ming simply said, "In matters like these, actions speak louder than intentions. Based on his actions, he is indeed plotting rebellion."
The Snow Wolf King asked Bai Lingling, "Are you truly planning rebellion, or are you being coerced?"
Bai Lingling responded, "Who could coerce me?"
The Snow Wolf King continued, "Back then, the livestreamer whom Queen Ming rewarded with twenty million was the Ragdoll Fairy, wasn't it?"
Because of the reward from the Queen Dowager, the Ragdoll Fairy – the lion cat – suddenly gained fame from being a relatively unknown streamer. Poisonous Me Company found the lion cat, seemingly attracted by its popularity, but in reality, it was orchestrated by the Queen Dowager and Master Kongque. While Master Kongque appeared to be Bai Lingling's friend, he was actually a conspirator of the Queen Dowager.
After the lion cat joined the company, Master Kongque orchestrated various encounters between the lion cat and Bai Lingling.
As for how Master Kongque knew that Bai Lingling liked ragdoll creatures?
This went back to the servant who helped Bai Lingling search for the Ragdoll Fairy. The servant, searching everywhere, inevitably let the local gang know about it. Master Kongque bribed the servant, making him mislead Bai Lingling into believing that the lion cat was the ragdoll cat he was looking for.
Bai Lingling seemed to believe it completely, being very attentive to the lion cat. Consequently, Queen Ming kidnapped the lion cat, coercing Bai Lingling to plot the Snow Wolf King's rebellion.
"But now, it seems like Bai Lingling didn't actually believe in the lion cat's identity," the Snow Wolf King mused, "Moreover, Bai Lingling deliberately left clues about his taobao purchase, was it to hint me of this incident?"
Bai Lingling, aware that the Snow Wolf King harbored suspicions about the Bai family, left clues on the computer.
Queen Ming, however, couldn't understand. "Since you never believed in the lion cat's identity, why go along with the act...?"
Bai Lingling remained silent, as cold as ice.
The Snow Wolf King guessed, "Because Bai Lingling already knew who his savior was. Fearing you might harm him, he had to stay silent."
"His savior—" Queen Ming pondered for a moment, then remembered Bai Lingling rushing to rescue Leng Jiao, "Could it be... Leng Jiao?"
"I guess so," the Snow Wolf King thought for a moment and asked Queen Ming, "Do you know that Bai Lingling and Leng Jiao have a token of love?"
"What token?" Queen Ming also froze.
"Exactly," the Snow Wolf King looked at Bai Lingling, "Regarding the token, Queen Ming doesn't know, Master Kongque doesn't know, and the lion cat doesn't know. So, you didn't tell the servant about the token either."
"Yes. I didn't," Bai Lingling finally spoke, "He's greedy, not trustworthy."
Queen Ming was bewildered. "What? If you don't trust him, why let him go find your savior?"
"Because my relatives opposed my search for the savior. When I tried to find them, I faced various obstacles, both overt and covert. Later, I got smarter and sent this servant to search, letting everyone know that I relied on the servant to find my savior. They then obstructed me through the servant."
"Openly repair the plank roads while sneaking through the passage of Chencang," Queen Ming sneered. "So, that servant was just a diversion. The real person searching for the savior was someone else."
"Exactly," Bai Lingling said. "The token was crucial, so I could only trust this information with someone reliable. He is a Bird Guard in my household. When he found out, he informed me that the person was actually a sheep who had entered the palace and become a favored concubine."
Queen Ming was momentarily stunned. "So that's how it is."
"Later, there was new information that my older brother liked the snow leopard beauty, and the sheep concubine had fallen out of favor. I thought, give it a year, and he would leave the palace."
"But I didn't expect all these twists in between," the Snow Wolf King said with some regret.
Bai Lingling nodded. "The servant informed me that the Ragdoll Fairy was found. To protect Leng Jiao, I pretended to believe it. Later, the Queen Dowager tried to coerce me again. I wanted to refuse by pretending to be sick. Unexpectedly, Queen Ming accidentally captured Leng Jiao, holding his life hostage. I had no choice but to pretend to agree and come to the palace."
"You really dare," the Snow Wolf King sneered. "You don't think that Queen Ming, begging you to rebel, wanted you to become the Northland King, do you?"
"I understand in my heart. He sweet-talked me, saying he found you displeasing and wanted to honor me as the Great King," Bai Lingling looked at the grim-faced Queen Ming and said, "But... his real plan was to make us fight each other until we both died. Then, this snow wolf could rightfully ascend to the throne. I understood in my heart, but I had no other choice."
The Snow Wolf King, hearing this, said, "If you had no other choice, why not be straightforward with me?"
Bai Lingling looked at the Snow Wolf King and said, "That would be too embarrassing."
The Snow Wolf King chuckled. "You 'pretend' to agree to rebellion. How do you plan to end this? Didn't you leave clues for me before rebelling? When I come to cut you down, do you think you'll have any dignity left?"
"You won't cut me down," Bai Lingling said, "If you're not foolish, you should trust me."
The Snow Wolf King, also frustrated, gave Bai Lingling a cold look, "You are indeed Father's most favored youngest son, always so willful and reckless!"
Bai Lingling retorted, "If Father truly favored me, how could he let you become the heir?"
"I become the heir to be a hostage!" the Snow Wolf King counterattacked, "Given the chance, do you want it or not?"
"I want it," Bai Lingling said, "I can go as a hostage for you."
The snow wolf brothers started arguing, exchanging words with increasing intensity!
The ultimate behind-the-scenes villain, Queen Ming, with a final burst of strength, lunged forward, attempting to bite the Snow Wolf King's throat.
Queen Ming's last desperate strike was as swift as lightning, as fast as the wind, showcasing his extraordinary wolf instincts.
Who still remembered that Queen Ming was once a formidable wolf warrior?
Due to the lustful former Snow Wolf King Bai Qingsi, who took an interest in him, Queen Ming was forced to retire from the military and imprisoned in the harem as a pet. At that time, Queen Ming was on the border, engaged in combat, and was summoned back by a royal decree. Within the deep palace, behind the red curtains, Queen Ming turned white-haired in a single night.
Bai Qingsi grew tired of Queen Ming and sought pleasures elsewhere.
Meanwhile, Queen Ming gradually started yearning for power.
Encouraging Bai Qingsi to diligently practice the good governance system on the surface, Queen Ming simultaneously gathered evidence to expose Bai Qingsi to the Censorate. Collaborating with various factions, Queen Ming ousted Bai Qingsi, thinking it was finally his turn. Unexpectedly, the Son of Heaven announced an examination, and Queen Ming fell one point short against Bai Xiaoxiao.
Later, others told Queen Ming that Bai Xiaoxiao was the Son of Heaven's classmate, enjoying a close relationship. During the exam, the Son of Heaven leaked the questions to Bai Xiaoxiao in advance, allowing him to secure the first place.
Queen Ming grew more resentful, ultimately transforming into the horrifying creature with bleeding eyes and bared teeth, hell-bent on biting off Bai Xiaoxiao's neck.
At the moment Queen Ming's teeth touched Bai Xiaoxiao's skin, he stopped breathing, blood-red eyes losing focus, and his body collapsed under the long steps, like a puppet with cut strings, limbs stiffened.
Bai Lingling killed him.
Queen Ming's actions were swift, but whether it was due to severe injury or succumbing to Bai Lingling's claws remained unclear.
Bai Lingling looked at the Snow Wolf King and said, "I saved you."
The Snow Wolf King wanted to say, "I don't need your saving," but restrained himself, only saying, "I know."
After some thought, the Snow Wolf King added, "You don't need to wait a full year. In the next few days, I'll find an excuse to grant a general amnesty and release those in the harem without favor. Consider it fulfilling one of your wishes."
Bai Lingling's brow twitched, but after a moment, he said, "He wouldn't recognize me anyway."
.
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Translator's Note: Openly repair the plank roads while sneaking through the passage of Chencang: one of the Thirty-six Strategems.
Now I feel bad for Queen Ming :(