Chapter 230 (2/2)

Feng Yu Heng pondered anxiously for a while and did not respond. Watching Chen Yu and Fen Dai act like good sisters, she felt that something had gone wrong.

She placed her hand on the large gourd. She originally thought that she had the upper hand in this matter, but now she feared that her hands would be tied.

“This banquet hall is too stuffy. Come out for a walk with me.” Feng Yu Heng stood up and pulled Huang Quan out. As she moved, she saw a prince also get up and walk out. In an instant, he left even faster than she did.

The two strolled over to the Yuan Palace’s garden. Despite the frigid cold of the twelfth month, there were still Winter plums. With the snow on red safflowers, it caused people to exclaim in wonder.

But she was not in the mood to enjoy the flowers. Even if the flowers here were much more beautiful than those in the Feng manor’s flower-viewing garden, she was not in the mood.

Huang Quan saw that she was feeling irritated and could not help but say: “If young miss does not like this place, how about we return to the manor first.”

Feng Yu Heng shook her head, “If we return now, wouldn’t third brother be left waiting for me?” She said this while increasing her pace, heading towards the center of the garden.

Sure enough, in the pavilion at the center of the garden, the third prince, Xuan Tian Ye, stood waiting with his hands clasped behind his back.

Huang Quan was startled. Out of habit, she moved in front of Feng Yu Heng to protect her, but she was pulled back, “It’s fine. Wait for me to the side. I will go speak for a while with third brother.”

Huang Quan wanted to remind her to be careful, but before she could say anything, Feng Yu Heng had already walked over.

Xuan Tian Ye looked towards her and could not help but clap, “County princess is bold.”

Feng Yu Heng smiled, “You are his Highness Prince Yu’s third brother. A-Heng also calls you third brother. We are all family, so what is there to fear?”

“Spoken well.” Xuan Tian Ye nodded, “How come county princess is not enjoying the song and dance inside, instead coming to wander about in the garden?” He decided to sit on the stone chair, looking at Feng Yu Heng with a calm demeanor.

“There is nothing more normal than a girl strolling around in a garden. Why is third brother making a fuss out of nothing.” She walked to the pavilion and removed the gourd from her hip, “I came in a rush. May I know if third brother brought wine?”

Xuan Tian Ye also pulled out a small pot of wine from his waist and placed it on the table, “There is not much, but it is enough for the two of us to enjoy a bit.”

“A-Heng is a doctor and is very skilled at making wine with medicine. I just happened to receive a good snake today. I heard that soaking snake venom in wine is very restorative for the body. Third brother, are you interested in trying it?”

She raised an eyebrow at him. How could her appearance go with “Are you interested in trying it?” It was clearly “Do you have the courage to try it?”

While speaking, she brought the gourd up from her hip and opened it up. Flipping the gourd, she poured the green bamboo snake out.

Xuan Tian Ye was slightly shocked by her move. The green snake was placed between the two on the stone table. It did not move as though it were asleep, but it was not dead.

He naturally understood how venomous this thing was, but he saw Feng Yu Heng pick it up in her hands and begin to caress it. She made it seem as though it was not a snake, instead being something like a kitten or a puppy. Just watching caused him to stare blankly.

“This snake is a green bamboo snake, and it is very venomous. If a person is bitten by it, forget about seeking medical help. I fear that there will not even be enough time to scream for help before one’s life is lost.” She held the snake in her lap as though she were telling a story, but the look in her eyes was filled with venom, which could cause people to feel a chill. “The the more venomous the snake, the better the wine. I have always wanted a green bamboo snake, but I have never had time to look for one. I don’t know who, but today, someone kindly sent this gift and placed it in my carriage. I did not even get a chance to say a word of thanks to that person.”

Smiling, she stood up. With her left hand, she held the snake, and with her right hand, she reached into her sleeve and pulled out a wooden dowel and a dagger. Looking around, she picked out a large tree in the garden. Picking up a random rock, she actually placed the wooden dowel on the snakes head then raised the rock and nailed the snake to the tree in a few hits.

Xuan Tian Ye did not know what exactly she was wanting to do, so Feng Yu Heng had truly given him a fright. He felt that this girl’s viciousness truly caused people to feel chills. Even though he was a man, he could not help but frown upon seeing this scene.

But Feng Yu Heng did not stop moving. After nailing the snake to the tree, she picked up the dagger in her hand and made an incision in the snake’s head. After sticking the dagger in, she did not pull it out, instead she cut downward towards the tail. Her cut was straight and of a uniform depth. In the blink of an eye, an entire snake skin had been removed.

“Find a craftsman who deals in hides, and this can be made into a very beautiful purse.” She smiled and tossed the snake skin to Xuan Tian Ye, as easily as one would throw a piece of cloth.

The nerves of the now-skinless snake still trembled. Removing the snake from the tree, she placed the mouth of the snake above the pot of wine and squeezed, causing a few drops of venom to be squeezed out.

She then placed the snake’s body back in the gourd and sealed it up, no longer using it.

“Does third brother want to try this wine?” She shook the pot of wine, “It’s very good for the body.”

Xuan Tian Ye’s eyebrows were furrowed together, as he felt that the girl before him was some sort of ghoul. The things that she did, what sort of normal person was capable of doing?

Having been thought of and planned against by this sort of person, he truly did not know if he should feel fear or honor.

“Third brother doesn’t dare drink it?” Feng Yu Heng asked in a clear laughing voice, “That is true. I am inviting you to drink wine, so I should take the first sip.” Saying this, she threw her head back and poured some wine into her mouth. Then, as Xuan Tian Ye was watching on with a panicked gaze, she nimbly swallowed the snake wine.

1: This is a historical reference to how England and France attempted to use Nazi Germany to suppress the Soviet Union.

TN: Snake wine is indeed a thing.