Chapter 356: Thoroughly Subdued

Chen Qingdi then asked the two Shuang’ers, "What kind of medicine is needed for a cure?"

Chen Qingdi was quick to flirt, the words flowing effortlessly, but he never mentioned when he would let them go. The two women knew then that he was exceptionally cunning—the kind of man who won’t act without a guaranteed reward.

Gu Shuang’Er paused for a moment, then a peculiar smile spread across her face.

"That kind of thing is kept as a closely guarded secret by our sect. We’re just two insignificant junior disciples; how could we possibly know?"

"Then what sect are you from? You can at least tell me that, can’t you?"

Li Shuang’Er chimed in, "When we left our sect, our master gave us a strict order: Anyone who dares to leak the sect’s secrets will die a horrible, unspeakable death!"

Chen Qingdi smiled. "And what about falling in love? Is that a death sentence too?"

Gu Shuang’Er said affectionately, "If we want to be in a relationship, we have to report it to the sect. It has to be reviewed and approved by the sect’s Elder Council before it can be out in the open. Other disciples usually don’t have much trouble, but for us sisters..."

"What’s the difficulty for you two?"

"In terms of skill and Martial Arts, we don’t amount to much, but when it comes to looks, we’re considered top-tier in our sect. What’s more, our master said that whoever wants to marry us must take both of us. It’s both or neither."

Chen Qingdi put his arms around the two women and said with a smile, "Do I qualify for your Elder Council’s review?"

The sisters said in unison, "But of course. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have one of us on each arm right now."

Chen Qingdi suddenly changed the subject. "How long has it been since you two have seen the sun?"

The two of them were completely bewildered. "A year? Or two?"

The scenery never changed, and there was nothing to mark the passage of time, let alone any news from the outside world. The two of them didn’t even know what year it was anymore. It felt as if a thousand years had passed in the blink of an eye.

Without another word, Chen Qingdi had the two sisters blindfold themselves with black silk, and then he led them out of the basement.

The two sisters had no idea why, and Chen Qingdi let out a cold sneer.

"People who’ve lived in darkness for a long time can’t handle bright light. To go above ground, you have to cover your eyes first. You have to adapt slowly, gradually removing the blindfold. It won’t be until three days later that you can get used to the world up here."

After their eyes were covered, the two sisters felt a sudden, immense fear. They gripped Chen Qingdi’s arms tightly, terrified that if they let go, they would fall into a bottomless abyss.

Chen Qingdi took their hands and led them toward the door, questioning them as they walked.

"I still want to know how to save my wife. Are you going to tell me?"

The two of them trembled violently.

"What will happen if we don’t tell you?"

Chen Qingdi let out a dark chuckle. "Nothing too severe. I’ll just have to politely send you back to the basement. You’ll be well-fed and clothed, I’ll let you live out the rest of your lives there."

His words were courteous, carrying the air of a gentleman, but they struck the two sisters like a bolt of lightning.

"How can you be so cruel? Do you intend to lock us up for the rest of our lives?"

Chen Qingdi smiled. "Have you heard the story of ’hiding a beauty in a golden house’? Maybe I’ll paint the basement gold and hide you two away here. No one but me will ever be allowed to see you."

"How could you be so cruel?"

Chen Qingdi smiled. "You took my perfectly healthy wife and left her half-dead. It’s made me lose all hope in life. I have to get my revenge on someone for all of this. I’ve become a Buddhist now, so I don’t kill people anymore. But surely it’s acceptable to lock up the people who harmed my wife until they die, right?"

Chen Qingdi sighed.

"Forget it. I won’t force the issue. Since you’re unwilling to talk, you can go back and think it over."

With that, he took the sisters’ hands and started to walk back.

No matter how he pulled or tugged, the two sisters wouldn’t budge.

"Your wife isn’t in any mortal danger. At worst, she’ll just sleep forever. It won’t even prevent her from giving birth. Is she really that important to you?"

Chen Qingdi chuckled darkly. "What do you think?"

Li Shuang’Er said cautiously, "Shen Mingyue has only lost consciousness. We two sisters, on the other hand, are losing our freedom and our chance at love!"

Chen Qingdi smiled. "I said I’d come visit you often. Don’t hesitate. I imagine you’re not willing to reveal your sect’s secrets, so just keep waiting here. Who knows, maybe one day I’ll feel merciful and let you out to get some sun!"

The sisters’ eyes were blindfolded, so they couldn’t see Chen Qingdi’s expression, but they could clearly hear the threat in his tone.

"Who are you trying to fool?"

Chen Qingdi remained perfectly calm. "I’m just looking for an auspicious day. According to my calculations, there probably won’t be one in the next fifty or sixty years. I’ll check the almanac again in another seventy or eighty years. You two just wait here patiently until then."

The sisters finally understood. Chen Qingdi had pushed them to the edge of a cliff.

They could either tell Chen Qingdi everything he wanted to know, or they could be locked in this little dark room for the next seventy or eighty years.

After seventy or eighty years—setting aside whether they would even still be alive—what could they possibly do even if they got out?

Their youth would be gone, their health would be gone. The only thing left to do would be to pick out a nice urn and quietly wait to be put inside it.

"Forget about our sect! We sisters are willing to serve you together. Are the two of us combined really less important than one Shen Mingyue?"

Chen Qingdi chuckled darkly. "Of course, two beauties are more important than one. That’s precisely why I need to ’hide my beauties in a golden house.’ Consider this your golden house. Now, hide away."

He gave a hard push, trying to shove the sisters back inside, but they clung tightly to his arms, refusing to go back in no matter what.

No one wanted to experience a second time that feeling of being in a small, dark room, where your cries to heaven and earth go unanswered.

Chen Qingdi chuckled darkly. "Perhaps you’ll just take a nap, and when you wake up, everything will be normal again."

The sisters had extremely sensitive hearing. They suddenly heard a rush of air and knew he was about to strike, so they quickly shouted.

"Wait! We have something to say."

Chen Qingdi smiled. "Unless it has to do with the antidote, save your breath."

Though he flirted effortlessly with the two sisters, he hadn’t forgotten his mission. If they took him for some bastard ruled by his lust, they had picked the wrong man.

The two sisters stopped their struggle. Chen Qingdi stood in the doorway, quietly awaiting their decision.

Anything unrelated to the antidote, be it truth or lies, he would completely disregard. Once they finished speaking, he had a hundred ways to throw them back inside.