Duan Zhengchun Poisoned at the Ma Residence and Bai Shijing's Death is a confrontation in which Xiao Feng’s covert observation uncovers the plot against Duan Zhengchun and the roles of Madam Ma and Bai Shijing. The crisis moves from poisoning and attempted murder to a brief rescue, then to the revelation of a hidden attacker whose appearance brings the scene to a fatal close.

Causes and Background

Approaching the Ma residence, Xiao Feng hides behind a tree and notices four women concealed around the house: Ruan Xingzhu and A'Zi to the northeast, and Qin Hongmian with her daughter to the southeast. Snow has settled on them as they wait. Xiao Feng distracts the women by throwing a branch, then reaches a window of the east-wing room. To avoid detection, he times a palm strike to coincide with a gust of north wind, breaking the boarded window without alerting those outside or, as far as he can tell, anyone within.

Through the opening, he sees Duan Zhengchun sitting with a wine cup and Madam Ma beside him in mourning clothes. The apparent private meeting conceals a dangerous imbalance: Duan soon finds that his cultivated internal energy has vanished, though he keeps his composure and tries to disguise his weakness. Madam Ma reveals that the wine contained Ten Fragrance Bewitching Powder, which has robbed him of his power. She says that the poison fell into his cup while she poured the wine, presenting the act as an accident even as she makes clear that Duan is trapped.

Xiao Feng's Intervention

Madam Ma threatens Duan and uses a dagger to wound him, while Xiao Feng remains outside, watching closely enough to judge whether her actions endanger his life. He hesitates because he has not yet determined whether she intends to kill Duan or merely frighten him. His restraint is also tactical: a premature intervention could conceal the truth of her intentions. When Duan’s banter and Madam Ma’s threats give way to a further attack, Xiao Feng decides that waiting is no longer safe.

He quietly breaks through the clay wall behind Duan and presses a hand to his back. With the strength transferred from Xiao Feng, Duan regains enough control to use the Yi Yang Finger and subdue Madam Ma. Xiao Feng immediately withdraws his aid. The rescue is only temporary: as he observes, the borrowed internal energy lasts only while he maintains contact, and Duan is left vulnerable again when Xiao Feng pulls away.

Bai Shijing's Arrival and Death

A newcomer enters and reproaches Madam Ma for not finishing Duan after destroying his martial ability. Xiao Feng recognizes the man as Bai Shijing, the Beggar Clan’s Law Enforcement Elder. His arrival resolves questions Xiao Feng had been carrying since Madam Ma used Xiao Feng’s fan to accuse him of stealing a letter from the Ma home: the connection between the plot and someone close enough to obtain the fan, as well as Madam Ma’s ability to see through A'Zhu’s disguise as Bai Shijing.

Bai Shijing seizes Duan and breaks his wrists while Xiao Feng is still recovering from the shock of seeing him. Xiao Feng considers Duan’s past conduct, but resolves to preserve his life on A'Zhu’s account. Before Bai can go further, a gust of wind extinguishes the room’s two candles. In the darkness, an unfamiliar figure stands in the doorway. Bai challenges the silent intruder and, after a long standoff, attacks with a steel awl. The stranger evades him and counters with the Throat-Lock Capturing Technique, a method Bai recognizes as the Ma family’s signature skill. The figure’s height also recalls Ma Dayuan’s, but the darkness leaves its identity uncertain.

Conspiracy and Aftermath

The intruder’s presence unnerves the room and the confrontation ends with Bai Shijing’s death: the stranger strangles him, then leaves without explanation. Xiao Feng watches the figure disappear into the snow and pursues it, first unsealing A'Zi’s acupuncture point so that she can help her mother rescue Duan. He does not stop to release the others. The event thus leaves the immediate outcome uneven: Duan survives, but is poisoned and physically incapacitated; Madam Ma remains alive, and Bai is dead at the hands of a person whose identity Xiao Feng does not yet know.

The scene turns on successive reversals of apparent control. Madam Ma’s intimate meeting with Duan becomes an ambush; Xiao Feng’s concealed rescue briefly restores Duan’s power; Bai’s entrance shifts the danger back against him; and the silent figure’s intervention overturns the confrontation again. The Throat-Lock Capturing Technique offers a pointed clue to the intruder’s connection with the Ma family, but does not establish who the figure is. The unresolved identity sends Xiao Feng out into the snow in pursuit, while the deaths and injuries leave the conspiracy’s immediate consequences exposed.

Bai Shijing's Arrival and Death

Conspiracy and Aftermath

The intruder’s arrival changes the balance once more, but the figure’s identity remains unconfirmed. Bai Shijing recognizes the Throat-Lock Capturing Technique as a method associated with the Ma family, and the stranger’s height reminds him of Ma Dayuan; neither clue proves who stands in the darkness. After strangling Bai, the figure leaves without explanation. Xiao Feng sees a shadow moving northeast across the snow and pursues, first unsealing A'Zi’s acupuncture point so she can help her mother rescue Duan. He leaves Ruan Xingzhu and the other women still immobilized. Duan survives, but remains poisoned and without his martial strength, while Madam Ma is alive and Bai is dead.

The scene’s reversals make the uncertain identity more than a closing puzzle. Madam Ma’s apparent meeting with Duan becomes a poisoning and attempted killing; Xiao Feng’s covert aid briefly allows Duan to defend himself, but that protection ends when Xiao Feng withdraws. Bai’s entrance renews the threat, and the silent figure’s intervention ends it by killing Bai. The clues point toward a connection with the Ma household without resolving who the intruder is, leaving Xiao Feng to follow the departing shadow rather than settle the question inside the house.

Conspiracy and Aftermath

The intruder’s identity remains unconfirmed. Bai Shijing recognizes the Throat-Lock Capturing Technique as a method associated with the Ma family, and the stranger’s height reminds him of Ma Dayuan; neither clue proves who stands in the darkness. After strangling Bai, the figure leaves without explanation. Xiao Feng sees a shadow moving northeast across the snow and pursues, first unsealing A'Zi’s acupuncture point so she can help her mother rescue Duan. He leaves Ruan Xingzhu and the other women still immobilized. Duan survives, but remains poisoned and without his martial strength, while Madam Ma is alive and Bai is dead.