Empress’ Game: Make-up Master Chapter 34 - The Mysterious Person

Ning’er clicked her tongue in wonder. “Miss, I could hardly stand the smell of that medicine. Didn’t you think it was unbearably bitter?”

Wu Sheyue curled her lip. “Can any bitterness be worse than life? Having medicine to drink is not bad. You have been tired all day too. Why not rest early?”

Ning’er laughed. “Now that there is suddenly no work to do, resting early actually feels strange.”

“You will get used to it.” The corner of Wu Sheyue’s mouth lifted. They had already done this lifetime’s work in advance. In the future, no one would have the chance to order them around.

“Mm.” Ning’er nodded hard.

—

After night fell, Wu Sheyue stood by the window, staring at the quiet night outside. The sky of this era was especially clear, and the air was much better. She tapped the window frame again and again, her mind somewhat numb.

Ever since she was inexplicably killed and inexplicably came here, she had accepted this environment and identity a little too quickly—so quickly that when she looked back on it, even she was surprised.

Wu Sheyue rubbed her forehead. Perhaps… I have longed to leave my old life for too long. So when I came to this unfamiliar place and took on an unfamiliar identity, deep down, I was actually very willing.

She turned her head and looked toward the side room. Without her summons, Bailian probably would not come on her own. Wu Sheyue turned back and blew out the lamp on the table. The room sank into darkness.

Faint moonlight immediately filled the empty space, coating everything in the room with a cold, pale color.

At that moment, Bailian was carefully peering in from the door of the side chamber. When she suddenly saw Wu Sheyue put out the lamp, she guessed this Third Miss was preparing to sleep. It seemed there was nothing to investigate today. Bored, she stretched and lay down on the couch.

Wu Sheyue waited in the darkness for a while. The surroundings remained perfectly quiet. After a moment with no movement, she silently came to the doorway by moonlight, crouched down, and felt for the floor tile. She took out, one by one, all the things she had placed there during the day and set them on the ground.

She had observed before that the chancellor’s estate’s buildings were built with great care. The walls were thick enough, the foundations well laid, and the beams and crosspieces showed no rot or damage. Although this room looked very shabby on the surface, it was actually very sturdy. When the old lady said to tidy it up, she meant renovation and new furnishings, not major structural changes.

Wu Sheyue was thinking that the floor would definitely be repaved. She did not know whether they would remove the original tiles, so she needed to bury those things a few inches deeper and seal the top firmly for safety.

Because the tools Yin Qiuming left were fairly handy, and Wu Sheyue’s own skills were good, it did not take long for the space beneath the tile to become much larger. A pile of cleared dirt and sand sat nearby.

Before putting the items back, Wu Sheyue still had to inspect them carefully again.

She opened the multi-layered box and picked out several small tools that might be useful, then kept them on her body. The rest had no issues, so she packed them away and placed them at the bottom of the hole.

She had not had a chance to look carefully at the large jar she had taken out during the day. Seeing that the clay seal was intact, she put it back.

Last was the simple, antique jewelry box. She had originally planned to open it, glance inside, and if nothing was wrong, put it back as well. But the instant she opened it, Wu Sheyue’s mind buzzed, and all the hair on her back stood up.

Inside the box, on top of the white bracelet, there was now a folded note.

Wu Sheyue’s crouched legs went weak, and she sat down on the ground. Terror spread through her limbs and bones, and her entire body trembled. The last time she had felt this way was when she was killed in her studio.

How could this be? Who placed a note inside? Wu Sheyue panicked. She clearly remembered that when she pried up the floor tile, there had been no one around. After that, she had only left for a short while because the steward arrived. Besides, there had been people in the courtyard the whole time. She had received training in this area too. How could someone silently accomplish this?

Could the note have been there before, and I simply did not see it? No. Absolutely not. Wu Sheyue had lost her composure. The person capable of placing something here might be right beside her and could take her life at any moment.

Nervously, she picked up the note and slowly unfolded it under the moonlight. The paper was somewhat dirty, but the characters were new: Words are fearsome. They kill without form.

What did that mean? What is this person trying to tell me?

Wu Sheyue gripped the paper tightly and bit her teeth hard. How could this happen? Just now, I was pleased with myself, thinking I could control the situation immediately after arriving here. In the blink of an eye, I discover that my own life might not even be safe.

Since this person had sent her a note, at least in the near future, they probably did not intend to hurt her. The most worrying possibility was that this mysterious person had a personality like hers.

She had always wanted to save effort and had been thinking of killing the people in the chancellor’s estate. Would this person suddenly also decide things were troublesome and kill her to save effort?

At that thought, a flash of insight suddenly crossed Wu Sheyue’s mind, and she instantly understood the meaning of the words on the paper.

Could it be… this person is telling me that if I want to continue matching wits with the people of the chancellor’s estate, or even want to kill them, then I have to do it the way I did during the day. I cannot directly assassinate them?

Wu Sheyue sat on the floor in a daze. Analyzed this way, the person who had delivered the note seemed to be helping her. After all, with her current skills, she could not even beat the chancellor, a civil official.

Her wildly pounding heart gradually calmed. This analysis made her feel much more at ease. At the very least, it seemed she would not die for now.

After a long while, Wu Sheyue came back to herself. She tucked the note back into the box and placed the box beneath the floor tile again. Then she carefully filled the dirt back in, pressed it firm, and restored everything to its original state.

Afterward, she patted the dirt from her hands, lay down on the bed, and began calling, “Bailian. Bailian.”

“Yes, Miss.” Bailian had just fallen asleep and anxiously ran in from the side chamber. “Wh-what is it?”

“I dreamed of my concubine mother.”

Although the surroundings were very dark, Wu Sheyue still saw Bailian’s face darken. Bailian forced a smile. “Then… Third Miss, you…”

“Come sit with me for a while.” Wu Sheyue moved inward on the bed.

Bailian could only sit down by the bed and look at her. “Then Bailian will stay here. Miss, sleep without worry.”

“Mm.” Wu Sheyue pulled the quilt up properly, then closed her eyes to sleep.

No matter what, she was not at ease about her own safety right now. If she called Ning’er over, that girl would definitely worry. So calling Bailian was both reasonable and useful: Bailian would be keeping watch for her.

Besides, although Bailian had a decent mind, she absolutely had no martial ability. If she did anything, Wu Sheyue would definitely notice. Bailian could neither secretly do anything nor fail to stand here as a shield against the mysterious person. It was double insurance.

(To be continued)