After Xiao Chenyuan left, a servant arrived to carefully remove the Iris flower lamp. Shortly after, the maids he had arranged—Hongrui and Lüqiao—also arrived. Hongrui appeared composed, while Lüqiao was more spirited. Both women had delicate features and carried themselves with an air of agility, but what caught the eye were the characters tattooed on their right cheeks: the word "slave" was etched into their skin.
Qingwu's memories stirred. In her past life, she and Xiao Chenyuan had once rescued children kidnapped by human traffickers. Among them were two young girls whose cheeks had been branded, while a boy had been lucky enough to be saved before suffering the same fate.
Snapping out of her reverie, Qingwu yawned and ordered food to be served. After nibbling at a few bites, she returned to sleep. The two maids observed her briefly, finding nothing amiss, and quietly left. By the time Qingwu woke again, night had fallen. The maids still stood guard outside her door. Smiling faintly, she blew a gentle breath in their direction. A cool night breeze swept through, and suddenly, Hongrui and Lüqiao felt an overwhelming drowsiness. Their heads drooped, and they slumped against the wall, sound asleep. With no hesitation, Qingwu pushed the door open and slipped into the darkness, vanishing without a trace.
Back at the Ministry of Revenue's manor, ever since Yun Houxing had returned home with the coffin, the household had been in turmoil. Madam Luo, who had only just been elevated from concubine to wife, hadn't even had a day to flaunt her newfound status before her daughter's 'dead' body was brought back. She sobbed uncontrollably, her cries unending. Meanwhile, Yun Houxing, leaving the Dread King's Manor, had rushed to seek an audience with the Crown Prince, only to be denied entry to the Eastern Palace. Clearly, the Crown Prince had already caught wind of the situation and was now eager to distance himself.
Was Yun Houxing afraid of Xiao Chenyuan? No... What he feared was that coffin—Yun Qingwu!
He had no time to comfort Madam Luo's grief. Instead, he summoned his closest confidants to seek out a Daoist priest or a revered monk to exorcise Yun Qingwu's ghost. By nightfall, though no Daoist could be found, a group of monks was invited into the household, chanting sutras for deliverance within the residence. The rituals provided Yun Houxing with a sliver of comfort, but he still dared not remain alone. Servants were stationed outside his door while lamps burned brightly within. Disregarding Madam Luo's sorrow, he forced her to stay in the room with him.
In truth, his thoughts were selfish: Madam Luo was Yun Yujiao's mother, and she had often tormented Yun Qingwu. If that wretched girl was back to claim vengeance, she certainly wouldn't spare Madam Luo. If danger arose, he intended for her to be the first to face it. Exhausted by the day's fright, and despite Madam Luo's incessant weeping, Yun Houxing's eyelids began to droop.
The murmurs around him twisted into a sinister tone, carrying a chilling menace. "It hurts... My heart hurts so much..."
Yun Houxing felt overwhelmed with irritation, suddenly noticing something drip onto his face. Instinctively, he touched his cheek. Sticky and warm—it seemed like blood. The sound seemed to come from above him.
A hammer-like jolt struck his heart, stopping it momentarily. Terror froze him in place as he opened his eyes to total darkness. "Aaaaaah!"
The man's scream pierced through the night, raw and desperate. "Light the lamp! Quickly, light it! Who snuffed out the light for me?!" Luo-shi, panicked, fumbled to relight the lamp.
When light filled the room again, Yun Houxing gasped for air, trembling as he examined his hand. It was drenched in sweat, not the imagined crimson he had feared. A brief wave of relief washed over him, quickly replaced by fury.
"Who dares to extinguish my light?!" He snapped his head toward Luo-shi.
But standing by the lamp was a woman clad in blood-soaked bridal robes, her body marred by gaping wounds at her chest and limbs. Her face was ashen, lifeless, yet eerily familiar.
It was Yun Qingwu.
"Father," the figure intoned coldly, "it's me..."
"Aaaaaah! Help! Ghost! There's a ghost!" Yun Houxing scrambled on all fours, shrieking as he fled through the doorway.
Inside, Luo-shi, holding a trembling lamp, was paralyzed with fear. Though she managed to maintain her composure better than Yun Houxing, she dared not linger in the room. Hastily, she called for the guards.
From behind the screen, a shadow emerged. QingWu smirked at the "ghost" still looming. "Go ahead, keep the chaos alive."
Yun Qingwu nodded, her crimson eyes glowing as she drifted out of the room.
Carrying an ethereal lantern, its ghostly blue fire concealing her presence, QingWu wandered casually through the Shangshu Manor. She seemed entirely at ease, navigating as though it were her own home.
The judge's brush protested, "Why are you so familiar with this place?"
"This was once my home," QingWu replied with a wistful sigh, quickly replaced by a mocking smirk. "That old emperor was truly generous, gifting Hou Mansion to that wretched Yun Houxing."
The brush vibrated with shock. "No wonder you're helping Yun Qingwu seek revenge! This is just you avenging yourself! Wait—you weren't supposed to peek into mortal affairs. The Underworld King forbade it! Did you sneak a look at the Book of Life and Death? Otherwise, how could you know that Yun Houxing was behind your family's demise?"
QingWu responded nonchalantly, "Relax. I only glanced at it, just once."
Her voice remained even, but her eyes burned with cold fury. "All I saw was this Yun Houxing bastard deliberately cutting off the army's supplies and leaking critical intelligence to the northern barbarians."
The brush groaned. "You said you'd just find ghosts! You're obviously plotting revenge! An underworld official arbitrarily killing a mortal is a serious taboo!!"
"When did I kill anyone? Yun Qingwu is the one seeking revenge; I'm just here to enjoy the show. Besides, Yun Houxing isn't dead yet, is he?"
As she spoke, QingWu entered the study and began rummaging through the shelves. Years ago, Yun Houxing had acted on behalf of a powerful conspirator. For a betrayal of this scale, he must have kept some insurance for his survival.
QingWu wasn't just here for vengeance. She sought the spirits of her parents and brothers, aiming to clear their tarnished names.
Even during her years in the Underworld, she could hear the curses every Zhongyuan Ghost Festival. Families of soldiers who had perished in the great battle screamed grievances against the Zhen Guo Hou Mansion, accusing it of treason.
"Traitors!" they roared. "They killed our sons!"
The cries echoed in her ears, each insult weighing on her soul.
How laughable, she thought bitterly. The loyals rest in dishonor, while traitors roam free.
QingWu searched the entire study but found nothing. She took a deep breath, suppressing the killing intent rising within her.
The loud, shrill voice of the Judge's Brush only made her more irritated. "Ah Wu, calm down! You can't keep acting recklessly! ... You can search all you want, but let's at least follow some human rules. Once you personally kill someone, it will be a huge mess!"
"Got it," QingWu gritted her teeth. Suddenly, her beautiful eyes narrowed as she walked toward the door. The ghostly light in the lamp flickered, enveloping her figure more tightly. Just then, a figure quickly pushed the door open.
The study was pitch black, but QingWu could clearly see the man's striking, beautiful eyes. Xiao Chenyuan's body paused for a moment, and in the instant he entered the study, he sensed someone's presence. The dagger left his hand, shooting straight ahead, passing through the void and embedding itself in a pillar.Xiao Chenyuan's heart sank. Was it a mistake?
He quickly moved forward, pulled the dagger out, and caught a familiar fragrance in the air. It smelled like... snowflakes from the first snowfall, yet also like... irises. A face flashed in Xiao Chenyuan's mind.
Yun Qingwu?