It rained all night in Huanghua Town.
Rainwater dripped from the old eaves of Mingyue Tower, striking the bluestone slabs with hollow echoes.
Qiuyue huddled in a side room in the backyard of Mingyue Tower, clutching a celadon bottle tightly in her hand.
The sound of rain outside the window masked her suppressed cough, but it couldn't hide the scarlet blood seeping through her fingers.
Qiuyue huddled on the bed in the corner of the room, the heavy quilt unable to cover her trembling body.
"Cough cough...cough cough cough..." A violent cough suddenly struck, and Qiuyue hurriedly covered her mouth with a handkerchief. Several dazzling red plum blossoms immediately bloomed on the snow-white silk handkerchief.
"Miss Qiuyue, it's time for your medicine." The new accountant's gentle urging came from outside the door, his voice like a venomous snake slithering into her ears. "It's past midnight; if you don't take your medicine soon, you'll be late."
Qiuyue stared at the empty porcelain bottle in her hand and suddenly remembered the night before her sister left.
It was on a rainy day like this that my sister looked back at me for the last time as that young man in brocade robes led her away.
At that time, she had no idea that she would become the chain that bound her sister.
The accountant's voice rang out again, this time with a hint of impatience: "Miss, hurry up, the medicine will lose its potency if it gets cold."
Qiuyue gave a bitter laugh.
What are its effects? It's nothing more than a slow poison that allows one to prolong their life.
Ever since her sister became that man's servant, she has been forced to take these black pills every day.
While suppressing his cough, he could no longer be without the pills.
She had considered ending it all, but the man named Xiao Cheng made it clear that if she dared to commit suicide, her sister, who was no longer of any use, would also be disposed of.
With a creak, the door was pushed open.
Qiu Yue hurriedly stuffed the blood-stained handkerchief into her sleeve, but when she looked up, she saw Xiao Cheng's cold and stern face.
"This room is quite shabby," Xiao Cheng frowned, looking at the leaky roof. "I'll have someone move you to another place."
"No, no need!" Qiu Yue's voice was hoarse. "This place is just fine... Sir, where's my sister? Is she alright?"
Xiao Cheng sneered, took a new porcelain bottle from his robes, and tossed it onto the bed: "This is none of your concern. Master said that once it's done, he will release you sisters."
Qiuyue opened the porcelain bottle with trembling hands, and three black pills rolled into her palm.
Hidden at the bottom of the bottle was a note in that person's handwriting: "If your sister is ever fickle, this medicine will be her death warrant."
"Eat up." Xiao Cheng stood with his arms crossed.
Qiuyue bit her lip and swallowed the pill in front of him, her tears mixed with blood.
The bitter taste of the medicine spread in her mouth, much like the endless prison life she and her sister endured.
——-
In the back garden of Prince Jing's mansion, Qiu Xin mechanically followed behind Wang Xiuxiu.
Since yesterday, she has been like a walking corpse.
Along with her sister's letter, a bloodstained sachet was also delivered to her.
"Miss Qiuxin, Miss Qiuyue's illness is getting worse. Our mistress has recently been reprimanded by her family. If things don't go smoothly soon, I'm afraid no one will bring your sister medicine..."
Qiu Xin clutched the sachet in her sleeve tightly, her voice barely audible: "Let me go back to Huanghua Town... I can continue gathering information for my master..."
"Ha," the servant sneered, "Miss Qiuxin, don't play dumb. Your master went to great lengths to send you to Prince Jing's residence, not so you could go back."
After saying this, he disappeared behind the artificial hill, leaving only the words, "Whether to save her or not is entirely up to the young lady..."
"Qiu Xin? Qiu Xin?" Wang Xiuxiu's voice pulled her thoughts back to reality.
Qiu Xin suddenly looked up and met Wang Xiuxiu's concerned gaze.
Sunlight filtered through the plum branches, casting dappled shadows on her face, just as gently as it had been in Huanghua Town years ago.
"Are you lost in thought?" Wang Xiuxiu plucked a sprig of red plum blossom and handed it to her. "I remember when we were in Huanghua Town, you loved plum blossoms the most. These are newly bloomed this year. I'll have someone pick some to take back and put in a vase, okay?"
Qiu Xin took the flower branch, her fingertips touching Wang Xiuxiu's warm palm, and suddenly remembered that night many years ago.
She was waiting to die in a dark room in the building when Xiuxiu had someone rescue her and also ransom her younger sister.
Memories flooded back like a tide, and she could no longer hold back, grabbing Wang Xiuxiu's hand: "Xiuxiu, no, Your Highness, I..."
"Your Highness, Consort!" The steward's shout interrupted her impulsive act. "His Highness requests your immediate presence in the front courtyard!"
Wang Xiuxiu's expression changed drastically. Before leaving, she turned back and said, "Qiuxin, you don't look well. Go back and rest."
Qiu Xin stood there, stunned, when the plum branch in her hand snapped with a "crack".
As she watched Wang Xiuxiu's departing figure, she suddenly recalled the nightmare from the previous night—her younger sister reaching out to her with blood flowing from all seven orifices.
——-
Inside the study of the Zhou family mansion, the candlelight illuminated the painting "The Lonely Heart Under the Bright Moon".
The bright moon hangs high in the painting, the pavilions are desolate, but the beautiful woman who should be playing the zither under the moon is missing.
"Master, the spies from Prince Jing's mansion indeed found nothing." Xiao Cheng knelt on one knee. "Our arrangements in Huanghua Town were very thorough; even the old servant from Mingyue Tower was silenced."
Zhou Yun'an added a few flowing clouds to the painting, then asked without looking up, "What was Wang Xiuxiu's reaction?"
"According to her informant, although she was suspicious, she kept Qiu Xin in the mansion due to a lack of evidence."
"Wang Xiuxiu is a loyal and sentimental person. Without solid evidence, she would keep Qiuxin by her side."
Xiao Cheng hesitated for a moment, "Master, I don't understand. Since Wang Xiuxiu has already become suspicious, why..."
"It's precisely because of this suspicion that it's all the more interesting." Zhou Yun'an gently stroked the solitary moon in the painting, then suddenly chuckled: "I want her to clearly sense the danger, yet find no evidence; I want her to witness the person she trusts most betray her, and be powerless to stop it."
He suddenly spilled a cup of cold tea onto the painting, the ink spreading and blurring the bright moon: "In a game of cat and mouse, you always have to leave the prey some hope, watching it struggle is the most interesting part, isn't it?"
A thunderclap boomed outside the window, and a flash of lightning illuminated the cruel smile on Zhou Yun'an's lips.
As Xiao Cheng bowed and withdrew, he discovered that his undergarments were completely soaked.
He gazed at the gloomy sky and suddenly remembered Qiu Xin, who had been weeping the day before when he took out the token.
Only at this moment did he realize that what his master wanted was never simple betrayal, but rather for Wang Xiuxiu to witness firsthand how the person she trusted most was driven step by step into a desperate situation.
The rain grew heavier, and the lanterns in the Zhou residence swayed in the wind, casting ghostly shadows.
Meanwhile, inside the Prince Jing's residence, Wang Xiuxiu was looking at the secret letter sent from Huanghua Town, her face growing increasingly grim.
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