Chapter 54 A sudden turn of events...
The sudden turn of events caused the assassin to instinctively tighten the bowstring, which had been loosened. In a hurry, the arrow was released, its sharp light slicing through the rain and heading straight for Xiao Yan Hui.
After his attack, he completely disregarded the consequences and turned to leap towards the rooftop. His tracks had been exposed. If before he had been determined to fight to the death to make Qin Ji suffer, now he only wanted to escape as quickly as possible.
But a figure was chasing closely behind.
"He's a master." Although he didn't know who this person who had suddenly come after him was, and although they hadn't fought yet, the assassin could sense the oppressive aura emanating from him. This person chasing after him was definitely not on the same level as the previous bodyguard.
But he had to escape, at least... to send the message back before he died.
The assassin knew he was unlikely to escape alive tonight, but his heart was filled with joy. He was truly, truly glad he had made that decision tonight.
Originally, he only intended to kill the woman and teach Qin Ji and Xiao Fuyan a "small" lesson, but he never expected that this vengeful assassination, which was meant to vent his anger, would give his family a chance to survive.
Thinking of what he had just witnessed—the fish-shaped gem shimmering with a hazy, eerie light under the flash of lightning around the woman's neck—the assassin still felt incredibly excited.
Although he only briefly acquired it that day, he would never mistake it for the gemstone hanging around the woman's neck, the one he had already obtained but lost after falling into the water, the gemstone containing the secret method of salt refining.
"It's on her? Why is this gem on her?" The reason was irrelevant; the assassin only knew that tonight's assassination attempt was a stroke of genius for him.
If he could get the news about the gem back, his family wouldn't have to die.
"Whoosh!" The hidden weapon came from behind with a whooshing sound. He barely managed to twist his body to avoid it, but he did slow down a bit. The assassin could already feel that the weapon behind him was very close.
"Who's coming to the door?" The Xiao family guards in the courtyard also noticed the unusual activity on the roof.
......
On the other side, the arrow that had been hastily shot was stuck in the window frame, its fletching trembling. Xiao Yan Hui's trembling black eyes slowly moved between the sharp arrow and the white shadow before her, her eyes filled with terror.
It felt like there was a block of iron stuck in my throat, cold and heavy, unable to go up or down, while my heart was burning with anxiety, pounding rapidly and erratically.
Let's rewind a few seconds.
To Xiao Yan, she was simply closing a window when suddenly a sharp arrow flew from the void, heading straight for her.
Faced with this completely unexpected attack, the only thing she could do in that instant, besides holding her breath, was to lean back forcefully.
Although she had mentally made every effort to dodge, in reality, her actions were barely perceptible.
The arrow that came flying through the air was already terrible, but then a white shadow with bared fangs and claws flew in from the side.
"He" made a dull thud and rushed straight at his own face.
In Xiao Yan Hui's eyes, this white figure was even more terrifying than the sharp arrow. At this moment, she felt that her materialistic values of the past years were completely collapsing.
Through the long, wet, black hair, she could clearly see "His" pale, bloodless skin, which was covered by the black hair. The skin was also wet and seeping water, and the black hair was twisting and snaking like a water snake.
His body was also deathly white, with water dripping down incessantly. It was a heavy, lifeless white, but at the end of the white, a bright red was dripping down continuously—that was blood!
The water droplets that dripped from "His" body turned into blood after they hit the ground!
Xiao Yan felt as if time had been stretched out infinitely in that instant. The incoming arrows, the ghostly figures rushing towards them, and even her own attempts to dodge were all frozen in place.
When she felt "His" gaze fall directly on her, Xiao Yan felt as if she were being seized by an irresistible, icy force, and layers of sticky, cold sensations were slowly climbing up her back.
Time resumed its flow amidst the intense fear, but she was frozen in place, able only to watch as "He" raised that pale, dripping, blood-soaked hand, slowly lifting it...
The fear finally broke through the threshold: "Ah! A ghost!"
Xiao Yan screamed and covered her head.
"Ah! A ghost!" Immediately afterward, the same scream rang out behind her. The cat, who had returned after relighting the candle, also witnessed the eerie white shadow in front of the window, and was instantly terrified.
But then the thing reached out its hand towards her girl, and the cat threw the candlestick in its hand at the ghost without hesitation: "Get out of the way, monster!"
The candlestick attack not only failed to have any effect, but was also firmly held by that pale hand.
"Insolence." A low, cold rebuke accompanied by a sharp gaze pierced the cat.
The cat immediately fell silent.
But the voice that followed the terrifying white figure became familiar, and the tone softened: "Yan Hui'er, it's me, Qin Ji."
Qin Ji forcefully shook her hair, which had been battered and bruised by the wind and rain, and held the small flame of the candlestick in her hand so that the person in front of her could see her clearly.
Xiao Yan Hui stared at the face that was all too familiar to her, revealed beneath the wet black hair.
"Qin Ji! ...It really is you!" The exclamation was filled with disbelief.
Just now, she genuinely wondered if the world she had transmigrated into contained any supernatural elements she hadn't noticed before.
She genuinely felt that the white figure appearing before her was some kind of vengeful spirit, water ghost, or other terrifying creature, because the visual impact at that moment was truly overwhelming. But she never expected that this vengeful spirit would actually be Qin Ji!
Upon closer inspection, Qin Ji not only had his hair untied, but was also only wearing a white nightgown.
His appearance here in this manner is so absurd that it's almost as if he saw a vengeful spirit in front of his own window.
......
Where did that sound come from?
"It seems to be from the Third Miss's courtyard."
"What's wrong, Third Miss? Quickly go inside and see if there are still thieves in the courtyard."
The guards, already on high alert because their residence had been broken into, naturally wouldn't stand idly by when they heard the screams coming from Qingnuan Courtyard.
Slightly disordered footsteps and noisy shouts poured into the courtyard.
Seeing the faint light outside, Xiao Yan quickly exerted force with her hand, signaling the slightly uneasy person standing outside the window to come in quickly.
Qin Ji readily complied, using her momentum to flip over and leap through the window.
With a "bang," Xiao Yan slammed the window shut.
The window reopened a moment later, and a slender, white hand reached out, tightly grasped the arrow nailed to the window frame, and pulled hard... but... it couldn't be pulled out.
Another hand, much larger, followed closely behind, reaching out to grasp the arrow's fletching with a forceful pull.
Both hands gripped the arrow and simultaneously withdrew it.
With another "snap," the window not only slammed shut but also latched.
Almost immediately after Qin Ji entered the house, the people in the courtyard became agitated, clearly having heard the two sharp cries of "Ghost!"
The first to arrive were Green Moth and Bamboo Moon, who stood by the door and asked, "Are you alright, young lady? Did you have a nightmare? We'll go and make you a bowl of calming tea."
Candles were lit one after another in the west wing of the second-class maids and the rough-working women, and Granny Qian also hurriedly entered the courtyard with the head maid and the guards.
Xiao Yan took a deep breath, first signaling with her eyes to the wary cat beside her not to make a sound, then rolled her eyes at Qin Ji, who still looked almost exactly like a ghost, and coughed lightly before calling out loudly, "I'm fine."
"I was frightened by the wind and rain and the shadows of the trees outside, that's why I screamed. I'm sorry I startled you. Please, Aunt and the guards, go back. Everything is fine here. Granny Qian, see them out and make sure to close the gate properly."
Upon hearing this instruction, the people in the courtyard looked at each other in bewilderment, unsure whether to continue checking on the Third Young Lady's safety or to follow her instructions and retreat.
"Thank you all for making the trip in the middle of the night. Tomorrow I'll have the kitchen prepare a few tables. If you don't mind, please come and have a few drinks. Green Moth, remember to give the order tomorrow to add some dishes to our own courtyard. Everyone, go back to sleep."
Hearing that the Third Sister could still recall these social customs and speak clearly and calmly, it seemed that she was indeed alright, so the group of people slowly withdrew.
"Miss? Shall I come in and help you to bed?" Zhu Yue's hesitant and tentative voice rang out at the door.
"Zhuyue, you and your sister Lü'e should go back to sleep too. I have a cat to wait on me in my room," Xiao Yan replied, refusing.
"I've helped the young lady to bed, sisters, you can go back to sleep now." Cat's voice carried clearly.
Only then did Green Moth and Bamboo Moon realize that the girl was truly alright. It was probably just as she herself had said: she was awakened by a thunderstorm in the middle of the night and frightened by the shadows of the trees, which led to the earlier misunderstanding.
Soon, the entire Qingnuan Courtyard returned to calm, and Xiao Yan's gaze turned to Qin Ji, whom she had hastily pulled into the room earlier.
But as soon as their gaze fell on him, they immediately looked away, embarrassed and flustered.
Before, his black hair and white clothes seemed like a ghost, but now, under the dim candlelight, all that could be seen was his white nightgown, soaked and clinging to his skin, with strands of dripping black hair framing his handsome face. His previously pale skin was now inexplicably flushed, giving Qin Ji a strangely alluring and eerie beauty.
If he looked like a vengeful ghost just now, then he must be a seductive ghost or a sea monster now. Her mind wandered for a moment, then Xiao Yan immediately realized something that would make her blush and shrink back in embarrassment.
"No, it's a nightgown! Qin Ji is wearing a nightgown, but I'm only wearing a nightgown too!" This realization suddenly exploded in Xiao Yan Hui's mind like a thunderbolt.
"So, when I looked at Qin Ji just now, he looked at me in a similar way?" Her gaze fell on herself, and her clothes, soaked by the rain, clung tightly to her skin. Xiao Yan realized that she could even see the panda-patterned bamboo undershirt she was wearing through the almost transparent nightgown.
She suddenly felt like she was about to be roasted alive. Should she be glad that she hadn't had a chance to wear the new sheer blouses she had made this year?
Xiao Yan rushed to the clothes rack as if she were on fire. She hurriedly tore off an outer robe and a thin cloak, wrapped the robe around herself, and tossed the light pink cloak, embroidered with butterflies and flowers, onto Qin Ji.
......
"Give me a proper explanation of what happened tonight!" He blushed and hurriedly changed the subject, his tone revealing a forced bravado.
But Qin Ji wasn't much better off at the time; he was also blushing but trying his best to remain calm.
"Help your young lady change her clothes first, then you may leave." Qin Ji's gaze, which had been fixed on the ground and walls, shifted to the maid beside him. After giving the order, he tugged at his cloak and went straight to a chair facing the door to sit down.
If it weren't for the somewhat mechanical stiffness in his movements, he would have looked quite calm and composed.
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Author's Note: Qin Ji: I thought I was here to be a hero and save the damsel in distress, but it turns out I'm here to die a shameful death. Diing a shameful death in front of only one person isn't considered dying a shameful death! (She really does love pandas.)
Yan Hui: Family, does anyone understand what happened tonight? This was so shocking and frightening, and then this happened at the end. How can I live like this? I'm so embarrassed that I could dig a whole mansion out of my feet.
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