163 Strange Taste
◎It smells like rust, and also like blood◎
As soon as the words fell, everyone present fell silent.
Yes, just like Qi Qiuxue said, this is an S-level copy after all, anything is possible, in order to survive, they must prepare for the worst, be careful and cautious everywhere.
"It's getting late." Li Yiqing glanced at the Western clock hanging on the wall. "It's just a simple breakfast. Eating it for too long will arouse suspicion. Let's go first."
"Mrs. Han's birthday is in seven days. The system reminds me that there are still many things I need to plan personally. I have to leave first."
She withdrew her gaze and looked at each player present, reminding them with concern, "I will pay attention to safety and collect as much key information as possible during the planning process. You should also be careful when carrying out the mission and make sure not to get hurt."
Everyone responded: "I know."
"Don't worry, we will take care of ourselves."
"Yes." Li Yiqing nodded and continued, "After you leave here, you can move freely within the mansion. This is tacitly approved by the main NPCs. You can also enter and exit unimportant rooms without hindrance. However, if you want to enter the rooms where they live or areas where important artifacts are stored, you will need to be flexible."
"good."
I have to say that Li Yiqing really has the demeanor of a young lady at the moment.
Qi Qiuxue sat there, looking sideways at her. He rubbed her wrist a few times with his fingertips, neither lightly nor heavily, and asked, "Is there anything else you want to tell me, Miss Li?"
Li Yiqing quickly looked at her: "Of course."
"This is what I found in the room. Take it, just in case." She stuffed a bag of silver dollars into Qi Qiuxue's hand, her tone sincere, her eyes full of concern, "Axue, you must protect yourself."
"Yes." Qi Qiuxue quickly responded, "You too."
-
Li Yiqing left the room first.
Qi Qiuxue and the others stayed for a while, then quickly got up and left. The servants who were standing not far away saw this and came forward to clean up the dishes, behaving politely and quickly.
Maybe we can get some useful information from them.
Qi Qiuxue's eyes wandered over the few people, and finally she chose a girl who looked the youngest. She asked in a friendly manner, "Can I ask you something?"
The little girl who was stopped by her was obviously stunned. When she spoke again, her tone was slightly panicked: "Sorry, I don't know anything."
Qi Qiuxue said calmly, "I haven't told you what I want to find out yet."
"I really don't know anything." The little girl's tone was full of embarrassment, even a hint of fear. "Please find someone else."
"I still have work to do, so I'm leaving first." After saying that, he left quickly.
"Something's wrong." Liu Ge said from the side.
"Yeah." Su Wen looked in the direction she left. "It was just a simple chat. No one mentioned the problem. Is it necessary to panic like this?"
As if wanting to find a few more people to experiment with, Su Wen quickly grabbed another servant who was about to leave and said, "Can I ask you a question?"
"I'm sorry, I don't know anything." The man she held this time was a middle-aged man in his forties or fifties, short, lame, and with a gloomy look. Although he didn't look as panicked as the little girl just now, he also kept his mouth shut. He made his attitude clear from the start and said that he knew nothing.
It seems that these people must have received some special discipline, and it is impossible to get anything out of them by asking too directly.
Qi Qiuxue paused, then took a few steps forward and said, "Don't overthink it. We just want to find out what Madam Han likes."
"I'm really grateful that she's willing to take us in and provide us with such good accommodation and food. To repay her, we'd like to give her a generous gift for her birthday. In order to buy something she likes, it's necessary to inquire about it in advance, don't you agree?" After speaking, she took out a few silver dollars from her pocket and placed them in the man's hand. "Please give me some advice."
"I'm just a servant. I don't know what the lady likes." The man didn't react in any special way to the money in his hand. He returned the silver dollar to Qi Qiuxue and said, "Why don't you try asking someone else another day?"
"Besides, you can't even get out, so forget about buying it."
He spoke in a very soft voice, and only Qi Qiuxue, who was closest to him, could barely hear what he said. Before she could ask anything else, the man had already hurried away.
"Axue, what did he just say?" Wu Shanyue asked in confusion.
Qi Qiuxue frowned, "He said we can't get out, there's no way we can leave this house."
Su Wen, who was standing by, was stunned when he heard the voice: "Who else could stop us? Or is the map of this dungeon only as big as this house... The key is, how did he, an NPC, know this?"
Bai Shien then continued, "I went to check the gate before breakfast, and it was indeed closed. Common sense says that the servants in the mansion have already started work, so the gate should have been opened."
"It seems that everything is not simple now." She looked in the direction of Qi Qiuxue. "I think the probability of an ordinary NPC being able to see through the true nature of the dungeon is very small. The reason why he said we can't get out must be due to other reasons."
"Shall we go and have a look again now?" she asked.
"Only two people will be enough. They can look after each other. Too many people will only arouse suspicion." Qi Qiuxue said decisively, "Liu Ge, Su Wen, I'll leave this matter to you."
Liu Ge and Su Wen nodded in response: "Okay."
"The others will be with me. The key to passing this level is everyone's treasure. Since it's a treasure, it must be placed in a safe, secret place within their reach. Right now, what we need to do is to interact with the main NPCs as much as possible and see if we can get any useful information out of them, or find a way to infiltrate some of the places they frequent."
Qi Qiuxue looked away and towards the pond beside her. The goldfish swimming back and forth in it reminded her of her dream last night. "Time is running out. We must gather clues as quickly as possible."
-
It was still early, and apart from meeting her eldest daughter Li Yiqing in the morning, Mrs. Han's door was still closed and she had no plans to meet anyone at the moment.
Master Li got up early in the morning and was handling official business in the study. For some reason, he did not go out to work. Qi Qiuxue observed the situation in front of the study. Many servants were guarding the door, holding tea and snacks in their hands, waiting quietly.
The teacups, teapots, and snacks, each one is exquisite and beautiful. Combined with Mr. Li’s clothes, cane, and the pipe he used yesterday, it is not difficult to see that he is a very sophisticated person.
For such a person, what exactly is his treasure?
Qi Qiuxue left this place silently and headed for the next target. Also living in the second courtyard was the second young master of the Li family, Li Yichuan.
As if he didn't like being served, there was no servant waiting at his door.
The sun was shining brightly today. Qi Qiuxue looked around and saw that Li Yichuan had specially placed a chair and set up an easel in the yard. He was wearing a light and convenient long gown with his sleeves slightly rolled up, revealing a small part of his overly thin arm. He held a delicate paintbrush in his hand, sketching something on the paper with obsession and concentration.
Qi Qiuxue raised her foot and walked towards where he was. The closer she was, the more clearly she could see the subtle things.
She found scratches on Li Yichuan's arms, one after another, densely packed scratches, but this was just the tip of the iceberg, more were hidden under the sleeves, making it difficult to see clearly.
“…”
It was not until they were less than three meters apart that Li Yichuan finally noticed their approach. He seemed dissatisfied with the fact that they had disrupted his painting rhythm, and Li Yichuan frowned visibly.
"Good morning." Qi Qiuxue greeted him calmly. "We happened to come here while strolling around. The weather is so nice today, and the scenery here is so beautiful. It's really suitable for painting."
"Would it be convenient for us to see your paintings?" she asked. "I'd really like to see what kind of beautiful scenery you can depict."
Perhaps pleased by her words, Li Yichuan relaxed his frown and turned the easel in front of him: "Well, take a look."
Qi Qiuxue quickly looked away.
To be honest, this is not a perfect work. Qi Qiuxue comes from the design industry and is very good at painting. From his brushstrokes, some basic line directions, simple picture structure, etc., it can be seen that Li Yichuan does have some basic painting skills and has practiced for a long time.
However, his composition, color, and more detailed description of things are still lacking. Hard work is important, but some things require more talent, and Li Yichuan happens to be a person who lacks talent.
"How is it?" There was anticipation and pride hidden in Li Yichuan's tone. The young master who grew up like a star was born with a pride that ordinary people did not have. He was very satisfied with his work and felt that he painted very well.
"This is truly an amazing work, so lifelike." Qi Qiuxue gave him the praise he wanted, just as he wished. Noticing that Li Yichuan seemed a little overly obsessed with painting, Qi Qiuxue decided to examine the painting more closely. "Would it be convenient for me to take a closer look?"
Li Yichuan nodded in agreement: "Of course."
So Qi Qiuxue continued to move forward, leaned over to get closer to the painting in front of her, and examined it carefully.
Soon, she smelled a strange smell, and she didn't know where it came from.
——It smells like rust, and also like blood.
【Author’s words】
There is still a thousand left, I will make up for it tomorrow
A reader baby asked for the cheongsam pictures of Axue and Aqing. You can go to the super topic of the same name to have a look. There are many other fan pictures in it, flirting, teasing, agent outfits, Q-like, strip comics, and yes, there are also skull heart emoticons hahaha
Thank you for your Bawang tickets and nutrient solution, and thank you for leaving comments and reading~
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