Chapter 86: Frightened Whispers
Yexue barely remembered how she left the courtyard. One moment she was standing in front of Qingyue and Lieyin, the weight of their silence pressing down on her chest—
And the next, she was walking.
No—stumbling.
She exhaled sharply, dragging a hand through her hair. "Damn it!"
"Yexue?"
She froze.
Ru Yi stood a few steps away from the doorway. Still...quiet.
Her hands were clasped tightly in front of her, knuckles faintly white, as if she had been standing there for a while.
As if she had heard...
"How much of our conversation did you hear?" Yexue asked, her voice going lower.
Ru Yi hesitated. Then she answered softly, "enough."
Something twisted in Yexue’s chest.
Ru Yi stepped forward, her expression gentle. But there was something fragile beneath it. "You should go back to your sisters."
Yexue frowned. "What?"
"Your sisters," Ru Yi continued, her voice steady despite the faint tremble in it. "They need you. The patrol is important, you know this."
"I know that."
"Then go," Ru Yi said, forcing a small smile. "I’ll go to Madam Lin’s house myself."
Yexue’s expression hardened immediately. "No."
Ru Yi blinked. "Yexue..."
"I said no. You’re also import—" she caught herself on time. "We need to know exactly what is going on in that house. It could be linked to the kidnapping."
She looked at Ru Yi. "My sisters can handle themselves," Yexue continued, her voice firm. "They’ve done a hundred times without me."
Ru Yi opened her mouth to speak, but Yexue stepped closer.
"But you..." she added, her tone dropping slightly. "You can’t fight. If anything happens you won’t be able to defend yourself. You can’t fight."
The words weren’t cruel. At least they weren’t meant to be, Yexue was simply stating a fact. But they landed anyway.
Ru Yi froze, her eyes shimmering. Of course she couldn’t fight. She was only good at being a burden onto others.
Yexue paused, noticing the change in her expression. "What?"
Ru Yi quickly looked down, blinking as if trying to chase the tears away. But her voice came out softer...vulnerable. "Nothing."
"But, you’re crying."
"I’m not," Ru Yi said quickly, though her voice betrayed her. She wiped at her eyes, a small, embarrassed sound that should be a sound coming out. "I just..."
She trailed off.
Then admitted, barely above a whisper. "No one’s ever chosen me. Or worried about me like this before. Not that it’s anyone’s fault. I just manage to get into trouble all the time."
The words hit harder than anything Ru Yi ever said.
Yexue didn’t know what to do with that.
Ru Yi shook her head quickly, trying to dismiss it. "But that’s not a good thing," she added, regaining some composure. "You shouldn’t fight with your sisters because of me. I’m not worth it."
"I’m not fighting them because of you." Yexue exhaled. "They’ll be fine."
"Yexue..."
"I already made my choice."
There it was again. That quiet, immovable certainty.
Ru Yi looked at her for a long moment. Then her shoulders softened. "You’re really stubborn."
Yexue smiled. "At least we have something in common."
And just like that, the tension eased...if only a little.
Ru Yi took a break. "Fine. We’ll go together."
Yexue nodded once. "Good."
-
-
Madam Lin’s residence was quiet when they arrived, with no sign of anyone being inside. Ru Yi should’ve been used to it by now, but the stillness pressed into her like doom waiting to explode.
"Stay close," Yexue muttered.
Before they could knock, the door creaked open. A man that they’d never seen before stood there.
He was tall, well dressed, and composed. His expression was polite, but something about it felt practiced.
"Can I help you?" he asked.
Ru Yi bowed her head slightly. "I’m here for work. I serve Madam Lin."
The man smiled. "Ah," he said. "You must be Ru Yi."
Yexue’s eyes narrowed slightly. "You know her name."
"Of course," he replied smoothly. "She’s the new staff. My wife speaks highly of her."
Wife.
Yexue filed that information away. "What’s your name?" she asked bluntly.
"Lin Guowei."
Ru Yi blinked slightly at the familiarity but said nothing.
"My wife isn’t home," Lin Guowei continued. "She left early this morning for a business trip."
Ru Yi frowned. "Business trip? But she didn’t mention anything about it yesterday."
"It was an emergency," Lin Guowei replied, with his practiced smile still intact. "She’ll be gone for a couple days. I’ll make sure to send word when she comes back so you can resume your duties. And don’t worry about your pay getting cut."
Yexue stepped forward. Something about the man or what he was saying was adding up. "Can we take a look inside? We forgot a..." she searched her head for the perfect excuse. "My purse!"
Ru Yi looked at her in confusion.
"I’m afraid that won’t be possible," Lin Guowei replied, his smile faltering for a brief moment. "If you give me the description of the purse, I’ll have a staff member check it for you."
"It wasn’t a request," Yexue replied, still unfamiliar with being denied access when she wanted something.
The air around them tightened, as the man looked at Yexue. Then...he chuckled lightly, even though nothing about the situation was funny.
"My apologies," he said, though his expression said the opposite. "But I must insist."
Yexue held his gaze for a couple seconds too long before she stepped back. "Come on. Let’s go. You can forget about the purse."
Just like that. No argument. Which Ru Yi found unnerving. It was unlike Yexue to give up so easily.
"Okay."
The man gave them a small nod before closing the door in their faces. As if he couldn’t be any more unwelcoming.
They turned to leave, only taking a couple steps when they heard a strangled voice say, "help me."
The two of them stopped instantly, looking at each other to confirm their suspicions.
"Did you hear that?" Ru Yi whispered.
A faint sound followed, slipping through the cracks of the walls. "Please..."
The voice was weak and strained. But above all, it was eerily familiar. They’d heard it enough times to recognize it.
Yexue turned her head slowly, eyes darkening. Behind them, the door to the house stood closed. Silent. But the atmosphere had turned suffocating.
"Madam Lin..." Ru Yi whispered.
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