Spoiled Eldest Miss x Two-faced Madman

CHAPTER 11: “If You Wish To See Me, You May Blow On This.”

　　Although she put on a confident front, An Jiu was still terrified of death. Who knew if she died here, she could even return to the modern world.

　　Based on her understanding of the system, she might just die and that's it.

　　An Jiu clutched a small porcelain bottle in her hand, her heart on high alert. Unfortunately, she had wasted a lot of the Softening Tendons Powder on those idiots, leaving only the Huagong Powder and the Soul-Bewitching Powder.

　　Following Zhou Yuru's instructions, An Jiu entered a room and, through the wardrobe, crawled into a hidden passage.

　　Outside the wardrobe, Zhou Yuru couldn't hide her worry: “Are you sure you don't want to wait a little longer?”

　　An Jiu shook her head: “If we wait any longer, he'll run.”

　　Zhou Yuru said anxiously: “Alright, Miss An, you go. Once those two heroes come out, I'll immediately call them to find you.”

　　An Jiu didn't look back as she crawled into the passage.

　　As soon as she entered, she was startled. The walls of this passage were inlaid with huge night pearls, their bright light illuminating the entire path.

　　This secret organization's owner was so rich. The book didn't mention the male and female leads becoming wealthy after their visit to the secret organization. Who took all this money later?

　　An Jiu had a faint guess. 

　　In fact, when she saw the black-clothed guard earlier, she felt his moves were like those of an assassin—quick, decisive, each move a killing technique. 

　　The most famous assassin organization in the Jianghu was called the Qiānshā Pavilion. 

　　An Jiu carefully walked forward along the secret passage, recalling the contents of the original book.

　　The book only detailed the experiences of the male and female leads; supporting characters and unimportant people weren't described in detail. But now that she was truly in this world, the people she met were no longer just a few lines of text but flesh-and-blood individuals, and many situations had become far more complex. 

　　Was the secret organization connected to the Qiānshā Pavilion? Was the mastermind truly the instigator, or merely a scapegoat? 

　　And the bounty that He Ziqing had accepted—was it a pure coincidence, or was it deliberately orchestrated? 

　　An Jiu wasn't sure. She vaguely felt an invisible hand manipulating everything from the shadows.

　　And the owner of that hand… 

　　“Who?!” 

　　A low shout interrupted An Jiu's thoughts. She quickly looked up and saw two figures in black ahead. Seeing her suspicious movements, they lunged at her. 

　　An Jiu's heart pounded.

　　Instead of immediately attacking, she waited until they were close, then held her breath and swiftly flung her hand, a cloud of powder instantly filling the air. 

　　“Watch out!” One of them shouted, but they were too close to avoid it. As the warning fell, both men collapsed heavily to the ground. 

　　An Jiu felt a wave of relief. Covering her mouth and nose, she quickly ran past the area before finally exhaling. 

　　She had to admit, this Soul-Bewitching Powder was incredibly potent. It truly lived up to its reputation as a product of a divine physician.

　　According to Zhou Yuru, the Black Mansion was directly beneath the Red Mansion, not far away. An Jiu hadn't traveled far along the secret passage when she'd already encountered three or four groups of people, each time unexpectedly subduing them with her powder. 

　　During this time, the little snake on An Jiu's wrist was startled. When one person lunged at her, the snake tried to bite, but An Jiu quickly calmed it. 

　　It was still spring, and the little snake was usually lazy, but whenever she was in danger, it would wake up to protect her, even if it was asleep. 

　　Even though it was just a small snake, An Jiu felt a comforting sense of companionship. 

　　The journey was fraught with peril, but thankfully uneventful, and the powder in the porcelain bottle was rapidly dwindling. 

　　By the time she emerged from the passage and reached the Black Mansion area, the Soul-Bewitching Powder was almost gone.

　　Emerging from the secret passage, An Jiu found herself in an underground cavern. Dozens of men in black stood within, each similarly dressed and bearing a similar air to the assassin guard from the Red Mansion—clad in black, with half their faces concealed by silver masks. 

　　So many assassins!? 

　　An Jiu's eyes widened in shock and horror. 

　　“And who might you be, intruding on my secret establishment? A little beauty, it seems.” 

　　A figure emerged from the shadows, striding towards her. He was clad in fine silk robes, tall and corpulent, his face—unmasked—revealed in the light of the night pearls, a greasy, oily countenance illuminated by a gleeful smile. 

　　An Jiu took a few steps back, feigning bravado. “You… you are the master of this secret organization?”

　　The middle-aged man stroked the mustache on his lip, chuckling. “That's right, I am the master. Little beauty, and which family do you hail from?” 

　　As she suspected, the master of the secret organization wasn't a martial artist. His appearance suggested a wealthy merchant or government official, fat and utterly foolish-looking. 

　　The fact that this man stood before her unmasked indicated his trust in his guards; he believed she couldn't escape his grasp. 

　　In the book, when the male and female leads reached the Black Mansion, the master had already fled, and these assassin guards hadn't appeared. 

　　An Jiu's arrival earlier had unexpectedly led her into a scene absent from the original story. 

　　Despite the imminent danger, An Jiu felt an unusual calm. If her suspicions were correct, then even facing these dozens of assassin guards wouldn't pose a threat to her.

　　The internal deliberations were completed in a flash. To an observer, the girl in red seemed to be frozen in fear. After a moment, she raised her voice, declaring, “Wh-who do you think you are? I'm going to drag you to the authorities, have you imprisoned, and beheaded!” 

　　The girl's voice was clear and delicate, but she had deliberately raised her tone, giving it a stubborn and endearing quality that belied her inner fear. 

　　“Hahahaha! Who dares to arrest me? Who dares to behead me? My dear beauty, you have quite the sense of humor.”

　　The man burst into laughter. Initially, he had been roused from his slumber and was furious, wanting to tear the intruder to pieces. But now, his mood had completely changed. He wanted to capture this little beauty who had so readily fallen into his trap and use her for his amusement. 

　　In his lifetime, he had seen countless beauties. Although this little beauty's face was still hidden, her graceful figure and the exposed skin of her neck and wrists—pale and delicate—suggested remarkable beauty. 

　　The master of the Black Mansion said, “Go, bring her to me. Be careful not to hurt her.” 

　　With his command, dozens of black-clothed guards moved simultaneously, surging towards An Jiu like a dark tide.

　　An Jiu's face, hidden behind her mask, paled, her heart leaping into her throat. 

　　AAAAAH! Why isn't that crazy Pei Ji here yet!!! 

　　As if hearing her silent plea, just as the outstretched hands of the black-clothed men were about to touch An Jiu's arm, a warm body pressed silently against her back, a strong arm wrapping around her waist. 

　　The surrounding scene blurred as she was pulled back several steps, neatly avoiding the grasping hands. 

　　The next second, the oncoming wave of black-clothed men fell to the ground in unison, as if struck by an invisible force. Thump, thump, thump—they tumbled like bowling pins, losing all ability to move.

　　It all happened so suddenly. In an instant, the hall was empty, leaving only the master of the Black Mansion still standing. 

　　“Wh-wh-what… who… who are you?!” The master of the Black Mansion stammered, his finger trembling as he pointed at them, his face a mask of terror. 

　　An Jiu's heart, which had been suspended in her chest, finally dropped back down. But she knew she couldn't show it. She turned her head, feigning surprise, to look behind her. 

　　Her mask concealed her face, revealing only her beautiful eyes— alluring peach blossom eyes wide with astonishment. Beneath her long, thick lashes, her dark pupils shone with a bright, clear light. Her expression shifted from surprise to a sudden, sparkling delight.

　　“… Fei Yi? Is it you?” 

　　Her tone was uncertain, because he was no longer in the white robes of last night, but in dark, somber black, his face obscured by a mask depicting the yin and yang fish. 

　　But a deep-seated intuition told her that this god-like figure, who had appeared as if from the heavens, was the same savior who had left without a word last night! 

　　“How did you know it was me?” the man behind her asked in a low voice, slowly releasing her.

　　He hadn't denied it! The surprise in the girl's eyes exploded, overflowing with joy, her eyes curving into two sweet crescents. 

　　“I don’t know, but I just felt it was you!” She shook her head back and forth excitedly, her tone brimming with emotion. “I can’t believe it’s really you! How did you get here? You saved me again!” 

　　The girl's lively nature, especially in the presence of someone she admired, made her forget the gravity of the situation. 

　　The master of the Black Mansion had been completely ignored, his face darkening with anger. He glanced at the guards lying sprawled on the floor. These guards had cost him a fortune, and yet they had proven utterly useless!

　　Fortunately, he wasn't entirely stupid. Seeing that the pair hadn't noticed him, he turned and ran towards a nearby secret passage. 

　　Just as he turned his back, a sharp sound cut through the air. Something struck his knee, causing a sudden, sharp pain. He stumbled to the ground, clutching his leg and groaning in pain. 

　　“Oh, you want to run, do you?” An Jiu, who had been engrossed in conversation with Fei Yi, snapped back to reality at the sound. She rushed to the master of the Black Mansion, snatched his belt, and swiftly bound his hands and feet like a pig. 

　　When he resisted, she responded with a flurry of punches and kicks. As she stood up, tugging the rope, she froze again. 

　　The girl cautiously raised her head, stealing a furtive glance at the black-clothed man standing nearby, like an innocent deer in the forest, curiously peeking at humans.

　　As she raised her eyes, she met a pair of deep, dark eyes. 

　　Those eyes were long and narrow, with fine wrinkles on the eyelids. His lashes weren't particularly curled, but they were long and thick, his pupils deep and dark, a subtle smile playing at the corners, as if containing countless glittering stars. 

　　Beautiful phoenix eyes. 

　　The girl coughed lightly, slowly withdrawing her foot from the master's back. She spoke softly, in a small voice, “I… I'm usually very gentle! I'm not at all rough. Today… today was a special situation. Pl-please don't hate me…” 

　　A low, deep chuckle echoed, husky and magnetic, inexplicably alluring.

　　An Jiu unconsciously touched her earlobe, her ears turning slightly red. AAAAAH, this man is flirting with her! 

　　“I won't,” Fei Yi said softly. 

　　An Jiu took small, quick steps to his side, tilting her head up, her eyes fixed on him. “Won't what?” 

　　Fei Yi paused, then chuckled softly. “I won't hate you.” 

　　He's lying through his teeth. 

　　The favorability rating is staring her in the face: -79! 

　　It's not hate, it's freaking disgust! 

　　An Jiu sneered inwardly, but her long eyelashes fluttered rapidly, as if she had received some kind of emotional response. She was overwhelmingly shy, a hint of moisture appearing in her eyes.

　　“C-can I see your face?” Overwhelmed by her emotions, she blurted it out. “Just one look, I promise, I absolutely won't tell anyone I've seen you. Okay?” 

　　Her eyes were filled with anticipation. When had this high-and-mighty young lady ever humbled herself like this before? 

　　Her eyelashes fluttered, a mixture of nervousness and hopeful expectation. 

　　But the man who had just given her a glimmer of hope slowly shook his head, shattering her hopes. 

　　Fei Yi's consistently calm and gentle voice came from behind the mask, laced with regret. “I'm sorry, I can't.” 

　　This was the second time she had been rejected. The light in the girl's eyes dimmed instantly; her head drooped, her disappointment palpable.

　　“You…” 

　　Seeing the girl's dejection and disappointment, the man seemed about to say something. However, as he opened his mouth, the girl suddenly stepped forward, her small, soft body unexpectedly falling into his embrace. 

　　She lifted her face from his chest, her alluring peach blossom eyes curving mischievously. “I'll just take a peek.” 

　　The long, narrow black eyes behind the yin and yang mask narrowed sharply. He smelled a familiar scent—the Soul-Bewitching Powder he had given her, and now she was using it on him. 

　　A fine light shimmered in the girl's dark eyes. She nervously held her breath, one hand slowly reaching towards the black and white yin and yang mask.

　　Just as her delicate fingertips were about to brush the edge of the mask, a long, slender hand gently grasped it. 

　　The girl's eyes widened in disbelief. “How are you… still awake?” 

　　Fei Yi held her waist with one hand, slowly but firmly pushing her away. He hadn't fainted, nor had he lost consciousness; there was no sign of any abnormality. The Soul-Bewitching Powder had lost its effect on him. 

　　He said nothing, his deep eyes quietly gazing at the girl, filled with warmth and tolerance, like a mature adult watching a mischievous child.　　Bathed in that gaze, the girl couldn't help but bite her lip, whispering softly, “I-I'm sorry, I just wanted to see you…” 

　　The man suddenly leaned his head to listen, then turned to An Jiu. “Miss An, I must go.” 

　　An Jiu panicked, forgetting her disappointment. She reached out and grabbed his sleeve. “Why are you leaving so soon?” 

　　Fei Yi replied, “Someone is coming.” 

　　An Jiu quickly said, “It must be someone I know. It's alright! They're good people, they won't betray you to your enemies!”

　　Fei Yi slowly withdrew his sleeve. He looked down at her, his voice still low and gentle. “I'm sorry.” 

　　Before he turned and walked into the secret passage, An Jiu quickly caught up. “Fei Yi, will… will I be able to see you again?” 

　　His tall, slender figure paused slightly, turning slightly to look at her. The girl's expression was hidden behind her mask, but her fingers unconsciously clutched at her dress, her slender bones faintly white. 

　　He was silent for a moment, then his fingertips moved, gently tossing something towards her. 

　　“If you wish to see me, you can blow this.” 

　　An Jiu caught it and looked down. It was a tiny bamboo whistle, about the size of her thumb.

　　Looking up again, the figure that had appeared so suddenly had vanished like a dream bubble. 

　　【Pei Ji's favorability towards you +5, current value: -74】

________________ 

Author's Note:

Much of An Jiu's behavior is an act. She, like the male lead, is a master of acting; two acting masters putting on a show.

Actually, these two are quite similar at heart.

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