WBICDPH Chapter 23 Part 2

From what the madam had just implied, Qiao Shuang’er’s disappearance really was connected to Zhui Tang.

But why would she harm Qiao Shuang’er? And why wouldn’t the madam make a fuss about it?

Lost in thought, Liu Fuxin was just about to push open the door when she suddenly heard someone calling her from the side.

“Sister Zhui Tang!”

Liu Fuxin paused and turned her head, seeing a skinny little girl hiding at the corner of the corridor.

The girl looked about ten years old. She seemed to be a servant from Mantingchun, dressed in dingy gray clothes, her face smudged with dirt. But her eyes were large and bright.

When she saw Liu Fuxin turn around, the girl quickly slipped over. Liu Fuxin noticed that her clothes bulged oddly, as if she were hiding something inside.

The real Zhui Tang had already been concealed by Liu Fuxin with a magical artifact, imperceptible to mortals. So Liu Fuxin let the girl into the room.

“Sister Zhui Tang, I stole a few pastries from the back kitchen. You didn’t eat anything all day—you must be starving. Hurry and have some.”

The girl pulled out several pastries that were nearly crumbling and shoved them into Liu Fuxin’s hands without giving her a chance to refuse.

After that, she wiped her hands on her clothes and produced a small box.

“This is some ointment I got from Sister A-Yao. Mama hit your face today—put this on. Sister A-Yao said it’ll heal once you apply it.”

Liu Fuxin looked at the broken pastries in her hands. After hesitating for a moment, she said softly, “I made a mistake. Mama punished me—it’s only right.”

Unexpectedly, the girl bristled at that.

“How could that be? I heard the other sisters talking. You didn’t do anything wrong at all. Mama only ever thinks about making money and bullying people—she’s the one in the wrong.”

“But I…” Liu Fuxin paused slightly.
“I caused the young lady from today to disappear, her life or death unknown. How can you say I did nothing wrong? And aren’t you afraid?”

“Afraid of what? Afraid of you, or afraid of the ghost sister?”

The girl beamed at Liu Fuxin.

She beckoned mysteriously. “Sister, come here. I’ll tell you a secret.”

“?”

Liu Fuxin raised an eyebrow slightly and bent down.

The girl stood on tiptoe, leaned close, and whispered in her ear, “You don’t need to scare me—I understand. The other sisters already told me about the ghost sister. They said that even though ghosts sound scary, some ghosts are much better than some people. So I’m not afraid at all. Compared to the ghost sister, I’m more afraid of Mama.”

With that, the girl winked at Liu Fuxin and ran off, thoughtfully closing the door behind her.

The wooden door creaked shut, sealing out the noise of revelry from the building.

Liu Fuxin stood there, lost in thought. The girl’s words seemed to have struck something in her heart, and she couldn’t help but reexamine the case from beginning to end.

After a moment, she walked to the window and pushed it open. Cold wind rushed in with a howl.

Outside, the snow was falling heavier and heavier. Liu Fuxin raised her hand and caught a snowflake, lowering her gaze as it slowly melted into icy water in her palm.

Earlier, Lin Jin had told her that Zhui Tang had been at Mantingchun for at least ten years, while the earliest disappearance case there had occurred six years ago.

If Qiao Shuang’er’s disappearance today was connected to Zhui Tang, then could the other cases be the same? Had Zhui Tang and that unknown “ghost sister” committed all these acts together? If so, what criteria did they use to choose their targets? Why was it that the other courtesans were fine, while only these few vanished without a trace?

As Liu Fuxin reviewed the details, at one moment, she suddenly recalled Zhui Tang’s expression when she first saw her.

Shock. Surprise. Back then, when she saw Liu Fuxin, she seemed as if she wanted to say something.

What had she wanted to say?

And why, exactly, had Liu Fuxin’s appearance provoked such a reaction from her?

Liu Fuxin raised her hand and dispelled the disguise spell. In the next instant, the colorful gauze dress was replaced by pure white, matching the snowy scene outside the window.

A few breaths later, she sensed that the wind outside had grown stronger. The wind carried snowflakes into the room, where they melted into scattered droplets of water.

The wind and snow lifted a few strands of Liu Fuxin’s hair. Then, at a certain instant, a dark glint flashed in her eyes, and she suddenly widened them!

—

The rear alley of Mantingchun.

Lin Jin squatted in a corner by the wall, holding Qiuqiu in his arms, and let out a bored yawn.

In front of him, Han Ao was so anxious he kept pacing in circles, trampling a ringed path into the snow.

“I’m telling you, stop walking around. You’re making me dizzy.”

“I’m worried! Don’t you think it’s really okay to just leave Miss Liu alone in Mantingchun like this? What if she runs into a ghost? What if she gets taken by one?!”

“…Liu Fuxin’s cultivation is worth ten of you at your current level. I really don’t know what you’re so anxious about.”

Lin Jin rubbed the little puppy’s head, about to wrap his cloak tighter around himself, when suddenly a series of urgent chimes rang from his waist.

It was the artifact Liu Fuxin had given him. If ghostly energy appeared on her end, he would be notified immediately.

Lin Jin tore the bell off and shouted to Han Ao, “Your chance to play the hero has come! Go back to her and fight alongside her!”

In truth, Han Ao didn’t need the reminder. The moment the bell started ringing, he had already turned and run.

Meanwhile, the utterly combat-useless Lin Jin stayed behind, waiting for good news.

In Lin Jin’s expectations, Han Ao would soon return with Liu Fuxin, perhaps carrying a bulging soul-sealing pouch. After all, the ghost behind this case was only a Qinghuo. Not to mention the Bright Moon Immortal Healer Liu Fuxin—even Han Ao alone could probably cut down ten Qinghuo with his crude iron sword.

But this time, Lin Jin’s prediction was wrong.

Han Ao came back alone.

There was no soul-sealing pouch in his hands—only one of Liu Fuxin’s seals.

“Where is Liu Fuxin?”

Lin Jin jumped to his feet at once. He stood up so fast his vision went black, and he nearly pitched headfirst into the snow.

“I don’t know. When I arrived, there was no one there. Zhui Tang was fine in her room, but Miss Liu and the ghost were both gone. This was all that was left—Miss Liu left it behind.”

Han Ao held out the seal, his face full of worry.

After a moment of thought, Lin Jin took the seal and tried channeling a bit of spiritual energy into it.

The seal flickered twice. In the next instant, two lines of neat, delicate writing appeared out of thin air in his palm:

[Mantingchun]
[White-robed woman]