A Long-Cherished Wish (17) - Hiding

Being mindful of the lady's exceptionally keen hearing, Yu Xing did not linger in the side room for long. After confirming that Zhao Ruru was temporarily safe, she left.

As he waited for the Master and his wife to emerge, he was also waiting for the four fortune tellers who had attended the banquet to join him.

The reason he urged Zhao Yijiu to go down and eat was that he hoped Zhao Yijiu, and the rest of the people, wouldn't waste time and would quickly come up with an excuse to leave.

After all, even if one didn't know the altar was here, just having experienced the first stage of Young Master Fang's illusion where he treated the fifth courtyard as a mourning hall, one should know that the location of this mourning hall represents a unique symbolism.

The fifteen minutes of waiting were about to pass, and soon Yu Xing stepped out of the side room and saw the red silk outside shaking violently in waves.

It wasn't as if someone had simply walked by; rather, Liu Xue, hidden within the red silk, was manipulating the silk to obstruct the person's path.

"Liu Xue's mind isn't exactly clear right now. Although she didn't touch me, it doesn't mean that after my explanation, she can really distinguish between friend and foe." Yu Xing pondered for a moment and happily decided to let these lucky few get through this hurdle on their own.

A yellow talisman flew out from the gap in the red silk. Although it was a thin and fragile piece of paper, it transformed into a sharp blade the moment it flew out, embedding itself deeply into the ground.

The patch of ground wasn't far from Yu Xing. Yu Xing examined it with interest and discovered that part of the paper was indeed stuck in the ground, demonstrating the "profound skill" of the person who threw the talisman.

"The Luo family's talismans are quite powerful, aren't they? Why were Luo Jue so ineffective? Using her yellow talismans felt like scraping my skin." Yu Xing thought to himself. He still remembered how Jun Jue had covered the entire painting with talismans, yet they only imprisoned the person in the painting, without causing any real harm.

He closed the door behind him, stepped past the talisman, and blended into the outer edge of the red silk. Using the gaps in the swaying silk, he observed the situation of the diviners while keeping an eye on the door of the wedding hall.

As Yu Xing expected, the commotion alerted the lady and the Master inside the wedding hall. The lady pushed open the door, looked at the scene outside, and smiled, "You were right. No matter how long these people have been lying in wait, they will all slip up tonight."

A loud, seductive, and dangerous voice came from behind her. "I don't know why these people came, but I can deduce that they will be the most annoying stumbling blocks in my path to achieving my goals."

"Liu Xue's soul will enter the Wedding Hall soon, and they won't be able to stop them for long unless you personally capture and kill them to prevent future troubles," the lady said softly. "I, a woman with no strength to even kill a chicken, will not get involved in such matters. Master, please."

Yu Xing saw the lady move aside, and the Master slowly stepped forward, his emotionless eyes fixed on the swaying red silk.

He held a long knife in his hand.

His pale knuckles gripped the hilt of the knife, exuding an aura of impending slaughter. Like a venomous snake, he moved silently and stealthily into Red Silk Town.

With the Master's involvement, Liu Xue in the red silk became even more frenzied. Enemies meeting are especially hostile, and it's unclear whether the Master is still exploiting this.

Her silk seemed to come alive, frantically sweeping around the necks of those in the formation, tightening around their waists, binding their legs, and doing everything in its power to prevent them from leaving the symptoms.

Yu Xing stayed on the outer edge. He was the only one in the red silk who saw the Master's movements. He didn't know how many fellow deducers had entered the formation. In any case, for those teammates, the first dangerous moment of the third stage had arrived.

It's likely that the Master will cause some injuries or fatalities; death is unlikely, but injuries are probably unavoidable.

Yu Xing did not participate.

He could see it clearly: the lady had been standing guard by the door, seemingly watching the Master's killing Yugi. Behind the lady, Xiao Meng's figure was illuminated by the candlelight inside the room. Because she was standing against the light, no one could see her specific expression, only that her face was pale.

Yu Xing's eyes lit up; this was a golden opportunity!

Suppressed shouts came from within the red silk formation, followed by Luo Liang's voice. "The Master has entered the formation! Be careful!"

No one answered him, but Yu Xing believed they had all received the warning and chose to remain silent in order not to reveal their location.

It must be that the hide-and-seek Yugi in the formation was very interesting. Yu Xing heard the Master chuckle softly, as if he was enjoying himself, just like when the Master was still played by Lingren, and how he treated Zhou Xue.

There were only five minutes left in the fifteen-minute mark.

Yu Xing changed his position, making sure that Si, whose eyes were wandering around, noticed him.

Si's expression turned serious for a moment. Unlike the lady, who was only staring at the middle of the red silk, where the Master's voice came from, Si took advantage of the lady's inability to see her and kept glancing around, which allowed her to spot Yu Xing first.

Yu Xing held up her hand, making a "five" gesture.

The ritual recognized him and mouthed, "What should I do?"

Yu Xing not only used lip movements but also his limbs to convey the message, "You distract the madam while I sneak in ahead of time."

Si looked at the small doorway, feeling somewhat hesitant. On one hand, the lady was her master, and she shouldn't betray her. On the other hand, she knew that she was just a strategist, and no master could restrain her.

The second aspect is what Yu Xing mentioned, which is extremely difficult. Even if she manages to attract the madam's attention and successfully get the madam's back to Yu Xing, it would be incredibly difficult for Yu Xing to sneak into the house without making a sound or being discovered.

But Yu Xing had already staggered over. If she didn't cooperate, then Yu Xing would really be discovered.

Si immediately made a firm decision, saying softly, "Madam, don't you think something is a little strange about what happened today?"

The lady, somewhat surprised that she would ask a question at this moment, turned to Si and asked, "What's so strange?"

Si Dao said, "Madam, the Master has been searching the manor for so long these past few days but hasn't found any suspicious servants. Today, however, this matter is of utmost importance, yet these people have all come out at once. Although we don't yet know their identities within the current formation, if they succeed, they will still have to appear before us."

"Madam, think about it, by doing this, they are absolutely ruining their future. In other words, even if their attack succeeds today, they won't be able to stay in the Fang Mansion in the future. Where can they go?"

"You mean there's a mastermind behind them, someone who systematically planted these spies in our mansion so that they can escape unscathed once the deed is done?" The lady thought about it and realized it made sense. This meant that there was someone in the shadows outside who knew her and the Master's secret.

This is not a good sign. A planned operation is far more dangerous than being targeted by a group of scattered soldiers.

The lady frowned slightly.

She didn't care whether what she did would be exposed, since she was going to leave anyway after tonight.

There was nothing in the Fang Mansion that she would miss. As long as she took Xiao Meng and went far away, she could use her youthful and beautiful appearance to find a better living environment.

But tonight's events not only concern her, but also the Master, and even Young Master Fang.

If the Master succeeds, she can retrieve her son's body, bury him, or cremate him, so that she can have something to remember him by and fulfill her duty as a hypocritical mother.

If today's plan fails, according to the Master, Young Master Fang's corpse will become rotten due to the forced resurrection, and even his soul will be bound here forever, never to leave again.

An enraged Master would also have everyone here buried alive with him, as a result of his years of preparation.

The lady knew that the Master had said these words to deliberately threaten her, but she could only take it as true, because the Master was ruthless and capable of doing such a thing.

She looked at Si: "Xiao Meng, you're always so thoughtful. Who do you think this person is? Master is currently in the formation, could this person have another trick up their sleeve?"

However, the shrewd Xiao Meng in her mouth was secretly giving a hand signal to Yu Xing was getting closer to the madam, telling him to hurry up and sneak into the wedding hall through the gap behind the madam.

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Yu Xing stealthily, observing the Master in the formation while following the wooden wall of the building, like a cat hiding in the shadows, quietly approaching the lady from behind.

He smiled at the incense burner, then twisted his body at an angle that required considerable flexibility, entering the Hall of Bliss without touching anything.

At that time, he and his wife were less than a centimeter apart, and the fabric of his wife's skirt was almost touching Yu Xing's legs.

But he went in anyway.

Si breathed a sigh of relief without making a sound. Despite doing such a treacherous thing, she remained calm and reminded him, "Madam, there are many possibilities. Perhaps the Fang Mansion's enemies have also found someone like the Master to use this plan specifically against the Fang Mansion. Perhaps the Master's personal grudge has involved you. Or perhaps your grudge has involved the Master and the entire Fang Mansion."

She was obviously talking nonsense.

The lady frowned, realizing that something was off about Xiao Meng. Her expression darkened. "Xiao Meng."

Si lowered his head and respectfully replied, "Madam, what is it?"

Looking at Xiao Meng, whose attitude was no different from usual, the lady felt a little suspicious.

Xiao Meng seems to be fine, but if she really is fine, why would she be talking nonsense to her at this time?

It was as if I was trying to get her attention...

Upon realizing this, the lady's pupils contracted, and she immediately looked back.

Although she also felt that if she stood outside the door, no one else could get in, because her five senses were now extremely sensitive, if someone was so close to her and she still couldn't hear anyone else's movements, then that person was more likely to be a ghost.

But she had a vague feeling that she had overlooked something.

However, when she turned around, there was nothing there; the empty corridor and room proved that she had been too sensitive.

Lady. "..."

She looked at the incense with suspicion, but ultimately said nothing.

Si breathed a sigh of relief. She knew that what she did was risky because the madam knew Xiao Meng too well. Without a definite conclusion, Xiao Meng would never bring up this matter with the madam in order to distract her.

Just as she was about to say something to let the matter drop, suddenly, another swift shadow broke out from the corner of the red silk array, quickly blended into the shadows, and wandered into the corridor like a ghost. In the instant that the lady turned back to observe her, it slipped into the wedding hall even more nimbly than Yu Xing.

This startled Si; she was astonished and doubtful that any of the three teams could be so fast.

This man was incredibly skilled and moved with agility. Not to mention the lady, even the Master in the formation didn't realize that one of his prey had escaped.

The lady noticed Si's sudden change in demeanor and reached out her fair wrist to take his hand. "Xiao Meng, are you feeling unwell? Is the atmosphere in the wedding hall making you uncomfortable? If so, you can go back to your room and have a cup of tea before coming back."

Si's expression shifted, and she pursed her lips. "Madam, what are you saying? This servant is allergic to tea and cannot touch it."

Xiao Meng's skin is not allergic to tea, but she cannot drink it. Even if you serve tea and water to the madam many times, she will absolutely not drink a drop herself.

This information wasn't even written on the identity card; rather, it was the answer that Shi deduced from certain details based on his deep understanding of the character.

It's fair to say that if she hadn't understood the character of Xiao Meng so well, she would likely have given herself away when faced with the madam's question.

Pitfalls are everywhere.

Hearing her answer, the lady released her hand and smiled gently, "Don't mind it, Xiao Meng. This is a crucial stage, and I must remain vigilant."

"I'm sorry, Madam, I've caused you trouble." Si stepped aside, seemingly remorseful, and fell silent.

The lady didn't speak again, only listening to the occasional panicked whispers and incessant footsteps coming from within the red silk, and the sound of the Master's sharp knife piercing through the red silk, while calculating the time.

The red silk formation that Liu Xue was in was set up by the Master. Within this formation, Liu Xue's mind was very weak, and she could only follow her instincts.

Therefore, it was almost an indiscriminate attack. Originally, it wouldn't have been too dangerous for the strategists to walk through, but as soon as the Master entered, it triggered the hatred in Liu Xue's subconscious, causing the red silk attack to be fierce and the level of danger to be greatly increased. It also trapped all the people who entered the formation, making it difficult for them to find an exit.

The Master is inside, using a natural hunting ground to carry out a massacre of "traitors" and "peepers".

Strangely, the lady has not heard any piercing screams of death so far.

Are these people really that skilled?

How come she never knew that the servants in the Fang family were so full of hidden talents after all these years?

After holding back for a while, the lady called out, "Let them stay trapped inside for now. It's time for your business to get started."

"Buzz"

The Master threw the dagger, which struck the ground with a crisp hum.

The Master followed closely behind, his expression so gloomy it seemed to drip water, clearly angry at failing to kill the newcomer.

Although the red silk had formed a trapping formation, it was the same for him; those people hiding inside the formation were difficult for him to catch.

Hmph, we can only let them live a little longer. Once he completes the wedding ceremony, this Fang Mansion will become...

A place of great misfortune.

No one can escape.