Chapter 254: Baffling

At noon, Yu Qingxue stepped out of the University of Tokyo’s Komaba Campus, letting out a heavy yawn. She rubbed her bleary eyes, casually tousled her slightly disheveled hair, and, as it was still somewhat early, she stepped into her BMW wearing her high heels.

She had nearly fallen asleep in class just moments before. It wasn’t that she couldn’t understand the lecture; if the professor’s topics were beyond her grasp, they would have precisely sparked her interest. But now, the professor was covering material she had long since mastered. When she first entered Todai, everything was fresh and novel. Back then, Yu Qingxue hadn’t been in the Faculty of Letters, but the Science Department. She had spent two solid months in the library, absorbing knowledge that many professors hadn’t even covered in their lectures.

To Yu Qingxue, anything that failed to pique her interest also failed to earn her respect.

So, she transferred to the Faculty of Letters to study literature and languages from around the world. She thought the Faculty of Letters would capture her interest, but was quickly disappointed to find she already knew most of the material. Yu Qingxue, having traveled extensively across the globe, possessed knowledge that was often even more accurate than the professor’s. She found it profoundly dull. However, out of politeness, she didn’t sleep; instead, she played the Azur Lane mobile game in the research room, managing to kill time that way.

Should she go home?

Yu Qingxue took out her phone and glanced at the time. It had just struck noon. Even if she went back to the apartment, it would be empty, for today, the Eldest Miss Tsukiyuki Rio and that bastard Gao Sijin were on a date.

Dating must be so nice. The two of them, lost in their own little world, while Yu Qingxue was left all alone.

“So what if you two have the time of your lives? I, Yu Qingxue, can find my own fun just the same.”

As if venting her frustration, Yu Qingxue viciously floored the accelerator, heading toward Hibiya Park. Recently, she seemed to have been targeted by a faction with ill intentions. Someone wanted her head. Returning to her apartment was the safest choice, as it had a security system that even the Navy SEALs couldn’t breach.

But she didn’t want to go back.

She refused to wait alone in her apartment for Gao Sijin to come home, and she didn’t want to be a third wheel to Tsukiyuki Rio. She had to find something to do.

“Sigh…”

She sighed involuntarily, then paused in slight surprise.

Huh?

This seemed to be the first time she had ever sighed, from childhood to now. Was she lovesick, or simply feeling unwilling? Yu Qingxue couldn’t quite say. She just wanted to drive, as fast as possible. She yearned for freedom, hoping to take Gao Sijin away from Tsukiyuki Rio, to make the man she once let slip away her sole possession.

Whether it was her first kiss or her first night, that man would have to take it, whether he wanted to or not. No man she, the Elder Sister, had her eye on could possibly escape.

Yu Qingxue walked along a winding, secluded path. The trees provided abundant shade, and the park was almost entirely filled with couples, which annoyed her to death. She stomped her high heels angrily, as if trying to shake off all her troubles.

At noon, she dined alone at Kirin Hall, a Western-style restaurant in Hibiya Park.

“A table for two?”

“Wait, there’s just me.”

“Isn’t this young lady behind you your companion?”

Yu Qingxue immediately turned around and saw a girl in a classic British-style long maid dress. She wore a pair of glasses and had the look of a literary student. Her appearance projected a slightly stern aura when she wasn’t speaking. Although she was dressed in a maid outfit, very similar to the maids of the Tsukiyuki Family, Yu Qingxue could be certain she wasn’t one of the maids serving Tsukiyuki Rio. Her arms rested casually at her sides, but Yu Qingxue felt she could draw two pistols at any moment.

“Who are you?”

“I’m just a maid who does this as a hobby.”

“What, a One-Punch Maid?”

An appearance seemingly unsuited for combat didn’t mean everything. Yu Qingxue never judged people by their looks. Still, it seemed this maid had no intention of fighting her.

“Waiter, we’re a party of two.”

“Certainly, please follow me this way.”

Led by the waiter, Yu Qingxue and the nameless maid walked deeper into the restaurant and took a seat by the window.

“Feel free to order anything. I’ll pay.”

“No, please, you order. I’m not hungry,” the maid said flatly.

Though Yu Qingxue’s demeanor was casual, she kept studying the other party from the corner of her eye. Having nearly been shot by a sniper rifle recently, anyone who approached her uninvited could be an enemy. The fact that this maid had silently snuck up behind her without her noticing… if she were truly an assassin, the consequences would be unthinkable. She might have already been dead.

“May I ask your name?”

“Is a name that important?”

“It’s not exactly that, but I need some way to address you, right? When it’s just the two of us, we can use ‘you’ and ‘I.’ But if a third person appears, what should I call you?”

The British-styled maid nodded and said in fluent Chinese, “My name is Qu Xiqian. Xi as in ‘analyze,’ and Qian as in ‘shallow.'”

“So we’re countrymen. Well then, Miss Qu, what business do you have with me? If you’re looking to apply for a maid position, you shouldn’t be coming to me, but to our Family’s Young Miss instead. However, the timing isn’t great right now. Our Young Miss has been busy dating recently and probably doesn’t have time to deal with you.”

“I didn’t come for Tsukiyuki Rio,” Qu Xiqian said slowly. “I came for you, Yu Qingxue.”

“For me?” Yu Qingxue propped her chin on her hand, a playful smile curving on her lips. “Not long ago, I was nearly killed by a single shot while racing. Does that have anything to do with you?”

Qu Xiqian shook her head.

“Then you must at least know the mastermind behind it?”

“I do.”

“Who is it?”

Qu Xiqian chose to remain silent.

Just then, the waiter arrived at the two women’s table with a tray and respectfully set the appetizer down.

Taking a large gulp of her cola, Yu Qingxue continued, “Forget it. Let me ask you a different way. Is the mastermind our Young Miss Tsukiyuki?”

“No.”

That answer was already within Yu Qingxue’s expectations.

“Miss Qu, why exactly did you come to find me?”

“I hope you won’t act recklessly.”

“And what exactly do you define as ‘reckless’?”

“Before long, Tsukiyuki Rio will have a direct confrontation with Feng Na. When that happens, you will look for an opening to snatch Gao Sijin away. Even that street race a while back was just practice for your escape. Deep inside, you’ve been hiding a feeling you’re unwilling to face yet have to. You think you’re loyal to Tsukiyuki Rio, but you’re even more loyal to your own desires.”

“Oh, my. You sure know how to joke.”

“I’m not joking. If you try any funny business while Tsukiyuki Rio is fighting Feng Na, you will definitely die.”

“How do you know I’d die?”

“Because I’ve seen that future.” Qu Xiqian paused. “A future where you die.”

“How baffling.”