Chapter 27 Part 4

Zhao Xinmei had already put on her apron and was heading upstairs with her broom as usual.

At this moment, Wu Yinyu was still immersed in various conjectures, thinking that perhaps there really was a White Jade Capital in this world, a White Jade Capital with a Thousand-Layered Pagoda and ten thousand pagoda finials.

In that forest of pagodas, she had slaughtered many, many “Buddha’s,” and was thus questioned by the person wearing the Lotus Pattern Jade Pendant.

If the questioner was Yu Zezhi, and the woman who had brought her to the Wu family twenty-three years ago was also Yu Zezhi, then what exactly was Yu Zezhi’s intention? This behavior was strangely akin to giving poison followed by candy.

And had she truly killed a host of Buddha’s?

A scream rang out, jolting Wu Yinyu back to the present.

The sound of something rolling was heard. The bucket Zhao Xinmei had been carrying was nowhere to be seen. She stumbled and nearly fell down the stairs.

“Aunt Zhao,” Wu Yinyu called out.

Zhao Xinmei’s hands and legs were weak. She stared at the walls covered in Devil Buddhas, too afraid to speak.

“Be careful,” Wu Yinyu added.

She hadn’t expected that any traces left by the Ink Qi were invisible to others, but what she drew could be seen by people.

Zhao Xinmei’s toes had already turned in the direction of the stairs. She felt an urge to run. Stammering, she said, “Miss Wu, what’s going on with these walls?”

“I drew them,” Wu Yinyu stated succinctly.

Zhao Xinmei’s mind immediately raced with associations. Her gaze darted around. “You really drew these? They’re drawn… quite nicely.”

Wu Yinyu looked at the paintings on the wall again. If one were to truly appraise them, the artwork was actually quite good; one couldn’t create them without some foundation. She had never studied drawing. If she hadn’t seen the surveillance footage, she wouldn’t believe she had drawn them herself.

“I think so too,” Wu Yinyu nodded, utterly frank.

“Then, then I…” Zhao Xinmei racked her brain, trying to find a reason to take temporary leave. She had been a cleaner for the Wu family for ten years but had never heard that Miss Wu could also draw! This matter was strange no matter how one thought about it.

“The paintings on the wall don’t need to be wiped. Just sweep the floor a bit,” Wu Yinyu turned and went back into her room, adding before closing the door, “My room doesn’t need cleaning either.”

Once the door closed, the rustling sounds outside could no longer be heard.

Wu Yinyu knew this matter couldn’t be kept hidden. She simply sat in front of her laptop and watched the surveillance footage again.

In the footage, herself painting on the wall could be described as free and effortless, her skill masterful. To an onlooker, it would be hard to argue she wasn’t possessed by something.

Ordinarily, Zhao Xinmei wouldn’t stop until she had meticulously cleaned every corner. But today, she left remarkably quickly.

Wu Wanying had left early in the morning. In the footage, Wu Yinyu saw him lingering outside her door for a long time; he had clearly seen the paintings on the wall.

But Wu Wanying hadn’t knocked, nor had he asked about the Devil Buddhas to this day.

Wu Yinyu simply took the initiative to call Wu Wanying. She asked, “When you left this morning, did you see the things in the hallway?”

“I saw them,” Wu Wanying’s tone was even, as if not particularly surprised.

“Why didn’t you ask me about it?” Wu Yinyu asked.

This time, Wu Wanying was silent for a few seconds before saying, “You might not know this, but when you were very young, you also drew things like this.”

Wu Yinyu was stunned. She pressed, “When?”

Wu Wanying recalled and answered, “In elementary school. Only I saw it back then. I told Mom and Dad, but they didn’t believe me.”

“Why?” Wu Yinyu had no recollection whatsoever.

Wu Wanying added, “Because those drawings disappeared very quickly. They thought I had a nightmare.”

“And now, seeing these again, you’re not surprised at all? Not afraid?” Wu Yinyu narrowed her eyes. She opened the door and walked into the hallway, watching the ink marks on the wall gradually fade, as if seeping into the wallpaper, leaving not a trace of ink color.

Wu Wanying was silent for a moment, then said in an uncertain tone, “Yinyu, have you ever doubted your own origins?”

So Wu Wanying had sensed something too, he just hadn’t mentioned it before.

Wu Yinyu laughed lightly. “I know what you’re thinking.”

She thought Wu Wanying would bring up asking her to leave. She hadn’t expected him to simply say, “Don’t do foolish things. Hanging yourself won’t solve any problems.”

Now it was Wu Yinyu’s turn to be silent. She inhaled softly, letting her hollow chest feel an illusion of being filled. She said gently, “That was an accident.”

Zhao Xinmei had left at noon, and the rumors spread by noon as well.

Just as Wu Yinyu was about to prepare something to eat, concern and probing inquiries from all sides rushed in. Her phone buzzed incessantly, call after call, message after message.

Even Yu Zezhi had heard about it and sent a message to ask.

– What happened?

Wu Yinyu was just about to put noodles into the pot. Annoyed by the constant ringing, she checked the messages everyone was sending and learned that Aunt Zhao had spread the story of her hanging herself in the Shrine Hall.

Zhao Xinmei suspected that the person she had seen in the Shrine Hall was no longer Wu Yinyu, that the real Wu Yinyu might be dead already, and the person who admitted to drawing those evil devils today must be someone else.

Actually, Zhao Xinmei’s speculation was somewhat sound. If Wu Yinyu’s memory hadn’t been perfectly intact, she might have almost believed it herself.

Yu Zezhi was still messaging Wu Yinyu.

– May I visit your home?

While others were just inquiring, Yu Zezhi already wanted to pay a personal visit.

Wu Yinyu couldn’t help but ponder again: what role exactly did Yu Zezhi play in her “story”? She didn’t reply immediately, instead unhurriedly placing the noodles into the boiling water.

– Would Miss Wu feel offended if I came uninvited?

If it were their first meeting, Wu Yinyu would definitely think, how could the Head of the Yu Family, with such a distant and cold appearance, type such gentle yet presumptuous words?

After getting to know her, she discovered that Yu Zezhi had two completely different faces. She was probably the type who, if Buddha forbade her from killing, would still secretly stab someone twice.

Wu Yinyu smiled and typed her reply. “Then Boss Yu can’t come empty-handed. Visiting my home requires bringing a gift.”

By the time she finished cooking the noodles, ate them at the table, and cleaned up, Yu Zezhi arrived.

Yu Zezhi was indeed carrying something in her hand. Afraid Wu Yinyu wouldn’t see it, she even raised her arm slightly.

Wu Yinyu laughed. “I was joking, Boss Yu actually brought something?”

Yu Zezhi handed over the Immortal Bean Cakes, her gaze imperceptibly sweeping across the room. She asked, “May I come in?”

“You’re already at my door with a gift. It would be terribly rude of me to refuse you entry.” Wu Yinyu accepted the gift box and stepped back. “Please, come in.”

After entering, Yu Zezhi’s gaze became unguarded. She looked up towards the second floor and asked, “Are the paintings from the rumor upstairs?”

“You can go up and see for yourself.” Wu Yinyu paused, then added, “But I must correct you, those aren’t rumors.”

“So you really aren’t you?” Yu Zezhi turned her head to look at her.

Wu Yinyu let out a short laugh. “Of course I’m me. But I did draw something.”

Yu Zezhi had been here once before. She went upstairs with familiar ease, walking along the long corridor towards Wu Yinyu’s room. Finally, she placed both hands on the railing and looked down. “I don’t see anything.”

“I told you last time, it disappears,” Wu Yinyu said, placing the bowl and chopsticks in the dishwasher. After washing her hands, she walked upstairs.

Yu Zezhi turned around and touched the wallpaper. The wallpaper had embossed patterns, not entirely smooth to the touch.

After going up, Wu Yinyu saw Yu Zezhi lean in and sniff. She crossed her arms in front of her chest, raising an eyebrow. “It’s no use. It left no trace at all. Just like the surveillance footage I showed you last time, I did draw, but it’s gone.”

Yu Zezhi asked, “Then why is that mass of Ink Qi invisible to a third person, yet the drawings can be seen by others?”

This was also what troubled Wu Yinyu. She hesitated and said, “Perhaps because I drew it with my own hands, so it’s different.”

“It seems that ink treats you quite differently too,” Yu Zezhi said, looking at her intently.

The two silently locked eyes for a long moment. Finally, it was Wu Yinyu who proactively extended her hand, curving her eyes. “Would you like to confirm that I’m still a normal person?”

Her clean palm was spread open before Yu Zezhi. Yu Zezhi looked down at it for a long while, then actually took Wu Yinyu’s fingers and palm in her own hands.

Wu Yinyu felt a ticklish sensation on her palm from the touch and instinctively pulled back slightly. But she noticed Yu Zezhi was looking with utmost seriousness. She joked, “Is Boss Yu reading my palm? Looking at my love line? Does it intersect with yours?”

This was far too direct. Yu Zezhi paused, then denied it flatly. “I’m just looking to see if the ink has seeped into your body, if it’s controlling you.”

Wu Yinyu’s casual demeanor retracted. “Then you might as well suspect I’m a puppet made by someone else.”

“You’re not,” Yu Zezhi released her hand. “Your limbs are very flexible, your blood flows. There are no artificial traces left behind.”

“Many thanks for Boss Yu’s affirmation.” Wu Yinyu closed her fingers. “In the mouths of others, I’m already half-human, half-ghost.”

Yu Zezhi said evenly, “If it were truly as the rumors say, you should have eaten me the moment I entered.”

“Then Boss Yu must walk out of the Wu family’s door whole and intact, otherwise I’ll have a hard time defending myself.” Wu Yinyu walked a few steps along the corridor and pushed open her bedroom door.”

She turned and went inside, emerging a moment later with a Lotus Pattern Jade Pendant. She casually held it out to Yu Zezhi. “For you.”

Yu Zezhi looked directly at her. “Didn’t you painstakingly collect a pair? Why give one away?”

“You don’t want it?” Wu Yinyu’s wrist turned to the side. “If you don’t want it, I’ll just smash it.”

“This thing isn’t cheap,” Yu Zezhi calmly accepted it. “What, suddenly lost interest in it?”

“No.” Wu Yinyu shook her head and said slowly, “I just suddenly feel that it should be one of a kind. Neither of these two is what I want. I saw you wearing it last time, and it looked quite nice on you. It’s yours.”