Chapter 52
Chapter 52
That day, the person who had suddenly gone missing at the Temple on the outskirts of the city was Simeng.
When Ruyan found her in another side hall, she was kneeling on a prayer cushion, making a wish before the empty Buddhist hall, an eerie smile hanging at the corner of her lips.
“Simeng, why are you here?”
The Temple had long since fallen into ruin. Naturally, the gods and Buddhas were no longer there either.
The sight made Ruyan’s skin crawl, so she stepped forward, intending to pull Simeng away.
Who would have thought that Simeng would be as if possessed? No matter how Ruyan pulled, she would not budge.
Left with no choice, Ruyan could only call over the menial servants traveling with them and have them help drag Simeng, who had fallen into some deranged state, out of the Temple by force.
After returning to Hongxiu Pavilion, Simeng claimed she was unwell and shut herself in her room, refusing to see anyone.
When the Manageress, Sister Fu, learned of it, she was very displeased. Afraid Sister Fu would blame Simeng, Ruyan took out some of her own private savings and spoke plenty of flattering words before she finally soothed Sister Fu’s anger.
Ruyan cared for Simeng from the bottom of her heart. She even spent money to invite a physician to examine her and prescribe medicine.
Simeng took the medicine for two days, and Ruyan looked after her for two days as well.
Seeing Simeng grow more haggard by the day, unable to receive guests, Ruyan could not help feeling pity for her.
One night, Prince Yu came to see Ruyan. After the two shared a tender interlude, she brought up Simeng to Zhao Xing.
“That younger sister of mine is pitiful too. Though she was born into an official’s household, she never enjoyed many good days.”
“After her family was convicted and their property confiscated, the women of the household were sold off. Because she was young, she was resold several times, and in the end, she still ended up here.”
“Her health has always been poor, and these past few days she’s fallen ill again. I truly worry about her. If I leave in the future, what will she do here all alone?”
As she spoke, she knelt on the floor, weeping bitterly.
Prince Yu’s heart ached for her, so he promised, “Stop crying. Whether I redeem one person or two makes no difference to me. You needn’t worry. Leave her matter to me.”
The next day, after Ruyan saw Prince Yu off, she happily went to find Simeng, wanting to tell her the news.
It was an afternoon with beautiful sunlight.
Yet Simeng’s room was dark and gloomy, without a single ray of light filtering in.
When Ruyan entered, Simeng was sitting before the mirror, doing her makeup.
She had been ill for several days, her face as pale as paper. Even after applying powder and rouge, she still looked terribly wan.
“Simeng, why are you up?”
“Didn’t the doctor say you should stay in bed and rest more?”
“You should open the windows too. Let in some fresh air, and you’ll recover faster.”
As Ruyan spoke, she was about to open the window for her when she heard Simeng ask coldly, “I heard Prince Yu came again last night?”
“Sister, you truly are blessed. Even after Prince Yu has just received His Majesty’s decree granting him marriage to the legitimate daughter of the Zhuang Family, he still keeps you in his heart.”
“Why don’t I have such fortune? I was born the daughter of a criminal official, sold from place to place, and even after entering this world of pleasure, I’m nothing but some lowly castoff no one wants.”
Hearing the strangeness in her tone, Ruyan could not help freezing.
“Simeng, why are you saying all this out of nowhere?”
Simeng gave a cold laugh, then rose straight to her feet and slowly paced over to her. “Sister, come here.”
Then she pulled Ruyan over to the mirror, took a brocade box from her dressing case, and held it out before her.
“Sister, your happy day is near. I want to give you a gift.”
If Ruyan had heard such words at any ordinary time, she would certainly have felt sincerely happy.
But at that moment, all she felt was fear.
Because the Simeng before her was far too abnormal.
“Simeng…”
Ruyan did not know what had happened. In a trembling voice, she said, “You don’t need to give me a gift. I…”
She had wanted to tell her the news…
But right in front of her, Simeng opened the brocade box. Inside lay a radiant pearl, gleaming brilliantly.
“Sister, do you like this gift?”
Ruyan froze once more. In that instant, she thought Simeng was treating her with genuine sincerity.
She even felt… a little touched.
But before she could put that feeling into words, Simeng leaned close to her ear and whispered, “I knew you would like it, Sister. Since that’s the case, let me grant your wish!”
As soon as the words left her mouth, a sinister wind swept through the room.
Through the dim yellow bronze mirror, Ruyan discovered a cloud of black mist floating behind Simeng.
Terrified, she tried to scream, but Simeng raised a hand and covered her mouth. “Ruyan, do you know?”
The black mist followed Simeng’s hand and began burrowing into Ruyan’s eyes…
Her vision blurred, yet Simeng’s voice grew clearer and clearer beside her ear.
“I’ve always been jealous of you. Why do you get Prince Yu backing you? Why do you get the chance to enter the prince’s manor and enjoy a life of luxury?”
“Why you! Why not me!”
“Why?!”
Amid Simeng’s near-hysterical questioning, Ruyan had no way to answer. The black mist drilled into her eyes and sealed away her soul consciousness.
In the end, it swallowed her completely.
At this point, the Yin Soul could not help covering her eyes as she began to tremble. “After that, I lost consciousness…”
“It was as if I had been trapped inside something. I couldn’t get out, and I couldn’t make a sound. I couldn’t even hear anything. All that remained in my heart was an overwhelming hatred.”
“I hated Simeng. I hated everyone in Hongxiu Pavilion. I even hated every patron, including Prince Yu…”
“That hatred wrapped around me and tormented me. I began to want, madly, to kill them all!”
“But when it came to Prince Yu, I had clearly always been grateful to him. How could I ever want to kill him?”
Xia Ximo said, “That was because you were being controlled by Baleful Qi.”
The Yin Soul shook her head blankly and continued, “I don’t know how much time passed after that. Then, all of a sudden, a crack appeared in front of me, and I crawled out from within.”
“But by then, I couldn’t remember anything. I could only drift around by instinct, until it seemed I arrived at a place like one I had once stayed in before.”
“After that…”
What happened after was not hard to guess.
The soul sealed inside the bead Prince Yu had given Princess Ding’an was likely Ruyan’s.
Once the bead shattered, the soul escaped from within.
Because it had absorbed so much resentment and was also affected by Baleful Qi, she could no longer remember the events of her life, nor did she know what she was.
That was why she had become a mindless, formless Yin Soul…
“Enough.”
Xia Ximo cut her off coldly. “Since we now know who killed you, I can give you a chance to make them pay in blood. Tell me, what do you want to do?”
The Yin Soul thought in silence for a moment, then said softly, “I have only one unfulfilled wish left in the mortal world, and that is to see Prince Yu one last time.”
“You only want to see a man?”
Xia Ximo frowned, a rare ripple crossing her expression. “You don’t want revenge?”
The Yin Soul shook her head slightly. “As for Simeng, I feel as though I’ve already hated her enough. I also know she will not come to a good end.”
“She and I were sisters for many years. In affection and in duty, I have a clear conscience.”
“Only when I think of Prince Yu even now do I still feel a trace of regret.”
Xia Ximo looked at her coldly. “Infatuation is the most useless thing in the world.”
The Yin Soul gazed back at her, a smile appearing on her face. “It is useless indeed. But someone like me seems to have spent her entire life trapped by love.”
“In my next life, I hope I can be like you, Miss-unbound, unfettered, free and open-hearted.”
Xia Ximo was silent for a moment. Then she suddenly raised her hand and opened her palm, revealing the Soul-Ferrying Lantern within.
Understanding her meaning, the Yin Soul immediately gave her a graceful bow. “Thank you, Miss, for granting my wish.”
After putting away the Soul-Ferrying Lantern, Xia Ximo lifted the carriage curtain. Yet she glanced in the direction of the Wang Residence and suddenly lowered her head. “Before that, let’s go take a look at your enemy’s fate.”