Chapter 69 Fengdu Ghost Banquet 14

"You think you can become concubines? Just wait and see, one day, all of you will die!"

"You spend your days eating, don't you fear that you'll eat yourselves to death?!"

The woman in the well ranted incessantly, while Xia Qi and his sister squatted by the well, unable to understand who the woman was cursing or the context of her words.

"Why is she so incoherent when she curses?" Xia Qi frowned, saying.

Unable to bear the woman's illogical cursing any longer, Xia Qi stood up, walked to the well, and politely tapped on the stone wall, asking, "Excuse me, may I ask who exactly you are cursing?"

As soon as Xia Qi finished speaking, the woman in the well snorted coldly and continued to curse loudly, "Who else could I be cursing? Of course, I'm cursing..."

Suddenly, her voice faltered, and an eerie silence fell.

After nearly thirty seconds, Xia Qi finally heard the woman's puzzled voice, "Who was I cursing again?"

If you don't even know who you're cursing, then what are you cursing about?

Xia Qi frowned and continued to press, "Can you remember who you are?"

Upon hearing this, the woman in the well mumbled confusedly, "I am, of course... I am, of course... Hmm, who am I?"

Like the woman in the Corpse Dog Well, the woman in the Queyin Well seemed to have forgotten her past.

"Let me see what she looks like," Xia Qi pursed his lips.

His sister looked at him with a pained expression, full of admiration. Ever since she had glanced at the woman last time, she had been feeling nauseous for days.

Xia Qi took a deep breath, suppressing his disgust, and leaned down to look into the well.

In the dark, murky water, the familiar face, which had been dug out until only a thin layer of red flesh remained, appeared once again beneath the dirty surface.

Seeing Xia Qi looking at her, the woman bared her teeth viciously and stuck out her moldy, moss-covered tongue at him.

Watching the woman's bizarre expression, Xia Qi's face contorted with disgust.

"What's wrong?" His sister, noticing Xia Qi's odd expression, felt a deep sense of guilt towards her teammate and bravely leaned over to look into the well, "I'll take a look too."

Xia Qi was about to push her away, but before he could, his sister had already lowered her head. Of course, after just one glance, she vomited, "Ugh... Why is it her again?"

Though the face was blurry and hard to recognize, from every disfigured and disgusting feature, his sister felt that even if the woman in the well turned to ashes, she would never forget what she looked like.

Both were thoroughly disgusted. After vomiting for a while, his sister sat down beside the well.

Xia Qi stroked his chin, puzzled, "Are they really the same person? It seems too coincidental."

The same face appearing in different wells made Xia Qi doubt that Fengdu's underground tunnels had a subway system that allowed female ghosts to travel between them.

"Perhaps... we should ask her ourselves tonight?" His sister hesitated.

By now, there was only half an hour left until nightfall. Xia Qi sat on a nearby rock and said, "Let's wait until it gets dark."

After running around all day, both were quite exhausted. Xia Qi opened a pack of compressed biscuits and divided it equally between them.

They had barely taken a few bites when they heard the woman in the well say, "I'm so hungry, can you share some food with me?"

Xia Qi frowned, reached into his system backpack, and threw a piece of compressed biscuit into the well.

Seeing his generous gesture, his sister's eyes widened.

These compressed biscuits were very expensive; she couldn't afford even a single pack. She didn't expect Xia Qi to be so generous, throwing an entire pack into the well!

Rich people's world, she truly didn't understand.

"Thank you." The woman in the well unwrapped the compressed biscuit and began to crunch it, emitting a satisfied laugh, "Oh, it's not made of raw souls. I haven't eaten such primitive food in a long time."

As night approached, the sky grew darker.

The woman's voice in the well grew softer. When they looked down again, they found that the woman had disappeared, leaving only bubbling well water.

Worried that being too close might affect the female ghost's transformation, Xia Qi pulled his sister back a few meters.

"Let's stay a bit further away."

Just as Xia Qi led his sister to the roadside, they accidentally encountered a hurriedly passing white-collar woman.

The white-collar woman clearly saw them and stopped abruptly, looking puzzled, "What are you doing here?"

"We're stargazing," his sister stuffed the remaining biscuit into her mouth, chewed a couple of times, and replied, "What are you doing here?"

Hearing this, the white-collar woman's sweaty face flushed, and she stammered, "I was just wandering around nearby. It's getting late, I, I'll be going."

"Goodbye." His sister bid her farewell straightforwardly.

When the white-collar woman arrived near Lengxiang Palace, she happened to meet Concubine Lin coming out with a second-class maid.

Concubine Lin's expression was not good. She stood at the palace gate, looking around as if waiting for someone to return.

At that moment, the second-class maid muttered softly, "Xia Qi is really not taking the Lady seriously, it's almost dark and he still hasn't returned..."

The second-class maid's complaint was clearly heard by the white-collar woman, who quickly approached and greeted Concubine Lin, "Your Highness."

Concubine Lin was already annoyed and, interrupted by the white-collar woman, didn't even lift his eyelids, responding casually, "Hmm."

For women like the white-collar woman, Concubine Lin had always been indifferent, not even sparing a glance.

Accustomed to being ignored, the white-collar woman, though annoyed inside, maintained a flattering smile, "I saw Xia Qi near Shou'an Palace earlier. He seemed quite idle, actually stargazing."

"What?" Concubine Lin, who had been frowning, suddenly brightened, his voice tinged with inexplicable excitement, "Near Shou'an Palace? Who was he stargazing with?"

This morning, the person he sent to tail Xia Qi lost him after less than half an hour, which left him uneasy all day, even making the buns from the imperial kitchen tasteless.

Now that she had learned of Xia Qi's whereabouts, Concubine Lin’s first thought was: Has Xia Qi finally lost his patience and gone to meet his lover in the dead of night?

"He is sitting near Shou'an Palace, as if waiting for someone." Watching Concubine Lin’s increasingly excited expression, the white-collar woman smiled and continued, following her lead.

"Good!" A mocking smile appeared at the corner of Concubine Lin’s mouth, then she glanced approvingly at the white-collar woman. "If you have any news about him in the future, remember to tell me immediately. By the way, I won't forget your contribution this time."

"Oh, thank you, Your Highness." The white-collar woman hadn’t expected her casual words to earn her such favor with Concubine Lin; her eyes turned red with excitement.

Concubine Lin held a much higher status than Concubine Sun and was also more handsome. As she watched Concubine Lin’s hurried departure, the white-collar woman’s face showed a look of infatuation.

By now, it was completely dark.

Xia Qi and his sister squatted near the well, their eyes fixed on the Crow Yin Well without blinking.

"Caw—caw—"

With the harsh caws of crows, a pale hand began to emerge from the well, followed by a faceless woman who climbed out.

The moment she landed on the ground, the woman transformed into a nursemaid dressed in a gray robe.

Xia Qi and his sister had seen this nursemaid before; she was the one who had come to greet them when they first entered Fengdu City!

After the nursemaid appeared, one after another, different-looking nursemaids climbed out of the well. Once out, they walked away in various directions within the palace as if they didn’t know they had just emerged from a well.

Seeing the nursemaids disperse, Xia Qi and his sister stood up and followed the leading nursemaid.

Judging by the direction the nursemaid was walking, she seemed to be heading to Shou'an Palace, which Xia Qi vaguely remembered being Concubine Qian’s domain.

Since it was already nighttime, the two of them followed more closely to observe the nursemaid better.

The nursemaid’s pace wasn’t fast, maintaining a close distance from them.

Unlike during the day in the well, the nursemaid hadn’t cursed since emerging, not uttering a single word, remaining as quiet as a chicken throughout.

As they walked, Xia Qi noticed something odd; the nursemaid’s pace alternated between fast and slow, as if deliberately making it easier for them to catch up.

Upon reaching the entrance of Shou'an Palace, the nursemaid walked in calmly.

"Should we follow?" his sister asked hesitantly, worried about a trap.

Xia Qi thought for a moment. If they didn’t follow, they would have to squat by the well again for another day. Considering the nursemaid’s limited threat, Xia Qi said, "Follow."

The two circled around the wall to a secluded corner and climbed over it with practiced ease.

Due to the vast size and numerous buildings of Shou'an Palace, they soon lost sight of the nursemaid. Reluctantly, Xia Qi and his sister had to climb over the wall to continue following.

After arriving at Shou'an Palace, the nursemaid first took a task from the second-class maids and then strutted towards the back garden.

Once in the back garden, the nursemaid’s face turned extremely angry. She sniffed the air a few times, then her eyes lit up, and she headed towards a side hall.

As she walked, she muttered under her breath, "You lowly creatures, one day you will die without a trace, just like me, never to be reborn... hahaha..."

What does 'just like me, never to be reborn' mean?

Hearing the nursemaid’s chilling words, Xia Qi and his sister were both startled.

Sure enough, as he had suspected, the NPC that appeared at night was more intelligent than during the day and seemed to know a lot of crucial information.

Xia Qi was glad he had followed and whispered to his sister, "When we get to a hidden spot, we’ll tie up the nursemaid and ask her what’s going on."

"Okay." His sister fished a rope from her system bag, "We’ll use this."

The two followed the nursemaid to the side hall of the back garden.

The nursemaid stopped not far from the side hall door and muttered a few more curses.

After cursing, she suddenly bent down, picked up a stone from the ground, and threw it at the door of the side hall.

With a "thud," after throwing the stone, the nursemaid turned her head and grinned at the direction where Xia Qi and his sister were hiding.

Indeed, the nursemaid had known they were nearby all along!

"What is she trying to tell us..."

Just as Xia Qi was about to jump out and grab the nursemaid, she suddenly turned and ran quickly towards the well.

Upon reaching the well, the nursemaid placed her hands on the edge and, without hesitation, dove headfirst into it!

After a "splash" from the well, the door of the side hall suddenly creaked open, causing Xia Qi to pause in his steps.

"Who’s outside?!" Concubine Wu, disheveled, emerged from the side hall. Looking down, she accidentally saw the stone on the ground and screamed in fright, "What’s going on? Why is there a stone outside your door?!"

Seeing Concubine Wu in Concubine Qian’s Shou'an Palace, Xia Qi and his sister exchanged knowing glances.

Thanks to the vivid lesson in palace intrigue provided by the white-collar woman and Concubine Sun in the Imperial Garden, when they saw Concubine Wu and Concubine Qian together, Xia Qi found his emotions remained surprisingly calm.

"Hmm?" A somewhat gentle male voice sounded from inside the side hall. After a flurry of hurried footsteps, Concubine Qian, wearing a sleeping robe, appeared at the door. He looked around and shouted, "Who threw the stone?"

Seeing no response from outside the side hall, Concubine Qian pushed Concubine Wu back inside and pursed his lips, "Don’t go out for now. I’ll have someone search."

Concubine Qian put on some clothes and headed to the front courtyard. Xia Qi pulled his sister and followed Concubine Qian’s steps, moving towards the front courtyard.

Just as they reached the initial corner, they suddenly heard Concubine Lin’s voice from outside the wall: "Watch Shou'an Palace closely, don’t let a single fly out!"

"Yes!" the maids responded in unison.

Xia Qi: "..."

How did Concubine Lin suddenly show up?

Is it still possible for them to imitate the nursemaids and jump into the well now?

"Let's go back to the rear courtyard first!" Hearing the scattered footsteps outside the wall, Xia Qi gritted his teeth and retreated to the rear courtyard again.

There was no other place to hide with Concubine Lin surrounding the wall outside. After circling around for a while, the two of them squatted down beside a window near the side hall.

They plucked a few branches to conceal themselves. At this moment, an argument between Concubine Lin and Concubine Qian suddenly erupted from the front courtyard.

Concubine Qian blocked Concubine Lin, who was rushing towards the rear courtyard, and angrily said as she walked, "Your Highness, what do you intend to do by breaking into my palace in the middle of the night?"

Concubine Lin pushed Concubine Qian aside with her hand and said coldly, "What? Can't I come here as a guest?"

Concubine Qian tried to suppress her anger and argued, "If you are here as a guest, why not have tea in the flower hall? Why come to my rear courtyard?"

"Concubine Qian, why are you so nervous?" Concubine Lin sneered, her tone rising, "Could it be that you're hiding someone in your palace?"

"Your Highness, don't spout such nonsense!" Concubine Qian's voice changed pitch, clearly infuriated.

Ignoring Concubine Qian's anger, Concubine Lin shouted, "Bring me some men! I want to see what you're hiding in the palace with such guilt!"

"Brother Xia, how will we escape later?" Hearing the sound of Concubine Lin's search party approaching, the younger sister nervously clenched her fists, "I still have a grenade..."

As long as they weren't caught, Concubine Lin would have no evidence to convict them.

Seeing Concubine Lin's people enter with torches, Xia Qi led his sister to crawl through the grass, sweating all over.

Just as they reached a rockery, the younger sister looked up and said, "Brother Xia, shall we hide inside the rockery? If anyone comes, we can circle around it to hide."

Xia Qi agreed, and the two slowly made their way into the rockery.

At this moment, Concubine Lin's laughter echoed from the side hall, "Hmph, are you hiding a lover in this side hall? Why won't you let me in?"

Hearing the familiar word "lover," Xia Qi's expression twisted.

He suddenly had a bold guess—could it be that Concubine Lin was here for him?

Was she suspecting him of having a relationship with Concubine Qian?

Concubine Qian was truly innocent; he wasn't her lover...

At this moment, Xia Qi was climbing to the second level of the rockery.

On the second and third levels of the rockery, there were several narrow cavities, perfect for hiding. Moreover, these cavities were close to the wall, allowing them to escape over it if Concubine Lin's search party came.

While thinking, Xia Qi accidentally stepped on a moss-covered stone with his right foot and slipped.

Just as he lost his balance, a large hand suddenly grabbed his waist, pulling him over and pressing him against a solid chest.

"I'm here, don't be nervous." Before Xia Qi could struggle, a gentle and deep male voice sounded in his ear.

Recognizing the familiar voice and the familiar entrance, Xia Qi felt his scalp tingle.

This person was like a specter, how did he show up again?

Author's note: Someone: I heard Concubine Lin is catching lovers. No matter what, I have to come and take a look.