Volume 3, Chapter 301 – The Second Young Lady Has Been Taken Away

As her fox lady’s order, Bu Lianshuang was bound to obey.

But even so, she couldn’t bring herself to leave her fox lady alone here.

She couldn’t help transmitting her voice to Lu Zhuxin: “But… my lady, I’m worried about what these humans might do to you…”

Lu Zhuxin cut her off. “Follow my orders. Don’t interfere with my plan.”

“…Alright.” Bu Lianshuang had no choice but to comply.

She turned and shot Chi Zhong a cold, cutting glare. “Take good care of my lady. If anything happens to her, I will most certainly… most certainly tell the eldest miss everything!”

Chi Zhong’s smile stiffened slightly at the corners.

Who did this maid called Shuang’er think she was, acting so brazen? When had a mere servant ever been able to step over the heads of young masters like them?

Still, for the sake of the bigger picture, Chi Zhong swallowed his irritation.

He had been wondering just moments ago how to get rid of this troublesome maid. Now Chi Muxue had handed him the opportunity herself.

With that thought, Chi Zhong smiled pleasantly at Bu Lianshuang. “Don’t worry, Miss Shuang’er. I will look after the second young lady personally.”

Bu Lianshuang left. The comings and goings of a single maid drew no one’s attention.

And now, there was no one left to watch over Lu Zhuxin.

Poisoning someone’s drink. Ruining their reputation. In those scheming-household novels, these were the go-to methods a vicious villainess used to trap the pure, innocent heroine.

Lu Zhuxin, the great villain herself, was no stranger to tricks like these.

And in stories like that, the ending always went one of two ways: either the vicious villainess fell into her own trap, or the male lead appeared at the critical moment to sweep the pure heroine away, seizing the chance to pledge himself to her under the guise of curing her poison.

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A timeless plot, truly.

Tonight, Lu Zhuxin intended to make a guest appearance as that pure, innocent heroine.

The stage was already set. A heroine drunk and alone, her loyal guard sent away, a banquet crawling with unsavory characters. All the pieces were in place.

All that was left was to watch the vicious villains make their move.

Lu Zhuxin slumped half against the banquet table, her cheeks flushed pink, her gaze hazy and unfocused.

Chatter and laughter filled the air around her.

To everyone watching, she was thoroughly drunk. None of them knew that she had taken in every expression and every word around her.

She could see the smug, self-satisfied grin spreading across Chi Zhong’s face. She could hear him whispering to the people beside him.

They were debating what excuse to use to take Chi Muxue away. It had to seem natural, above suspicion.

Tsk. What a useless bunch of minor villains. Shouldn’t something like this have been planned out from the start?

With skills like these, how did they ever expect to go up against Chi Xiyan?

Lu Zhuxin gave a quiet, scornful laugh inside.

Her gaze swept the room and landed on a maidservant walking over with a jug of wine.

Silently, Lu Zhuxin pressed the tip of her foot against the floor.

A hidden force rippled outward along the ground.

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She couldn’t fight to save her life, but little tricks like this were well within her abilities.

The force grazed the maid’s legs. The yellow-robed girl felt something catch her foot and stumbled, losing her balance entirely.

The wine jug flew from her hands, crashed onto the banquet table, and sent wine splashing all over Lu Zhuxin.

“Ugh… what’s going on…” Lu Zhuxin murmured in a dazed, slurring voice. “Who threw wine on me…?”

The yellow-robed maidservant froze on the spot, her face draining of color.

“Second young lady…” she stammered, trembling all over. “I-I-I didn’t mean to… I think something tripped me just now…”

Her voice trailed off. She realized how unconvincing that sounded.

There had been no one near her just a moment ago. There was nothing at her feet now. And yet she really had felt something catch her.

Chi Zhong stepped forward at once, turning on the maid. “How could you be so careless?”

“I really didn’t mean to…” The poor girl was on the verge of tears.

“Let it go, Brother Chi Zhong. She probably didn’t do it on purpose. It’s Sister Xiyan’s engagement banquet, after all. Best not to make more trouble than necessary.”

“What matters right now is getting Miss Muxue somewhere to change her clothes.”

Chi Zhong’s eyes lit up immediately. He glanced back at the young men behind him with a meaningful look.

A young lady from a branch family stepped forward and leaned close to Lu Zhuxin, speaking softly. “Miss Muxue, your clothes are soaked through. Let me take you somewhere to change, alright?”

“Mm…” Lu Zhuxin replied in the same muddled, slurring tone. “But I want to stay here and wait for Sister Xiyan…”

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“Miss Muxue, it will only take a moment,” the branch family young lady said. “Besides, today is Sister Xiyan’s happy occasion. Wouldn’t it be a bit improper to appear in front of her dripping like this?”

“Mm…” Lu Zhuxin furrowed her delicate brows as though her foggy head was slowly working through the logic. “I suppose you’re right. If she saw me like this, she’d be upset with me.”

The branch family young lady’s eyes gleamed with barely concealed excitement. She stepped forward and took Lu Zhuxin firmly by the arm.

Lu Zhuxin leaned against her, catching the faint scent of rouge powder on her clothes.

Filthy thing.

Lu Zhuxin’s brow twitched slightly. But she didn’t resist. Following her plan, she allowed herself to be guided compliantly out of the main hall.

Behind her, Chi Zhong and his companions raised their cups in celebration.

Outside the hall, two guards blocked their path. They glanced at the visibly intoxicated Lu Zhuxin, then shifted their gaze to the woman at her side, eyes searching.

The branch family young lady drew a quiet breath and explained, “The second young lady’s clothes got wet. I’m taking her to change.”

One of the guards studied her carefully. “Where is the second young lady’s maidservant?”

“The second young lady sent her away herself,” the young lady replied. “There was no one left to accompany her, so I offered to help.”

She paused, then pivoted smoothly. “Unless you two would prefer to help the second young lady change?”

The guards had no such authority, of course. But their duty was to protect Chi Muxue.

“We’ll follow along to keep watch.”

The branch family young lady’s eyes went cold.

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So this was the treatment a direct-line young miss received. Even a change of clothes came with a guard escort.

“Very well. Though you had better not peek.”

“Of course not, young lady.”

The group left the main hall and headed toward the rear courtyard.

Shortly after they disappeared, a maidservant in blue came running out from inside.

She looked left and right in a panic.

Just moments ago, she had breathed in the drifting smell of wine and felt a sudden heaviness cloud her mind, as though she had drunk too much herself.

By the time she came back to her senses, Lu Zhuxin was already gone.

‘What do I do… what do I do. The eldest miss told me to keep watch over the second young lady the entire time.’

‘Who on earth took her away?’

“I’ve really done it now! The eldest miss is going to kill me!”

Qingshan’s heart lurched with panic.

She was not someone who got drunk easily. How had she ended up like this just from breathing in the smell of wine?

‘The wine they gave the second young lady to drink… something must have been wrong with it!’

‘I have to tell the eldest miss right away!’