Chapter 13
This time, Chen Xiu finally didn’t turn Jiang Liu away.
Her last visit had been rushed, leaving no time for a careful look. Now, she could see that the main house was clearly the work of two women. The layout and furnishings were elegant, cleverly blending classical and Western elements. The two styles complemented each other, neither jarring nor out of place.
Tea had already been prepared in the room, its sweet fragrance creating a relaxing atmosphere. Two plates of pastries were scattered on the table. Chen Xiu sat gracefully in the host’s seat. Although time had left its deep marks on her face, her aura had only grown more profound, and her eyes still held a faint shadow of the woman in the photograph.
Chen Xiu’s gaze swept over everyone, pausing for a moment on Jiang Liu before she spoke with a smile. “You’re here.”
Her tone was gentle, her demeanor relaxed. If the group hadn’t already known this was a treacherous banquet, they would have never seen through the conspiracy hidden beneath this facade.
“Granny is finally willing to see me.”
Seeing that no one was moving, Jiang Liu let out a hearty laugh and casually sat down in the seat next to Chen Xiu, not forgetting to beckon to the others. “Everyone, have a seat. Don’t be shy.”
She acted as if she owned the place.
If the situation weren’t so dire, Zhang Xiaochen would have wanted to crack open her head to see what it was made of. How could she say something like that in front of the host?
He only grumbled to himself. Even if he was unsure, he had to put on a brave face. He swaggered over and sat down next to Jiang Liu.
Chen Xiu ignored Jiang Liu’s words and spoke as if to herself. “The day of the performance is almost here. Is there anything you don’t understand?”
Xu Shu hadn’t expected her to be so amiable and was unsure of the situation. He opened his mouth to say something, but Jiang Liu cut him off.
Everyone watched as Jiang Liu leaned back casually in her chair, responding as if she were just making small talk with Chen Xiu. “There is indeed one thing I don’t understand, and I’d like to ask for Granny’s guidance.”
She raised her lips slightly, her gaze fixed on Chen Xiu as she asked with feigned nonchalance, “All these years, why haven’t you gone to see Qin Meng?”
“Clang—”
As the last two words fell, Chen Xiu’s face turned deathly pale. The hand holding the teacup froze in mid-air, and scalding tea splashed out, but she seemed not to notice.
“What did you say?”
Chen Xiu narrowed her eyes, her gaze on Jiang Liu now filled with suspicion.
Jiang Liu acted as if she hadn’t noticed her loss of composure and continued on her own. “Qin Meng has been trapped by you in the theater for fifty years. Don’t you want to see her?”
Chen Xiu’s face turned ashen. She shot to her feet, her eyes locked on Jiang Liu, her tone no longer gentle but almost vicious. “How do you know?”
As soon as she said it, she let out a sudden, cold laugh. With the change in her expression, the bright, sunny sky outside suddenly grew dark, and an autumn wind howled, carrying dust with it.
“No matter. As long as this performance is finished, she can come back.”
The door had closed at some point, and the sound of the wind whistling past the windows was unsettling.
The once-spacious room was now crowded with servants who had appeared from nowhere, filling the space. The opera lines they chanted grew closer and closer, causing the group’s faces to pale in alarm.
“Watch out!”
Seeing Xu Meng surrounded, Jiang Liu acted swiftly. She pulled her behind her, then swung her knife at the attacker’s neck and kicked him away.
Zhang Xiaochen grabbed Xu Shu and fled in a panic, unable to stop himself from cursing, “Damn it, what are these monsters?”
They looked exceptionally strange, advancing with blank faces as if they couldn’t feel pain. Even when Jiang Liu dislocated their arms, they continued forward expressionlessly, determined to corner them.
Jiang Liu protected Xu Meng and the others, her face grave as she looked at the figure in the distance—Chen Xiu’s smile was twisted as she excitedly watched their desperate struggle, her expression utterly insane.
“Finish this performance, and she can come back…”
Chen Xiu repeated in a low voice. Her originally cold expression cracked like melting ice, and her entire demeanor, from her expression to her tone, transformed, exuding a kind of tenderness.
She seemed to have returned to her twenty-year-old self, her tone joyful yet shy. “She can come back, so—you must help me!”
The latter half of her sentence turned abruptly cold. Combined with the wailing sounds of the opera filling the room, a chill ran down everyone’s spines, their backs soaked with cold sweat.
Jiang Liu pressed her lips together, a cold glint flashing in her eyes. Before anyone could see her move, she was already beside Chen Xiu, striking the back of her neck without a word.
“You…”
Chen Xiu hadn’t expected Jiang Liu to be so bold. Her eyes widened with venom. She had just uttered a single word before her eyes rolled back and she fainted.
Immediately after, the attacking puppets seemed to lose control, freezing in place like disconnected machines.
Zhang Xiaochen was dumbfounded. He suddenly slapped his forehead. “Right, to catch the bandits, first catch the king! Why didn’t I think of that!”
Xu Shu, squatting on the ground and panting, retorted, “Even if you had, could you have beaten her?”
It was almost embarrassing to say it, but all of them combined were no match for Jiang Liu’s swiftness.
Zhang Xiaochen glared at him. “Way to rub salt in the wound.”
Ignoring Xu Shu, he looked the motionless figures up and down, stroking his chin as he guessed, “Could these be the unlucky ones who performed on stage before?”
He meant to ask Jiang Liu, but after waiting for a long time without a response, he turned his head and was stunned.
The girl had pulled out a rope from somewhere and was squatting on the ground, busy tying the person up. She showed no respect for the elderly whatsoever, a sight that made Zhang Xiaochen subconsciously rub his arm, feeling a phantom pain.
After all, he had a right to speak on this matter—he had been tied up by Jiang Liu before.
“What are you staring at? Come and help!”
Jiang Liu tied the knot and ordered them around without ceremony. “Carry her back.”
Chen Xiu never imagined that when she woke up again, she would be in the Theater Garden.
Her head was still groggy, and the spot where Jiang Liu had struck her throbbed with a dull pain. She wanted to raise her hand to rub it, but her eyes caught sight of her sleeve and she froze.
At some point, she had been changed into an opera costume. She was standing by the familiar stage, with Jiang Liu, similarly dressed, beside her.
“What are you doing?”
Her expression finally showed a hint of panic. In her confusion, she tried to step back, but Jiang Liu held her by the shoulders, immobilizing her.
Jiang Liu smiled faintly and carefully adjusted her makeup, her tone serious. “Why are you so afraid? Don’t you want to see her?”
“No! Let me go!”
Chen Xiu trembled violently, all her previous composure gone. She screamed and thrashed, trying to break free from Jiang Liu’s grasp.
But those hands were like iron chains, holding her firmly in place. The once-clear voice was like a demon’s whisper, echoing from all around her—
“What are you afraid of? She’s right here, below the stage. Have you already forgotten what you did with your own hands?”
Chen Xiu’s face was deathly pale. Her desperate screams failed to elicit any pity from Jiang Liu. Instead, she felt those hands move to her back with increasing clarity and push her forcefully—
She stumbled onto the stage and saw Jiang Liu stride up after her. The moment her foot touched the sacrificial altar, her expression changed abruptly. When she looked up at Chen Xiu again, she was like a different person.
‘Jiang Liu’ took a step forward, tears already welling in her eyes. She looked her up and down for a long time, as if at a loss for words.
That gaze was hauntingly familiar.
“A Xiu…”
A single sentence was enough to stop Chen Xiu in her tracks. She looked up in disbelief, her eyes wide, her voice already choked with sobs. “A Meng… is it really you?”
Her desire to flee vanished. She stared, mesmerized, at the figure before her, tears streaming silently down her face.
Although the face was completely different from her memory, the expression, the mannerisms, the tone of voice—everything indicated that this was her Qin Meng.
Qin Meng sighed again and reached out to pull her into an embrace.
“It’s been fifty years. You… you finally came to see me.”
She had been trapped in the sea of fire, but it wasn’t that she couldn’t leave. Ultimately, she couldn’t bear to part with A Xiu, nor could she bear to see her commit acts against her conscience for her sake.
Chen Xiu sniffled and lowered her gaze, abashed, like a child caught doing something wrong. “I was scared…”
All these years, she had been thinking, if it weren’t for her, would Qin Meng have met this end?
The opera troupe was Qin Meng’s life’s work, yet she had destroyed the theater and harmed countless innocent people.
She didn’t dare to come to the theater again, afraid that Qin Meng would see what she had done and leave in disappointment. Even more, she was afraid… that she had been imprisoned for decades because of her, yet had never left.
These conflicting thoughts tormented her day and night. She could only suppress her longing and stop setting foot in the theater, madly telling herself to wait, just wait a little longer.
When Qin Meng was revived, she would surely forgive her.
Sensing her helplessness, Qin Meng lovingly stroked her head. When she saw the strands of white hair, a light sigh escaped her lips.
Fifty years had passed in a flash.
She took a small step back, her gaze fixed on Chen Xiu, her tone gratified. “Don’t grieve for me… take care of yourself.”
Chen Xiu realized what was happening and took two steps forward, trying to grab her. But Qin Meng just smiled and retreated step by step. A great fire suddenly erupted beside her, and in the blinding light, her soul became clearly visible.
“No!!!”
Her eyes widened in an almost pleading manner as she watched the figure about to dissipate, unable to stop it.
Jiang Liu’s consciousness had just cleared. Before she could react, she heard a desperate wail and her pupils contracted—
Chen Xiu rushed madly towards Qin Meng’s retreating back, fearlessly plunging into the raging fire and hugging her tightly.
“Wait…”
She tried to stop them, but her fingertips only managed to touch the corner of a sleeve. Suddenly, a gust of wind swept through. Chen Xiu’s wide opera robe rustled loudly, and a photograph quietly slipped from her sleeve. When Jiang Liu saw the person in the photo, she froze.
Why did Chen Xiu have a picture of her?
Before she could think, an invisible force pushed her off the stage. She could only watch as the two figures grew increasingly blurry, finally being completely consumed by the flames.
The stiff electronic voice sounded again. The world before everyone’s eyes blurred. Starting from the stage, the surroundings began to collapse outwards. The fire grew larger and larger, as if it would burn the entire Theater Garden to the ground.
[Congratulations to the player for completing the mission. The score will now be tallied.]
[Completed the Main Quest, helped Chen Xiu fulfill her wish, +10 points.]
[Number of survivors: Seven. +35 points.]
[Grade: A-Rank.]
The surrounding temperature was terrifyingly hot. Zhang Xiaochen noticed Jiang Liu was still in a daze and reached out to pull her. “What are you standing there for? Let’s go!”
Jiang Liu was jolted awake by his shout. She subconsciously clutched the photo in her hand and ran outside with him. Just before the place collapsed, she couldn’t help but look back—
Chen Xiu’s figure was long gone, only the raging fire remained, devouring everything in its path.
The corner of the photo dug painfully into her palm, but Jiang Liu seemed oblivious, lost in a daze.