22 One is alive and the other dead

After going to the secret chamber under her room, Jiao Yu went upstairs to get change while Bai Chen and Jing Chu went out to get the meals ready for dinner.

Changing out from her all-black dress full of Mui Gu's blood, she felt light headed and found herself going towards the joint room to clean her body.

The countless bodies and souls that she'd severed, took a lot of toll on her body and mentality. She can't remember anymore how long and many time she'd killed. Normally, she would only kill someone whenever she was ordered to by the organization yet now, she's probably going to have to kill people occasionally to avoid trouble uprising.

A knock was heard from the bamboo screen, "Young lady, do you want to heat the dishes after one had taken a bath already?"

Jiao Yu rests her head to the sides of the wooden bath tub and said, "Let it be, it's still edible even without reheating it."

After a few more minutes, Jiao Yu's eyes was close and her breathing was steady. One did not know why but today, she felt so nice and relaxed even after doing something so evil, making her fell asleep faster than usual.

Inside the courtyard of the Second Furen, Hui Shi was not at all in a good mood. Earlier, when she was about to go out to meet the other furens, she found out that all her favorite jewelries and some other ornaments were long gone from her jewelry box. The amount of jewelries stolen were not that many however, it was still valuable and some of it were part of her dowry when she married over to the Liu family.

She did not know where or who took it and only heard that Mui Gu was also missing the same day her jewelries was missing.

Anger was seething out from her as she shouted, "Find that Mui Gu maid immediately and make sure she's captured to be presented to me!!"

"I'll let her know what a big sin it is for stealing from me."

The second household servants knew that something had angered their mistress and have to obey her or else, the one that will bear the brunt of iron. Immediately, the servants from the Second household ran around to look for the missing maid and jewelries, and anxiously went to report back that they have not found anything, the maid nor the jewelries that was stolen.

Hui Shi cursed under her breath and threw things inside her room, making a shattering noise as jars and jade pots was thrown to the floor.

"What's happening here!?" A loud roar sounded in the room.

Hui Shi looked up to see her husband, Liu Buwei standing across her with a furrowed brow. The man in front her was in his early forties and compared to the scholarly look his brothers, Liu Sheng Xiao and Liu Yao Han had, her husband face was handsome with a rough and robust looking. Wearing a blue court official uniform and sporting a growing beard.

During their marriage, Liu Buwei did not have any plan to like the woman he married and he could only show courtesy and respect as the woman he truly loves is someone who can no longer be his. And because of that he pampered Hui Shi to satisfy his guilt for loving another woman.

Seeing that her tantrum was noticed by her husband, Hui Shi bursts out to tears and holds onto Liu Buwei's sleeves.

Upon Hui Shi's outburst, Liu buwei furrowed his brows, "Why is Shi'er not resting and crying instead?"

"Husband, this wife feels aggrieve, the jewelries and dowry that was sent with me to this fu was stolen by a lowly servant. Husband, please find justice for me."

Liu Buwei was stunned to know that inside his household, there was someone that could actually dare to steal from them, and looks angrily towards the servants and maids present.

When Gong Li saw that their master was fiercely looking at them, she shivered and said, "Master, it's this old servant's fault. Please punish this old servant."

Gong Li knelt in front of him and Hui Shi. Hui Shi who was still bursting her tears stopped and went to hold Gong Li's arm and worriedly said, "What is Gong mama saying, how can it be your fault? One have stayed with me longer than anyone else, please Gong mama stand up."

Liu Buwei furrowed his brows again, looking back to the two women in front of him, he said, "Since the Shi'er has already spoken, Gong mama should stand up already and regarding the matter of the things that have been stolen. Send it to my study for me to read."

"Tomorrow, Shi'er will go out to buy and replace those that was stolen." Flinging his sleeves and turned to leave however was stopped when Hui Shi suddenly asked, "Husband, must you go already? I have just asked the kitchen to prepare something to eat for husband and is about to be delivered here."

"Shi'er should just go and rest as I can't stay longer since there are some matter one needed to do."

The back of her husband, Liu Buwei was the only thing she's seen when she looked towards him and found that, throughout these years, aside from his occasional pampering and doting, Hui Shi had never felt like they were the wife and husband that was long promised to them during their wedding ceremony.

After a moment, a young maid came running towards Hui Shi, whispering something to her ear. No one knows what was said to her by the young maid but with the hateful expression Hui Shi had worn on her face, it was evident that it was not a good thing.

'Had another matter unfinished. Yet, he actually went to the west courtyard.'

Hui Shi laughed at herself. Before one was married, she could remember that upon entering the Liu residence, Liu Buwei had two tongfang (lowest rank of a concubine) in the second household's west courtyard. And after giving birth of her two daughters, Liu Yue An and Liu Hui Yin. Liu Buwei did not visit her courtyard anymore and only stayed at the two tongfang's west side courtyard. Was it that she wasn't able to give him a son thus, being neglected of affection? or is it that there's still that woman in his heart?

The woman that he neither admitted nor denied to having his feeling towards her was not anyone else but the wife of Liu Sheng Xiao and the person in the Liu residence that died in a tragic traffic accident. The accident was not a big deal as it was a normal thing for the carriage's horse to go crazy, when it was startled or feared something and because of that, Liu Sheng Xiao's wife died after being crushed with the horse.

And even after her death, that woman was still number one in her husband's and Liu Sheng Xiao's heart. How sad it is, one is still alive yet, what they want is the one who can never be theirs.