"Duke!" Shen Lixue met his gaze, her lips slightly upturned, revealing a faint hint of knowledge, as fresh and pure as a lotus emerging from water, but her eyes were extremely deep, vaguely carrying a demonic quality, and her aura was so intimidating that it made people's breath catch in their throats.
Duke Wen was greatly shocked. How could a weak woman have such a powerful aura? With just one look, she could intimidate people. He curled the corners of his mouth and gave a faint smile: "Prince Zhan has taken in a good daughter!"
"Your Excellency is too kind to reward me!" Shen Lixue said calmly, her smile fresh and natural. She had lived in the War King's mansion for more than a month and was able to remain calm and composed in the face of the War King's sharp aura. How dare the Duke of Wen try to intimidate her? He was overestimating himself.
Duke Wen smiled, said nothing more, glanced deeply at Shen Lixue a few times, and then slowly walked to the side with several other court officials.
Su Yuting's eyelids darkened, a hint of resentment flashing in her eyes. She looked up at Shen Lixue and the other young ladies, and greeted them with a smile, "The sun is high, it's getting hot, let's hurry to Yuting Garden!"
At the War King's Mansion, Dongfang Heng bypassed the numerous guards and floated directly into the Lixue Pavilion. His deep eyes were filled with exhaustion, and his spotless white robes were slightly wrinkled, as if he hadn't rested in a long time.
The clean room was empty, without a single person in sight. The ice bucket in the corner was covered with a lid, and a layer of condensation had formed on the outside, indicating that the owner had been away for some time.
Dongfang Heng frowned, walked out of the courtyard, and casually called out to a guard: "Where is Li Xue?"
"Your Highness, it is Duke Wen's fortieth birthday, and the Princess has gone to Duke Wen's residence to offer her congratulations..."
Before the guard could finish speaking, a gust of wind swept past, and Dongfang Heng had vanished without a trace.
In mid-air, Dongfang Heng rushed to the Duke of Wen's mansion, his face terribly gloomy. He knew perfectly well that Su Yuting was the murderer who disfigured people, yet she still went to the Duke of Wen's mansion to offer birthday wishes...
Yuting Garden boasts a beautiful environment and is decorated with great elegance. The outer room is furnished with simple and elegant tables and chairs for receiving guests. The inner room features a large bed, a censer, a desk, and several ice buckets, creating a serene and refined atmosphere. On the white walls hang paintings of the Four Gentlemen: plum blossom, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum. The brushstrokes are even and fluid, demonstrating the artist's profound skill.
"Miss Su's drawing is wonderful!"
"As the most talented woman, she is naturally the best in all the arts, including music, chess, calligraphy, and painting..."
"Look at these leaves, they look so real, so lifelike, so incredibly realistic..."
The young ladies gazed at the painting and murmured their admiration.
"You flatter me, you flatter me. This is a poor work, not worthy of being presented in a refined manner..." Su Yuting smiled and secretly glanced at Shen Lixue, her eyes filled with a strong sense of pride and provocation.
Shen Lixue sat in a wicker chair by the window, sipping a cup of fragrant tea. A drop of tea slid down the side of the cup and landed on the painting, but she didn't pay it any mind. She casually admired the painting. The ink was fresh, so it must have been painted recently. She paints during the day and ruins people's faces at night. What a wonderful hobby!
A gentle breeze blew through the half-open window onto the painting. A faint scent of ink wafted from the small spot dampened by tea, but the aroma carried a subtle, almost imperceptible, fishy smell, as if something else had been mixed into the ink.
Shen Lixue raised the scroll to her eyes in confusion and sniffed it lightly. A faint fishy smell entered her nose, her pupils darkened, and she was horrified. It was the smell of blood. She could not be mistaken. Human blood had been mixed into the ink! Su Yuting was truly twisted. After disfiguring people, she still used their blood to create paintings.
The ink on the painting had been specially treated and had dried. If it weren't for that drop of tea falling on the painting, Shen Lixue wouldn't have been able to smell the blood. She carefully counted the number of paintings, and there were exactly nine, which perfectly matched the number of the nine disfigured women.
"Sister, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" Su Yuting walked over gracefully and asked with concern.
"I'm fine, I'm just a little tired!" Shen Lixue smiled slightly and reached for the tea on the table.
"If you don't mind, you can rest on my bed for a while!" Su Yuting said with a bright smile and concern in her eyes.
"Thank you for your concern, Sister Su. I'm fine!" Shen Lixue raised an eyebrow. Su Yuting's mind was twisted. If there was something wrong with the painting, then there must be something strange about this bedroom. It was best to avoid touching anything here.
After resting for two days, Su Yuting was able to appear in front of everyone wearing a mask, which means that her injuries have healed a lot. She might go out and hurt people again tonight. Qingyan Capital is very big. We don't know where she is committing crimes. How can we stop her?
A faint aroma of tea wafted through the air. Shen Lixue's gaze sharpened as she looked down at the shimmering tea in the white cup, then glanced at Su Yuting's gentle, smiling mask. A faint smile appeared on her lips. She had an idea.
“Sister Su, I think this peony is quite unique. Is there a special mark drawn on its petals?” Shen Lixue was holding a painting of peonies in various colors, which was very luxurious.
"Which one?" Su Yuting smiled and leaned down to look at the peony painting.
"This is the one!" Shen Lixue pointed to the largest peony with her left hand, and with her right hand holding a teacup, she poured the teacup down on Su Yuting's neck the moment she was distracted.
"Ah!" Su Yuting exclaimed, instantly straightening up and quickly wiping the tea off her neck with a silk handkerchief. A fierce glint flashed in her eyes. That hateful Shen Lixue.
The young ladies all looked over, their gazes towards Shen Lixue filled with reproach. How could she be so careless as to spill tea all over her neck?
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!" Shen Lixue put down her teacup and used a silk handkerchief to wipe the water stains from Su Yuting's face.
The tea had been sitting for a while and wasn't hot enough to scald Su Yuting. Shen Lixue's real purpose in pouring the tea was to expose Su Yuting's true colors.
"Sister Lixue, don't worry, I'm fine!" A hint of panic flashed in Su Yuting's beautiful eyes. She pushed Shen Lixue away without making a sound, and quickly wiped the water stains on her neck with a silk handkerchief.
Shen Lixue sneered inwardly. Rumor had it that the mask was afraid of water. Judging from Su Yuting's guilty look, she must be wearing a mask. But where was the edge of the mask?
Shen Lixue narrowed her eyes, searching carefully. Gazing at the small patch that differed from her skin tone, she smiled coldly, just as she had expected.
"Hey, what's this, Sister Su?"
Shen Lixue asked in confusion, quickly reaching out to grab the corner of the mask and suddenly tearing it off before Su Yuting could stop her, revealing a scarred and disfigured face.
The noble ladies were instantly stunned, staring blankly at Su Yuting's face, which was covered in whip marks and looked as ugly as a demon. Their mouths were agape, but they couldn't utter a sound.
Shen Lixue frowned, feigning ignorance, and said, "Sister Su, how come you have so many whip marks on your face? They look exactly like those on the mysterious disfigured person who was beaten up by the guards of the War Prince's Mansion the night before last!"
"Ah, a ghost!" A noble lady was the first to come to her senses. Her shrill scream pierced the clouds and echoed through the sky, startling the other ladies who were still in shock.
"Ahhh, oh my god..." The young ladies screamed in terror, abandoning all pretense of modesty. Lifting their skirts, they surged forward like a tidal wave. That scarred face said it all; what else could they not understand?
"Su Yuting is that mysterious disfigured person..."
"The culprit, whose crimes are utterly heinous and deserve to be torn to pieces..."
"Hahaha!" Su Yuting recovered from her shock and astonishment, looked at the noble ladies who had been as close as sisters to her just a moment ago, but now avoided her like the plague and cursed her with the most vicious words, and burst into laughter.
The laughter was like the wailing of ghosts, which frightened the noble ladies so much that they rushed out even more desperately. However, the door was small and there were too many ladies, so they crowded together at the door of the inner room.
"You've spied on my secrets, do you still want to leave here alive?" Su Yuting's deep voice was sinister and chilling. The young ladies felt a chill creep up their backs. Despite it being the hot summer, they couldn't help but shiver. Su Yuting was terrifying.
Just as a young lady hurriedly ran to the door of the outer room, about to step out, the exquisite wooden door suddenly closed automatically, blocking the view from the outside, and the room instantly became dark.
"Ahhh, let me out, let me out!" Qianjin kicked and punched the wooden door frantically, but the door remained tightly shut, showing no signs of breaking.