Lin Yueyao continued, "So I started thinking, why did you two get a divorce? Then I realized it was a conspiracy, a grand conspiracy to lure the snake out of its hole. You couldn't find any clues for a long time, so you had no choice but to resort to this tactic, right?"
Ju Mu'er remained silent. Although this was not her original intention, things seemed to be developing in this direction.
Luring the snake out of its hole? The snake did indeed come out and bite her.
"Why are you so persistent? Wouldn't it be better if you just stayed a good wife like Long Er? Who is Shi Boyin to you? Who is Hua Yibai to you? Why are you so insistent?"
"I just want to live a good life, will you allow that?" Ju Mu'er smiled bitterly: "I've had that dream more than once. I gave birth to a boy and a girl for Second Master. I taught them to play the piano, and Second Master angrily roared, 'Playing that rubbish is not as good as learning to use an abacus.' When I woke up, I felt scared. How could you understand this feeling?"
"We have never hurt you in the past two years. Isn't that enough to put your mind at ease?"
There seemed to be something wrong with what she said, but Ju Mu'er didn't have time to think about it. She simply replied, "Miss, don't forget that it was you who asked me to investigate this matter with you."
"I'm the one who contacted you. If I hadn't contacted you, how could I have been sure what you knew, or what you were planning to do?"
"Not only that, you also keep leading me in circles, appearing anxious on the surface, but seizing every opportunity to let me know that the investigation is hopeless. You must be looking for an opportunity to tell me at some appropriate time that Brother Yibai died in an accident and that Mr. Shi was not wronged, right?"
"Yes. You did tell me everything you suspected, and I know exactly what you're going to do. I'm dragging you along, slowly wearing down every doubt you have, until you give up on this whole thing. Then at some point, you'll realize that doing this is boring and meaningless. I'm your only partner, and once I give up, you'll lose your support and give up quickly too. You see, I told you, we never intended to hurt you, and this is proof."
"Then why have you changed your mind now?"
“Because you’re so ungrateful, I’ll let you suffer along, but I won’t give you a chance to find him through me.” Lin Yueyao’s voice was icy cold as she slammed a dagger on the table with a “bang.” “You must die.”
Ju Mu'er was startled by the sudden loud noise and hurriedly asked, "How do you plan to kill me?"
"Use a dagger."
"If you kill me, how will you escape?"
"You don't need to worry about that. I'm willing to give my life for you if it means your death."
"Wait a minute." Ju Mu'er's face turned deathly pale. She quickly jumped up and retreated to a corner of the room, her hand gripping her cane trembling. "Don't you want to know how I figured you out?"
Seeing her terrified expression, Lin Yueyao burst into laughter: "You want to stall for time? What's the use of stalling? Let me tell you, those two guards from the Dragon Mansion are already dead. No one will come to save you. I know some martial arts; dealing with a blind person like you is more than enough. Besides, there are my helpers outside the door. Even if you manage to get out of this room, you'll be killed. Ju Mu'er, I wouldn't have come if I hadn't made thorough preparations. I told you, I won't give you a chance."
We never intended to hurt you.
I won't give you the chance to find him through me.
Something was about to be revealed, but it remained unclear. Ju Mu'er's heart was pounding. She heard Lin Yueyao stand up, and she took a step back in fright, exclaiming, "You're so devoted to him, he must treat you very well."
Lin Yueyao was about to take a step when she heard this and stopped. She said, "He is indeed very good. He is my benefactor. If it weren't for him, I would probably be living a life worse than death right now."
Ju Mu'er closed her eyes and gripped her cane tightly: "Second Master is also my benefactor."
Lin Yueyao stared at her, and after a while, she suddenly said, "The most precious thing for a woman in this life is to meet a benefactor. Like you, not Chen Liangze, not Lord Yun, but Second Master Long. If that benefactor can have the same feelings for you as you have for him, then that is happiness." Lin Yueyao sighed deeply, "Ju Mu'er, if I were you, I would not care about what others do, what injustices, what wrongful deaths, what do they have to do with me? You are truly born into good fortune but do not know how to cherish it, and that's why you have such a terrible consequence today."
"My bad karma is because I saw through you."
Lin Yueyao thought about it for a moment after hearing this, and said, "That's not wrong."
"You acted so cautiously, yet I still saw through you. Do you know where you went wrong?"
"I saw through your fake divorce with Master Long. To verify it, I sneaked into your room and searched it while you were away. The guards from the Long family mansion who were monitoring the courtyard saw me, didn't they?" Lin Yueyao smiled. "Actually, that's how I saw through you. Your bed was new. There were new wax prints on your table, in several places. This means someone spent the night here. That person isn't blind; they needed candlelight. There were also several men's clothes in your trunk. However, I put everything back exactly as it was before I searched it, so you couldn't have noticed. Therefore, someone must have been watching your room, and they discovered my actions, which is why I was exposed, isn't that right?"
“No. You searched my room to let me know that I had been exposed, so Second Master and I decided to set a trap for you, because if we dragged it out any longer, no matter what kind of trap we set, it would probably be useless.” Ju Mu’er said, “I saw through you even earlier.”
Lin Yueyao thought for a while. She looked at Ju Mu'er, who was huddled in the corner, looking frightened and scared. Then she looked at the door and smiled.
"Fine, you can't escape anyway, I'll give you a little more time to hear your story."
Ju Mu'er secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Everyone has curiosity, and she had to take advantage of that to stall for as long as possible.
She started talking.
“When you first came to me, I wondered why you would seek out a blind, frail woman to solve the mystery of Brother Yibai’s death. Was it simply because Brother Yibai had told you I was helping him write musical scores? That didn’t make much sense. But then I blamed myself for overthinking. I felt I shouldn’t doubt a heartbroken woman who had lost her lover. Because Brother Yibai mentioned you to me from time to time, and his words revealed his affection for you, I felt that his joy and satisfaction couldn’t be one-sided. So in the end, I chose to believe you.”
Lin Yueyao didn't speak; she listened quietly.
"Over time, all I get from you are useless and messy information. I can offer very little. I'm very anxious. I don't know when I'll see the day when the wrongful conviction is overturned. But you seem very calm. I have to say, my ability to stay calm and persevere is mostly due to you."
These slightly sarcastic words elicited a cold laugh from Lin Yueyao.
Ju Mu'er continued, "What initially made me suspicious of you was your musical skills. To gather more information, I taught Hua Niang to play the zither. We used this method to meet secretly and exchange information. Perhaps you were also using this opportunity to test and monitor me, but it was also because of this that I heard you play the zither. Your skills are mediocre; I couldn't see any talent in you that could make Brother Yibai appreciate you so much. He said you were a kindred spirit. You know, a kindred spirit is a kindred spirit; you can't do without some skill on the zither. So, my suspicious nature has always been bothered by this."
"Playing the piano?" Lin Yueyao's voice was shrill, as if she were surprised, or perhaps just realizing something. She paused for a moment and then said, "It's really hard to be a true connoisseur for you piano lovers."
Ju Mu'er waited for her to continue, but Lin Yueyao fell silent after saying that. Ju Mu'er cleared her throat and continued, "Later, I found an opportunity to test you. I gave you two musical scores, remember? The ones I told you a few days ago that I had written down the scores of the piece Master Shi played on his deathbed. At the boat music gathering that day, I asked you to return those two scores. Logically, those scores should have been in my possession. Since you were so concerned about Master Shi's piece, you should have asked where the scores were when I mentioned this, but you weren't worried at all and didn't ask me at all. Because you knew that the scores weren't in my possession. I just assumed they were."
"Because I changed the sheet music." Lin Yueyao didn't mind telling the truth at this moment.
“That’s right, you switched places. And it was because of that that I became certain of my suspicions about you. You didn’t come to solve the case with me at all; you came to spy on me. By doing this, you can get every piece of information I know. You know what I know, you know what I plan to do, and you know that I can’t actually do anything, so you feel at ease.”
"You mean, you didn't find out about the sheet music being switched because I didn't ask you about its whereabouts a few days ago?"
"Yes. In fact, I knew it the moment you returned it to me."
"How is that possible? The booklet is exactly the same in thickness, size, paper feel, and even ink. It was copied exactly as it was. How could you possibly know?"
“You did a very thorough job, and perhaps you really worked very hard copying it, but you forgot that I am blind and cannot see anything, so copying it exactly the same way is useless. As for the thickness and size of the booklet and the feel of the paper, you really put a lot of thought into it. However, you didn’t notice the marks I made.”
"What markings?" Lin Yueyao frowned. She had examined the sheet music many times but couldn't figure it out. Even he couldn't find anything wrong with it. Precisely because they couldn't find any clues, they wanted to keep the original and return the fake one.
“I pricked holes in the sheet music with a needle. I marked every single one of my sheet music like that. So I can tell which sheet music is which just by touching it. You don’t know, when you returned the sheet music to me, the moment I touched it, my heart sank. I so wished I was wrong, I so wished you were a true friend.”
"Friends?" Lin Yueyao said indifferently, "Putting today's events aside, we can't be friends. You have no idea how much I hate you."
Ju Mu'er pursed her lips and didn't respond.
"Alright, are you done with your story?" Lin Yueyao tapped the table with her dagger. "You're indeed meticulous and very clever. I should applaud you, but I'm holding a dagger, so I can't clap. Please forgive me." She looked at Ju Mu'er huddled in the corner and smiled maliciously. "Do you have anything else to surprise me with? If not, I should make my move."
"I know how you spread messages in the restaurant."
Lin Yueyao chuckled: "You really have an endless supply of things to say. But you're lucky, I am indeed interested in hearing about this."
“At that time, you had the door closed. To confirm whether there was anyone else in the room besides you, the scout disguised himself as a waiter and went in to check. He was afraid that the person inside would hear him and run away if he knocked beforehand, so he went in without saying hello. This was a risk that had to be taken. But after he went in, he didn’t see anyone, and there was nothing unusual in the room. He didn’t find anything.”
"The moment he pushed the door open did make me suspicious." Lin Yueyao sneered, "I'm just as suspicious as you. But whether he comes in or not doesn't affect me. I didn't see anyone that day, so he can't find anything on me."
"After you left, the spies went into the house to check, but they didn't find anything."
Lin Yueyao said smugly, "Of course I'm careful when I do things."
"He didn't notice anything because you wrote the message as a letter and stuck it under the table or chair. You don't need to see anyone, just eat your meal and leave, and then someone will go to that room to get the letter."
Lin Yueyao's smile froze on her face, then she sighed, "Ju Mu'er, Ju Mu'er, it's a good thing you're blind." She stood up: "Your behavior only strengthens my resolve to kill you."
"But I have something else to say."
"But I have no patience to listen." The dagger in Lin Yueyao's hand gleamed with a sinister light: "Tell Yama, the King of Hell, all you have to do after you die!"
"I know where the real Lin Yueyao is!" Ju Mu'er shouted before she could finish speaking.
Lin Yueyao was stunned; this blind woman really surprised her.
"You're not Lin Yueyao, you're an imposter!"
Author's Note: This chapter is entirely dialogue, but it reveals many foreshadowing elements.
80. Seeking survival in times of crisis
"Am I an imposter?" Lin Yueyao muttered to herself, fiddling with the dagger. After a moment's thought, she suddenly laughed and said, "Is it because Second Master Long recognizes people? That makes sense. He's been to Xichun Hall quite often, so it's not surprising that he would recognize Lin Yueyao."
Ju Mu'er shook her head and said, "I don't need his help to identify people. On the day of the cruise, I heard Lin Yueyao playing the zither."
"A zither again?" Lin Yueyao scoffed. "It seems the zither really isn't a good thing."
Ju Mu'er ignored her sarcasm and continued, "I've heard you play the piano many times; I know very well how good you are. But the cruise ship..."
That day, Lin Yueyao's playing was indeed far superior. Not only was it far superior, but it also possessed some of Brother Yibai's techniques and skills. She was truly a confidante who had received guidance from Brother Yibai. As for you, you are just a woman who claims to be Lin Yueyao after I went blind.”
Lin Yueyao remained silent, so Ju Mu'er continued, "I am a young woman of marriageable age, I have never been to a brothel, I have never seen the real Lin Yueyao, I do not know what she looks like, and I have never heard her voice. So at that time, when you said that you were Lin Yueyao and that you were talking to Brother Yibai, I had no doubts at all."
"Is it because I'm not skilled enough? I think I played quite well, otherwise I wouldn't have dared to play in front of you. The occasion when Hua Niang was learning the zither was indeed a good opportunity to gather information, and I didn't want to miss it. But it turns out that one wrong step leads to another."
Ju Mu'er didn't respond, which was taken as tacit agreement.
Lin Yueyao continued, "I was a little worried that day on the boat, but fortunately, Lin Yueyao didn't say a word and went down after playing the piano. After Hua Yibai died, she became taciturn and had little contact with others. This made it convenient for me to act. And that day, when you left the table, I immediately went out to meet you. The timing was so good that no one would have thought that I wasn't alone, right?"
“That certainly surprised me. But judging from the music, it was definitely not the same person playing the instrument. Although I don’t have any other skills, I’m never wrong when it comes to distinguishing sounds by listening to music. I was puzzled for a long time, but when I got the sheet music you switched and confirmed that you were indeed playing tricks, I finally understood.”
"Have you figured out that I'm not Lin Yueyao?"
“I’ve figured it out. You’re someone close to Lin Yueyao. That’s why you know so much about Brother Yibai and her, why you received my messages to Xichun Hall, and why you were able to appear before me immediately on the boat. You’ve been by Lin Yueyao’s side the whole time. You not only monitored me, but you also know her every move. That’s why you dared to impersonate her. I can’t see, so I can’t see her face, and Hua Niang and Xi Qin wear veils and don’t address each other by name. As long as you get past that hurdle and make sure I don’t hear Lin Yueyao’s voice, you can keep deceiving me.”
"I never expected you'd have the chance to hear her play the piano." The fake Lin Yueyao narrowed her eyes resentfully, but then said, "So what if you know I'm fake? You already knew I had ulterior motives for approaching you, so what does it matter whether I'm Lin Yueyao or not?"
“Of course it’s very relevant. The fact that you’re not Lin Yueyao has given me a lot to think about. For example, why did you use the reason that Brother Yibai’s death was suspicious to approach me? If you didn’t want me to investigate further, why did you tell me this in the first place?”
"Because only in this way will you tell me what you know. Tell me everything proactively and without reservation."
“That’s true. And I can only believe you if you tell me these things using Lin Yueyao’s identity. And the fact that you impersonated her makes me think that you must have been monitoring her at the same time. In fact, you must have thought she was more dangerous than me from the beginning.”
“A woman who has lost her beloved is indeed more troublesome than a blind woman who is unrelated to her.” Fake Lin Yueyao sneered: “Now it seems that my initial judgment was wrong.”
Ju Mu'er moved closer to the wall and then said, "Lin Yueyao's disappearance must have panicked you a bit, right? She's gone, out of your control. You can't find her, so you decided to play along and leave Xichun Hall to keep an eye on me. You said that by disguising yourself, no one would recognize you as Lin Yueyao, and you told me to call you Xiao Lan, because you live in an ordinary place and can't always wear a veil. You're not actually worried about people seeing your face because you're not Lin Yueyao at all, so no one will arrest you. What you should be worried about is being exposed as not being her. If you're not her, then who are you? Everyone has an identity, and you're no exception. Once your identity is exposed, the person behind you will be easily found, won't they?"
"Keep showing off your little tricks, it'll only make me want to kill you more." The fake Lin Yueyao took two steps closer to Ju Mu'er.
"You'll regret it if you don't let me finish." Although Ju Mu'er still looked scared, she said loudly, "I know where Lin Yueyao is."
"Where?" the fake Lin Yueyao demanded.
"In a safe place."
The fake Lin Yueyao remained silent, so Ju Mu'er continued, "I'm not lying to you. If you kill me, you'll never find her again."
"Hmph, you think you can survive like this?"
"You must know how important Lin Yueyao is. She is deeply in love with Brother Yibai, and you, having been by her side, must be aware of her feelings. She has escaped and is now safe, but if I die, she will know that you were behind everything. She can foresee her fate and will not let it go. You know her well, and she must know you too. If you don't kill me, I can take you to her, and we can discuss a way to settle this matter and stop pursuing it. What do you say?"
Do you take me for a fool?
“Of course you’re not stupid, but I don’t want to die either. You’re right, Shi Boyin and Hua Yibai have nothing to do with me, and Second Master was angry that I was meddling in other people’s business, which is why this happened. Now I want to turn things around. I was too naive before, but now that life and death are at stake, I can naturally see the situation clearly.”
I don't believe a single word you say.
Ju Mu'er pursed her lips and suddenly said, "You work as a nanny in Xichun Hall, so you must be very knowledgeable."
The fake Lin Yueyao opened her eyes slightly, startled.
“You’re not the head maid in the main hall, so you don’t have to show your face in public, but you’re in charge of the young ladies in each room, so you can monitor Lin Yueyao’s every move. Isn’t that right?” Ju Mu’er heard her heart pounding wildly; she had no more bargaining chips to use to delay.
The fake Lin Yueyao didn't speak, and Ju Mu'er knew she had guessed correctly.
“If no one had told me, I wouldn’t have known any of this,” Ju Mu’er continued to fabricate.
"Is it Lin Yueyao?"