Chapter 8#

If You See SnowCh8 - Dead or Alive#

The curtain of night slowly descended, the sky completely blackening as everything within the Jiang residence shrouded in gloom. The moonlight, faint and elusive, shattered into scattered fragments that fell upon the ripples of the pond. Wilted plants in the water stood in the distance in a mass of darkness, their silhouettes appearing ferocious and threatening.

Staying at the Jiang household was dangerous. It was very likely that something was going to happen at night. Su Ruhui made a swift decision. Leaving the Jiang residence meant facing the Paradise Pavillion; staying meant facing the killer. Han Ye was at least someone he knew well, but the killer’s secret arts were cunning, capable of killing without a trace. It was hard to guard against. Su Ruhui acted decisively, choosing to leave the estate. After returning to his room to dress, Su Ruhui was about to leave when his foot suddenly stepped on something hard. Looking down, he saw an opal earring. A barely perceptible trace of blood stained the gold hook.

Such an expensive pair of earrings could only belong to Bai Caiping, but how could there be bloodstains on them?

Su Ruhui furrowed his brow, crouching down to examine the surroundings closely. Scattered bloodstains dotted the bed’s corners hidden beneath the mattress, the patterns of the Persian rug, and the edges of the rosewood footstool. All traces of blood were surrounding this canopy bed.

What else did the eldest young master of the Jiang family and Bai Caiping get up to last night besides going at it for three hundred rounds?

Su Ruhui bent down to peer under the bed. At this look, he found himself staring into a pair of wide-open eyes.

Bai Caiping’s face was dark and sallow, her expression filled with shock as she stared at him. Her look was so terrifying that Su Ruhui jolted in fright. After a long moment, Su Ruhui finally realized this was a corpse. Dragging the body out for inspection, he found bruises on the temple and the back of the head. Only one earring adorned the ear, and the mouth was stuffed with an ice cicada jade to preserve the corpse from rotting.

【Obtained Bai Caiping on the day of her death x1.】

Su Ruhui was stunned. Bai Caiping had already died last night—so what was the Bai Caiping he had seen today?

Su Ruhui recalled how the system had introduced the living Bai Caiping earlier that day, prefacing it with “based on her appearance.” Damn it, this dog system was playing word games with him. That living Bai Caiping was also a fake. No wonder she hadn’t recognized Jiang Quexie as an imposter either.

The Jiang residence was no longer safe; he had to leave immediately. Su Ruhui packed his belongings and directly headed out. Not a single servant was seen along the way. The vast estate lay deathly silent, without even half a breath of life. Su Ruhui sighed inwardly. Trouble really seemed to be everywhere. The Jiang household’s peculiarities were now laid bare, and escaping tonight would be difficult. After going down the stairs and into the residence hall, he saw “Bai Caiping” sitting behind a wooden screen, her silhouette cast upon the screen’s silk paper.

This thing stood in Su Ruhui’s only way out, which was a big problem. Su Ruhui bent his waist slightly, produced a dagger from his boot, and tucked it behind his back before slowly circling around the screen from behind. He caught sight of Bai Caiping’s side profile. The woman wore a gentle smile, just as she had during the day. Her face, normally graceful and lovely, now appeared somewhat stiff and eerie.

He approached step by step, but “Bai Caiping” remained motionless. He waved his hand in front of her face, yet she still showed no reaction. How weird. Su Ruhui leaned close to Bai Caiping’s face, scrutinizing her features from her delicate brows to her eyes, then down to her lips. Su Ruhui finally understood: this was a puppet. Su Ruhui drew his dagger and slit the flesh at the back of her neck. No blood flowed. He tore open the skin and flesh, revealing meteorite iron bones stained with rust underneath. Encasing the bones were layers of artificial meridians wrapped in cowhide. Inside the skull sat an array of spirit stones, forming an eight trigram star array from Su Ruhui’s original designs. This array served as the center for spiritual energy flow, enabling the puppet to mimic human behavior.

This puppet was exquisitely made, but alas, it has been in use for far too long. Its meridians had deteriorated, obstructing the flow of spiritual energy, thus causing the puppet to stop functioning.

【Information Unlocked: An old beauty puppet, part of the first batch of song and dance puppets produced during the host’s time as the leader of the Paradise Pavilion. It has since been repurposed for other uses, such as impersonating Jiang Quexie’s mother.】

Su Ruhui peeled back Bai Caiping’s skin, revealing the snowflake emblem carved into the center of her brow bone. This mark represented this puppet was crafted by Su Ruhui himself.

“That’s interesting. Didn’t the Secret Sect already seize control of my phantom puppets? Why would the Jiang family still have the puppets I made?” Su Ruhui asked.

【Indeed, the phantom puppets have fallen under the control of the Secret Sect. Because they still haven’t unraveled the puppet core’s secret key, they are unable to craft second-grade or higher mechanical puppets. Most second-grade humanoid dual cultivation puppets on the market are counterfeit. The world widely recognizes the genius, Boss Su, as the true master craftsman of dual cultivation puppets. Only you can create the perfect intimate experience!】

Su Ruhui: “…”

I’d rather not have such a reputation.

Third-grade and fourth-grade puppets can only carry out simple commands from their masters. Second-grade puppets can mimic human speech, while first-grade puppets can mimic human thought. The supposed super-first-grade humanoid puppets are indistinguishable from living humans and can even surpass them in power. Although puppets can mimic humans, they are not human. They obey their masters’ commands, viewing themselves as tools of their masters. For a time, Su Ruhui had become obsessed with creating puppets, determined to build one with true intelligence. Of course, he did not succeed. Yet somehow, word of this got out, and rumors began to spread. Though Su Ruhui himself wasn’t confident, the world placed unwavering faith in him, convinced he had created a puppet surpassing the first grade.

Forget it. What’s done is done. Anyway, these rotten affairs have nothing to do with him anymore.

Su Ruhui stepped out the door and turned to find a dark shadow standing at the end of the wooden corridor. He halted in his footsteps as the figure slowly approached him. A pale face emerged from the shadows. He saw a familiar face— Jiang Xueya. With a smile, her delicate brows arched like a crescent moon as she called out: “Didi, you’re finally back.”

When Su Ruhui was imprisoned in Kunlun, Jiang Xueya had visited him several times. The situation was not good back then. Their conversations were monitored, and they could barely say much during each meeting. Later, he fell gravely ill, drifting in and out of consciousness. During his final meeting with Jiang Xueya, he had forced himself to speak despite his weakened state: “Shijie, I’m leaving Zhou Xiaosu to you. That husband of hers has wicked intentions, I can’t rest easy about it.”

Jiang Xueya had pressed his shoulders firmly, her voice heavy with sorrow: “Rest assured, I’ll take care of Xiaosu. If that dog of a man dares to mistreat her, I’ll lead my iron cavalry to flatten Youzhou. You needn’t worry. Hurry up and die from illness.”

Ai, Su Ruhui sighed. This brat really doesn’t know how to speak properly.

Su Ruhui was still worried about her and continued: “You and Sang Chiyu…”

Jiang Xueya’s expression grew even more pained, “It’s all my fault for not discovering that sooner.”

“Discovering what?” Su Ruhui was puzzled.

“Of course, it is the matter that both of you have taken a liking to me,” Jiang Xueya sighed deeply. “It’s my fault for causing you two brothers to have a falling out.”

He likes her? What the hell? Su Ruhui was in shock, uttering a: “No…”

Jiang Xueya cut him off, “No need to say more, I know it all. Though I have no romantic feelings for neither you nor Sang Chiyu, considering our long friendship, I’ll allow both of you to stay at my estate. Just make sure you get along well with my male confidants. Unfortunately, you… sigh, your health isn’t the best. I don’t know if you’ll even make it to that day.”

Su Ruhui struggled to speak: “You listen to me…”

“No need to explain.” Jiang Xueya pressed him down.

“I must explain…”

Jiang Xueya sighed helplessly, “Alright, if you have anything else to say, just spit it out. But spare me the heartfelt confessions. Sorry, but after knowing each other for so many years, it just feels a bit awkward.”

“I…”

Su Ruhui was about to speak when the poison suddenly flared. His vision went black, and he collapsed unconscious. Thus, his explanation remained forever unspoken even till death. But Heaven took pity on him, granting him a rebirth. This time, he had to clearly explain. He did not like Jiang Xueya! It was all a misunderstanding, a colossal misunderstanding!

But now he was Jiang Quexie, how could he tell Jiang Xueya that Su Ruhui did not like her? His gaze shifted to Jiang Xueya’s face. She looked at him with a beaming smile, candlelight gathering at her brows, her eyes seeming to radiate an alluring brilliance.

That’s not right.

Su Ruhui suddenly realized that although he had clearly seen Jiang Xueya, the system hadn’t issued a task completion notice. The “Find Jiang Xueya” mission remained unfinished. This person wasn’t Jiang Xueya at all.

【A poor imitation. If the host’s acting could win a Golden Globe Award, hers deserves nothing but a Golden Broom Award.】

Though he had no idea what the system meant by Golden Globe Award and Golden Broom Award, Su Ruhui pretty much knew this person was a fake. Jiang Xueya had learned martial arts under her master since childhood. She excelled in swordsmanship and combat techniques and had skills that even Sang Chiyu could not beat. The fact that she too could be ambushed and replaced sent shockwaves through Su Ruhui’s mind. Yet his expression remained calm and composed as he bowed respectfully, saying: “Quexie greets A-zi (older sister).”

“Jiang Xueya” nodded, “Let’s go, I’ll take you to see father.”

A heavy weight pressed down on Su Ruhui’s heart, his fingers tightening slightly. Where was the real Jiang Xueya? Was she still alive? “Find Jiang Xueya”— were they looking for a living person, or a corpse? A layer of silent shadow settled over Su Ruhui’s eyes. Was that so-called “father” still Jiang Huaicang?

What on earth happened to the Jiang family?

Su Ruhui raised his head, his expression shifting to one of bashfulness in an instant, “I must trouble A-zi to wait a moment, I need to use the restroom.”

“Ok, I’ll wait for you.” “Jiang Xueya” smiled with a kindly expression.

This was indeed “a poor imitation”, Su Ruhui thought to himself. Jiang Xueya would never smile like that.

He entered the restroom, closed the door, and turned to face the waste bucket. Just as he was about to pull out his communication compass, his gaze inadvertently fell upon the bucket at his feet. This filthy thing hadn’t been cleaned in who knows how long, its interior still bearing the remnants of however many people’s excretions. With just that one glace, Su Ruhui’s hand which had been reaching for the compass froze. Through the yellowish golden liquid, he saw Jiang Xueya’s face slowly emerge above the wooden door of the restroom. Her round eyes stared intently at his back, leaving Su Ruhui with a complex mix of emotions.

Did I slip up somewhere? Does she suspect me? Su Ruhui’s heart tightened.

He looked at the golden liquid again. “Jiang Xueya” looked thoroughly engrossed, showing no sign of leaving. That peeping posture felt eerily familiar. She must have been the one spying from the bedroom window earlier.

Its actions seemed less like suspicion and more like interest. Looks like this strange person has a habit of peeping.

However, Su Ruhui might start being suspected if he didn’t actually use the restroom.

Su Ruhui gritted his teeth, undid his belt, and pulled down his pants. He felt the tension ease his scalp as the burning gaze on his back seemed to disappear. He turned his head. The figure was already gone. He cautiously pressed close to and peered out from the cracks of the doors. She stood waiting at the end of the path, not coming any closer.

He crouched down and hurriedly pulled out his communication compass.

The spiritual power of the compass flowed through, and a seal of blue light appeared on its surface. He heard Sang Chiyu’s voice: “What is the matter?”

“Are you at home?” Su Ruhui asked.

“Mn.”

“The divorce papers you wrote me, what was the last sentence on it?”

The other side was silent, responding after a while: “May my husband be healthy and strong, living for a thousand years.”

It was the real Sang Chiyu. Su Ruhui relaxed, saying: “I’ll give these words back to you. Though I don’t know who you feel guilty towards or what you’re guilty of, I do know that being in your half dead state every day is useless. Recover your health. Only then will you be able to make amends with whoever you’ve wronged.” Su Ruhui’s words flew, “There are a few more rougamo in the kitchen. Make do with those for dinner. I’ll come back tomorrow morning and make you breakfast.”

After speaking, Su Ruhui closed the compass. Sang Chiyu was like a clay Buddha crossing a river, and could barely protect himself. Telling him about the dangers here would only cause unnecessary trouble, so he kept silent about the situation at the Jiang residence. Jiang Xueya must be found. He had to see her, dead or alive. Yet with the Jiang family’s situation being unclear and extremely dangerous, it was best to take his time to make a solid decision. Of all the Thirty-Six Stratagems, fleeing was the wisest course.

Su Ruhui pulled up his pants, took a deep breath, and pushed open the door.

The author has something to say:

This time, the role of the brains is the shou, Su ge. Hehe. Probably the smartest shou out of all four novels I’ve written (at the time).

Xiahou Lian: Am I stupid?

Qi Yin: Then should I leave?

Baili Jueming: If I burn everyone smarter than me, then I’ll be the smartest.

TL corner:  Oasf8D

Wanted to share a song I’ve been obsessed with recently, called《化雪》(Melting Snow) by 陈卓璇 (Chen Zhuoxuan) & 刘宇 (Liu Yu). Here’s a sneak peak at a lyric snippet I briefly TLed, & their gorgeous gorgeous performance stage. Please give it a listen 🥺:

If only I could disguise myself as plum blossoms and land in your arm’s embrace,

You laugh at my plain white clothing, yet I come only for you.

For you, I’ll bring a snowfall, an instant of brilliant moonlight, a lifetime of separation, and several lifetimes of obsession,

I melt at your fingertips ~

  2bjBno