Chapter 3: She's here, she's coming with rat poison
Jiang Yunxi was in the middle of asking the system who had killed the original owner when a woman’s voice suddenly rang out.
At the same time, the system shrieked, 【Host, it’s her.】
Her? What did it mean, “her”?
Oh. It was talking about the pair of adulterers who had killed the original owner.
But did it mean the woman who had spoken, or the Old Madam she had mentioned?
The Old Madam... Jiang Yunxi drew in a sharp breath. Wasn’t that the original owner’s grandmother?
The woman who had committed adultery and killed the original owner couldn’t be the Old Madam—the original owner’s own grandmother, could it?
If it really was the Old Madam, how was she supposed to avenge the original owner?
Destroying her own clan outright?
Would she be struck by lightning for that?
Just as Jiang Yunxi was growing increasingly uneasy, the system spoke again.
【The nanny who just spoke is the woman from that adulterous pair. Her name is Nanny Kong, an old servant from your grandmother’s quarters.
As for the man, he’s her lover—the steward in charge of the stables in the outer residence.】
Good. There was no need to worry anymore. It wasn’t the Old Madam.
【Steward Ma was the one who knocked the original owner unconscious with a club. Nanny Kong then threw her into the lake.】
Excellent. She had found the culprits. Nanny Kong and Steward Ma, was it? Just wait until this young lady recovered. She would make sure the two of them paid with their lives for the original owner’s death.
The system spoke again.
【Host, there’s some juicy gossip about Nanny Kong. Do you want to hear it?】
Of course she did. This was the perfect opportunity to learn more about her enemy.
【Spill!】
【Nanny Kong was a young maid whom the Old Madam brought over from her maiden family. Later, the Old Madam arranged her marriage to a servant of the Pingyang Marquis’s Residence.
Her husband made a mistake once and was expelled from the residence.
Because Nanny Kong had pleaded with the Old Madam on his behalf, she escaped being implicated and continued serving at the Old Madam’s side.】
【Since the man had been dismissed for committing an offense, he had a blemish on his record and could never find a decent job. He survived by relying on Nanny Kong to support him.
But he was the sort of man who enjoyed living off a woman while still acting like her master. Whenever he was in a bad mood, he took it out on Nanny Kong. After suffering this way for years, the couple gradually grew estranged.】
Did Jiang Yunxi feel sorry for Nanny Sun?
At first, a little. But the moment she remembered that this woman had killed the original owner, all her sympathy vanished.
Instead, she felt that Nanny Kong deserved everything coming to her. Sometimes, only a villain could deal with another villain.
【Nanny Kong’s life was miserable, and Steward Ma happened to be acquainted with her husband. Knowing about her circumstances, he took advantage of her vulnerability and comforted her repeatedly. The two of them eventually began an affair.
And once they started, it continued for many years.】
【Oh, and Nanny Kong’s second son is actually Steward Ma’s child.
Fortunately, the boy resembles Nanny Kong, so no one else noticed anything.】
Impressive. Jiang Yunxi almost wanted to applaud them.
They had carried on an affair in a crowded and watchful marquis’s residence for so many years. They had even produced a child, yet no one had discovered them.
The original owner had really been unlucky. She hadn’t even uncovered their affair. Just because they suspected her, she had been...
【Host, this is bad!】
Jiang Yunxi’s heart jolted.
【Nanny Kong has come with murderous intent. The handkerchief hidden on her contains rat poison.】
【She’s afraid you’ll wake up and expose her affair with Steward Ma. She’s here to finish the job and silence you for good!】
Damn it! This woman was ruthless. She had actually come back to deliver a second blow!
What was wrong with people in ancient times? Did human life really mean so little to them?
Jiang Yunxi tried to call for help, only to discover that this body seemed to be beyond her control. She couldn’t even open her eyes, let alone get up and cry for help.
Sensing her struggle, the system hurriedly explained:
【Host, this body currently has pneumonia and a high fever. On top of that, your soul has only just entered it and hasn’t adapted yet, so you won’t be able to wake up for a while.】
Jiang Yunxi panicked.
【Then what do we do? Hurry up and save me!
I’m lying here completely helpless. Isn’t that just making it convenient for her to poison me?】
【You and I are in the same boat now. If one of us prospers, we both prosper; if one of us suffers, we both suffer. You can’t just stand by and watch me die.】
Although she had threatened the system earlier, saying that if it made her complete missions and pursue men, she would rather die sooner, Jiang Yunxi still didn’t want to die now that the moment had actually arrived.
After all, a bad life was still better than no life.
And besides, she would be dying at the hands of her enemy.
If she let her enemy have her way, she was afraid she wouldn’t be able to rest in peace—even the lid of her coffin might not stay shut.
【Host, I can’t do anything right now.
I can only speak inside your mind. It’s not as if I can call for help on your behalf.】
Jiang Yunxi was furious. What a useless system! She had known it couldn’t be relied on.
With such a worthless system, how was she supposed to survive in this ancient world, where she had been thrown straight into a life-or-death crisis?
【System, after I die, I’m going to file a complaint. I’ll report your entire system realm for treating human lives as worthless.
You only know how to bind yourselves to hosts. You don’t take responsibility for anything else. You’re all about killing without bothering to bury the dead.】
The system’s CPU nearly began smoking.
What should it do? Its host was about to die, and it was unlikely to complete the main system’s mission.
The system realm was certain to offend Huaxia, and it would inevitably be sent back for reprogramming as well.
The system glanced over its administrative interface. It was so familiar, yet so strange. It had to memorize every detail. After this, it might never see them again.
Suddenly, it spotted two lines of data, and its eyes lit up.
【Ding! Host successfully consumed the original owner’s gossip. Gossip Points +300.】
【Ding! Host successfully consumed Nanny Kong’s gossip. Gossip Points +100.】
Jiang Yunxi, who was preoccupied with saving her own life, barely paid attention when she heard the two notifications.
【Host, there’s a way!
I have a system shop. You can use 100 Gossip Points to unlock it, then buy an Antidote to All Poisons.
That way, even if she poisons you, you won’t have to worry.】
At that moment, the system’s voice sounded like the most beautiful, wonderful music in the world to Jiang Yunxi.
【Unlock it, unlock it! Do it now!】
【Buy it, buy it! Get it immediately!】
【All right, Host. I’ll unlock the system shop and purchase the Antidote to All Poisons right away.】
It felt as though a century had passed. In reality, less than five seconds later, the system spoke hesitantly.
【Host, the purchase failed. You don’t have enough Gossip Points.】
What a useless system!
Had it been deceiving her just now?
Didn’t it know the prices of the items in its own shop?
【How many points are we short?
Can’t you give me a discount, or let me buy it on credit?】
【Discounts and credit both require approval from the main system.】
More procedures. Always more procedures. At that moment, Jiang Yunxi hated those procedures with every fiber of her being.
【Then hurry up and get approval.】
Although she was speaking only in her mind, Jiang Yunxi felt as if she had shouted herself hoarse.
While Jiang Yunxi and the system were discussing Nanny Kong’s secrets and desperately trying to find a way to save her life, Nanny Kong had already finished speaking with the maids and matrons in Jiang Yunxi’s courtyard. She was now walking step by step toward Jiang Yunxi, who lay on the bed.
Nanny Kong’s footsteps were steady. Each step landed on the gray brick floor with a soft click-click, like someone striking Jiang Yunxi’s heart with a hammer and making her nerves draw taut.
To her ears, that sound was no different from the approach of the Grim Reaper.
She was coming. She was coming, carrying rat poison with her.
At that moment, Jiang Yunxi’s soul, which was already poorly attuned to the body, seemed ready to leave it again.
She struggled desperately to open her eyes and call for help, but her body felt as though it had been nailed to the bed. She couldn’t move a muscle, and not even the faintest sound could escape her throat.
All she could do was listen as the footsteps drew closer and closer, becoming clearer with every step, until they finally stopped beside her bed.
“Poor Fifth Miss!”
Jiang Yunxi felt someone gently stroking her face. The touch was incredibly light, yet to her it felt as heavy as a thousand jun.
That voice belonged to Nanny Kong.
Clearly, it was Nanny Kong who was touching her.
Was the next step going to be pressing a handkerchief smeared with rat poison over her face...?
“How could you have fallen into the lake so carelessly and nearly drowned yourself like this?”
“Nanny, just hearing about it makes my heart feel as though it’s being torn apart. I can only imagine how the Old Madam must feel.”
Jiang Yunxi thought, “Aaahhh... That Kong woman, you poisonous old hag! Stop putting on such a shameless act. Wasn’t it you and your lover who attacked me from behind, knocked me unconscious, and threw me into the lake, leaving me in this state?”
Outside the room, a woman staggered on her feet and nearly fell.