Chapter 3: How Sharp Her Eyes Are!

Qiao Beichen decided he wasn't giving this gold medal away after all.

Qiao Niannian's eyes were so sharp!

She was especially "allergic" to shiny things.

She spotted the gold medal in Qiao Beichen's hand at first glance.

【What is it? What is it? What's flashing in my eyes! Let me take a closer look... Oh, it turns out to be the big gold medal my incredibly handsome Third Brother gave me!】

The little girl's eyes were shining. Qiao Beichen teased her.

"I originally wanted to give a gold medal to my little sister, but on second thought, that's too tacky. Forget it, not giving it."

As Qiao Beichen spoke, he waved the big gold medal in front of Qiao Niannian.

Qiao Niannian locked her gaze onto Qiao Beichen, her eyeballs following the medal back and forth, her mind racing.

【Third Brother, when I was three, I went to a fortune teller. They said my birth chart lacks metal. This big gold medal suits me perfectly! Really.】

Qiao Beichen was already laughing his head off inside, but his face remained impassive, pretending he hadn't heard a thing. He spoke with feigned disgust.

"Alright! Your eyeballs are about to pop out. Here, take it, take it."

"You have to wear it close to your body, you hear?"

Qiao Niannian took the medal, not caring what Qiao Beichen said, nodding vigorously.

She discreetly weighed it in her hand, her little face blooming with joy.

【This big gold medal weighs at least half a catty. I'm rich, I'm rich.】

She opened her mouth, intending to leave a bite mark on it.

Qiao Beichen was quick-eyed and fast-handed, covering Qiao Niannian's mouth.

"Little Ancestor, this has been consecrated. You can't bite it."

Qiao Niannian raised an eyebrow, examined the medal carefully for a moment, and reached a conclusion.

【My silly Third Brother, you've been scammed. This is just a piece of ordinary gold, just a nicer shape. There's absolutely no spell on it.】

【They probably saw you're stupid, rich, and easy to fool.】

Qiao Beichen refused to believe it.

That Master was a Daoist from the Qingyang Temple. How could he scam him? Little sister doesn't know anything; her thoughts can't be trusted.

"Alright, you rest well. Third Brother has business to attend to."

Qiao Niannian watched Qiao Beichen leave and shook her head helplessly.

【Third Brother is such a bright, upright young man. No wonder even the maids want to seduce him. But Third Brother is only thirteen, right! So young, who knows if he's even fully grown...】

Qiao Beichen's steady steps suddenly stumbled.

Fortunately, he reacted fast and grabbed the door frame.

This girl, what on earth is in her head? He was long past the age of a mere child. He had grown up.

Qiao Beichen suddenly felt that being able to hear his little sister's inner thoughts might not be a good thing.

He forcibly suppressed the urge to go back and give her a beating, his face dark as he left.

Madam Huo drank a bowl of soup her son brought back and casually told a maid to send more silver to Qiao Beichen later, so the brat wouldn't go gambling again.

Qiao Beichen came out, greeted Madam Huo, and left with a sullen face.

Madam Huo was puzzled: "He was fine when he went in to see his sister just now. Why is he angry coming out?"

The maids all shook their heads.

Madam Huo sighed.

Her son's heart was a needle at the bottom of the sea—unfathomable.

Qiao Beichen left Qiao Niannian's room with a dark face, but his ears were burning red.

Not watching where he was going, he crashed full tilt into a maid.

Qiao Beichen subconsciously pushed her away. The maid fell straight to the ground.

By the time Qiao Beichen came to his senses, he realized it was his mother's personal maid. His expression softened considerably.

"Are you alright!"

Chunmei tried moving her legs and immediately frowned in pain: "Third Young Master, Chunmei's foot hurts terribly. Could you help me up?"

Qiao Beichen was just about to help her when he remembered his little sister's words about a maid trying to seduce him.

Qiao Beichen looked Chunmei over carefully and actually spotted something off. Chunmei's falling posture was a bit strange.

When ordinary people fall, they just crash to the ground with zero grace.

Chunmei was different. Her movements as she fell looked like slow motion. She wasn't the least bit disheveled on the ground; instead, she displayed all her body's curves.

As Chunmei half-rose, she accidentally stepped on her own hem, pulling her collar open. From Qiao Beichen's angle, he happened to see a patch of snow-white skin on her shoulder.

Qiao Beichen's face darkened. There weren't so many "accidents" in the world that weren't intentional.

He simply called over a maid trimming flowers not far away.

"You, come here. Help her up."

Finished, he walked around Chunmei and left.

The flower-trimming maid looked only eight or nine. She had just been hiding in the bushes; Chunmei hadn't seen her.

The little maid didn't think much of it. She reached out to help Chunmei up but was disdainfully avoided.

"Filthy. Get lost. I can get up myself."

Having said that, she climbed up on her own, looking perfectly fine.

Chunmei smoothed her clothes, a flash of coldness in her eyes. This Third Young Master really didn't know how to cherish the fairer sex. A beauty like her fell down, and he didn't even offer a hand.

Chunmei was displeased. Seeing the rough-work maid standing there dumbly, she immediately used her as a punching bag.

"What are you staring at? Today's events are not to leave this room. Otherwise, I'll report you to Nanny Liu, say you're slacking off, and you'll get the paddle."

The little maid was a rough-work servant. She didn't dare talk back to a second-rank maid like Chunmei and immediately went back to work.

Chunmei watched the dull little maid leave, rolled her eyes, and walked off.

The little maid had just returned when she saw Third Young Master standing behind a rockery. She jumped in fright and hurriedly lowered her head to bow.

"Th-Third... Third Young Master!"

Qiao Beichen's eyes followed Chunmei's departing figure, his gaze icy: "Today's events are not to be spoken of."

The maid hastily agreed. She waited a moment, saw no reaction, and looked up again—Qiao Beichen's figure was already gone.

The maid let out a breath of relief. Third Young Master's expression just now was truly terrifying.

She shouldn't have heard anything she shouldn't have, right?

She wouldn't be silenced, would she?

The maid had heard Nanny Liu tell many harem intrigue stories. It seemed the more you knew, the more dangerous it was.

What to do?

It seemed she knew a bit too much!

Qiao Niannian cultivated in the room for an hour and slowly exhaled.

She formed a hand seal; a wisp of spiritual energy flickered at her fingertip.

This bit of spiritual energy—lifting a blanket would be a struggle, let alone destroying the wooden box on the house beam from a distance.

【I'm done for. Looks like I really am going to die young.】

Madam Huo sat beside her daughter. Hearing this sudden remark, she was speechless.

Just then, Shiliu returned with a cloak.

Madam Huo immediately sat up straight.

After Shiliu entered, Madam Huo ordered the two second-rank maids in the room to guard the door. The two maids turned and left at once, thoughtfully closing the door behind them.

Once Shiliu and the others were gone, she stepped forward and knelt with a thud: "Madam, the things in the wooden box... they're under the cloak. It... it..."

Madam Huo flung open the cloak, revealing a blood-stained straw doll underneath.

The doll was pierced all over with silver needles, its expression ferocious and eerie. It wore a miniature dragon robe, now pierced full of holes.

Madam Huo turned the doll over with trembling hands. On the back, the Emperor's birth characters were written in fresh blood.

Madam Huo's hand shook; the doll nearly fell. Her lips trembled.

"This... this is a forbidden art..."

Shiliu had been terrified when she saw this thing too.

If this were discovered, the Marquis Manor would be finished.

"Madam, there was also a talisman pasted on the box. I've seen that talisman before. It's a Blood Curse from the Witchcraft Gu arts—extremely yin, cold, and vicious. On my own initiative, I swapped the talisman for the Peace Talisman you requested for Miss."

Madam Huo nodded: "You did well."

"The person behind this laid a truly meticulous trap. Once this object was discovered, I truly would have had no defense even with a hundred mouths."

Not only was there a Blood Curse, a dragon-robed doll, and the Emperor's birth characters, but even the handwriting on the doll matched hers exactly.

Even she herself couldn't tell if she had written it.

If her daughter hadn't warned her, two days from now, she might really have been preparing for her own funeral.

Lying on the bed, Qiao Niannian stretched her neck as far as it would go, finally seeing clearly what Shiliu held.

【Ah! Isn't this the Witchcraft Gu meant to harm the Emperor, hidden on the beam in Mother's room?】

【Mother actually found it? My god, so lucky. I don't have to force myself anymore.】

Coming to her senses, Qiao Niannian grew anxious again.

【Mother, hurry up and burn it!】

From childhood TV dramas, Qiao Niannian had learned a truth: you must act fast. Delaying not only wastes time but invites twists—especially since her family were all villain-types.

Reminded by her daughter, Madam Huo immediately had Shiliu bring a fire basin. She watched the doll burn to a crisp before letting out a breath of relief.

【Mother, the cloak! There's still blood on the cloak! Clean it up quick, Father will be here soon.】

(End of Chapter)