novelraw Chapter 585 - 569 Life Through Death (5)
Chapter 585 - 569 Life Through Death (5)
Chapter 585: 569 Life Through Death (5) What she said was completely accurate; these have been her recent symptoms.
Tian Sangsang added, "Regular agarwood incense sticks are meant to nourish the body and mind. Only poor-quality ones would cause discomfort to the body. But the incense you have isn’t poor-quality."
Li Qiong’er asked in astonishment, "So someone tampered with this incense?"
Tian Sangsang neither confirmed nor denied, "I can’t be sure. You’d better consult professionals at the hospital."
Li Qiong’er thought for a moment and said, "Three agarwood incense sticks from your shop—sell them to me."
Tian Sangsang followed Li Qiong’er’s instructions, taking three agarwood sticks, placing them into a slender gray tube, and bagging them. Handing them to Li Qiong’er, she said indifferently, "Thirty yuan."
The price was rather steep, but Li Qiong’er had things on her mind and didn’t bother to argue.
She paid and suddenly asked, "The scent of your incense should be the same as the one I gave you, right?"
Tian Sangsang nodded slightly.
Li Qiong’er finally felt relieved.
The transaction was swift and straightforward, free of any complications.
Watching Li Qiong’er’s departing figure, Tian Sangsang briefly felt a flicker of curiosity, but it quickly faded. She didn’t wish to know and didn’t care. What Tian Sangsang didn’t realize was, this was the last time she would ever see Li Qiong’er.
**
Li Qiong’er was deeply preoccupied as she returned home. Sitting on her bed, she hesitated for a long time before finally pulling three incense sticks from the drawer and replacing them with the identical ones she had just purchased.
That night, when Lu Chi returned, Li Qiong’er personally lit the incense before bed.
With the lights turned off, the room plunged into pitch-blackness. The couple lay separately in bed—Li Qiong’er flat on her back, while Lu Chi faced away from her, lying on his side. She shut her eyes, pretending to sleep, so tense she scarcely dared to move.
It was very quiet. Listening to Lu Chi’s breathing, Li Qiong’er couldn’t be sure how long she had feigned sleep—long enough to almost drift off—but Lu Chi remained still.
Was she just being paranoid? Li Qiong’er wondered.
With one lower leg already numb, Li Qiong’er considered shifting slightly when she suddenly felt a chill. Half the blanket had been lifted; Lu Chi was getting up.
He seemed accustomed to this, not even glancing at Li Qiong’er as he opened the door and walked out.
Li Qiong’er’s heart clenched. She listened intently to the sounds, discerning from his footsteps that he was descending the stairs, not going up. Their bedroom was on the second floor—why would Lu Chi go downstairs so late at night? Was he going for water, or did he plan to leave the house?
She heard a door open, followed by a heavy sound as it closed again—not the kind of noise their front door made.
Li Qiong’er knew her house inside and out. With the maid absent, the first floor had only the kitchen and a storage room. Lu Chi had gone into the storage room.
Li Qiong’er focused her attention, waiting. After about half an hour with no sign of Lu Chi returning upstairs, her suspicions grew stronger. Carefully, she lifted her blanket, slipped on her slippers, and quietly made her way downstairs.
The moonlight cast a soft glow in the living room, enveloping it in silence. Li Qiong’er held her breath, ensuring she made no sound, though each step down the stairs filled her with dread.
She checked the kitchen first, finding no trace of Lu Chi, which confirmed he was indeed in the storage room. Gradually, she approached the storage room door, fixing her gaze on it.
When her hand touched the doorknob, she abruptly stopped.
If she opened the door now, she would almost certainly alert Lu Chi. And if he questioned her, how could she respond? Perhaps it was better to act as though she knew nothing, to observe Lu Chi and gauge his reaction.
The door opened.
A heavy sensation of blackness and chill rushed over her, making Li Qiong’er feel an eerie unease. She turned on the light, her chest suddenly tight as if struck by a heavy blow, and involuntarily shivered.
Lu Chi wasn’t there!
A coldness rose from her feet. Li Qiong’er wrapped her arms tightly around herself. Despite the storage room’s emptiness, there was no hiding place inside.
Suddenly, she heard a noise.
The sound was faint.
Li Qiong’er didn’t dare breathe heavily, holding her breath once more.
It was an ambiguous sound, a blend of male and female voices intertwined.
To hear such sounds in the middle of the night terrified Li Qiong’er—truly, deeply terrified her.
In the silence, her senses felt heightened, fully concentrated in her ears. She pinpointed the sound’s direction, then turned pale, her face frozen in horror as she stared at the ground.
The sound came from below!
Li Qiong’er couldn’t suppress her trembling. She carefully turned off the light and closed the door, then retreated upstairs in a quivering state. Crawling into bed, she wrapped herself in her blanket, shut her eyes, and replayed Lu Chi’s recent peculiar behaviors in her mind.
Lu Chi’s oddity wasn’t the truly frightening part—it was that he was hiding something from her. In the past, Lu Chi had never concealed anything from her. But ever since he returned from East Sea, he had become a different person, doing things without consulting her, leaving her unable to read him.
She recalled Tian Sangsang’s words, how Yao’er had screamed Lu Chi’s name before her death.
Her thoughts spiraled out of control, lasting longer than she could track, until a sudden "click" disturbed her. The sound of the door opening sharply intruded upon her reverie. Someone entered the room and seemed to linger by the bedside, staring down at her before crawling back into bed.
The air was abruptly filled with the unmistakable scent of post-coital intimacy, thick and oppressive. This scent was one Li Qiong’er hadn’t experienced in a long time.
The sounds from below, combined with the scent now emanating from Lu Chi, made Li Qiong’er realize the truth. Beneath the floor, there had been Lu Chi—and a woman.
Lu Chi was hiding a woman.
There was no doubt about it: Li Qiong’er couldn’t sleep that night.
By morning, even with makeup on, her exhaustion and the dark circles under her eyes couldn’t be concealed.
During lunch, Lu Chi noticed her and gave a gentle smile, "Qiong’er, didn’t sleep well last night?"
Thud!
Li Qiong’er was gripped with fear. Once, she had been enchanted by Lu Chi’s tender smile; now she found it utterly unnerving.
She forced herself to eat a bite, chewed, swallowed, and replied, "No. I’ve just been feeling off lately... My body seems tired for some reason."
"Then go see a doctor," Lu Chi said, his gaze soft yet probing.
"Sleeping more should do the trick, no need for the hospital." Li Qiong’er’s unease deepened.
Lu Chi responded, "You’ve been sleeping plenty. But—sleeping more wouldn’t hurt."
Li Qiong’er nodded absently, murmuring, "Do you have something you’re hiding from me?"
"Lu Chi, we’re husband and wife. Now that Dad’s been hurt by someone and it’s just us here in the house—if there’s anything, tell me. I can help you like before."
"Sometimes it’s better not to know too much," Lu Chi replied, his smile fading as he lowered his head to eat. "If you find yourself idle, go spend more time with Tian Sangsang. I suspect Ye Jiang might know something—perhaps Tian Sangsang has insights too."
Li Qiong’er was shocked. What did that mean?
**
After finishing his meal, Lu Chi left for his military duties, leaving just Li Qiong’er and the maid at home.
Consumed with doubts, Li Qiong’er resolved to uncover what Lu Chi was up to.
She went to the storage room and locked the door behind her. Her heart was pounding heavily as she examined the contents, her gaze moving in every direction. Amid her pacing, a sudden realization struck—Lu Chi had once mentioned their house had a basement. This basement was located behind a wall, concealed by the cabinets in the storage room.
The basement had seemed so unimportant that she had nearly forgotten about it.