The War Bride

25 | A Reminder

After the trip to the Orphan Village, Luwen found her maid in her chamber, waiting to serve her.

With her hands folded and lips pressed in a firm line, the stony-faced stare the latter gave was foreboding. Her shoulders were stiff with tension, and Luwen had a subtle feeling the matriarch had sent a letter.

Her hunch was soon confirmed when her maid revealed a small rolled parchment from her sleeve, along with a small vial filled with a dark greenish liquid.

Luwen took them warily, her heart palpitating nervously as she unrolled it slowly to read the message. It is likely that the maid sent reports about everything she had seen and learned about Luwen's relationship with the lord to the matriarch. By now, she should have known about her success.

"Well done. You did a wonderful job earning his trust."

"Your next task is to end his life."

Luwen felt her blood run cold, her breath quickening, her eyes widened slightly. She lifted the vial to her eyes and watched as the poisonous liquid swirl menacingly. It was a product concocted by the matriarch.

Had it already been two months since her arrival in the Dai residence?

She realized, with horror, that there were only four months left to fulfill the matriarch's wish. The thought of contaminating Dai Yichen's food or drinks with poison was gut-wrenching. Torturous. How could she poison the man who had slowly begun opening to her and treating her with care? How could she kill him after how he brought her to places that gave her the happiness she didn't deserve?

She had already failed her mission a long time ago.

However, she couldn't refute the matriarch's orders, who held hers and her friend's lives in her hands. Luwen needed to plan her actions carefully, including concealing her true feelings. She couldn't risk raising any suspicion that her loyalty to the matriarch had completely withered, especially not under her maid's intense scrutiny at this moment.

Reeling in her emotions, she kept her expression neutral and walked to the closest oil lamp on her table. She lit the letter on fire, watching how it burned into a dust of ashes. It was a protocol to destroy all her correspondence with the matriarch after reading their contents to avoid others from discovering their schemes, especially the lord.

However, she couldn't seem to muster her courage or form words to reply to the matriarch.

She needed to find a way out of this predicament.

There must be something she could use to compromise with the matriarch and not kill Dai Yichen instead.

Taking a deep breath, she regained her composure and leveled her eyes on the mute maid, knowing she could read her lips expertly. "How should I administer the poison to him?"

The latter grabbed a sheet of paper and an ink brush to write her response. "Inject a drop of the poison each time into his meals or drinks. The poison works slowly and causes internal damage to his organs."

It went without saying the matriarch enjoyed killing off her enemies furtively. "It's still early," Luwen pointed out. "I've just earned the lord's trust. I require time to arrange a solid plan."

"Time is scarce, particularly as the lord is set to travel once again."

"He's leaving again? Where?"

"There is an invitation to a birthday banquet held by the Yue clan in two weeks' time. You should beg him to bring you along with him."

Luwen nodded, barely keeping up her act when her heart was sinking with dread. "What happens after I succeed?" she asked. "When my soul returns, what will become of this body?"