Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
At this moment, Ning Shuqian was so frustrated that she was on the verge of killing someone. Ever since the bodyguards whom the mysterious man had assigned to stay by her side disappeared for no reason, she had been trying to contact the mysterious man but to no avail.
She again tried to call the familiar number, only to realize that she could not reach him at all. Gritting her teeth in anger, she threw her mobile phone onto the couch and muttered under her breath, “What the heck is going on? I can’t reach him again.”
He was the one who initiated collaboration and yet, he stopped contacting me out of nowhere. What does he mean? Is he seriously afraid of the power that Wen Xinya has to support her?
At the thought of it, Ning Shuqian could not help but recall the multiple times that she was assassinated, and how her wounds opened up again. Back then, she broke out into cold sweat from head to toe and was in terrible pain. She then felt feeble and weak.
She immediately grew flustered at the thought of it. Wen Xinya is scheming and vicious and even has a mysterious yet powerful backer. There’s no way I can deal with her at all. If that man really stops cooperating with me, it’s only a matter of time before Wen Xinya kills me.
Ning Shuqian gripped her mobile phone tightly with increasing anxiety. She continuously tried to call the number which she had recognized.
“Hello, the number you’re trying to dial cannot be reached at the moment.”
The automated, robotic voice rang in Ning Shuqian’s ears, making her heart sink to rock bottom. She felt as if she was being dipped in cold water.
She could not help but shiver before attempting to call them again.
“Hello, the number that you have called is currently unavailable!”
The simple automated message sent Ning Shuqian into an emotional turmoil, and her only hope had turned into dust.
Ning Shuqian’s eyes widened in shock and she turned as pale as a sheet. She yelled at the top of her lungs, “Unavailable? How could it be unavailable!?! I must have dialed the wrong number.”
In a moment of panic, she tried to dial the number again. This time, she tallied the number before dialing it.
However, she still received an automated response.
She tightened her grip on the mobile phone to the extent that her hand began to hurt. She shrieked. “No! No! This is not real!”
Her body stiffened before turning into jelly. She collapsed onto the couch and cupped her face with her hands.
At this point, things between her and Wen Xinya had already reached a point of no return. Only one of them could survive, and she had lost her greatest backer. How am I supposed to defeat Wen Xinya? What do I do now? What do I do?
Ning Shuqian rubbed her hands against her face, overwhelmed with uneasiness and a mix of emotions.
“What do I do? What do I do? What do I do…” Ning Shuqian murmured repeatedly like a broken record.
At this moment, her mobile phone rang all of a sudden. The piercing noise of her ringtone gave her a great shock and caused her to snap out of her train of thought. Her eyes lit up and she grabbed her mobile phone without even looking at the caller display. She yelled, “I tried to call you so many times before but I haven’t been able to reach you! What is going on with you? You’re the one who asked to cooperate and yet…”
Ning Shuqian paused in her speech all of a sudden, and she finally realized that it was not the mysterious man who had called her, but rather a friend of hers. “Mrs. Li, I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize that you were the one who called me. By the way… why did you call me?”
Mrs. Li answered, “Oh, I see. That gave me a great shock. I’m calling you because I’d like to ask you out tomorrow. Are you free? I don’t know what’s going on with me lately. I’m out of luck and nothing has been going my way. So, I’ve decided to consult the Fengshui master.”
Ning Shuqian was instantly reminded of the psychic master whom Mrs. Li had brought her to meet previously. He was rather capable and Mrs. Li respected him greatly. She hurriedly asked, “Mrs. Li, is that master really as powerful as you made him out to be?”
“Of course he is. If not, I wouldn’t have bothered to give him a reward of a hundred-odd yuan. I’m sure you know how infertile my daughter-in-law used to be. I brought her to consult with that master and he performed a ritual for her, after which she got pregnant! It’s miraculous, isn’t it? Lots of people in our circle believe in him.”
“Mrs. Li, I’m so sorry but I have something on tomorrow and can’t accompany you. You see…” Ning Shuqian’s heart skipped a beat and she was extremely ill at ease. However, she suddenly saw a glimmer of hope and felt much more energized.
“It’s alright, I’ll go myself tomorrow then!”
After ending the call, Ning Shuqian hurriedly zoomed into her room and rummaged through her closet.
She then fumbled around and found a puppet which was pale gray in color and appeared a little deformed. It also had a strange expression which was hair-raising. A set of birth characters were written in black and red on the doll. It looked just like dried blood and was extremely terrifying.
Ning Shuqian grabbed the doll immediately. However, she felt a sudden pain in her palm which felt like a prick. “Ah!” She shrieked and let go immediately, only to see a drop of blood on her hand. She hurriedly placed her hand against her mouth and sucked the blood away. The wound soon stopped bleeding.
She picked up the doll, only to discover that there was a thin needle stuck on the back of the doll. The shiny needle glistened under the light and it was stained with her blood. It was a truly terrifying sight.
Ning Shuqian slipped into a trance while holding the doll. She recalled the master saying to her, “Madam Ning, you seem to be out of sorts and you’re bound to face an unlucky period. Your forehead is dull and you’re going to meet with a bloodshed!”
When she heard those words, she initially thought that he was just another swindler and hence, did not take his words to heart. After all, the media had reported about her matters and everyone knew that she was facing bad luck lately. Hence, she only believed in the puppet in a perfunctory manner. She completely forgot about it after she returned home.
However, it suddenly dawned upon her that everything he said seemed to be true. She was first stabbed by Shen Mengting and then assassinated by hitmen sent by Wen Xinya.
She again recalled Mrs. Li’s words and hence, believed in him.
Ning Shuqian felt as if she had seen a glimmer of hope. She hurriedly left the house with the doll in hand.
