Qing’er watched as Chaohua drew and painted on her face, bit by bit changing the original contours, and couldn’t help but stare in amazement.

Could the Attendant perform magic?

She couldn’t help but raise her hand to touch her own face.

“Don’t touch it.” Chaohua, painting while facing the mirror, warned softly.

Qing’er hurriedly lowered her hand and looked in the mirror again.

Her face had completely changed appearance.

“You recognize this face, don’t you?” Chaohua opened a box of rouge and dabbed a bit with her fingertip.

Still in shock, Qing’er nodded blankly: “I recognize it. It’s Lianfang from the Crown Princess’s side.”

Chaohua turned around and raised her hand to stroke Qing’er’s hair: “You are Lianfang now.”

“I—” Qing’er was somewhat flustered.

She, she had become Lianfang?

How did the Attendant do this?

When Chaohua finally put down the eyebrow stone, Qing’er was even more shocked, pointing at her and stammering: “At-Attendant, how did you become, become—”

The Attendant had actually become Cuihong!

Qing’er had never in her life experienced such intense shock as today—this was truly unbelievable.

“Qing’er, come here.” Chaohua pulled Qing’er to her side and whispered instructions in her ear.

At this moment, Cuihong was dozing under the old tree with lush branches and leaves in the courtyard, melon seed shells scattered all over the ground at her feet.

After the rain cleared, the wind carried a hint of coolness. Hiding under the tree to enjoy the shade was much better than being stuffy in the low, cramped room.

In her drowsy state, it seemed someone was patting her.

Cuihong frowned. The force patting her arm grew stronger.

“Who—” Cuihong mumbled unclearly and finally opened her eyes.

Seeing who it was, she immediately jumped up and said in surprise: “Sister Lianfang?”

Lianfang pressed her index finger to her lips, gave a soft shush, then turned and walked toward the door.

Cuihong still hadn’t quite processed what was happening.

Lianfang, who was walking ahead, stopped and beckoned to her.

Cuihong suddenly understood and hurried to follow.

The courtyard gate was half-open—clearly Lianfang had quietly come in to find her.

In this place, it certainly wasn’t convenient to talk. Could it be that the Crown Princess had more instructions?

Cuihong speculated as she followed behind Lianfang, unknowingly walking further and further off the beaten path.

“Sister Lianfang, what is it exactly? There’s no one to see us here—it’s safe to speak.”

Lianfang pointed ahead without speaking.

Cuihong’s heart stirred.

Lianfang was being so mysterious—could it be that the Crown Princess herself was waiting for her, with important matters to entrust?

Thinking this, Cuihong walked past Lianfang and went ahead.

This was a remote place where fallen leaves had accumulated layer upon layer on the ground, giving off a musty smell from yesterday’s heavy rain.

Cuihong looked around: “Sister Lianfang, there’s no one else here.”

“Over here.” Lianfang, who had not spoken the entire walk, softly uttered two words.

Cuihong looked in the direction her finger pointed, and an inexplicable sense of unease welled up in her heart.

A great force came.

Cuihong stumbled and fell into the abandoned well.

The instant she lost her balance, she instinctively reached for the well’s edge, but grasped at nothing.

In that moment, she looked up desperately and saw a face appear above the well opening.

Cuihong’s eyes suddenly widened.

She now knew why she had felt that unease.

That wasn’t Lianfang’s voice!

The sound of a heavy object falling into water came. “Lianfang,” who had been gripping the well’s edge, stepped back, her entire body trembling uncontrollably.

She had pushed Cuihong down!

The Attendant had said to return immediately after doing this deed and restore her original appearance.

Right, right, she had to go back, go back quickly!

The one wearing Lianfang’s face was precisely Qing’er.

Having personally pushed a companion she had spent day and night with into the well, the terror this brought was self-evident.

She retreated several steps and turned to run.

And just as Qing’er, in Lianfang’s appearance, was luring Cuihong away from the courtyard, Chaohua, disguised as Cuihong, walked out of the room.

Compared to Qing’er’s nervousness, Chaohua was much calmer.

She walked out with light steps, and when passing by the place where Cuihong had been slacking off and dozing, she sat down on that stone bench.

She was waiting.

Waiting for news of Qing’er’s success or failure.

If successful, she would walk straight out of this gate and do what she wanted to do.

If Qing’er returned with Cuihong— Chaohua lightly touched her cheek with her fingertip.

With one “Cuihong” present, there would naturally be no need for another Cuihong.

She and Qing’er working together to make Cuihong sleep forever in this place was something they could accomplish.

It was just that doing it that way would never be as proper as the original plan.

Hurried footsteps came.

Chaohua heard them and her heart leaped with joy.

It seemed Qing’er had returned alone.

Returning alone, she would naturally be this fearful and panicked.

Sure enough, Qing’er quickly slipped inside, and seeing “Cuihong” sitting under the tree, she was so frightened she suddenly covered her mouth.

“Scared?” Chaohua smiled lightly.

Qing’er’s back was against the closed courtyard gate, her body slowly sliding down.

Chaohua stood up, stepped across the melon seed shells on the ground, and came before Qing’er.

Looking at the face that resembled Cuihong by at least eighty or ninety percent, Qing’er didn’t dare raise her head at all and said trembling: “Attendant, it, it succeeded…”

“I know. Quickly remove the makeup from your face.”

Qing’er nodded vigorously, walked forward two steps, then turned back to look at Chaohua standing at the courtyard gate, very uneasy: “Attendant, you—”

“Don’t worry. If even you could succeed, how could I not succeed?”

Chaohua pushed open the courtyard gate and walked quickly toward the garden.

A fire danced in the depths of her eyes, and her tightly pressed lips revealed a determination to burn all bridges.

Either take back the bracelet, or die.

With no fear of death, there was nothing to be afraid of.

In the garden, the Crown Princess was standing in the pavilion admiring a pond full of lotus flowers.

It was precisely the season when lotus flowers bloomed in full splendor—a whole pond of pink and pale white, with endless emerald leaves.

The wind moved the lotus flowers and lotus leaves, also sending coolness into the pavilion.

The Crown Princess felt refreshed and said with a smile: “In weather like this, after a heavy rain is when one feels most comfortable.”

How could she not feel comfortable? This rain had made the Crown Prince stay and catch Jade Attendant’s wicked deed, and had also washed away the Crown Prince’s affection for Jade Attendant.

“Crown Princess, Cuihong requests an audience.” Lianfang, who was standing guard outside the pavilion, came in to report.

The Crown Princess looked outside.

Not far from the pavilion, Cuihong bent her knees, looking anxious.

The Crown Princess frowned.

Could something have happened with Jade Attendant?

Thinking this, she nodded slightly to Lianfang: “Tell her to come in.”

Lianfang walked out, her tone somewhat condescending: “Go in then.”

This fool actually thought she could fly up to the branches and become a phoenix.

Little did she know that the moment she exposed Jade Attendant, her fate was sealed—she wouldn’t live long.

How could the Crown Princess allow such a person to remain alive in this world? The only reason she hadn’t acted yet was to avoid arousing the Crown Prince’s suspicion.

Keeping this fool around to torment Jade Attendant for some days before quietly eliminating her would kill two birds with one stone.

Chaohua lowered her head and walked before the Crown Princess.

“Speak. What is it?”

Chaohua looked left and right, seeming to want to speak but hesitating.

The Crown Princess signaled for Lianfang and the others to withdraw from the pavilion and said indifferently: “Can you speak now?”

Chaohua nodded. With a flick of her wrist, she revealed a gold hairpin hidden in her sleeve and viciously stabbed it toward the Crown Princess’s face.