“Girl.” Di Wu Ya’s hoarse voice sounded out.

Feng Jiu’er tilted her head slightly and blinked.

“Help me.” Di Wu Ya took hold of Feng Jiu’er’s small hand.

Feng Jiu’er pressed her lips together, and finally, nodded.

She took a deep breath, climbed off him, lay back down beside him, and slowly slid downward.

Some time later, Feng Jiu’er picked up her boots and tiptoed quietly out of the chamber.

She let out a long breath, pushed open the door to the room next door, and stepped inside.

Feng Jiu’er returned to her own room, bathed as quickly as possible, got dressed, put on a mask, and headed out.

That night, they had one more grand event planned — a masquerade ball.

This had been Feng Jiu’er’s idea — if they were going to have fun, they should go all out.

The war would be starting soon, and everyone would have a hard time of it then — why not let everyone properly relax while they still could?

The masquerade was set up in the back courtyard, the largest courtyard in the estate.

Lanterns of every color hung around the courtyard.

Their light was dim, hazy, carrying a colorful sense of mystery.

By the time Feng Jiu’er arrived, many people had already gathered.

Everyone was dressed differently from usual, and all wore masks.

The masks had been chosen the day before by the sisters while shopping — many colors, many styles, some duplicates among them.

Most people simply picked a mask at random from a box outside the venue before heading in.

Feng Jiu’er’s mask had been prepared for her by Xiao Yingtao, mainly in black and pink.

The pink feathers appeared to be dyed goose down, and the style matched Feng Jiu’er’s outfit rather well.

In this mysterious gathering, laughter never stopped.

Some people gathered together drinking wine, some gathered eating fruit and pastries, and some were even sparring with swords — it was all quite lively.

Feng Jiu’er walked straight in, all the way to the innermost area, where the lighting was dimmest.

An entire circle of seats there was now almost completely full.

Feng Jiu’er quietly took one of the few remaining seats, without saying a word.

Soon, the rest of the seats filled up with a group of women who arrived.

When the hour came, torches lit up at the four corners of this dimmer area.

The torchlight flickered across everyone’s masks and clothes, adding a touch of mystery to the atmosphere.

“Good evening, everyone!” Yu Jingfeng’s resonant voice drew quite a bit of attention.

Even those who no longer had seats came over to gather around.

Everyone wore masks, and with the dim lighting, it wasn’t easy to tell who was who.

This way, everyone could relax and enjoy themselves more freely.

“Welcome, everyone, to tonight’s masquerade ball.” Yu Jingfeng wore a set of gray robes and a dark gray mask over his face.

He carried a sharpened wooden stake and stood up, walking to the center.

Yu Jingfeng set down the stake, its tip whittled to a point, and looked around at everyone.

“Next, let’s play a game of truth or dare.”

“The rules are simple. In a moment I’ll spin this stake, and once it stops, whoever the pointed end is facing will be our lucky one.”

“The chosen lucky one can pick either truth or dare.”

“Whichever the lucky one picks, the challenge will be set by the person sitting directly opposite them — that is, whoever the back of the stake is pointing at.”

“If the lucky one picks truth, the questioner can ask them anything they like, and the lucky one must answer honestly.”

“If the lucky one picks dare, the questioner can have them do anything, and the lucky one must comply.”

“If the lucky one can’t answer or can’t complete the dare, they’ll receive a rather severe punishment.”

“As for what that punishment will be, everyone participating tonight will have the right to weigh in with their own suggestions.”

“Brothers, sisters, is everyone clear on the rules?”

The rules of the game had been proposed by Feng Jiu’er and written down in detail by Xiao Yingtao.

As for why Yu Jingfeng was the one running the game — mainly because Xiao Yingtao wanted to play herself, so she’d arranged it this way.

“Understood!”

The response wasn’t loud, but quite a few people nodded.

Perhaps no one wanted to be recognized too soon.

To preserve the mystery, almost everyone had dressed differently from their usual style.

Beneath his mask, the corner of Yu Jingfeng’s visible lips curved slightly as he bowed.

“The game begins now — everyone sit up straight and get ready!”

He spun the stake and strode back to his seat.

The stake spun for a good while before gradually slowing down.

In its final two or three rotations, the twenty or thirty people gathered around all watched the sharpened end intently.

Finally, the stake came to a stop, and everyone’s eyes followed the direction it pointed, looking outward.

“Surely it’s not that much of a coincidence?” Yu Jingfeng’s booming voice carried a note of flattered disbelief.

“Lucky one, stand up.” The stake’s tail end was pointing at a woman.

The woman didn’t stand up. Not only was she wearing a mask, she also covered her mouth with both hands, altering the pitch of her voice.

Yu Jingfeng raised his eyes, exhaled softly, and stood up.

“I’ll go with dare.”

The key issue was that he was a little afraid — if he chose truth and got asked something he shouldn’t be asked, and his Snow Drift heard it, would she get angry?

Which one was Snow Drift, though? Yu Jingfeng looked around but still couldn’t find the figure he was longing for.

“Dare is simple — go pick a woman and give her a hug.” A woman’s low voice rang out.

The rules of the game — the woman clearly understood better than the men did.

“You’re kidding, right?” Yu Jingfeng looked around at everyone again, his eyes pleading.

Snow Drift, please come save your Brother Yu!

“No one’s kidding here!” The woman, still covering her mouth, said, her voice unrecognizable.

“You’re the one running this game — are you trying to break the rules?”

Yu Jingfeng, of course, knew the rules couldn’t be broken. It had been hard enough to get one good night of fun, and now, before the game had even properly started, it couldn’t just end here — that wouldn’t do!

He took a deep breath and walked toward the woman he thought might possibly be Leng Xuepiao.

Everyone seated was part of the game, and of course, once chosen, no one could object.

Yu Jingfeng came to stand before the masked woman, extended his large hand, and leaned in slightly.

The woman said nothing either, but pinched his arm and stood up.

Yu Jingfeng exhaled again and leaned closer to the woman.

“Is it you?” he asked in a low voice.

The woman let go of Yu Jingfeng’s hand and said nothing.

“Hug! Hug!” the crowd began cheering.

Even though propriety called for men and women to keep their distance, a simple hug was harmless enough.

Besides, since no one knew who anyone was, life was short, and everyone deserved a chance to go a little wild once in a while.

Yu Jingfeng frowned, his long arm lifting somewhat stiffly.

He gave the woman a light hug, then immediately let go, turned, and walked back to his seat without looking back.

“Well done!”

Cheers rang out across the whole venue; everyone seemed quite satisfied with the outcome.

It’s just a game, after all — as long as it’s fun! No need to overthink it.