Li Wei remained transfixed, the footsteps slow, weighed, and drawing nearer.
He had just seconds. He set the food tray on the desk with utmost care and backed away just as the doorknob began to turn.
The door opened.
But it was not Sebastian.
It was a maid for the guest.
She stood still in the doorway, narrowing her eyes at the sight of Li Wei standing still in the middle of the room.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, calm, but with sharp edges.
Li Wei straightened. "Delivering dinner," he said, gesturing to the tray. "For the guest."
The maid stepped inside slowly, her gaze drifthing toward the desk. "The guest is not here."
"I noticed," he said, keeping his voice level. "I was just leaving."
But the maid did not move. Instead, she walked toward the desk, eyes glancing down at the open journal, lips pressing to a thin line.
Li Wei took one careful step back.
"You didn't touch anything, did you?" she asked without looking at him.
He shook his head. "No."
She turned to him then, scrutinized him. For one long second, silence stretched between them, louder than the roar of the city streets outside.
Finally, she gave a short nod. "You can go now."
Li Wei nodded and left quickly, his heart racing, strangely light as he hurried down the hall, fingers brushing against the hidden parchment beneath his sash.
......
Back in Miss Mei's chamber, Ying was still sitting beside her, the book now completely forgotten on the bed between them.
She had noted Miss Mei flinching earlier; the slight tremble in her fingers. Having known the woman long enough, Ying sensed when something was not right.
"Miss please you sure you're okay?" Ying asked, humbly and softly.
Miss Mei smiled gently at her, though her eyes did not reflect the same lively spirit. "Of course. Just a long day."
Ying agreed but felt her mind drift elsewhere. Broken bowl. Untouched food. Handmaiden. Too strange.
She rose up. "I'll be back. I want to take a quick walk. Just to clear my head." She lied , she was off to see her brother...
This time, Miss Mei did not argue. "Be safe," she whispered.
Ying left the room and swiftly walked through the halls toward the servant quarters, hoping to find something to tell Li Wei.
But she wasn't the only one wanting answers tonight.
Back in the servants' quarters, Li Wei crouched on his bed. The thoughts hit him again, what he read on the parchment, "Get rid of the boy closer to her."
The boy… Was it him? Who else could it be ?
Nevertheless, he couldn't be certain. One thing was now crystal clear: Someone wanted someone gone - and it concerned Miss Mei.
He took a look around the room; on the bed, his mind went somewhere, "He's really planning something, and he's going to find out".
Tomorrow was going to be the day he would have to talk with Ying. Silently.
Because if this went deeper - and it sure did - then they all were in danger.
And someone in that palace had blood in their eyes.
A knock on the door—a nightmare gripped
him: Had he been called, caught, or???? When he moved close to the door,
"Who would it be?"
Li Wei froze, his heart leaping. His panicked eyes flickered to the door. Had he been caught? Sebastian? The maid?
Another knock. Firm. Measured.
He stepped over and opened it cautiously.
To his surprise---
"Ying? What in the world are you doing here, girl?" he asked, his voice saying confused relief.
She looked over her shoulder, then jumped unannounced into the room. There was the edge of his mat, and she sat with her brows drawn tight. Something is not right.
Li Wei shut the door behind her and approached slowly. "What happened? Is all well?"
Ying took a breath and began. She told him about being with Miss Mei when the thud came from the kitchen. How Miss Mei tried to brush it off with a smile, whispering softly, "It's nothing." But Ying had felt the shift in the air; the fear behind her calm.
"You told me to ignore it, but I couldn't," said Ying, her voice quiet. "So I checked on it. The place was silent. Too silent."
She continued to recount how she had walked inside, straight to the dining quarter within the chamber, how the food had been placed-fresh, steaming-yet untouched. But then she saw them: tiny siteles under the long dining table.
"I picked one up. It was from a bowl. And the handmaiden? She was gone. I saw her slipped before getting there Just... vanished."
Li Wei grimaced. He gripped his hair and scowled. "And that's not all. I saw something too."
Ying looked up quickly. "What?"
He glimpsed at the door, and in he came. "When I went to carry food to that guest... Sebastian... he wasn't there. The room was empty. But something caught my eye. There was a journal open on his desk. I swear, I touched nothing. But a page had writing, and next to it, there was a note."
Ying's eyes widened.
"It was not long, just a line. But I remember it. It said: 'Get rid of the boy nearer to her.'"
Ying's face went still.
He nodded. "But it didn't say kill. Also, it didn't state whom it referred to. Merely 'the boy closer to her.'' He paused, then asked softly, "You think it's me?"
Ying was shaking her head already. "Or someone else, but near Miss Mei. Either way... someone's planning something. And they've already started moving."
A silence fell between them; a silence both heavy and knowing.
Then Ying sat taller. "We can't just sit here. We need answers. You saw something. I felt something. Now we wait , were just servant s here but if any signs then we do something"
Li Wei gave a slow nod, firming his voice now. "Alright. We'll both keep watch. Whatever they may be planning, we'll find out."
Two siblings. One truth, and a storm quietly gathering within the halls of the Estate.