Chapter 540: This is the Token
Fu Miaoxue and Du Lai went to the front courtyard parlour, the place where the old scholar had greeted them.
Maybe because it was daytime, the paper people who used to sit in the parlour were gone.
Despite the absence of the paper people, just the sight of those high-backed chairs was enough to send chills down Fu Miaoxue’s spine. She did not dare to look any longer, and went directly to the rear of the parlour, pulling Du Lai along.
This was the old scholar’s bedroom.
The furnishings inside were much more extravagant than outside – a golden washbasin, an intricately painted porcelain bottle, a smooth and glossy white jade pillow, and a carved, complex vanity table…
Fu Miaoxue walked over to a luxurious canopy bed and patted on the golden silk quilt that was on it.
“Look at this; the sheets and quilt are all embroidered with gold threads. What kind of person sleeps in such a bed? I don’t think even an emperor would sleep in this, right?”
As she spoke, she smiled and looked around the room.
“Only one kind of person would sleep in such a bed – the dead. This room is prepared for the deceased. All these items are burial goods!”
Du Lai walked over to the dressing table, pulled open the small drawers, which contained some finely crafted combs and hairpins that women use.
They had seen this room when they had been wandering around the mansion before, but hadn’t thought much of it at the time.
Firstly, the old scholar had claimed to have been an official for decades, so it was normal for his home to be lavishly decorated.
Secondly, perhaps the dressing table was used by the old scholar’s wife. The fact that they hadn’t seen her didn’t mean she didn’t exist. And it was far-fetched to associate the sight of a woman’s dressing table with the corpse bride.
Looking at this room again, they finally realized that the layout and decoration were more similar to… a woman’s bedroom.
And then there was the bed…
A quilt embroidered with golden threads? Wouldn’t that be uncomfortable to lay on?
If Fu Miaoxue’s conjecture was correct, the room was a burial chamber, and the mansion was a tomb.
They had been living inside a tomb all this time!
This thought made Du Lai frown.
“Have you found the token?” Fu Miaoxue was searching around the room, “I think it should be in this room.”
Du Lai took out some wooden combs and hairpins from the small drawers on the dressing table, still unsure.
“Any of these items could be the token, but I think… it should be something more special.”
“Shall we take them first?” Fu Miaoxue held a jade pendant and picked up the jade pillow from the bed, “Maybe we can use all these things.”
With a slight frown, Du Lai asked, “But if the corpse bride was buried here, what’s the deal with the old scholar? And what about the two paper people? These questions remain unanswered…”
“Who cares what the answer is, as long as we can get out of here…” Fu Miaoxue looked around hesitantly, sighed, “But you’re right. To lure the corpse bride, we must find something more unique… These bracelets, hairpins, sachets are all too common.”
They could only gather the things they suspected into their arms.
They dared not waste any more time, worried that Bai Youwei and Shen Mo would notice, and also afraid that the old scholar might suddenly appear.
As they were leaving, Fu Miaoxue could not help but look back once more.
This glance made her stop in her tracks.
She hesitated, her gaze fixed on the long table in the center of the room. That was where the old scholar had placed memorial tablets of his deceased parents.
“What is it?” Du Lai asked her.
“Just a moment… wait for me.” Fu Miaoxue put down all the items she was holding and slowly walked towards the set of memorial tablets.
She had been somewhat curious about them the night before, but she was too afraid of the paper people to scrutinize them.
Fu Miaoxue reached out and gently moved the set of tablets aside.
Behind them was an even smaller tablet.
Fu Miaoxue picked it up, disbelieving yet excited, “Found it… The spirit plate of the Corpse Bride!”
She turned around and showed the spirit plate to Du Lai, triumphantly.
“This is the token! Du Lai, we can pass the level now!”