Chapter 45: Fool Me Twice? Not a Chance

Her heart fluttered, but Mu Xi wasn’t about to let Tuesday pull the wool over her eyes again. 

Not after last time.

“Open the door,” she said, arms crossed tightly, her body tilting back to keep a wary distance. 

Her eyes glinted with suspicion, sharp and unyielding, though a faint, teasing smile danced at the corners of her lips, as if she were savoring the unfolding drama.

Tuesday, unfazed, seemed to have read her skepticism like an open book. 

From the tattered depths of his pocket, he produced a jangling bundle of tools, dangling them before her with a lopsided, guileless grin. 

“Ready for action. Watch and learn.”

Mu Xi’s curiosity sparked as she observed him tinker with the gleaming instruments, her head cocked like a child enthralled by a new toy. 

Her gaze never wavered, drinking in every motion, though her mind stayed sharp, filing away the intricacies of his lock-picking craft. 

‘Might come in handy,’ she mused, her fingers subtly tracing his movements within the folds of her sleeves.

“Hey, getting an eyeful? Planning to swipe my secrets?” Tuesday’s voice carried a playful jab, his focus unbroken as he probed the lock.

“Pfft, as if I’d bother,” Mu Xi shot back, her tone dripping with haughty disdain, though her eyes betrayed her, glued to his deft hands, catching every flicker of motion.

A soft “click” broke the air, and the rusted iron lock yielded with a reluctant groan.

Tuesday spun around, his grin triumphant, eyebrows waggling like a kid expecting applause. 

“Nailed it!”

With a creak, the iron door swung open, revealing a shadowed path that slithered into the gloom, its end swallowed by darkness.

Tuesday strode forward without hesitation, tossing a glance over his shoulder. 

“Come on, let’s move.”

Mu Xi didn’t budge. 

Her eyes narrowed, boring into his retreating figure, a prickle of doubt curling in her gut. 

Something wasn’t right.

Could he really turn his back on Ye Lan so easily?

Or was this another of his tricks, a lure cast into her path?

The memory of his past deception still stung, a wound too fresh to ignore.

“Hold it,” she called, her voice laced with a probing edge. 

“Why drag me along on your little escape? Don’t feed me some line about falling for me—I’m not buying that drivel.”

Tuesday halted, turning to face her. 

His rugged, honest face softened with a touch of exasperation, but his eyes held a rare intensity. 

“I know you don’t trust me, Mu Xi, and I get it. But I’m not playing games this time. Ye Lan—she’s a viper, and I’m done with her. As for you…” 

He scratched the back of his head, a sheepish smile breaking through. 

“From the moment I saw you, I knew you weren’t like the rest. You’ve got this… pull. Something special.”

“Oh, spare me the honeyed nonsense,” Mu Xi scoffed, rolling her eyes at his flimsy flattery. 

“Cut to the chase. You’ve got your escape, I’ve got mine. Why team up?”

Tuesday drew a deep breath, his gaze locking onto hers with a resolve that felt almost tangible. 

“Because I like you. Not some act—genuine. I want to keep you safe, get you out of this wretched place.”

A cold laugh escaped her lips, though a faint tremor of doubt flickered in her chest.

‘Like?’ 

The word felt like a foreign language, distant and untrustworthy. 

After her rebirth, after all the betrayals, she’d walled off her heart from such notions.

Yet those earnest eyes of his… they chipped at her defenses, stirring a sliver of uncertainty. 

Could he actually mean it?

In a flash, her instincts flared. 

Before doubt could take root, she lunged for the iron door, yanking it shut with a resounding “bang”. 

Snatching the lock from the ground, she snapped it back into place with a sharp “click”.

Tuesday froze, caught off guard, his jaw slack with confusion. 

“What the hell are you doing?”

“What do you think?” Mu Xi smirked, arms crossed, her eyes glinting with sly triumph. 

“You really think I’d fall for another of your schemes? What if this is Ye Lan’s trap, and you’re just the bait to reel me in?”

Tuesday let out a half-laugh, half-groan, smacking his forehead in frustration. 

“My dear lady, do I look like a traitor to you? Ye Lan tossed me out! I’m running for my life here!” 

He gestured to the cuts and bruises marring his body, his expression one of wounded indignation. 

“Does this look like a performance?”

Mu Xi’s gaze raked over him, and she had to concede—he looked rough, like he’d been through a grinder. 

It didn’t seem staged.

But doubt clung to her like a second skin.

“Talk is cheap,” she said, jerking her chin toward the shadowed path. 

“You go first. Scout it out. If it’s safe, come back. But if you’re lying…” Her voice trailed off, heavy with menace.

Tuesday sighed, his shoulders slumping in resignation. 

He knew words wouldn’t sway her now. 

“Alright, I’ll check it out. Wait here.” 

He pointed to his shoes, adding, “See these? Spotless. If that’s a tunnel, they’ll be caked in mud when I’m back. Is that proof enough?”

Mu Xi’s silence was her only reply, her stare icy and unyielding.

With a shrug, Tuesday turned and vanished into the dark corridor.

Minutes dragged by—ten, maybe more—and Mu Xi’s patience began to fray. 

Just as irritation crept in, Tuesday’s silhouette emerged from the shadows, his face alight with excitement. 

“It’s real!” he called, waving her over. 

“A tunnel, safe as can be! Come on!”

Her eyes dropped to his shoes. 

Sure enough, the once-clean soles were now smeared with mud, streaked with damp patches.

Her pulse quickened. 

Could he be telling the truth? 

Was freedom really within reach?

But Mu Xi wasn’t done. 

She scrutinized him, searching for cracks in his facade. 

That honest grin—did it hide a deeper ploy? 

Those sincere eyes—did they conceal a lie?

Her mind churned, replaying every interaction with Tuesday in vivid detail: their first encounter, his overtures of friendship, his “heroic” act of unlocking the door. 

Each moment was dissected, weighed, and measured.

“Too smooth,” she muttered to herself. 

“Far too smooth.”

A chill of realization hit her. 

Ye Lan was no ordinary foe—a master manipulator, a queen who held every string. 

How could anyone slip through her grasp so easily?

Unless… 

This was her design. 

A trap, with Tuesday as the lure to draw Mu Xi into her web.

Her gaze turned glacial, pinning Tuesday with a look that could freeze fire. 

“You claim Ye Lan fired you, that you’re on the run? Prove it.”

Her arms crossed, her voice sharp as a blade, cutting through the air with a coldness that belied her earlier hesitation.

Tuesday blinked, thrown by her sudden shift. 

Then, with a wry chuckle, he spread his hands in defeat. 

“My lady, what more do you want? Look at me!” 

He gestured to his battered face, then lifted his shirt to reveal raw, angry whip marks crisscrossing his waist. 

“You think I did this to myself? Risked my neck just to trick you?”

Mu Xi’s eyes lingered on the wounds, and she couldn’t deny their authenticity. 

They were too raw, too brutal to be faked.

Yet caution was her armor, forged in the fires of betrayal. 

Trust was a luxury she couldn’t afford, especially not with Tuesday, whose past omissions still cast a long shadow.

“Scars can be staged,” she said, her voice a low, cutting drawl. 

“What if this is all a charade? You and Ye Lan, playing me for a fool, luring me straight into her trap?”