She was composed and in control.
She smoothed the slightly wrinkled hem of her clothes, resuming her usual poise.
“Stay put and don’t think about what you shouldn’t.”
Having said that, Ye Lan turned and walked out of the bedroom with steady steps.
The heavy metal door closed behind her with a soft “click”, trapping Mu Xi alone in this oppressive space.
Mu Xi sat stiffly on the edge of the bed, maintaining her posture without moving.
Ye Lan’s presence seemed to linger in the air, mixed with the aftertaste of that bowl of something and the lingering cold scent of disinfectant.
She suddenly stood up, staggering toward the bathroom.
After a long time, she finally seemed to wake from some nightmare.
She practically threw herself at the sink, turning on the faucet.
The cold water rushed over her hands, and she scrubbed vigorously, as if trying to rub off a layer of skin that had touched the spoon and been stained by Ye Lan’s presence.
Her fingertips were icy cold.
Water splattered everywhere.
Then her face.
Her chaotic mind cleared a little.
The cold water splashed on her face, bringing a biting chill, but it drained her color.
The mirror reflected a pale little face, with slightly reddened eye sockets and lips devoid of color.
Those once clear and lively eyes were now filled with humiliation, anger, and deep exhaustion.
She looked at herself in the mirror—familiar yet strange.
‘Is this what Ye Lan wanted to see? A doll completely destroyed, reduced to an empty shell?’
‘No. Absolutely not!’
She turned off the faucet abruptly and walked toward the shower.
Mu Xi closed her eyes, letting the hot water pour down from above.
The warm steam quickly filled the tiny space, blurring the cold tiles and metal.
She scrubbed every inch of her skin meticulously, especially her feet.
Her ankles still seemed to retain that sticky, nauseating sensation and the complex smell of that basin of filth.
She picked up the soap and scrubbed her small, pale feet vigorously, her toes curling as the skin turned slightly red from friction.
The foam was fine and rich, carrying a light fragrance, trying to mask those unpleasant memories.
As she washed, Ye Lan’s phrase “taste it to know its essence” suddenly intruded into her mind.
‘Taste it to know its essence… Was she talking about that bowl of stuff, or… herself?’
Mu Xi’s movements stopped.
As if possessed, she lowered her head and looked at her feet, flushed pink by the hot water and covered in white foam.
‘Why would Ye Lan… like this kind of thing?’
She bent down, leaning closer, and gently sniffed the tip of her nose.
‘The clean feet carry a fresh floral and fruity scent from the body wash, mixed with her own faint body temperature… It seems, indeed, there is a tiny… indescribable fragrance?’
‘But it’s no different from the usual smell after a bath.’
‘Is this worth Ye Lan being so… obsessed? Even to the point of expressing it that way?’
Mu Xi couldn’t understand.
Ye Lan’s world, Ye Lan’s logic—to her, they were an unsolvable, twisted enigma.
She shook her head, trying to dispel these absurd thoughts.
Just as she straightened up, ready to rinse the foam off her feet, her foot slipped!
“Ah!”
Mu Xi cried out, her body losing balance instantly and falling backward.
The cold, hard tile floor grew larger in her vision.
At the critical moment, she instinctively reached out and grabbed the wall beside her, barely managing to steady herself.
Her heart pounded wildly in her chest.
Breathing hard, Mu Xi leaned against the cold wall, looking at the puddle of water and foam on the ground.
A thought, like a bolt of lightning suddenly flashing in the darkness, cut through her chaotic mind.
‘Losing balance… slipping… Ye Lan…’
Mu Xi’s eyes lit up abruptly, shimmering with a light mixed with fear, excitement, and determination.
Ye Lan is strong and Mu Xi knows better than anyone.
Be it strength, speed, or combat technique, Ye Lan far surpassed her.
In a direct confrontation, she had no chance of winning.
But what if Ye Lan, like her just now, suddenly lost balance on this slippery bathroom floor?
In that moment of her fall, in that split second when she couldn’t fully control her body… wouldn’t that be an opportunity?
An opportunity to… kill her?
A chance to… fight back?
Once this thought emerged, it rushed into her mind like a wildly gushing fountain.
She knew it was very risky.
Ye Lan’s vigilance was extremely high; making her slip in the bathroom without any preparation would be no easy task.
Moreover, even if Ye Lan really fell, she would only have one split second.
If she missed it, or if Ye Lan reacted in time, the consequences would be unimaginable.
But… this was the only method she could think of that might get close to Ye Lan and pose a fatal threat.
Bare-handed, she simply couldn’t fight Ye Lan.
Only by catching her off guard, attacking when she least expected it.
Using this seemingly everyday environment to create an “accident.”
Mu Xi’s heartbeat grew faster, as if blood was surging through her veins.
She needed a plan.
A perfect plan.
How to lure Ye Lan into the bathroom?
How to ensure the floor was slippery enough that she would inevitably fall?
Where and when should she strike?
‘With what’
Mu Xi looked around the cramped space.
Hard walls, cold floor, metal showerhead…
Her gaze finally landed on the metal shelf in the corner used for toiletries.
The shelf wasn’t tall, but its edges were sharp.
If Ye Lan fell and her head happened to hit that…
Mu Xi shivered, not from cold, but from the icy murderous intent welling up from deep inside.
She took a deep breath, splashed her face with cold water again, trying to calm herself.
‘The plan had to be meticulous. Every detail couldn’t go wrong.’
She turned off the shower.
The sound of water stopped, leaving only her rapid breathing in the bathroom.
She needed time to think, to observe, to wait for the right moment.
Mu Xi dried herself and changed into clean pajamas.
She walked to the bathroom doorway, looked back at the wet floor, her gaze calm yet secretly turbulent.
She gently pulled the bathroom door closed.
In the following days, the Silent Language Building was unusually calm.
Mu Xi was like a tamed little wildcat, retracting all her sharp claws and teeth, docile and obedient to the point of being nearly transparent.
Even the resistance in her eyes had vanished, leaving only submission.
Whatever Ye Lan said, she did—no retort, no defiance.
Ye Lan would occasionally stop and scrutinize Mu Xi’s submissive demeanor, a probing light flickering in her deep, phoenix-shaped eyes.
She didn’t believe Mu Xi would give in so easily.
This change was too abrupt, like the calm before a storm, brewing something more terrifying.
“Little Xi,” Ye Lan’s voice still carried a hint of subtle gentleness, yet it was wrapped in the usual pressure of a superior, “It seems… you’ve thought it through?”
Mu Xi was sitting by the window.
Sunlight streamed through the glass, casting a soft halo on her silver hair, making her look like a delicate porcelain doll—fragile and easily broken.
Hearing Ye Lan’s question, she slowly raised her head.
Those beautiful eyes were calm, without a ripple.
“Like this… it’s easier.” Her voice was very soft, with a barely noticeable hoarseness, as if she were stating an irrelevant fact, or whispering to herself.
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