My lord, spare his life!

"Home, parents, and here's another painting."

The manager forced himself to ignore the thick stench of blood and decay in the air and cautiously held the scroll high with both hands.

The woman's voice grew increasingly hoarse.

"painting?"

"Open it."

The steward bowed and replied, then carefully untied the knot.

The moment the scroll was unfurled, the manager felt his breath catch in his throat, and beads of sweat poured out, quickly soaking his lining. He wondered what his friend, the parent, was thinking, sending such deadly things.

"What did you draw?"

The person in charge didn't dare to breathe too loudly.

The reason was simple: the person in the painting was the parent in his youth—or more accurately, the parent before the calamities of the descending stars, still possessing the vibrant energy of a young boy. The steward dared not imagine the extent of the shock this painting would cause the parent; first, he sent a human skin, then a portrait of the parent still possessing youthful beauty. What exactly was the Prefectural Magistrate trying to do?

Is it mocking parents for being neither human nor ghost, and for clinging to a shred of humanity to survive?

Or should I remind her how ugly she looks now?

The manager had never felt time pass so slowly. When his hands, which were holding the painting, were about to stiffen and go numb, the parent, whose eyes were still fixed on the painting, suddenly reached out and tried to touch himself in the painting with his fingertips, murmuring, "This is how it looks."

She has forgotten how beautiful she used to be.

All I remember now is being afraid of light and people.

She now forbids anything in the house that could reflect her image—no bronze mirrors, not even a pond. She's afraid of seeing a blood-soaked person without skin, and she's also afraid of seeing a stranger in a stranger's skin in the mirror or on the water…

"The head of the household?" The steward swallowed nervously. "I thought... you and Lady Du had no grudges and were even quite close. She shouldn't have come here suddenly to mock you... Perhaps there's more to the story?"

The manager tried to bring the woman back to her senses.

When a woman goes berserk, it's a nightmare.

The person in charge waited anxiously for the result.

Perhaps the parents truly valued Du Nujun, or perhaps they were in a good mood today—they had already located a suitable human skin, and once the skin was delivered, the parents could temporarily escape their current suffering—the parents did not have the outburst they had feared.

"Bring me that human skin."

The manager was stunned.

Has a suitable human skin been delivered?

The woman said, "It's human skin that Yuan Yi sent."

Du Guan's letter consisted of only a few simple pleasantries, casually mentioning that he had sent her some local specialties. Besides the letter and the painting, the only other thing Du Guan sent was this human skin. The so-called "specialties" were either a painting or human skin.

She calmed her turbulent emotions with a simple gesture.

The steward couldn't glimpse her expression through the heavy veil and long gauze of her hat, and her face, devoid of skin, revealed no true emotion. Only the woman herself knew that the nerves in her mind were already stretched to the limit, on the verge of snapping at any moment.

“Eh…”

The steward carefully picked up the human skin and exclaimed in surprise.

Woman: "What's wrong?"

"This human skin... there's something strange about it..."

The steward had grown up alongside the woman and served her for over a decade. Since the descent of the stars, the woman's temperament had become increasingly violent and unpredictable, and few could approach her without encountering trouble. Therefore, there were some matters that the steward had to handle personally.

For example, helping women prepare to wear human skin.

The person in charge has come into contact with quite a few people.

The unique feel of human skin is something you'll never forget.

The moment the foreman got his hands on the human skin, he sensed something was off—it was too perfect! Look, the skin was as smooth as jade, perfectly formed, and, most importantly, uniformly thin. How steady must the person who cut this skin have been!

It can be worn without any special preparation.

It feels as light as a cicada's wing when held in the hand, and has a cool, warm touch.

Even from this close distance, the steward didn't smell any stench of decay or the strange odor of chemical treatment. How strange! Tianyue County is quite a distance from here; no matter how fast the messenger's journey, even the freshest human skin couldn't be maintained in such good condition. It's just a pity it's not a complete skin.

Yes, the human skin is not a complete piece.

It's just from the head to the collarbone area.

Even the steward noticed this, let alone the woman who had personally changed human skin countless times. She picked up the human skin from the steward's hand, and the moment her fingertips touched it, the painted-skin demon inside her stirred. Her expression changed drastically, her eyes filled with suspicion and uncertainty.

a long time--

The woman's voice was hoarse: "Go and prepare."

The steward paused again, then asked, "What are you preparing?"

The woman's eyes held a complex expression as she said, "This human skin is usable."

The emotions reflected by the painted-skin ghost are genuine.

The Painted Skin Demon needs human skin to survive, but it has very high requirements for the quality of the human skin. The lower the fit of the human skin, the easier it is to rot. A human skin needs to be replaced after ten days. The better the fit of the human skin, the longer it can be used. A human skin can be used for half a year or a year.

Replacing a woman's skin will severely damage her vitality.

For the Painted Skin Demon, the lower the frequency, the better.

The woman had encountered highly compatible human skins before, but the owners of those skins were all still alive, ranging from nobles to commoners. She restrained herself and didn't allow anyone to harvest or mutilate them.

only--

She sighed softly to herself.

How long can this persistence last?

The pain of the skin-changing process grew worse with each passing day, and the stench of decay she smelled became increasingly intense; the skin of a dead person alone was simply not enough. She couldn't guarantee that she wouldn't succumb to depravity under such extreme pain.

The woman felt she couldn't hold on any longer.

Maybe next time, maybe the time after that...

The woman didn't know how Du Guan knew this human skin fit her perfectly; she only knew that the demon within her was restless with the perfectly fitting human skin, and had almost overwhelmed her will several times.

The steward hesitated: "But this human skin isn't intact."

Woman: "If it's incomplete, then it's incomplete."

Even a little bit of relief is welcome.

The steward bowed in agreement and went to prepare.

Because of her experience, the steward quickly prepared everything. The woman slowly walked to the bathhouse in the side courtyard, where a specially made tub was filled with crystal-clear "water." She removed her veil and clothes, revealing a truly horrifying body.

The body was covered by the skin of some unknown animal, temporarily protecting the skinless body from clothing. The woman silently tore off the skin, revealing bloody flesh. Without the skin, a stench of decay immediately filled the air, so strong it was nauseating. The woman disgustedly tossed the flesh aside, and white maggots could be vaguely seen wriggling inside. The steward said, "The soup is ready."

The woman stepped into the bathtub.

The once crystal-clear water instantly became murky, and something beneath the woman's flesh began to writhe wildly, constantly crawling outwards.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the stench faded, and the flesh returned to a healthy color. The woman stepped out of the bathtub, picked up the human skin that had agitated the Painted Skin Ghost, and skillfully put it on. The steward watched anxiously until the skin was completely fitted before letting out a sigh of relief.

"Unfortunately, this human skin is incomplete..."

Only the collarbone and above.

The steward's voice abruptly stopped, and his pupils suddenly contracted.

The woman who was processing the human skin also showed a look of surprise and doubt!

The human skin at the edge of the collarbone seemed to take root and come alive upon touching the flesh, spreading little by little to other parts of the body. In just seven or eight breaths, the edge of the human skin spread from below the collarbone to the woman's thighs, until it completely covered her body.

Manager: "!!!"

I was so shocked I couldn't speak!

The woman seemed to have been paralyzed and didn't move an inch.

"Mirror……"

The steward didn't react at first.

The woman's voice was high-pitched and shrill: "Mirror!"

This sound brought the steward's soul, which had flown to the ends of the earth, back to life.

She stumbled as she rummaged through drawers and cabinets, finally finding a hidden bronze mirror. This mirror, constantly polished, gleamed like new, reflecting a person perfectly like the naked eye. The woman rushed forward, impatiently pushing the steward aside. She saw clearly reflected in the mirror a naked woman with snow-white skin, a well-proportioned figure, and ordinary features. The woman blinked, and the woman in the mirror blinked in return.

This caused the woman to lose her strength and collapse to the ground.

Her hands trembled as she tried to touch that face; the touch on her fingertips was a long-lost freshness, warm and elastic.

The manager exclaimed excitedly, "This...this is a miracle!"

In the past, no matter how meticulous the preparations were, or how well the human skin was processed, the person would still suffer greatly after putting it on, emitting a roar almost like a wild beast. The whole process would last from the time it takes to burn an incense stick to several hours, and only after the break-in period could they barely move.

But this is not the skin that you are born with. The woman has to endure pain like maggots clinging to her bones while using it. Outsiders can't bear to see it, let alone the people who grew up with her.

Even the manager couldn't help but try to persuade the woman several times.

Let's use the most suitable living human skin.

In these difficult times, if offering a human skin could change the lives of an entire family, who wouldn't be willing?

But the woman was stubborn and refused.

She knew this was the Painted Skin Demon's way of tempting people to fall into depravity. If she did everything the Painted Skin Demon wanted, how would she be different from the demon?

"Parent, are you in pain now?" The manager recalled the woman's agile movements just now, which did not seem like the break-in period for skin regeneration at all.

The woman wiped away her tears.

"It doesn't hurt."

She looked at her hands in disbelief, gripping them repeatedly a dozen times before finally accepting that this human skin hadn't needed a break-in period!

The steward brought clothes and gently draped them over the woman. After a thorough grooming and washing, her ordinary appearance in the mirror gained a touch of radiance.

The servants came in to clean the bathhouse.

The woman, disregarding her aversion to light and people, walked lightly to her usual cottage, picked up Du Guan's letter, and carefully read and pondered it. The steward, having finished his work, rushed over and quickly noticed the anomaly.

"Can the parents still smell, smell the stench of decay?"

The woman was startled and only noticed this after being reminded by the manager.

She sniffed her wrist lightly.

She wore only a faint, clean scent of soap and a subtle, delicate fragrance, the stench that had haunted her for years, a stench that felt like a nightmare. The woman paused, lowering her hand, her gaze shifting uncertainly to the letter from an old friend…

The manager's voice rang in my ears.

"Parents, should we send someone to ask Lady Du?"

How did you get this human skin?

If there's one, can there be a second and a third?

The steward hadn't seen the matriarch's demeanor so calm in years. If the human skin given by the Du Lady had such miraculous effects, he would definitely ask for a few more, even at a thousand gold pieces per piece. The woman didn't give the order, only instructing the steward to fetch the painting. Knowing Du Guan as she did, she knew the other wouldn't do anything without a reason. She understood the meaning of the letter and the human skin, but what was the purpose of this painting?

The woman lowered her eyes in deep thought.

It seems necessary to meet Yuan Yi in person.

She instructed the steward to put the scroll away.

Just as the steward was about to roll it up, he suddenly noticed something unusual about the edge of the scroll. The texture was different from the rest of the scroll, and when he held it up to the light, he discovered several characters embroidered on it, the same color as the background. These characters made the woman instantly make up her mind. She abruptly stood up: "Prepare the carriage."

Qin Huang's troops were of slightly better quality than those of ordinary warlords, but maintaining discipline was still difficult. In this world, the use of human laborers as rations was rampant, and in some places, special prisoners were even used to reward meritorious soldiers…

Xie Shu knew this was not a sustainable solution, so he decided to prohibit it.

Can--

Banning it is not easy either.

Xie Shu was worrying about military affairs when a guard informed him.

"Xiu Ying is here, but aren't you..." Xie Shu looked up and saw an unfamiliar face, somewhat incredulous, "Xiu Ying?"

The Painted Skin Ghost doesn't change its skin that quickly.

"Yes, it's me."

Xie Shu's suspicions were not dispelled when he saw the manager who had come with the woman: "In the past, changing skin was extremely difficult, how come it only took three days this time?"

Isn't that human skin supposed to arrive tomorrow morning?

Furthermore, human skin doesn't resemble this face.

There's only one possibility left.

"You've found a more suitable human skin."

"Um."

Xie Shu smiled faintly and said, "That's fine too."

The next second, she couldn't laugh anymore.

"I need to leave for a while, and my return date is uncertain."

"Leave? Where to go?"

"It's related to this human skin, and it concerns the future..." The woman said part of it and kept the rest hidden, "This trip is so rushed that I'm afraid I won't be able to say goodbye to Lord Qin in person. Please ask Ruxin to pass on my message."

Xie Shu frowned: "Could you tell me more?"

"Is it you who needs to know, or Qin Shiming? If it's you, I can tell you, but if it's him, I won't say a word."

Upon hearing this, Xie Shu fell silent.

She could only say, "Go early and come back early."

Xiu Ying's family had pledged their support to their master, so even if they disliked him, they wouldn't do anything outrageous. Taking a long leave was nothing to be ashamed of. The woman was about to get up after receiving the reply when, unfortunately, Qin Huang arrived.

He was slightly surprised when he saw the woman.

The painted skin demon's appearance is ever-changing, making it really hard to recognize.

"Is it Xiu Ying?"

The woman thought to herself that she was having a bad day: "Greetings, Lord Qin."

"Did I just hear something like 'go early and come back early'?"

The woman said calmly, "I have something important to do; I'm going out to visit a friend."

Qin Huang secretly understood.

For the Painted Skin Demon, what could be more important than human skin?

Where is my friend?

"You may have heard of Du Yuanyi, the Prefect of Tianyue County."

"Tian Yue?"

The place name made Qin Huang frown.

Woman: "Is there anything wrong with this place?"

Qin Huang smiled and said, "There's nothing wrong with it, it's just a coincidence. Some time ago, I sent someone to Tianyue to take over the position of Tianyue Prefect, but the local people are so unruly that they caused someone to die unjustly. If Xiu Ying goes too, she can take the opportunity to investigate what happened."

He showed no remorse whatsoever for making his subordinates work even while on leave.

The woman calmly accepted the order.

This was just a side effect of investigating this matter.

The most important thing right now is to get Qin Huang to let her leave.

only--

As she was leaving, she noticed that Xie Shu seemed to want to say something but hesitated.

"Speak your mind."

"There is a person in Tianyue."

"Who?"

"Fan Shuyan, he's been quite active in Tianyue."

??|??w?`)

Is this armor-piercing strategy really going to take two weeks?