I'm Already the Richest Man, Why Did My System Just Arrive?

...

Inside Master Zheng’s room.

After a man and four women stumbled into the room, flushed and wrapped in a wanton embrace.

"Zheng Xiu" began peeling from the jawline, lifting away a thin human skin mask.

Beneath the mask was the delicate, mature face of Zheng Erniang.

Zheng Erniang pointed an exasperated finger at Lily and scolded, "Lily! How could you make the Master’s ’voice’ sound... sound... so... so..."

She stammered, trying to find a suitable word to describe the "voice of Zheng Xiu" that Lily had been imitating.

But after racking her brain, she couldn’t think of any appropriate word other than "wanton."

Lily replied helplessly, "There was no other way. Brother Shisan said we had to make it look convincing, that we absolutely couldn’t let outsiders sense anything was wrong with the Zheng Family."

"Don’t worry, Second Lady. The more wantonly Lily plays the part, the more people will believe the Master is just wasting his days on women and wine, playing the fool. If you pretended to be him, poring over poetry in the garden all day, anyone who came by would know it was a fake in an instant."

Second Lady was left speechless. She felt it was wrong to speak of the Master this way, but for the moment, she had no rebuttal.

Jing Xuemei, who had been kissed by "Second Lady," had now composed herself. She gently wiped the expensive, smeared makeup from her face with a silk handkerchief and said calmly, "This is for the best. The Master has currently fallen into a strange ’state,’ but Brother Shisan said the Master left instructions more than ten days ago, telling us not to panic. He said everything is part of the Master’s plan, and that we should just wait and see how things develop while keeping the Zheng Family stable. Second Lady, you continue to make sure the Master’s businesses appear to be running without major fluctuations. We’ll keep up this act for a few more days and see what the Master does next."

Zheng Erniang sighed. "...I suppose that’s all we can do."

Pingping winked at Second Lady and said, half-joking and half-serious, "Master, it is time for you to retire."

Zheng Erniang glanced at the vase in the corner.

She knew it concealed one of Zheng Xiu’s secrets.

But the four women had told her that since she wasn’t an initiate of the Path, it wasn’t appropriate for her to pry into the Master’s secrets. This, they said, was for her own good.

Second Lady undressed and lay down on what should have been Zheng Xiu’s bed. She breathed in the faint masculine scent from the blankets, lowered the canopy netting, and closed her eyes.

"Let’s go check on the Master."

The four women exchanged a look.

Once Pingping saw Second Lady get into bed, she skillfully twisted the vase, opening a secret door. One after another, the women entered the secret dungeon.

The secret door opened and closed without a sound, and the four women locked it from the other side.

The moment the door was locked, the expressions on the four women changed abruptly, their faces filling with worry.

They lit the oil channels, and a series of lamps cast a brilliant red glow throughout the dungeon.

Zheng Xiu was sitting cross-legged in the depths of the dungeon.

He had been sitting there for more than ten days.

In the eyes of the four women, the Zheng Xiu before them was far from anything that could be considered "normal."

He was not a reassuring sight.

No matter what instructions Zheng Xiu had left beforehand, they simply could not reconcile the horrifying scene before them with the idea that this was all "part of the plan."

Zheng Xiu’s skin was shriveled and dry; he was a full size thinner than he had been ten days ago. Black, bulging veins, like sprawling tattoos, covered his entire body. Even in the firelight, his complexion was an undeniable pale and dusky gray. His eyes were deeply sunken, and cold sweat periodically beaded on his forehead.

If the Master were to leave the room in such a haggard state, it would undoubtedly lead to even more ridiculous gossip—that the dignified Marquis Zhonglie, a man of the Zheng Family, had been sucked completely dry by four vixens.

But that was just a passing thought; the four women had no time for such jokes right now.

"He’s oozing that black, sticky gunk again."

"What kind of deviant Path is the Master even cultivating!"

Zizi said resentfully, "The Master must be sick! And that Brother Shisan knows exactly what’s wrong, but he refuses to tell us!"

Pingping asked, puzzled, "What kind of sickness?"

"A disease called ’Feng Bei’!"

"..."

The four women moved closer for a better look, then hurried out to order a bucket of hot water to be prepared so they could clean the Master’s body.

"It’s been thirteen whole days, and the Master hasn’t had a single drop of water!"

"Oh, Master... Please, please be alright!"