The Cannon Fodder Ex-Wife Returns as the Black Moonlight - Chapter 12

Shang Shiqian walked out of the room and headed downstairs.

Most of the first floor was dark. Only the recessed ceiling lights cast a soft glow over the living room.

Why are the maids off duty so early tonight?

Just as she was about to turn around and go back upstairs, she heard a noise coming from the bar area on the other side of the dining room.

Someone was there?

The sound startled her, but then she reminded herself that rising from the dead was already terrifying enough. What could possibly be more frightening now? A thief, or a ghost?

With her nerves settled, she went over and flipped on the lights.

Bright light flooded the bar, revealing Wei Yixian sitting there with a drink.

Wei Yixian squinted against the sudden brightness, her lips curling into a faint, icy smile.

Is she here to seduce me now?

Shang Shiqian was slightly surprised to see Wei Yixian drinking but then found it perfectly reasonable. After all, who else in this house would treat million-yuan bottles of wine like tap water?

She began to understand why Wei Yixian’s complexion looked so unhealthy despite her daily tennis routines. Drinking this much hard liquor every night was bound to take a toll on her body.

“What are you looking for?” Wei Yixian asked first.

She had intentionally cleared out the space to give “Shang Shiyu” a chance. She wanted to see whether this woman would reveal her true purpose, or perhaps even try to seduce her, just as the system had predicted.

Sure enough, the woman had shown up. But she didn’t look seductive at all. She was wearing plain black-and-white plaid pajamas, the kind that looked cheap and dull. There wasn’t even a hint of suggestiveness.

Wei Yixian began doubting the system’s so-called seduction tutorial.

If she compiled all her past experiences of being seduced, they would probably make for a more useful reference.

Shang Shiqian replied, “I was looking for your housekeeper.”

Wei Yixian: ?

“I mean the maid, domestic help, or whatever you usually call them.”

Wei Yixian: …

She didn’t need a definition for the word. She wanted to know what kind of game Shang Shiyu was playing.

“Why are you looking for them?”

“I wanted to ask if they had a physical calendar.”

Wei Yixian blinked, then frowned. “What did you say?”

“I want a desk calendar. If not that, then even a small wall calendar would do.”

Wei Yixian felt like she was being mocked.

Coming downstairs in the middle of the night to ask for a calendar? Was this a joke?

Suppressing the irritation bubbling in her chest, she glared coldly at Shang Shiqian. “Why do you need one?”

“To keep track of my schedule.”

After the system mentioned that the original plotline had progressed, Shang Shiqian had begun to worry. If everything was truly preordained, then she was destined to fail this mission.

Without sufficient energy, the system could only sustain her life for a month. Two days had already passed. She had only twenty-eight days left.

She wanted to spend that time doing the things she had always wanted to do but never had the chance. She wanted to leave behind as few regrets as possible.

Since she didn’t have a phone, she couldn’t rely on a digital calendar. So she figured a physical one would work just fine.

But seeing Wei Yixian’s mood shift so quickly, her expression darkening as fast as a child’s in early spring, Shang Shiqian hesitated. Did I cross a line with that request? Surely she wouldn’t be stingy over something as small as a calendar?

Looking at Shang Shiqian, who showed no signs of deceit, Wei Yixian found her anger suddenly stalling, stuck in her chest with nowhere to go.

It felt like trying to punch a pillow, soft and completely ineffective.

She rubbed her temples, which were starting to throb from the alcohol. “There isn’t one in the house. I’ll have someone bring it tomorrow.”

She froze for a moment after speaking.

Why had she said “in the house” as if this woman was part of her home?

It was like her subconscious had already accepted this stranger as family.

Wei Yixian shifted the blame in her mind. It must be that face. It was too misleading.

Shang Shiqian noticed the softened tone and smiled a little awkwardly. “Thank you. Sorry to trouble you. You should get some rest.”

She turned to leave but paused, hesitating. Then she added, “You really shouldn’t drink so much. It’ll hurt your performance during your morning tennis.”

Wei Yixian called out, “Wait.”

Shang Shiqian looked back, puzzled.

“Do you drink? Want to join me for a couple glasses?”

Shang Shiqian pulled out a barstool and sat down across from her. “I’ve had alcohol before, but I don’t like it. It makes me tired and clouds my thoughts.”

As a professional Go player, she needed to stay completely focused during matches. Some games could last hours or even days. She had once competed in an eighteen-hour game over two days in Japan. That required more than just mental stamina. It took physical discipline too, which was why her lifestyle had always been consistent and healthy.

Although Wei Yixian saw this as a perfect chance to get Shang Shiyu drunk and extract some secrets, she held back after recalling the earlier conversation with the system.

Tonight’s exchange had revealed something important. Shang Shiyu knew nothing about her schedule, but the system did.

That meant, without the system, Shang Shiyu was just an ordinary woman.

The system, on the other hand, clearly had access to highly classified information that was far beyond the reach of modern science.

But its data was flawed. It was vague and sometimes completely off-base.

Take tonight, for instance. She had attended a business banquet and ran into Yin Zaishui. That woman had later changed seats and ended up at her table.

Just because the table had candles, the system considered it a candlelit dinner?

As for the birthday gift, about an hour ago, she had called her secretary, who had gone back to the office and found the gift Yin Zaishui had left behind on the sofa.

The system claimed that counted as accepting a birthday present?

It was so absurd she nearly laughed.

Clearly, the system and Shang Shiyu were both more complicated than she had assumed.

There were still too many secrets buried beneath the surface. Until she held all the cards, she wouldn’t act recklessly.

She downed her wine in one gulp, lowered her gaze, and then lifted it again, her eyes hazy in that way only drunken eyes could be.

“Shang Shiqian, don’t you care where I went tonight?”

Shang Shiqian’s breath caught.

Does she recognize me?

But when she saw that Wei Yixian appeared tipsy and noticed that the system remained unresponsive, with no rise in heartache value and no shift in affection level, she allowed herself to relax a little.

A wild thought crept in. Could she be drunk enough to mistake me for myself?

She held back the urge to come clean and said, “I’m… Shang Shiyu.”

Wei Yixian scoffed internally. Of course she knew this was Shang Shiyu. But she pretended to be drunk and mistaken to give this woman another chance to come closer.

She had just been thinking. Maybe Shang Shiyu hadn’t made any seductive moves because she was used to being the one in control.

Either way, if Shang Shiyu intended to use that face to win her over, now was the time to act.

“You’re lying. You look exactly like Shang Shiqian,” Wei Yixian murmured, her voice low and sorrowful.

Shang Shiqian knew some people remembered everything they said when drunk. So she chose her words carefully.

What puzzled her most was that after eight years, there was not a single photo of her left in this house. Why did Wei Yixian remember her face so clearly?

In the original novel, her name hadn’t even been mentioned. Clearly, she hadn’t mattered at all.

Not that she blamed her. Their marriage had never been built on emotion.

In that year they spent together, she hadn’t paid much attention to Wei Yixian either. What right did she have to demand anything now?

Oddly, she felt relieved.

All of yesterday’s uncertainty faded at that moment. Because she saw that Wei Yixian hadn’t changed at all. She still carried that icy, untouchable exterior, yet beneath it all, a quiet warmth remained.

——

System: Host, you’re hopeless!

Shang Shiqian: Huh?

System: Didn’t you notice she was trying to seduce you?

Shang Shiqian: What made you think that?

System: She gave you the chance to seduce her. That basically counts as her making the first move!

Wei Yixian: Are you sure you should be making conclusions at all?