Surviving In Another World With My Three Cups!-Chapter 125: LADY’S BANQUET 1

San Na stepped into her quarters and took a seat, her eyes closed as she played with her fingers slightly. Xuan, her young personal maid, stood beside her, her face filled with worry.

"I know you want to say something. Out with it already," she said with her eyes still closed.

Xuan finally responded, "My lady, what exactly are we going to do about this new concubine? The General is obviously bewitched by her. What if after he marries her, the General discards you and makes her his main wife instead? W-What about the small Young Master Mo Shang? What i-if he doesn’t make him his heir—"

San Na raised her hand, stopping Xuan from continuing.

San Na slowly opened her eyes, and the calm look on her face disappeared, replaced by a cold and distant one. Her fingers stopped moving, resting on her lap.

"Getting rid of Lin Xu," she said quietly, her voice steady but sharp, "won’t be our problem for now." She looked up at Xuan, her eyes dark. "There’s someone else who already hates her even more than we do. We just have to give them a chance to destroy each other."

Xuan looked confused. "You mean... we won’t do anything?"

San Na gave a small smile, though it didn’t reach her eyes. "Why should we? If we step in now, it’ll only draw attention. It’s better to let others do the dirty work. When they’re both hurt and weak, we’ll still be standing, untouched."

She stood up slowly, her robe brushing softly against the floor as she walked to the side of the room where her plants were kept. The warm light from the window shone on her face as she reached out to touch one of the flowers.

"People are like plants," she said softly. "They grow strong when cared for, but if their roots begin to rot, they destroy themselves." She plucked a small leaf and let it fall to the ground, her expression calm and cold.

Xuan watched her quietly, a shiver running down her spine. Her lady always thought ahead, always calm, always dangerous.

San Na turned around and said in a low voice, "Xuan, go and let Lady Xu out of her quarters. It’s time she stopped taking her medicine."

For a moment, Xuan was silent. Then a slow, devious smile appeared on her face. "Yes, my lady," she said softly, bowing her head before leaving the room quickly.

San Na stayed by the plants, looking down at the fallen leaf. A faint smile crossed her lips. "Sometimes," she murmured, "you don’t have to pull the weeds out yourself... just stop watering them."

.....

Seated on her bed, Lin Xu just sighed as the scene from earlier replayed in her head. Just then, the door opened, and standing before her was a familiar face—one she was still trying to get accustomed to.

"Susu? You finally showed up. I thought you abandoned me," Lin Xu said with a smile, tapping on her side for Susu to take a seat.

Smiling widely, Susu, who was now in the form of a female, quickly sat beside Lin Xu, her teasing expression coming back. "It seems like the host is in a good mood. It’s expected since Mo Ying was so protective of her this morning."

Immediately she said that, Lin Xu’s face blushed red as she frowned and took the pillow beside her, smacking Susu on the face with it. "Shut up, you airhead!" she shouted.

Susu quickly stood up to dodge it while she laughed, almost becoming out of breath. "Finally, the host is back to her usual self!"

Lin Xu tried to hide her smile, but the corners of her lips curved slightly. "You really have too much time on your hands," she muttered, crossing her arms.

Susu sat back down beside her, still laughing softly. "Oh, come on, don’t act like you didn’t enjoy the way he defended you. The man almost strangled that woman for you!"

Lin Xu’s cheeks turned even redder. "That’s not something to laugh about!" she snapped, though her voice wasn’t very convincing. "He shouldn’t have done that in front of everyone... now the whole family must think I bewitched him or something."

Susu tilted her head, grinning. "And do you care what they think?"

Lin Xu fell silent for a moment. Her gaze softened as she looked toward the window. "No... not really," she admitted quietly. "I just don’t want any more trouble. I’ve had enough of that."

Susu’s teasing smile faded a little, replaced with a gentler one. "You know, for someone who claims to hate trouble, you attract a lot of it."

Lin Xu gave her a side glance. "And whose fault is that? You’re the one who dragged me into all this in the first place."

Susu gasped dramatically. "Excuse me! You were the one who got drunk and slipped to your death. Without me, you’d probably still be dead right now."

Lin Xu rolled her eyes. "Whatever, you haven’t made it any easier for me either."

Standing up, Susu’s expression became serious. "Now, let’s get back to business. I’m here to deliver your task."

Susu crossed her arms, her playful grin slowly fading. "Now let’s get back to business," she said, her tone suddenly serious. "I’m here to deliver your next task."

Lin Xu blinked, tilting her head. "Task? What task?"

Susu raised her hand, and in front of Lin Xu, a glowing box suddenly appeared in midair. Inside, neat letters formed clearly. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

[Main Task: Attend the upcoming Lady’s Banquet at the Mo residence and successfully complete your designated objective.

Reward: Mind Reading Ability x5.]

Lin Xu stared at the floating box with wide eyes. "Wait, what is this? Mind reading? What does that even mean?" she asked, her voice rising in confusion.

Susu smiled, clearly enjoying her reaction. "It means exactly what it says, host. Complete the task, and you’ll get rewarded. Simple."

"Simple?" Lin Xu repeated, pointing at the box. "How am I supposed to complete something I don’t even understand? And what exactly is this Lady’s Banquet? Is it some sort of tea party?"

Susu’s grin widened, her eyes glinting with amusement. "You’ll find out soon enough."

Before Lin Xu could say anything more, Susu’s body began to fade, turning transparent like mist.

"H-Hey! Don’t disappear now! Explain it properly!" Lin Xu shouted, reaching out, but her hand only passed through thin air.

Susu’s laughter echoed faintly as she vanished completely. "Good luck, host~ You’re going to need it."

The room fell silent. Lin Xu sat frozen for a moment, still staring at where Susu had been.

"...Unbelievable," she muttered, rubbing her forehead. "That spirit really knows how to drop trouble and run."

Just as she stood up, a soft knock came from the door.

"Come in," Lin Xu said tiredly.

One of the Mo residence maids stepped in, bowing slightly. "Miss Lin Xu, Lady San Na has called for a meeting with all the general’s wives. You are to be present immediately."

Lin Xu blinked in surprise, then let out a deep sigh. "Of course she did," she murmured under her breath.

As the maid waited, Lin Xu straightened her robe and muttered quietly to herself, "Trouble really does find me no matter where I go..."

With that, she followed the maid out of her room, already feeling that this "Lady’s Banquet" task was going to be anything but simple.

.....

Meanwhile, in his study, Mo Ying was reading some scrolls when Fuhan entered and bowed.

"Young Master," Fuhan said, "Lady San Na has called for a meeting between all the General’s wives. Lady Chu Ming has also been released from her confinement to attend."

Mo Ying didn’t look up right away. "Did Lady Xu go as well?" he asked calmly.

"Yes," Fuhan replied. "Lady Xu finally left her quarters to attend the meeting."

At that, Mo Ying put down the scroll in his hand. His expression turned serious. "So our suspicion was correct," he said quietly. "Her illness wasn’t natural. Someone has been behind it."

Fuhan looked surprised. "You mean someone poisoned her medicine?"

Mo Ying nodded slightly. "The physician found traces of something harmful mixed into her medicine. Whoever did it wanted her to weaken slowly, without anyone noticing."

"That’s terrible," Fuhan said in shock.

Mo Ying’s eyes darkened. "Now that she’s finally out, they’ll likely try something again. The meeting is the perfect opportunity."

He paused, then continued, "Send one of our maids to the meeting. She must watch carefully. If anything suspicious happens, report to me immediately. Whoever is behind this will not go unpunished. Also, find out whatever San Na will say or instruct Lin Xu to do for the banquet. I’m sure whatever occurs will be directed towards her. Report to me immediately."

"Yes, Young Master," Fuhan said, bowing. "I’ll do that at once."

As Fuhan left, Mo Ying stood in silence, his thoughts heavy. He looked toward the door, his voice low.

"Lin Xu... no matter what happens, I won’t let anyone harm you again."