Midnight Vengeance

The room was dark, bathed in the silver glow of moonlight that filtered through the sheer curtains. Qin Yanzhou lay beside her, his arm slung possessively over her waist, his chest rising and falling with steady breaths. Wu Mei stared at the ceiling, unable to sleep. The events of the day replayed in her mind—the party, He Sheng, the way Qin had kissed her like a man desperate to claim what was his.

But even with his warmth beside her, she couldn't quiet the voice in her mind. The one that whispered of blood, betrayal, and revenge.

She carefully slid out from under his arm, moving inch by inch until she was free. He murmured something in his sleep but didn't stir. Her feet touched the cold floor. She padded silently to the closet, pulling out a long black coat and slipping it over her nightdress. Then, she opened a drawer, retrieving the black mask she had hidden there days ago—just in case.

Wu Mei didn't look back as she stepped into the hallway. Her heart thumped with purpose. She was no longer the naive girl who had once trusted her stepsister. In her past life, she had loved her like family—only to be betrayed, poisoned, and left to die alone.

Tonight, she wouldn't make the same mistake.

Outside, the city lay in silence, shrouded in the kind of stillness only midnight could bring. Wu Mei moved quickly, her heels silent against the pavement as she slipped into the shadows. The cab ride was short—too short. Every passing streetlight flickered memories of her former life. The pain. The betrayal. The suffocating terror of realizing she had been murdered by someone she had once called sister.

Now, reborn with knowledge and strength, she would be the one to deliver fear.

The mansion loomed ahead, tall and silent behind iron gates. Her stepsister had always been one for grandeur—sponsored by her wealthy father and nurtured by envy. Wu Mei scaled the wall with practiced ease, landing lightly in the flowerbeds. She slipped through the side entrance she remembered, knowing the servants would be asleep at this hour.

Inside, the hallways were eerily unchanged. Cold marble floors, expensive art on the walls, and that same sickeningly sweet lavender perfume lingering in the air.

She moved like a shadow—soundless, precise—until she reached the room at the end of the hallway.

Her stepsister's bedroom.

Wu Mei hesitated for only a second before reaching for the door.

It creaked open.

The room was drenched in darkness, only the moonlight illuminating the vanity and bed. Her stepsister, Liang Yue, lay asleep, tangled in silk sheets, her lips parted slightly. She looked peaceful, even innocent.

But Wu Mei knew better.

She stepped into the room, pulling the mask up over her face. Her long coat brushed against the floor as she walked, slow and deliberate. She opened a drawer, took out the old music box she had given Yue as a gift years ago, and let the melody play.

The soft tune echoed through the room like a ghost's lullaby.

Liang Yue stirred, her brows furrowing as the tune reached her ears. She turned, eyes fluttering open.

And then she screamed.

"Mei...? What kind of sick joke is this?"

Wu Mei's eyes narrowed. "You don't recognize me."

"I do, obviously—it's you. But why are you dressed like this? Why sneak into my house in the middle of the night? What's wrong with you?" Liang Yue's voice trembled, but there was no trace of guilt. Only fear. Confusion.

Wu Mei took a step closer, fury boiling beneath her calm surface. "You don't remember, do you?"

"Remember what?"

"The fire. The pain. The way you smiled while I died."

Liang Yue's brows furrowed. "What the hell are you talking about?! Are you drunk? High?!"

"You killed me!" Wu Mei shouted suddenly, her voice echoing in the silent room. "In my past life—you left me to die in the fire!"

Liang Yue blinked. Her mouth opened, then closed again.

"I... I don't know what kind of twisted dream you had," she stammered. "But I haven't done anything to you! You're the one breaking into my house in the middle of the night wearing a mask like some lunatic—!"

Wu Mei stared at her, chest heaving.

So... she really didn't remember. Of course she wouldn't. This life was a reset. Wu Mei had come back. But Liang Yue… she remained the same girl with clean hands in this timeline. No blood on her conscience. No nightmares haunting her sleep.

Wu Mei inhaled sharply, turning her back to her. "You may not remember, but I do. Every second of it."

"Mei—"

"I'm not here to kill you," Wu Mei said coldly. "Not yet. I want you to live your life, Liang Yue. I want you to smile, to succeed, to sleep peacefully—until one day, everything crashes down, and you have no idea why. Because that's what you gave me last time."

She dropped the old music box on the vanity with a hard clink, the familiar tune starting again. Eerie. Childlike. Wrong.

"Remember that sound," she said, stepping back into the shadows. "One day, it'll haunt you too."

Sleep well my sister

And with that, Wu Mei turned and disappeared into the darkness, leaving behind only silence and terror.

It was past 3 a.m. when Wu Mei returned to the penthouse. She slipped through the door, discarding her coat and mask in the hallway closet. Her feet were sore, her body tired, but her heart—

It beat with a strange kind of peace.

She turned the corner, heading toward the bedroom—and froze.

Qin Yanzhou wasn't in bed.

He was sitting by the front door, dressed in a robe, arms crossed, eyes stormy.

Her heart sank. "Yanzhou..."

He stood slowly, stepping toward her. "Where were you?"

"I—"

"Don't lie," he said softly, but the threat in his tone was unmistakable.

Wu Mei looked into his eyes. He wasn't just angry—he was hurt. Afraid. She realized then he had woken up alone and thought she had left him.

"I had something I had to do," she said carefully.

"At three in the morning? Dressed like a shadow?" His jaw tensed. "Do you think I wouldn't notice you were gone?"

She hesitated. "It wasn't about you. It was something I needed to do—for myself."

"Are you in danger?"

"No. Not anymore."

He stepped closer, his hands curling at his sides. "Tell me the truth, Wu Mei. I can handle anything—except losing you."

Her lips trembled.

He reached for her, pulling her into his arms. She collapsed against him, burying her face in his chest.

"I didn't leave you," she whispered. "I swear. I just needed... closure."

He held her tighter. "Whatever it is—next time, take me with you. I'll fight your demons if you let me."

"I know," she said. "But this one... I had to face alone."

They stood there in the silence, wrapped in each other.

Until Qin Yanzhou lifted her chin.

"I thought I'd lost you again," he said. "Don't ever do that to me."

"I won't," she promised.

But deep down, she knew this was only the beginning. Vengeance came with a cost—and her past still had many shadows left to face.