Global Examination

Zhou Qi barely touched the food in front of him.

She took a sip of wine, really only a little.

For when he picked up the glass, the Duke sitting at the head of the table gave her a very strange look.

Where is the weirdness?

It's as if he doesn't want to look over, but his eyes don't listen, and he insists on turning around...

There is a very uncoordinated stiffness.

After only one glance, he continued to smile and talk to the two candidates beside him.

But Zhou Qi was terrified.

As soon as her lips were stained with wine, she hurriedly put the glass down.

Dinner ends at 10:[-] p.m.

The footman leads the way and leads the guest back to the room.And this way, Zhou Qi was a little absent-minded.

"Xiao Zhou, are you okay? Why is your face so bad?" Zhao Jiatong asked worriedly.

"With the mask on, you can still see her face?" Gao Qi was addicted to alcohol, and his tongue became dizzy again.

"Can't you tell that your lips are pale?" Zhao Jiatong pushed him away, "Go away."

You Huo and Qin Chen walked in front and turned their heads when they heard the words.

"what happened?"

Zhou Qi hesitated for a few seconds.

A very absurd thought came to her mind - the Duke looked at her just now, as if to remind her not to drink.

But it's really ridiculous.

As the title NPC, the duke really doesn't look like a good person, would he give her such a reminder?Even if he really reminded her, would he only remind her?

What can she do?It doesn't make sense.

Moreover, these bosses in front of them have a very casual attitude towards food and drinks, and they eat as soon as they eat. They may have rich experience and strong strength, and they don't care if there is any problem at all.

Gao Qi especially drank a lot.

At this time, if you tell them that there may be a problem with alcohol, isn't that irritating?

Zhou Qi swallowed the words again, shook his head and said, "It's okay, I just don't like it here, I feel uncomfortable after staying for a long time, and I'm a little scared."

Yang Shu said calmly: "If you don't eat or drink, you must be hungry."

Zhou Qixin said that I am really not very hungry...

But this domineering young lady didn't want to provoke her, so she nodded and said, "Maybe."

Zhao Jiatong kicked Gao Qi: "Didn't you go to the rest place before you came? Did you buy food?"

"No." Gao Qi took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and said innocently, "I just bought this."

"...I want you to be a fart." Zhao Jiatong said: "Alcohol and cigarettes, can you have a good habit?"

Gao Qi was used to being nagged by her, so he was not angry, he just raised his hands in surrender and said, "Okay, I won't smoke, okay?"

As he spoke, he stuffed the cigarettes into his Youzhuo pocket.

"Well, I'll send it to you."

You Huo: "I don't smoke."

Gao Qi took out the lighter again, and stuffed it together: "I haven't seen you smoking, but aren't you always used to bring a pack when you are invigilating the exam?"

"Why?" Zhao Jiatong was curious.

Although they used to follow Examiner A, not everyone was as familiar with A.

Anyway, Zhao Jiatong had been a little afraid of him before.Curious, but afraid.

Gao Qi replied beside him, "I don't know why."

As he spoke, he secretly glanced at Examiner A himself.

You Huo didn't lift his head.

Gao Qi spread his hands to Zhao Jiatong and mouthed: Don't ask, I probably forgot why.

So it's really incomprehensible to say that the brain is broken.

Gao Qi and Zhao Jiatong sighed.

You Huo was holding the lighter and was about to put it in his pocket when two slender fingers suddenly stretched out from the side, grabbed the lighter and pulled it away.

Just by looking at his hands, he knew it was Qin Chen.

"What are you doing?" You Huo asked.

"I'm a little curious, let me take a look."

Qin Chen walked side by side with him, flicked the lighter between his fingers, and suddenly asked, "Who always borrowed a light from you before?"

Maybe it was because his voice was too deep, or maybe it was because he was very close.

You Huo's heart moved, as if something he had almost forgotten was brought up, and suddenly he had a memory again.

He looked at the gadget in Qin Chen's hand: "How do you know?"

"Because you asked me if I smoked."

Qin Chen said, looking up at him.

You Huo was quiet for a moment, then pulled the lighter back and put it in his pocket: "You said you don't smoke."

Qin Chen stopped, wandering around without stopping, and walked ahead in a blink of an eye.

After Gao Qi and Zhao Jiatong finished arguing, he looked up, wondering: "What's wrong? Why did you stop here?"

Qin Chen rubbed his empty fingertips, looked up and said, "It's nothing, I thought about something."

"What's the matter?" Gao Qi turned around and looked around: "Did you find anything?"

"It has nothing to do with the exam." Qin Jiu paused and said, "A little personal matter."

***

The duke's wine is a top-notch sleep aid.

After everyone returned to the house, they quietly changed rooms, and soon became sleepy.

In the middle of the night, the castle was silent.

The butler, Douglas, held a lamp and stood in front of the door of a certain room on the second floor, knocking a few times.

After a while, the door was opened.

The man scratched his hair and asked sleepily, "Who—"

The old housekeeper's skin was sagging and his face was old.The light from the oil lamp shone on his face from bottom to top, making the person who opened the door startled and woke up completely.

He was none other than Zhang Pengyi who was late for the dinner earlier.

"Guan, Mr. Butler?"

Douglas nodded and said, "I'm sorry, sir, to disturb your sleep."

Zhang Pengyi rubbed his face vigorously, his fingers trembling slightly.

He doesn't want to sleep.

The Duke's question at the dinner party frightened him. He and Jiajia were both scared and didn't plan to go to sleep at all, but fell asleep inexplicably, and now woke up again inexplicably.

"Yes... What's the matter?" Zhang Pengyi glanced into the room.

It was strange that when he woke up, Jiajia was still in a deep sleep.

It wasn't like this before, Jiajia would wake up when he turned over.

Douglas said slowly: "I don't know if you still remember, the Duke said that he has something to do with you tonight."

With just this sentence, Zhang Pengyi's bladder swelled up.

"Can it be daytime tomorrow?"

"I'm sorry, but I think you'd better go now."

Zhang Pengyi glanced at the corridor again.

There were obviously many people living in the castle, but it was extremely quiet at the moment.

Neither human speech nor snoring could be heard.

He remembered the Duke's reminder at the dinner party again, as if all the people who lived here would automatically fall asleep at night.

Not only that, but the servant who was guarding the door during the day was also missing.

Most of the wall fires in the corridor were extinguished, leaving only the flickering light in the old housekeeper's hand.

Zhang Pengyi broke out in a cold sweat.

He felt anxious and opened his mouth to call out, "Help—"

Before the word "ah" came out, the slow-moving old butler suddenly had a ferocious face, and an iron rod fell on his head.

Zhang Pengyi's calls for help stopped abruptly, and he fell to the ground.

On the big bed in the room, He Jiajia seemed to be deaf, still sleeping deeply, unconscious.

The old butler returned to his expressionless expression, and reached out to grab Zhang Pengyi's collar.

The skin on the back of his hands is wrinkled, and the pale background is covered with bruises.

Even though he was old and thin, he was able to drag Zhang Pengyi along without changing his expression.

In the corridor, the rustling sound of cloth rubbing against the ground, from the second floor to the first floor, finally stopped in front of a bedroom door in the west tower.

The old butler knocked on the door.

The Duke's voice came from inside, very soft and hoarse: "Is it Douglas?"

"Who else is there, sir?"

"You're a little slow today."

"Sorry, sir."

"It's ok."

The door creaked open, and the two male servants held the doorknob expressionlessly, as if they didn't see that the old butler was still dragging someone.

The duke stood there wearing a mask.

Even though it was midsummer night, he rubbed his hands as if afraid of the cold.

"It's okay, I have the most patience with you in the world." The Duke said softly, "What would I do without you?"

"I am always here."

Douglas dragged Zhang Pengyi into the huge bedroom.

The Duke followed behind him, still rubbing his hands, with a smile on his lips, a bit like the person in the oil painting, but...not exactly the same.

He said to the manservant without looking, "Get out."

The two male servants moved at every command, and closed the bedroom door after they went out.

Douglas threw Zhang Pengyi into an armchair, slowly brought a bunch of candles, and placed them one by one.

The Duke stood in front of the armchair, took off Zhang Pengyi's mask, and pinched his chin to look at it.

He gave a "tsk" and said, "I don't like this face very much, and you broke it."

"Sorry, sir."

"It's okay, you don't need his. But I don't like his figure either." The Duke picked up the collar of the other party again.

He coughed a few times, his lips turned bloody, and said regretfully: "But forget it, my heart can't hold it anymore."

***

Zhang Pengyi suddenly felt cold, and then had a splitting headache.

He vaguely heard voices, and suddenly became agitated, and opened his eyes to look.

I saw myself sitting in a strange room, surrounded by white candles and some dead branches.

He watched a lot of TV series, and suddenly thought of something like medieval witchcraft and ghosts.

But in the next second, these thoughts were emptied.

Because fear got the better of him - he found himself unable to move.

Douglas, the old butler, stood outside the ring, but the Duke stood inside, right in front of him.

The other person leaned forward, staring at him through the holes in the mask.

Zhang Pengyi smelled a strange smell.

Rotten, cold...

The Duke smiled.

If you look closely, you will find that his smile is very stiff, but you can't control it very well, you can only move the corners of his mouth.

"Look at me," said the Duke.

His eyeballs carried the power of bewitching, and Zhang Pengyi became a little dazed for no reason.

"Well-meaning guest, would you like to do me a favor?" the Duke asked softly.

Zhang Pengyi opened his mouth.

His lips and brain seem to be separated, he wants to say "no", but his lips are not obedient to say "yes".

He was struggling with himself, his eyes rolled up in the struggle, looking embarrassed and pitiful.

The Duke gave another "tsk" and grumbled to Douglas, "It's even uglier."

Zhang Pengyi didn't hear it.

He felt the pressure on his jaw tighten again, he saw the other person's eyes again, and then all the struggle slowly stopped.

After a while, he said with a hoarse voice and a blank expression: "Yes."

The Duke smiled: "Thank you very much."

***

There was a muffled sound in the bedroom, as if something had been pierced into the flesh.

It took a while to stop.

Then, there was the sound of thin ropes being dragged away.

There was a mirror with intricate patterns standing in the corner. The Duke stood in front of the mirror, wiping his fingers, and scrutinized the people inside.

He changed into Zhang Pengyi's dress, with the buttons on his upper body unbuttoned, and there were fine lines of blood on his neck and waist, like even stitches.

Douglas buttoned him up.

The Duke said: "I thought about it and decided not to use his face."

"And what about this gentleman's wife?" said Douglas. "You can tell they're very fond of each other."

"Lovely...that would be the best." The Duke said, "Let's try it later."

The Duke touched his chin again, and said, "This face needs to be replaced as soon as possible. I don't think it's been very obedient these two days."

While speaking, he rolled his eyes nervously, and moved his neck left and right twice.

It was like...his head was struggling.

"I see, sir," said the steward.

"It's too troublesome to put it together like this. It would be great if there is a perfect guest." The Duke thought for a while, and then said: "This dinner is lucky, I saw two such guests. If there is a perfect guest among them Whoever can go against my request and make a little mistake, that would be great."

"Hope they're the ones who don't follow the rules," responded the steward. "I'll pray for you."

The Duke lifted his chin and told the butler to button it all the way.

He glanced at the butler and said, "Douglas, your body is too old this time, when can you change it?"

Douglas: "Waiting for you to reunite with your wife."

The Duke's eyes softened a little, and he said, "Come on, didn't you say that this guest's wife is very affectionate with him? Then my Alisa will be back soon."

He turned to Douglas again and said, "When you get back your youthful face, I want to find a painter to add a few strokes to those oil paintings and paint you on it."

***

The night was darker and the sky was cloudy again.

A few thunderclaps rolled over, and the rain that had stopped not long ago started again.

The stone wall became damp, and the water vapor formed long marks.

Douglas returned to the door of Zhang Pengyi's room with the oil lamp.

He said to the people behind him, "You go in first."

Wearing Zhang Pengyi's dress, the Duke walked into the house and went straight to the bedroom.

On the crimson bed, He Jiajia curled up under the quilt, sleeping deeply.

The Duke sat down by the bed, took off the other party's mask, and looked at her sleeping face.

In his chest, the beating of the heart became fast and urgent, and he closed his eyes to feel it.

To Douglas: "Good... very good, I can feel..."

There was another circle of white candles beside the bed.

The Duke's eyes were much gentler.

He lightly patted He Jiajia's face and said, "Honey, wake up."

The person who was still asleep a second ago actually woke up.

She half-closed her eyes and asked vaguely, "Pengyi? Why are you up?"

The Duke caressed her face, looked down into her eyes, and said, "Wake up, open your eyes and look at me."

"Right, that is it."

"Good girl, would you do me a favor?"

……

***

The thunder suddenly became louder.

On the third floor directly above the bedroom, Zhou Qi suddenly woke up with a sudden heartbeat.

She suddenly dreamed of her separated boyfriend, who was standing in front of a huge full-length mirror, wearing a dress from the castle, holding a mask that had been taken off.

He turned pale and said to her, "Qiqi, I'm a little cold..."

She wanted to walk over, but the other party stepped aside and said, "Don't come here, don't look into my eyes, sleep well, it's so cold here..."

Then she woke up with a start.

Zhao Jiatong, who was next to him, exuded the faint scent of red wine, and slept soundly.

Zhou Qi sat on the bed for a while, feeling hot and cold.

She remembered what her boyfriend said in her dream, and lay back down again.

Instead of touching the bed, they slept on the carpet.

She opened her eyes, watching the vapor sliding down the wall.

as if someone was crying...

She shrank her body, leaned against Zhao Jiatong and closed her eyes again.

……

3 points in the early hours.

The room on the third floor near the east tower suddenly rang the phone alarm.

After making a fuss, he was pressed down.

Continued after a few minutes, was pressed again.

……

You Huo finally withdrew his arms and opened his eyes.

He got up angry with a full stomach, frowned and looked aside.

Qin Chen stood beside him, looking down at him: "If you don't wake up, I will take drastic measures."

You Huo closed his eyes for a while, and finally sat up.

With a low air pressure, he said, "What are you calling me for? I set an alarm clock."

Qin Chen shook the phone, pointed to the screen and asked him, "Do you mean the alarm clock that rang eight times?"

You Huo: "..."

With a slumped face, he touched the empty trouser pocket, looked at Qin Chen for a moment and said, "Why is my mobile phone in your hand?"

"It's so noisy, I stole it."

Qin Chen bent down and said, "Since you're awake, the property will return to its original owner."

Of course, they don't sleep in a dress coat that binds their hands and feet, only a white shirt and trousers with pockets close to their hips.

You Huo watched as someone withdrew his finger, and a corner of the phone protruded from his pocket.

……

Gao Qi took out his coat from the bedroom, and saw You Huo standing up from the animal skin bench, lowering his eyes and pushing the phone into his pocket.

The dress here is also boots, at first glance it really looks like the invigilator.

Gao Qi was stunned for a moment, and said, "It's the same boots, but if you put them on your legs, they will be long and straight, and I'll be strangled..."

You Huo looked up at him.

Gao Qi felt that he couldn't say anything good, so he interrupted quickly: "Forget it, pretend I didn't say it. That... really want to harass the Duke now? Why do I think this idea is so bad?"

"You don't have to go." You Huo said.

Gao Qi felt that there was a crack in the friendship.

Just as he was about to persuade him a few more words, a person suddenly jumped down from the balcony.

Zhao Jiatong said to them: "Stop harassing the Duke, save your companion's life first."

You Huo was taken aback.

Zhao Jiatong pointed to the side and said, "There is something wrong with Xiao Zhou, why don't you take a look?"