The Witch in the Woods: The Transmigration of Hazel-Anne Davis
Chapter 38: The Day That Never Should Have Come

Chapter 38: The Day That Never Should Have Come

The Crown Prince’s estate was alive before dawn.

Servants ran like ants across the courtyards, carrying bolts of red silk, trays of peaches, and painted paper charms for prosperity. Red lanterns were hoisted onto wooden poles, fluttering in the breeze like bloodied moons. Groomsmen hung crimson banners along the gates with trembling fingers, careful not to place any of them upside down. It had happened once—one upside-down "double happiness" character—and that bride had died before the ink on her marriage scroll had dried.

No one wanted to be responsible for that again.

From the outside, it looked like a celebration.

From the inside, it was controlled chaos.

And the heart of it all—the so-called bride—had not been seen since last night.

-----

Inside the estate’s bridal wing, a pair of lacquered doors swung open.

The Crown Prince’s favorite concubine, Lady Yuan, stepped in with two maids trailing behind her, her light pink silk robes brushing the floor like waves lapping over a shallow grave. In her arms, she carried the wedding robes. Red silk and phoenix gold, embroidered with dragons and layered in weight as if to crush the will of whoever wore them.

One of the maids followed closely, holding all of the wedding jewelry on a tray between her arms. The golden phoenix crown, the ornate hairpins with red rubies, green emeralds, and pristine pearls, and the lavish gold earrings seemed to take on a life of their own in the morning sun.

"Do you think someone will finally have a chance to wear this?" Lady Yuan asked lightly, lips curling into a smirk. "Or should we go ahead and set up the funeral table now?"

The maids didn’t answer, but one of them made a subtle sign against evil.

The gown had been stitched eight years ago for the Crown Prince’s very first bride. She’d died of a snake bite in the middle of her bedroom. The second had choked on bird bones while eating a bun at a Buddhist temple. The third fell from the balcony of a restaurant that had made sure to make the barrier so high that it wasn’t possible to do just that. The fourth vanished without a trace on her way to the Crown Prince’s estate. The fifth drank poisoned tea from a cup that held no tea. The sixth drowned in her bath, which didn’t have any water in it. The seventh hadn’t made it through the gate.

Now the eighth was to wear the hand-me-downs of the first fiancée.

No one had even bothered to commission a new one for this Zhao Xinying. Everyone knew exactly what the Crown Prince must be thinking about when it came to the woman who lived with bandits for eleven years.

Lady Yuan didn’t knock. She didn’t announce herself.

She slammed the doors open.

And screamed.

------

The scream shattered the morning stillness like a blade through silk.

Guards rushed from the corridors. The maids scattered their flower petals. A tray of red candles hit the floor with a crash. Zhu Deming appeared within seconds, sword in hand. The Crown Prince came last, slower but somehow more dangerous for it—his robe unbelted, his face twisted in cold fury.

He had expected death.

He’d been prepared to face another corpse in his house.

He just hadn’t expected the corpse to be one of his own guards.

Blood pooled at the base of the far inner wall, still dark and wet. A man lay there, jaw slack, eyes open, arm missing. A wolf paw print sat cleanly in the gore.

And on the bed...

Zhao Xinying didn’t even open her eyes.

She rolled onto her side, hugging the wolf curled against her like a stuffed pillow, and muttered, "Could someone shut her up?"

Lady Yuan’s scream cut off mid-breath.

Zhao Xinying sighed and buried her face into the fur of the very much alive wolf on her bed. "I want more sleep. Surely to god, we aren’t having the wedding at such a horrendous hour. Wake me up in another three hours."

Zhu Deming blinked once, then pressed a hand to his mouth to hide the curve of his lips, his eyes turning soft as he gazed down upon the woman on the bed. She was so soft, almost boneless, as she lay under the red silken sheets.

Red wasn’t her color, no matter how much it looked like blood. His eyes narrowed as he looked around the room. Everything here was wrong, completely wrong. Xinying needed to be surrounded in green... a deep green that looked like the center of her mountain. The type of green that screamed life, even as it warned of death.

That was the appropriate color for his woman.

Turning to his older brother, Zhu Deming wasn’t surprised to see that Zhu Mingyu said nothing at all.

The guards moved forward, swords drawn—but the wolf growled once, a low, ancient warning, and they halted instantly.

"I would ask how this happened," Zhu Mingyu finally said, his voice flat, "but I think the answer would insult us both."

"She killed him," said one of the guards, half in awe, half in dread.

"Of course she did," Zhu Deming said dryly. "Try to keep in mind, this guard made it past the other guards. Past the maid. Past the entire estate. And still didn’t live long enough to complete his mission." He gave his older brother a sideways glance. "I think it’s time you stop underestimating her and see what exactly she can do when she isn’t even trying."

Zhao Xinying lifted her head, finally blinking awake. Her hair was tousled, her cheek red from where she had been pressed against Shadow’s back. "Are we seriously doing the wedding now?" she asked without interest. "Or is this where the next assassin tries to finish what the first one couldn’t?"

Lady Yuan let out a horrified breath.

Zhao Xinying’s gaze sharpened. "What? Don’t like corpses in your bridal suite? Then maybe next time, knock. Or I’ll make sure to dump the body in your bedroom instead of my own."

The room went silent again.

Then Zhu Mingyu turned on his heel. "Burn the body. Replace the guards. Have her bathed and dressed."

Lady Yuan opened her mouth.

"If I hear your voice one more time before the ceremony," the Crown Prince said coldly, "I’ll send you back to the outer palace. Pregnant or not."

Lady Yuan went pale.

He didn’t wait to see if she obeyed.

He was already gone, Zhu Deming chuckled, following behind him.