Chapter 446 The Queen’s Gambit
The same group that had seemed so aloof earlier now crowded around Yunice, arms outstretched.
“Check me first! Cramer, stop pushing! You’re the one who admitted to feeling weak earlier. What’s the point if your pulse is gone?”
“My left wrist feels weak – what if the right one doesn’t?”
“What are you, half-paralyzed? One side works and the other doesn’t?”
Just then, Maine walked in and saw Yunice taking pulses. She frowned. “What are you guys doing?”
Someone looked back and answered, “Maine, Yunice is taking our pulses. And she’s good. She even figured out what I ate two days ago!”
“Hey, don’t you always complain about cramps? Make room for Maine – hers are the worst, let her go first.”
With a flurry of movement, the crowd parted. “Ladies first! Maine, your turn!”
Maine frowned and gave Yunice a tight look, then turned to the group. “She’s still young. It’s fine to mess around, but don’t go taking her prescriptions seriously.”
She grabbed the slip of paper Cramer was holding and ripped it in half.
Then she turned to the person who’d been impressed with Yunice earlier. “You post like 800 updates a day. Anyone who pays attention knows everything about you, right down to how often you go to the bathroom. Figuring out what you ate isn’t exactly rocket science.”
“Maine, don’t be a killjoy,” someone muttered. “We’re just here to have fun. You and Wyatt have been married a while – why act like she’s still a stranger?”
“I’m not throwing a fit,” Maine said, setting her drink down. “Just saying – don’t go popping random pills.”
Yunice looked at her politely and asked, “You don’t really post much online, do you?”
Maine glanced up at her, wary.
Yunice said calmly, “Your complexion’s dull with a slight greenish tint. Puffiness under the eyes. Classic signs of liver stagnation and dampness in the spleen.”
Maine’s expression turned openly hostile – Yunice made it sound like she was some kind of monster.
But deep down, Maine knew every word was true. Her makeup routine was long and heavy, just to cover up her tired appearance. Years of nonstop work had drained her, and she’d always blamed the stress for making her look worse.
Yunice continued, “You probably get breast tenderness before your period, sticky mouth in the morning, and fatigue throughout the day. You’re dealing with both blood deficiency compounded by internal dampness. You should take astragalus and amomum. No cold drinks. Tap the gallbladder meridian in the morning, soak in tuckahoe and cinnamon twig tea at night.”
“Balance your liver, and your skin will clear up. You might even earn yourself an extra thirty minutes of sleep in the morning.”
No more struggling with heavy concealer.
Maine stared at her. Even though Yunice had hit every nail on the head, she snapped, “That’s all wrong. My skin’s fine. No need to lie through your teeth.”
Seeing that she was getting defensive, the group quickly jumped in to smooth things over. “Alright, alright. With medicine, it’s all about belief – if you believe in it, it works. If not, that’s fine too. It’s just for fun.”
“Now that the drinks are here, let’s play truth or dare!”
Yunice smiled faintly. “I’m not playing. You all know each other too well – none of your secrets will matter. So clearly the game’s just a trick to dig up my secrets, isn’t it?”
Everyone burst out laughing. “But if you’ve got good luck, you won’t have to do anything.”
“Play a few rounds, get to know us better. Eventually, you’ll learn our dirt too.”
Yunice’s blunt honesty actually made it harder for anyone to target her openly.
Once Wyatt and the others returned, the game officially began.
Rules were simple: whoever lost spun the bottle. Whoever the bottle pointed to had to complete a dare or answer a truth.
To decide who would spin first, they drew cards – highest card wins.
Everyone flipped their cards, and as luck would have it, Yunice’s was the lowest.
The “chosen one.”
She stood and gave the bottle a calculated flick.
All eyes followed its spin. Slowly, it came to a stop – pointing directly at Maine.
Yunice now had the power to assign her punishment. She thought for a moment, then said, “Let’s go with a dare.”
Maine visibly relaxed. Truths were much harder to navigate.
For someone like her, dares were a piece of cake – even something extreme like kissing someone next to her wouldn’t faze her.
But if Yunice’s request was too outrageous, Maine could just spin it like she was being the mature one. Yunice’s eyes sparkled with sly amusement. After a few seconds, she announced sweetly, “Your dare is… spill some juicy dirt on Wyatt. How many women, besides me, has he almost gotten involved with?”