Misunderstanding?
Lin Qianshuang heard Xiao Lanle’s shout and turned to look carefully at a spot on the grass. The young man’s tattered clothes were soaked in blood, clinging to the wounds where congealed black blood clots had formed. His face was swollen, the puffiness pushing his eyes down to mere slits. His fingernails were covered in dirt, and his clothes hung like rags on his body, emitting a pungent odor of blood and sweat.
If it weren’t for the young man’s right hand gripping the sparkling Barbie pink scabbard, Lin Qianshuang wouldn’t have recognized this squinty-eyed man with his face swollen like a pig’s head as the elegant and proud son of heaven, Liang Jingxuan, from the original text.
Lin Qianshuang felt a strange sense of satisfaction watching Liang Jingxuan crawl half-dead on the grass. She had no intention of rescuing him for the time being, wanting the male lead to suffer a little more. It would be better if he stumbled into the stones and struggled to climb.
Liang Jingxuan’s face, contorted in pain, brought a strange mix of pleasure and relief to Lin Qianshuang’s heart. Her previous frustration had dissipated somewhat.
After seeing Liang Jingxuan’s miserable appearance, Xiao Lanle ran past Lin Qianshuang, squatted down beside him with a worried face, and touched his arm that was still moving. “Senior Brother Liang, hold on,” she said urgently. “I’m going to find someone to take you to the Yuxu Palace to heal your wounds.”
Liang Jingxuan, groggy from his ordeal, lifted his head at the sound of Xiao Lanle’s voice. He had finally escaped the beast’s jaws and, using his last reserves of strength, had pushed himself into the Penglai Immortal Sect.
He had lost so much blood and fallen unconscious several times before reaching this spot. Finding Xiao Lanle, he felt a wave of relief, knowing he was finally safe.
He turned towards her, but then a sharp gaze caught his attention. His swollen eyes, barely open, focused on a figure in the distance – a woman in a cyan Penglai disciple uniform, bathed in the soft light of the sky.
His hand, filthy and covered in blood, reached out towards her, as if to shield himself from the glare of the sun. He murmured, “Senior Sister Lin, you’ve returned to Penglai Immortal Sect. It’s wonderful. I’m alive too.”
Xiao Lanle, noticing that Liang Jingxuan’s gaze was fixed on Lin Qianshuang, and he didn’t even spare her a glance, felt a surge of jealousy. Lin Qianshuang, in turn, was watching them, her eyes flitting between Liang Jingxuan and Xiao Lanle.
“Senior Sister,” Xiao Lanle said, her voice laced with irritation, “are you a log? Why are you just standing there? I’m here with Senior Brother Liang. Why don’t you go get someone?”
Lin Qianshuang, her collar askew, blushed as she realized her headband was wet. She shot Xiao Lanle a resentful look, then tossed the headband to the ground and stepped on it silently.
Lin Qianshuang hastily gathered her loose hair into strands, trying to conceal the marks on her neck. She turned to call for help.
“Sister Lin, don’t leave,” Liang Jingxuan called out, stopping her.
Lin Qianshuang halted, confused. She turned to see Xiao Lanle glaring at her with venomous intensity, as if she could tear her apart with her gaze.
Liang Jingxuan, lifting his head, addressed Xiao Lanle, “Junior Sister Xiao, I have something to tell Senior Sister Lin. Could you please call for someone? I’ve lost a lot of blood. Thank you, Junior Sister.”
Xiao Lanle’s face softened into a mask of concern, and she replied, “Senior Brother Liang, please lie still. Moving could reopen your wounds.”
As she rose and passed Lin Qianshuang, a dark cloud settled over Xiao Lanle’s features. She slammed into Lin Qianshuang’s shoulder with deliberate force.
Lin Qianshuang stumbled back a step, speechless and reluctant to approach Liang Jingxuan.
She internally raged against Xiao Lanle, who had nearly violated her. Now, this lunatic was oblivious to the truth, seeing Lin Qianshuang as a rival and jealous of Liang Jingxuan. It was infuriating.
As Lin Qianshuang looked down at Liang Jingxuan, covered in dust and dirt, her anger gradually subsided.
What was she so upset about? Xiao Lanle’s personality was a product of her environment. If the root cause could be identified and treated, her shadow could be lifted, and the second personality might disappear.
Lin Qianshuang recalled the original story. Xiao Lanle, while with Liang Jingxuan, had never acted this way. It meant Liang Jingxuan had cured her illness in the book.
She simply didn’t know how.
Liang Jingxuan strained to open his eyes and look at Lin Qianshuang, reaching out to grab her hand. But she pulled back, leaving him empty-handed. A wave of disappointment washed over him. “Sister Lin,” he said, his voice weak, “Do you know about the engagement between Xiao Lanle and me?”
Lin Qianshuang’s eyes, slightly narrowed, flickered with a fleeting pain and desolation. She deliberately avoided his gaze, her voice distant. “What difference does it make if I know or not? Junior Brother, I am a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator now, a broken woman humiliated by a demon cultivator. I am no longer worthy of you.”
Tears welled in her eyes, and she bit her lip. “Xiao Lanle is a lovely, lively girl. You must treat her well.”
“Senior sister, I won’t allow you to talk about yourself like that.”
Liang Jingxuan, seeing Lin Qianshuang’s self-deprecating despair, felt his heart shatter. He struggled to his feet, supporting himself on his sword, and pulled her into a trembling embrace. “Shuang’er,” he whispered, his voice laced with tenderness, “Just wait a few more years. My heart belongs only to you. Marrying Xiao Lanle is a political maneuver, nothing more. I have no feelings for her. Once I become Sect Leader, I will discard her and marry you.”
Lin Qianshuang’s face paled with panic. She pushed him away, her hand a mere gesture, her eyes shadowed with a deeper emotion. “Jingxuan, don’t talk nonsense! If someone hears you, it will be disastrous. I understand your feelings. But please, don’t say such things to me again. We must keep our distance. It’s for the best.”
Seeing Lin Qianshuang trying to pull away, Liang Jingxuan pulled her back into his arms. He endured the pain of his dislocated arms, his gaze filled with both affection and guilt as he looked at Lin Qianshuang. He reached out to touch her hair, saying, “Shuang’er, you died for me once. If I can’t even express my feelings for you, if I can’t even promise you anything, then I’m ashamed to call myself a man.”
Lin Qianshuang glanced at the woman in pink who was approaching from the side, her eyes blinking back tears. Her lips trembled as she said, “Jingxuan, please stop. I’m not worthy of this.”
“Shuang’er, you are the only woman I, Liang Jingxuan, want to marry in this life. No woman can compare to you.”
“My love for you will last until death.”
Lin Qianshuang held back a smile as she watched Liang Jingxuan, his face bruised and swollen, professing his love with a contrived air of deep emotion.
She deliberately leaned against him, pretending to be heartbroken, and hugged him back. She wasn’t worried at all that Liang Jingxuan, a eunuch and seriously injured, would dare to do anything to her. After all, Xiao Lanle was watching from a distance.
A slight smile played on Lin Qianshuang’s lips. Though she wasn’t sure how much Xiao Lanle had heard, her goal had been achieved.
Liang Jingxuan wiped away the tears from Lin Qianshuang’s face, his gaze lingering on her features, a hint of fascination in his eyes. Senior Sister Lin’s thick eyelashes trembled, the tear mole beneath her eye adding a poignant softness to her already beautiful face. It was a face that seemed fragile and delicate, like porcelain, waiting to be cherished and kissed.
A tingling sensation coursed through Liang Jingxuan’s heart. The pain in his body seemed to fade as he looked at the beautiful woman in his arms, her expression lonely and yearning for affection. He would be a fool not to respond to such a plea.
Seeing Lin Qianshuang’s shy and hesitant gaze, Liang Jingxuan leaned in to kiss her cheek, but she dodged him. He was without the means to satisfy his desires, and the frustration gnawed at him. His desperate need for her led him to pursue her lips.
A hand shot out, pushing Liang Jingxuan’s face back. Ten heavy slaps, each one landing with brutal force, left Liang Jingxuan seeing stars. Already seriously injured, he was now knocked to the ground.
“Liang Jingxuan! You make me feel disgusted! So this is what you meant when you said you liked me?!”
Xiao Lanle angrily withdrew her hand. She had heard Liang Jingxuan’s confession to Lin Qianshuang. She felt like an outsider, a shameful third party intruding on their relationship. She felt completely superfluous.
Xiao Lanle’s heart shattered in that moment. Liang Jingxuan’s promises to her were still fresh in her mind. How could he forget everything just because Lin Qianshuang had returned?
Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.
Xiao Lanle pursed her lips and glanced at Lin Qianshuang, who sat on the ground. Her hair was gently tousled by the wind, and faint, suggestive kiss marks were visible on her neck and even her collarbone. It was clear what they had just done.
Liang Jingxuan was seriously injured. It must have been Lin Qianshuang who seduced him. Their engagement was approaching. No matter how attractive this woman was, their betrothal was a matter of paramount importance.
“How could Senior Brother Liang treat him and her like this before marriage?”
Xiao Lanle wiped away her tears and covered her mouth, stifling her sobs. She couldn’t bear to look any longer at the marks on Lin Qianshuang’s body, nor at Liang Jingxuan groaning in pain on the ground. Tears streamed down her face as she fled the unbearable scene.
Chen Shangqing, with several disciples in tow, hurried to Liang Jingxuan’s side. Seeing Xiao Lanle running away in tears, he instinctively grabbed her hand, “Junior Sister Xiao.”
“Let go, don’t stop me.”
Xiao Lanle kept her head lowered, but tears still streamed down her chin.
Chen Shangqing’s eyes flickered, and he subconsciously looked at Lin Qianshuang, who sat nonchalantly on the spirit leopard. Seeing her smile faintly at him, he suddenly understood something.
Xiao Lanle broke free of Chen Shangqing’s hand and said with a choked voice, “I told you to let go, didn’t you hear me?”
Chen Shangqing’s expression suddenly turned serious, and he said to Xiao Lanle, “Junior Sister, Master Qingyun has punished you to copy the Tianshu Peak rules five hundred times. This includes the twelfth rule and its detailed annotations. You have three days to complete this task. If you don’t start now, I estimate you won’t finish in time.”
Xiao Lanle stopped trying to pull away and grabbed Chen Shangqing’s sleeve, pleading, “Senior Brother Chen, the Tianshu Peak rules are carved on the stone wall of the Siguo Cliff. It’s cold and dark there, and I really don’t want to go. I remember you have a complete copy of the rules. Could you please lend it to me?”
Chen Shangqing let go of Xiao Lanle’s hand and said, “Wipe away your tears and smile, then I’ll give you the rules. Otherwise, no deal.”
Xiao Lanle wiped away her tears, but seeing Chen Shangqing ignore her and walk away, she chased after him, shouting, “Senior Brother, look, I’m fine now. Please just lend me the rules!”
“…”
Lin Qianshuang listened to their conversation with a bewildered expression.
Why… she felt like she couldn’t understand Chen Shangqing’s flirting tactics.