It Rained Again

Xiao Lanle pondered, recalling that on her fifteenth birthday, Liang Jingxuan had secretly invited her to drink under the locust tree. She was still so young then, oblivious to matters of love. Had it not been for her father, the sect leader, reprimanding her, she might have been curious enough to accept the invitation.

If she had gone, would Liang Jingxuan have attempted something inappropriate with her?

The more Xiao Lanle thought about it, the more horrified she became. The senior brother who had always shown her such care had been spying on her since childhood, his gaze filled with the repugnant lust of a grown man.

Even if they were engaged now, how could Liang Jingxuan have been so disrespectful to her when she was just a child?

She thought of him embracing Huaixiang, entangled with several prominent young ladies, and secretly pledging his love to Lin Qianshuang, even while betrothed to her.

Xiao Lanle, with the pride of a sect leader’s daughter, felt both shocked and bewildered. Her fiancé, who was supposed to be a respectable man, was a shameless philanderer, and she had been deceived for over a decade. The realization made her feel foolish and betrayed.

In front of the tombstone, a woman stood with her back to Xiao Lanle, her shoulders trembling as if suppressing something. The opened wine jar released a faint scent of osmanthus.

“Senior sister, that jar of wine, you can’t drink it.”

Xiao Lanle reached out to snatch the wine bowl from Lin Qianshuang’s hand, but was burned by the unusual heat of her arm. She looked up, surprised to see that Lin Qianshuang’s usually calm and indifferent face was flushed, her normally innocent and cute features now taking on a captivatingly alluring quality. Xiao Lanle found herself momentarily captivated, unable to tear her gaze away.

She shook her head, slapping her face to regain her composure. She suspected she too had been affected by the wine’s intoxicating aroma. “Senior sister,” she said, “It seems you’ve been poisoned by the ‘Spring Breeze Once Scattered’. We need to get rid of the poison quickly.”

Before Xiao Lanle could sit down, a pair of hands grabbed her. Startled, she couldn’t react in time as the brocade box in her hand was overturned, spilling its sticky contents onto the ground. The liquid dripped onto the tips of the weeds as Xiao Lanle instinctively looked down. She was then pushed backwards, falling onto the cold, rough surface of the tombstone.

The impact caused her back to throb with pain. Three black marks marred her once pristine clothing. Xiao Lanle was already angry after learning about Liang Jingxuan’s true nature, and this unexpected assault only fueled her ire. But when she met the face that was slowly approaching hers, her breath caught in her throat, and her heart pounded wildly as if it would burst from her chest.

Azure eyes, clouded with desire, fixed on Xiao Lanle, like a solitary fishing lantern amidst raging waves, slowly enveloping her, consuming her, drawing her into an inescapable net.

The heat emanating from Lin Qianshuang’s slightly parted lips brushed against Xiao Lanle’s face. Xiao Lanle felt as though she were resting at a table imbued with the scent of ink, her eyes closed. The elegant orchids placed beside the wooden window, their branches and leaves drooping, cast a faint light that danced across Xiao Lanle’s forehead, eyebrows, and lips. A pale pink petal from the orchid’s stamen drifted down, brushing against Xiao Lanle’s lips, leaving a lingering tingle of sweet fragrance.

Xiao Lanle closed her eyes as Lin Qianshuang’s gentle kiss, light as a feather, claimed her lips. She should have recoiled in disgust, pushed Lin Qianshuang away, but she couldn’t bring herself to refuse. In fact, she felt a strange intoxication.

A blush crept onto Xiao Lanle’s cheeks, her eyelashes fluttering. She didn’t understand what these sensations meant, but a deep sense of fulfillment filled her heart.

Xiao Lanle reached out and wrapped her arms around Lin Qianshuang’s waist, responding to the kiss with a touch of youthful awkwardness, her lips tentatively exploring the space between Lin Qianshuang’s.

“Senior sister, open your mouth,” she whispered.

“Open my mouth?” Lin Qianshuang murmured, her consciousness clouded. She couldn’t understand the meaning of Xiao Lanle’s words. As soon as she opened her mouth, a bitter pill slid down her throat, followed by a searing, breathless kiss.

From the start, Xiao Lanle took the initiative, but she lost her breath before she knew it. Lin Qianshuang’s kiss, inexperienced and forceful, overwhelmed her passive response.

Leaning on Xiao Lanle’s shoulder, Lin Qianshuang was confused. She felt an intense coolness throughout her body. The demonic energy in her dantian threatened to burst forth, while the poison slowly receded, gradually restoring her senses.

Demon cultivators are inherently drawn to pleasure, and Lin Qianshuang was lost in it.

Noticing the fluctuations in Lin Qianshuang’s consciousness, Xiao Lanle gently separated their lips, wiping away the lingering trace of their kiss. With a calmness that belied her inner turmoil, she stood up and closed Lin Qianshuang’s clothes, tidying her appearance.

Afterward, she bit her lower lip, her cheeks flushed with a mix of shame and confusion. She gazed at the woman in her arms, questioning her own actions:

Why hadn’t she pushed Senior Sister Lin away, knowing she was drugged? Why had she responded to her? Why hadn’t she simply forced the antidote into her mouth?

Xiao Lanle felt a pang of self-reproach, convinced she must have been under some sort of curse to have kissed Lin Qianshuang while she was vulnerable. She blushed furiously, averting her gaze. After all, it was Senior Sister Lin who had initiated the kiss.

“Junior Sister Xiao, I figured you’d be here. It’s raining again, so I brought an umbrella to pick you up,” said Chen Shangqing, approaching them. He wore green robes and carried an umbrella, his handsome face lit by a faint smile as he looked at Xiao Lanle and Lin Qianshuang, who was slowly regaining consciousness. “It seems Senior Sister Lin is here as well. I happened to have something I wanted to discuss with you.”

Lin Qianshuang woke up to find the wine jar shattered on the ground. She realized she must have been quite intoxicated and was still nestled in Xiao Lanle’s arms. Embarrassed, she quickly stood up. Being held by her junior sister felt incredibly awkward.

The sky had turned overcast once more, and a fine drizzle began to fall, softening the harsh light and washing the world in a gentle mist. Lin Qianshuang picked up the plain umbrella from the ground and prepared to walk with Xiao Lanle, but Xiao Lanle had already slipped under Chen Shangqing’s umbrella, taking his arm. They chatted and laughed as they walked away.

Lin Qianshuang watched Xiao Lanle and Chen Shangqing, their laughter echoing through the rain. A flicker of relief crossed her face, but it quickly faded when Xiao Lanle caught her eye. Xiao Lanle’s smile vanished, replaced by a sharp glare, before she quickly recovered and returned to her playful banter with Chen Shangqing.

Lin Qianshuang observed Xiao Lanle’s genuine joy, a smile spreading across her own lips. She found Xiao Lanle’s carefree spirit captivating.

“It’s good to see her so happy,” she thought.

Chen Shangqing escorted them back to Xiaoyao Cave, thoughtfully bringing two braziers to combat the chill and dampness of the evening. Xiao Lanle entered the cave, while Lin Qianshuang closed her umbrella and stood with Chen Shangqing under the dripping eaves.

Chen Shangqing, who had been looking straight ahead, turned to Lin Qianshuang. “Senior Sister Lin,” he began, “what happened in the Library Pavilion? Why was it in such a state? When I arrived, you and Junior Sister Xiao were nowhere to be found, only Junior Brother Liang, unconscious.”

Lin Qianshuang, feigning worry and indignation, replied, “Junior Brother Liang had placed aphrodisiac incense in the Library Pavilion. He intended to… do something vile to Junior Sister Xiao. But, unexpectedly, Junior Sister Xiao’s inner demons flared up, and she severely injured Junior Brother Liang. His actions were despicable, and he deserves what he got. However, it is Junior Sister Xiao who truly suffers from her inner demons. I followed Master Tianshu’s instructions and sent her to Tianshu City for treatment, and she has only just returned.”

“Liang Jingxuan is a villain, unworthy of being called a gentleman,” Chen Shangqing declared. “If Junior Sister Xiao were to become his Daoist partner, I, Chen, would fight to the death to prevent it.”

Chen Shangqing’s handsome face, initially flushed with anger, gradually relaxed. Noticing Lin Qianshuang’s slightly swollen lips, he expressed concern, “Senior Sister Lin, were your lips bitten by some mosquito? They’re quite swollen. If there are many insects here, I’ll bring insect repellent incense next time.”

Lin Qianshuang, taken aback, touched her lips. Swollen? Could it be from eating too much spicy food lately? But no, she hadn’t eaten anything spicy.

Suddenly, a terrified scream echoed from within the cave. It was Xiao Lanle’s voice!

Chen Shangqing and Lin Qianshuang exchanged a worried glance and rushed inside.

Xiao Lanle was backing away in terror, her face pale. A corpse, dismembered and scattered across her bed, lay before her. The internal organs had been removed, and the head, placed on the pillow, belonged to Huixiang, Xiao Lanle’s personal maid.