Even if it was just for an instant, Jiang Moqing still saw the pair of torn white silkworm stockings under Qin Wanyuan’s skirt.
Because she cultivated the Heartless Valley Technique, Jiang Moqing had severed most of her emotions and desires, forgetting many memories related to Lin Que. Only recently had she begun to recall fragments in her dreams.
But when she saw those white silkworm stockings, she froze.
A strange emotion surged within her, as though a fire without fuel had ignited in her heart, burning uncontrollably.
Even the hand holding her sword began to tremble.
Was this… jealousy?
Why would she be jealous? It was clearly just a pair of ordinary, even torn, white silkworm stockings.
Torn?
How did she know they were torn? And who tore them? Was it… Lin Que? Why would he do that?
Jiang Moqing felt her mind was in chaos. Her heart felt like a shattered jar of sauce….sour, bitter, stinging, all jumbled together in a mess.
Qin Wanyuan held down her skirt and looked at the dazed Jiang Moqing, momentarily at a loss for words.
To be honest, her senior sister’s current state was a bit frightening. The trembling figure holding the sword and the silence instantly plunged the atmosphere into an icy chill.
And yet, there was still no notification that the task had been completed.
Didn’t Senior Sister already see the white silkworm stockings?! Why hasn’t the task been completed yet?!
Qin Wanyuan was practically screaming in her mind.
[Because the task requires the host to boast about them to Jiang Moqing. Right now, you’ve only completed half.]
Boast at a time like this? Wouldn’t that just be adding fuel to the fire?!
Jiang Moqing’s current state was like an unstable powder keg….let alone adding a spark, just placing it there was enough to make one fear it might explode at any moment.
[And isn’t adding fuel to the fire exactly what the host needs to do right now?]
That’s true…
Jiang Moqing’s favorability toward Lin Que was far too low to meet the capture conditions. The only option was to work from Jiang Moqing’s side and push her into taking the initiative.
After thinking it through, Qin Wanyuan gritted her teeth and decided to take another step.
Just as she resolved herself, Jiang Moqing strode over to her in just a few quick steps.
“That just now…what was it?” she asked coldly.
It was a brief sentence, lacking even a subject, but Qin Wanyuan clearly understood what Jiang Moqing meant.
“Oh, that…” she said with a blink, then took a deep breath before continuing, “It was a pair of white ice silkworm stockings Lin Lang bought for me yesterday. It’s just a shame the quality wasn’t great. They tore so easily.”
Qin Wanyuan blinked again and added, “Although Lin Lang said he’d buy me another pair, I’m a frugal person who gets attached to things, so I couldn’t bear to throw them away. That’s why I wore them today… I didn’t expect Senior Sister to catch sight of them. I’m really sorry.”
Just saying those words made Qin Wanyuan feel a wave of disgust. Not just because of the content itself, but also because it reminded her of events from her childhood.
The Qin family had once descended into chaos due to her father Master Qin’s inaction. The inner courtyard had caught fire, and internal strife was constant. These kinds of detestable lines were things Qin Wanyuan had picked up over time, both through exposure and from her mother’s teachings.
That’s right. Qin Wanyuan’s mother had actually taught her how to navigate household conflicts.
She had worried that her daughter might one day marry into a large household like the Qin family and, with her gentle and submissive nature, would surely suffer losses. So she taught Qin Wanyuan how to defend herself.
Qin Wanyuan had once believed she’d never use such skills in her lifetime, yet after regressing, she found herself putting them to use.
After finishing her little performance, the system finally gave her the task completion notice.
[Congratulations, host. Task completed. Rewards received: Slight increase in Lin Que’s charm, slight enhancement of host’s physique, one set of Dream Share Talismans has been delivered to the system space.]
[Achievement unlocked: “The boat of friendship capsizes at the slightest touch.”]
Finally… it’s done.
Qin Wanyuan let out a small breath of relief, but immediately, she was faced with a new problem.
How… was she supposed to leave?
Right now, Jiang Moqing stood before her once again wearing that blank expression, icy and unmoving. The sword in her hand still showed no sign of being sheathed.
She had a vague feeling that the friendly relationship she had built with Jiang Moqing over the past month was now completely ruined.
Just as Qin Wanyuan was beginning to think Jiang Moqing might actually draw her sword and strike, Jiang Moqing suddenly sheathed it.
She walked into the pavilion and sat down on a stone stool, cold as an iceberg.
Qin Wanyuan, unsure of what to do, still followed and sat across from her, immediately feeling the chill radiating from the other side.
Jiang Moqing said nothing, and neither did she. But she didn’t dare meet Jiang Moqing’s eyes. After all, what she had just done to complete the task had indeed gone a bit too far.
But there’s no other way… For Lin Lang’s sake, no matter how excessive, I’ll still do it.
Qin Wanyuan thought while tightly gripping the hem of her skirt.
On the other side, Jiang Moqing finally moved again. She picked up the teapot and began pouring tea into the cup in front of Qin Wanyuan.
Yet even as the tea reached the brim and began to spill over, Jiang Moqing did not stop.
This was… tea overflow, signaling a guest’s dismissal.
“Senior Sister, I just remembered I have something to take care of today. I won’t bother you any longer. Please forgive me,” Qin Wanyuan said as she stood, careful not to let the tea drip onto her Flowing Fairy Dress.
“Mhmm.”
Jiang Moqing nodded, and Qin Wanyuan left without hesitation.
The pavilion was once again left with only Jiang Moqing.
After a long while, she stood up. The clear, glistening tea had pooled on the surface of the stone table like a mirror, reflecting Jiang Moqing’s face.
That cold, fairy-like face gradually distorted in the rippling water, yet her expression remained as icy as ever. It was cold, without the slightest trace of warmth.
“Is it… jealousy?”
Faintly, a voice echoed in the air.
It was the voice of the heart demon or perhaps… Jiang Moqing’s own voice.
***
Qin Wanyuan flew home on her sword as if fleeing. She landed in the courtyard, but her mind was still on Jiang Moqing.
She truly hadn’t expected Jiang Moqing to react so strongly to this incident, and at the same time, she felt a twinge of guilt toward her senior sister.
After all, up to this point, Jiang Moqing hadn’t done anything wrong. On the contrary, it was she herself who, in pursuit of task rewards, had torn open an old wound and hurt her all over again…
I’m sorry, Senior Sister. Everything I did was for Lin Lang. But… I won’t abandon you either.
Qin Wanyuan still remembered that Jiang Moqing would die a year later for some unknown reason. But in this life, she would find a way to save her senior sister.
It would be… her small way of making amends to this cold and distant senior sister.
For the rest of the day, Qin Wanyuan’s mood remained somewhat low, but she still forced a smile in front of Lin Que and Qin Qian’er so they wouldn’t notice anything.
And so it continued until nightfall when Qin Wanyuan finally gathered her spirits.
“At last… the most crucial moment has come.”
Tonight, she would finally be able to witness the full story of Lin Que and Jiang Moqing’s relationship and uncover the truth behind why Lin Que had ended up as an ordinary inner disciple.
She took a deep breath, then used a set of Dream Share Talismans on Lin Que and Jiang Moqing before closing her eyes and drifting into a deep sleep.
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