After the Black Moonlight’s "Death Escape" Failed [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 76

Chapter 76: Full Moon

◎Do you think there are ghosts in this world?◎

Wen Fengyue tilted her head up, looking toward the spot where Jiao Qingyin was.

Jiao Qingyin froze; although she knew perfectly well it was impossible for the other to see her, she still instinctively took a step to the side.

Wen Fengyue’s gaze didn’t follow. She seemed to daze for a second before turning her eyes back toward the bedroom door.

The sound of a key inserting into the lock rang out. Two seconds later, with a “bang,” Aunt Zhang—face contorted with rage—burst through the door, half-crashing and half-pushing her way in.

“What are you doing in here?” As soon as Aunt Zhang saw Wen Fengyue, she launched into a barrage of accusations. “Didn’t hear me knocking? Is that how that woman taught you?!”

Here it comes again, Wen Fengyue thought.

In her previous life, she had been held underwater by Wen Ziyuan until she fainted. Because she hadn’t opened the door promptly, she had been dragged out of bed by this woman and subjected to the exact same scolding. Back then, seeing Aunt Zhang—who had always been best to her—suddenly turn into a different person, she had been confused and helpless. Upon hearing the woman slander her deceased mother, she had lost control of her emotions and retorted sharply.

Aunt Zhang had then clutched her heart, pretending to have a fit from anger, and then… her father would be led past the room by her stepmother. That man would say she disrespected the Aunt Zhang who had always cared for her, that she had the heart to play and splash in the water right after her mother passed away, proving she didn’t have a shred of filial piety. She was forced to kneel at the door of her mother’s former room to reflect; everyone passing by could see her wet, pathetic state.

This time, she had pushed Wen Ziyuan into the water first. The tactics these people would use would likely be even more disgusting than in her last life.

Wen Fengyue stared at the person before her, saying nothing. Her gaze was gloomy and dark, making Aunt Zhang feel an inexplicable shiver, which doused half of her faked fury.

But she quickly adjusted her state—she couldn’t mess up the first task given to her by the new mistress…!

“—Why aren’t you speaking!” As she spoke, Aunt Zhang took several large strides forward, her hawk-like hand clawing toward Wen Fengyue’s collar. “Taking the Young Miss to the pool to play! The Young Miss hasn’t even woken up yet!”

Wen Fengyue’s physical condition was poor, and she was small; she couldn’t dodge Aunt Zhang’s grab at all. She pursed her lips tightly, her eyes filled with hatred as she stared at the approaching hand.

In the nick of time, her body moved on its own.

As if pushed by a great force, she fell to the ground. Tears immediately welled up in her beautiful blue eyes and began to pitter-patter down.

Aunt Zhang froze, her hand hovering in mid-air. She clearly hadn’t touched the girl yet… right?

Wen Fengyue was also stunned. What happened to you?

Jiao Qingyin ignored everyone. While crying, she cast her gaze behind Aunt Zhang and pointed a finger.

Aunt Zhang instinctively turned her head but saw nothing. Instead, she heard the sound of the mistress walking closer with the master of the house. She grew anxious; the mistress had ordered her to pretend to be sick from anger, and she hadn’t had the chance—

Aunt Zhang couldn’t care about anything else. She grabbed the clothes over her chest, opening her mouth to start wailing. However, before a sound could come out, she was interrupted by a crisp, sobbing childish voice:

“That child on your shoulder… has been crying.”

Using Wen Fengyue’s body, Jiao Qingyin stared fixedly at Aunt Zhang’s shoulder. Her hollow eyes were out of focus; they looked like gems covered in a layer of sand. The expression was so terrifying, as if she truly saw something non-existent, that Aunt Zhang’s heart lurched, and her impending wail got stuck in her throat.

“Wh-what child?!” Overcome with fear, Aunt Zhang slapped her own left shoulder several times. After the action, she suddenly felt she had been tricked, and her face turned hideous. “Are you bluffing me?”

Aunt Zhang’s fierce look didn’t scare Jiao Qingyin at all. The latter remained dazed, staring at the other’s shoulder. A few seconds later, using a repetitive, soft tone, she spoke:

“‘Mama, because I’m a girl, are you going to throw me away?’—that’s what the child said.” Jiao Qingyin tilted her head up with an innocent expression. “Aunt Zhang, is she your baby?”

Not satisfied, Jiao Qingyin tilted her head further and added: “She also said, ‘It’s so cold in the snow, Mama, come stay with me.'”

Aunt Zhang’s eyes widened instantly, looking as if she had heard something extremely horrifying. She let out a blood-curdling scream and began frantically slapping her own shoulder. The piercing shriek could almost penetrate the roof.

Wen Fengyue’s stepmother, Wang Qinrong, had just led the father, Wen Dong, to the scene. Hearing Aunt Zhang’s scream, she first frowned, then let her lips curl up. This Aunt Zhang looked big and clumsy, but her acting wasn’t bad. She clung to Wen Dong’s arm and said in a voice so weak it sounded frightened: “Something seems to have happened.”

Wen Dong looked serious and quickened his pace into the room. “What’s going on?”

What met their eyes was Aunt Zhang spinning in circles like a madwoman, striking herself with a distorted expression, her eyes bulging as if they might pop out of their sockets. Her hair was a mess, her eyes bloodshot. While slapping her shoulder, she shrieked: “Get away! Die! Go to hell!!”

Aunt Zhang’s frenzied state terrified the two, who were completely unprepared. Wang Qinrong screamed, her nails digging deep into Wen Dong’s arm. Wen Dong’s expression twisted for a moment; he barely managed to keep from crying out in pain.

“…Let go.” He squeezed the words through gritted teeth.

Wang Qinrong snapped out of it and released him. She apologized profusely. Wen Dong, his head aching from the noise made by her and Aunt Zhang, called in the servants who had come over to see the commotion.

“What is happening!” he shouted sternly.

A servant looked into the room and was also terrified by Aunt Zhang. He was about to shake his head, but seeing the master’s foul expression, he quickly stopped and said: “It… it looks like some kind of fit… maybe a mental problem…”

Wen Dong thought so too. He didn’t want someone with a broken mind in his house, so with a wave of his hand, he had them drag Aunt Zhang out. Even as they held her limbs, Aunt Zhang struggled violently, shouting obscenities and foul curses.

“Gag her,” Wen Dong ordered with a dark face. “Send her to the hospital—and call her son. Ask him what’s going on.”

Aunt Zhang was in her fifties, and her son also worked at the Wen manor. He arrived quickly, bowing and apologizing while taking over Aunt Zhang.

“Mom, wake up, you—” He had only said a few words when he was slapped by the flailing Aunt Zhang. The son’s expression changed immediately; he could feel the gazes of the people around him and Aunt Zhang, and the sounds of mockery drilled into his ears. Half-coaxing and half-forcing, he led Aunt Zhang away from the crowd. As soon as they were in a secluded spot, he slammed her to the ground.

“Mom, have you gone crazy!”

Aunt Zhang’s eyes bulged. She had just calmed down slightly, but the word “Mom” triggered her again. She screamed and lunged at him, hitting him while shouting: “It’s all your fault! All your fault!”

If the first three hadn’t been girls, how could she have been gossiped about by the villagers! How could she have been despised by her in-laws! If the next one hadn’t also been a girl that the family couldn’t afford to raise, how could she have thrown the newborn into the snow!

The son had been the apple of Aunt Zhang’s eye since childhood, enjoying food and clothes far superior to his three sisters. He had never seen his mother like this. After being hit several times, his temper flared. Relying on his strength, he pushed his mother aside. Aunt Zhang’s head hit a pillar. She opened her mouth, then stopped moving.

By the time the son realized what happened, this was the scene. He began to tremble, stepping forward fearfully. “Mom…?”

On the other side, after Aunt Zhang was taken away, Wen Dong noticed Wen Fengyue huddled by the desk, trembling. Her face was covered in tears; she looked small and very pitiable. He dazed for a moment, remembering how his late wife looked when she wept.

But he soon snapped out of it.

Wen Dong had originally come to find Wen Fengyue to clarify what happened between her and Wen Ziyuan in the garden. Because of Wang Qinrong’s instigation, he had basically concluded that Wen Fengyue had pushed the newcomer sister into the water out of jealousy. But looking at her now, his daughter was clearly just like her mother—weak and fragile, not even speaking when wronged. How could she have that kind of courage?

“Get up,” Wen Dong looked down at his daughter. “Crying like that, what a disgrace.”

Hearing this, Jiao Qingyin slowly rose, but she kept her head low, letting out an occasional soft sob. Wen Dong instinctively softened his tone. “Are you hurt anywhere?”

Jiao Qingyin shook her head.

Wang Qinrong’s face was quite ugly. This was not the situation she wanted to see. She wanted Wen Dong to utterly loathe this daughter so she could seize the inheritance rights, not give the father and daughter a chance to bond. She was about to speak when she heard Wen Dong ask: “You and your sister, how did you fall into the water?”

Wang Qinrong grew nervous. Wen Ziyuan taking Wen Fengyue to the garden was, of course, her idea. But she never imagined her daughter would drown with the other, and even more severely—showing no signs of waking up yet. She was afraid Wen Fengyue would say something disadvantageous to her, and reality proved her right.

Jiao Qingyin answered obediently: “Sister said she was taking me to the garden to play and told me not to tell anyone. But as soon as we got to the water, she started pushing me down into it. Then she accidentally fell in with me…”

Seeing Wen Dong’s expression turn grimmer, Jiao Qingyin timely put on a pitiable and wronged look. “—Did I do something to make her angry?”

Wen Dong’s mouth twitched, as if he wanted to say something but held back.

Wang Qinrong couldn’t help but retort: “Xiao Yuan would never do such a thing!”

Jiao Qingyin shrank back, tears welling in her eyes. Seeing this, before her companion could speak again, Wen Dong shouted sternly: “Shut up!”

Wang Qinrong stopped speaking in disbelief. Wen Dong said to Jiao Qingyin, “You rest first,” before leading the woman out of the room.

A few blurred sentences like “She’s only how old, can she lie?” drifted through the door into the ears of Jiao Qingyin and Wen Fengyue.

Once they were gone, the expression on Jiao Qingyin’s face vanished as clean as a receding tide. She returned the body to Wen Fengyue. After regaining control, Wen Fengyue didn’t move. Only after a long while did she raise a hand to wipe the tears from her face.

Just now, she had witnessed the entire process like watching a movie. Her feelings shifted from resistance at the start to shock and overwhelming emotion. She watched Jiao Qingyin manipulate these people like toys, pushing them into the positions she wanted and making them perform exactly as she predicted. Jiao Qingyin did it so easily; that aura of mastery made Wen Fengyue—whose head was full of revenge but lacked any plan—instinctively drawn to her.

She had many questions for Jiao Qingyin, but in the end, she only squeezed out one word: “…You.”

Jiao Qingyin raised an eyebrow slightly, shifting her attention from the beanbag chair back to Wen Fengyue. “What about me?”

Wen Fengyue thought for a long time before asking her first question: “…Why did you cry?”

The words Jiao Qingyin said to Wen Dong were the same ones she had said in her last life, yet they had been dismissed as lies. She vaguely sensed that perhaps Jiao Qingyin’s tears had worked, but…

Jiao Qingyin realized Wen Fengyue truly didn’t understand the reason, and she couldn’t help but feel like she was playing a nurturing game. Though based on the situation, she probably wouldn’t raise an upright and well-behaved protagonist. The other was already on the path of blackening; with a push from her, she was now sprinting. But she could at least help Wen Fengyue avoid some detours.

“Because tears can occasionally be used as a weapon,” Jiao Qingyin explained patiently. “When your power is insufficient, appearing weak can make others lower their guard and make it easier for people to take your side.”

Wen Fengyue slowly clenched her fists. She understood Jiao Qingyin’s meaning, but she felt… she might not be able to do it. Asking that man “father” and seeking protection from him… the mere thought of it made her feel like vomiting.

“Is there no other way…?” she asked.

“You are too weak,” Jiao Qingyin didn’t choose tactful words, stabbing directly at Wen Fengyue’s internal sore spot. “Tearing off the mask with them directly will only leave you with nowhere to go.”

Wen Fengyue took a deep breath and didn’t reply, walking step by step into the bathroom. The tears on her face felt sticky, and they kept reminding her of how weak she was, making her want to wash them off quickly.

Seeing that Wen Fengyue seemed angry at her bluntness and refused to speak further, Jiao Qingyin took the opportunity to float up and test her ability to pass through walls. It was successful; she could not only pass through walls but also through the floor and the ceiling of the next floor.

By the time Jiao Qingyin returned from her circuit, Wen Fengyue had just finished washing her face. Her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes were swollen from the crying. This sight made Jiao Qingyin pause. She had only been gone for two minutes; why was she crying?

“…What happened to you?” she asked hesitantly.

“…” Wen Fengyue hung her head, biting her lip in silence. Her stubborn yet fragile behavior made Jiao Qingyin feel a slight unease, so she drifted in front of the girl and asked again.

This time, the worry in Jiao Qingyin’s tone was more obvious. Wen Fengyue noticed it, raised her head, and slowly revealed a smile to the mirror.

“It seems it really works.” Her eyes curved, and the smile on her face was very bright.

This was the first time Jiao Qingyin had seen her smile. After a moment of surprise, she understood what Wen Fengyue meant. This girl… she had just taught her how to play pitiable, and she turned around and used it on her.

Jiao Qingyin was both annoyed and amused. She sank into the other’s body and flicked her finger against her forehead—then pulled away at high speed before the pain registered, leaving Wen Fengyue clutching her head in shock. Jiao Qingyin laughed out loud without hesitation, ignoring how childish her behavior was.

After washing her face, Wen Fengyue fished out a small mirror and returned to the bed. She leaned against the headboard and spoke to the mirror: “Did you really see her daughter perched on her shoulder?”

“Of course it was a lie,” Jiao Qingyin answered, poking the carvings on the back of the mirror. She noticed that Wen Fengyue chose to talk to her in front of a mirror several times, as if she wanted to observe the changes in her own expression.

Wen Fengyue was silent for a long time, her hand on the blanket slowly tightening. She didn’t ask how Jiao Qingyin knew Aunt Zhang had once abandoned a daughter, because she knew it too—in her last life, when Aunt Zhang tried to force her third daughter to marry a driver at the Wen manor, that girl had shouted the truth in front of countless people. Wen Dong had lost face and fired Aunt Zhang and her son on the spot. Because of her departure, Wen Fengyue was finally able to occasionally have a full meal.

She knew this because her shell contained a soul that had returned from rebirth. But what about the other? Could the other also be…

Jiao Qingyin was getting a bit sleepy. After becoming a ghost, she found that as long as she wasn’t in a state of possession, she tired easily. Just as her eyes were half-open and half-closed, and her entire ghost form was instinctively drifting into Wen Fengyue’s body, the girl—who had been quiet—suddenly spoke: “Do you think there are ghosts in this world?”

Jiao Qingyin opened her eyes. At this moment, her lower body was submerged in Wen Fengyue’s body while her upper body hovered motionless. If an outsider saw this, they would be scared half to death. Her sleepiness was mostly dispersed by the question, so she floated up again and asked: “What do you think?”

“…” Wen Fengyue gripped the blanket even tighter, pulling it so hard that a large patch of wrinkles appeared. Minutes later, she finally gave her answer: “No.” After a pause, she added the second half, “I hope not… Mama… I don’t want her to see me the way I was in my last life.”

This was the first time she had explicitly mentioned the term “last life” in front of Jiao Qingyin. Wen Fengyue was very nervous; she had already thought of many ways to explain away the word, but fortunately… Jiao Qingyin’s reaction did not disappoint her.

“The last life, huh,” Jiao Qingyin gave a low hum. “Indeed… it’s better not to let her see.”

Wen Fengyue’s mother was also surnamed Wen, named Wen Shuling. She was a particularly gentle and kind lady; if she saw what happened to her daughter, she would likely be a hundred times more pained than Wen Fengyue herself.

Jiao Qingyin’s lack of questioning made Wen Fengyue even more certain of her guess—the person who appeared out of thin air in her brain was perhaps truly another version of herself. Schizophrenia, multiple personalities… similar terms circled Wen Fengyue’s lips. They had the same experiences and had transmigrated here together from the last life… Wen Fengyue couldn’t help but wonder: why hadn’t the other appeared in her previous life? If she had been there then, maybe she wouldn’t have chosen suicide, but instead…

Instead what?

Wen Fengyue didn’t think further. No matter how much she fantasized, the regrets that had already happened couldn’t be remedied. She turned back to Jiao Qingyin: “You haven’t answered my question. Do you think they exist?”

Jiao Qingyin looked at Wen Fengyue. The girl’s eyes were cast down, and her thick, fine eyelashes were trembling slightly, as if she were feeling down about something. She reached out, brushed the other’s eyelashes, and patted her head comfortingly before answering: “Yes.”

Wen Fengyue knew nothing of her movements, but talking to Jiao Qingyin allowed her spirit—which was usually in a state of anger—to feel a strange calm. Before her rebirth, she suffered from chronic insomnia, but today, she rarely felt sleepy.

Wen Fengyue turned off the bedside lamp, put down the mirror, and tucked herself into the covers. Then she asked: “Why is it that sometimes I feel your voice is in my head, and sometimes it’s by my ear?”

That depends on whether I’m floating or possessing you, Jiao Qingyin thought, but aloud she replied: “I don’t know either.”

Wen Fengyue curled herself up and gave an “Oh.” She closed her eyes and stayed quiet for a while, and Jiao Qingyin gradually fell into a slumber.

But just as Jiao Qingyin was about to fall asleep, Wen Fengyue suddenly spoke again: “Are you still there?”

Jiao Qingyin was woken up and replied helplessly: “I’m here.”

“Oh…” Wen Fengyue grabbed a plushie from the headboard, held it in her arms, and closed her eyes again.

Taking the lesson to heart, Jiao Qingyin didn’t try to sleep again but floated out of her body to watch her from the headboard. Sure enough, minutes later, Wen Fengyue’s eyelashes moved, she opened her eyes, and asked softly: “After I fall asleep, will you fall asleep?”

“Depends on if I’m sleepy,” Jiao Qingyin yawned. “If I am, I’ll sleep even when you’re awake.”

Hearing her weary voice, Wen Fengyue was a bit at a loss. “…Am I disturbing your rest?”

Jiao Qingyin was non-committal. Wen Fengyue’s lips moved, but no sound came out.

“Speak, I’m not asleep yet,” Jiao Qingyin said.

Wen Fengyue’s eyes lit up slightly. She sat up, clutching the snow leopard plushie, her hand tightly gripping its tail as if giving herself courage. Finally, she said: “You said your surname is Jiao… Can I… call you Jiao Jiao?”

Jiao Qingyin’s heart skipped a beat; she was completely awake now. She flew up and stared at Wen Fengyue. A ghost’s vision isn’t affected by light, so even though the environment was pitch black save for a sliver of light from the curtains, she could see every expression and movement clearly.

She couldn’t say why she reacted so strongly to the name “Jiao Jiao.” Maybe it was… related to the part of her memory the system had blocked? Had she encountered someone who called her that in a previous mission? That person must have been very important to her… a friend, family member, or… a lover?

A momentary palpitation made Jiao Qingyin think a lot, but she was certain she wouldn’t choose to stay for anyone. Her goal was clear: save up enough points to go home and save the world. Though she had no recollection of those blocked memories, she was absolutely certain that this important person was in the past and could never appear by her side again.

“Jiao Jiao…?” Wen Fengyue’s voice carried a hint of a sob, and the corners of her eyes grew wet. “I can’t call you that?”

Jiao Qingyin snapped back and replied: “…You can.”

Wen Fengyue’s tears stopped, but she pursued another question: “Then… what do you want to call me?”

Jiao Qingyin endured it, but eventually couldn’t help but expose the other’s disguise: “Once or twice is fine, but if you use the ‘playing pitiable’ trick too much, it won’t work.”

Wen Fengyue didn’t expect to be exposed so quickly, but she showed no embarrassment or awkwardness. Instead, the “wronged” look on her face increased. “…Okay.”

Jiao Qingyin sighed. “Let me think.”

Wen Fengyue heard her and smiled secretly. Since she couldn’t touch this “second personality” living in her body, she rubbed against the soft cushion in her arms and asked in a small voice: “Have you thought of it?”

“Hmm…” Jiao Qingyin pondered. She was terrible at names. Following Wen Fengyue’s gaze, she looked out the window and saw a full moon through the gap in the curtains. The moon was beautiful.

Jiao Qingyin said casually: “I’ll call you Little Moon (Xiao Yue).”

Wen Fengyue protested: “No!” It wasn’t that she didn’t like it; it was mainly… her mother used to call her that. She didn’t want to always be reminded of those memories when facing Jiao Qingyin.

Jiao Qingyin realized this too. She turned her head, and as Wen Fengyue happened to be staring stubbornly into the air, the person and the ghost locked gazes. Looking into Wen Fengyue’s eyes, an indescribable impulse drove Jiao Qingyin to speak: “Then…”