Did the Top-Ranked Girl Get Exposed Today? [HoloVerse] - Chapter 14

As Feng Xiaoxiao had said, Tian Ci and Lin Lang might not necessarily end up together.

Their families were of similar status, well-acquainted with each other, and the two children had grown up together since childhood, sharing an innocent and carefree bond.

Now that they had come of age, the elders of both families were very much in favor of their union.

The matter of marriage had been initiated by Lin Lang, who asked her mother to broach the subject with Tian Ci’s mother first.

In a luxurious mansion somewhere in Shengjing City, a few people sat scattered in the hall, chatting about everyday matters.

After several rounds of tea, the two elders, laughing and talking, warmly clasped each other’s hands. Having discerned Tian Ci’s mother’s intentions, Madam Lin’s beautiful eyes curved into crescents like blooming flowers.

“So, shall we consider the matter settled?”

Tian Ci’s mother, surnamed Feng, was known to outsiders as the head of the Feng family. At this moment, Madam Feng beckoned toward the courtyard, calling her beloved daughter’s name.

Tian Ci set down the fish food in her hand, no longer teasing the swimming fish in the pond.

When she entered, she noticed her mother’s joyful expression and, momentarily puzzled, glanced at Lin Lang, who was calmly sipping tea.

“Come, come over to your mother.”

She obediently walked to her mother’s side, allowing her to take her hand, and greeted Madam Lin in confusion.

Madam Lin smiled and nodded, looking at her affectionately. Since it was her own daughter’s choice, she found Tian Ci more and more pleasing to the eye.

Madam Feng patted her hand and asked kindly, “What do you think of Lin Lang?”

Tian Ci grew even more bewildered, offering only praises for Lin Lang, which deepened the smiles on both elders’ faces.

They exchanged a glance and nodded in agreement.

Madam Feng then asked, “What do you think if, on Lin Lang’s birthday three days from now, I arrange for you and Lin Lang to be engaged?”

Though phrased as a question, Madam Feng’s tone was firm and resolute.

It finally dawned on Tian Ci, Madam Lin had been sitting with her mother since morning, discussing her marriage to Lin Lang?!

“No!”

She instinctively refused.

Madam Feng’s smile froze, Madam Lin’s expression faded, and Lin Lang, who had been sitting quietly, slammed the table, startling all three.

“Why not?!”

Her delicate eyebrows furrowed, her radiant beauty and extraordinary aura unmistakable. Hearing Tian Ci refuse the engagement ignited the long-suppressed anger within her!

Her face flushed with rage as she scolded Tian Ci, “In all of Shengjing City, is there anyone else more suited to you than me?!”

Tian Ci pressed her lips together, silent. As Lin Lang lashed out, an untimely image of a figure in a white dress drifted into her mind.

Amidst lush green grass, a light mountain rain pattered down. That time, she had fallen from her horse and broken her leg, the excruciating pain coinciding with Hua Yue, who had come to gather herbs.

The girl in white parted the grass, her face veiled in the misty rain, the scent of medicinal herbs dispelling Tian Ci’s cold agony.

In her dazed state, Tian Ci thought she had encountered a celestial being descending to earth.

She snapped back to reality in an instant, but that brief moment of distraction did not escape Lin Lang’s sharp eyes.

Pointing at Tian Ci, Lin Lang’s heart swelled with both fury and sorrow, gritting her teeth as she spat out the question that had tormented her for so long.

“After more than ten years of friendship between us, can it not compare to the few months you’ve spent with that woman?!”

Madam Lin and Madam Feng, who had remained silent until now, also sensed the issue. Madam Feng recalled how her daughter had been frequently going out recently, often seeming absent-minded and lost in thought.

She had thought Tian Ci was out having fun with Lin Lang as usual, but now, from Lin Lang’s tone, it seemed someone else had been accompanying Tian Ci instead?

Madam Lin’s thoughts ran deeper. Frowning, she studied Tian Ci’s expression, hesitating and unable to decide, then turned to look at her own daughter, her heart heavy with long-held resentment.

After some reflection, Madam Lin understood the situation clearly.

Tian Ci remained silent, head bowed. After the initial shock and anger, Lin Lang gradually calmed down, her face returning to its usual composure.

“Mother, let’s go.”

Madam Lin stood up, a polite smile on her face, though her warmth had noticeably faded.

On the Feng family’s side, feeling at fault, they awkwardly saw the Lins off. The moment the two stepped out the door, the Feng matriarch swiftly turned and glared at her disappointing daughter.

“You had the Lin family’s young lady, who clearly favored you, and yet you turned her down, choosing instead some wildflower from outside. You-”

“Mother!”

Tian Ci looked up, her gaze resolute. “Hua Yue is no wildflower, she is the one I love!”

With all suspicions confirmed, the Feng matriarch felt her vision darken, nearly fainting on the spot.

“How foolish!” she exclaimed, her face etched with frustration. “You and Lin Lang have been together for so many years, Madam Lin and I have watched you grow. And now, you’re just infatuated with some girl you’ve barely known. How long has it been? Half as long as you’ve known Lin Lang?”

From their perch on the wall, Feng Xiaoxiao and Top Fan of Shang Xianyue both nodded in agreement, feeling the Feng matriarch made a fair point.

Top Fan of Shang Xianyue clicked her tongue in amazement. “So this is the legendary case where childhood sweethearts can’t compete with a sudden new flame?”

“Seems so, but Tian Ci might not be entirely without feelings for Lin Lang either.”

Recalling the strange scene of the three of them touring the lantern festival not long ago, Feng Xiaoxiao couldn’t stand Tian Ci’s indecisiveness, torn between two people.

To her, love was love, you either felt it or you didn’t. How could one heart be split in two for different people?

Still, “Under Heaven” had opened her eyes. The NPCs were so intelligent, they didn’t feel like lines of cold code, their words and actions resembled those of real people living in a virtual world.

Tian Ci’s hesitation, for instance, mirrored the struggles of many in reality.

Over on the Feng side, the matriarch spent a long time earnestly persuading Tian Ci, hoping she would “turn back from her misguided path,” recognize her true feelings sooner, and not let Lin Lang’s affection go to waste.

But the more others tried to convince her, the more determined Tian Ci became, unwavering in her passionate devotion to Hua Yue.

The Feng matriarch couldn’t help but massage her temples, looking at this child she had raised with such care and ease, unsure what else to say.

She let out a long sigh. “My child, I only fear that one day you’ll regret this and lose the one you truly love!”

Though spoken with genuine emotion, these words did nothing to change Tian Ci’s mind. Instead, they nearly sent Feng Xiaoxiao tumbling off the wall.

Luckily, Top Fan of Shang Xianyue was quick to react, not forgetting her newly made friend even while engrossed in the drama.

Steadying herself with the fangirl’s outstretched hand, Feng Xiaoxiao glanced at the Feng matriarch, then couldn’t help but clutch her friend’s sleeve. “Are all mothers in the world like her, always thinking of their children’s well-being in everything?”

Top Fan of Shang Xianyue was momentarily stunned before realizing Feng Xiaoxiao was referring to the Feng matriarch.

She scratched her head and thought carefully. “I wouldn’t say all, but at least my mom isn’t like Tian Ci’s mother, worrying about whether her child will find true love in the future.”

“She’d be thrilled if I could land her a wealthy partner, gender doesn’t even matter, so she could live the life of a rich lady even past her fifties!”

Though the words of Top Fan of Shang Xianyue carried a tone of complaint, the soft smile in her eyes when mentioning her mother was unmistakably genuine. Feng Xiaoxiao had seen such expressions many times before.

Slowly, she released her grip on Top Fan of Shang Xianyue, feeling somewhat dazed but mostly numb and cold inside.

It should be this way. It was only natural.

Then why was she the one exception among thousands?

A bitter taste spread in her throat, and Feng Xiaoxiao lost interest in lingering any longer. After bidding a half-hearted farewell to Top Fan of Shang Xianyue, she vanished into the starry night of Shengjing City with a few swift movements of qinggong.

It was the third watch in the game, and the city had emptied, leaving only a few solitary lanterns casting long, lonely shadows of Feng Xiaoxiao.

Aimlessly, she wandered through the streets, kicking a stray pebble with each step until it collided with a pair of snow-white shoes, rolled a few times, and came to a stop.

Without looking up, Feng Xiaoxiao moved to step around the figure blocking her path, intending to find another pebble to kick.

But as she brushed past, her elbow was unexpectedly seized.

“Where do you plan to go?”

Feng Xiaoxiao turned her head and met the gaze of Di Xiang, who was looking down at her with a slight frown that quickly reverted to his usual icy demeanor.

Perhaps it was the mellow, gentle glow of the streetlights, but Feng Xiaoxiao thought she detected a trace of concern on Di Xiang’s face.

The thought sent a chill down her spine. Shaking off his grip impatiently, she retorted, “I’ll go wherever I please. It’s none of your business.”

With that, she strode forward again, only to have her elbow seized once more by Di Xiang.

Feng Xiaoxiao: “…”

She couldn’t quite figure him out. To be precise, she had never truly understood Di Xiang.

Then again, they had only met a handful of times. Though they were nominally master and disciple, no formal ceremony had taken place, and their relationship lacked any real substance.

To each other, they were merely strangers who had crossed paths by chance in the game, neither familiar nor comprehensible.

Di Xiang suddenly asked, “You’re unhappy. Why?”

Feng Xiaoxiao ignored him, focusing instead on trying to wrest her arm free.

“Was it the people from Flower Sea Hide and Seek in the Ghost Flower Maiden dungeon? Did they upset you?”

Feng Xiaoxiao frowned. What did Xian Yun and the others have to do with it?

Truth be told, she had actually enjoyed herself while joking around and clearing the dungeon with them, it was a rare moment of relaxation.

She didn’t have to worry about making mistakes that would burden the team; Danhuang Liuxinbao was an excellent commander, always signaling in time to guide them away from danger.

Nor did she fear awkward silences; Xian Yun’s presence alone brought a lighthearted and cheerful atmosphere.

There was no need to force herself to fit in. Even as a quiet observer, she could share in half the joy of those around her.

She had even made new friends.

Her once-loyal little fan had now become a companion for teaming up and sharing gossip.

Feng Xiaoxiao shook her head, dismissing Di Xiang’s assumption.

“They’re fine. I was happy.”

“Then why?”

Di Xiang applied a gentle pressure, turning her around to face him, his gaze calm and steady as he looked down at her.

“Why are you unhappy?”

It was such an inexplicable feeling, Feng Xiaoxiao thought.

Gazing into those eyes fixed intently on her, with the sound of his concerned words in her ears, her first reaction wasn’t confusion over why he cared so much about her.

Instead, it was an uncontrollable panic.

She feared hearing more of Di Xiang’s soft, caring words, afraid that his eyes would reveal emotions she couldn’t decipher.

She was terrified that staying any longer would lead her heart down an unknown path.

Reason told Feng Xiaoxiao to log off immediately, to keep her distance from Di Xiang from now on, she couldn’t bear to endure the pain that such care, like his, had brought her before.

Emotionally, Feng Xiaoxiao stared back into his eyes, bewildered and lost, seeing her own reflection in Di Xiang’s gaze as she spoke, her words tinged with a mix of hope and confusion.

“Are you… concerned about me?”