Forced to Act out a Strange Script with a Rival - Chapter 126

This was not right.

Su Linglong, a denizen of the capital, had operated there for years and held the leverage of many high-ranking officials in her grasp. To the First Princess, who lacked allies, this was a timely gift—charcoal delivered in a snowstorm.

Meanwhile, to prune the martial arts factions aligned with the Seventh Prince—specifically those “heroes” attempting to rally Wudang for a siege against the Hehuan Sect—Si and Li set out toward Wudang, acting as vigilantes and spreading “Heroine Invitations” along the way.

The fine rain in Bluestone Alley had just ceased, and two figures had already vaulted over the damp, white-walled houses with their black-tiled roofs.

“Little Li, keep up—” Si Xiaoxiao’s green robes fluttered as her toes tapped against the upturned eaves, startling a string of crystalline water droplets into the air. When she looked back, the corners of her eyes curved upward; she looked very much like a vigorous swallow.

Li Ting, dressed in ink-black, followed closely behind like a loosed arrow. Watching the figure ahead that remained constantly within her line of sight, she knew full well that this woman wasn’t using her full strength. Instead, she was like a sparrow teasing its companion, flirting with the distance between them.

It suited her personality… provocatively wicked.

Because the journey was too dull, the two had agreed to a contest of light-footwork (qinggong). The finish line was the Wangjiang Tower, the tallest building in this water town. The stakes were simple: whoever fell behind had to foot the bill for the wine.

Li Ting thought she wouldn’t be able to escape paying, but with only a hundred yards left to the tower, Si Xiaoxiao suddenly slowed down.

“Little Li!” She stepped onto the arched bridge side-by-side with Li Ting as a canopy boat drifted lazily through the tunnel below. Her smile was incredibly bold. “Look how beautiful this Jiangnan scenery is. Wouldn’t running too fast be a waste?”

How arrogant. Did she think she had already won?

Li Ting’s competitive spirit flared. Frowning, she reached out and snatched the boatman’s long punting pole, intending to disrupt Si Xiaoxiao’s stride. Unexpectedly, Si Xiaoxiao leaped nimbly, grabbing the pole with her left hand while her right sleeve flicked out a bouquet of flowers, holding them before Li Ting.

It was a branch of peach blossoms still wet with dew, interspersed with a few unknown wild flowers, all loosely tied with a willow withe.

Si Xiaoxiao’s radiant features looked even more brilliant against the backdrop of the peach blossoms.

“When did you…” Li Ting froze. She truly hadn’t expected… it would be flowers.

“Just now when we passed the alley entrance, I saw the blossoms were at their peak and picked them on a whim,” Si Xiaoxiao chuckled. “For you. Do you like them?”

The bouquet was pressed into Li Ting’s hands, the rainwater from the petals dampening her fingertips.

Just as the words fell, both of them moved simultaneously. The puddles on the bluestone path reflected two figures running side-by-side as ripples slowly spread outward.

The final result seemed to be a draw, but since Li Ting had received a bouquet of flowers, it was technically Li Ting’s victory.

Si Xiaoxiao was never one to mistreat herself. She reserved the best seat in Wangjiang Tower and ordered a table full of delicacies and fine wine for just the two of them. She was the type to “spend a thousand gold only for it to return,” possessed of a heroic and grand spirit—spending whenever it was called for.

It was precisely this extravagant spending that led to her dire financial situation.

Facing such a person, Li Ting could only shake her head helplessly. She figured the managers of the new Hehuan Sect would likely have a massive headache looking at these bills.

Coincidentally, a local lantern festival was being held. Si Xiaoxiao, restless as a monkey, barely touched the exquisite food before she flew down from the tower to give the leftovers to street beggars. When she returned, she didn’t even want the prime seats anymore; she grabbed Li Ting to go for a stroll.

This woman truly changed faster than the weather. Li Ting shook her head in resignation but followed her involuntarily.

In the nighttime town, both banks of the canal were lit by various lanterns: lotus lamps, rabbit lamps, palace lanterns… like a galaxy fallen to earth, dyeing the water’s surface a magnificent dreamscape. Tourists jostled shoulder to shoulder, laughter filled the air, and the scent of sugar-men, pastries, and snacks created a warm, mundane atmosphere of human life.

Si Xiaoxiao was like a fish in water, pulling Li Ting through the crowd with agility.

She stopped at an old woman’s stall, dropped some copper coins, and selected the two most delicate lotus lamps, shoving one into Li Ting’s hand.

“Come, come! Let’s go release them over there!”

The two squeezed their way to a slightly quieter set of steps by the riverbank. Si Xiaoxiao squatted down, carefully placing her lotus lamp into the water and gently flicking the surface with her fingertip. The lamp wobbled along with the current, merging into the river of light. She closed her eyes and pressed her palms together, appearing to mutter something under her breath with a rare look of piety.

Standing behind her, Li Ting watched her profile outlined by the lamplight. She then looked down at the lamp in her own hand, suddenly curious: what wish was she making?

“Why aren’t you releasing yours?” Si Xiaoxiao suddenly turned back, as if catching Li Ting in the act of watching her. Under the play of light and shadow, her smile was exceptionally beautiful.

Li Ting hurriedly looked down at her lamp. After a moment’s hesitation, she eventually leaned over and sent the lotus lamp into the water. The lantern swayed, steadily carrying its tiny light as it drifted into the distance, joining the shimmering river.

When she looked up again, Si Xiaoxiao was gazing into the distance. Her eyes held a trace of loneliness, as if she were reminiscing about someone.

They stayed out very late that night. Since the date for the “heroes” to gather at Wudang had long been set, they had to stick to their original travel plan.

Unfortunately, Si Xiaoxiao was a creature of whim who never followed a schedule. Consequently, the next day, the two had to resort to using their qinggong at high speeds to make up for lost time.

Constantly exerting internal energy was a heavy drain. Even for someone with deep internal reserves like Si Xiaoxiao, beads of sweat appeared on her brow.

As the sun dipped toward the west, staining the clouds a magnificent orange-red, it also revealed the desolation of the path ahead. As far as the eye could see, there were no towns or villages—only continuous mountains and a quiet-looking valley.

“Aiyay, it looks like we’re sleeping under the stars tonight.” Si Xiaoxiao was the first to stop. With her hands on her hips, she gazed at the valley. Instead of frustration, she looked eager, as if thinking, Since we’re here, might as well enjoy it.

Li Ting’s breath was heavy as she adjusted her internal flow. Hearing this, she shot a glance at Si Xiaoxiao. Recalling the previous day’s events, she couldn’t help but jab at her: “If a certain someone hadn’t spent all night messing around, we wouldn’t be in this predicament tonight.”

Li Ting hadn’t drunk anything the night before, mainly because Si Xiaoxiao insisted she was underage and wouldn’t let her touch it. Meanwhile, Si Xiaoxiao herself wouldn’t let go of the wine jar until she’d had her fill. As a result, she’d practically wrecked the inn room, vomiting everywhere and even making a mess of her own bed.

Thus, the two were forced to squeeze into one bed, which led to them both oversleeping.

Si Xiaoxiao chattered away, sounding perfectly justified: “Well, you didn’t drink too much, so why didn’t you just drag me out of bed?”

“…What, you’re blaming me now? You’re the one who couldn’t wake up.” Li Ting turned her face away, her tone sharpening.

Si Xiaoxiao didn’t understand why Li Ting was so easily provoked. Scratching her head, she looked up just in time to see Li Ting execute a few leaps, vanishing toward an open, leeward spot in the valley.

“Hey! Why are you moving so fast? Aren’t you going to rest?” Si Xiaoxiao shouted.

Li Ting, however, had already set down her pack. “We’ll settle here. I’ll go find some firewood.”

“Are you mad?” With a flash of movement, Si Xiaoxiao intercepted her.

“No.” Li Ting pursed her lips coldly, attempting to sidestep Si Xiaoxiao to continue on her way.

“Stingy! You’re definitely mad!” Si Xiaoxiao grumbled. Seeing that Li Ting had already walked off, she didn’t rush to chase her. Instead, she petulantly picked up a stone and skipped it across a nearby pool of water.

After two skips, she found the activity dull. She turned to follow Li Ting into the woods, but as she spun around, she saw Li Ting already returning with a rabbit in hand. Si Xiaoxiao’s foot froze mid-air.

Lowering her foot, she didn’t want Li Ting to realize she had intended to look for her. She channeled her internal energy again toward the forest, leaving behind a quick remark: “I’m going to catch something to eat, too.”

Although Si Xiaoxiao possessed high-level martial arts, she was, at her core, a modern person. She was fine with striking cool poses like in a TV drama—and thanks to her role in Bronze Sparrow Abyss, she had some martial arts foundations that, combined with her internal power, kept her from being totally lost. But when it came to actual hunting? She was hopeless.

The result: she wandered the woods for half the day without catching a single thing. She trudged back dejectedly, her mood sinking with every step.

They were getting closer to Wudang. Was Li Ting’s affection level even reliable? If we can’t beat the others when the time comes, it’ll just be a death trap!

And Li Ting is mad at me; her affection might even drop… Should I apologize? No, no! Great King Xiaoxiao never admits defeat! I absolutely cannot bow my head!

As Si Xiaoxiao pondered this, she saw that Li Ting had already built a fire. The rabbit was sizzling over the bonfire, dripping oil and looking incredibly delicious.

Her stomach betrayed her with a loud growl. Si Xiaoxiao was about to stubbornly claim that “today was not a good day for killing” and that she had decided to spare the forest animals.

“Come and eat.”

Li Ting took the initiative to offer an olive branch.

Any trace of stubbornness or the “Arrogant Great King Xiaoxiao” vanished instantly. She sat down beside Li Ting with an air of trepidation and looked up, asking: “You’re not mad at me anymore?”

Give her an inch, and she’d crawl a mile—she truly acted more like a puppy than a puppy.

“…I wasn’t angry to begin with.”

“Liar! The corners of your mouth were downturned exactly one degree more than usual, and there was no warmth in your eyes at all! You were definitely mad,” Si Xiaoxiao declared with absolute certainty, her observation skills proving surprisingly keen.

Li Ting was momentarily speechless. She eventually gave up and retorted: “Fine, I’m mad. Am I not allowed to be mad?”

Si Xiaoxiao shrank back submissively, looking pitiful in an instant: “Don’t… don’t be mad…”

Li Ting shoved the tenderest rabbit leg into Si Xiaoxiao’s hand and said crossly: “Eat.”

Si Xiaoxiao immediately beamed: “Okay, I’ll eat! Just don’t stay mad!”

Is she an idiot? Li Ting mocked her fiercely in her mind, yet for some reason, her mood lightened considerably.

In truth, what Si Xiaoxiao didn’t know was that Li Ting’s sudden temper wasn’t directed at her, but at herself.

Li Ting had actually woken up very early that morning. She had intended to shake Si Xiaoxiao awake, but for some reason, she had lost herself while watching the sleeping Si Xiaoxiao. A desire that shouldn’t have existed took root in her heart.

She had indulged in the embrace, unwilling to wake up, her body unable to move, until time slipped away unnoticed.

That embrace had been so soft and warm.

Li Ting was angry at her own lack of resolve. This woman was a sworn enemy she was supposed to kill, yet her heart was… thumping violently for every move her enemy made.

This was not right.

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