I Got Together with the Goddess [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 90

Sentencing oneself to lifelong solitude.

“Yiqing, there are exceptionally many birthdays cards this year. How many is that now?”

Due to her love for skiing and her professional athlete status, Jiang Yiqing had traveled to various countries for competitions, making many foreign friends along the way.

Though they rarely had time to visit one another, they had developed a habit of sending birthday gifts. In the eyes of foreigners, Jiang Yiqing celebrated her birthday according to the solar calendar, so she had been receiving gifts and cards continuously leading up to this day.

“To the most brilliant Yiqing: Yiqing, born between Halloween and Christmas, you are truly a favorite of the heavens. We look forward to the day you come to London to join us for the Halloween and Christmas parades. We will surely throw a grand birthday party for you. Best wishes just for you~ Love, May.”

Jiang Yiqing, whose actual birthday was on the eve of New Year’s Day, felt very happy receiving these cards. Some came with candy, others with postcards from her friends’ travels, and the sofa was piled high with gifts.

“We should place these gift boxes next to the Christmas tree for decoration. How lovely!” Auntie Qin said. “Yiqing, come, open the gifts first.”

“Yiqing is truly popular,” the family doctor added.

The family doctor had come today to remove the cast. Jiang Yiqing’s leg injury was now completely healed. Even the doctor was surprised by how quickly she had recovered; in reality, it was because she had used medicine from the System. Jiang Yiqing didn’t want her broken bone to cause too much trouble for everyone.

Looking at the mountain of gifts, each with its unique and exciting packaging, Jiang Yiqing felt she had never seen such a scene. She felt as though she was sharing in the happiness of the original Yiqing. Subconsciously, she looked toward Luo Shuyu, as Luo Shuyu was the only one who had guessed the truth: “Sister Luo, do you think it’s okay?”

Luo Shuyu frowned slightly. What did she mean by asking if it was “okay”? A slight trace of malice flickered in her thoughts: “What if I say it’s not okay?”

“Goodness, Miss Luo, are you two having a spat?” Auntie Qin asked in surprise.

Both answered in unison: “No.”

“Then what is this about?”

“I should be asking Yiqing. Why ask me? What is our relationship?” Luo Shuyu asked.

Jiang Yiqing’s face immediately flushed bright red. Auntie Qin thought to herself: What is wrong with these two children? They are clearly betrothed, yet they are at each other’s throats like this. However, she knew better than to interfere in the emotions of the younger generation. Making an excuse about the water boiling, she stepped away.

“…Sister Luo hates me, doesn’t she?”

Her expression seemed to say: Yes, as long as you hate me, then I can be completely at ease and no longer have to worry about how others treat me. To Luo Shuyu, this felt like a form of “rotting away.” She said, “I never said that.”

“Then can I open them?” Hope surged in Jiang Yiqing again, her eyes bright with anticipation.

Luo Shuyu remained silent, which was a silent permission.

Watching Jiang Yiqing’s happy appearance, as if her mood were entirely unaffected by what had just happened, Luo Shuyu felt a bit uneasy.

Watching Jiang Yiqing, who was incredibly happy after seeing a custom Teddy bear with a pink bow and holding it as if she couldn’t let go, Luo Shuyu asked thoughtfully, “Yiqing, do you remember Wang Yue’er?”

“…” Jiang Yiqing’s smile suddenly froze, and she looked at her somewhat timidly.

Luo Shuyu even felt a sense of guilt, as if she had committed an unforgivable act, but she pressed on. Her reason told her she had to clarify the current situation first.

“She was your best friend in kindergarten, but she died in a car accident. Her mother is Auntie Wang, who works at the villa next door.”

Jiang Yiqing looked at her in shock. There was nothing wrong with this expression. Luo Shuyu continued, “Yiqing, did you forget Wang Yue’er, or do you still remember?”

If the real Yiqing were standing here, this question would be far too cruel. However, Jiang Yiqing did her best to respond. Even though she had never met her, she said, “Of course I have an impression. Yue’er was a very good person. What happened back then… was such a pity.”

“Such a beautiful angel, yet her fate was to have her wings clipped mid-air. No mother could accept that,” Luo Shuyu said. “Back then, I was the one who read her fortune.”

“…” A crack appeared in Jiang Yiqing’s expression as she struggled to digest these words. “Why?”

“There is no ‘why.’ This is just how the world is. Just like you, Yiqing—can you explain why this happened to you?”

Jiang Yiqing felt the mask she had been trying to wear being violently torn at that moment. However, she didn’t seem to want to wear that mask anymore. She asked Luo Shuyu, “Sister Luo, exactly how much do you know?”

“…” Jiang Yiqing seemed unaware of the engagement, which further proved she was not the previous Jiang Yiqing. Luo Shuyu decided to be direct: “As the daughter of my mother’s friend, if Jiang Yiqing shared the same fate as Wang Yue’er, I could do nothing. But if someone has taken her place, I cannot accept doing nothing.”

“But I am clearly Jiang Yiqing too!” Jiang Yiqing couldn’t stop her tears from falling as she looked at her.

Luo Shuyu reached out to wipe her tears with a tissue, but Jiang Yiqing brushed her hand away. She said forcefully, “I always thought you were a very gentle person, just like my Royal Sister. But why are you treating me like this? Just like those people who looked down on me!”

She had suffered too much grievance before. Just because she could see ghosts but had no spiritual roots, she had been mocked by everyone. She thought that by coming to this world and meeting Luo Shuyu, who could also see ghosts, she would find a sense of belonging. In the end, was she still unworthy of even having a place to settle down?!

“…Yiqing, I’m sorry. I just… wanted to know the truth,” Luo Shuyu said, her face somewhat pale.

“The truth? Everyone is living perfectly well. Why must you destroy the life I’ve worked so hard to rebuild just for your personal ‘truth’? Sister Luo, do you really have the right to condemn me on behalf of Yiqing? Even she herself hasn’t said anything.” Jiang Yiqing simply laid everything bare; she hadn’t expected to hide it from a metaphysical master anyway. “Yes, I did switch identities with her. She and I look exactly the same. Why call it ‘taking her place’? I’m actually happy for Jiang Yiqing now—she’s lucky she doesn’t have to deal with a sharp-tongued and mean person like you. How fortunate for her!”

“…” Luo Shuyu looked at her, thinking: So she finally told the truth? “Sharp-tongued and mean… is that really what you think of me?”

“What else? You are nothing like my Royal Sister. I thought you were gentle at first. I was wrong about you.”

Luo Shuyu suddenly remembered what her grandmother had told her when she was a child.

“Shuyu, you will have only one chance in your life to escape the fate of the Solitary Star. It will be in your twenty-third year when you get engaged. This person of destiny must be born on a Xinyue Xin day, serving as a benefactor to the Ding Fire. What a coincidence—my dear friend Jiang Shangwei’s daughter fits this horoscope perfectly. Therefore, I have already proposed the alliance to her. You must not miss her, or you will end up lonely for the rest of your life. If that happens, I will never forgive you!”

It was precisely to help her escape the fate of dying alone that the Luo family had initiated the engagement with the Jiang family. Based on her grandmother’s intuition, Jiang Yiqing was the most suitable person for her in this lifetime. Because Luo Shuyu had been solitary and eccentric since childhood, her words could often irritate people to death within three sentences. Before her grandmother passed away, she taught her to be a gentle girl. From then on, Luo Shuyu kept the word “gentle” in her heart, but her true nature still slipped out from time to time.

—In essence, she was not a gentle person at all.

And now, this fact had been shouted out by Jiang Yiqing.

Regardless of whether Jiang Yiqing had swapped identities or traveled through time, it actually had no impact on Luo Shuyu’s fate. The only person she could choose was this one person before her. Out of shyness, Luo Shuyu had even deliberately avoided Jiang Yiqing for over ten years.

As it turned out, shortly after they met, she had successfully ruined everything.

Very well. This is exactly what someone with the fate of the Solitary Star like me would do, Luo Shuyu thought, completely accepting her destiny of lifelong solitude.

“Yes, I am indeed not a suitable partner. Meeting me, Yiqing must find me very difficult to deal with.” Luo Shuyu spoke as if she had come to terms with it, feigning calmness to hide the turmoil in her heart. She looked at Jiang Yiqing and said, “Then let’s end that titular engagement. I’m sure you agree.”

“…?” Jiang Yiqing was stunned. What was going on? They had an engagement?

The original Jiang Yiqing and Luo Shuyu? What was this about?

“It’s fine if you didn’t know, because it was originally just a joke between adults and couldn’t be taken seriously. Just forget it ever happened. I will speak to Mother Jiang and say it was an issue on my end; it has nothing to do with you,” Luo Shuyu said as calmly as possible.

The year was drawing to a close, which meant for Luo Shuyu, her twenty-third year was almost over.

Sentencing herself to lifelong solitude. How fitting, Luo Shuyu. This is exactly what you would do, just like how you heartlessly judge the fates of your clients.

“I really didn’t know about this…” Jiang Yiqing felt quite defeated and lowered her head, failing to see the disappointment in Luo Shuyu’s eyes. “Now that you know I’m not the original Jiang Yiqing, you can do whatever you want. I’ll accept it.”

“Rest assured, I won’t do anything. You are Jiang Yiqing. I was joking before.” Luo Shuyu let out a light laugh, turned around, and left.

What was going on? Jiang Yiqing didn’t understand. Looking at Luo Shuyu’s departing back, she actually saw a trace of loneliness.

That was Luo Shuyu. How could that be?