Marry First, Love Later With The White Cat Princess - Chapter 48.1

“The thing you grabbed was my feather not my flesh,” Qingyue said calmly, sitting at the edge.

Luo Binglun blinked. “Then why did you say it hurt…?”

“I pretended.” Yu Qingyue’s face was expressionless. “Sleep.”

“Luo Binglun thought she was… cute. Teasing her seriously first thing in the morning.

Seeing Yu Qingyue remain sitting and not lying beside her, Luo Binglun felt both relieved and oddly disappointed.

The more Qingyue deliberately kept her distance, the worse her heart felt.

With her beloved so close, sleep was impossible. She quietly rolled over and gently brushed a feather on Qingyue’s wing, pinching it lightly before closing her eyes in satisfaction.

The moment she closed her eyes, she recalled that spring night in Qingyue’s nest when the winged demon wrapped her tightly in her embrace. They had been so close she could clearly hear her heartbeat.

Since then, though Qingyue often demanded kisses suddenly, she had never again slept beside her like that.

After all, they were no longer of the same race.

Luo Binglun, eyes closed, sensed a familiar aura drawing near. She didn’t look, but she knew exactly where Qingyue was.

Her breath stopped. She pretended to sleep while sensing Qingyue come closer and closer if she opened her eyes, she would meet those sharp eagle-eyes immediately.

Was she planning something?

Summer heat filled the room. Luo Binglun couldn’t bear high temperatures and slept with only a thin sheet. While napping, she had nothing covering her at all.

Warm breath brushed her face. She kept still, but her pounding heartbeat made her tremble.

Yu Qingyue stopped, gazing down at the “sleeping” beauty. She didn’t expose her, only leaned to her ear and whispered, voice low.

“Even when the bird flies willingly into the cage… you won’t spare it a single glance.”

There was disappointment in her voice.

Wind brushed her ear. Luo Binglun opened her eyes in alarm, Qingyue was already gone. The feather she had held remained in her hand.

Staring at it, an ache surged through her chest. Tears blurred her vision.

What Qingyue desired in love… she simply could not give right now. She was facing the one who had once given her light and then personally thrown her into the abyss. The one she had cherished… who shattered her heart without mercy.

Even if the bird now returned willingly, offering herself as a prisoner for three years how could she dare look at her again?

To look again, fall again, love again… only to be hurt alone again.

The canopy lifted in a sudden breeze. Luo Binglun looked up, Yu Qingyue stood before her, holding a medical book.

They stared at each other. Yu Qingyue spoke first:

“You’re awake? You even cried.”

Luo Binglun stared blankly as Qingyue set the book down and pulled her into an embrace. That expressionless face leaned close, and a soft kiss brushed the corner of her eye, warm lips gently licking away her tears.

“Don’t cry,” Yu Qingyue murmured. “I’m back.”

And I won’t leave again.

Outside the capital, many men had gone to war, and families remaining in the city were saving every coin.

After finishing the names on her medical roster, Liu Fenyun had not been asked for house calls in some time. Even walking the busiest streets every day, few sought her help.

Still, she went to the outer city for at least two hours daily, treating patients, chatting with elder sang-jia Cuxiao, and asking for news of the other two witch doctor envoys.

As long as she remained a witch doctor of Zhuohuang, she had to continue her advancement trials until she reached Fire Rank Witch Doctor.

At first, the old man always diverted the topic, but after they grew familiar, he finally revealed a little: “Those two old fellows aren’t easy to fool! You’ll need true skill. But they like rare heavenly herbs. They might send you to gather herbs in dangerous places with one of their trusted men accompanying you.”

Seeing her brighten, he frowned. “Don’t you dare think of using demons disguised as humans! I already told you those two kill demons on sight. If they were younger, with two spirit beasts guarding the city now, they would’ve lost patience long ago!”

“I know, I know! I wouldn’t dare cheat.” Liu Fenyun replied, then added, remembering the witch-doctor tests include divination and exorcism, “Grandpa, what dangerous places nearby have heavenly herbs and are suitable for testing witch-doctors?”

The old man snorted and poured her a cup of tea for sending guests off. “Ask the princess instead!”

But Lianyi actually didn’t know anything about the outskirts. Xian Lihua was the one who wandered everywhere.

After leaving the old man, Liu Fenyun went to “Night-less Return” tavern in search of Xian Lihua.

Lianyi was busy with festival dance rehearsals and her relationship with the Priest Hall wasn’t as strained as before, so the cat demon subordinates were given time off. Xian Lihua, now free, practically lived in the tavern with the proprietress, only returning to accompany Qi Ran at night.

Led inside, Liu Fenyun found Xian Lihua still drunk half-collapsed in the lady boss’s lap in a pose common for cats but bizarre for humans.

Smelling her scent, Xian Lihua rubbed her eyes, looked up, and greeted her with a boozy “Lord Liu,” breath thick with alcohol.

Liu Fenyun stepped back slightly and bowed. “Seems I came at a bad time. Please continue.”

“Mm….don’t go, my lord…!” Xian Lihua sat up, swaying, rummaged through her pockets, and pulled out a tiny slip of paper. “A secret letter… hic… thrown in through the window… just now…”

Liu Fenyun: “???”

Her heart tightened. She grabbed the note it wasn’t a secret letter at all. It was Qi Ran, who, while on patrol, discovered an ancient lotus pond and invited her to visit in half a month. And specifically said: do not let Lianyi know.

“Does Her Highness know about this ‘secret letter’?” Liu Fenyun asked, waving the note.

Too drunk, Xian Lihua mumbled, “Her Highness… doesn’t know yet… but will know soon!”

“Please…don’t. I beg you to keep this secret.” Liu Fenyun said urgently.

Heavens forbid. If Lianyi learned she was sneaking off to see a lotus pond with Qi Ran, her blackening value would skyrocket!

But she truly couldn’t fathom why Qi Ran invited her. The note explained nothing more just asked her to show up half a month later, no further contact needed.

She could only mark the date and wait.

Half a month passed in a blink. Temperatures rose, and mosquitoes multiplied.

After killing her first one, Liu Fenyun spent all her spare time making mosquito-repellent sprays and incense, even fumigating the bedroom with mugwort every morning.

Still, she couldn’t escape with fewer than a dozen bites unless she shrank the barrier to surround only the bed, which at least protected her while sleeping.

Lianyi hated heat. Recently, she no longer clung to her at night. With fewer blankets and a cool mat in place, her sleeping posture became unpredictable.

Liu Fenyun often woke with a cat foot pressing on her stomach or the entire cat sprawled atop her. A few mornings she even found herself on the floor, and the cool floor was surprisingly comfortable…

This summer was unusually hot. Even ice blocks in the room did nothing. Unable to sleep from the heat, Lianyi poked the meditating Liu Fenyun. “Can’t you make an ‘air-conditioner’?”

Liu Fenyun refused she studied medicine, not engineering.

But she was very skilled with water talismans. She rolled out paper and spent half the night discussing symbols with Lianyi. Combining wind and water talismans, they created a demon-qi powered indoor cooling circulation.

Lianyi was thrilled. She was about to enjoy the coolness when she saw Liu Fenyun hauling over a thick quilt and even removing the cool mat, replacing it with the spring bedding.

Lianyi stared wide-eyed. “Are you trying to roast me?!”

Liu Fenyun wanted to explain, but knowing Lianyi was completely focused on enjoying the cool air, she changed her words instantly: “Where I’m from, using thick blankets under cold air is the best part of summer.”

And so the quilt went over Lianyi.

Wrapped in a thick blanket while hugging Lianyi, with cold air around her, Liu Fenyun couldn’t help feeling nostalgic.

It had been a long time since she lived like this.

The next morning, while passing Drunken Mist Pavilion on her way to cultivate, a voice sounded overhead:

“Good morning, Witch-doctor.”

She looked up, Qi Ran was perched on the roof with a bright smile.

“When did you get back? Why are you up there?” she asked.

Qi Ran leapt down, grabbed her sleeve, leaned close, and whispered:

“So… have you decided about our lotus-pond appointment?”