The Abused Female Protagonist In The Angst Novel Is Actually A White Lotus - Chapter 20

Yun Nian nodded in acknowledgment and signaled to a Shadow Guard, who immediately set off in pursuit.

Back at the Prime Minister’s Residence, the maid who was close to Yun Nian was already frantic. Standing at the gate, she nearly burst into tears when she saw Yun Nian return. “Yun Nian, you’re finally back! Why did you forget to lock the gate when you left? If someone had sneaked in, my heads wouldn’t be enough to pay the price!”

Yun Nian didn’t tell the maid that the person beside her was her young miss, so the maid assumed Shen Sijing was just another servant at Dreamlike Pavilion. She scolded both of them together. Yun Nian nodded, then bent down to observe Shen Sijing’s expression. Seeing no displeasure, she quickly said to her friend, “This is entirely my fault. I’ll treat you to something good when I get my monthly wages.”

With that, she grabbed Shen Sijing’s hand and hurried her back inside. The maid, still clutching her keys and looking annoyed, sat back down.

“Looks like I owe you a meal, ha ha ha…” Shen Sijing chuckled softly. Yun Nian, however, was terrified. Tonight had been a close call. That man in black was far too mysterious. If he had harmed Shen Sijing, Yun Nian would have lost more heads than she had.

Inside the bedroom, the lamps burned brightly. Shen Sijing knew Ling Qingyi was still awake when she saw the candlelight. She quickly took off her cloak and handed it to Yun Nian, who closed the umbrella and stood watching Shen Sijing enter the room. Then she remained on the veranda, watching the night rain patter down.

“Qingqing…” Shen Sijing tiptoed in and found Ling Qingyi already dressed in her inner robes, sitting at the table looking drowsy. At Shen Sijing’s soft call, she immediately woke up.

Ling Qingyi rubbed her eyes and smiled warmly. “Sister Shen is back?”

Shen Sijing nodded and hurried to Ling Qingyi’s side, noticing the book Ling Qingyi had been reading was nearly finished. It was a compiled collection of folk tales.

It seems to be about two girls, Shen Sijing thought.

“What kind of story is this?” Shen Sijing asked, intrigued. Could ancient times really have been this open-minded? The woman’s earlier words… they echoed a secret Shen Sijing had buried deep in her heart for years. She had realized her attraction to women in early middle school and gradually confirmed her feelings, realizing she had no interest in men.
Noticing Shen Sijing’s interest in the book, Ling Qingyi quickly covered it with her hand, her cheeks flushing slightly. She stammered, “It’s… it’s about a dancer and a princess. The dancer is alluring and radiant, and the princess naturally adores her.”

Shen Sijing paused, sensing a hint of unhappiness in Ling Qingyi’s voice as she spoke the last part.

Observing Ling Qingyi’s expression closely, Shen Sijing confirmed her suspicion. “What’s wrong? Don’t you like the story?”

Ling Qingyi nodded, then shook her head, sighing. “Does one have to be alluring and radiant to deserve love?”

This time, Shen Sijing wasn’t mistaken. Ling Qingyi’s eyes were filled with disappointment. Could it be that she had someone she liked? Logically, having just rejected Xiao Jing, she shouldn’t still be hung up on that scumbag like in the original story. But the more Ling Qingyi acted this way, the more Shen Sijing grew anxious. What if Ling Qingyi had fallen for another scumbag this time?

If that were the case, Shen Sijing wouldn’t be able to protect her. She took Ling Qingyi’s hand, her expression unusually serious. “No matter what, you are the best person. Any relationship that demands too much from you isn’t normal. Listen to me, we need to love ourselves first.”

Ling Qingyi tilted her head slightly, gazing at Shen Sijing with a complex mix of emotions in her eyes.

Feeling a little guilty under her gaze, Shen Sijing instinctively looked away, glancing at the floor. As she lowered her head, she noticed a damp half-footprint beneath the table.

Had Ling Qingyi been in the courtyard earlier? Shen Sijing had taken off her embroidered shoes before entering the room and walked in barefoot. This footprint couldn’t be hers.

Ling Qingyi seemed to notice Shen Sijing’s gaze. She smiled calmly. “I was waiting for you in the room for so long that I went to watch the night rain from the veranda.”

The reason seemed perfectly plausible. Shen Sijing didn’t overthink it and sat down before the bronze mirror, summoning Yun Nian to loosen her hair. The hairpin was removed, and a warm, damp cloth was gently pressed against her face to remove her makeup. After a day of anxiety, it was finally coming to an end.

Ling Qingyi lay on the couch, already prepared for bed. Although Shen Sijing wasn’t entirely accustomed to sharing a bed with someone, this was the person she had gone to great lengths to rescue, the Ling Qingyi who possessed the protagonist’s aura. As Shen Sijing settled down, she heard Ling Qingyi’s voice beside her: “Sister Shen, did Madam mention anything specific earlier?”

Shen Sijing froze. She hadn’t been summoned at all. How was she supposed to explain this? She forced herself to think for a long moment before sighing dramatically, feigning profundity. “Gu Jing’an, the Minister of Rites’ daughter, is a notoriously headstrong woman. Mother worried someone might bully you at tomorrow’s poetry gathering, so she specifically instructed me to protect you. Also, if Madam Ling and your sisters attend tomorrow, remember not to leave with them. Just say you want to stay with me.”

With that, Shen Sijing turned her back and pretended to fall asleep. Before long, she actually drifted off. In the darkness, Ling Qingyi gazed at her slender silhouette, her hand clenching tightly beneath the covers.

After a long silence in the pitch-black night, Ling Qingyi’s voice rasped, “So you went out at the Hour of the Pig just to see a dancer?”

Of course, Shen Sijing didn’t hear her. She was already fast asleep, and Ling Qingyi’s question hung unanswered in the air. The rain outside roared, keeping Ling Qingyi wide awake.

The sensual scene replayed endlessly in her mind.

Suddenly, lightning flashed outside the window, illuminating the entire room with a blinding light that accompanied a thunderous roar. The shock jolted Shen Sijing awake, and she sat up abruptly. Ling Qingyi also sat up, noticing the tears streaming down Shen Sijing’s face.

“Thunder!?” No sooner had the word left her lips than another thunderclap shook the room. Shen Sijing scrambled into Ling Qingyi’s arms, leaving a trail of her delicate fragrance that made Ling Qingyi forget what she was about to say.

Amidst the relentless thunder, Ling Qingyi slowly wrapped her arms around Shen Sijing, her voice softening with a tenderness she hadn’t realized she possessed. “It’s okay, it’s okay…”

These three words, whispered against Shen Sijing’s hair, lulled her back to sleep. Ever since childhood, a horror movie had instilled in her an irrational fear of thunderstorms, which explained her sudden panic and desperate embrace of Ling Qingyi.

Even as she drifted back to sleep, Shen Sijing clung to the corner of Ling Qingyi’s robe, as if afraid she would leave. Little did she know, Ling Qingyi’s gaze never wavered from her throughout the entire night.

Ling Qingyi held Shen Sijing in her arms as if possessed, afraid to look anywhere else, carefully protecting her.

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