The Fragile Supporting Lady Is Too Clingy - Chapter 6

Facing her younger sister’s inquiry, Li Qiuyue gently shook her head. “No need. Would Third Sister like to sit for a while?”

Li Shuyu agreed with a soft “Okay,” obediently moving a stool to sit down herself.

Her bright, watery eyes fixed intently on Li Qiuyue, stirring both alarm and helpless panic in the latter’s heart. She couldn’t help but wonder, what had she done this time to provoke this little tyrant?

Had she come all this way, risking contagion, just to torment her again?

Li Qiuyue didn’t know when she would finally be free of the quagmire that was Li Shuyu. Perhaps… only when one of them got married.

The girl before her seemed to grow more pitiful by the second, and Li Shuyu, equally flustered and at a loss, had no idea how to comfort her.

She had never comforted anyone before. After a long pause, she could only blurt out stiffly, “Um, would you like some water? Should I pour you a cup?”

Li Qiuyue paused. Her lips were indeed dry and cracked, she was thirsty. The maids were too busy amusing themselves to attend to her. The day before, parched beyond endurance, she had dragged her sickly body to the table for water, only to accidentally knock over a cup.

Since falling ill, the hardest part had been caring for herself. Beyond meals, no one bathed her, no one brewed her medicine or poured her tea. Life had become a struggle.

Yet she dared not drink water poured by Li Shuyu. Who knew what might be added to it?

Li Qiuyue parted her lips, about to refuse, but the girl had already stood up and walked to the table.

She closed her eyes in despair. She should have known, when Li Shuyu wanted to humiliate or torment her, no one could refuse. Least of all her.

Fine. She could only hope the girl would tire of this game and leave soon.

Li Qiuyue sat motionless on the bed, her entire being radiating hopelessness. Li Shuyu, utterly bewildered, handed her the poured water with increasing caution and asked, “Are you feeling unwell somewhere?”

Though she wasn’t deliberately maintaining the original owner’s persona, to Li Qiuyue, it still reeked of hypocrisy.

There was no way she had come here with genuine concern only to bully her.

Li Qiuyue forced a frail, unconvincing smile and whispered, “Thank you for your concern, Third Sister. I’m fine. Did you come to see me about something important?”

No sooner had she spoken than a slightly cool porcelain cup was pressed into her hand. The hand didn’t withdraw but instead lingered, hesitantly gripping hers as Li Shuyu asked, “Do you have the strength? Should I help you drink?”

Li Qiuyue: “…”

Even if she were too weak, she wouldn’t dare let Li Shuyu feed her. Who knew what fresh accusation might follow?

The frail girl on the bed shook her head. “Thank you, Third Sister, but I can manage.”

Her pale, delicate fingers slipped away stealthily. Li Shuyu absentmindedly rubbed her fingertips, then nodded and smiled warm and amiable.

It was nothing like her usual self. But to Li Qiuyue, it was all just an act.

Head bowed, Li Qiuyue drank hastily. Though she suspected the water might be tainted, she had no choice but to drink. Gulping it down, she at least soothed the dryness in her throat.

Seeing her finish, Li Shuyu eagerly leaned in again. “Still thirsty? Should I pour you another cup?”

Every sentence ended with a tentative “okay?” or “should I?” painting her as almost docile.

Li Qiuyue felt a wave of helplessness wash over her for even entertaining such thoughts. Li Shuyu was so malicious, having bullied her for years she wished her dead. That was how it should be.

Perhaps it was the illness making it hard to control her emotions, but Li Qiuyue’s expression inexplicably turned colder. She placed the empty cup on the side table, her voice carrying a barely detectable chill. “Third Sister, lowering yourself to come here surely it wasn’t just to pour me a cup of tea? If there’s something you want to say, speak plainly. I’m slow-witted and can’t decipher your intentions.”

Li Shuyu had been smiling, her expression gentle and patient, but upon hearing these words, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of sadness at being misunderstood. Then again, it made sense after years of suffering under the original owner’s cruelty, it would be stranger if Li Qiuyue trusted her easily.

Naturally, she would be wary at every turn, guarding against another betrayal.

It was fine. As long as she didn’t continue to bully the supporting female lead, didn’t let her suffer the hardships that were yet to come, the character wouldn’t fully turn to the dark side nor would she resort to those direct and painful methods to kill her.

All she had to do… was be a little kinder to the supporting female lead.

Her expectations weren’t high just staying alive was enough.

Li Shuyu’s moment of dejection passed quickly, and she mustered her spirits again, curling her lips into a faint smile as she shook her head. “I just wanted to see you. There’s nothing else.”

She didn’t offer any promises. Given the power imbalance between them, any promise she made would be meaningless, she was the one who could break it at any time.

Actions spoke louder than words. She would prove herself first, not the other way around.

Li Qiuyue lowered her head, staring at her slender fingers resting on the quilt, and remained silent, clearly still distrustful.

Li Shuyu had expected this and didn’t mind. She only sought to act with a clear conscience.

The cup on the table was picked up again. Only then did the frail supporting female lead look up, watching Li Shuyu’s slender back from behind as she placed the cup down but didn’t stop instead, she opened the door. Was she leaving?

A flicker of hope rose in Li Qiuyue’s heart.

But it was dashed when she heard the woman’s bright voice. “Jinkui, the water inside has gone cold. Could you boil a fresh pot for me?”

Naturally, Jinkui wouldn’t refuse her mistress’s request.

Then Li Shuyu turned to ask Li Qiuyue if her maid could come in.

Li Qiuyue was taken aback by the question.

Normally, she had no say in such matters. Who would dare tell the only legitimate daughter of the Pingyang Marquis’ household “no”?

Li Qiuyue lowered her head again, her voice soft and non-confrontational. “Third Sister may do as you please.”

Only then did Li Shuyu fully open the door, letting Jinkui in to take the teapot while she herself crouched down to pick up the broken porcelain shards.

Jinkui, who had been about to take the teapot, was horrified at the sight and nearly shrieked, “Miss, stop that!”

Both the person picking up the shards and the one on the bed were startled. Li Shuyu looked up in confusion, while Li Qiuyue blinked dazedly at the scene. The maid hastily set down the teapot and knelt to swiftly gather the shards, saying, “You’re the young mistress, how could you do such things? Leave it to this servant. Please, sit and rest.”

Li Shuyu paused. Though she saw no need for such fuss, she didn’t argue. This was how people of this era thought raised this way since childhood. There was no need for her to stand out too much.

After entrusting everything to Hollyhock, Li Shuyu turned back, the tinkling sound of hairpins and ornaments colliding filling the room as she met Li Qiuyue’s lingering gaze.

Li Qiuyue, accidentally locking eyes with her, flinched and hastily averted her gaze, her head bowing low.

If not for the book’s description, she would have appeared utterly docile.

Li Shuyu’s eyes curved into crescents. Since the other woman kept her head down, unable to see her warm expression, she softened her voice to its gentlest tone and asked, “Have you taken your medicine? Your complexion still looks pale. is the medicine not working for you?”

Li Qiuyue’s ears twitched slightly, almost as if she sensed concern in those words. Pressing her pale lips together, for some reason, the words she had no intention of sharing suddenly spilled out, still in that fragile, pitiable tone. “I didn’t take the medicine. They said all medicine carries some poison, and that enduring the illness will make it pass.”

Li Shuyu was stunned. How could they still claim “all medicine carries poison” when she was this ill?

Medical facilities in ancient times were already backward. even a minor cold could become life-threatening if not treated promptly!

Her voice brimmed with indignation. “Who said that? Do they have any basic medical knowledge at all?”

Li Qiuyue didn’t understand what “medical knowledge” meant, but that didn’t stop her from testing Li Shuyu’s attitude.

The young woman sat on the bed, her beautiful eyes gazing quietly toward the door. “The maids in my courtyard told me so. They said if I slept well, I’d recover when I woke up.”

It was clearly a lie. Had Li Qiuyue not been too weak to rise from bed, she would have brewed the medicine herself long ago.

Li Shuyu stared blankly at the woman’s pale, tranquil profile. Even treated this way, she neither protested nor complained, she simply accepted it. A faint ache spread through Li Shuyu’s heart, reigniting her determination to pull Li Qiuyue out of this mire, out of the dead end fate had trapped her in.