Transmigrating Behind the Mirror to Become Her Guardian Lady - Chapter 16

“Mnh”

A hazy sound of awakening escaped from her red lips, carrying a hint of captivating daze. The person lying on the floor woke up slowly, raising her slender, pale arms to rub her still-muddled head.

Outside the window, the pre-dawn light filtered in, softly illuminating the room and revealing a familiar scene. Shu Mengli stared at the snowy-white ceiling for a moment before realizing she had transmigrated back home. Having experienced this once before, she was at least less surprised and panicked this time.

“Ah.”

Shu Mengli remained lying on the carpet in front of the carved full-length mirror, calmly accepting the fact of her return as memories of the moments before she lost consciousness flooded back.

At that time, heavy snow had been falling across the water screen, the scene was chaotic, and the siren of the ambulance in the mirror world had made her heart tighten. She had been sitting there watching Jiang Weilu speak to the nurse. She hadn’t expected that familiar pulling sensation to strike at that exact moment, plunging her consciousness into darkness in an instant.

She hadn’t even been able to snatch a moment to say a brief goodbye to Luolu.

A bitter smile curved her lips, and Shu Mengli shook her head. Truly, every time it’s an unannounced departure. But fortunately, she had left after the old man was saved; otherwise, how frightened would Luolu have been, left all alone there?

The air conditioner in the living room blew quietly; the air felt a bit chilly against her ankles, causing Shu Mengli to shrink back instinctively. Lying flat on the carpet, her thoughts drifted. It was currently late May for her, with the scorching summer approaching, yet it was still a world of ice and snow for Luolu. This meant they were in different times and different worlds.

A spark of inspiration flashed in her mind as she suddenly thought of something. Shu Mengli sat up abruptly from the carpet and padded over to the sofa on her small bare feet, picking up the phone she had tossed there carelessly the night before.

The time displayed on the screen was 6:05 AM. Counting the time she had just spent thinking, the moment she woke up after each transmigration was indeed 6:00 AM without a doubt. This thought only flashed briefly as Shu Mengli didn’t stop her movements. She skillfully opened a search engine and tapped out two words: Pear Town.

After two seconds of anxious waiting, the results appeared. As expected yet still disappointing, the search was empty. Shu Mengli’s beautiful brows knitted slightly, her heart feeling quite dejected. So it really is like this? She and Luolu were in two different worlds.

Refusing to give up, she typed into the search bar: Kyoto Jiang Family.

The result was empty. Shu Mengli truly gave up this time, a helpless smile appearing on her lips as she put away her phone. Forget it, what was I thinking? The fact of transmigration was bizarre enough; how could she and Luolu possibly be in the same world?

At that very moment.

On the other side of the mirror.

The cold wind howled and snow fluttered wildly. Looking at the worsening weather outside, the old butler’s heart began to grow increasingly anxious. He glanced down at his aching leg, then walked to the coat rack to grab his jacket, preparing to head out.

Just then, the wind chimes at the door tinkled crisply. Under the butler’s gaze, the front door opened.

Jiang Weilu walked in, covered in accumulated snow, her steps slow. The jacket she held in her right hand hung low, leaving a long trail of blood on the floor. Her clothes were stained and mottled with blood, snow drifted from her shoulders, and her expression was gloomy. Crystal snowflakes landed on her eyelashes, but they quickly melted in the warmth of the room, turning into pools of lukewarm water that made her peach-blossom eyes look fragile.

The butler was startled by her appearance and rushed over. “Eldest Miss, what happened to you?”

Jiang Weilu kept her head down, her eyelids lifting slightly. “I’m fine.”

“Then this…”

“It’s nothing. I just ran into a car accident while going to see the plum blossoms and lent a hand.”

“Ah?” The unexpected answer left the butler stunned. He had been wondering if some accident had befallen her, but he hadn’t expected the child had gone off to do a good deed. Judging by the state of her clothes, the scene must have been tragic. To be brave enough to offer help in such a situation was quite commendable.

Consequently, the butler instinctively assumed Jiang Weilu was frightened by the scene of the accident and quickly comforted her. “The Eldest Miss must have been terrified. I’ll go boil some hot water for you to wash up; it’s cold outside, be careful not to catch a chill.”

By the time Jiang Weilu finished her bath and came out, the sky was pitch black; it was already evening. A mouth-watering fragrance wafted from the dining table, making one’s appetite surge. Jiang Weilu walked over, feeling quite curious, only to find the table laden with food—braised beef cooked until tender, egg tarts suited for a child’s palate… everything was there.

One look was enough to tell that this was absolutely not the handicraft of the old butler, who had a background as a bodyguard. Jiang Weilu looked over in confusion. “This is?”

The butler smiled. “I was afraid the Eldest Miss wouldn’t be used to my cooking, so I went out and bought some.”

Went out? Jiang Weilu instinctively turned her gaze to the heavy snow outside the window. The Pear Town villa was secluded and quiet, located on a mountain. Usually, the Jiang family’s cars delivered supplies, but today the cars couldn’t make it up the mountain due to the snow, and it was difficult for people to travel. Given the butler’s stoic personality, he likely wouldn’t trouble others, so these things must have been bought by him personally.

But his leg was still in the early stages of treatment; it was the time when the pain was most acute. Jiang Weilu could hardly imagine how the old man had carried so many things, walking down the mountain and back up again, step by step.

She turned back to look at the butler in shock. “Your leg?”

“I’m fine.” The butler only shook his head with a smile, hiding his pain well. “The Eldest Miss had a scare; eat something good.”

Jiang Weilu’s gaze shook violently. She looked at the butler for a long time in silence, not knowing how to speak. Finally, she sat down at the table and silently shoveled rice into her mouth. The hot steam from the soup on the table made her vision hazy.

Indeed, just as her sister had said, this world wasn’t so bad after all.

Yet, the more she encountered warmth, the more she missed that person. The one who only hoped for her happiness, who taught her to smile regardless of her own image, who took her by the hand to experience the warmth of this world… had left again. Leaving her alone, drifting in a warmth that didn’t include her.

Her sister would never know that someone as good as her was the definition of warmth itself.

And with her sister’s departure, luck seemed to distance itself from Jiang Weilu as well. The peaceful days between her and the old butler could not last. Because a month and a half later, as the New Year approached, Jiang Ming finally remembered this daughter who was nearly forgotten and sent someone to bring Jiang Weilu back.

At the time of parting, Jiang Weilu sat in the car, looking at the large box of egg tarts the butler had stuffed inside, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. This was because she had once praised a certain brand of egg tarts at the dinner table; since then, those egg tarts had become a permanent resident of the refrigerator. Opening it revealed a sea of yellow, nearly giving Jiang Weilu “egg tart phobia.”

With these thoughts in mind, she looked back as the scenery receded further and further. The butler’s figure standing in the wind and snow grew smaller and smaller until it became a black dot in the distance, yet he never left.

The three-hour drive was neither long nor short, and it soon ended. After more than two months, Jiang Weilu finally returned once more to the Small Jiang Residence that place she utterly detested.

However, having learned many things under the guidance of her sister and the butler, she was no longer the Jiang Weilu who would take any beating or verbal abuse. She was currently unhappy because of her sister’s departure and was actually quite looking forward to seeing who would walk into her line of fire.

Click. A crisp sound.

The car door was opened by a maid outside. In this instant, Jiang Weilu recalled her sister’s words: Friendliness is the key to opening interpersonal relationships. Although she truly couldn’t bring herself to smile, she could at least fake it.

Thus, she curved her lips, offering a kind and soft smile to the maid who opened the door. Having gained some weight under the butler’s care in Pear Town, the girl’s features were more defined; she was no longer frighteningly thin or as gloomy as before. When she smiled at you, it was as if a doll had been infused with a soul exquisite and noble.

The maid was quite flattered, as the Eldest Miss had previously been gloomy toward everyone. She instinctively returned the smile. “Welcome back, Eldest Miss.”

Clack. Jiang Weilu’s small leather shoes stepped onto the ground as she walked through the door with steady composure. Without surprise, the girl immediately spotted her hypocritical stepmother standing inside the door, smiling at her.

She raised an eyebrow slightly, curling her lips into a faint smile.

“Editor Shu? Editor Shu?”

“Ah!”

Shu Mengli was startled by the voice and snapped back to reality, instinctively looking up. The meeting room was crowded with people, all of whom were now staring at her.

“Editor Shu, are you alright?” the colleague who had just called her asked with concern. Even the Chief Editor, Jiang Xin, who was sitting at the head of the table, cast a worried glance, asking with her eyes what was wrong.

Bother, Shu Mengli thought to herself. She had been so engrossed in thinking about Luolu that she had accidentally spaced out during the meeting. But having been in the workplace for so long, her psychological resilience was top-tier, and she quickly adjusted. She immediately switched to a standard professional smile and shook her head at her concerned colleague.

“I’m fine.”

She then gathered her materials and walked to the front of the room, nonchalantly beginning to present the theme for the next issue as if nothing had happened, becoming the gentle and confident Shu Mengli once more.

The long meeting lasted for three hours before it finally ended. When the doors opened again, everyone looked slightly fatigued. Jiang Xin had intended to catch up and ask Shu Mengli what was going on, but she was cornered by an art editor wanting to discuss a problem and had to stay behind for the time being.

Shu Mengli didn’t notice these details and calmly pushed open the glass door, intending to go back to work. To her surprise, as she reached the door, someone suddenly chased after her and grabbed her wrist. The person didn’t use much force, only holding on loosely. But this kind of contact, breaking through her personal space, was inevitably startling. Shu Mengli instinctively turned to look back.

It was the Associate Editor, Hao Wei. This cold beauty with short hair and red lips held Shu Mengli’s wrist, her gaze full of worry. “Mengmeng, what was wrong just now? I saw you were spaced out the whole time. Did something happen…”

“Let go.” The cold words interrupted Hao Wei. The usually gentle Shu Mengli’s face was now covered in frost.

“But you”

“I told you to let go!” The brief sentence was sharp and stinging. Shu Mengli couldn’t help but raise her voice two notches. She then violently wrenched her hand away; the force was so great that it left several fierce red marks on her slender white wrist. Her gaze when looking at Hao Wei was absolute ice. “I’ve told you, don’t get involved with me again.”

Having delivered the harsh words, she turned and left without looking back. Only at the moment she turned away did her expression soften, her face full of helplessness.

So tiring. Having to see this person every day…

Sigh, her Luolu was still the cutest—well-behaved and adorable. She wondered how much time had passed there during her day back here. Was she eating well? Was she being bullied?

Shu Mengli shook her head, suppressing the worry in her eyes. That little one is truly a handful, yet so missed.

The missed “little one,” Jiang Weilu, was eating well and likely wouldn’t be bullied again. But Shu Mengli might have been mistaken about one thing: this child, Jiang Weilu, was never of the “well-behaved and cute” variety. Without her sister’s restraint, the child was fierce and wolfish—practically a wild thing.

By the time she was brought home by the father who had finally remembered her, it was already the night of the 29th day of the lunar year. The next day was New Year’s Eve. According to the Jiang family tradition, the whole family would go to Jiang Weilu’s grandfather’s house for the New Year.

Despite Jiang Ming being a cold and heartless man, the person he admired most in his life was his father. It could even be said that for Jiang Ming, the meaning of his existence was to prove his value to his father. Thus, on New Year’s Eve, they woke up very early and arrived at the Jiang ancestral home.

However, he never expected that they would still be late. When Jiang Ming saw his eldest and second brothers’ cars parked at the door, his face instantly turned as black as the bottom of a pot. But then he remembered it was a festive day and didn’t dare upset the old man, so he could only grit his teeth and suppress his emotions.

When they entered the hall, as expected, a scene of harmony met their eyes. The eldest and second brothers of Jiang Ming led their respective families, surrounding Elder Jiang in a circle, each trying their hardest to make the old man happy.

Elder Jiang’s life could be described as legendary; in his youth, he was high-spirited and decisive a tough character whom everyone admired. Unexpectedly, in his old age, he had become increasingly desperate for family affection, loving the feeling of a harmonious family. Unfortunately, none of his three sons had inherited his brilliance. The eldest was weak, the second was sinister, and the third only knew how to imitate him none were capable. Consequently, the heir to the Jiang family had yet to be decided.

So, is that why this group is currying favor with the old man?

Jiang Weilu watched the scene, a habitual smile hanging on her lips. But looking closely, the light in those peach-blossom eyes was indifferent; she didn’t care at all about the events or people before her. Her father, Jiang Ming, was the complete opposite; as soon as he entered the hall, he hurried to show his face in front of Elder Jiang, leaving his wife and daughter aside.

Jiang Weilu was happy to be left alone, fading into the crowd to observe quietly. Elder Jiang was indeed being amused by his sons; his loud laughter echoed through the hall.

“Don’t even mention it; this time Old Li escaped death, so of course we must celebrate properly. When he comes to the house at noon today, I won’t let him leave empty-handed.”

Everyone in the Jiang family naturally knew about the New Year’s Eve dinner with the Li family today. The shrewd second aunt’s eyes flickered, and she picked up on the old man’s words. “Then Dad, you must have prepared an extraordinary gift for Elder Li?”

These words hit the mark, and Elder Jiang’s proud mustache nearly twitched. “Of course. Come, bring out that bottle of wine from my collection.”

Not long after he spoke, a properly dressed butler walked over from the direction of the old man’s study, holding a small bottle of medicinal wine with both hands, his movements cautious and careful. The medicinal wine was held in an exquisite glass bottle; it was brown throughout and small only about the size of a person’s palm. It looked rather ordinary.

Everyone was stunned for a moment. The second aunt asked in confusion, “This is?”

Elder Jiang laughed at their puzzled expressions. “Don’t be fooled by its unimpressive appearance. It actually took me a great deal of effort to find this; it’s priceless and cannot be bought for a thousand gold. Old Li escaped death in that car accident; he has to have something good so he can slowly recover later.”

At these words, everyone was stunned again. Given Elder Jiang’s status and position, if he had to expend “great effort” to find this medicinal wine, it was clear that it was no ordinary item. It also reflected that the friendship between Elder Jiang and Elder Li was truly extraordinary.

The second aunt smiled with narrowed eyes, offering a quick compliment. “You really are deeply devoted to Elder Li.”

“Hahaha, if that old fellow heard you say that, he’d be gloating again.”

At this moment, the room was filled with laughter and joy. The butler was walking over from a distance, holding the small medicinal wine bottle with both hands. Wherever he passed, the crowd parted; no one dared to bump into this precious bottle. Consequently, the crowd that had been tightly surrounding Elder Jiang became slightly disorganized people backing away and moving aside in a rush, someone surely stepping on someone else’s foot.

Hidden in the shadows, a certain person watched this scene, her eyes darting around as a wicked idea formed in her mind. She took advantage of the chaos to squeeze toward Jiang Weilu and quietly stuck out her foot.

Originally, Jiang Weilu had wanted to avoid the trouble and stayed on the outermost edge. She hadn’t expected to be the first person the butler would pass. Her brow furrowed slightly as she stepped back, but she still couldn’t avoid being pushed.

Just then, the already chaotic situation worsened. Jiang Weilu lifted her foot to step back; her right foot was still in the air when she suddenly felt her left ankle being hooked. Then, that person yanked backward with force, and Jiang Weilu’s already unstable posture instantly lost balance.

It happened too suddenly. Although Jiang Weilu had gained some skill after training with the old butler and tried her best to twist her body, she ultimately couldn’t control herself and fell forward.

Smash! A crisp, loud sound.

The medicine bottle was struck by an external force and fell from the butler’s hands. Glass shards splashed into a transparent flower in the air; the brown liquid soared and then fell, flowing into a small river on the floor.

Jiang Weilu fell onto the hall floor, the brown liquid staining her entire body it was unsightly, foul-smelling, and wretched. The originally harmonious Jiang family hall seemed to have a pause button pressed; everyone stared blankly at Jiang Weilu lying on the ground.

The girl lay miserably on the floor, her hair falling over her face, obscuring her expression. But her gaze was cold as ice as it swept lightly backward.

In the crowd, the hem of Jiang Yuxi’s dress flickered and vanished.