Bai Shuangshuang opened her eyes.
Zhao Qingyue’s red-rimmed face was the first thing to enter her field of vision.
The moment their eyes met, Zhao Qingyue’s eyes lit up.
“You’re awake?”
She grabbed Bai Shuangshuang’s hand, her fingers tightening unconsciously.
Hiss—
Bai Shuangshuang sucked in a breath of cold air.
Zhao Qingyue snapped back to reality, loosened her grip, but didn’t let go.
She was scared.
She really was scared.
She didn’t want to lose another person she cared about.
“Why are you gripping so tightly?”
Bai Shuangshuang forced a pale smile.
“I’m like this now. It’s not like I can run away, right?”
It would have been better if she hadn’t said anything.
The moment she did, Zhao Qingyue’s tears burst through the dam.
“You’re still laughing!”
Her chest heaved violently, her voice trembling.
“If it weren’t for luck, you would be dead by now, do you understand?!”
Bai Shuangshuang remained silent.
She had nothing to argue.
Internally probing her spiritual sense, that Dao Seed was still there.
Verdant with life, flames swirling around.
‘I had no choice. I had to condense this Dao Seed, even if it meant gambling with my life.’
‘If I missed this Heaven-Earth Resonance Encounter, I might never have another chance to condense a Dao Seed in this lifetime. Not being able to cultivate, not being able to find Senior Sister—that would be worse than death.’
‘I knew Zhao Qingyue would be sad, but I still did it.’
‘Call me cold-hearted or ruthless, but in my eyes, Zhao Qingyue was currently just… a good friend I had quite a good impression of.’
‘I couldn’t give up cultivation, give up Senior Sister, just for Zhao Qingyue.’
‘I don’t even understand why she has such strong feelings toward me. Is it because I’m… too slow to warm up?’
“Hey! Are you even listening to me?”
Zhao Qingyue saw her gaze wandering, and was furious, yet she couldn’t bear to shout loudly, afraid of disturbing the patient whose face was as white as paper.
“I was just… trusting that the Princess would save me from danger~”
Bai Shuangshuang grinned, reverting to her usual flippant demeanor.
“I think I wasted my effort saving you!”
After a few grumbles, Zhao Qingyue couldn’t bring herself to complain anymore.
She fell silent, but her hand still held tight.
Only then did Bai Shuangshuang have the chance to turn her gaze toward Qiu Yue.
By the bedside, array patterns flickered faintly, accompanied by a soft humming sound.
It was obvious that Qiu Yue had set up some genuine calming formations, not the poisonous prescriptions of the charlatans in Lingxi County.
“Sorry, Miss Qiu Yue. I lied to you earlier. I am Bai Shuangshuang. Ahaha~”
Bai Shuangshuang scratched her head with an awkward smile, her tone a little embarrassed.
Qiu Yue’s face flushed red again.
The moment Bai Shuangshuang mentioned this, she couldn’t help but think back to the things she had said earlier to Bai Shuangshuang—no, to Zhao Qingyue!…
“It’s, it’s nothing, Miss Bai. It was my own presumption to mistake you for the Princess!”
She paused, then carefully opened her mouth, whether to change the subject or out of genuine curiosity.
“Um… can I ask you a question?”
“Ask?”
“Last night… did you condense a Heaven-grade Dao Seed?”
Of course, Qiu Yue knew the grades of Dao Seeds.
She herself had struggled just to touch the threshold of Earth-grade.
Heaven-grade?
She wouldn’t even dare to think about it.
But this servant girl from the Prince’s Mansion, who was about the same age as her, had actually become a miracle she wouldn’t dare to imagine.
If she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes, she would never have believed it.
“Mm.”
Bai Shuangshuang nodded.
There was no need to hide it.
Not only could this Dao Seed not be stolen or taken away, but the mere fact that she could get Mo Zhuozhuo to personally endure the Heavenly Tribulation meant that no one in the entire Southern Region would dare to mess with her.
Qiu Yue opened her mouth, and after holding back for a long time, only managed to say one sentence.
“So, so amazing…”
This young girl seemed at a loss for words.
Every time she spoke a couple of sentences, she would blush furiously, and her phrasing was always similar.
Then she found an excuse and ran out with a red face.
Zhao Qingyue helped Bai Shuangshuang up from the bed, combed her hair, and changed her clothes.
The Eldest Miss kept muttering under her breath, but her hands moved quickly.
“Alright, so I didn’t pick up a servant girl; I clearly picked up an ancestor…”
Bai Shuangshuang didn’t reply, just lowered her head and played with the Crescent Moon White Jade in her hand.
It was probably this thing that had saved her life.
‘It could snatch someone away from Mo Zhuozhuo and even leave that madwoman at a loss. How did this thing end up in the hands of a disciple from a small sect?’
‘I can’t figure it out. I already can’t figure out a lot of things.’
‘But I can clearly feel that the imprint of Mo Zhuozhuo deep in my soul is still there. If this imprint were deeper, or if another one were added, would I become more obedient?’
Bai Shuangshuang couldn’t help but recall the scene in her dream.
‘Mo Zhuozhuo was undoubtedly extremely seductive, whether in her words and actions or that face identical to my own.’
‘Even… those soft jade-like bare feet.’
‘No, wait—it seems I’ve awakened some strange new interest.’
She coughed, shook her head, and snapped back to reality.
‘I can’t borrow Mo Zhuozhuo’s power anymore. No matter what that madwoman says, no matter how sweet her words, I cannot be seduced again.’
‘This time there was the Crescent Moon White Jade. Next time? What about after that? I don’t dare to think.’
“Do you think… I was too emotional? Crying my heart out over a maidservant I’ve only known for a few days?”
Zhao Qingyue’s voice came from beside her ear.
Bai Shuangshuang turned around and met her gaze.
She instinctively wanted to dodge, but her chin was caught and forcibly turned back.
“What are you dodging?”
Zhao Qingyue looked at her, the emotion in her eyes unclear.
Like a crumpled piece of paper, wanting to unfold it but afraid of tearing it.
But the Eldest Miss gritted her teeth, as if she wanted to pierce through this thin layer of paper.
Bai Shuangshuang was caught by the chin and couldn’t escape.
She could feel the temperature of Zhao Qingyue’s fingertips, slightly hot against her skin.
The force seemed to be testing something, as if confirming something.
It was no longer the casual strength of playing with a wild cat; instead, it was a cautious, gentle force afraid of hurting her.
“I…”
She opened her mouth, hesitating for a long time, as if weighing every word.
“I was thinking, am I worthy of the Princess treating me so well?”
She no longer dodged, meeting Zhao Qingyue’s gaze, pouring out the doubts in her heart.
A bell seal that could mobilize all the mountain and river spirits of the Southern Region had been used on her.
The Eldest Miss, who was always aloof in the eyes of outsiders, had also let her soft tears fall on her.
She could clearly feel fear from Zhao Qingyue—that fear of losing her.
It was bone-deep, impossible to fake.
‘Why? Just because of my face? Just because of these few days together? That isn’t enough. It isn’t enough.’
Zhao Qingyue looked at Bai Shuangshuang and was silent for a moment.
“You want to know?”
She pulled Bai Shuangshuang closer into her arms, her chin resting on the top of her head, and reached out to mess with her hair.
Bai Shuangshuang instinctively wanted to dodge, but then she remembered something.
She had promised the Eldest Miss that she wouldn’t dodge head pats anymore.
Bai Shuangshuang could only steady her breathing, lean against her shoulder, and smell the faint scent of soap on her.
“Then how about I tell you a story, okay?”
“Okay—”
Bai Shuangshuang closed her eyes, her eyelashes fluttering slightly…