Chapter 31: Neither Transmigration Nor Rebirth

As the words fell, Jingyuan lowered his eyelids and picked up some food, as if he hadn’t heard a thing, and certainly had nothing to say. Li Qingtian pressed his lips tightly together, stifling the trembling that threatened to spill from his throat, and hurriedly bowed his head to eat. Lu Dashan stared with widened eyes, utterly dumbfounded.

How could a simple remark turn into a donation?

*****

The night deepened. Outside, the wind began to howl faintly. The big black dog lay at the gate of the courtyard, wagging its tail as it gnawed intermittently on a bone. Inside, the candlelight flickered gently. In the shifting glow, ink seeped into the paper, each character bold and forceful.

Su Tang arranged pastries and tea at the corner of the table, glancing over as she did so.

He wrote even better than yesterday.

Her young husband truly was a hidden gem, well worth holding onto.

Perhaps she watched him too long, for her young husband noticed and looked up.

Su Tang composed herself. “Here’s tea and pastries, husband. If you tire, please have some. There’s plenty of candlelight, too—use it freely, no need to be frugal.”

Jingyuan glanced at the candles beside the candlestick, saying nothing.

Su Tang was used to this, tidied up briefly, and headed to the bedside to remove her shoes. Just as she was about to do so, her young husband, busy at the desk, suddenly spoke up, “When the shop opens, Teacher will come to celebrate.”

“What?” Su Tang was startled.

That esteemed scholar would come? She couldn’t afford to be careless.

“Husband, do you know if Master Fang has any taboos? What does he like? What kind of ceremony does he prefer?” Su Tang abandoned her shoes and hurried to the desk, firing off questions.

Jingyuan gazed at her, then after a moment replied, “Teacher never mentioned.”

“That won’t do,” Su Tang said. “Teacher has devotedly instructed you; how can you not care about his preferences? Even if you’re talented and favored, you must observe proper courtesy as his pupil. No, no, I’ll handle it myself.”

Her naïve young husband couldn’t be relied upon—she would have to depend on herself.

Su Tang pulled out some paper, borrowed her husband’s ink, and began jotting down notes one by one.

She needed to find out the teacher’s preferences and revise the opening ceremony to make it more grand.

The paper rustled under her pen, and she wrote ceaselessly.

In the candlelight, the woman’s delicate features were veiled by a misty gauze, as though shrouded in clouds, her eyes shimmering with a hint of starlight and moonlight. A strand of hair fell to her cheek unnoticed, and her poised wrist and brush revealed the bearing of a cultivated lady.

Jingyuan unconsciously slowed his movements.

Sharing the same table, every action was visible to the other.

Su Tang lifted her eyes and caught Jingyuan looking at her. As their gazes met, he suddenly asked, “Why donate?”

Su Tang’s heart skipped, and her pen nearly slipped.

She cleared her throat and set the pen down.

“To donate—well, that’s simply to do good deeds. No other reason,” Su Tang replied.

Jingyuan watched her. In the candlelight, his gaze seemed almost tangible.

Su Tang grew more uneasy, forcing a smile. “Alright, truthfully, the elders in town have helped me several times, so I wanted to treat them well. For those with children, there’s little I need to do, but many elderly have no family, living alone in the home for the aged, lonely and desolate. Though I can’t donate much each day, I treat it as a steady stream.”

“Without accumulating small steps, one cannot reach a thousand miles; without gathering small streams, one cannot form a river or sea,” Jingyuan spoke softly.

Su Tang nodded immediately. “Exactly, that’s the principle.”

Wait—wasn’t that what she’d told her young husband yesterday?

Her eyes flashed with suspicion, but Jingyuan simply bowed his head and resumed writing.

Had he just learned her words and happened to use them today?

That must be it.

It was entirely different from yesterday.

Yes, different.

Su Tang took a shallow breath, blew the damp ink on the paper, set it aside, and returned to the bedside to rest.

Let him think what he wants—

As her eyes closed and her mind emptied, Su Tang soon drifted into slumber.

……

“Swear to protect the lady with my life.”

“Ah—”

The hoarse shout in her ear was followed by cries of pain and then silence. It felt as though she was on a roller coaster, rising and falling, and when Su Tang opened her eyes, she was surprised to find herself not in bed, but inside a carriage. The walls were lined with brocade, fragrant and warm, and in the corner hung the jade chessboard most familiar from her memories.

Wasn’t this the original body’s favorite?

“The young mistress is awake, thank heavens!”

“Young mistress, what should we do? What are we to do?”

……

Suddenly, two faces appeared before her—one pale with anxiety, the other streaming with tears.

As the original body’s memories sharpened, Su Tang recalled these two were her personal maids: Tao Xiang and Xin Ran. Tao Xiang had died on the day she was forced to flee, while Xin Ran was the venomous snake hidden at her side.

“Get out—”

Without hesitation, Su Tang shoved Xin Ran aside and pulled Tao Xiang toward the carriage door.

The door was ahead, the carriage hurtling desperately forward. Her long dress tangled around her legs, making it impossible to move quickly. As Su Tang grabbed the door, Xin Ran, whom she had pushed to the floor, had already drawn a dagger.

“Ah—”

Tao Xiang screamed behind her.

Su Tang gripped the door with one hand and with the other yanked Tao Xiang over.

“Hold tight.”

Su Tang called loudly.

Tao Xiang clung to Su Tang’s hand, shifting her body toward Su Tang and narrowly avoiding the dagger’s thrust.

Su Tang pushed open the door and shoved Tao Xiang out.

“You go first.”

“Young mistress.”

Tao Xiang called to her, but went out first.

Su Tang followed behind, grabbing the jade chessboard from the carriage wall and smashing it toward Xin Ran’s head.

“Ah~”

Xin Ran cried out in pain.

Su Tang didn’t see if she hit her target, but hurried out of the carriage.

Outside, the wind struck her face, and before Su Tang could see clearly, Tao Xiang shouted, “Young mistress, run—”

Tao Xiang clung desperately to the coachman, her face pale, a trickle of blood at her lips.

It was as if a bolt of lightning struck Su Tang’s head.

In her memory, Tao Xiang had been stabbed unexpectedly by Xin Ran. She and Xin Ran had fought in the carriage, then the carriage overturned, she fell out, and Sister Li appeared in time to save her.

She had thought the coachman was trustworthy, that he was busy driving and couldn’t help inside. Now she realized he was no better.

Xin Ran was still in the carriage, the horses were running wild, the coachman was beyond her ability.

Su Tang could only cover her head and leap from the carriage.

The impact spun her several times, but surprisingly, she felt no pain.

Was this a dream?

Not transmigration and rebirth?

Su Tang breathed a sigh of relief, stood up, and saw the carriage already some distance away. She hurried toward the direction where Li Qingtian had come in her memory.

At last, she saw Li Qingtian riding toward her in the distance.

Su Tang was overjoyed and raised her hand to shout, but at that moment, a sharp pain pierced her chest.

She looked down.

An arrow was embedded in her chest.

The intense pain radiated swiftly through her limbs, draining her strength.

Su Tang saw Li Qingtian’s face turn pale as he desperately urged his horse toward her, but she summoned the last of her strength to turn around. Not far behind, a horse stood, and atop it a man slowly lowered his bow.

Damn.