The gentle breeze swept softly across the land. The Glaze Lilies, swaying in the wind all night long, had gathered the morning's cool dew upon their petals and now greeted the first rays of dawn as they pierced through the mist.
"Mmm..."
In her sleep, Fang Qiu furrowed her brow ever so slightly and let out a small, discomforted murmur.
Her breathing felt constricted. It was a little hard to breathe.
And the air — why was there a faint, sweet milky scent drifting through it…
Fang Qiu struggled weakly, and immediately realized something was very wrong.
Why did it feel like she was holding onto something?
The texture was incredibly smooth.
And her right leg didn't feel quite right either — it was like something had clamped around it…
Then, Fang Qiu's eyes snapped wide open in sudden dread.
Oh no.
She wasn't sleeping with her arms wrapped around Shenhe, was she…
With her terrible sleeping habits, it was entirely possible...
Just like that time she'd shared a bed with Hu Tao — she'd just have to wait until Shenhe was still asleep and quietly pull her arms back. That way there'd be no awkwardness.
Mind made up.
So Fang Qiu tilted her head back slightly and gently opened her eyes — only to be met with an expanse of pure, blinding white.
No wonder she'd been struggling to breathe. So that was why…
A flush of red crept across Fang Qiu's cheeks.
Come to think of it — she hadn't drooled, had she...
If she'd drooled in her sleep, that would be mortifying beyond all words.
Now wasn't the time to fret over that. She needed to slip away before Shenhe woke up, or things were going to get incredibly awkward...
She slowly raised her gaze, shifting her eyes from Shenhe's chest up toward her face.
And found herself staring directly into a pair of beautiful, iridescent eyes.
"You're awake?"
Shenhe spoke in her usual calm, unhurried tone. "How did you sleep?"
"Shenhe, good morning — I slept really well, thanks. How about you?"
Fang Qiu laughed awkwardly.
Shenhe had been awake this whole time. And every tiny move she'd just made had been watched in full. The moment that realization hit, a wave of burning shame crashed over Fang Qiu, and her face went scarlet.
What miserable luck…
This was too embarrassing for words...
"Not bad," Shenhe replied serenely, upon being asked.
After that, the silence stretched into awkwardness.
"So… Shenhe, are you hungry? I could go down… make you a bowl of noodles?"
Fang Qiu smiled — awkward, but perfectly polite — and changed the subject.
Yesterday, Shenhe had explained the reason she'd sat at grand tables at the Xinyue Kiosk and Wanmin Restaurant, ordering a full spread only to eat a single bite of each dish — it wasn't that she disliked the food. It was that she hadn't yet decided whether to stay in Liyue Harbor.
If she was going to return to the mountains after finishing her business, then indulging in rich and sumptuous fare would only make it harder to go back to eating Violetgrass and Qingxin. She'd lose her taste for simple things.
Even yesterday, she'd only eaten plain white rice.
So plain noodles should be perfectly fine.
"Mm."
Shenhe gave a small nod.
"Then… Shenhe, could you maybe lift your leg a little?"
Shenhe had agreed but hadn't moved a muscle. Fang Qiu's face went red as she made the request.
"Mm."
Shenhe nodded again and gently lifted her thigh. Only then was Fang Qiu able to pull her own leg free. At the same time, she eased her waist back, putting some distance between herself and Shenhe.
But as she pushed herself upright, mind wandering through a scattered tangle of thoughts, the arm that had been wrapped behind Shenhe caught on something — and with one careless tug, the red cord binding Shenhe's body came loose and fell away.
"Oh — I'm sorry."
Fang Qiu's expression shifted slightly as she sat cross-legged on the bed, filled with apology.
But before she could even process what had happened, she noticed that Shenhe's normally impassive expression had changed.
Seeing that look on Shenhe's face, Fang Qiu blinked.
They looked so much alike, the two of them.
Before now, Fang Qiu had thought the biggest difference between herself and Shenhe wasn't their eyes — it was their expressions.
Since the moment she'd met her, Shenhe had barely ever changed her expression. Those lovely eyes of hers sometimes even seemed slightly blank and distant.
But to Fang Qiu, that had made perfect sense.
Those who cultivated the immortal path dwelt beyond the cares of the mortal world. It was only natural they'd be unmoved by passing emotions. After all, reality wasn't like those web novels she'd read in her past life, with their scheming, backstabbing cultivation worlds.
But right now, she was witnessing Shenhe wear an expression as human as any ordinary person's.
What struck her as odd, though, was how strange that expression was.
Come to think of it, she'd noticed it yesterday too, when Shenhe had changed into her nightdress before bed…
Even after switching clothes, Shenhe had still kept that red cord tied around her body.
Could it be — like those things in the manga she'd read in her past life — a seal for suppressing power? That once it was removed, her power would run wild?
Surely not… right?
Just as Fang Qiu was dismissing the thought, Shenhe turned her gaze toward her. Her voice was soft, almost a murmur: "The red cord has come undone, and yet my heart hasn't stirred in the slightest. Is it because of you?"
"Huh?"
Fang Qiu was completely lost.
So that red cord really was something used to suppress power…
Seeing the confusion plain on Fang Qiu's face, Shenhe quietly explained the cord's purpose.
It turned out that Shenhe's birth chart marked her as one of solitary, calamitous fate — a soul carrying an abundance of baleful energy that could easily harm those around her. And so her master had bestowed upon her the red cord, meant to suppress the malevolent energy within her heart.
Because the cord's power was so formidable, it also suppressed her other emotions in turn — which was why her expressions sometimes seemed so dull and vacant.
"So what did you mean just now, when you said your heart hadn't stirred — because of me?"
Fang Qiu asked instinctively.
"From the moment I saw you last night, I felt an unusual stillness settle over me," Shenhe said quietly. "I've only ever felt that around the Traveler — and now, with you. And the peace I feel beside you is even deeper than what I feel with the Traveler. Just now, when the cord came undone, I had expected the baleful energy to surge. I had already prepared myself to focus and steady my mind. But there was not even the faintest ripple. The only reason I can think of — is you."
"Is that so… When I first saw you last night, I felt an inexplicable sense of closeness too," Fang Qiu said.
"Perhaps there truly is some bond between us," Shenhe said. "Though my master has never mentioned anything of the sort..."
"Why trouble yourself over it?" Fang Qiu smiled gently. "If fate has brought us together, then let's simply walk forward side by side. Come on, get up — I'll make you a bowl of noodles. Didn't the Traveler say yesterday that you all still have business to take care of today, and they'd be coming for you?"
"Mm."
Shenhe gave a small nod, then, without a hint of hesitation, began to take off her nightdress right there in front of Fang Qiu. In no time at all, a body of flawless white — soft and supple as the finest jade — lay bare before her eyes.
In that moment, Fang Qiu found herself thinking once again of what the Traveler had said — that Shenhe could lift a small mountain.
Their bodies were so alike in every way...
Just where, exactly, had she fallen short?
Back in her past life, people used to say you couldn't compare constitutions between individuals — some people could casually slide-tackle a tiger with a single kick, while others, in a fit of extreme rage, could dodge a bullet clean. But at least those were different people.
She and Shenhe looked practically identical. Their bodies even felt alike to the touch. It wasn't like Shenhe was visibly bulging with muscle. So how on earth was the gap between them so enormous?
Fang Qiu let out a long, mournful sigh, walked over to the washstand, rinsed up, and then started changing her own clothes.
After the close encounter with Shenhe just now, she felt remarkably unbothered about the whole thing.
She recalled something a female author had written in her past life.
Between girls, the fastest way to close the distance is through physical contact.
There was actually something to that. She felt like she and Shenhe had grown considerably closer.
Mm...
Wait... that author... hadn't she written yuri...
At that thought, Fang Qiu's mind immediately flashed back to Junior Sister, Go Easy, Senior Sister Hurts — and the scene from the book she'd been reading last night.
Fang Qiu shook her head vigorously, scattering those chaotic scenes out of her mind.
She quickly changed out of everything, then pulled on a moon-white outfit.
Once dressed, Fang Qiu made her way to the kitchen and started a fire to cook the noodles.
By the time she finished and carried the bowls out, she found Shenhe sitting with a book in her hands, reading with quiet attention.
That book was the very one she'd been reading last night — What's a Kept Man to Do When His Obsessive Young Mistress Won't Let Him Go!
And she'd forgotten to close it before tossing it aside, so Shenhe had opened it right to the very page she'd left off.
That page was — the scene where the protagonist Bai Lingying was being stroked and undressed by the young mistress Sanae Saori.
Ah!
Fang Qiu's hand jolted, and the bowl of noodles nearly hit the floor.
Oh no!
She'd forgotten to put it away!
Now Shenhe was going to get completely the wrong idea — that she was some kind of yuri novel enthusiast!
And not just any yuri novel — one of those risqué, borderline ones!
The kind where the female lead was basically about to be devoured whole...
"So this is the sort of novel you like to read," Shenhe said, glancing up at Fang Qiu with a subtly peculiar look. "Paimon and the Traveler told me you're a famous author. So — did you write this one?"
"Of course not," Fang Qiu shot back immediately, face burning red.
As if she could ever write something like that.
Setting down the bowls on the nearby dining table, she went straight to the bookcase, pulled out Volume One of Sword and Fairy 2, and held it out to Shenhe. "This is what I actually write."
"I see."
Shenhe nodded. "May I borrow this to read?"
"You're welcome to, though I should warn you — the ending isn't exactly a happy one."
Fang Qiu hesitated slightly.
"That's all right. I want to know more about you."
Shenhe said.
"Uh..."
Fang Qiu's body gave a small involuntary tremor.
Know more about me?
What did that mean?
Did she mean...
No, no, no.
She needed to stop letting her mind run wild.
Shenhe was an Adepti, someone who had grown up far from the world of mortals. When she said something like that, she surely meant it the same way any friend would — simply wanting to understand her better.
"Then I'll just give you the whole set."
Fang Qiu smiled warmly. "Come eat your noodles first."
"Mm."
Shenhe gave a small nod and moved to the dining table.
Fang Qiu sat down across from her.
It was only once she'd settled into her seat that she realized she'd completely forgotten to push back against what Shenhe had said earlier — so this is the sort of novel you like to read...
But bringing it up now would only seem suspicious. It would look like she was protesting too much.
Let it go.
Just eat the noodles...
Watching Shenhe pick up her chopsticks and take her first bite, Fang Qiu smiled and asked, "Well? How does it taste?"
"Much better than eating raw Violetgrass and Qingxin," Shenhe said after a moment's thought.
"Uh... fair enough, I suppose."
Fang Qiu didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Whatever she'd made, surely it still tasted better than raw Violetgrass and Qingxin straight from the ground.
They were halfway through their meal when a knock came at the door.
"Shenhe, Fang Qiu — are you two up? We're here!"
Paimon's voice rang out from beyond the door.
"Coming."
Fang Qiu set down her chopsticks and walked to the door — only to find it completely immovable.
Then she remembered: the door wasn't locked. It had been frozen shut by Shenhe.
Oh right...
Fang Qiu turned and looked at Shenhe for help.
Shenhe set down her chopsticks, walked over, and gave the door a gentle push — it swung open.
Watching that, Fang Qiu felt her last remaining feelings on the matter quietly die.
Can't do it, can't do it — well, she's a woman, she can just say she can't do it...
Might as well stop trying.
"Shenhe, Fang Qiu — good morning!" Paimon waved cheerfully. "Good thing you're wearing different outfits, or it'd honestly be impossible to tell you apart."
Lumine smiled and greeted them both.
After breakfast, the Traveler, Shenhe, and Paimon prepared to head out together.
Before leaving, Shenhe picked up Volume One of Sword and Fairy 2 from the table and took it with her.
Fang Qiu didn't stay home either. After setting out Tingyu's food, she headed out as well.
She needed to go to Chihu Rock and find a locksmith to get the door lock replaced.
So before they left, she had Shenhe freeze the door shut one more time.
This time, Fang Qiu asked Shenhe to calibrate the thickness just right — enough that an adult could hammer through the ice with a mallet.
When the locksmith arrived later, they could bring a hammer along and break through the ice before getting to work.
After Shenhe had frozen the door, Fang Qiu gave it an experimental push.
Mm...
No different from when Shenhe had frozen it before.
She couldn't move it at all.
She walked more slowly than the others, and couldn't keep pace. Though they were all headed toward Chihu Rock, Fang Qiu didn't want to hold them up, so she set off on her own, taking her time, making her unhurried way toward the blacksmith's there.
As she passed the tavern at the base of the Wanwen Bookhouse building, the night's drinkers — who had spent the entire night at their tables — were finally staggering back out into the street.
They were a bleary-eyed bunch. Some clutched used screening tickets, others held copies of Sword and Fairy 2, and a few carried her other titles. Every last one of them had red-rimmed eyes, wearing the look of men and women revisiting long-buried griefs.
Just as Fang Qiu walked past, the tavern's proprietress stepped out from inside.
She wore an orange cheongsam that showed off a magnificent figure.
"Good morning, ma'am."
Fang Qiu smiled and waved in greeting.
Business had been booming for the tavern — Fang Qiu had expected to see a wide, satisfied grin on her face. Instead, the proprietress looked utterly wretched: eyes red and swollen, complexion faintly pallid, wearing the haggard look of someone who'd been drunk and crying all night.
"Morning. Looks like someone had a lovely sleep last night," the proprietress said, casting Fang Qiu a reproachful glance.
After finishing Sword and Fairy 2, she had wept without stopping — an entire night's worth of crying. When she'd finally managed to pull herself together, she made the monumentally ill-advised decision — out of a desire to learn more about Fang Qiu — to pick up Your Lie in April...
She'd then spent another whole night drinking and crying through that.
She still didn't understand how Fang Qiu — a girl so gentle and soft-spoken, so warm and considerate — could possibly bring herself to kill off Miyazono Kaori.
And the scenes from Sword and Fairy 2 — one after another, each one a needle pushed straight into the heart...
How could she bear to write it?
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