Transmigrating into the world of Jade Dynasty, I was targeted by the female lead in a reverse romanc

They flew for another month or so.

Changhe City is located on the coast of the East China Sea.

This coastal metropolis remains as bustling as ever.

Jiang Xiaochuan led Xiaobai along the bustling street. Both of them had changed into ordinary clothes and concealed their presence, looking like a pair of ordinary travelers with slightly outstanding appearances.

Since that day, Xiao Bai has become more talkative. She would point to the novelties on the roadside and ask all sorts of questions. She would also drag Jiang Xiaochuan to try various snacks, as if she wanted to make up for the two and a half years of silent waiting.

But deep in her eyes, there always lurked a subtle shadow, like a corner where the sunlight couldn't reach.

Jiang Xiaochuan tried his best to stay with her, chatting and joking, but he himself was also feeling down, so his smiles were inevitably somewhat forced.

The two seemed close, yet there was always a thin, transparent membrane between them, which neither dared or wanted to break.

It wasn't until Jiang Xiaochuan saw the old man carrying a straw target covered with bright red candied hawthorns that he finally saw it.

He stopped in his tracks.

Candied hawthorn berries, coated in a glistening sugar shell, gleam enticingly in the sunlight.

"Want some?" Xiaobai asked when she saw him staring at the candied hawthorns in a daze.

Jiang Xiaochuan snapped out of his daze, said nothing, and walked straight up to the old man.

"Grandpa, I'll take them all."

The old man was taken aback. He looked at the thirty or forty candied hawthorns on the straw target, then at Jiang Xiaochuan, thinking he had misheard: "All...all of them?"

"Yes, I'll take them all." Jiang Xiaochuan took out a small piece of silver and handed it over.

The old man was overjoyed. He hurriedly took down all the candied hawthorns, wrapped them haphazardly in oil paper, and handed the heavy bag to Jiang Xiaochuan, thanking him repeatedly.

Jiang Xiaochuan took it, pulled out two candied hawthorns from the oil paper package, handed one to Xiaobai, kept one for himself, and then, after looking around, when no one was paying attention, he flicked his wrist and the package of candied hawthorns disappeared.

Xiao Bai held the candied hawthorn, but didn't eat it; she just looked at him.

Jiang Xiaochuan took a bite of the hawthorn in his hand. The sourness of the hawthorn and the sweetness of the sugar coating melted in his mouth. It was still the taste he remembered, but for some reason, he couldn't taste the flavor from back then.

Seeing that Xiaobai wasn't moving, he asked, "Aren't you going to eat?"

Xiao Bai shook her head and handed the candied hawthorn back to him: "You eat it, I don't really want anything sweet."

Looking at her pale profile, Jiang Xiaochuan felt the tightness in his chest grow even heavier.

He knew that she wasn't unwilling to eat sweets; she was just unhappy.

Because of his hesitation, because of his heavy heart, because of the longing that might have flashed in his eyes as he looked at the candied hawthorns—a longing that even she herself couldn't fully understand.

He was a real beast, he cursed himself in his heart.

He took the candied hawthorn from Xiaobai, held it in his hand, and for a moment didn't know what to say.

Little White suddenly moved closer.

Her movements were quick and sudden. Before Jiang Xiaochuan could react, he felt a soft, warm touch on his lips.

People came and went on the street. Some stopped and stared, while others chuckled softly. Jiang Xiaochuan's mind went blank for a moment, and he almost dropped the two candied hawthorns in his hand.

Xiaobai kissed him forcefully, pressing her body tightly against his.

Jiang Xiaochuan froze for a moment, but did not push him away.

After a long while, Xiaobai finally stepped back.

A thin, ambiguous silver thread stretched between their lips, shimmering in the sunlight before breaking.

Xiao Bai looked at him, her eyes slightly red, her breathing a little unsteady, her chest heaving.

Jiang Xiaochuan licked his numb lips, looked at her, and asked, "Are you feeling better now?"

Xiao Bai twitched the corners of her mouth, a smile devoid of warmth: "So what if I'm happy? So what if I'm not?"

Jiang Xiaochuan looked into her fox-like eyes, in which his own reflection was mirrored, along with other emotions that he couldn't understand, or perhaps dared not understand.

He paused for a moment, then raised his hand and used his fingertip to wipe away a suspicious drop of water from the corner of her mouth, saying softly, "If you're not happy... we can do it again."

Xiao Bai's eyes widened slightly, as if he hadn't expected him to say that.

Then, the shadow in her eyes seemed to dissipate slightly as if blown away by the wind, revealing a genuine smile, but it was quickly covered by a deeper emotion. She tiptoed and leaned close to his ear, her breath sweet as orchids:

"What if I said... I've always been unhappy?"

Jiang Xiaochuan raised his hand and gently flicked her smooth forehead:

"Trying to push your luck, huh? Are you kidding? Can't you see? There are so many people here!"

Xiao Bai chuckled, the smile finally reaching his eyes, like the first melting of snow.

She grabbed the hand that had flicked her forehead, pulled it to her lips, and stuck out her tongue, licking his fingertip very quickly and lightly.

Wet, soft, and burning hot.

Jiang Xiaochuan shuddered, as if electrocuted, and abruptly pulled his hand back. His ears turned red visibly, and he glared at her, saying, "You..."

Xiao Bai had already taken two steps back, reverting to her cunning and lively demeanor. She licked her lips, as if savoring the taste, then winked at him: "The candied hawthorn was quite sweet."

After she finished speaking, she turned around, humming an unknown tune, and walked forward with light steps, the hem of her red dress like a cluster of dancing flames.

Jiang Xiaochuan stood there, watching her back, then looked down at his fingers that had just been licked, where the warm, wet sensation still lingered.

The corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up slightly.

He quickened his pace, caught up with Xiaobai, and stuffed the candied hawthorn that originally belonged to her back into her hand.

"Eat it, don't waste it."

Xiaobai took it, took a bite, and crunched loudly as the sugar shell shattered. She squinted, sighed contentedly, and then held the candied hawthorn to his lips.

"You eat too."

Jiang Xiaochuan looked at the bite mark she had made, then lowered his head and took a bite from her hand as well.

The taste was sweet and sour, and this time, it seemed like I could actually taste the sweetness.

The two walked side by side, sharing a candied hawthorn. The sunlight cast long shadows of them, which overlapped, giving them the illusion of an ordinary young couple strolling through the streets.

No one noticed that not far away, two young men dressed in the clothes of ordinary disciples of the Qingyun Sect were staring at them in disbelief by a tea stall, their teacups almost falling to the ground.

"Is that...is that Senior Brother Jiang?" One of the tall, thin men rubbed his eyes, unable to believe it.

"Hmm, it seems so..."

The other, shorter and stouter man stammered, "But who is that woman beside him? How...how could she be so reckless?"

He blushed slightly when he recalled the kiss in the street earlier.

"Besides, isn't Senior Brother Jiang with Senior Sister Lu..."

The tall, thin man suddenly covered his mouth halfway through his sentence, looked around, and lowered his voice.

"Senior Sister Lu is still waiting for him on the mountain! If Senior Sister Lu finds out..."

The two exchanged a glance, both seeing shock and... a hint of excitement (excitement about the big gossip) in each other's eyes.

"No, we have to go back and report right away!"

The tall, thin man made a quick decision, tossed down the money for the tea, grabbed his companion, and left.

"This is a huge deal!"

As the short, stout disciple was being pulled along, he couldn't help but look back at the receding figures of the two sharing candied hawthorns, muttering to himself:

"Senior Brother Jiang... he's really brave..."

……

Jiang Xiaochuan ultimately did not take Xiaobai to those legendary overseas fairy mountains, such as Liubo Mountain or Penglai.

He carried her, flying across the vast ocean for a long time with his spear, until they found a small, seemingly ordinary island.

The island is small, lush with trees, has clean beaches, freshwater streams, seabirds, and a few coconut trees.

They settled on the island.

They stayed for two months.

These past two months have felt like stolen time. There was no Qingyun, no responsibility, no Senior Sister Lu, and no Linglong. There was only the sea, only the sand, only the starry sky, and only each other.

Little White seemed to have completely let go of its worries, and returned to being the same lively, cunning, and sometimes innocent and wild fox it always was.

She would take Jiang Xiaochuan to the beach in the early morning to collect seashells and starfish washed ashore by the tide.

She would teach him to climb coconut trees in the afternoon. Although it would be simpler for Jiang Xiaochuan to use the magic of objects, Xiaobai insisted that he climb them, and then they would laugh so hard they were doubled over under the tree.

They would light a bonfire at night and force Jiang Xiaochuan to grill fish. Although she always grilled it until it was half-cooked and not burnt, she ate it with great relish.

They built a simple shack, barely enough to shelter them from the wind and rain. Most of the time, they lay on the beach, watching the clouds drift by and listening to the ebb and flow of the tide.

Jiang Xiaochuan's smile gradually became more frequent; it was a genuine smile, not a forced one.

I've been talking to Xiaobai more often.

Xiao Bai listened and smiled, occasionally asking a few questions, but the two tacitly avoided certain topics.