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

Back in the kitchen, Lu Xueqi was tending the fire at the stove, a pot of porridge and light side dishes keeping warm. Hearing footsteps, she turned and glanced at him, her nostrils flaring slightly: "How much did she drink this time?"

"Hmm, I drank quite a bit, I'm going to sleep." Jiang Xiaochuan walked to the water tank and scooped water to wash his hands.

Lu Xueqi hummed in agreement and didn't ask any more questions. After the food was heated up, the two sat down at the table and ate in silence. The food was simple, but the taste was familiar, the taste of home.

"What are we having for dinner tonight?" Jiang Xiaochuan asked, trying to make conversation.

Lu Xueqi looked up at him, her eyes deep: "Eat me."

Jiang Xiaochuan nearly choked on his porridge, coughed a few times, and his face turned a little red: "Don't, don't joke around..."

Lu Xueqi's lips seemed to curve slightly, or perhaps not, as she lowered her head and picked up a piece of green vegetable with her chopsticks: "What would you like to eat?"

Jiang Xiaochuan breathed a sigh of relief and thought for a moment: "I love everything you make."

"Glib-tongued," Lu Xueqi said calmly, her tone not reproachful, but rather revealing a hint of barely perceptible gentleness.

"However, I like it."

Jiang Xiaochuan felt a surge of sweetness in his heart, and his courage grew. He put down his bowl, leaned over, and quickly kissed her cheek before casually sitting back down to continue eating his porridge.

Lu Xueqi paused, glanced at him, and said nothing, her cheeks flushing slightly.

After finishing his meal and tidying up, Jiang Xiaochuan poured a cup of warm tea and brought it to Xiaobai.

Pushing open the door, Xiaobai was still asleep, but her brows were slightly furrowed, as if she were not quite at ease.

He gently lifted her up a little, brought the teacup to her lips, and coaxed her softly, "Xiaobai, drink some water, or you'll have a headache tomorrow."

Little Bai, half-asleep, drank a few sips from his hand and then fell into a deep sleep again.

Jiang Xiaochuan tucked her in, and looking at her breathtakingly beautiful profile even in her sleep, he sighed inwardly.

This fox may seem carefree and playful, but who truly understands the loneliness and obsession deep within its heart?

He tiptoed out and closed the door behind him.

Night was falling.

After Jiang Xiaochuan and Lu Xueqi finished washing up, they lay side by side on the couch. Lu Xueqi habitually turned to her side and pulled him into her arms.

Jiang Xiaochuan naturally found a comfortable position in her arms, his face pressed against her soft chest, his nose surrounded by her cool, light fragrance, and he felt incredibly at ease.

The day's fatigue and those subtle emotions seemed to dissipate in this embrace.

He soon fell into a deep sleep.

Lu Xueqi did not fall asleep immediately. She looked down at the peaceful sleeping face of the person in her arms, and gently brushed her fingertips across his slightly furrowed brow, as if to soothe any unease he might have in his dream. Then, she closed her eyes as well.

……

The next room.

Xiao Bai, who should have been completely drunk, slowly opened her eyes the moment the door closed. Her eyes were clear, showing no sign of drunkenness.

She sat up, leaned against the headboard, and stared blankly at the dim moonlight streaming in through the window.

The nine-tailed celestial fox isn't so easily intoxicated; she's merely indulging in a little warmth, indulging in his flustered care, indulging in the clean scent of him when he's close, and indulging in that fleeting, self-deceptive illusion that he also belongs to her.

"Is it worth it?" A slightly lazy and teasing female voice echoed in her mind.

It was Hong Li. Although she was deep within Jiang Xiaochuan's consciousness, she could still communicate with others, since she could also condense a physical body.

Xiao Bai wasn't surprised; she just tugged at the corners of her mouth, revealing a faint, unsmiling curve.

"What's the point of whether it's worth it or not? If you like someone, just wait for them. If you can't wait, keep waiting. Three years, thirty years, three hundred years... you'll eventually get to them."

"I advised that kid eight years ago, but unfortunately, he was too dense to understand." Hong Li's voice carried a hint of disappointment. She was referring to the "grand theory" she had encouraged Jiang Xiaochuan to "have it all" several years ago in the southern border region.

Xiao Bai smiled, but there was little warmth in her eyes: "If he's that kind of person, then it's pointless. What I want is never something forced."

She paused, her voice lowering as if she were saying to herself, "He has me in his heart, I know that. Although it's not as much as Lu Xueqi's, it's still there, and that's enough. If he can't wait a year, then ten years; if he can't wait ten years, then a hundred years. I am a nine-tailed celestial fox, I have plenty of time to wait it out with him."

Hongli was silent for a moment, then seemed to sigh: "Whatever you want. All this lovey-dovey stuff is tiring to watch. I'd better go back and play with that little girl Linglong."

The sound disappeared.

Silence fell upon the room once more. Xiaobai hugged her knees, rested her chin on them, and gazed at the sliver of moonlight for a long, long time.

As the moon began to set and the sky began to lighten, she finally let out a soft sigh, lay back down, and closed her eyes.

……

A few days later, on an ordinary afternoon, the children were taken to Dazhu Peak by Su Ru, and Xiao Bai also went down the mountain to the teahouse. The bamboo house was quiet, with only the rustling of the bamboo leaves in the wind.

Jiang Xiaochuan sat in the courtyard, holding a soft cloth in his hand, idly wiping the dark red barrel of the God-Slaying Spear.

As he wiped, his movements slowed down, and his mind sank into the depths of his consciousness.

"Linglong?" he whispered in his heart.

"Oh, the sun's risen in the west? Finally remembered your Linglong sister?" Hongli's teasing voice immediately rang out, laced with laughter. "What, missing her?"

Jiang Xiaochuan ignored Hong Li's teasing and simply called out again, "Linglong?"

Deep within her consciousness, in a quiet corner, a faint thought stirred, slowly coalescing, and responded with a simple, unchanging voice: "Yes, I've always been here."

Her voice was very soft and faint, like a wisp of smoke that might dissipate at any moment, yet it carried a strange sense of stability, as if it had been there since time immemorial.

Jiang Xiaochuan felt a pang of sadness. After hesitating for a moment, he finally asked the question that had been lingering in his mind for a long time.

"Linglong," he chose his words carefully, "that beast god you created back then, what happened to him? I mean, after I left, after you... after..."

He asked vaguely, but Linglong understood what he meant.

A long silence fell into the depths of his consciousness, so long that Jiang Xiaochuan thought Linglong would not answer, or that she had already disappeared.

Just as he was about to speak again, Linglong's voice slowly rang out, calm and emotionless: "He's dead."

died?

Jiang Xiaochuan was taken aback. Although he had expected it, hearing it with his own ears still made his heart clench inexplicably. He felt a little empty, and there was also a vague sense of loss and... guilt.

If it weren't for his appearance, Linglong might not have gone down that path, and that life that shouldn't have existed might not have experienced such a birth, being sealed, and ultimately perishing.

"I'm sorry..." he whispered, unsure whether it was for Linglong or for the "child" he had never met but who was indirectly born because of him.