Chapter 54 – Remember You

As the saying goes, “Enemies meet, and their eyes turn red with anger.” The two of them glared at each other, their eyes redder than ever, and for a moment, it was impossible to tell who had wronged whom.

But with her older male cousin still unconscious, Dou Qingyue held back her frustration and refrained from arguing with a blind person.

While Dou Qingyue chose not to argue, Cui Ti was ready to settle the score.

Why should her Fujun get dragged into the melodramatic love triangle of Xi Jing? Why should Dou Qingyue’s misfortune affect her Xingguang?

She felt her heart ache just thinking about the blood that had been shed.

Unable to see, she could only continue to glare at the round wooden stool, imagining it was Dou Qingyue herself. “Come with me.”

Bai Tang supported her out of the room, turning back to glare at the sickly and morally bankrupt cousin miss.

Dou Qingyue gasped in shock. It was surprising enough that Cui Ti dared to push her, considering that in her previous lifetime, her cousin’s wife had been as meek as a lamb. If it weren’t for her older male cousin keeping a close watch, she would have been bullied into submission long ago.

In this lifetime, Cui Ti had grown bolder, daring to challenge, push, and even declare war.

Clicking her tongue, Dou Qingyue followed her out the door, just a few steps behind. The two of them found a secluded spot.

Cui Ti tilted her head and whispered with Bai Tang. From Bai Tang, she learned that Dou Qingyue’s recent lake incident had come at a significant cost. Sneering, Cui Ti said, “Don’t think that just because you’re not long for this world, you can do whatever you please. General Dou may indulge you, but I won’t. Stay away from my Fujun!”

“…”

Haozhong and Raoliang, seeing Young Madam speak so harshly, widened their eyes, more surprised than a cat with a bell around its neck.

Oh my! A jealous and angry woman is truly something to be reckoned with!

Dou Qingyue’s face was as pale as paper, and she coughed in the wind for a long time. She knew her own body best—she had risked her life to marry into the Pei Family, but it hadn’t worked out. Instead, she had ended up with only a few more years to live. If anyone was frustrated, it was her.

Having brought this situation upon herself, she had even caused her older male cousin to get hurt. If her aunt came to scold her, she would listen. But Cui Ti flaunting her position as the rightful Young Madam was too much. Dou Qingyue sneered, “Don’t think that just because you’re blind, you can disregard me. Does my older male cousin know how sharp your tongue is?”

“Better a sharp tongue than a poisonous heart like yours!”

While Pei Xuan lay unconscious, the two women who admired her quarreled like children, exchanging barbs and mocking each other. Cui Ti had the upper hand, thanks to her persistent energy.

Though her words were clumsy, her quick tongue compensated for it. She was determined to settle scores from both her previous lifetime and this one. Dou Qingyue, on the other hand, was articulate but lacked the stamina. After a couple of sentences, she would cough for a long time, giving Cui Ti the upper hand both in appearance and substance.

In the end, had she really lost an argument to a timid blind woman?

“You better wake up and recognize your own status!” Cui Ti declared, adopting the demeanor of the Young Madam of the Pei Family. Leaning on Bai Tang’s arm, she walked away slowly.

After some distance, she asked, “Did I do okay just now?”

Bai Tang’s eyes shone. “You were amazing. This time, the cousin miss lost.”

Having won a round against Dou Qingyue, Cui Ti felt a moment of relief. Concerned about Pei Xuan’s injuries, she hurried back to the room to check on her.

Once they were far away, Dou Qingyue coughed into her handkerchief and spat out a mouthful of blood.

In her previous lifetime, she had caused Cui Ti’s death. In this lifetime, Cui Ti cursed her for not having long to live.

And indeed, she didn’t have much time left.

The Dou Family had rejected a marriage proposal from the Song Family.

Song Zizhen watched as she grew more and more haggard day by day. His affection for Dou Qingyue, based on just one meeting, was far from deep-rooted love—a small blessing amidst the misfortune.

Zheng Wuji came by with a wine jug to console him, and the two agreed to visit the villa to see the comatose Pei Xuan.

People grow old, and so do rabbits.

She watched as the young girl aged over the years, until the once lively little rabbit could no longer hop around, listlessly nestling in her arms.

“Am I going to die?”

“Don’t talk nonsense.”

“I’m going to die soon. We’ve known each other for so long, yet I don’t even know your name.”

“You can call me Xingguang.”

“Xingguang?” The rabbit spirit smiled. “What a beautiful name. Does it mean ‘walking light’?”

“If you say so, then it does.”

“No wonder. It feels warm being around you; it’s like light shining on me.”

The rabbit spirit had been gravely injured in a battle for territory, ambushed by a wolf demon. The severe injuries had damaged her foundation, causing her cultivation to regress significantly. Even living a few hundred more years had become a luxury.

Her eyes were red, brighter than the most beautiful ruby in the immortal palace. “I haven’t asked you yet, why have you been following me all this time?”

“I…”

The immortal lord couldn’t find the words.

After waiting and waiting, she remained the same. The rabbit spirit had grown accustomed to it and didn’t feel hurt. But thinking about her impending death, she held back her tears. “Xingguang, you have to remember me. When I die, no one will remember me. It’s very pitiable.”

“Alright, I will remember you. I promise I will remember you.”

“You, a mortal, how many years can you remember?”

The immortal lord, disguised as a mortal, earnestly replied, “For as long as I live, I will remember.”

“That’s wonderful.” The rabbit spirit looked at the distant sky. “Thank you for remembering me.”

The mountain wind was very cold. As her end drew near, she couldn’t help but shiver. The immortal lord held her tightly. “Jiaojiao, don’t fall asleep.”

“But I’m so tired…”

She slowly closed her eyes.

The immortal lord never saw those eyes, more beautiful than rubies, again.

The rabbit spirit was gone.

She grew colder and stiffer in her arms, eventually reverting from her human form to an old, fur-shedding white rabbit.

The Literature Star had lived for thousands of years, but it was the first time she tasted extreme bitterness. Despite her high status as an immortal lord, she couldn’t save her beloved girl.

She gazed blankly at the heavens. Then, as the wind and clouds surged, the old rabbit in her arms was swept into the cycle of countless lifetimes.

The mortal world was turbulent, and calamities were inevitable. She stood up to search for the girl she had guarded for a thousand years.

A piercing cry shook the heavens and the earth as the Literature Star was born in a grand Taoist Temple, the cherished daughter of the temple master and his partner, destined to become the temple’s next leader.

One year, the Emperor brought his children to the temple to divine the country’s fate. The children in the temple couldn’t take their eyes off the little princess from the royal family.

“Who are you?” the little princess, Jiaojiao, asked sweetly.

“I am the future master of this temple. You can call me Young Temple Master.”

“Can you play with me?”

“Of course!”

This friendship remained unchanged over the years. In the blink of an eye, twelve years had passed. The seventeen-year-old Young Temple Master had become the true leader of the Taoist Temple, while the princess of the royal dynasty had just been betrothed.

“I’m getting married! Will you come to my wedding?”

Her heart felt heavy, though she didn’t know why. “I will come. I want to see you happily get married.”

The grown-up princess stepped forward to hug her, her warmth spreading over. The Young Temple Master felt a strong sense of reluctance. “Do you like your future Fujun?”

“No, I don’t. But the Imperial Father’s decree has been issued, and there’s no turning back.”

“If you don’t like him, then I’ll help you!”

“How can you help? Don’t do anything foolish!”

At that time, demons were rampant in the Dongyue Kingdom. Those who practiced Taoism were terrified of the vicious demons and hid their peachwood swords, avoiding the duty of slaying demons and eliminating evil.

The seventeen-year-old Young Temple Master made a deal with the cunning emperor, taking up the demon-slaying sword and embarking on a thorny path.

On the day of the princess’s wedding, news spread across the Dongyue Kingdom that the Young Temple Master had slain numerous demons. The wedding was halted midway.

The emperor, accompanied by his ministers, went to the eastern gate to welcome their hero.

The princess was very happy. “You’re back?”

“I’m back.”

The Young Temple Master returned safe and sound.

But she didn’t dare to look into the princess’s eyes.

It was as if those eyes held the most dazzling and brilliant colors in the world, too easily overwhelming to gaze upon.

In the end, the princess didn’t marry, and she happily moved into the Taoist Temple.

The Young Temple Master served the Dongyue Kingdom her entire life, shedding blood for the people and tears for the princess.

She cried, not even knowing what she was crying for, as if there were some words left unsaid at the end.

She exhausted her cultivation, trading her life to restore the world’s pure energy and eradicate all demons.

Ten years after her death, the princess cried bitterly and followed her.

Everyone said it was out of love, but the Young Temple Master, so wooden in her affection, couldn’t see it anymore.

The cycle of mortal life turned once more, and yet another lifetime began.

A taoist priest devoted to cultivation gave up the teachings of the Three Pure Ones just to see a beauty. Little did she know that the woman, who seemed so innocent, was actually the worst kind of demon, ensnaring her soul and making it impossible for her to turn back.

“I will kill you!”

“Go ahead.”

The demoness held her hand, casting a seductive glance.

As the story continued, the taoist priest cut through her flesh and carved out her own elixir heart, presenting it to the demoness: “Since it is what you desire, I shall give it to you.”

Her hands were covered in blood, but the elixir heart glowed brilliantly, illuminating the dark demon’s lair.

It also seared the demoness’s eyes.

Her eyes turned red instantly, and she trembled, shedding tears without knowing why.

The young taoist priest died at her feet.

The demoness consumed the elixir heart, her power surging greatly, achieving immense abilities. Yet, she couldn’t escape the final question from the heavenly way:

“Do you feel any guilt?”

Guilt?

She had long forgotten what guilt felt like!

Being a demon, why cling to human emotions?!

But her heart didn’t agree.

She did feel guilt.

Her conscience was guilty.

A massive vortex enveloped her, showing her the taoist priest’s blood and countless illusions from past lives.

In these shadows, she found a silly rabbit and an overly gentle and beautiful immortal lord.

The bamboo demon had no heart, but she had the elixir heart gifted by the taoist priest.

She saw her true feelings.

And so, she felt excruciating pain.

She couldn’t withstand the final question from the heavenly way, failing to ascend, wishing in her next lifetime to repay the taoist priest’s emotional debt.

Indeed, the taoist priest had feelings for her.

But she was too foolish to realize it; if she hadn’t seen her heart, she would never have known about this deep affection.

If she had known earlier, if she had known earlier, she would never have hurt her.

Lifetime after lifetime, they kept missing each other, their regret growing with each turn.

Knowing where she came from, she understood where she needed to go. The reincarnated Literature Star followed the path of countless lifetimes to see her and Jiaojiao in another life.

In the seventh lifetime, she welcomed her early, becoming the Young Madam of the Pei Family.

She picked tiny fish bones for her, supported her through every small and large obstacle, cherished her, yet still didn’t dare to get close to her.

She arrived a moment too late, her beloved had already fallen into the lotus pond, lifeless.

A sharp pain stabbed her heart like a knife, and Pei Xuan suddenly opened her eyes!

“Xingguang!?”

Cui Ti had stayed by her bedside all night without sleep.

The joyous cry of “Xingguang” reached Pei Xuan’s ears, the bonds of countless lifetimes entwining her heart. She instantly became as gentle as water: “Niangzi.”

“You’re awake, thank goodness! I’ll go tell Mom, I-“

She was so overjoyed she was speaking incoherently. Pei Xuan held her hand, her gaze uncontrollably tracing her features.

This was her little girl.

Cui Ti couldn’t bear her gaze, her earlobes burning hot: “Xingguang, have you gone silly from sleep?”

Pei Xuan chuckled, hugging her waist tightly: “Yes, I was silly from sleep. It took me so long to finally win you over.”

The once scholarly and abstinent Literature Star, after eight lifetimes of reincarnation, had returned as a refined “rogue.”

“Niangzi, call me again?”

Her voice was truly captivating. Cui Ti, heart pounding like a deer, lightly bit her lip and softly called out, “Xingguang.”