Chapter 55 – Titi Rabbit

Yes, I am your Xingguang.

…

When Pei Xuan woke up, it was already the seventh day. From the emperor to the Pei Family’s servants, countless hearts were concerned.

“Xingguang!”

Dou Qingyue, looking frail and sickly, walked over with the help of a maid, her face devoid of color.

As soon as she arrived, Cui Ti’s restless heart instantly calmed down. She glanced at Pei Xuan, then at her pure white undergarment, and after some thought, bent down to drape a heavy fur coat over her.

It was nearing autumn, far from the time to wear such a coat.

She was clearly being petulant. Pei Xuan, sitting on the bed, gathered the thick, snowy fur coat around her, hiding her thin frame.

Seeing this, Cui Ti felt slightly more at ease. However, she still couldn’t stand Dou Qingyue trailing behind Pei Xuan like a little shadow. If anyone was to be Pei Xuan’s shadow, it should be her, following Xingguang wherever she went.

What was Dou Qingyue to her? At most, a cousin from her maternal uncle’s side. Not to mention, in a previous lifetime, Dou Qingyue had caused her death.

The two were separated by a blood feud, and they loathed each other at sight.

Cui Ti stood there, making Dou Qingyue feel uncomfortable all over. Looking at the inappropriate coat draped over Pei Xuan, she found the furry garment even more of an eyesore.

Spoiled and arrogant!

She gritted her teeth, feeling a sudden dizziness. The maid quickly steadied her.

“Xingguang, I have something to tell you.”

“Just say it here.”

“Xingguang!”

She coughed urgently, and the maid by her side couldn’t bear it, softly pleading on her Miss’s behalf. Pei Xuan’s cold gaze paused, and she turned to Cui Ti, saying, “Niangzi.”

Cui Ti’s furrowed brows gradually relaxed. “Alright, you two talk.”

She got up and walked away, but didn’t go far, standing outside the door with her ears perked.

The inner chamber was silent, no one speaking.

Dou Qingyue, looking ill, studied her ‘good older male cousin.’ Dressed in plain white, with black hair and a graceful neck and shoulders, she looked far different from before.

She called softly, “Xingguang…”

Pei Xuan lowered her eyes, not looking at her. “Sit.”

She pointed to a wooden stool not far away. Dou Qingyue obediently sat down, covering her mouth with a handkerchief as she coughed again, this time so violently it seemed her heart and lungs would come out. Yet, Pei Xuan showed no pity.

It shouldn’t be like this.

Her older male cousin had always been gentle and kind, with a soft heart.

A bad feeling crept over her, making her spine stiffen.

“Qingyue.”

“Xingguang…”

Pei Xuan carefully smoothed the long, needle-like fur on the coat, her fingers like green onions, her skin like white jade. Her long hair cascaded over her shoulders. She said softly, “Qingyue, you know, I am not ‘older male cousin,’ but older cousin sister.”

Dou Qingyue’s heart skipped a beat, and she exclaimed in shock, “You-“

Her face turned pale. “You came back too?”

“Qing Yao, it’s time to turn back.”

She raised her eyebrows, her beautiful eyes cold and indifferent, almost devoid of emotion.

Dou Qingyue suddenly coughed up blood, staining the handkerchief she held. Her body trembled uncontrollably as thick, heavy memories broke through, flooding her mind.

Qing Yao.

Who is Qing Yao?

And who am I?

She was filled with terror. Facing Pei Xuan’s gaze, she wanted to flee.

But where could she run to?

She didn’t dare look into those eyes.

No!

I am not Qing Yao!

She sprang to her feet, but the memories of her past life surged forward, unstoppable.

Yes.

She was Qing Yao.

She was an immortal grass by the Ink-washing Pool in the Literature Star Palace, who developed a foolish attachment and desired the love of an immortal lord. Defying celestial laws, she had jumped down to the reincarnation platform, entered the cycle of rebirth, and became Miss Dou of the Dou Family.

“No, no!”

She stumbled back a few steps, knocking over a stool.

A chaotic sound came from the inner chamber. Cui Ti, blind and unable to see what was happening, was just about to move closer to the door when it swung open, and someone rushed out.

The air was thick with the smell of medicine.

It was Dou Qingyue.

“Miss? Miss!”

The maid chased after her.

Cui Ti was completely confused. “What is…”

“Xuan’er? Xuan’er!” Madam Pei hurried over like a gust of wind. “Xuan’er is awake?”

Pei Xuan, draped in the fur coat with her long hair loose, stepped out. “Mom.”

Seeing her standing there unharmed, Madam Pei was overjoyed. Her excitement made Cui Ti momentarily forget Dou Qingyue’s outburst.

Having gone through this twice, she now fully understood how dearly her mother-in-law loved her daughter.

Last time when Xingguang was unwell, Madam Pei thought she had lost her mind. In her panic, she rushed over and, in her confusion, forgot that Cui Ti was blind and tried to signal her with her eyes.

Bai Tang had told her about this later, and she had secretly laughed, covering her mouth.

This time was no different. The usually composed and dignified chancellor’s wife, disregarding her own relatives, fussed over her daughter, asking, “I made some chicken soup for you in the kitchen. Would you like some?”

Pei Xuan, both a Literature Star in the Heavenly Realm and a member of the Pei Family in the Mortal Realm, smiled, “Yes, I would.”

Madam Pei was taken aback, tears welling up in her eyes as she hugged her daughter. “You scared me to death. Let’s not get involved in that matter anymore, alright?”

Pei Xuan nodded earnestly. “I’ll listen to you, Mom.”

She truly was her mother’s little comfort, so reassuring.

“What did you say to her?”

While Madam Pei went to the kitchen to get the chicken soup, Cui Ti seized the moment to ask.

Pei Xuan, now sweating under the thick fur coat but unwilling to take it off because her beloved had draped it over her, replied, “I didn’t say much, but after today, she will wake up to her senses.”

“Is it that magical?”

“Niangzi doesn’t believe me?”

Cui Ti suddenly found herself gazing into Pei Xuan’s clear and pure eyes. She smiled, “I believe everything you say. But aren’t you hot?”

How could she not be hot?

Pei Xuan, loving and cherishing her, regretted wasting so much time due to her own dullness. Her eyes curved into a smile. “Hot, but I want Niangzi to take it off for me.”

“Oh my, oh my, is this still our proper Literature Star?”

Under the marriage tree, the Matchmaker God laughed uncontrollably as he watched the scene through the Water Mirror.

The Red Luan Star, also watching with great interest, mischievously remarked, “Now that her wish is fulfilled and she’s got her beauty, she won’t be bullying the rabbits and eating rabbit heads every month anymore, right?”

The Matchmaker God was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.

The two immortals in the heavens watched the fun with their hands clasped behind their backs, while down on earth, Pei Xuan suddenly remembered something and looked up at the sky.

The sky was vast and cloudless.

“What are you looking at?”

Under the eaves, Cui Ti followed her gaze, puzzled. The sky? What was there to see in the sky?

Her face was full of bewilderment, which in Pei Xuan’s eyes made her look like an adorable titi rabbit with long ears. Pei Xuan’s lips curled into a smile. “Nothing much, Niangzi. Let’s go back to our room.”

Ever since she woke up, every word Pei Xuan said to Cui Ti seemed to be coated with honey, so sweet it could stick to your teeth, though she herself was unaware of it, speaking in that same indulgent tone.

Cui Ti’s ears turned red. She rubbed her earlobes and, trying to act calm, took Pei Xuan’s hand.

With their fingers intertwined, the heart that had been suspended for days finally settled.

Pei Xuan’s awakening was a cause for great joy, but over at the Dou Family, Dou Qingyue’s condition had deteriorated beyond cure.

Within a few days, her spirit floated up to the Upper Realm, and Fairy Qingyao was the first to return to her place.

Her beloved daughter’s severe illness and the high fever that left her in a stupor drove General Dou’s hair to turn white at the temples, and Madam Dou nearly cried herself blind, staying by the bedside day and night without sleep.

Little did they know, their daughter had already returned to where she should be.

“Parents’ hearts are always filled with love and pity.”

Despite being relatives, the Pei and Dou families had ties, and the Literature Star still needed to stay in the Mortal Realm until her love was fulfilled. If Dou Qingyue were to die, it would sever their familial bond, which would greatly disadvantage the Literature Star in her next reincarnation.

Taking their usual relationship into account, the Matchmaker God held the marriage book and requested permission from the higher-ups to see if they could fill the void left by Fairy Qingyao.

This time, there was indeed a solution.

In the marriage book, there was a mortal woman who had accumulated good deeds and died unexpectedly; she had a destined marriage with Song Zizhen in the Mortal Realm. With permission granted, the Matchmaker God made a round trip to the Netherworld.

“When the Literature Star returns to her place, I must trick her into giving me a few jars of spirit wine, or else it won’t be worth my hard efforts.”

The Red Luan Star chuckled softly at this.

The immortals in the sky worked, and the mortals below benefited.

Every day after his duties, Song Zizhen visited the Dou Family to see the gravely ill Miss Dou, writing poems for her, making her laugh, and doing his utmost to ease her mind. Strangely enough, one day, the previously muddle-headed Miss Dou suddenly regained her clarity.

The people of Xi Jing said it was Song Zizhen’s deep affection that moved the heavens.

Miss Dou, having been snatched back from the brink of death, was no longer spoken of in connection to her public declaration of love for Pei Xuan at Guiming Bridge. People refrained from gossiping about Dou Qingyue’s past, lest they drive her to despair again.

“Fairy Qingyao, let’s go. The Pleasure Immortal and Celestial Being Qin Zhen are still waiting.”

On the Ninth Heaven, the immortal attendant impatiently urged them along.

By the Ink-washing Pool, the immortal grass reluctantly looked towards the Mortal Realm, seeing the immortal lord gently cover the rabbit spirit with a quilt as she lay on her bed.

Her heart ached, and she deliberately averted her gaze. The last scene she saw was the young Gentleman Song, risking his dignity to make the “Miss Dou” smile.

She couldn’t describe the feelings in her heart.

Opening her palm, it felt as though all her blessings and good fortune slipped through her fingers.

Everything stemmed from a misguided obsession.

She was unwilling, yet she had to accept it.

Because the immortal lord said, “Qingyao, it’s time to turn back.”

The moment Fairy Qingyao returned to the Heavenly Court, she was escorted to the Underwater Cave by the immortal attendant to join Ning Hehuan and Qin Jing. When she arrived, Qin Jing was coldly mocking the improper Pleasure Immortal.

Ning Hehuan couldn’t be bothered to respond.

Hearing the commotion, Ning Hehuan turned around, saw the immortal grass, and gave a sarcastic smile, “Well, if it isn’t Miss Dou?”

Ning Hehuan had a knack for hitting where it hurt. Fairy Qingyao turned her face away, ignoring her, and instead bowed to Qin Jing.

Qin Jing waved her off, her attitude lukewarm, “I helped you with selfish intentions. You don’t need to thank me.”

At this, Fairy Qingyao hesitated for a moment before moving to stand between the two, enduring the bone-chilling wind and the soaking cold water.

Even for an immortal, the punishments in the Heavenly Court were harsh.

Ning Hehuan still had the energy to play around. With a wave of her delicate hand, she conjured a Water Mirror, “A century of boredom. I guess we’ll have to watch the Literature Star and that rabbit spirit for amusement.”

“…”

In the Mortal Realm, in Dazhao, Xi Jing.

A servant hurriedly came in, “Gentleman, Young Madam, the cousin miss and Gentleman Song have come to visit.”

The Dou Family had already allied with the Song Family. Though they were astonished by Dou Qingyue’s near-death and miraculous recovery, they were even more surprised to hear that she was now betrothed and had undergone a significant change in temperament. Cui Ti was curious to see if Dou Qingyue was truly different from before.

“Quickly, invite them in.”

Upon her command, Pei Xuan finally spoke, “Please, let them in.”

Song Zizhen, diligently accompanying his fiancée, asked just before entering, “Do you truly want to marry me?”

He seemed to have no sense of shame, coming to someone else’s home and still being so forward. Just listen to what he was saying!

Dou Qingyue blushed and answered affirmatively, making Song Zizhen so overjoyed that he didn’t know which leg to step forward with first.

Pei Xuan caught sight of his flustered state and laughed, “What brings you here?”

From her tone, it seemed there were no hard feelings.

“Greetings, cousin and Cousin-in-law,” Dou Qingyue said. “We came to apologize for our previous behavior and hope you won’t hold it against us.”

She spoke as if she and Song Zizhen were one, truly seeming like a changed person.

Cui Ti was half skeptical, half curious. The change was so drastic that it left her feeling uncertain.

Pei Xuan gently supported her, “We’re all family; there’s no need for formalities.”

Hearing Pei Xuan say “family,” Song Zizhen let out a long sigh of relief and smiled, “I knew you weren’t the type to hold grudges, Xingguang!”

As they chatted, Dou Qingyue approached Cui Ti, “I wish you and cousin everlasting love and a lifetime of happiness.”

“…”

Despite her earnest attempt to make amends, Cui Ti still harbored deep-seated mistrust towards Dou Qingyue. Hearing her kind words felt like a weasel paying respect to a chicken—how could she believe it?

Caught in her own dilemma, Cui Ti wished she could see if Dou Qingyue had truly changed.

“Cui Ti?”

“…”

Dou Qingyue’s past misdeeds made it hard for Cui Ti to warm up to her.

As dusk fell, they saw the couple off and Cui Ti sat in the room, deep in thought.

Pei Xuan approached, holding her and laughing.

“What are you laughing at?”

Young Madam Pei was puzzled.

Pei Xuan stopped laughing, wrapped her arms around Cui Ti’s waist, and said seriously, “I just remembered someone once said that a rabbit’s head is only so big, and its brain probably doesn’t work very well.”

Cui Ti’s eyes widened, “Who said that?!”

For some inexplicable reason, she was furious—what did rabbits ever do to anyone?