Chapter 22
Chapter 22
True Self (2)
Cui Wang took a shallow sip. He noticed her pale lips and the shift in her expression, and finally asked:
“Are you unwell?”
Unwell, she was very unwell!
Zheng Wan was overwhelmed by a gut-wrenching panic, but she did not let it show on her face. She only hammered lightly on her right leg, her forehead stained with sweat, “I didn’t feel it at first, but after sitting down, I feel a great pain in my ankle.”
Her lips took on a faint, bitter smile.
“I probably… sprained my foot.”
Cui Wang didn’t seem to be suspicious; he closed his eyes again in repose.
Zheng Wan’s eyes were slightly downcast, her long eyelashes trapping all her emotions in her eyes. Thinking about it, ever since her father went to the grievance drums, she had been feeling a vague sense of unease——
While she was changing the plot of the book, other things had changed alongside as well.
For example, it was impossible for the concubine-born Third Lady Liu to attend the Shanglin Banquet, but here she was—the true owner of the bloodstone zan.
Amidst the commotion, Zheng Wan suddenly realised that there was some kind of unseen force, trying to bring everything back on the right track.
Her ploy to substitute a pear for a peach was at the risk of falling apart! Her conversation with Father came once again to her mind.
“…Wanwan, this method is too radical, it’s unwise to proceed.”
“But Father, a human’s life is as fleeting as a mayfly’s; since we’re alive, why not try to make something out of it? If you need to seek the dragon’s understanding, it is enough for your daughter to take all the blame.
…The dragon is noble and pure. Since he has been borne to the world, why don’t we Zhengs seize the opportunity to become dragons, and soar through the boundless skies and vast lands?”
“Wanwan…”
“Father, are you okay with this? A mortal’s life, from its beginning to its end, is nothing more than a mere instant to that person. Wanwan thinks this is an opportunity for our family to turn risk into reward. If we succeed, our family will be free from this ignorant mortal world.”
One day, a frog sitting in a well discovers that there were boundless skies and vast lands outside of his little circle of sky. How can its heart not be moved?
Zheng Wan admitted that she was indeed a bad character full of selfish intentions, as described in the book.
It was her who had called for Cui Wang’s flogging back then. A kind-hearted little lady passed by and came to his rescue, sending him to the medical hall with gentle words. And that very kind-hearted little lady was Third Lady Liang, who was now begging for mercy…
But because Third Lady Liu had red rashes on her face, she had been wearing a mili during her encounter with Cui Wang. That was how Zheng Wan thought of this substitution plan. Indeed… she was rotten through and through.
According to the book, this bloodstone zan was the medium through which the two would recognise each other.
Cui Wang had sent it to her out of gratitude. After the two reunited, he cured her red rashes and granted her a wish. Finally, Third Lady Liu went to the immortal realm and entered the tutelage of the elders of the Taiji Sect, living out a limitless future.
Because she knew how the story would unfold, she interrupted its flow and ordered someone to encourage Third Lady Liu to pawn the zan. To forestall future complications, she even took advantage of the chaos to break it into pieces.
Even if Cui Wang’s suspicions were aroused, he would only be able to find the various threads she had planted in advance, and learn that she had felt sorry for flogging him and went back to help.
But Third Lady Liu was here.
She picked out a thread from the cloth that she was gripping tightly.
Cui Wang was such an intelligent person. Zheng Wan regretted it deeply; she should have sent Third Lady Liu and her mother away unnoticed after getting the zan. There was no room for compassion when one was trying to accomplish a grand plan!
Zheng Wan admonished herself to never be so careless again. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that outside the marble boat, a thin gap had changed from the size of a grain of rice to a thumb——
The people she had arranged for earlier would be arriving soon.
She just had to hold on for a few more moments.
With a thousand thoughts in her head, Zheng Wan forced herself back to the present. She plucked at the flowers she had just received.
“Can I trouble the gentleman for something?”
She looked at him expectantly.
“What is it?”