Chen said, "I still feel..."
Piao interrupted, "Enough. If you can't hold back, just cry quietly."
Feng Qishi sighed.
On the other side, as Mu Anxiao followed Xiang Nang to the door of the room, Shen Xian suddenly appeared behind them.
"You went to the woodshed," he said coldly.
Following his words, Mu Anxiao and Xiang Nang exchanged a glance before turning to Shen Xian together.
Mu Anxiao replied, "Yes, we did."
She thought that if she lied now, she would surely be exposed, and it would even increase Shen Xian's distrust of her. Thus, she spoke the truth.
Xiang Nang glanced at Mu Anxiao and said, "I took her there."
However, Mu Anxiao never expected Xiang Nang to say this. Her heart tightened, and she turned to look at Xiang Nang.
Shen Xian asked, "Why did you do that?"
"Because I want to extinguish her thoughts."
"What do you mean?"
At that moment, a premonition arose in Mu Anxiao's heart.
Xiang Nang said, "She wants to save them. If I didn't take her to see the situation over there, she would have gone herself at night. In the end," she glanced at Mu Anxiao, "you would have blamed me, and I would have been wronged."
"..." Shen Xian smiled faintly, then his face turned cold again as he looked at Mu Anxiao. "Gu An, I hope this is the last time."
"My name is Mu Anxiao."
Shen Xian: "..." He glared at Mu Anxiao and walked away.
Afterward, Mu Anxiao rolled her eyes and turned to Xiang Nang, "What do you mean by that?"
Xiang Nang didn't even look at Mu Anxiao, turned around, pushed the door open, and walked in.
Mu Anxiao was annoyed by Xiang Nang's behavior of constantly pushing her into a difficult position. She clenched her fists, immediately followed her into the room, closed the door with her hands behind her back, and said, "What do you mean?"
Xiang Nang calmly picked up the teapot and asked, "What do you mean by asking that?"
"You're asking me? The way you spoke to Shen Xian was simply to harm me!" Mu Anxiao stated directly.
Xiang Nang poured water into a teacup and said, "I harm you," she looked up at Mu Anxiao, "How dare you say that."
Mu Anxiao: "..."
"What did we agree on? Do you still remember?" Xiang Nang asked.
"I remember."
"Then tell me, what do you remember?"
"To impersonate Gu An here, and then..."
"You succeeded."
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao was stunned: "What do you mean by that?"
"Bar the door."
Xiang Nang's words caught Mu Anxiao's attention, so she cooperated and turned to secure the bolt, then turned back. "Now, you can tell me, right?"
"Shen Xian's affection for my mistress runs very deep. Ten years ago, many women fancied him, so they transformed to look exactly like my mistress and sought him out. He saw through them at a glance. In the end, those women met their demise at his hands."
"Were those women demons?"
Xiang Nang shook her head, "Not demons, they were devils."
"..." Mu Anxiao's eyes widened.
"Ten years ago, he escaped from heaven, and following a blue light, he came here. Then, following my mistress's dying wishes, I spread the word within a day that my mistress was a devil. It was because of this that Shen Xian had the opportunity to become a devil."
"What do you mean?"
"Everything was arranged by my mistress."
Arranged?
Mu Anxiao didn't want to know about their affairs, and even less about Shen Xian and Gu An's past.
However, these matters had implicated her.
Helpless, she had to force herself to understand.
"What is your mistress's identity? Did she save Shen Xian from the celestial realm?"
"How is that possible? If my mistress were still alive, there wouldn't be you."
"Oh, that's right!"
"Shen Xian escaped on his own. It's just that my mistress had foreseen it before her death. In other words, my mistress only wanted to help him out of consideration for their past as husband and wife."
"Just as husband and wife?"
"Yes. My mistress liked someone else. It was for that person that she wanted to find Shen Xian and ascend to heaven. As for the inside story," Xiang Nang took a sip of water, "you'll have to find out yourself. Anyway, remember your mission."
Ever since she came here to be revived, Xiang Nang's words to Mu Anxiao had been half-truths, just like when Mu Anxiao asked about her resemblance to Gu An. Xiang Nang had remained silent until Mu Anxiao was discovered here, only then did she speak?
Just like outside the woodshed earlier, she said she would tell her something, but there had been no further news.
And now this?
Mu Anxiao was at her wit's end. "Can you finish what you're saying before continuing, regarding my mission?"
"What words are you referring to?"
"These words, about your mistress's affairs."
"My mistress?"
Xiang Nang only wanted to tell Mu Anxiao that Shen Xian came here because of Gu An. As for deeper matters, she didn't know much. How could she explain?
Mu Anxiao nodded. "Yes, from what you've said, your mistress seems quite mysterious. Can you reveal more about her to me?"
"There are many things I don't know myself. You can only find them out yourself. Even if I tell you, you might not understand."
"..."
Seeing Mu Anxiao's silence, Xiang Nang suddenly remembered what she had said to Mu Anxiao outside the woodshed.
So, she said, "The entrance and exit can only be found by Shen Xian. For people like you, you can't get out at all."
"You mean, we can all get out only if Shen Xian finds the way?"
"Yes."
"Eh?"
"Why 'eh'? Anyway, you've already succeeded."
"I succeeded?"
After Xiang Nang said all this, Mu Anxiao didn't feel it had anything to do with her. Hearing her say this now, Mu Anxiao still didn't realize she had succeeded.
On the contrary, Mu Anxiao felt that this matter was becoming more and more troublesome.
Especially with her current identity, she felt it was simply... awkward.
Seeing Mu Anxiao's disheveled state, Xiang Nang said, "At first, I asked you to come here to impersonate the mistress, but you didn't succeed. So, I reluctantly told Shen Xian that you were the mistress's reincarnation. Now he believes it. Do you think you failed or succeeded?"
"Shen Xian did call me Gu An."
"Remember my words. When he calls you Gu An, just agree. Gradually, he will also believe you are the real Gu An. This way, you'll be one step closer to success."
Hearing Xiang Nang's words, Mu Anxiao's mind became muddled. "Then, am I your mistress's reincarnation or not?"
"Yes."
"Oh."
"Alright, get some rest. Anyway," Xiang Nang put down the teacup, "remember this: the stronger your desire to save them, the more disadvantageous it will be for them. Conversely, when that desire weakens, Shen Xian will also lower his guard, and may even find it meaningless."
"You mean, I should cooperate with him unconditionally, right?"
"Yes, in two words: be obedient."
"I understand. Then, please don't complain about me anymore."
"As long as you don't have that thought, I won't complain."
"It's a deal."
Xiang Nang nodded slightly.
"I'm going to rest," Mu Anxiao said, turning towards the bedside.
Following her words, Xiang Nang transformed into a colorless lantern.