Chapter 55: It Wasn’t Me, I Didn’t Do It!
“Yes, the traffic is a bit heavy, but don’t worry, we have medicine prepared here.”
As soon as Xiao Luohan opened her eyes, she heard a familiar voice.
She followed the sound and saw a long-haired woman, who resembled her elder sister, talking on the phone. Beside her, a curious girl was staring intently at her.
Meeting her gaze, the girl blinked and touched her forehead with the back of her hand.
Xiao Luohan recognized her and remained motionless, letting the slightly cool hand test her temperature.
“She still has a fever. We need to take her temperature and see if she needs fever reducers.” After checking her forehead, Xie Xitong didn’t withdraw her hand, but instead shook the person beside Xiao Luohan. “Hey, wake up! Your Xiao Luo has crossed over!”
Xiao Luohan instinctively looked over and saw Jiang Xue groan as Xie Xitong shook her. The first thing she said after opening her eyes was to ask Xiao Luohan, “How are you feeling? You were coughing up blood just now! You need to take your medicine!”
“Coughing up blood?!”
Jiang Xue’s words brought Jiang Mei over as well. “Rinse your mouth first, and when Dr. Qi arrives, we’ll have her take a look. If it’s not good, we’ll take you to the hospital for a check-up!”
“Dr. Qi is coming too?!” Jiang Xue was shocked. “Doesn’t she always take time off during the New Year’s holiday?”
“We discussed this beforehand.” Jiang Mei explained while sending a message to Dr. Qi. “She’s very happy to be involved in anything related to Xiao Luo. We also asked her to help with Xiao Luo’s identification documents.”
Jiang Xue paused, recalling the conversation she had overheard a long time ago:
—”Okay, if she can really come over, I’ll find someone to help immediately.”
—”Thank you.”
—”Don’t mention it. This is more interesting than a medical miracle. Just consider it my own selfish curiosity.”
So that’s what her older sister and Dr. Qi were talking about!
She breathed a sigh of relief and wanted to get out of bed to help, but her limbs were sore, not from exhaustion, but just a general weakness.
“You’re just startled,” Uncle Seuss said, entering with a kettle of hot water. He had overheard Jiang Xue’s description. “You might have nightmares for a few days, which is normal. Ordinary people experiencing this kind of thing, in more serious cases, would have PTSD. Your symptoms are mild. We’ll ask Dr. Qi to prescribe some calming medicine later.”
Even though, for Jiang Xue, killing the Crown Prince had happened in a dream, she had still witnessed his death up close, and before Xiao Luohan had acted, she herself had thrown a porcelain jar at him, diverting his attention.
Uncle Seuss wanted to come in and see his new “niece,” but Jiang Mei stopped him at the door. “Xiao Luo needs to rest!”
Actually, rest was only one reason. They had noticed that Xiao Luohan, after crossing over, was only wearing a plain white undergarment. Her wedding dress and jewelry were gone, although her makeup was still intact.
Jiang Xue had helped Xiao Luohan sit up, and she was now leaning against the headboard, wrapped in a blanket, sipping warm, slightly salty water.
“Perhaps knowing that I dislike the Crown Prince’s things, Elder Sister took them all away,” she explained softly in response to their puzzled looks. “It’s for the best, otherwise, Uncle Seuss would have to deal with more trash.”
The Crown Prince was dead, and she had arrived in a new world, so she should look forward.
Twenty minutes later, Dr. Qi arrived in a hurry. After hearing Jiang Mei report Xiao Luohan’s temperature, she sat down, took out her stethoscope, listened for a while, then checked her tongue coating, examined her eyes, and finally, took her pulse.
“Your illness is the same as Second Miss’s, just that it hasn’t been properly treated for so many years, so it looks more serious.” Withdrawing her hand, Dr. Qi said, not surprised, “But let’s treat the cold first. We’ll take it slow with the other treatment.”
She took out some traditional Chinese medicine for relieving cold symptoms from her medical bag and skillfully wrote down the dosage. “We need to do a skin test for common anti-inflammatory drugs to see if you’re allergic. Tonight, just take these with fewer side effects. I’ll come back and check on you tomorrow.”
“Thank you,” Xiao Luohan bowed to her, then looked at Jiang Xue. “Jiang Xue wasn’t feeling well after leaving the dream. Could you please take a look at her too?”
Dr. Qi smiled and agreed, but when she turned to Jiang Xue, her eyes were filled with reproach.
Jiang Xue: …
She wanted to shout “It wasn’t me, I didn’t do it!” Besides doing her best to help Xiao Luo, she hadn’t done anything wrong!
But she didn’t want to discuss this with Dr. Qi in front of Xiao Luohan, so she changed the subject with a deadpan expression. “Uncle Seuss said I was just startled.”
Knowing that they had been through a lot before crossing over, Dr. Qi quickly examined her, prescribed some calming medicine, and left, reminding everyone to rest well tonight.
Jiang Xue had already slept for a whole day. Besides being hungry and a little sore, she wasn’t tired at all.
Sitting at the small dining table by the bed, eating the beef clear soup noodles Jiang Mei had made for her, she said to Xiao Luohan, “You go to sleep. I’ll watch over you. Tell me if you feel uncomfortable.”
To ensure there were no problems with this transtemporal rescue, Jiang Xue had taken leave from school. After the three-day New Year’s holiday, she still had four days to help Xiao Luohan recover from her cold and adapt to the new world.
Anyway, the most important thing this semester was the final exam. The main events were the final selection exam in April and the college entrance exam in June. As long as she kept up with her studies, it would be fine.
Xiao Luohan replied with an “Mm,” but just looked at her quietly.
She was wondering if it would be inappropriate to bring up the matter of repayment now.
Jiang Xue might use “focus on recovering first” as an excuse, but that wasn’t the response she wanted to hear…
“You have something you want to tell me,” Jiang Xue said with certainty before she could even voice her thoughts. “Just say it. My sister, A-Xi, and I also sometimes have things we’re hesitant to say, but after thinking about it, they’re not a big deal. There’s nothing we can’t talk about.”
But before Xiao Luohan could speak, she quickly added, “Of course, if you don’t think it’s the right time yet, then don’t say it. It’s entirely up to you. Don’t force yourself to please me!”
Personalities needed time to adjust to each other, and she didn’t expect Xiao Luohan to completely abandon her original personality and become as outspoken as herself.
Moreover, Xiao Luohan was someone she had rescued from another world. As the saying went, “Excessive kindness can be a burden.” She didn’t want this kindness to become a shackle, restricting this girl.
…Despite saying this, seeing Xiao Luohan pause, smile faintly at her, and reply with an “Okay,” without elaborating, she still felt a little regretful.
It was just like when she had given her the dictionary!
So, what did Xiao Luo want to tell her?!
All night, Xiao Luohan rested peacefully, and Jiang Xue watched over her, gazing at her serene sleeping face, her mind filled with this question.
In the middle of the night, she finally couldn’t take it anymore and opened Xie Xitong’s chat window on her phone.
【Yu Xue: I think I missed an opportunity to get closer to the truth…】
【XiXi No Xixi (Senior Year Version): What silly thing did you do again? Tell me~】
Jiang Xue recounted the events.
Then she was bombarded with various laughing emojis from Xie Xitong.
【Yu Xue: You don’t have to laugh so hard!!】
【Yu Xue: [cat punching you.gif]】
【Yu Xue: So, do you have any ideas?】
【XiXi No Xixi (Senior Year Version): Revealing the answer directly wouldn’t be any fun!】
Jiang Xue: …
Because of the Crown Prince, she was now a little allergic to “riddle people.”
But she knew her best friend’s personality since childhood. And it was precisely because she couldn’t figure it out and had to find an answer that she had wanted to vent to someone she knew. So she didn’t ask further.
She would wait. Anyway, they were now in a peaceful and safe world. If Xiao Luo wanted to wait for a suitable time to talk, then she would let her.
In the dream, Xiao Luohan was back in her “mindscape.”
The furnishings hadn’t changed, even the traces left by Jiang Xue were still there, not disappearing because of her crossing over.
The only change was outside the window.
It had originally been the scene Xiao Luohan wanted to see, but now it had become a distant view of a city.
But she recognized it at a glance—it was the capital of Beiliao.
Had Elder Sister changed her mindscape? Could she… could she meet Elder Sister again here?
With this thought, she couldn’t help but walk to the window.
The distant view suddenly zoomed in, the light flickering and changing, then everything stopped.
She was surprised to see Shizhu. Shizhu was kneeling in front of her mother, and her mother was holding her letter, as if asking Shizhu to rise.
The scene changed again, and she saw her elder sister’s aunt—the late Empress’s younger sister—taking her mother and Shizhu away from the cold palace.
…Having left the cold palace, where were they going?
Just as she thought this, the scene shifted to the Jiang family’s residence.
Her mother had changed into different clothes and was sitting across from her elder sister’s aunt, talking seriously. Shizhu, also in the clothes of a Jiang family servant, was standing beside her mother, listening quietly.
Xiao Luohan couldn’t hear what they were saying, but just by looking at her mother and Shizhu’s clothes and their complexions, she knew things must have improved.
She breathed a soft sigh of relief and tried calling out “Elder Sister.”
No one answered, and the red fox didn’t appear, but the next moment, the scene outside the window changed again.
She saw a rifle leaning against a wall, then rows of targets standing in the sun.
The rifle looked like the one in the materials Jiang Xue had sent. When she saw her elder sister’s aunt holding the rifle, aiming at the targets, Xiao Luohan finally relaxed completely.
It seemed that Elder Sister’s dream-sending was also going smoothly.
She thought for a moment, then ground some ink in the mindscape, spread out a sheet of paper, and left a message for her elder sister.
【Elder Sister, I hope this letter finds you well.
I have arrived in Jiang Xue’s world. She, her family, her best friend, and her family doctor are all very kind to me. Please don’t worry.
My only concern now is how to repay their kindness. But I also know that I shouldn’t rush this and should let things take their natural course. I will just live here and adapt to the new environment for now.
May Elder Sister also achieve her wish soon.】
As soon as she finished writing, the paper was lifted by a gust of wind, floating out the window and transforming into a gyrfalcon, soaring into the sky.
When Xiao Luohan woke up from the dream, it was already early morning.
Soft breathing sounds came from beside the bed. She turned her head and saw Jiang Xue lying on the edge of the bed, fast asleep.
Even though the heater was on in the room and she wouldn’t get cold, Xiao Luohan didn’t want her to sleep in such an uncomfortable position. She got out of bed, intending to help her onto the bed.
Jiang Xue, half-asleep, suddenly felt a source of warmth and instinctively snuggled closer, unconsciously clinging to it.
She didn’t know how long she slept, only waking up when she was startled by a knock on the door.
…She felt that she had woken up the wrong way.
Why, why had she, who had clearly been sleeping on the edge of the bed, woken up in bed with Xiao Luohan, clinging to her like a koala?!
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