Chapter 2: The Dream and the Orchid Gift

‘Hmm… Mom never hugged me before either… if Little Mom isn’t willing to…’

“Sigh.”

Qíngyǔ shook her head, placing the scroll she held beside her pillow.

‘If the scroll’s original owner were still alive, seeing her disregard for books would surely make them tremble with anger.’

She had intended to use the night to brush up on this world’s common knowledge, but it seemed that would be impossible once more.

“Come here, a hug.”

Seeing Little Mom open her arms to her, the girl happily curled up, shrinking into her embrace like a small dumpling.

“Isn’t it hot, being hugged?”

Qíngyǔ herself was fine; in her previous life, she had worn only a single daoist robe regardless of summer or winter, long accustomed to enduring slightly uncomfortable temperatures.

“Little Mom, you smell nice, not hot…”

It seemed this little one didn’t much mind the temperature either.

“Honestly… there’s clearly nothing there, so why does she still love to rub against me?”

Qíngyǔ mumbled softly, embracing the little sun in her arms, and closed her eyes.

Breathing in the faint, almost imperceptible scent of milk, her breaths soon evened out.

After Little Mom fell asleep, Little Girl’s tightly shut eyelids fluttered, then slowly opened, her gaze discreetly darting towards Qíngyǔ’s cool, serene face.

‘Her eyelashes are so long…’

The girl couldn’t quite articulate what that face made her feel; to call it gentle would be to ignore the striking heroism etched upon Little Mom’s features, yet to call it stern would contradict the way her eyes would always curve into a smile whenever she looked at her.

[Get to business! Get to business!]

[Just let me look a little longer…]

[Hurry, hurry! Tonight is the full moon, an opportunity not to be missed! There won’t be such a good chance next time!]

[Or perhaps, let’s not?]

[Master, I must ensure she harbors no ill will towards you! Besides, don’t you want to know what she was like in the past?]

[Hmm… then you must promise that Little Mom will still hug me after she wakes up.]

[Oh, my little ancestor, it’s not like we’re harming anyone; we’re merely guiding Little Mom’s dreams.]

[Then hurry up, Little Mom says children like me should sleep early.]

[Sigh…]

Conversing with the immortal sword within her Sea of Consciousness, Little Girl’s body slowly began to emanate spiritual energy, which gradually enveloped Qíngyǔ’s form.

Truth be told, the immortal sword also wished to avoid such an act; firstly, it feared hurting its young master’s heart, and secondly, it worried about what might truly be uncovered, which would then be difficult to manage.

But what else could be done? If this young woman truly harbored malicious intent, what then?

Silently lamenting its fate, the immortal sword could only exert its lifelong efforts to meticulously control the spiritual energy, hoping only to gently induce the young woman’s dreams.

And so, Qíngyǔ had a dream.

In her dream, she was a young woman named Qin Ermei.

The Qin family had two sons and two daughters: the elder son was skilled in martial arts, served in the border army, and often brought good news.

Whereas the second son delighted in literature, repeatedly passed examinations, and always held a sterling reputation; their two daughters were also adept at calligraphy, painting, and needlework.

Yet, the world was fickle, and five years prior, misfortune struck: the elder son, indulging in drink, was reprimanded by the general, then, in a fit of rage and ambition, sought glory and perished on the battlefield.

The second son, frequenting brothels, neglected his studies, ultimately failed the imperial examinations, and tragically took his own life in despair.

As the Qin family revered the Dao, they sought a geomancer to divine their fortune; the geomancer declared that the second daughter was uniquely wicked, and that all the family’s misfortunes stemmed from her.

This casual pronouncement led the Qin family to sell their daughter cheaply, simply to restore peace to their household.

Later, before this girl even reached her new home, she brought death upon two members of the master’s family, leaving only herself and the master’s sole daughter to depend on each other.

The tragedy was, she felt no hatred whatsoever.

***

“How tragic…”

Qíngyǔ yawned herself awake, rubbing her eyes before noticing that Little Girl, who had been nestled obediently in her arms last night, had now migrated to the other end of the bed.

Her two little feet rested on Qíngyǔ’s stomach, her clothes had ridden up, exposing her small belly, and her little mouth was still smacking softly.

‘What an unsightly sleeping posture.’

The young woman’s eye twitched, yet fearing the girl might catch a chill, she could only gently pat the quilt a few times and cover her with it.

She still remembered the events of the dream, wondering if it pertained to this world or another; previously, she had always considered herself a so-called lonely ghost, but now she questioned if that assumption was truly correct.

“Tsk, having lived for over a hundred years, how am I still bound by such matters?”

After a brief moment of thought, Qíngyǔ found herself smiling wryly.

“Zhuangzi’s butterfly dream, Zhuangzi’s butterfly dream; my past life’s masters also spoke to me of reality and illusion, and I’ve become quite fascinated by it.”

Shaking her head, and seeing Little Girl sleeping soundly, she refrained from disturbing her.

Lightly, she left the bed, dressed herself, pushed open the door, and after stepping out, carefully closed it behind her.

Performing some calisthenics, she stretched her body a few times, then Qíngyǔ’s gaze fell upon the white orchids she hadn’t finished stringing last night.

Sitting down at the table, she picked up the white thread, and the young woman pondered, intending to string the rest of them together.

At this hour, the sky had just cleared, the moisture in the air had yet to dissipate, the moonlight still hung low in the sky, and the sun showed no sign of rising.

There were still some of these flowers left, but she estimated they would only last for another day or two at most.

Originally, she had thought that if there truly was an original owner, she would avoid doing anything too outrageous, so as to return the body; now, it seemed…

Qíngyǔ’s lips twitched again; it seemed she hadn’t recalled her past life’s memories after all.

“Sigh, I’ll take things one step at a time.”

Having lived too long in her previous life, she had become constrained in her actions, always speaking of fate and calculating karma in every matter; reflecting on it, it truly was…

With her pearly teeth, she bit through the white thread she held, then lifted a pair of strung white orchids.

Bathed in the moonlight, the small, white-and-yellow-tinged flowers shimmered enchantingly, like precious jade.

She wondered if this world held tales of gods, ghosts, and strange anomalies.

If so, once Little Girl was married, it would be quite pleasant for her to become an itinerant Daoist priestess.

Perhaps she could even make a name for herself, find a mountain peak to establish a Daoist temple for secluded cultivation, and then claim the title of a certain Dao Lord.

Little Girl was eight, and she herself was fifteen in this life; dedicating these few years wouldn’t be a significant matter.

She merely wondered how vast this world truly was, and where the immortal path of this current age lay hidden.

“Little Mom! Little Mom!”

Just as the young woman was lost in thought, daydreaming, the girl’s shouts suddenly echoed from inside the room.

“What is it? I’m right here.”

Left with no choice, Qíngyǔ set the winnowing basket aside, pushed open the door, and entered the master bedroom.

She saw the girl looking at her with red-rimmed eyes, her teeth clamped tightly on her lip, as her two small hands immediately lunged forward to tightly embrace Qíngyǔ’s waist.

“What’s wrong? Did you have a nightmare?”

The young woman smoothly lifted Little Girl onto her lap, sitting on the edge of the bed, and gently patted her back.

“I, I dreamed,” the girl recounted, growing more aggrieved with each word, large tears streaming down her face, “I dreamed Little Mom didn’t want me anymore!”

“How could I not want you?” Qíngyǔ paused, then mentally cursed the child’s birth parents once more.

“I’m right here.”

“Mmm… mwah…” Little Girl sniffled, burying her head into the young woman’s embrace.

“Little Mom, you must never abandon me!”

Seeing the girl still unable to stop crying, the young woman chuckled softly, reaching out to ruffle her hair a few times.

She then reached into her inner lapel, pulled out a pair of white orchids, and dangled them by their white thread before the girl’s eyes.

“Little Mom was just preparing a gift for you; how could I not want you?”

The fragrance of the white orchids seemed to have an effect; Little Girl stopped crying, inhaling in shaky breaths, her eyes fluttering as she looked at the flowers.

“A gift?”

“Yes, Little Girl, you’ll hold onto them tightly, won’t you?”

Upon seeing the flowers, a wide smile bloomed on the girl’s still tear-streaked face, and she reached out, clutching the flowers to her chest as if they were an invaluable treasure.

Witnessing this, Qíngyǔ secretly breathed a sigh of relief; she hadn’t felt this nervous even when she had ventured down the mountain alone to slay demons in her previous life.

How to put it? This child was good in every way, yet a little too clingy.

However, considering the family’s upheaval and having only Qíngyǔ to rely on, a bit of clinginess was understandable.

[Little Mom even gave me a gift!]

[Yes, yes…]

The immortal sword’s suspended heart finally settled.

When its master had woken up and hadn’t seen Little Mom, she had immediately threatened to perish together with Qíngyǔ, which had given the sword quite a fright.

Now, it seemed all was well; the young woman truly harbored no malicious intent, and it could finally relax for a while.

The child was young and naive; clinginess was normal.

‘Hmm, she’ll grow out of it when she’s older.’