LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 34
Li Miao waved goodbye to Xu Yue, a sliver of reluctance lingering in her smile. Xu Yue stood on the weathered porch, silhouetted against the warm glow spilling from the doorway.
“Then… I’m going.” Li Miao's voice held a hint of hesitation.
“Okay, be safe.” Xu Yue's nod was small, almost imperceptible, as if a part of her wanted to reach out, to prolong this moment just a fraction longer.
A rustle of fabric, then Liu Fang's warm hand rested on Li Miao's shoulder. Her worn fingers felt surprisingly strong.
“Thank you, Little Li Miao." Liu Fang's voice was a gentle whisper against Li Miao's ear. “You’re always welcome here.”
Li Miao met Liu Fang's gaze. Every wrinkle on her face spoke of quiet strength and a kindness deeper than any ocean.
“Thank you, Auntie Liu.” Li Miao's smile was genuine, a soft echo of the warmth radiating from Xu Yue and Liu Fang.
The car door closed with a soft thud. Li Miao watched the teahouse recede into the distance, the porch light shrinking into a single star against the darkening sky. As the cityscape unfurled before her, neon lights blurred against the glass, a stark contrast to the humble glow of the teahouse.
The novel's plot flickered through her mind.
Xu Yue escaped her abusive parents thanks to Liu Fang. Those two deserve to be happy.
A flicker of fear mingled with the familiar guilt. While the Li Group might rival the Zhangs in wealth, her time in this world felt borrowed, each passing hour a ticking clock.
Who knows when I'll vanish, just like how I appeared...
A sigh escaped her lips as she rested her head against the cool window, eyelids fluttering closed.
The night felt suffocating despite the promise of spring in the air. Li Miao tossed and turned, dreams dissolving into an unsettling fog.
Suddenly, she stood in stark whiteness. Not a room but a boundless void.
Where am I? The thought echoed in the chilling silence.
She drifted forward, the emptiness stretching on. Then, a pinprick of darkness against the blinding white. It grew, taking the form of a hunched figure – a girl.
Who is that?
Dread seeped into Li Miao's footsteps as she closed the distance.
It's...me? Yet, somehow, feels wrong.
She stood over this hunched reflection, heart twisting. "Hello? Um… where are we? Who are you?"
The mirrored self lifted her head, and the illusion shattered. A gentle smile graced her lips, but her eyes held a sleepy warmth. "Oh...it's you. Hello, I'm Li Miao. The old one."
Confusion choked Li Miao's words. Before she could even form a question, the old Li Miao spoke again, a hint of sorrow layered under the weary curiosity: "Are you happy...in this new life?"
Li Miao's tongue felt numb. Joy was a fragile bird cupped in her hands, precious and vulnerable. Was this happiness only stolen time, a cruel illusion before guilt and fate snatched it away? Would those she cared for vanish too, swallowed by the misfortune that clung to her?
And worse, what if this world wasn't real? A beautiful dream before she was torn back to her old, dark reality?
Tears pooled in her eyes. "I...I took this from you. It's not mine." Her voice broke.
The old Li Miao's gaze was surprisingly tender. With a soft sigh, she shook her head. "No. This wasn't meant for me. This is yours."
"You don’t get it! I don't deserve it!" Li Miao's cry mirrored the anguish in her heart.
The old Li Miao rose slowly, her sleepiness replaced by quiet grace. She approached and offered a hesitant embrace – a gesture achingly familiar from the festival night.
"Y-you..." Li Miao choked out, eyes widening. "Was that..."
The old Li Miao laughed, a touch of mischief replacing the sorrow. "Fufu, you earned it, didn't you?"
"But...how?" Shame painted Li Miao's face as she sank to her knees.
The old Li Miao knelt with her, their foreheads gently touching. "Of course… it’s because I'm also Li Miao."
And then, darkness enveloped Li Miao's senses.
Waking felt like breaking through the surface of a deep, still lake. Sunlight pierced her eyelids, and dream fragments clung to her eyelashes like morning mist.
The old Li Miao, why did I dream of her?
That face, jaded yet luminous, haunted her.
What could have happened for her to become like that?
The image of Li Miao in the novel with a haughty sneer and cutting words, warred with the memory of her today. The novel was all from Xu Yue's perspective. What secret tears had the 'villainess' shed behind her mask of arrogance? What pain hid beneath the cruel words?
No… no one cared because she was the villainess, the designated bad guy who brought the main characters together out of circumstance.
A feeling of empathy filled Li Miao's heart. Just now, this alleged villain hadn't acted with malice, but with a sense of exhaustion or loneliness.
"Does your heart hurt? Are you okay?"
The whisper jolted Li Miao from her thoughts. She nearly tumbled out of bed, eyes wide in terror.
"You! What are you doing here?!" Her finger pointed accusingly at a floating head. The head – well, the old Li Miao's head – was just below her mattress, the rest of her buried inside.
The head blinked sleepily, ignoring Li Miao's panic. With a slow, luxurious stretch, she murmured, "Mmm... feels like ages since I've been here..."
Li Miao gaped like a bewildered fish.
What the hell is happening?
