Chapter 25: Do I Really Love Her That Much?

My expression faltered.

Two short legs dangled off the edge of the bench, slightly drawn inward in discomfort.

Su Liumeng hadn’t noticed the sudden tension in the air, nor had she seen my hands curling tightly behind my back.

She was still talking—enthusiastically—her words flowing like a stream.

Maybe it was the first time she’d spoken this much to me.

Now that the dam had broken, the flood came gushing out.

Her amber-colored eyes glittered with a constellation of stars—utterly beautiful.

When she got to the exciting part, she raised her hand to remove the bracelet from her wrist.

“This is actually really simple,” she smiled.

“I’ll just show you right now—maybe help you check your recent fortune while I’m at it.”

In the sunlight, her fair wrist practically glowed.

The silver bracelet on it shone almost painfully bright.

My heart dropped.

Without thinking, I lunged forward—grabbing her arm tightly and holding it down.

“Ah?”

The next moment, I was in her arms.

Surrounded by the scent of her—soft, fragrant, warm.

Su Liumeng’s mind blanked for a full second.

And now—even she, no matter how slow or oblivious—could tell I was acting strange.

Too strange.

There I was, flustered and holding her down, my soft curves pressing against her arm.

And for just a moment—her brain really did stop functioning.

Confusion flooded her eyes as she watched me awkwardly climb off of her, scrambling to explain.

“Let’s… not do that.”

“You wear that bracelet for a reason, right?” I said quickly, my voice rushing like a guilty child.

“If you undo it just for something small like this, and it messes things up, that’d be really bad.”

Su Liumeng’s eyes stayed locked on my face. Her voice came out blank, automatic.

“It would cause some problems. I’ve been suppressing my cultivation level…But if I only take it off for a few seconds, it should be fine.”

Her tone was slow, hesitant.

She was clearly trying to read me.

I was already sweating from head to toe, barely keeping my smile on as I forced the conversation forward.

“Still, there’s a risk, right?”

“And I acted so fast just now—if something had gone wrong with your cultivation because of me, I’d never forgive myself.”

I let out two dry chuckles, hoping to brush it off.

“As for my fortune—” I said, voice trembling just slightly,

“I think I’ve been pretty lucky lately anyway…”

Su Liumeng wasn’t stupid.

Far from it.

She was actually incredibly clever.

Even if love supposedly lowers your IQ, she still played along with my forced laughter, the corners of her lips rising with mine.

“You’re right,” she said softly.

“There is a risk.”

But then—without warning—her tone shifted.

And what she said next made my heart leap into my throat.

“You haven’t been to the hospital lately, have you?”

“I actually know some basic pulse reading from traditional medicine. Here—let me check you real quick. If you’re healthy, great. If there’s something wrong, we can catch it early.”

As she spoke, her hand reached calmly for my wrist.

Her smiling eyes seemed gentle on the surface—but within, there was an unsettling depth.

Like a silent, bottomless pool.

Dark and unreadable.

I leapt back from the bench like a startled rabbit.

“No need, no need,” I blurted quickly.

“I actually just did a full physical last week.”

The moment I looked up—I saw her watching me.

Her expression was one of amused tolerance—almost doting.

As if to say: Go on, keep lying. I’m listening. I won’t call you out on it.

A tight silence followed.

Then I gave a small, forced cough.

At this point…

Even if I kept lying to myself—I couldn’t deny that everything I’d said so far had been full of holes.

Disjointed.

Contradictory.

So I changed tack.

I took a deep breath, and said plainly—“Yes. I do have something I can’t let you know.”

It was straightforward.

Honest.

And sometimes—the more honest you are, the more people are inclined to believe you.

Sure enough—Su Liumeng didn’t press any further.

“That’s normal,” she said, brushing it off with a wave of her hand.

“Everyone’s got secrets they keep to themselves. I get it.”

She stood up and casually patted the wrinkles from her skirt.

But what I didn’t see—was the subtle shift in her gaze.

Something dark and silent was forming there.

Like threads slowly drawing together in her mind.

All of my inconsistencies—my nervous habits—my strange question about whether pregnancy could be seen with qi-sight—

They were starting to point in a single direction.

A direction—that made it hard for her to breathe.

Something she dared not continue to investigate.

Because if she did—

She might confirm it.

That the girl walking ahead of her—with her graceful figure, with every smile and glance that now tugged strangely at her heart—

Was carrying a secret that no one could know.

Su Liumeng’s smile had grown oddly stiff.

Images began flashing through her mind—ones she didn’t want, couldn’t stop.

A warm bath in the Jade Pool.

A romantic rendezvous.

A lover’s embrace under crimson curtains and flickering candlelight.

She was smart—painfully smart.

Too smart to keep lying to herself.

She wanted to be a fool.

She truly did.

To keep playing dumb.

To pretend this hollow feeling in her chest was just a coincidence.

But—

By the time the two of them reached the commercial street—

She could no longer hold back.

Without thinking, her hand moved.

She gently pulled me toward a nearby freezer.

“This one’s pretty good,” she said lightly.

“It’s a new flavor that just came out. Want to try?”

She looked at me with gentle eyes—timid, a little hopeful.

Like a cautious little deer, waiting to see if she’d be accepted.

I bit my lip and shook my head.

“Better not… I haven’t been feeling great today.”

That one line—

Dropped into Su Liumeng’s heart like a stone into still water.

Her hand curled at her side.

Fingernails digging so deep into her palm they nearly broke the skin.

She knew—

She had no right to question the things I’d done.

But still—

She couldn’t stop.

She needed to know everything about me.

Every little detail. Every thread.

Every broken sentence.

All of it…

Was slowly knitting itself into a single answer.

Su Liumeng had a feeling.

A gut-deep suspicion she couldn’t shake.

And now—

She wanted to find that bastard. Whoever it was.

Rip him apart.

Burn him to ash.

She watched me quietly leave the shop—my every step cautious, careful, as though I was protecting something fragile inside me.

Who was it?

Who was so important to me—

That I’d carry a pregnancy alone, without telling a soul?

Who could’ve left me like this—

And still made me want to protect their child?

Just thinking about it made Su Liumeng’s eyes sting.

Was he really that important to you?

Then what did it mean—that you agreed to let her chase you?

Did that man toss you aside the moment things got hard?

And now that he’s gone—

You’re free to love someone else again?

More and more scenes bloomed inside her head—each one more unbearable than the last.

Su Liumeng stared at my back.

And in that instant, a thousand ugly thoughts rushed in all at once.

“You…” she suddenly muttered through clenched teeth.

“Don’t… love him too much.”

“He already threw you away… how can you still…”

“Hmm?” I turned my head.

The street noise was loud—I hadn’t heard her clearly.

Su Liumeng took a deep breath.

Forcing it all down.

Silencing the thoughts.

Maybe… maybe I’m just overthinking it.

Maybe it wasn’t what she thought.

Maybe she’d guessed wrong.

After all—
She hadn’t seen it with her own eyes yet.

Everything… was just guesswork.

Su Liumeng kept repeating that to herself in her head.

I noticed her closing her eyes again, like she was calming herself, and asked casually,
“What did you just say?”

Her thoughts were such a tangled mess now that she didn’t even know how to respond.

Her gaze mirrored her mood—complicated, unreadable.
Staring at my delicate profile, she blurted something out at random.

“How about… crab for dinner tonight?”

I blinked, not even pausing to think.

“I’ve got something else tonight, so I won’t be eating with you.”

The pressure was mounting for me, too.

Just like someone who knew their death was near, I was doing everything I could to hold on—to pretend nothing was wrong, to keep the lie going until the bitter end.
As long as there was no proof, I’d never admit it.
Not even if it killed me.

Damn it—

That was the final straw.

Whatever tiny thread of denial Su Liumeng had been clinging to—snapped.

So he really was that unforgettable, huh?

So unforgettable that I was still carrying the burden alone—still protecting his child?

Of course…

She gave a bitter, mocking laugh.

After all, it’s his blood.

I walked a few steps ahead of her.

Su Liumeng suddenly slowed, letting her steps fall behind.

She couldn’t lie to herself any longer.

Like someone resigning herself to the inevitable—

She quietly, behind my back, undid the clasp of her bracelet.

If Nine Yan had once been her dream man—

Then Xi Xinyan was now her only goddess.

And now—

She was going to find out.

Find out who it was—

That filthy bastard who had dared taint the girl she held sacred.

The silver bracelet glittered faintly in the sun, little star-shaped charms catching the light as the clasp gave way.

And with one clean motion—

It slid from her wrist and fell.

Just like her heart,

Heavy.

Silent.

Refusing to accept, but already breaking.