Chapter 55: You Totally Faked Me Out

“Alright, alright, I know you’re not afraid.”

Bai Shuanglian smiled, poking Ling Xiaoyou’s cheek, then withdrew her hand as the latter made a biting gesture.

She turned to Xiaoyu and said,

“Xiaoyu, your constitution is indeed different from that of ordinary people. You’ve probably noticed it too, haven’t you?”

Xiaoyu paused, as if pondering Bai Shuanglian’s words, or maybe thinking about what made her different from normal people.

Then she slowly opened her mouth and said,

“Does that mean normal people can’t see Pen Fairy Sister?”

“Of course not.”

Bai Shuanglian nodded.

“If ordinary people could just see ghosts so easily, the world would have been in chaos long ago.”

After hearing this, Xiaoyu’s expression wasn’t as enlightened as Bai Shuanglian had expected.

Instead, she looked downcast and guilty.

She spoke.

“So you’re saying the Devils hurt Mom to find me, because of my constitution?”

This child is unexpectedly perceptive.

Ling Xiaoyou lay on Bai Shuanglian’s thigh, listening to their conversation, and thought this to herself.

She hadn’t wanted to tell Xiaoyu about this.

After all, it was too cruel for a child, and telling her would only make her blame herself, without any benefit.

Still, Ling Xiaoyou had no intention of interrupting, choosing instead to listen to Bai Shuanglian’s next words.

She had confidence in Bai Shuanglian, believing she could help Xiaoyu untie this knot in her heart.

As for why she believed in this person—

To be honest, Ling Xiaoyou herself wasn’t entirely sure.

If she had to say, maybe it was just her intuition.

Even though this person always acted cold and aloof to everyone except her, surely that was just a façade.

In reality, she was probably very kind and warmhearted.

Hm, if she had to use a saying, it would be: cold on the outside, warm on the inside!

Thinking this, Ling Xiaoyou’s lips curved up slightly as she gazed up at Bai Shuanglian from below, taking in her flawless, moonlit beauty.

But then, upon hearing Bai Shuanglian’s words, Ling Xiaoyou’s expression froze.

“Yes, you could see it that way. If your constitution hadn’t attracted Devils, they probably wouldn’t have harmed your mother. At most, they’d only have stolen some money or corpses from the Corpse Storage Room.”

Bai Shuanglian nodded, not denying Xiaoyu’s words, but agreeing instead.

In an instant, Xiaoyu’s eyes reddened, and tears threatened to fall.

She looked like she was about to burst into tears.

“Hey! What are you saying? Who talks to kids like that?!”

Ling Xiaoyou almost tried to get up from Bai Shuanglian’s thigh to scold her.

But she had no strength, and Bai Shuanglian pressed her down again, so she could only whisper to her.

Bai Shuanglian didn’t say anything to Ling Xiaoyou, just gave her a look that said ‘calm down’ and ‘trust me.’

Sometimes Ling Xiaoyou wondered why she could always read so much from Bai Shuanglian’s eyes, but she didn’t bother to dwell on it now.

She just shot her a ‘I’ll trust you for now’ look and lay back on her thigh, quietly waiting for her to continue.

Guilt surged in Xiaoyu’s heart like a raging sea, almost spilling from her eyes as rain from a cloud.

Suddenly, she felt someone stroking her head.

Looking up, she saw the beautiful Exorcist Lady smiling at her.

She asked.

“You feel guilty, don’t you?”

Xiaoyu nodded instinctively.

“Then remember this feeling. Hold on to it, so that what happened today won’t happen again.”

Bai Shuanglian gazed gently at the stunned Xiaoyu and spoke in a soft, kind voice.

“What’s done is done. Guilt and regret won’t change anything, Xiaoyu.”

“You must remember this emotion and keep improving yourself, until you can control your own constitution.”

“We can’t always be by your side. Only by becoming stronger can you truly protect the people and things you love.”

“Only then can you protect yourself—and your mother.”

As she spoke, Bai Shuanglian smiled at Xiaoyu, ruffling her hair.

“So, do you want to learn to cultivate and master your constitution?”

Bai Shuanglian’s words fell into the storm in her heart like a shining sun, calming the winds and rain.

Xiaoyu’s eyes grew brighter and brighter, filling not with regret or guilt, but with hope and determination.

Hope that she could protect herself and her mother.

Determination that she would do it!

“Yes! I want to learn to cultivate, and I want to master my constitution too!”

Xiaoyu spoke with unwavering conviction.

“Good. Then for now, I’ll be responsible for teaching you.”

Bai Shuanglian smiled softly, satisfied with the outcome.

“Mm, thank you, Sister Bai!”

Xiaoyu nodded her small head repeatedly, expressing her gratitude.

***

“Didn’t expect you to have such a way with words, huh? Tell me, how long did it take you to come up with all that?”

Ling Xiaoyou rolled over to face Bai Shuanglian—though really, she was facing her stomach.

She poked Bai Shuanglian’s belly, her tone a little surprised.

By now, the movie had finished, the screen exited, and Xiaoyu, perhaps worn out from her emotional outburst, had fallen asleep at some point.

“I didn’t think about it.”

Bai Shuanglian grabbed Ling Xiaoyou’s restless little hand and squeezed it in hers.

“These words just came from the heart.”

Looking at Bai Shuanglian’s calm demeanor, Ling Xiaoyou pouted.

“Tch, you really pulled it off.”

“But weren’t you worried your words would crush the kid’s spirit?”

“If so, you’d be a sinner!”

“Mm, I did worry a little.”

Bai Shuanglian thought for a moment, then chuckled softly.

“At first, I wondered if it was too harsh for a child.”

“But then I realized that keeping her in the dark would be even more irresponsible.”

“Like I said, we can’t be by her side forever. With a constitution like hers, she’ll definitely encounter things like this again in the future.”

“Only by growing stronger herself can she avoid further crises.”

Ling Xiaoyou froze, then puffed up her cheeks.

“So you’re saying it was my fault for not telling Xiaoyu the truth?”

“I didn’t say that.”

Bai Shuanglian shook her head.

“Liar! You totally did!”

Ling Xiaoyou protested, bumping her forehead against Bai Shuanglian’s belly.

But from an angle Bai Shuanglian couldn’t see, Ling Xiaoyou’s lips curled into a bright smile.