Chapter 56: I Did What?
Chapter 56: I Did What?
"Am I disturbing you both?"
The familiar voice of Dao Ming pulled Xiang Ling out of the trance that had taken over her and she tried to hurriedly step back. Yet, the arm around her waist stayed firm, not allowing her to escape.
She looked at Zhe Yuan in confusion but found him looking at Dao Ming. It made her turn her attention toward her fourth husband as well and she found the latter’s intense gaze staring right at her.
"I... we..." She tried to find something to say to end the deep silence that had taken over the room while the three of them stared at one another with different expressions.
"You want something, Brother Ming?" Zhe Yuan asked politely as he looked at Dao Ming. The latter kept his gaze fixed on Xiang Ling with an unreadable expression on his face as he replied, "I have some unfinished business with Ling’er."
Xiang Ling noticed how Dao Ming’s gaze shifted toward her waist for a moment and his expression hardened before he quickly pulled himself together and turned his attention toward Zhe Yuan. If she had to be honest with what she saw, it almost felt like he was angry to see the way Zhe Yuan was holding her waist. But she knew better than to believe that.
"Oh! Then you really chose a bad time. I was also talking about something important with LingLing." Zhe Yuan said as he turned his attention back toward Xiang Ling who was trying to think of a way to save herself.
"Hehe!" She chuckled nervously as she glanced between both men. "How about... we talk tomorrow then? It’s already quite late and we all need to sleep. Let’s talk tomorrow. Is that alright, Ah Yuan?" She offered and tried to get out of Zhe Yuan’s hold.
Fortunately, her idea of calling Zhe Yuan endearingly worked as a small smile made its way to his lips and he finally loosened his hold for her to step away. There was a look of satisfaction on his face as he slowly nodded his head in approval.
"If that’s what LingLing wants. Brother Ming, let’s return to our chambers." Zhe Yuan walked toward the door and waited for Dao Ming to follow him out.
Xiang Ling felt a chill running down her spine as she met Dao Ming’s gaze. The man looked very unhappy for some reason and he didn’t make the slightest effort to school his expression.
Without another word, he turned around and walked out of the room along with Zhe Yuan. The very next moment, the door of the chamber closed with a loud thud, making Xiang Ying jump in fright.
What was wrong with that man? She wondered as she quickly cast a spell to make sure no one would enter her chamber again without her knowledge. Once she was assured of her safety, she wasted no time in making her way to the bed.
The moment her body hit the mattress, she found herself drifting into the peaceful world of sleep.
* * *
As a new day arrived, Chen Manor was buzzing with energy as a lot was going on. It had been over a week since Xiang Ling took over the task of looking after the refugees and a lot had changed since then. All the injured refugees were healed and everyone was in good health because of all the spirit fruits, water, and herbs she had been feeding them.
For the past week, there had been no news of any demonic activities near the villages and everything had seemed to suddenly gone normal. Though it seemed suspicious, when Xiang Ling used her powers to locate any demonic energy within a radius of a hundred li* around the Shengdu Village, she found nothing.
Whatever was the reason, the demonic activities had stopped and the demons had retreated, or at least that was what she believed after finding no trace of theirs.
That was why after a long discussion, the refugees decided to return to their village - Lizhou, which was located at a distance of ten li* from the Shengdu village.
But that was not the only reason behind the extreme buzz that had taken over the entire Shengdu Village. Some new guests had also arrived in the village early in the morning. A group of ten disciples from Jingsheng Academy had arrived along with a very mysterious elder whom Xiang Ling recognized the very moment she saw him.
While everyone else was busy, Xiang Ling and that said elder found their chance to slip away so that they could talk without being noticed by anyone else. Hence, they decided to take a walk through the streets of the village.
"I did hear about your punishment but nothing prepared me to meet you here like this, Immortal Xing*." The Elder spoke as his eyes scanned the surroundings as if he was intrigued by what he was seeing.
Xiang Ling let out a sigh. It seemed like everyone had heard the glamorous story of her getting punished by the Heavenly Empress. Turning her attention toward the elder beside her, she asked, "Earth Immortal, can you tell me exactly what you have heard?"
That’s right! This familiar Elder was none other than the Earth Immortal himself. She had met him various times in the past whenever she came to the Mortal Realm for ventures and also during Heavenly Banquets where all the Immortals and Fairies gathered.
The Earth Immortal shook his head before he too turned his gaze toward Xiang Ling and spoke, "Immortal Xing, if you are wondering how badly this scandal has hurt your pure image, then you need to be prepared. You are currently the talk of the town. Just like everyone else, I also can’t help but wonder why you decided to do such a stupid thing. Among all the men in the Five Realms, how could you try to covet the Crown Prince of the Heavenly Realm?"
Xiang Ling came to a halt the very moment her ears registered the accusation. She turned her shocked gaze toward the man and asked in alarm, "I did what?"
* * *
A/N:
*Hundred Li = Fifty km
*Ten Li = Five km
*Immortal Xing is the title given to Xiang Ling as the Supreme Star in the Celestial Realm.