Sometimes, Shang Can really wanted to seal Wan Shao’s mouth shut.
It was truly a case of karma; this flower demon was now speaking without restraint—what on earth was she saying!
…Yet she couldn’t logically deny it back.
Shang Can felt she couldn’t let Wan Shao continue like this, so she replied with a straight face, “I have nothing on my mind; I just find you noisy.”
Wan Shao scoffed, “Hah? Then why are you sharing a bed with Yun Zhong Jun?”
Ah, so this topic still wasn’t over! Shang Can bit her tongue, gritting her teeth to argue, “Because this inn only has one room left!”
“Is that so? Is it really? Then why not change inns? With such a big Yan Yang, can’t you spare a bed?”
“……”
Her logic was indisputable. Shang Can was left speechless, and with a reluctant determination, she snapped back, “I’m happy with it!”
“Fine, fine, fine; as long as you’re happy.”
Wan Shao’s tone unexpectedly lifted, and she cheerfully turned to Yun Zhong Jun, saying, “You’d better be careful, Yun Zhong Jun; Can has ulterior motives towards you.”
“I haven’t—”
Not giving Yun Zhong Jun a chance to speak, Shang Can, unable to hold back any longer, scolded, “What on earth are you here for! The demon lord of Bi Luo Huang Quan has nothing better to do than spout nonsense?”
“I do!” Ignoring her angry outburst, Wan Shao suddenly grew serious, “I’m here to save Can.”
Shang Can paused, hearing the heavy tone in Wan Shao’s voice. It carried a sense of earnestness, “You’ve been gone so long; the medicine you brought is probably long gone, right? Why aren’t you back in Bi Luo Huang Quan? Is there anything more important than your—”
Though Wan Shao didn’t finish her sentence, Shang Can guessed the latter half was probably “more important than your life.” She realized that she had indeed been at fault in this situation, knowing her lack of foresight had worried her friend. So, she surrendered and sighed in defeat.
“Actually, it’s not that bad; Yuan Ge and Nan Shuang—she’s the A Shuang mentioned in her letter—both helped me a lot with my recovery; it’s not as serious as you think.”
Her words lacked conviction, and hesitantly, she turned her head toward Yun Zhong Jun, finally mustering the courage to say, “I do have something important; I’ve… I’ve acknowledged my relationship with Yun Zhong Jun.”
Yun Zhong Jun nodded in agreement, slightly bowing his head toward Wan Shao in apology, “I’ve concealed a lot in the past… Thank you for taking care of Can all these years.”
“……”
Wan Shao fell silent for a long time before cautiously replying, “…How did you come to this acknowledgment?”
…This scene felt oddly familiar. After Chu Ming, this was the second time they had to explain this to so many people.
Silently praying that this would be the last time, Shang Can, feeling resigned, said, “It’s the kind of acknowledgment where we recognize everything! She hasn’t lost her memory at all!”
Perhaps stunned by her words, Wan Shao was silent for a long moment. Shang Can could almost feel the flower demon’s shocked gaze darting back and forth between her and Yun Zhong Jun before she finally whispered, suppressing her excitement.
“…So you two ended up sleeping together?”
“That has nothing to do with this!”
Shang Can, furious and feeling dizzy, gritted her teeth, “Can you just move past this already!”
Overall, Wan Shao accepted this information faster than Chu Ming. Although her initial reaction was strange, she quickly calmed down, speaking with an air of “I knew it would be like this.” “I see.”
“‘I see’ my foot; you were the one who said Yun Zhong Jun had forgotten everything!”
“Ah? Can you blame me for that?” Wan Shao’s tone grew louder, “Everyone thought so—even you! When you first met him, you didn’t offer any profound insights!”
“I did!” Shang Can was furious, and in her anger, she snapped, “I clearly said I wanted to leave in the beginning!”
“……”
Across from her, there was suddenly silence. Just as Shang Can was fuming, a cold voice from beside her jolted her back to reality.
“Can just mentioned something; I’d like to hear you elaborate on it.”
Shang Can silently closed her mouth, feeling regret for her own thoughtless words.
But once the words were out, they couldn’t be taken back. Shang Can could almost sense the pitying gaze Wan Shao was giving her, and she stubbornly muttered, “…There’s nothing much to say; I was just…”
But when the words reached her lips, she didn’t know how to describe it. Yun Zhong Jun understood and softly interjected, “You just wanted to avoid me, to keep your distance?”
“……” Shang Can fell silent for a moment, lowering her head slightly as she sighed, “That’s not wrong; I really did think that way back then.”
The atmosphere in the room grew heavy again. Wan Shao quickly sensed something was off and hurriedly patted Shang Can’s back, laughing, “But that person didn’t succeed, thanks to me!”
The pat caused Shang Can to lean forward slightly, and she pouted in frustration, muttering in agreement, “…Alright, alright, thanks to you.”
“Mm, that’s great. Going out today allowed me to hear some good news.”
Wan Shao smiled and patted her a few more times, her tone full of emotion, “Yun Zhong Jun, don’t blame her too much. Although she’s in Bi Luo Huang Quan, she’s not like us demons, always holding things in. You’ll have to be patient with her.”
“…Are you my mother?”
The speech sounded like it was aimed at a child’s romantic interest. Shang Can couldn’t stand it any longer and shoved Wan Shao’s hand off her back, steering the conversation back on track, “So? You’re not planning to return to Bi Luo Huang Quan for now?”
“Not planning to.” The demon lord who slipped out replied without hesitation, “I’ve finally made it out once—cough, I mean, you need to take care of your health. Before I entered the city today, I heard that Can unleashed her demonic power and burned the outskirts of Yan Yang. What’s going on with that? It’s a huge taboo to act out while still recovering from an injury.”
Deciding to overlook Wan Shao’s little selfishness for now, Shang Can temporarily abandoned her thoughts of sending her back, sighing, “We’ll talk about that later. Where are you planning to stay today? This inn is fully booked; if not, we can go look for another one—”
“Ah, that’s not necessary.”
Wan Shao interrupted Shang Can, her tone quite innocent.
“I booked a room when I came this morning, and it happens to be right next to yours—so honestly, did you two encounter a scheming innkeeper who just wanted you both to share a bed?”
“I think Wan Shao has a point.”
After returning to her room next door, Wan Shao rested while Shang Can grumbled resentfully, listening to Yun Zhong Jun gently closing the door behind her. She huffed, “Why is it that every time we come here, there’s only one room left? Wan Shao got a room just as one opened up? The meeting should have finished earlier; now, Yan Yang isn’t busy with anything special, so why does this inn have so many guests?”
Yun Zhong Jun, who had just come upstairs with the message that “the boss still has no extra rooms,” hesitated for a moment and speculated ambiguously, “…Perhaps it’s just that this place has a great reputation.”
“What could possibly make this place so famous? The porridge isn’t that great—”
As she spoke, Shang Can suddenly froze, realizing a possible reason and quickly amended, “…But indeed, it’s likely that it has a decent reputation.”
…After all, every time she and Yun Zhong Jun wanted to stay at an inn, it was always here. Word of mouth must have attracted a few of Yun Zhong Jun’s fans who weren’t afraid of her. Like this morning in the lobby, it wasn’t common to see Yun Zhong Jun carrying a bowl of porridge.
Convinced by this strange reasoning, Shang Can decided to trust the innkeeper, feeling defeated, “Yun Zhong Jun, how about we change inns next time?”
Yun Zhong Jun was taken aback and softly responded, “Okay, as you wish.”
However, Shang Can slightly regretted saying that. She had spoken quickly, but she didn’t actually know when this so-called “next time” would come, or if it would ever really arrive.
Temporarily pushing those negative thoughts aside, she deliberately smiled brightly, “By the way, since Wan Shao interrupted earlier, I haven’t asked you if there’s anywhere you want to go?”
“But I suspect Wan Shao plans to follow us, of course, provided you don’t mind—” Just as Shang Can said this, she suddenly had a thought and quickly added, “Don’t take to heart the things she said earlier; she’s always been careless with her words. Half of what she says can just be disregarded.”
“I don’t mind.” Yun Zhong Jun said faintly, “She’s here to heal you, so I naturally welcome her. After all, Can doesn’t pay much attention to her health.”
“……”
It seemed Yun Zhong Jun still held a grudge about her past mistakes. With no credibility, Shang Can rubbed her nose and retorted defiantly, “Yun Zhong Jun was out late last night too; you’re not that different from me. Fifty steps laughing at a hundred steps?”
This time, Yun Zhong Jun fell silent. Shang Can felt a bit happier and thoughtfully said, “Since Wan Shao is here now, we should ask her if there’s a way to help you too—other than her previous suggestion of taking sleeping pills, I mean, a real treatment.”
She initially thought Yun Duan didn’t have any issues that required medical attention, but suddenly remembered something, turning serious as she faced Yun Duan.
“By the way, when you were out last night, there was something I was quite concerned about.”
It seemed that the topic of “last night’s outing” made her a bit nervous. Upon hearing Yun Duan’s slightly flustered response, Shang Can continued, “I touched your waist last night, and your reaction was a bit strange.”
“……”
The person in front of her momentarily hesitated in her breathing. Shang Can, puzzled, asked, “It was just strange; I thought you were crying at first, but then I realized that wasn’t it—what’s going on? Did you hurt your waist?”
After her words, Yun Duan remained silent for a long time before finally murmuring, “…No, I’m not hurt.”
Yet, Shang Can sensed something hidden in her tone, a hint of evasion. Alarm bells went off in her head as she firmly grabbed Yun Duan’s hand and asked again, “Really?”
“Really.” This time, the response came quickly, and Yun Duan’s speech was noticeably quicker and softer than usual, “…Really not hurt.”
Then what happened last night? It seemed like she was afraid of being touched.
Shang Can instinctively felt something was off. It couldn’t be that she was ticklish, right? She had touched Yun Duan’s waist before at Qingyu, and back then, Yun Duan hadn’t reacted this much.
Growing increasingly wary, Shang Can leaned in slowly and asked anxiously, “Are you hiding something from me?”
“……”
Yun Duan remained silent, making Shang Can even more convinced that something was amiss. Without further ado, she pulled Yun Duan closer, frowning as she said, “If you’re not hurt, let me take a look.”
After saying that, she suddenly remembered that she couldn’t see at the moment and corrected herself, “I mean, let me feel—ugh, what am I even saying…”
Heavens above, she definitely didn’t have any ulterior motives. Yet, the words that came out sounded like they carried some ulterior motive. Shang Can thought for a moment and couldn’t come up with a better phrase, so she abandoned the wording and directly reached out.
She gingerly placed her hand on Yun Duan’s waist, and sure enough, the person in front of her immediately became breathless. Shang Can felt increasingly convinced that something was off; she carefully traced the spot she remembered from last night, only to realize that Yun Duan was fully dressed now, and it was impossible to tell if she was injured through her clothes.
Feeling at a loss, she hesitated for a moment before reaching for the meticulously tied belt around Yun Duan’s waist.
“……”
At this point, Shang Can was genuinely worried about Yun Duan, but she suddenly felt that this might not be appropriate. She froze for a moment, feeling an inexplicable awkwardness, and hesitantly asked, “…Should I, uh, untie it?”
She thought that as long as Yun Duan showed any resistance, she would immediately stop. Untying someone’s clothes felt a bit too excessive. Worst case, she could go find Wan Shao, who was resting next door, to take a look—yes! That would be the most reasonable solution!
Just as Shang Can had this epiphany and was about to withdraw her hand, she heard the person in front of her, nearly held in her arms, take a gentle breath, letting out a sound so faint it was like a mosquito’s buzz.
“…Mm.”
Ah, she agreed.
With just that one sound, Shang Can felt her mind go blank. Before she could fully process the response, her hands moved faster than her brain, deftly untying Yun Duan’s belt.
“……”
Yun Duan seemed to tense up, her body growing taut and silent. The originally neatly tied white garments suddenly came undone, the soft fabric slowly sliding over Shang Can’s hands, sending a sudden wave of tingling sensations through her.
Shang Can’s mind became a chaotic mess, and without realizing it, she slipped her hand under Yun Duan’s clothing.
The breath of the person in front of her grew rapid again, reminiscent of last night, but this time, there was a difference—Yun Duan was fully awake.
Her breaths seemed to echo in Shang Can’s ears. Shang Can vaguely thought that this distance felt too close; she tentatively touched Yun Duan’s waist.
Yun Duan shivered all over, her grip tightening on Shang Can’s clothing.
“What’s wrong?” Shang Can didn’t dare to use much force. She slightly turned her head, instinctively lowering her voice, “This—”
In a flash, Shang Can remembered that night in Bi Luo Huang Quan during their outing. She seemed to have seen an intricate pattern on Yun Duan’s waist back then—an ancient, vague design quietly resting on Yun Duan’s lower back, the very spot she was now touching.
She couldn’t continue her thoughts, as the person in front of her suddenly moved, leaning slightly into her embrace as if losing strength.
“…A Can…”
The voice that reached her ears was no longer calm; it trembled with uncertainty, and the breath escaping her lips made Shang Can’s ears burn with heat.
“I think… something’s a bit off with me…”
This was a tone Shang Can had never heard from Yun Duan before.
Unsure how to respond, Shang Can felt as if she was also becoming strange. Under the spell of a sudden impulse, she leaned in closer. They were too close; a slight movement brought her nose brushing against Yun Duan’s ear, eliciting a soft whimper from her.
It felt as if she lost control over her body, and she lowered her head slightly to inhale the familiar, cold fragrance mingled with a hint of fire from Yun Duan’s delicate, fair neck.
Suddenly, the door burst open with a loud bang, and Wan Shao’s voice boomed in, “Hey, Shang Can, speaking of which, I haven’t eaten anything this morning! You should at least show some hospitality—”
The second half of her sentence cut off abruptly, quickly followed by her stuttering voice: “I—I don’t know anything…”
Her voice grew smaller, and before she could finish her words, she hurriedly shut the door, the sound of it slamming echoed loudly. She dashed back to her own room as if fleeing for her life, and Shang Can clearly heard a loud crash from the adjacent room, likely the clumsy demon lord knocking something over in her panic.
Unable to react at all, with her hand still inside Yun Duan’s clothing, Shang Can felt a splitting headache. She resolutely decided that she would change inns.
…Just to one with better soundproofing, and perhaps place a sign at the entrance saying, “Flower Demons Not Allowed Inside.”
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