Chapter 83-You Know Very Well

Translated by Snowfall77

System: [……]

Gu Peijiu: “……”

Xia Ge’s face was not flushed and her breathing was steady.

“I see that didn’t work,” Gu Peijiu said, “How about we try again?”

Xia Ge gawped at her blankly.

“I will ask the questions, you will answer,” Gu Peijiu continued, “If you wish to answer, then answer.  Whether or not your answer is a lie is up to you.”

A stunned Xia Ge: “Ah?”

The answer could be a lie?  What?

“Are you alright with that?” Gu Peijiu asked.

Yes, yes, Xia Ge was fine with it……but was there even a point to this?

Still, since Gu Peijiu wanted to ask, Xia Ge was willing.  Scratching her head, Xia Ge replied: “Of course, sounds good.”

Gu Peijiu: “First question, do you like it?”

Xia Ge: “Huh?”

Like what?

Seeing that Xia Ge didn’t understand, Gu Peijiu elucidated: “{acacia}?”

Adding after a moment’s thought, “The name is quite nice.”

Xia Ge: “……”

Honestly, she had yelled {acacia}’s name rather loudly when she’d wanted it to steal the silver butterfly away to the back mountain……

Therefore, given the situation at the time, it was no wonder that Senior Sister had been left with a……deep impression.

Back to Senior Sister’s question though……

Aware of Gu Peijiu’s gaze, Xia Ge nodded stiffly: “I like it.”

Before tacking on, “I’m not lying!”

And it was indeed not a lie; Xia Ge was in earnest.

Gu Peijiu gave a small smile, the expression in her eyes as gentle as when she’d given Xia Ge that fox mask in the black market.

Suddenly feeling a bit uncomfortable, Xia Ge put her hands behind her back and lowered her eyes: “Why……did Senior Sister give me {acacia}?”

Gu Peijiu: “I promised you.”

Astonished yet again, Xia Ge went: “Eh?!”

Gu Peijiu: “Remember peach blossom wine?”

Peach blossom wine?  Xia Ge hesitated before finally recalling when, before she’d become a Danfeng inner disciple, Senior Sister had gone to Mojia to catch a certain someone who’d skipped lessons……

——“When can I have a head-to-toe powerful Yimei?”

——“After you pass your examination, naturally.”

Even that far back, Senior Sister had actually……

While Xia Ge had already long forgotten that particular exchange of words.

A little preoccupied, Xia Ge replied: “Oh, right.”

""

Surprisingly, it’d actually come true.

Did it mean, that long ago……Senior Sister had already been thinking of giving Xia Ge {acacia}?

Xia Ge: “……”

“Mmm,” Gu Peijiu responded, “Now for my second question.  Why does a girl dress as a boy?”

Why do you keep asking questions that aren’t relevant to what happened tonight?!

Gu Peijiu: “Don’t want to explain to me?”

“No……I mean, it’s……it’s nothing big,” Xia Ge paused, gathering her thoughts, “At first, it was safer.  But then I just got used to being called ‘brother.’  If I suddenly changed that, it would make things very……awkward.”

Dressing like a boy made it easier to get along with the male protagonist.  In fact, it made life more convenient all around.

Living as a girl……was a bit troublesome and disconcerting to think about.

Xia Ge really hadn’t expected Gu Peijiu to discover her secret in such an embarrassing, unexpected way at the black market.

But obviously Gu Peijiu had.  Although, if Gu Peijiu had continued feigning ignorance, Xia Ge would’ve been more than happy to keep up her own pretense.

Thinking this way, Xia Ge couldn’t help asking: “Since Senior Sister knows that I’m……a girl, why haven’t you exposed me yet?”

Gu Peijiu was bemused: “Do you want me to expose you?”

Xia Ge: “……no.”

Gu Peijiu nodded: “I thought so.  As you wish.”

Xia Ge: “……”  Senior Sister’s words seemed reasonable, yet Xia Ge was left with the sense that something wasn’t quite right.

“Truthfully, I just don’t want Ye Ze finding out.  With other people, I don’t know that it matters.  But Ye Ze and I were together for years.  If he found out that I’m actually a girl, our friendship would probably end in disaster.”

Suppose that you’re a girl and you have a younger female friend that you’re with all the time……

Then, all of a sudden, one day you find out that she is actually a boy.

Very horrific.

When Xia Ge had first introduced herself to Ye Ze, she hadn’t known how to broach the subject.  Although men and women weren’t that different, when it came to a fussy, nitpicking guy like Ye Ze, Xia Ge had worried he’d be unable to get pass something insignificant like her actual gender.

It’d been better to save them both the unnecessary trouble and not say anything.  Xia Ge figured the best bet was Ye Ze knowing nothing.

Gu Peijiu: “Then when do you intend to change it back?”

Xia Ge: “Let’s talk about that later.”

Are you asking that question seriously?  Why does it sound like you’re just making idle, domestic chitchat?

“Oh,” Gu Peijiu answered, before abruptly noting, “You don’t have your doll.”

Instantly going rigid, Xia Ge frowned involuntarily.

No, please don’t bring it up.  Even just hearing the doll mentioned brought an indescribable grief that spread through Xia Ge’s chest, making her eyes sting with sadness, like someone was speaking of a dear, deceased friend they’d never see again.

“I was very stupid, and accidently dropped it,” Xia Ge heard her voice shake, “I don’t have it anymore……but I shouldn’t have let it fall.”

Sensitive, Gu Peijiu realized that Xia Ge’s mood had turned unhappy.  Thinking back, Gu Peijiu remembered what Xia Ge had once said about the doll.

That it had been a gift from someone.

Gu Peijiu had not thought much of it at the time.

The joking, slippery little fox was always laughing and smiling, no matter what was said to her.  Constantly flirtatious, yet with a heart so hard not even a hammer could break it open.

Such a hard-hearted slickster had a special person to receive gifts from?

However, observing Xia Ge’s expression now, Gu Peijiu became somewhat convinced.

Because it was very evident that Xia Ge’s sorrow was genuine.

After a moment, Gu Peijiu reached out, took Xia Ge’s towel, and covered her wet hair, draping the towel just down enough to hide the girl’s reddened eyes.

Changing the subject, Gu Peijiu questioned: “Why are you afraid of Chu Yi?”

Xia Ge: “I’m not scared of her.”

“Mmm,” Gu Peijiu didn’t argue, casually saying, “Alright, you’re not afraid.  I did see that Ye Ze was holding your jade.”

Xia Ge went rigid.

“Why did you give him your jade ornament?”  Gu Peijiu was blunt, “Do you like him?”

“What? Originally, I borrowed it from him,” Xia Ge felt uncomfortable, “That’s why I gave it back to him.”

Gu Peijiu helpfully wiped droplets of water off the tips of the girl’s soft, dark hair: “Is that why you went to Jianfeng tonight?  To return that jade?”

The soft scent of sandalwood wafting in the air as Senior Sister gently dried her hair, Xia Ge’s eyelids drooped relaxedly: “Yes……”

Then, realizing what she’d just said, Xia Ge jolted: “No, that’s not it! I, I, I gave it back to him yesterday!  I didn’t go to Jianfeng today!  It wasn’t me!”

Xia Ge was aghast that she’d been so easily befuddled by Senior Sister’s charms!

Gu Peijiu: “Ah, I see.”

Xia Ge: “……”

Gu Peijiu put the towel away: “Your hair is dry.”

Xia Ge: “Thank you, Senior Sister.”

“No need to thank me,” Gu Peijiu then, upon careful consideration, decided to remind the girl of something, “I did see you yesterday.”

Xia Ge: “Huh?”

“Yesterday, you were wearing both the jade pendant and the doll,” Gu Peijiu stated, “Tonight, the doll is gone and the jade is with Ye Ze.”

Xia Ge didn’t move a muscle.

Done landing that blow, Gu Peijiu couldn’t help lightly chuckling over Xia Ge’s frozen expression: “It doesn’t matter.”

“I’ll trust whatever you say.”

Xia Ge: “……”

System: [……]

Senior Sister had already guessed too well.  There was no point in trying to conceal it any longer.

Bowing her head, Xia Ge spoke rather dejectedly: “I did go to Jianfeng tonight.”

“Mmm.”

Xia Ge wavered a long time before adding: “……Senior Sister, you don’t think I’m a spy?”

Gu Peijiu’s voice was soft: “So long as you say you are not……”

“I will believe you.”

For a second, an ineffable feeling washed over Xia Ge.

The silent minutes ticking by.

Until Xia Ge whispered: “I’m not.”

So long as you believe me.

= =

Fortunately, Senior Sister didn’t try to get to the bottom of the evening’s activities, but instead let Xia Ge go after wiping dry her hair.

Still, Xia Ge didn’t dare to turn her head back as she went back to her room, feeling that Senior Sister was still there, watching her.

And Xia Ge wasn’t wrong.

Xia Ge: “Little puppet……Senior Sister seems kinda strange lately.”

System: [Does She?]

Xia Ge: “She’s being very Buddha-like.”

System: [What Do You Want Her To Do?  Hang You Up And Cruelly Torture You?]

Xia Ge: “……”

System: [Cause That’s What She Should Do.]

Xia Ge: “Why don’t you tell me how I can uninstall you?  I’ve been really curious about that lately.”

System: [See That Wutong Tree In Front Of You?  Go Kowtow Your Head On That A Hundred Times, While Also Shouting That Invincible Puppet Is Your Daddy.  Then You’ll Be Able To Uninstall Me.]

Xia Ge: “……”

System: [Actually, You Could Tell Gu Peijiu Everything.  It Wouldn’t Matter.]

“I can’t be sure of that.”  Feeling anxious, Xia Ge plucked some dogtail grass, rolling the stems between her fingers, “I know.  I don’t want to lie to her, I feel bad lying to her, but I really can’t……”

I really can’t be certain.

System: [What Are You Unsure About?]

Or maybe——

[What Is Worrying You?]

Xia Ge tossed aside the dogtail grass: “I don’t know what she would do……”

[What She Would Do?]

[Don’t You Already Know It Clearly?]

Xia Ge pointed at herself: “Me?  What am I clear about?”

System: [You Know.]

Xia Ge: “I don’t know.”

System: [You Obviously Know Very Well.]

Xia Ge: “All I know is that I ate my fill today and I’m not hungry.  Other people’s minds, their thoughts, I can’t guess.”

System: [Let’s Say You Jumped Off A Precipice, But Senior Sister Was Next To You.  What Do You Think She Would Do?]

Xia Ge answered instinctively: “She would save me.”

System: [See?  You Clearly know.]

“……you’re too unimaginative with that old chestnut,” Xia Ge’s mouth twitched, “If a person jumps, they’ll be saved?  If it were me, I wouldn’t watch them jump in the first place.”

System: [You’ve Only Proved My Point Again.  You Do Know It Very Well.]

Xia Ge felt disconcerted.

System: [If It Were Gu Peijiu, How Could She Watch You Fall?]