Excellent, very good indeed. As expected of Meng Shuying, the main antagonist in the original novel.
Not only did she brazenly do such a thing in front of her, but she also had the nerve to threaten her.
Su Luowei tightly pressed her lips together and lowered her head, hiding the fury in her eyes that almost burned a hole through the poor Daoist robe lying on the ground.
Though the new disciple from Kunlun appeared obedient, with her head bowed, Meng Shuying keenly noticed that she seemed unafraid of her.
How peculiar.
The monks Kunlun had sent before were all as timid as mice. They were so frightened that even in front of Hongdou, they trembled with fear, let alone when facing her.
But this little girl—she wasn't afraid of her at all.
Meng Shuying suddenly found it interesting, and even the anger in her heart seemed to dissipate a little.
Over the years, there were fewer and fewer people unafraid of her. Many would show fear just at the mention of her name.
Then, she thought to herself, this girl must have recently come to the mountain since her spiritual root hadn't awakened yet. Perhaps she hadn't heard of her name or deeds from her elders in the sect, so she had no reason to fear her.
But this thought made things seem rather dull again.
Meng Shuying stood up, took a black outer robe from her storage pouch, and draped it over herself. After straightening it, she noticed that the girl was still standing there in a daze and coldly said, "What are you standing there for? Go get some water."
You're the one who called me in here! You didn't even say you wanted water!
Su Luowei jerked her head up, eyes wide in disbelief at how unreasonable this person was. But just as she met Meng Shuying's cold gaze, she remembered her current role.
A maid.
A maid sent by the sect to serve Meng Shuying.
It was like having a bucket of cold water poured over her head, extinguishing the anger in her heart. Resignedly, Su Luowei bit her lip, turned around, and walked back to the outer hall, where she grabbed a water bucket and went outside to fetch water.
Before Hongdou left, she had informed her that there was a hot spring in the backyard, and if Meng Shuying needed water, she should go there to get it.
In the past, the servants in the Cold Palace were all monks, and even if they hadn't yet reached the Foundation Establishment stage, their physical strength was incomparable to someone as frail as Su Luowei.
Whenever Meng Shuying needed water, it was brought promptly.
But Su Luowei's current body was that of a mere mortal, without a trace of spiritual energy. Just carrying the heavy wooden bucket a few steps was exhausting, let alone fetching water from the hot spring in the backyard and carrying it back to the inner hall.
Meng Shuying waited for a long time and, not seeing her return, thought she had taken the opportunity to escape. Frowning, she was about to go look for her when she saw Su Luowei staggering in, struggling to carry the bucket.
The water in the bucket was not even halfway full, yet she was already panting heavily, sweat forming on her forehead.
Meng Shuying leaned against the door with her arms crossed, coldly watching as Su Luowei tiptoed to pour the half-filled bucket of water into the bathtub. There was so little water that it didn't even cover the bottom of the tub. At this rate, when would she be able to use the water?
Su Luowei made several trips, and the water in the tub barely reached her knees. Looking at Meng Shuying, who stood there with her arms crossed, indifferent and with no intention of helping, Su Luowei gritted her teeth so hard she almost broke them.
Back in the days at Yanmo Mountain, I never treated you like this!
Why didn't you learn anything good from me!
Though filled with complaints, under Meng Shuying's cold gaze, Su Luowei held back the fatigue in her limbs and kept bringing in water bucket after bucket.
Only when the tub was nearly full did Meng Shuying finally say, "That's enough."
Finally enough!
During the time spent fetching water, Su Luowei had already cursed Meng Shuying eight hundred times in her mind.
The inner hall was freezing cold, and the water quickly lost its warmth as soon as it was poured into the tub.
Having worked up a sweat, Su Luowei now found her clothes frozen to her body, cold and stiff.
If not for the feather from Hongdou that kept emitting warmth and protecting her heart and blood, she would have frozen as stiff as the Cold Spirit Bed.
She was so angry that she wanted to smash the bucket on the ground, but just as she met Meng Shuying's eyes, her anger dissipated.
When Meng Shuying was young, she always acted obediently in front of her, listening attentively to everything she said. As an adult, her gaze revealed an unhidden affection.
When had she ever shown such a side to her?
Besides that, Su Luowei noticed that Meng Shuying had really changed a lot over the years.
In the past, she seemed stubborn and rigid, but she was never shrouded in such a gloomy aura as she was now.
Even her eyes, which used to carry a cold brightness like stars in the night sky, were now dull and lifeless. Only when she occasionally glanced at the person behind the curtain did a glimmer of light appear.
Su Luowei sighed, picked up the water bucket, and turned to leave, making sure to close the door behind her.
She thought the matter had finally ended, allowing her to escape the awkward situation.
Su Luowei sat down on a chair in the outer hall, rubbing her sore arms. Just as she closed her eyes to rest, she heard strange noises coming from the inner hall, barely half an hour after it had quieted down.
Su Luowei, who had planned to take a nap: ?!
Is this ever going to end?!
How is she supposed to live like this?
If she were still in her original body, she would have sat up in bed and sternly advised Meng Shuying to exercise restraint, instead of indulging in temporary pleasure.
But now, she was just a small, insignificant mortal. If she dared to barge in and disturb Meng Shuying, she would probably meet a very grim fate.
At this moment, she finally understood why Hongdou had given her two cotton balls before leaving, along with that knowing, hesitant look.
Annoyed, she took out the cotton balls from her sleeve and stuffed them into her ears, finally finding some peace and quiet.
The feather on her chest continued to radiate warmth, making her feel cozy. Exhausted, Su Luowei soon drifted off to sleep.
She didn't know how much time had passed when suddenly, cold water droplets fell on her face, startling her awake.
She abruptly opened her eyes, just in time to see another drop of water fall on her forehead, splashing into tiny droplets.
How could there be water? Did the roof leak?
Su Luowei sat up and was about to inspect the ceiling when she noticed out of the corner of her eye that the door to the inner hall was wide open. Meng Shuying was sitting by the Cold Spirit Bed, her slender, pale legs dangling over the side, her toes touching the floor.
She had changed into another robe, and the black Daoist robe she had been wearing earlier was casually thrown on the ground, piled up with the previous one.
She held a cloth in her hand, slowly wiping her hands. After wiping them clean, she threw the white cloth on top of the piled robes, adding a spot of white to the dark mass.
"Burn all of these," she said, looking through the doorway at Su Luowei, who had just woken up and was still a bit groggy. "And bring more water."
Anger flared up in Su Luowei's heart, and she stomped over to Meng Shuying, pointing at the pile of clothes on the ground, and gesturing: All of these need to be burned?
She meant to scold Meng Shuying for being so indulgent that she soiled perfectly good clothes. But instead, Meng Shuying glanced at her, then pulled out a white inner garment from behind the curtain.
Along with it slid out a white jade pendant, intricately knotted.
Su Luowei stared at the pendant, feeling a sense of familiarity. After a moment, she remembered she had once given Meng Shuying a similar one.
At that time, Meng Shuying was about to ascend to the Questioning Immortal Platform. Worried that her simple attire would make her look out of place, Su Luowei had removed a white jade pendant from her waist and tied it around Meng Shuying's.
She had also said that no matter what, she would always be behind her.
Afterward, she had not seen Meng Shuying wearing it again and assumed she had lost it.
She hadn't expected it to still be there.
Without thinking, she bent down to pick up the pendant. It was smooth and lustrous, glowing with a translucent sheen.
The next moment, Meng Shuying stood up, barefoot, and snatched the pendant from her hand.
A low pressure filled the air around Meng Shuying, and a storm brewed in her eyes. The oppressive atmosphere made Su Luowei involuntarily take a step back.
"I don't like others touching my things. This is the first and only warning," Meng Shuying said.
She stood taller than the slender girl before her by half a head, looking down on her with a sense of superiority.
"If it happens again, I'll chop off your hands and hang you from the snow pine outside."
The Kunlun disciple was clearly terrified by her cold cruelty, her face showing panic. Seeing that Meng Shuying wasn't bluffing, she was completely stunned, staring at her in shock.
Su Luowei was indeed surprised.
Though Meng Shuying had occasionally shown a hint of the coldness within her before, she was mostly gentle and calm.
Not like this—looking down with a chilling and cruel aura.
What had happened to Meng Shuying in the years she was away? Or had Meng Shuying always been this way, just hiding it well?
Su Luowei didn't know, nor did she want to know. She couldn't describe what she was feeling and let her head drop in defeat, exposing the pale nape of her neck.
How could it be like this?
She had sacrificed herself to alter the storyline so Meng Shuying could escape her fate and live freely and happily.
So why had Meng Shuying still grown into the person described in the book?
Obsessive, cold-hearted. Her brows showed faint traces of weariness, and she seemed lifeless, as if she would drag the world down with her at any moment.
Su Luowei couldn't understand.
The tension in the room grew thicker. Seeing that she was still lost in thought, Meng Shuying's expression turned colder. "Did you understand?"
Su Luowei nodded silently, bent down to pick up the clothes on the floor, and walked out to the courtyard to start a fire. She threw all the clothes into the flames.
It wasn't until the clothes had turned to ashes that she dusted off her hands, grabbed the water bucket, and headed to the backyard again.
From start to finish, she didn't glance at the open door even once.
Although Meng Shuying was in the inner hall, her spiritual sense was locked on Su Luowei the entire time. She "watched" as Su Luowei gritted her teeth and picked up the bucket, slowly making her way back to the inner hall, her arms trembling from the effort.
Suddenly, a pang of guilt welled up in Meng Shuying's heart.
That child looked to be about fourteen or fifteen.
At that age, Meng Shuying had been studying every day at Yanmo Mountain under her senior sister. Occasionally, her senior sister would test her knowledge, and if she did well, she would be rewarded with a sweet.
If her senior sister were still here, she would probably be angry to see her bullying a child like this.
She might even scold her sternly.
The little girl filled the bathtub to the brim with water before stomping out in a huff. Meng Shuying looked at the tub and saw that it was full to the top.
Clearly, it was done on purpose.
She didn't get angry, only finding it amusing.
How childish.
Then she remembered how she had been just as childish at that age.
Hmm… She might have been a bit harsh.
Next time the little girl comes in, she thought, she would lift the silence charm and ask her what her name was.
Meng Shuying smiled to herself.