Chapter 89: I Said Xiao Shuang Is a Vixen~
"I'm very sensible. I won't pester you."
"If it weren't for you, Xiao Shuang, my mother and I might've died long ago. Even though I'm a little unwilling… I'll adjust myself!"
"Xiao Shuang, I wish you and Sister Xue happiness!"
Jiang Nannan clenched her fists, preparing to leave.
She was afraid that if she stayed any longer, she'd completely break down.
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Ling Shuang reached out and grabbed her fair wrist, speechless.
Jiang Nannan paused and turned back, confusion flickering in her misty golden eyes. Why did Xiao Shuang stop her? Hadn't she already made peace with it?
She lowered her face, unwilling to look at that unforgettable profile. She was scared that the emotions she had barely held back would collapse in an instant.
"Sister Nannan, what are you thinking?" Ling Shuang was genuinely puzzled. He hadn't even finished what he wanted to say, and she was already saying things like "I won't pester you."
"Isn't that what you meant?" Jiang Nannan's voice was almost inaudible.
She gently wiped away the tears she couldn't stop from falling. "Xiao Shuang said that… isn't it because you want to break up with me and be with Sister Xue?"
"Xiao Shuang, don't comfort me. I know I can't compare to Sister Xue in any way, so I understand your choice."
She remembered the snowy figure she once saw. The memory had blurred the face, but the impression left behind was radiant and overwhelming. She didn't even have the courage to look directly at her.
"Of course not." Ling Shuang frowned slightly. Jiang Nannan's way of thinking really needed to change. How could she just assume, decide, and leave without even asking him?
That wasn't understanding—that was never treating herself as equal to him.
"I just wanted to know what you think. The decision is yours to make."
"If you want to break up, I won't stop you."
"Don't think about gratitude or anything else. Just follow your heart." Ling Shuang didn't want her to make a decision out of some misplaced obligation to him.
But Jiang Nannan seemed to have missed the last part entirely. Her dim eyes suddenly lit up.
"Really? So Xiao Shuang doesn't want to break up with me?!" she asked urgently, afraid she had misheard.
Ling Shuang nodded. "It's my issue. Even if we were to break up, it should be you who brings it up, not me."
"I don't want to!" she blurted out without a moment's hesitation.
Jiang Nannan threw herself into his arms, hugging his waist tightly, as if she wanted to melt into him and never be separated again.
Ling Shuang was stunned for a moment by her sudden passion.
He was about to speak, worried she might misunderstand something else, but Jiang Nannan spoke first.
"Sister Xue'er…" he began.
"I know." Jiang Nannan interrupted gently.
"Don't worry. I'm not making things hard for myself. I know I'll never be as dazzling as Sister Xue."
"I don't care how many people you love, Xiao Shuang. As long as there's a place for me just a corner in your heart—I'll be happy."
She raised her tear-stained face and smiled.
There was no trace of grief in that smile now—only serenity and contentment.
That smile stunned Ling Shuang.
Jiang Nannan's love for him was so fervent, yet so humble, it made his heart ache.
Was he really worthy of this kind of love?
After a moment of silence, Ling Shuang sighed softly in his heart, reached out to hug the girl in his arms, and whispered, "I'm sorry, Sister Nannan."
He was still selfish after all…
Knowing he might not deserve such pure and sincere love, he still couldn't bring himself to let go.
Jiang Nannan, still wrapped tightly around him, whispered back, "I should be the one thanking Xiao Shuang… for being willing to leave a spot in your heart for an ordinary girl like me."
…
In the maple forest, the red-and-golden leaves fluttered down with the wind on both sides of the quiet road.
Jiang Nannan clung to Ling Shuang's arm, unwilling to let go for even a second.
After everything that had happened, she became even more attached to him, practically hanging off him.
"By the way…" Jiang Nannan suddenly remembered something.
"Xiao Shuang, didn't you say that senior Ma Xiaotao from the inner courtyard confessed to you too?"
At the time, she had been too distracted by the crisis with Xue Di and hadn't paid attention to this other potential "threat." Only now did she recall it.
"Yeah, it happened. But I didn't accept." Ling Shuang replied calmly.
He had never had much ambiguity with Ma Xiaotao.
He had approached her only to help Yan Shaozhe. Although they didn't spend much time together, Ma Xiaotao had developed feelings for him which Ling Shuang hadn't expected.
As for Ma Xiaotao's fiery confession… well, he didn't take it too seriously.
With her temper, there was no way things would be so straightforward.
"Xiao Shuang." Jiang Nannan called out gently.
"What's wrong, Sister Nannan?" Ling Shuang looked at her, puzzled.
She suddenly went up on tiptoe, held his face with both hands, and turned him toward her.
Her pink cheeks puffed up just a little. "I still feel a bit unhappy."
"I told myself not to care, but…"
"Silly Nannan." Ling Shuang chuckled and gently pinched her soft cheek.
"If you truly didn't care at all, I'd actually feel a little bad."
It was only human nature.
Even someone as gentle as Jiang Nannan couldn't pretend to be completely indifferent—if she loved him, of course she'd care.
Jiang Nannan suddenly let go, ran ahead a few steps, then turned around, hands behind her back and face leaning forward.
A bright smile bloomed on her snow-white face.
"But if even senior sister Ma Xiaotao likes Xiao Shuang, doesn't that prove I've got good taste?"
"If you like her too, I'm okay with it! After all, senior sisters in the inner courtyard must be very outstanding!"
Ling Shuang stepped forward and gently flicked her upturned nose, grumbling, "Who just gives away their boyfriend like that?"
Jiang Nannan's smile turned mischievous. "I don't want to either. But what can I do if my boyfriend is such a little vixen?"
"It's better to be open-minded, right?"
"Nannan… who are you calling a vixen?" Ling Shuang's brow twitched. He never thought he'd one day be called something like that.
"My boyfriend." Jiang Nannan looked up with a grin.
"I said Xiao Shuang is a vixen~"
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(End of Chapter)