My Girlfriend is a Cold and Aloof Sickly Beauty 80

Chapter 80: Non-Dream

“…Do you know what Xiao Luo meant by that?”

While Xiao Luohan was in the bathroom, Jiang Xue couldn’t help but whisper to Xie Xitong, “She prefers my unrestrained side? Can you understand that?”

“It means she likes you,” Xie Xitong said bluntly.

“Stop your nonsense! I’m asking seriously!” Jiang Xue nudged her.

Xie Xitong gave her a meaningful look and decided to ask a different question. “Do you usually act reserved in front of her?”

“I don’t…”

“Like after the exams, when you went for cupping, you didn’t let her come with you because you were afraid she would see the unsightly marks on your back,” Xie Xitong interrupted. “Isn’t that being reserved?”

Jiang Xue was speechless. She clicked her tongue and lowered her voice. “What’s wrong with wanting to look good in front of someone you like?!”

“Then you’re completely wrong,” Xie Xitong shrugged. “If you always act reserved, she won’t see the real you. And if she accidentally sees it one day, won’t her good impression filter be shattered?”

“Like me, I like your sister, so I show her all my bad temper. If she can’t accept it, I won’t force her, but she’s very tolerant, so not only do I not change, I sometimes even deliberately act worse…”

“That’s different!” Jiang Xue shook her head, interrupting her. “You and my sister, Xiao Luo and me… the two situations are completely different!”

“Your sister watched you grow up. She already knew what kind of person you were when you were a child and couldn’t control your emotions, so no matter what you do, she won’t be angry or surprised. But it’s not the same for Xiao Luo!”

Jiang Xue almost raised her voice, so she covered her mouth. “I only know the parts of her past that she told me, and she’s the same with me…”

“Then when do you plan to enter that stage?” Xie Xitong simply asked calmly. “Logically speaking, the initial stage of acquaintance is the most suitable time. You’re still a student, and she also has plenty of time. There are so many opportunities to get to know each other better.”

“Since you think this time isn’t suitable, do you plan to wait until later? Until you both enter society, and the world changes your true colors, who will remember what the other person was like at the beginning?”

“External pressures can easily distort a person. By then, you might not even be able to hide your dark sides anymore. Or do you prefer to accumulate small disappointments and let them explode all at once, destroying your friendship completely?”

Jiang Xue hadn’t expected her explanation to lead to such a long lecture from her friend!

“Look, I’m now expressing all the accumulated confusion I had towards you,” Xie Xitong said, looking at her seriously. “But precisely because we know each other so well, even if you’re puzzled, or even feel that I’m being a ‘conspiracy theorist,’ or angry that I’ve misinterpreted your relationship… you’ll still try to understand why I said those things, and you’ll ask me what I discovered that made me say them.”

“But we’ve been friends for over ten years, A-Xue. We’re willing to give each other chances. But you and Xiao Luo aren’t, so you need to seize the time and show each other your true selves—while the cost is still controllable.”

Jiang Xue fell silent again.

She felt that her friend’s worries were valid.

Xiao Luo had already come to her side. Their communication wasn’t limited to letters and dreams anymore. They were no longer just pen pals or confidantes, but had become close family.

Knowing each other well was especially important between family members. Even if they couldn’t help each other with their worries, at least they would understand “why” the other person said or did certain things.

This was also a form of “security,” and Xiao Luo currently lacked security. Since she could provide it, she should try her best.

“Then what do you think I should do to change?” she asked. “Use the winter break to slowly reveal all my… flaws to her?”

Xie Xitong thought for a moment. “Actually, I think the root of the problem is you. You should ask yourself, which of your flaws doesn’t matter if she knows, and which flaws, if she knew, would be a ‘disaster.'”

Jiang Xue: …

She fell into thought.

Xie Xitong tossed her a sugar orange and went upstairs to find her grandmother.

“Hopeless, truly hopeless,” she said, sitting beside Grandma Xie, feeding her peeled orange segments. She summarized the situation concisely. “I think it’s better to rely on Xiao Luo to take ‘drastic measures.'”

Grandma Xie chuckled. “If she can’t make a move, then just treat it as entertainment. Watching a play is much less troublesome.”

Xie Xitong agreed, finished sharing the sugar oranges, and went back downstairs, snatching Xixi from Jiang Xue’s arms and settling down in her usual observation spot.

Xiao Luohan had already returned and was carefully choosing a game cartridge.

Compared to games with levels that could be cleared within half an hour or an hour, she was more interested in the story-driven management games Jiang Xue had mentioned.

Although there were also battles, these cartridge games were turn-based. She just needed to calculate the damage and know when to use support skills, which wasn’t complicated. For real-time combat, she would have to look on the S platform.

Xie Xitong’s cartridges were all genuine, both domestic and international, but the international ones only had the original language, so Xiao Luohan chose a domestic one.

Having spent the afternoon playing cartridge games, she was no longer unfamiliar with inserting the cartridge into the slot.

In the pixelated opening cutscene, she saw a graceful dancer wave her sleeves, revealing a female musician sitting quietly behind them.

The musician lifted her hand, and the strings of her instrument transformed into a pair of rotating scissors, cutting through an intricately patterned fabric.

The fabric split open, the tear transforming into a silver spear with a tassel.

A female general lifted the spear, picking up a splash of bright red, which then transformed into golden threads, adorning a black robe.

The camera zoomed out, and a golden bird flew up from the black robe. Beneath its flowing feathers were a pair of determined peach blossom eyes.

The empress waved her hand, and the words Non-Dream appeared on the screen.

“I remember!” Jiang Xue suddenly exclaimed, clapping her hands. “You remember the play we saw during the New Year’s Eve gala, the one performed before us? It was actually based on the background of this game—I asked Yuanyuan later.”

“Then this game…” Xiao Luohan paused.

“It’s a… group portrait, world-building game?” Jiang Xue tried to find the right words to describe it. “You can think of it as an expanded version of that play. It unfolds the story from the perspectives of women in various professions, gradually revealing to the player how this nation with a female emperor was established in a time of chaos.”

“I finished it when I was in middle school. There’s an officially ported version on the S platform,” Xie Xitong interjected. “It’s a very long game. If you’re a beginner, it might take at least two hundred hours to reach the ending. Xiao Luo, why don’t you play it on A-Xue’s computer? That way, you can save your progress.”

Even though Grandma Xie said that watching a play was less troublesome, she still preferred to give a little “assist” from time to time.

“Is that okay?” Xiao Luohan asked immediately.

“Of course, don’t be so polite!” Jiang Xue readily agreed. “But I haven’t bought this game yet. Downloading and installing it will take a little time.”

When the two returned home, Teacher Sui had already finished working and was sitting in the living room, across from Jiang Mei, who was frowning in thought.

They seemed to have finished their conversation, and Teacher Sui was now enjoying a cup of hot tea.

“You’re back? Then I should be going,” Teacher Sui said, though she still held onto her teacup.

“If you like this tea, I’ll have someone send you some another day,” Jiang Mei said.

“Dianhong… I do like it. Then I won’t stand on ceremony,” Teacher Sui smiled brightly. “No need to trouble anyone, just have that person bring it to me.”

Considering that there were two young students present, she didn’t specify who “that person” was, took a last sip of tea, and then left with her tools.

“What were you talking about?” Jiang Xue asked curiously after Teacher Sui left.

“Asking about the ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage Special Enrollment’,” Jiang Mei picked up her teacup. “She was a university teacher for several years.”

“But there’s no need to rush now. After I’ve gathered all the information, I’ll give it to Xiao Luo,” she said, taking a sip of tea and smiling at the two girls. “Especially Xiao Luo, enjoy your first ‘winter break.'”

Jiang Xue felt that this was probably followed by an unspoken “This is your last vacation.”

After all, if her older sister was personally planning someone’s future, she would definitely utilize all available resources and connections, and also squeeze out the target’s potential as much as possible—that’s how she herself had been raised.

Although it was hard work, it was undoubtedly a good thing, allowing her to avoid many detours.

…She just didn’t know if Xiao Luo could handle such “pressure.”

They would deal with it when the time came. For now, she would download the game for Xiao Luo!

As soon as they returned to her room, Jiang Xue turned on her computer, logged into her S platform account, searched for Non-Dream, and purchased and installed it.

Xiao Luohan sat beside her, holding the Shiba Inu plush toy, staring at the progress bar, lost in thought.

“Have you… dreamed of my ‘mindscape’ recently?”

After a long while, Jiang Xue heard her ask.

“Now that you mention it, it has been a while,” Jiang Xue recalled. “But the ‘mindscape’ is probably also maintained by Elder Sister Red Fox, right? Her soul is now attached to the vessel here and has even bloomed. Maybe she can only maintain one place at a time?”

Xiao Luohan didn’t reply, but she knew that if Elder Sister didn’t want her to enter the dream, she wouldn’t be able to return to the mindscape, nor see the changes in Beiliao outside the window.

“Why did you suddenly ask about this?” Jiang Xue turned to her. “Did the introduction to Non-Dream remind you of Beiliao? Are you worried that something might happen there because of the changes?”

Xiao Luohan softly replied with an “Mm,” but immediately added, “I believe Elder Sister will arrange everything. I’m not worried about the Jiang family or Beiliao, but rather…”

Backlash from the resentful souls.

Perhaps because she had been interacting with Grandma Xie a lot recently, this term came to mind.