My Girlfriend is a Cold and Aloof Sickly Beauty 196

Chapter 196: Giving New Life 

Jiang Xue heard about this news as soon as she returned from grocery shopping and thought, “As expected.”

“Actually, their situation is a bit like my sister and A-Xi’s. There’s a layer of paper between them, and once the more proactive one makes a move, that layer is gone, and they ‘break through’,” she said to Xiao Luohan. “And whether or not there’s a confession, it doesn’t really affect their relationship.”

Neighbors who grew up together, seeing each other every day, probably only moving away could truly separate them.

“I’m so envious of them, being able to get married in their senior year,” Jiang Xue said, her tone suddenly filled with longing. “If they’re fast, we might even be able to attend their wedding next year around this time.”

Both Shen Xianyue and Yun Chanchan were sophomores, about to become juniors after this summer vacation. Compared to Jiang Xue’s demanding traditional Chinese medicine program, the Department of Traditional Music seemed incredibly relaxed.

Noticing Xiao Luohan’s gaze, Jiang Xue quickly cowered. “I was just saying that casually, I’ll still follow the original plan! I’ll study hard…”

“Who asked about that?” Xiao Luohan chuckled, amused, gently pinched her face, kissed her twice, watched her leave, and then opened the file Shen Xianyue had sent.

Non-Dream‘s female general, Qing Wuyi. Just the words “female general” reminded her of her elder sister.

She remembered from Non-Dream‘s character bios that the name “Wuyi” (No Difference) was given by Qing Wuyi’s mother, and combined with her surname’s other meaning, it meant “you are no different from men.”

You can also don armor, wield a silver spear, fight on the battlefield, and become a great general protecting your country.

Shen Xianyue’s request was for the music to be as passionate and inspiring as a battle song, but also to reflect Qing Wuyi’s confusion and loneliness on her path to power.

Even when denied by everyone, even when the entire world was against her, to make the prosperous era she dreamed of a reality, Qing Wuyi had suppressed all her negative emotions.

She had forcibly detached herself from her feelings, becoming numb. “Iron-blooded,” “cruel”… both her own people and the enemy used these harsh words to describe her, both in awe and disdain.

Bodies gradually piled up beneath her feet, but after honing herself, she would simply use them as stepping stones, finally reaching the highest position of power.

Reading the lyrics Shen Xianyue had written for Qing Wuyi, Xiao Luohan couldn’t help but recall her true ending.

—The coup failed, she was pierced by arrows, and fell from the high platform, her life’s achievements turning to dust, her name probably slandered by historians even after death.

However, she also clearly remembered that in the CG animation, Qing Wuyi had welcomed her end with a smile.

No one knew what she was smiling about. Since Non-Dream‘s release, there had been countless discussions about “General Qing Wuyi’s smile” on various social media platforms, and every player who had experienced this route had their own interpretation.

Shen Xianyue had naturally also written down her understanding in the document.

She said that it was a smile of liberation.

Having fought her entire life, to reach this point, she had practically lost all the qualities of an “ordinary person.”

She had felt tired countless times, but she hadn’t dared to stop or rest, afraid that a moment of carelessness would ruin everything.

Now that her life had ended, there was nothing left to say, except perhaps a self-deprecating “I wasn’t good enough.”

Of course, there were regrets in death, but after this final leap, she would finally find eternal peace.

After reading the lyrics and this interpretation, Xiao Luohan remained silent for a long time.

Her elder sister had also smiled when she appeared in her dream.

Come to think of it, her elder sister, from joining the army to dying in battle, and then maintaining the passage between the two worlds for a hundred years, had always been like a tightly wound string. And according to Mei-jiejie, when her elder sister thought her soul was dissipating, she had also seemed relieved and at peace, like Qing Wuyi.

With these feelings in mind, Xiao Luohan started composing the character theme song on the guqin.

It took her a whole month just to compose the melody, stringing together the fragmented inspiration and thoughts, carefully recording them on the staff.

She didn’t have any specific ideas for other instruments yet, so she sent the demo with the accompaniment and her humming the melody to Shen Xianyue.

She hadn’t expected Shen Xianyue to call her after listening to only half of it, her voice choked with sobs. “Thank you… thank you for writing the Qing Wuyi I wanted to see…”

Xiao Luohan didn’t reply.

She had written many original songs, but for some reason, hearing this gratitude, she felt a surge of indescribable emotions, and the only thing she was sure of was—this was joy.

“…Why do you say that?” she instinctively asked.

“It’s so beautiful, I couldn’t help but be moved,” Shen Xianyue sniffled, her voice calming down slightly. “Just like a coin has two sides, there’s light and shadow in the world, and I was thinking… does such a powerful person also have a vulnerable side?”

“She was also a young girl once, needing rest when tired, crying when hurt, smiling brightly while riding her favorite horse or petting her loyal hound. Having gone through such drastic changes, she must have also suffered… I’m sorry, your music made me think of these things, my words are a bit incoherent.”

“It’s okay, this also helps me understand this character from other people’s perspectives,” Xiao Luohan replied, thinking of her elder sister’s relaxed and carefree “retired life” in this world, a smile of tenderness and helplessness appearing on her face.

After coming here, her elder sister could finally be an ordinary, happy girl.

After ending the call, Xiao Luohan lingered in the study for a long time before going to find Jiang Xue.

Xia Yun was lying in its bed at the junction of the living room and dining room. Hearing her footsteps, it didn’t open its eyes, but its tail wagged back and forth like a broom, having become accustomed to greeting its owners this way.

Jiang Xue was in the kitchen, making fried potato wedges. The kitchenware Uncle Seuss had sent was very handy, there was even a special knife for cutting potato wedges.

“You came just in time! The potatoes are almost ready,” Jiang Xue said, her eyes still on the pot, a little nervous. “This time, they should be crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, just like I wanted…”

Xiao Luohan didn’t interrupt her, going to the side to prepare the chili powder, chopped cilantro, green onions, and houttuynia cordata.

As soon as the potato wedges were done, Jiang Xue immediately poured them into a stainless steel bowl and mixed them with the seasonings.

She grabbed a wedge with her “ruthless iron hand,” popped it into her mouth, and nodded vigorously as she chewed. “This is the perfect texture!! I did it!!”

Seeing her happy expression, Xiao Luohan had a premonition.

—She would tell A-Xue, and A-Xue would give her the answer.

They sat down at the dining table and slowly ate the hot, crispy potato wedges.

Xia Yun, smelling the food, came over and paced around them, then, after being given two small, steamed potatoes by Jiang Xue, contentedly carried them back to its bed and started munching on them.

Taking advantage of the pleasant atmosphere, Xiao Luohan told Jiang Xue about her feelings after receiving the heartfelt gratitude.

“Hmm… it’s like fulfilling a wish, and also like giving the character a new life,” Jiang Xue said after swallowing her food. “You’ve read ‘fanfiction,’ right? Fanfiction writers, based on their own understanding, give characters they feel for a happy ending.”

“Like General Qing Wuyi’s true ending. If Non-Dream didn’t have a happy ending, then some players, dissatisfied with the ending, would write ‘alternate histories’ where she successfully ascends the throne. In anime terms, this is called ‘creating a new timeline.'”

Xiao Luohan thought about it from her own experience. “I understand. Like when a female general of Beiliao died decades ago, Elder Sister would also feel sorry for her, and when she told me about her, she would always imagine ‘what if she had survived.'”

She paused. “So, when I compose music based on different interpretations, am I also giving the character a new life? It seems there are many similarities between different forms of creation.”

“I think the principles are universal. As long as you find the key, you can apply it to different situations,” Jiang Xue said, having been “trained” by countless practice problems.

As Xiao Luohan had expected, communicating with Jiang Xue helped her materialize the vague doubts she had.

With a direction, her “sprout” naturally started to grow.

Xiao Luohan, knowing her own limitations and the gaps in her knowledge, asked Shen Xianyue to find another capable arranger after sending her the demo.

Unexpectedly, the arranger who contacted her later was Professor Yan, who even complained, “Why didn’t you come to me directly?”, then proudly showed Xiao Luohan her resume.

Now, there was no need to worry about the follow-up. Professor Yan knew many professionals, and by the end of August, beginning of September, when school was about to start, a synthesized version of the entire song was already ready. They just needed to go to the designated recording studio and play.

Before the recording and the start of the new semester at N University, Xiao Luohan and Jiang Xue returned to Si Ling Foreign Language School together.

Elementary, middle, and high schools all officially started on September 1st, so they timed their visit to coincide with the long break and visited a few teachers, especially their biology teacher, “Homozygote.”

“Homozygote” had been overjoyed when she learned about Jiang Xue’s admission, but hadn’t had a chance to talk to her in person until now.

“When I was in high school, I also wanted to study your major and become a doctor,” “Homozygote” said with a smile. “But I didn’t perform well that year, and my luck was also bad. The first fifty of my eighty choices were all medically related majors, and I just filled in the rest randomly, ending up in teacher’s college.”

“But now, being able to guide my students towards the major I once dreamed of, I don’t feel so much regret about my choice anymore.”

Bathed in the sunlight streaming into the office, the biology teacher smiled contentedly.

“I’ve also thought about it many times, what if my score wasn’t high enough, and even the ‘comprehensive evaluation admission’ couldn’t save me, what major should I choose then?” Jiang Xue said, reminiscing, as they walked towards the cafeteria. “Maybe I would have also considered becoming a teacher? Although I’m not sure if I would be a good teacher, but as long as there are students who, like me now, after getting into their desired major, come back to see me, even just to say ‘thank you,’ I would be very happy—knowing that my efforts were meaningful.”