My Girlfriend is a Cold and Aloof Sickly Beauty 81

Chapter 81: Slow and Steady, Until the End

Just a guess, unable to confirm without seeing her elder sister, Xiao Luohan stopped there.

But Jiang Xue didn’t want to just let it go.

She could connect with Xiao Luo across time and space, bring her back from the ancient world. This miraculous encounter was all thanks to Elder Sister Red Fox.

Now that Elder Sister Red Fox was in trouble, and they could sense something was wrong, she couldn’t just stand by and do nothing.

“Let’s think of a solution together, okay?” she asked, extending her hand to Xiao Luohan.

Xiao Luohan didn’t avoid her. Jiang Xue easily took her hand, which was holding the Shiba Inu plushie, and held it gently.

“…Elder Sister might be suffering from backlash from the resentful souls,” Xiao Luohan said, finally voicing her speculation, despite not wanting Jiang Xue to be involved in the matters of her world again. This concerned her elder sister’s soul’s peace.

Jiang Xue paused, then immediately recalled what Elder Sister Red Fox had said to her.

“That’s right, your elder sister’s power comes from the resentful souls of the Beiliao soldiers,” she murmured. “She went to the battlefield and absorbed those souls, but…”

But not just Beiliao, but the entire world was under patriarchal rule.

“So, if Elder Sister wants to establish a society where women hold power, it will inevitably affect men’s interests.”

Seeing that Xiao Luohan understood what she meant by “but,” Jiang Xue continued, combining it with her knowledge of history, “For example, in the past, only men were allowed to engage in business, and merchant wives could only stay at home, serving their husbands and raising children, depending on their husbands’ families for survival.”

“Even if she was talented and learned business from a young age, if she truly pursued a career in business, society would use so-called ‘morality’ to block her path at every turn.”

In that society, it was always easier for men. For women to achieve the same things, they had to work much harder.

So, just like in Non-Dream, if a woman truly reached a high enough position, she would naturally want to find a way out for all women.

“I still want to ask Elder Sister clearly,” Xiao Luohan looked at the plum blossom branches on the windowsill. “If we want to help, what can we do? Even if…”

The plum branches suddenly swayed, as if firmly rejecting her.

Xiao Luohan opened her mouth, then sighed softly. “Forget it, I understand. Don’t worry, I won’t do anything foolish.”

Her elder sister had worked so hard to send her to this world. Even if she herself didn’t mind sacrificing her soul to help her elder sister and the Jiang family, that was definitely not what her elder sister wanted.

Jiang Xue didn’t know what Xiao Luo “understood,” but looking at the plum branches that held the soul, she thought of something else.

If Elder Sister Red Fox only wanted to send Xiao Luo over and didn’t want her to interfere in the matters of the ancient world anymore, she could have completely severed the connection between the two worlds—while she still had control, not leaving it in this lingering state.

Why maintain this connection?

Had she lost control of the “passage”? Was she worried about her younger sister? Or…

Thinking of this, she also sighed silently, temporarily dismissing the worst possibility.

Just then, a notification popped up in the bottom right corner of the computer. Non-Dream had finished downloading.

“Why don’t you play it first? Maybe you can find some inspiration or suggestions for Elder Sister Red Fox through Non-Dream. Since we can’t enter the mindscape now, we can only prepare and wait for the right opportunity.”

As she made the suggestion, she decided to discuss this with her older sister later and figure out what was going on.

This suggestion gave Xiao Luohan a reason to explore Non-Dream. After staring at the plum branches for a moment, she took the mouse and opened the game.

“Backlash from resentful souls?”

Hearing her sister say these words, Jiang Mei’s expression immediately became serious. “Who told you that? Grandma Xie?”

Jiang Xue paused, then immediately seized the opportunity to ask, “Sis, do you already know? Let’s share information.”

“There’s nothing to share, don’t interfere,” Jiang Mei’s tone was firm.

“Then here’s the question,” Jiang Xue didn’t back down. “If she doesn’t want us to interfere, why did Elder Sister Red Fox leave the passage between the two worlds open? Did she tell you, who shares her soul?”

She hadn’t brought the plum branches with her precisely to get a closer guess at the truth from her older sister.

“…” Jiang Mei didn’t answer immediately, looking into her sister’s persistent eyes. After a long while, she finally spoke. “According to the Xie family elder’s speculation, when the naturally formed bond between the two worlds reaches a certain level, the ‘passage’ will no longer be under the control of the one who created it.”

“The most likely scenario now is that even if Princess Zhemei truly dies in both worlds, the ‘passage’ won’t disappear.”

“All she can do now is try to shield our side, preventing you from entering the most deeply connected areas and receiving negative content from that world.”

“The ‘most deeply connected areas’… you mean Xiao Luo’s ‘mindscape’?” Jiang Xue frowned. “Then if something really happens to her, will Xiao Luo be affected?”

“It’s impossible to predict,” Jiang Mei shook her head. “But if the shielding lasts long enough, perhaps the ‘passage’ can be completely sealed—this is also what Princess Zhemei currently hopes for, she admitted it to me.”

“So that’s why you said we shouldn’t interfere…” Jiang Xue understood, but felt even sadder because of it. “If the changes are successful, then everyone will be happy, but there are always things beyond human control when it comes to changing the world…”

Jiang Mei quietly listened to her worries, neither comforting her nor telling her not to overthink.

Of course, everyone hoped for a “happy ending,” but even if they tried their best and risked their lives, they might still be defeated by the environment. Even if they truly lost, it didn’t mean they had failed.

As an adult who had been working in society for many years, she should have this attitude, but she was still optimistic.

If it were another version of herself, even if she ended up with her soul dissipating, she would definitely create a glimmer of hope for the women in that world.

Generations of people, working slowly and steadily, never giving up, would eventually see results.

—At least, in her world, this was how a dream had become reality.

When Jiang Xue returned to the room with two glasses of milk, Xiao Luohan had already passed the “beginner stage” and was controlling a young woman waiting to be married in a secluded chamber.

“She’s very similar to me,” Xiao Luohan said before Jiang Xue could speak. “But her situation is slightly better. I was married off for a political alliance, while she was married off to her husband’s family.”

“…How far?” Jiang Xue couldn’t help but ask.

“From the capital to the border, I suppose,” Xiao Luohan said calmly. “This marriage is completely undesirable. This young woman from a minor family was sent there to be a concubine for the dying legitimate son, who already has a wife, to ‘improve his fortune.’ In short, to prolong his life with a joyous occasion, and most importantly, to leave behind his ‘heir.'”

“He’s dying, but his family still has a throne to inherit?” Jiang Xue clicked her tongue. “And they even want a concubine to bear his child? Is it possible that the lack of an heir is due to the legitimate son’s own incompetence?”

“Who knows.” Xiao Luohan clicked the mouse. “The game offered two paths at the beginning, while she was still in her chamber.”

“Since it’s just the beginning of the game, and society is still in the old era, the choices are limited. One is the ‘travel the world’ route, and the other is the ‘become a merchant after losing her husband’ route.”

Jiang Xue took a few sips of warm milk and shook her head. “Neither path is easy.”

“Traveling the world seems carefree, but it’s fraught with danger. Even with female bodyguards, she still can’t withstand the hostility of the world.”

“As for the second route… in that era, there’s a saying ‘a widow’s door attracts gossip.’ The malice she would face is even greater than the first route.”

“Indeed,” Xiao Luohan nodded. “But compared to marriage, I still prefer freedom.”

The route had already been chosen before Jiang Xue returned. As the in-game time fast-forwarded to the wedding day, this route was already in motion.

Since this was a game, and she could allocate attribute points upon leveling up, Xiao Luohan maxed out the character’s combat skills and life skills.

When the carriage reached a desolate wilderness, she had the protagonist run away with her belongings.

Seeing this, Jiang Xue was worried for the runaway bride.

But she was soon relieved—the runaway bride encountered a female traveler. After hearing her story, the traveler took her along on her journey.

【”Aren’t you afraid of traveling alone?”】 the protagonist asked one day.

【”If I were afraid, I would have stayed indoors my whole life,”】 the traveler replied. 【”Life is only a few decades long. Instead of living an ordinary life, it’s better to break the rules and be someone society can’t tolerate.”】

【”Anyway, people like us, even if we can pretend for a while, after enduring to a certain extent, we will definitely abandon everything and pursue our own ‘path.'”】

Jiang Xue’s heart sank, and she immediately grabbed her phone and searched for the subsequent plot of this route in Non-Dream.

Based on her experience with various works, this kind of reliable mentor character, after saying such things, was usually doomed—it was a common trope in storytelling.

The traveler would become the protagonist’s “white moonlight,” a shining beacon on her path, at the cost of her own death… no, it should be called “martyrdom.”

Non-Dream was an old game, and the ending routes were easy to find.

The “travel the world” route had three endings: a happy ending, a bad ending, and a true ending (the realistic ending).

Jiang Xue skipped the bad ending and clicked on the true ending.

The summary of the true ending was concise: 【The runaway bride and the traveler live a secluded life in the mountains.】

That was indeed a relatively peaceful ending.

She thought for a moment, then looked at the happy ending.

【The love story of the runaway bride and the traveler becomes a timeless legend.】

…?

Jiang Xue blinked, rubbed her eyes, and confirmed that she wasn’t mistaken, then quickly opened the prerequisites.

【To achieve this ending, you need to first clear the Empress’s true ending in the “Court of a Hundred Officials” route.】

That made sense. Since it could be passed down as a “timeless legend,” it meant that the relationship’s validity and progressiveness were officially recognized.

Satisfied, she closed the page and looked up at the screen, only to see a blood-red scene.

“…I wasn’t fast enough and was ambushed by bandits,” she heard Xiao Luohan say dejectedly. “Fortunately, I maxed out my defense and medical skills. It’s okay, I can still survive.”

Jiang Xue: …

How did Xiao Luo learn her gaming lingo?