Chapter 54: Luo Wushuang: Sister, Do Not Fear! I Am Here!

Night fell over the imperial palace, shrouding the Phoenix Hall in shadow.

Having just finished her bath, Shangguan Liqian reclined against the daybed. She held a book in her hands, appearing to read with great focus…

However, her dazed expression and wandering gaze betrayed her; her attention was not on the pages at all.

Ever since she had encountered Prince An and woken from her dream, she had been plagued by a sense of unease. Scenes from her past life surged uncontrollably into her mind like a relentless tide…

There was the despair of being locked within the Phoenix Hall, forced to endure the Empress’s favor day after day. There was the bitterness of dealing with the duplicitous Shangguan family, and the agonizing regret she felt in her final moments. Most of all, there was the shock of seeing Wushuang choose to follow her into death, willing to abandon the entire world just to be buried by her side.

A whirlwind of emotions flashed through her mind, eventually coalescing into a singular cloud of confusion and anxiety.

She was afraid. She feared that even with a second chance, the two of them were still destined for a tragic end.

As these thoughts took hold, Shangguan Liqian’s brow furrowed tightly. She unconsciously bit her lower lip, her grip on the book tightening until the paper crinkled.

When Luo Wushuang emerged from her own bath, this was the heartbreaking sight that greeted her.

After a cursory wipe of her damp hair, Luo Wushuang stepped forward and gently slipped the book—which hadn’t been turned more than a few pages—out of Shangguan Liqian’s hands.

Meeting her sister’s startled, almost frightened expression, Luo Wushuang hurried to comfort her.

“Sister, do not be afraid. It is only me.”

Hearing that familiar voice, Shangguan Liqian’s tense body finally relaxed. She reached up slightly, her arms naturally finding their place around Luo Wushuang’s neck as the younger woman leaned down.

Inhaling the familiar scent of the Empress, Shangguan Liqian let out a small sigh of relief, though her brow remained pinched.

Sensing her sister’s subconscious reliance on her, Luo Wushuang’s heart quickened, and the tenderness in her eyes deepened.

She slid her arms beneath Shangguan Liqian’s knees and carefully carried her to the bed in the inner hall. “Wait here a moment, Sister. I will be right back.”

Shangguan Liqian remained silent. Just as Luo Wushuang was about to give up on drying her hair—prepared to simply hold her sister until the end of time—a voice finally spoke.

“Bring the white towel here. I will dry your hair for you.”

Liqian’s emotions were currently too complex and restless; she didn’t want Luo Wushuang to leave her sight for even a second.

Luo Wushuang didn’t understand why the sister who had just refused to bathe with her had suddenly become so clingy, but she didn’t hesitate to agree. She moved with a light step to fetch the towel.

Shangguan Liqian watched Luo Wushuang’s retreating figure with a vacant stare, her mind a blur.

Only when the Empress reappeared did Liqian blink her misty eyes. She naturally took the white towel from Luo Wushuang’s hand.

As she gently dried the long, waist-length hair, Liqian’s thoughts drifted far away once more.

She remembered that in her previous life, the Shen Manor wasn’t raided until years later. Now, it had happened far ahead of schedule.

Then there was Prince An and Shen Youran…

In the past life, Wushuang had also decreed their marriage, but it had happened much later.

While the paths seemed to be changing, they all seemed to be converging toward the same fixed conclusion.

Having returned to the start, do I truly have a way to change our destiny?

Noticing that the drying motions had stopped, Luo Wushuang turned slightly. Meeting those vacant eyes, she asked softly, “Sister, what are you thinking about?”

The startled woman’s eyes flickered, regaining a spark of life, though they remained heavy with worry.

Before Luo Wushuang could speak again, Shangguan Liqian suddenly set down the towel. She cupped Luo Wushuang’s face in both hands and said with startling intensity:

“Wushuang, I want you!”

Luo Wushuang froze. Did Sister get possessed by me? How did she suddenly become so direct?

Joy surged in her heart, yet a seed of doubt remained beneath the surface.

Before she could respond, Shangguan Liqian pressed her down onto the bed.

“Sister…”

The rest of her words were sealed away by Shangguan Liqian’s kiss.

With an unprecedented urgency, the willow-waist swayed and the flower’s core was gently parted…

Flowers bloomed and fell without regret, yet the “flower picker” noticed a heartbreaking trace of sorrow lingering in the depths of her lover’s eyes.

Luo Wushuang, who had been silently enduring while biting her lip, finally couldn’t help but take the lead.

The roles shifted from active to passive in the blink of an eye.

As her collarbone was nibbled, Shangguan Liqian looked up blankly at the ornate bed canopy, the lingering warmth still tingling at her fingertips…

***

When the Empress had finally exhausted her sister to the point where she had no energy left for stray thoughts, Luo Wushuang leaned close… as expected, the soft, melodic chirps of a nightingale soon echoed in her ear.

Meeting the accusatory, tear-filled gaze of Shangguan Liqian, Luo Wushuang suddenly spoke.

“Sister, no matter what happens, I will protect you. I will not let anyone hurt you.”

So… please don’t be afraid…

Shangguan Liqian’s limp body stiffened for a moment. She knew her emotions must have affected Wushuang. She wanted to explain, but she didn’t know where to start.

Ultimately, she simply met Luo Wushuang’s gaze—a gaze overflowing with tenderness—and gave a sigh that wasn’t quite a sigh.

“I believe you.”

I believe you won’t hurt me. I believe I am the only one in your heart. And I believe… that you are the one I can lean on in this life.

“Mhm.”

Luo Wushuang hummed in response, then murmured in a voice so small it was almost a whisper:

“And don’t ever think about leaving me again, Sister. Even if we must die, we shall die together.”

In the darkness of the night, Shangguan Liqian glared at the loose-tongued Emperor, scolding her weakly, “Do not speak such gloomy words. I haven’t lived enough yet. You must stay by my side and live well. I still want to see the prosperous era under your rule.”

As she reached the end of her sentence, Liqian lowered her eyes, her voice growing faint.

“Even if death comes…”

I do not wish for you to come with me!

It wasn’t a lack of desire, but a lack of heart to see her suffer—an ache of pure devotion.

Sensing the near-instantaneous drop in her sister’s mood, Luo Wushuang shifted her weight, capturing those vermillion lips in a kiss that was both urgent and dominant.

She didn’t let go until Shangguan Liqian’s eyes were glassy and her mind was once again a tangled mess of yarn.

Luo Wushuang pulled back slightly, her voice sounding like both a promise and a threat.

“I will haunt you forever, Sister. Lifetime after lifetime… in life or in death… you will never be rid of me!”

Had she heard these words in her previous life, Shangguan Liqian felt she would have been terrified, desperately seeking a way to flee the palace.

But now…

From Luo Wushuang’s stubborn words, she heard a profound sense of insecurity and a plea.

It was a fear of loss—a deep, agonizing attachment to her.

Shangguan Liqian tilted her head slightly, her gaze meeting Luo Wushuang’s.

In that brief moment, she saw the paranoia and madness in the depths of Wushuang’s eyes… and the tenderness.

That tenderness was hidden deep, yet it was incredibly intense. It was a love as deep as the sea, yet carried with it a streak of stubborn persistence.

A wave of emotion suddenly swelled in Shangguan Liqian’s heart. It seemed that whether in the past life or this one, Wushuang was steadfastly choosing her.

Loving her with a single-minded devotion…

Meanwhile, it was she who had caused Wushuang so much pain.

She blinked, trying to clear the anxiety and guilt from her eyes.

She tilted her head up slightly and, like a dragonfly skimming the water, brushed a kiss against those eyes that were as gentle as water yet stubborn to a fault.

“Alright. We will stay together. We will always be together.”

As the whisper-like murmur of a lover reached her ears, the tension in Luo Wushuang’s heart finally began to loosen.

The haze in her mind was pierced by a ray of warm sunlight, as if blown away by a gentle breeze.

Sister… she must like me at least a little bit, right?

As Luo Wushuang allowed the joy in her heart to spread, Shangguan Liqian asked seemingly at random:

“Wushuang, why do you like me so much?”

Luo Wushuang’s joy and the smile on her face froze. She asked cautiously, “Sister, you still can’t accept me, can you?”

Seeing how Luo Wushuang had become cautious in an instant, Shangguan Liqian felt as though her own heart was being violently wrenched.

“No. I like you too, Wushuang.”

As she spoke, Shangguan Liqian placed the other woman’s hand over her own thumping heart. She asked softly, “Can you feel it?”

The softness beneath her palm sent Luo Wushuang’s mind reeling. Looking into those eyes that were more enchanting than spring waters, Luo Wushuang’s gaze turned dazed. She spoke almost involuntarily:

“Sister… I want to feel it more clearly.”

Shangguan Liqian’s body stiffened. Feeling the soreness in her waist and abdomen, the tenderness in her eyes vanished, replaced by a flat expression.

“Not tonight. Tomorrow…”

Before she could finish, Luo Wushuang interrupted her eagerly, “There is no morning court tomorrow! We can sleep in together!”

“Even so…”

Shangguan Liqian tried to refuse, but Luo Wushuang—who knew exactly how to make her sister go soft on her—employed every trick of acting spoiled and shameless in her repertoire.

“Sister… good Sister…”

Accompanied by a helpless sigh, the lustful and “profligate” monarch finally got her way.