The Elusive Door of Happiness

Blood flowed down his white neck, along Bai Qingxue’s three-foot sword, and dissolved into the icy blade.

Lin Xingjian frowned.

He was, naturally, utterly unwilling to return with Bai Qingxue.

Yet, at that moment, he fell silent, like a cicada in winter (TL Note: A Chinese idiom describing someone who is utterly silent due to fear or caution), not daring to breathe a single syllable.

Another word, he feared, would ignite her fury like a prairie fire, completely engulfing her.

“Very well, I shall go with you then.”

A surge of joy swelled within Bai Qingxue’s heart upon hearing these words.

Her exquisite face, however, remained an unyielding mask of ice, offering Lin Xingjian not the slightest chance to seize an advantage.

Her desire for control was as profound and unshakable as the enveloping darkness of the night.

“Immortal Maiden Bai, if you can answer a single question for me, I will follow you wholeheartedly and with conviction.”

Even with a sharp blade poised at his throat, Lin Xingjian’s countenance remained utterly unperturbed.

“Hmph, have you not yet grasped the gravity of your current predicament?”

Bai Qingxue let out a chilling laugh, her voice slicing through the air like rending silk.

“I am the one in command now. You will come, whether you wish to or not. Refuse… and do not fault my ruthlessness when I sever your limbs and reduce you to a cripple.”

A faint twitch played at the corner of Lin Xingjian’s mouth as he muttered inwardly.

‘Could Bai Qingxue truly be a ‘white-cut-black’ (TL Note: A Chinese slang term for someone who appears innocent and harmless but is secretly cunning and manipulative), cunningly concealed beneath an innocent facade?’

‘Had he, by some twist of fate, truly suffered the misfortune of eight lifetimes today, only to stumble headlong into this bewildering trap?’

“Rest assured.”

Abruptly, Bai Qingxue’s tone softened, and a rare, gentle smile blossomed on her face, reminiscent of early spring snow beginning its thaw.

“You are my destined Dao Companion. Even if you were to become crippled and broken, I would remain by your side for life, tending to your every need with utmost care.”

Yet, that smile never quite reached her eyes, betraying a bone-deep chill.

“Immortal Maiden Bai, your actions merely imprison my physical form; they can scarcely hope to capture my true heart.”

“Are you truly not going to attempt to answer my question?”

“Or could it be… that fear gnaws at your heart, preventing you from answering?”

Lin Xingjian spoke with deliberate slowness, his words laced with a subtle provocation, consciously prodding the slumbering beast within her.

“I dare not?”

Bai Qingxue’s delicate brows arched, her eyes flashing with a cold, splintering light.

“Indeed, you dare not. You know full well that the answer eludes you.”

Lin Xingjian pressed on with his taunts, aiming to unsettle her footing.

Bai Qingxue retorted.

“If I answer correctly, will you genuinely and wholeheartedly follow me?”

“Precisely.”

Lin Xingjian’s response was sharp and unequivocal, his voice imbued with a desperate, all-or-nothing resolve.

“Very well, ask away.”

“I am eager to see what manner of obscure and cunning question you can possibly conjure.”

Bai Qingxue sneered, though the longsword in her grip remained unyielding, held firmly against Lin Xingjian’s vital point.

“The question is quite simple,” Lin Xingjian began. “When two individuals are deeply rooted in affection and become Dao Companions, it is invariably to seek happiness.”

“Immortal Maiden Bai, you are aware that there are countless types of doors in this world, are you not? What, then, do we call a door crafted from wood?”

“A wooden door.”

Bai Qingxue responded curtly, her voice laden with palpable impatience.

“And what about a door forged from iron?”

Lin Xingjian pressed on with his inquiry.

“An iron door.”

Bai Qingxue answered swiftly, without a moment’s hesitation.

These questions, to her, were laughably simple, presenting no challenge whatsoever.

Consequently, the vigilance in her heart eased by a noticeable degree.

Observing this, Lin Xingjian inwardly gloated with quiet satisfaction.

“Now, here lies the true question, Immortal Maiden Bai: if a door crafted from wood is called a wooden door, and a door forged from iron is called an iron door, then what, pray tell, is a door fashioned from happiness called? Can you possibly answer that?”

A subtle curve played at the corner of Lin Xingjian’s lips.

“What? A door made of happiness?”

Upon hearing this, Bai Qingxue was instantly taken aback.

She had never conceived that Lin Xingjian would pose such an ethereal and elusive question.

In the fleeting moment of her bewilderment, Lin Xingjian seized the opportune instant, sharply retreating a considerable stride.

His form, like a phantom, melted into the deep shadows, vanishing as completely as a night bird returning to its nest.

Bai Qingxue snapped back to her senses, intent on pursuit, but Lin Xingjian had already vanished without a trace, leaving no vestige behind.

He seemed utterly swallowed by the boundless darkness, not a wisp of his presence lingering.

Leaving her utterly alone in that desolate spot.

“Damn him!”

“He fled, just like that?”

Bai Qingxue’s exquisite face flushed crimson with fury, her silver teeth gritted so tightly it seemed she wished to rend the very night to shreds.

“It was merely a ruse, a deception to trick me! I should have known… how could there possibly be a door fashioned from happiness in this world?”

She stomped her foot in a fit of rage, her heart brimming with unyielding indignation.

Believing she had finally captured him, she never anticipated him executing a perfect ‘golden cicada shedding its shell’ (TL Note: A Chinese idiom referring to escaping by a clever ruse or feigned departure), vanishing into the night.

Such carelessness!

“Senior Sister Bai, Senior Sister Bai.”

Not far off, a woman came running, breathless. It proved to be Bai Qingxue’s Junior Sister, Li Ling’er.

“Senior Sister, what’s wrong? Why are you here so late at night?”

“Junior Sister, I’ve been searching for you for what feels like an eternity.”

Li Ling’er, displeased, placed her hands on her hips.

The young girl’s nose twitched subtly, and a hint of surprise crossed her features.

“Senior Sister, why does such a potent scent of blood linger in this place?”

Li Ling’er inquired with a look of deep concern, her eyes clouded with worry.

“Junior Sister Li, let me ask you something.”

Bai Qingxue, instead of answering Li Ling’er’s query, counter-questioned with a complex, troubled expression.

“In this vast world, is there truly such a thing as a door crafted from happiness?”

‘A door made of happiness?’ Li Ling’er, upon hearing this, paused for a moment, then her face bloomed into a radiant smile, like a field of spring flowers bursting into full glory.

“Yes, there is, Senior Sister Bai.”

“There really is?!”

Bai Qingxue’s face registered profound astonishment, her eyes widening with utter bewilderment.

“Senior Sister Bai doesn’t know?”

Li Ling’er blinked her eyes innocently, a cheerful smile playing on her lips as she spoke.

“The door fashioned from happiness, Senior Sister, is us.”

Upon hearing this, Bai Qingxue paused, a flicker of surprise in her eyes, before a wry, helpless smile touched her lips.

She lifted her gaze to the distant, inky night sky and the high-hanging, luminous moon.

Moonlight cascaded onto her face, draping her in a shimmering silver veil.

“So that is the truth of it? It is us?”

She murmured softly, her voice swallowed by the profound stillness of the night.

“I am truly bested by you. Yet, it matters not. Next time, I will assuredly find you, my husband.”

Facing the boundless expanse of the night, Bai Qingxue silently swore an oath, her eyes burning with an unshakeable resolve that even the deepest darkness could not impede.