Enemies Meet Again

Hiding beneath the bed, Yan Yun waited for a long time. Only after she was certain the intruder had departed did she finally crawl out.

She was still reeling from fright; with a formidable individual having infiltrated her residence in the dead of night, what else could their purpose be? Most likely, they had come to kill her.

“Whom have I offended to warrant such a late-night intrusion?” Yan Yun muttered, a lingering sense of dread in her voice.

Had Yan Lingyun not been by her side, she feared she would have met an inexplicable end tonight.

“No sooner did your fiancée of convenience return than someone tried to kill you. This most likely points to your rivals, intent on thwarting your impending marriage through such means.

However, it seems someone is secretly protecting you. Even without me, that fellow would not have succeeded,” Yan Lingyun stated with a serious tone.

These words caused Yan Yun’s expression to shift dramatically.

“What? Someone secretly protecting me? Who? Are they very powerful?”

After a moment of thought, Yan Lingyun replied, “They are a bit weaker than I was at my peak, an expert in the Divine Venerate realm.”

In the entire Jiang Kingdom, there were fewer than a hundred such Divine Venerate experts, most of whom were sect masters or elders of major sects.

Therefore, Yan Yun, after a brief deduction, arrived at a conclusion.

“It certainly isn’t someone specifically assigned to protect me. If my guess is correct, it should be someone from the Yunhua Sect.”

****

Meanwhile, on the other side, the black-clad figure, whom the mysterious expert had thrown into the Zhou family compound, removed her mask and painstakingly crawled out from the rubble.

Upon closer inspection, it was none other than Lin Yuan from the Lin family. Her face was pale, and blood trickled from the corner of her lips.

Such a significant disturbance naturally drew Lin Mo and the others to the scene immediately.

It had been Lin Mo’s instruction for Lin Yuan to deal with Yan Yun, but he had never anticipated interference from a hidden protector.

“Fourth Uncle, what happened? Are you alright?” Lin Mo and his companions rushed to Lin Yuan’s side and helped her up.

Upon rising, Lin Yuan immediately ingested a healing pill and sat down to meditate and regulate her breathing. Once her injuries stabilized, she finally spoke to explain, “Mo’er, someone was secretly protecting that Yan Yun. The mission has failed.”

Lin Mo’s expression changed upon hearing this, and he couldn’t help but ask, “Is that so? But the Sect Master’s White Phoenix did not make a move. Could the sect have dispatched other powerful experts to Qifeng City?”

Lin Yuan shook her head.

“I am not sure, but this person is incredibly powerful, more terrifying than any expert I have ever encountered. Mo’er, you must calm down and refrain from doing anything out of line again.”

However, at these words, Lin Mo’s expression immediately twisted into a grimace.

“Fourth Uncle, I desire Jiang Yao not because I like her; I have no interest in her whatsoever. However, her physique is of immense use to me. If I could cultivate with her, reaching the Divine Venerate realm, let alone the Divine Flame realm, would be no issue.”

Yet, as things stood, they truly could not continue with such schemes. After all, the person who had just attacked Lin Yuan had already issued a warning.

“But, while there’s life, there’s hope. Not being able to obtain it now doesn’t mean you won’t in the future. Even if they marry, it’s unlikely they will consummate the marriage immediately. You still have a chance, understand?” Lin Yuan earnestly advised.

They needed to recognize the difficulty and retreat, not rush headlong into danger.

The person who had intervened earlier could overpower their entire Lin family combined.

Thus, this matter required long-term planning; it was no longer a question of whether Lin Mo was willing or not.

****

And so, the night passed.

The very next morning, the Yan and Jiang families were adorned with lanterns and colorful decorations.

Within three days at most, they would have all preparations complete.

The Zhou and Song families had kept a low profile, no longer making trouble for the Yan family.

Those factions that had previously severed their business ties with the Yan family also proactively re-established contact.

This crisis for the Yan family had, at least temporarily, come to an end.

However, the damaged reputation would likely take a considerable time to restore.

Yan Yun listlessly emerged from her residence, observing the bustling servants within her home, feeling utterly vexed.

Su Muyu was still in seclusion, attempting to break through, making it difficult for Yan Yun to find someone to vent her frustrations to.

The family members had completely shed their previous attitudes.

As she walked, she unconsciously found herself on the street.

She kept her head down, lost in thought, giving the impression of someone wandering in a daze.

Just then, a figure also emerged from the Jiang family mansion. Upon closer inspection, it was Jiang Yao. She too had her head lowered, coincidentally walking toward the Yan family residence, as the two families were neighbors.

As they walked, the two unfortunately collided.

The collision startled both of them, causing them to abruptly lift their heads and look at each other.

Upon seeing each other, an awkward silence settled between them.

They stared at one another with peculiar expressions, neither speaking for a long moment.

“Why are you staring at me? Don’t you know to apologize when you bump into someone?” Jiang Yao was the first to speak.

After a moment of thought, Yan Yun couldn’t help but inquire, “I’m just rather curious, the terms ‘husband’ and ‘wife’ don’t seem to belong to this world, do they? Where did you hear them?”

Seeing Yan Yun press this question, Jiang Yao’s expression clearly showed some nervousness.

“Never mind where I heard them. I, on the other hand, find your little brat’s personality quite peculiar and out of place in this world. And you seem a bit too mature, don’t you?” Jiang Yao didn’t answer Yan Yun’s question, but instead posed one of her own.

Yan Yun chuckled.

“The feeling is mutual. You seem to be only twelve years old yourself, yet you also give me a sense of abnormal maturity. Could it be that cultivation makes one precocious?”

Neither of them directly answered the other’s questions.

Yet, remaining in this stalemate was not ideal. Some questions needed to be voiced, or neither of them would likely find peace.

“Little brat, let me ask you a question calmly: How do you view this world?” Jiang Yao asked after a moment of hesitation.

This time, Yan Yun did not deflect the question. Instead, she looked at Jiang Yao and answered very seriously, “It’s a world where the strong prey on the weak, utterly devoid of reason. I dislike it; it feels stifling.”

Jiang Yao’s expression froze.

“Hmm, your view is quite similar to mine. Then let me ask you another question: What do you consider love to be?”

Upon hearing this question, Yan Yun’s expression grew even more peculiar. She once again scrutinized Jiang Yao from head to toe before replying, “I believe love is when two people come together due to fate, untainted by any self-interest. It is the purest emotion between a man and a woman.”

Jiang Yao’s expression became increasingly complex. She looked at Yan Yun, her eyes filled with confusion, even suspicion.

“Then, have you heard a poem called the ‘Song of Everlasting Sorrow’?”

Yan Yun’s pupils constricted, and instinctively, she recited a line of the poem.

“Heaven and Earth may pass away.”

Jiang Yao immediately responded with a line of her own.

“But this sorrow will never end.”

Yan Yun’s eyes grew even more agitated.

“In heaven, we wish to be birds flying wing to wing.”

Jiang Yao, equally excited, continued.

“On earth, we wish to be trees with branches intertwined.”

The two were like individuals exchanging secret codes, and once they had matched enough.

Jiang Yao suddenly grabbed Yan Yun’s hand.

“Come with me for a moment.”

She pulled Yan Yun, rushing at top speed directly to their Jiang family estate.

The Jiang family members watched, stunned, as Jiang Yao led Yan Yun into their home.

But Jiang Yao offered no explanation, and Yan Yun, far from resisting, merely stared at Jiang Yao with a bewildered expression.

It wasn’t until they arrived at Jiang Yao’s residence that Jiang Yao suddenly produced a painting from her storage artifact and unrolled it before Yan Yun.

And when Yan Yun saw the contents of the painting, she was utterly stunned.

The painting depicted a bright, sunny young man with a beaming smile, rendered so lifelike it seemed he might step out of the canvas.

The only anomaly was that the boy in the painting wore clothes entirely different from this world’s fashion.

Most crucially, Yan Yun was far too familiar with the person in the portrait, for this youth, smiling like a blooming flower, was his past self.

“This, no, it can’t be? You, you are…?” Yan Yun’s eyes widened, her face filled with disbelief as she looked at the young girl before her.

She finally understood the source of that damnably familiar feeling.

And then, she looked at Jiang Yao.

Jiang Yao, who had moments ago been so proud and aloof, could no longer maintain her composure. She felt a sudden pang of sadness in her nose, on the verge of tears.

Tears welled in her eyes.

The painting slipped from her grasp, and she suddenly embraced Yan Yun tightly.

In that embrace, it was as if they had both instantly matured, or rather, transformed into entirely different individuals.

Yan Yun would never mistake this familiar feeling; she too found herself on the verge of breaking down.

“Jiang Xue, is that you?” Yan Yun called out an unfamiliar name.

It was the name of her girlfriend in her past life.

Jiang Yao gently nodded, her voice thick with sobs as she complained, “Yes, it’s me, you annoying brat. Even after reincarnation, you’re still the same as before, can’t you ever just let me have my way?”

Yan Yun trembled uncontrollably for a moment, an undeniable tremor of excitement.

For she could now be certain that this Jiang Yao was indeed her girlfriend from her past life.

Hadn’t they met with an accident back then? It seemed they had reincarnated into this world together.

Even more incredibly, despite being reborn in the same place, their families even long-standing friends, their respective identities had prevented them from ever truly interacting.

Truly, both Jiang Yao and Yan Yun could attest that had they ever interacted, even with their changed appearances, they would have recognized each other—it would have merely been a matter of time.

Because they hailed from the same world and were lovers, their thought processes and mannerisms were far too familiar to each other.

From the moment their eyes met, they had felt that familiar gaze.

This sense of familiarity had caused their ingrained habits of concealment to unconsciously surface.

As the saying goes, foes are fated to meet. And so, these ‘foes’ from a past life had finally reunited in this one.

The two embraced tightly, with no need for excessive sweet words after their reunion. A single glance, a simple gesture, was enough to convey their intense longing for each other.

Perhaps, their reunion was simply destined.

In their past lives, marriage had been just one step away. It seemed they were fated to renew their past bond in this life.

However, Jiang Yao was still unaware of what had transpired with Yan Yun. If she knew, how would she perceive this situation?