The Dream’s Unraveling

“Eh…?”

Tang Xingwan’s expression instantly stiffened, yet she soon displayed that gentle smile again.

“Father, what are you talking about?”

However, Bai Muxue had no intention of answering Tang Xingwan.

She simply rose slowly and walked to the window.

Through the leaves outside, she felt the refraction of the sunlight.

The sunlight, not at all harsh, fell upon Bai Muxue.

It lent a soft glow to her skin.

Her eyes were serene.

Her voice ethereal.

Yet, a faint sorrow touched her delicate face.

“How nostalgic this feels,” she mused, “ever since I became the young mistress of the Bai family…

I never thought I would return here in this lifetime.”

Indeed, it was through such ordinary afternoons, one after another, that she would prepare meals, then bring dishes to the table, and the father and daughter would bicker playfully while they ate.

Years passed by in this manner.

Observing Tang Xingwan, who still sat primly in her seat, her delicate face now visibly strained, Bai Muxue let out a soft sigh.

“But no matter what, a dream is just a dream…”

“Some things, once lost, can never be found again.

I do indeed miss my old life…

But Xingwan is doing very well now, so I believe, this is how it should be.”

Tang Xingwan’s mouth parted at her words.

The smile on her face grew increasingly forced.

“Father, what are you talking about? What dream? I truly… don’t understand.”

“This is the real world!

Haven’t Father and I always lived here?”

“So, why would I have such a dream?

I only remember that my high fever hadn’t subsided… and I met that little girl Xingwan again.

After that, my memory is a bit hazy.”

Completely disregarding Tang Xingwan’s attempts to explain, Bai Muxue leaned against the window, idly twirling a strand of hair by her ear.

She spoke to herself, “So, who exactly are you?

Is that jellyfish still alive?

Or are you the mastermind who has been targeting me?”

“…When did you find out?”

“Tang Xingwan” asked slowly after a long silence.

The smile on her face had completely vanished.

She bit her lower lip fiercely.

Her delicate face instantly turned incredibly pale.

It seemed she couldn’t fathom how Bai Muxue had detected the deception.

Watching the girl’s fluctuating expression, Bai Muxue’s lips curved into a slight smile.

She chuckled casually, saying:

“It started when I was cooking in the kitchen…

That stove, for the current me, was a little too high.”

In that small kitchen, Bai Muxue had cooked for nearly twenty years.

She was intimately familiar with every pot, pan, and dish there.

The moment she approached the stove and realized the eye-level perspective was off, she immediately understood what was amiss.

‘Heh, I wonder why this fellow didn’t transform back into Tang Mu’s appearance.

Otherwise, I might not have noticed the problem at first.

Was it due to limited ability?

Or some other reason?’

“Just… just that?

Only the height of the stove?”

A flicker of disbelief crossed the girl’s delicate face as she heard this.

She lowered her gaze slightly and murmured, “‘I can’t believe the oversight was here? If only I had known…’”

“Heh, of course, it wasn’t just that.”

Bai Muxue interrupted the girl’s murmuring.

With a slender, fair fingertip propping her chin, a smile slowly bloomed on her lips.

“The stove’s height merely sparked my suspicion…

What truly confirmed this was nothing more than a dream, was you.”

“…Me?”

The girl couldn’t help but show a hint of surprise.

“Indeed,” Bai Muxue chuckled and nodded.

“Perhaps you have some knowledge of my past experiences, but I must say, you are certainly not a convincing actress.”

“…Tell me.”

The girl frowned in confusion.

Then she straightened slightly, looking at Bai Muxue with a serious expression.

Her demeanor was as earnest as a diligent student absorbing a lecture.

“It’s quite simple, actually.”

Seeing the other party’s solemn expression, Bai Muxue couldn’t help but let out a soft laugh.

Her previously tense and wary mind eased slightly.

“First of all, that little girl Xingwan would never sit obediently at the dining table, doing homework while waiting for dinner.”

Bai Muxue found herself chuckling softly as she spoke.

“You’d be hiding in her room, secretly playing on her phone, and only after hearing my voice would you quickly hide it away.”

The girl paused, taken aback by her words.

She turned her head to glance at the neatly stacked pile of papers she had arranged so primly.

A volatile mix of emotions flickered in her eyes.

“Also, when Xingwan speaks to me, she doesn’t constantly address me as ‘Father’ this and ‘Father’ that.

Nor would she seriously comment on my cooking like a gourmet critic.”

‘Haha, if it were the real Xingwan, hearing me say something like “you could be a five-star chef” would probably just earn me an eye-roll, wouldn’t it?’

“And finally, the most crucial point…”

Bai Muxue’s faint smile remained.

She settled back into her seat.

With her chopsticks, she picked up a still-warm strand of noodles, along with some carrots, and placed them into the girl’s bowl.

“Xingwan doesn’t eat carrots.”

“…”

The girl stared blankly at the carrots in her bowl.

After a long, drawn-out silence, she finally let out a soft, lingering sigh.

Her gentle voice carried a hint of emotion: “As expected, nothing escapes your notice… You truly are remarkable.”

“Heh, what did you think I was cutting all those carrots for?”

Bai Muxue shrugged.

A hint of helplessness appeared on her delicate face.

“So, at this point, there’s no longer any meaning in keeping up the pretense, is there?”

It must be said, a father knows his daughter best (TL Note: A Chinese idiom meaning ‘no one knows a daughter better than her father’). Having lived with Tang Xingwan for over a decade, Bai Muxue understood the little girl’s personality and habits all too well.

The clumsy acting of the girl before her simply couldn’t deceive her.

Moreover, that harmonious way they interacted… it was far too strange.

It carried an unsettling and eerie sense of detachment.

But before Bai Muxue could press further, the scene before her swiftly transformed.

The small apartment, previously bathed in warm sunlight, rapidly crumbled and disintegrated within her vision.

Everything she could see was enveloped by a thick, white mist.

****

“This is…”

When Bai Muxue opened her eyes, she found herself in a desolate plain.

A low rumble of thunder echoed intermittently.

Around her stood nothing but withered tree trunks.

The gloomy sky stretched endlessly above.

The pervasive sense of desolation made her frown involuntarily.

She instinctively looked up.

Only then did she notice a black spire looming before her.

A staircase coiled upwards from her feet.

The howling wind incessantly whispered into her ears, as if recounting some tale.

‘This is… an invitation to ascend?’

‘Intriguing.’

Although the music box she usually kept tucked away was nowhere to be found, Bai Muxue showed no hesitation.

A faint smile still graced her lips.

Without a moment’s hesitation, she stepped onto the staircase.

The instant Bai Muxue took a step, her vision abruptly blurred.

When she regained her senses, she found herself standing atop the towering spire that pierced the clouds.

To Bai Muxue’s slight surprise, the scene before her was starkly different from the desolate stillness outside the tower.

Exquisitely carved railings encircled the area.

Beside them, several pots of delicate, vibrant potted plants were arranged.

The luxurious and elegant arrangement felt less like the summit of an eerie black tower and more like a noble’s garden for afternoon tea.

In the very center of the tower’s summit, beside a beautifully carved square table, a charming young girl sat gracefully.

The girl was dressed in a black Western-style dress, adorned with intricate lace cutouts.

It perfectly accentuated her petite figure.

Her smooth silver hair swayed gently with the breeze.

A gleaming silver, opulent necklace clasped her slender, pale neck.

That face was certainly not unfamiliar to Bai Muxue… In fact, it was far too familiar.

—The silver-haired girl.

The mysterious girl who had formed a contract with her, transforming her into the Bai family’s young mistress, and bestowed upon her power, making her a magical girl.

“Heh, it truly is you.”