Chapter 286: What do I need to explain? I don’t need to explain. I am simply Shui Miao Miao!
“Almost there,” the girl dressed as a lady’s maid mumbled nervously as she sat in the carriage, gripping the fabric of her dress tightly.
She sneaked a quick peek through the corner of the carriage curtain, gazing at the familiar scenery outside, her heart pounding wildly in her chest like a drum at a festival.
“But I actually managed to sneak out so smoothly…” she thought in disbelief, still feeling a bit surreal about the whole thing.
All thanks to my little sister! Without her help disguising and covering for me, I wouldn’t have escaped so easily.
Thinking about her—disguised as me—made her feel like she had a twin sister. It was almost scary how alike they looked, even their mannerisms were comparable—at least when acting proper in front of others.
Once Xiao Mei impersonated her so convincingly, everything else fell into place. First, Xiao Mei helped her disguise as a maid, then she seized the command issued by her “twin,” blending smoothly into the convoy—no suspicion raised by a single person.
As Shui Miao Miao took deep breaths to steady her racing heart, the carriage gradually slowed down and eventually stopped.
They’d arrived.
“Calm down! Keep calm! Don’t blow your cover now!” she mentally admonished herself, trying to slow her rapidly beating heart with a few deep breaths.
Ugh! She’d never been this nervous even when sneaking into the convoy before!
……
“Here we are.”
Bai Feng, noticing the carriage with the emblem of the Sixth Princess pulling to a halt outside Yu Ling Long’s gate, gently shook the sleeping Yu Yao beside him:
“Senior Sister, don’t sleep anymore, we’ve arrived.”
“Oh, okay!” Yu Yao sat up quickly, brushing her mouth with the back of her hand, crumbs still lingering around her lips. “Finally… we’re here!”
Bai Feng playfully patted her head: “Alright, you should get off my lap now. Later, we’re going to meet them and see what’s happening with Shui Miao Miao.”
“Got it, got it,” Yu Yao yawned lazily, slowly sliding off his lap. “By the way, I think I’m about to reach Yuan Ying completion, so… um…”
“Hm. I’ll supervise your cultivation when we get back, and if you need pills, just tell me,” Bai Feng responded, pretending he didn’t catch her hint.
A blush of shy embarrassment flashed across Yu Yao’s cheeks. She secretly shot him a glance and, pretending not to understand, said, “I recently made some new outfits. I remember you seemed quite interested in more traditional clothes lately?”
Bai Feng looked down at her, noticing her slight raised chin, a sly smile curling at her lips, and her eyes staring intently at him.
Though she looked a little mischievous and tempting to tease, he couldn’t deny he was quite interested in the clothes she mentioned. He nodded appreciatively: “Indeed, then… let’s see.”
Seeing she finally had Bai Feng on her side, Yu Yao’s smile widened triumphantly. She lightly waved a finger and said, “How about tonight?”
“Sure,” Bai Feng nodded. It didn’t really matter to him whether she played her little game or not. Besides, her smugness was kind of adorable. Hopefully, she’d still be this proud tonight.
After some idle chatter, the two descended from the upstairs balcony.
As Bai Feng stepped down, something caught his eye—one of the maids in Shui Miao Miao’s convoy kept a close watch on him.
“What’s going on? Hmm… Wait, that sharp gaze… it’s like Shui Miao Miao’s. Could she be disguised too?”
He pondered for a moment. If the maid was Shui Miao Miao in disguise, then she must have fallen out of favor in the Eastern Continent and is now just using this as an excuse to escape?
Suddenly, the maid stepped forward, speaking excitedly but with a changed tone: “Ahem! Her Royal Highness the Sixth Princess gave me a letter to hand to Bai… Young Master Bai. Besides that, there are some other things. Could I use a room for a brief chat with Young Master Bai?”
Yu Yao tilted her head slightly, sensing that something was off with this maid. Surely, it wasn’t Shui Miao Miao in disguise, right?
She shot a quick glance at Bai Feng. Bai Feng winked at her subtly, and she nodded.
“Alright, follow me. I’ll prepare a private room where you won’t be disturbed,” she said confidently.
‘A room where we won’t be disturbed…’
Shui Miao Miao’s mind raced—she suddenly had loads of suspect thoughts. She raised her hand instinctively to slap her own forehead but stopped midway—such an obvious move.
Quickly, she lowered her hand and hurriedly caught up with Bai Feng and Yu Yao, heading to the second floor.
The moment she entered the room, Yu Yao suddenly spun around, slamming the door shut behind her, then smiled at the visibly panicking “maid.”
“Don’t be nervous,” Bai Feng turned, smiling, with just a hint of mischief in his eyes. “Important messages like that, according to Shui Miao Miao’s habits, would normally be entrusted to a trustworthy maid. But I don’t think I’ve seen you before. Moreover, it’s strange she’d buy so many Image Retainers all at once.”
“Um… well…” Shui Miao Miao clasped her hands across her chest and took a hesitant step back. How was she supposed to explain this?
Wait—
She suddenly remembered—what do I need to explain? I don’t need to explain anything. I am Shui Miao Miao!
“Not saying anything? Well, if you don’t, I might have to…” Bai Feng slowly approached with his hands behind his back, lowering his head to stare at her.
Shui Miao Miao swallowed nervously.
No, no! Senior Brother Bai might do something to me… Or worse—what if he tries that? No, no, he’s not that kind of person.
Should I just come clean now? Tell him who I really am?
She kept her eyes glued to Bai Feng, about to speak, when suddenly, he gently pinched her little face. Her mind overloaded instantly.
Huh? Huh huh huh?
What is Senior Brother Bai planning to do to me?
“Still not talking? Well, I’ll have to give you a terrible punishment,” Bai Feng chuckled softly, then, to her growing anticipation, pulled out… a few potato chips.
He brought the chips close to her nose and gently scraped them across it. In that instant, Shui Miao Miao began to wriggle restlessly.
It’s… the flavor of White Meatball!!
Her mouth started watering uncontrollably, but with her face pinched, she couldn’t even smell it properly—her nose was pinched! All she could do was watch the chips float in front of her, brushing her nose occasionally.
This torture was too much!
Wait!
Finally, Shui Miao Miao realized—ah! The secret about White Meatball… it’s something she shares only with Bai Feng! It means he’s already figured out who she is. So—he’s just teasing her on purpose!
