Who Will Share This Lovely Night?

At the bookshop, Xue Ningyun found several books she liked.

Her cousin asked beside her, "You smiled while praying at the temple earlier. What did you ask for?"

Xue Ningyun gave him a sweet, gentle smile. "Of course I prayed for Buddha to bless you with success in the imperial exams, Brother."

Her cousin smiled even more brightly. "Then I'll make sure I pass the jinshi exam for you, Yunyun!"

The two of them left together, unaware that beside the bookshelf on the other side, Xie Ming'an was staring over with furrowed brows and a cold expression, his five fingers gripping the page with such jealousy that they seemed ready to crush it.

Aloof top scholar x gentle beauty

Coming soon: After Mistaking My Rescuer

Guanyin-like big sister x murderous little brother

Ling Shuo had kept his identity hidden for ten years, traveling far and wide to kill corrupt villains.

On his first night in the capital, he took up his sword and went to the shabby marquis's manor to seek revenge.

But a woman stood at the manor gate. When she caught sight of him, her eyes lit up. Unafraid of his sword, she glided toward him.

She wore plain clothes, her features as lovely as jade, her bearing graceful and serene. She took a brand-new cloak from her maid, a faint dimple appearing in her cheek as she smiled with gentle beauty.

"It's late and damp with dew. Your clothes are too thin, benefactor. Why not put on a cloak before going inside?"

The sword hummed, as if eager to spill the blood of the woman before him.

But Ling Shuo seemed to see the jade statue of Guanyin from the old temple where he had once taken shelter, the one that had kept him company through many a long night.

His sword slipped back into its sheath. Ling Shuo calmly accepted the cloak and lowered his head to hide the light in his eyes.

Never mind. A kind-hearted Guanyin-like big sister like her couldn't possibly be his enemy. As for when he had become her benefactor, he couldn't remember.

*

Jiang Ling found her rescuer rather amusing.

Her benefactor was only sixteen, like a beautiful mountain spirit who had wandered into the mortal world by mistake. He knew nothing of worldly rules, and liked to hug his sword and call out in a clear voice, "Big sister."

No matter how many times he called, Jiang Ling answered every time. With both exasperation and indulgence, she thought that since he had saved her life, she ought to treat him well.

She indulged the boy in everything, even setting aside the rules of the capital to let him follow her everywhere, never leaving her side.

Before long, even when she was copying scriptures at night, the boy could walk right into her bedchamber after bathing, as if it were perfectly proper.

His damp scent drew unmistakably close. He knelt beside her legs, seeming obedient, but so close that they could feel each other's breath. His low voice carried a strange emotion. "Big sister."

When the boy's strong arms wrapped around her, Jiang Ling finally realized something was wrong. She deeply regretted the improper intimacy between them.

*

Jiang Ling found it harder and harder to handle Ling Shuo.

By day, the boy still showed some restraint. At night, he clung to her as if he might force his way into her bedchamber after dark.

Jiang Ling stopped giving in. The day she decided to send Ling Shuo away, she received a letter from her father. After reading it, she was shocked to discover she had mistaken someone else for her rescuer.

Ling Shuo had never saved her life, and he seemed to have a longstanding feud with the marquis's household. Now she had even less reason to keep him there.

But before she could say so, Ling Shuo disappeared.

She found him in an old alley and saw with her own eyes how skillfully he swung his sword and cleanly cut the throat of the Duke of Zhenguo's heir.

Blood sprayed everywhere. A powerful court official was dead just like that.

Ling Shuo seemed to have casually crushed an ant. He indifferently sheathed his sword, as a streak of blood at his brow slithered down his cheek like a venomous snake.

He was still just as beautiful, but he was no longer the mountain spirit in Jiang Ling's heart.

Theme: Live life with a positive attitude