The vine doll tilted its head slightly, opening its closed little mouth made of twigs. Without hesitation, it bit down, its serrated vine thorns scraping the skin on Bai Ci's left forearm.
There was no agonizing pain from a deep bite, nor any heavy bleeding; it had only grazed her, leaving an irregular wound with slightly torn skin, looking much like a scrape from a bump or fall.
The bruise was reddish, and the wound itself was very shallow, looking exactly like a scrape from accidentally tripping and falling while walking.
Bai Ci looked at her arm. This was fine; at least it was easy to explain.
Still, Gluttony's greediness and pettiness made Bai Ci see it in a whole new light. She couldn't help but wonder what kind of person Wisteria was, to think a gift he sent would behave in such a manner.
Just a minor bump had to count as an injury, and then it demanded compensation.
Once the demand for compensation was satisfied, the flower at the doll's chest popped out again, its petal patterns slowly soaking in a faint red hue.
After a few seconds, the bloody color faded, returning to its original solid color.
Gluttony became completely quiet, lying motionless in her palm.
After examining the new wound on her forearm, Bai Ci let her gaze slide down her arm to the plain band ring on her left ring finger.
The ring had been ice-cold the entire time, except for that one selective burst of heat when facing Gluttony, as if to prove it hadn't fallen asleep.
Withered Flower and Ring had warning and protective effects against spiritual attacks.
Yet now, it showed absolutely no reaction to the Boston ivy that had seemingly come to life. This proved their movement had nothing to do with the supernatural.
It wasn't due to grudges or obsessions, but rather a purely biological behavior.
So, were these vines purely living organisms? Or were they some kind of special race?
For the time being, Bai Ci couldn't gather any more evidence or clues.
There was no further value in investigating the cave. Rashly touching the metal device would only trigger unknown risks. Moreover, she had been away from the village chief's house for too long; staying any longer would easily expose her tracks of sneaking into the mountains.
Bai Ci put Gluttony away, turned off her flashlight, and quickly walked out of the cave. She reached out to restore the vines covering the entrance, perfectly concealing any trace of the opening.
Stepping back into the daylight of the mountain forests, the chill was mostly dispersed by the warm sun, but the knot of doubt in Bai Ci's heart didn't lessen in the slightest.
She retraced her steps along the path she had taken, passing by a remote flower field.
This flower field was off the main path, its sunflowers growing in a wild, barren mess with little maintenance. The surroundings were quiet and empty, with only the wind rustling through the flower stalks.
Just then, Bai Ci heard a familiar female voice.
“What can I do? What else can I possibly do?!”
It was Shen Tan's voice.
Shen Tan's voice carried a heavy sob, her tone rising unconsciously as if she could no longer maintain even a shred of composure.
Bai Ci's footsteps abruptly stopped. What is going on?
This involved the Honey Bride. Whether for public or personal reasons, she had to check out the exact situation.
She instinctively lightened her steps, parted the wild grass by the roadside, and quickly approached the source of the sound.
Deep within the flower field stood two flat boulders, with two figures sitting opposite each other.
Shen Tan sat curled sideways on a boulder, her white bridal veil still tightly covering her entire face. Her shoulders trembled as she was completely lost in a breakdown.
Sitting on the opposite boulder was Shen Jiayi.
She sat up straight. Because she was facing the direction of the path Bai Ci had come from, she spotted her the moment Bai Ci stepped into the area.
Their eyes met across the distance.
Shen Jiayi's expression remained unchanged. She raised a hand to her lips, making a shushing gesture to Bai Ci, then pressed her fingers down, gesturing for her to hide and listen quietly.
Her intention was direct and clear.
Understanding what Shen Jiayi meant, Bai Ci nodded slightly, crouched down, and slipped into the nearby bushes, keeping herself hidden.
The branches and leaves concealed her form, but she could still clearly see the two women on the boulders and hear their entire conversation.
Once she confirmed that Bai Ci was hidden, Shen Jiayi withdrew her gaze and looked back at the sobbing, broken Shen Tan. Her tone was cold and direct, completely devoid of warmth, leaving only a painfully sharp sarcasm.
“So what? You're actually going to give birth to this child?”
“Wake up, Shen Tan. You went to university for so many years and have a broader horizon than anyone else in this village. Did you study yourself stupid?”
Shen Jiayi emphasized every word, intentionally raising her voice a bit to ensure Bai Ci behind the bushes could hear every single syllable. She had no intention of keeping secrets for Shen Tan in the first place.
Their past friendship had gradually withered away after she became unable to leave the village.
From then on, she and Shen Tan would lead different lives, but this difference was not caused by a lack of effort on her part.
Shen Jiayi had never planned to hide anything from Bai Ci.
She hated this village and wanted to completely overturn its rules. Bai Ci was currently her only ally who shared the same goal.
The more core secrets an ally possessed, the faster they could break the deadlock.
Thus, driven by hatred, Shen Jiayi had no qualms about exposing the filthiest core: “Why are you so determined to give birth to a rapist's child?”
“Besides, it's not even certain whether what you're carrying in your belly is human.”
Behind the bushes, Bai Ci was utterly stunned.
That was a massive amount of information to process.
Connecting Shen Jiayi's words with the vines she had just suspected of being alive, Bai Ci felt a wave of disgust wash over her. What a piece of garbage. It should be completely burned to ashes.
Shen Tan fell silent.
Shen Jiayi didn't coddle her in the slightest. Her tone grew increasingly fierce as she pressed on, “Don't play dumb.”
“Your current state is completely abnormal. I seriously suspect that the thing in your belly is affecting your intelligence.”
“If those old geezers didn't keep such a tight watch on who enters and leaves during the Honey Rite, I would have hijacked those outsiders' cars and tied you up myself to take you to the city for an abortion to get rid of that little monster.”
Shen Tan slowly raised her head, her veil swaying slightly. “I smell Butterfly's Dream.”
Bai Ci's heart skipped a beat. Wait, what?
She turned her head to look directly toward the bushes where Bai Ci was hiding, speaking softly, “Do you also think I should give up on this child, Bai Ci?”
Shen Tan's sense of smell was several times more sensitive than that of an average person.
Even though a whole day had passed, she could still smell the scent Bai Ci had left behind after testing the perfume.
There was no helping it; she couldn't keep hiding anymore.
Bai Ci's expression stiffened slightly. She had no choice but to stand up and walk out reluctantly, wearing an embarrassed and helpless smile.
“I was just passing by the flower field when I heard your crying. I thought you were in some kind of danger, so I rushed over.”
“But after I arrived, I realized the atmosphere wasn't what I thought. You were having a heart-to-heart, so it felt wrong to join in, but it also felt wrong to just leave. I ended up just hiding.”
Her explanation sounded natural, as if that had been her genuine intention all along, rather than a hastily made-up excuse.
Shen Jiayi raised an eyebrow and muttered under her breath, “Dog nose.”
She didn't care at all that Shen Tan now knew she had deliberately tipped off Bai Ci.
Shen Jiayi looked up at Bai Ci, her tone straightforward. “So, how much did you hear? What do you think about this matter, and about the thing in her belly?”
“Just to be clear: if you agree with her keeping the child, don't blame me if I beat you up.”
Beside her, Shen Tan immediately spoke up to stop her, “Jiayi, don't threaten others like that. Bai Ci is a third party; she deserves the right to make an unbiased judgment.”
Rate on N.U.
