Why Aren’t You Cultivating Immortality? (GL) Chapter 56

Soft sunlight spilled over the cream fabric sofa. A woman in a silk robe leaned lazily against it, holding a magazine.
The heat was turned up high, almost too high. The page had been open for a long time. Assistant Xiao Qiao took a bottle of water from the fridge, unscrewed the cap, and handed it to Sikou Yan. “Sister Yan.”
She had been at Sikou Yan’s home for almost a whole day. Xiao Qiao did not understand why the great Best Actress wanted her to stay here with her. Reading a magazine did not require company, did it?
Seeing Xiao Qiao’s confusion, Sikou Yan took a sip of water without explaining anything. After handing the bottle back, she slowly returned to the magazine.
In truth, her mind was not on the magazine at all.
The photo on the page slowly blurred, then turned into Bai Moqing’s face. Those cold eyes. That angry expression. When those eyes looked at her, they were so unfamiliar.
Kill me?
Sikou Yan lowered her eyes and smiled faintly. Sunlight bathed the clean lines of her profile, leaving Xiao Qiao dazed. Even after following Sikou Yan for many years, Xiao Qiao was still easily stirred by her.
Her fair skin held a healthy blush. Her eyelashes trembled like butterfly wings. Even without makeup, Sikou Yan was still beautiful enough to startle the heart. Xiao Qiao turned her head and quietly took a deep breath.
Just then, the doorbell rang. The pleasant ding-dong traveled from the entryway to the living room. Xiao Qiao turned toward the door. “Sister Yan, there’s a guest. Should I open it?”
Ever since Sikou Yan posted on Weibo, her agency had helped her move to a new place. Besides Sikou Yan and Xiao Qiao, only her manager, Sister Chen, knew this address.
Sister Chen was currently taking another artist to an event and would not appear here. Xiao Qiao looked at Sikou Yan and waited for instructions.
Finally here. Sikou Yan closed the magazine. “Go open the door. Oh, and after that, help me buy two cups of coffee.”
“Okay, Sister Yan.” Xiao Qiao opened the door. When she saw who stood outside, she froze. “President Xiao?”
Xiao Xing wore a black coat. Paired with her abstinent, cold face, it gave her an imposing air. Xiao Qiao turned sideways, lowered her head, and pressed herself near the wall. “President Xiao, please come in.” She raised a hand toward the room.
Xiao Xing entered, walked straight into the living room, and stopped in front of Sikou Yan. Xiao Qiao peeked toward the living room, then changed her shoes and left, giving the two of them space.
Only after entering the elevator did Xiao Qiao remember that there was a coffee machine and coffee beans at home. Thinking over Sister Yan’s meaning, she realized Sister Yan had sent her out on purpose.
Sikou Yan set down the magazine and stood. Warmly, she linked her arm through Xiao Xing’s. “President Xiao, what brings you here?” Then she asked in surprise, “Right, how did you know my new address?”
Her brow arched as she teased, “Don’t tell me you sent someone to watch me?”
In only a few seconds, the expressions on her face changed richly. Her eyes held surprise and delight, as if she had not expected Xiao Xing’s sudden visit at all. Xiao Xing studied Sikou Yan’s face. After several seconds, she pulled her arm free and stepped back to put distance between them. “I won’t speak in circles. What are you trying to do to Bai Moqing?”
Wearing house slippers, Sikou Yan was half a head shorter than Xiao Xing. She had no advantage in height, and she lost in presence as well. Sikou Yan put away her smile and asked in confusion, “Who is Bai Moqing?”
“You met her a few hours ago.” Xiao Xing’s voice held no warmth, like a meteor falling through clouds, passing through the eardrum and striking the central nerves with cold force.
Sikou Yan shuddered. Her body tilted back, and she sat on the sofa. Looking up, she said, “President Xiao, I’ve been grounded these days. Today I stayed home the whole time and never took even half a step out this door. The only person I saw a few hours ago was my assistant.”
Her fingers left marks in the fabric sofa. Xiao Xing’s gaze swept over them. From Sikou Yan’s eyes to the small movements of her body, everything showed nervousness.
For a moment, Xiao Xing could not tell whether Sikou Yan’s words were true or false.
Thinking of the lipstick mark on Bai Moqing’s face, Xiao Xing leaned down toward Sikou Yan and held her chin. Sikou Yan’s cheeks immediately flushed. She lifted her jaw slightly. “President Xiao, are you going to kiss me?”
Like a girl first awakening to love, her eyes made no attempt to hide their hope. Sikou Yan closed her eyes. Words that were hard to tell true from false slowly flowed from her lips. “Do you remember the first time we met? You bought my painting. From then on, I liked you…”
The pressure on her chin vanished. Sikou Yan opened her eyes and reached out to catch the hand that was leaving. She continued pouring out her feelings. “I’m very happy you came to see me.”
Xiao Xing turned her hand and grabbed Sikou Yan’s wrist. A thread of divine sense passed through Sikou Yan’s skin and looked into her soul.
A moment later, Xiao Xing let go and left Sikou Yan’s home without a word.
Sikou Yan knew what Xiao Xing had just done. She had used divine sense to look at the imprints on her life soul.
Everything a person did would be carved onto the life soul. Just as tree rings told a tree’s age, the imprints on a life soul could tell what a person had done.
What had Xiao Xing seen? Sikou Yan stood and walked to the window, looking outside with great interest.
The scenery here was beautiful. Even in winter, green leaves still formed shade.
Warm sunlight stretched long shadows across the ground. People passed in twos and threes, approaching from the distance, then leaving again until they vanished from sight.
Sikou Yan raised a hand and touched the chin Xiao Xing had gripped. Xiao Xing, aren’t you very patient? Why are you losing your calm so quickly?
She closed her eyes. Sensing Xiao Xing’s divine sense fall on her, she smiled slightly and accepted the scrutiny as if she noticed nothing.
When she sensed the pressure of that divine sense withdraw, Sikou Yan turned toward the door.
This time, Xiao Xing had truly left.
Thinking of her own performance just now, Sikou Yan sighed regretfully. What a pity. There had been no audience.
A white sedan drove out of the neighborhood. Sikou Yan watched Xiao Xing leave, then called Bai Moqing.
After being tormented all noon, Bai Moqing covered the marks on her body and went back to work as usual.
An Huaigu was very curious about where Bai Moqing had disappeared to for those few hours. She propped up her head and turned sideways, studying Bai Moqing with focused eyes, as if looking at the woman she loved. That alone made the woman in the office across from them jealous.
Suddenly, Bai Moqing’s phone rang.
The gossip-loving An Huaigu shot to her feet and strode to Bai Moqing’s desk. “Little Bai, do you want to have dinner together tonight?” As if by accident, she glanced at Bai Moqing’s phone screen to see who was calling.
Eh? Why was it an unfamiliar number?
Bai Moqing could see through An Huaigu’s little thoughts. Before answering, she smiled and said, “I won’t disturb you and Assistant Tang tonight.” Then she picked up the call and walked out.
“Bai Moqing, it’s me.” Sikou Yan raised a hand and wrote Bai Moqing’s name on the glass window. Then she swept her palm across it, closed her fist, and lowered her hand.
Bai Moqing answered calmly, “I know.”
The number had flashed on the screen, and Bai Moqing recognized Sikou Yan’s phone number at a glance.
Sikou Yan fell silent for a moment. Then she remembered that the previous times she had contacted Xiao Xing, Bai Moqing had been beside Xiao Xing. It was not strange that Bai Moqing remembered her number.
“Did you need something?” Bai Moqing walked into an empty office and locked the door.
“Xiao Xing came to see me just now.” Sikou Yan turned and walked to the study. Standing at the doorway, she looked at the qin case in the middle of the bookshelf. “Do you want to hear me play the qin?”
Play the qin?
How random.
“No.” Bai Moqing hung up. Only after ending the call did she remember that she had answered because she wanted to tell Sikou Yan not to disturb her life anymore. Looking at the call record, she thought for a moment and decided there was no need to call back.
Bai Moqing opened the door and was about to return to the office when she found An Huaigu standing outside with gossip written all over her face. She showed no embarrassment at being caught.
Bai Moqing called, “Sister An.” An Huaigu raised her brows with a smile, squeezed through the door, and shut it behind her.
“Little Bai, who called you?”
Behind every unnamed number was a tragic, passionate love story. Thinking that Bai Moqing might have such a relationship made An Huaigu excited. If she could ask it out, she could secretly tell Xiao Xing.
She could assist Xiao Xing, help her conquer Bai Moqing’s city, and thereby stop her own younger sister from suffering over Xiao Xing.
“A sales call.” Bai Moqing’s expression was calm. She put her phone back into her pocket, opened the door, and walked out.
An Huaigu stood stunned for several seconds. Pure, kind Little Bai had actually learned to lie?
As soon as Bai Moqing returned to the office, she threw herself into work. An Huaigu, who followed behind her, felt too embarrassed to disturb her.
The office fell quiet. Only when familiar footsteps sounded from the corridor did that silence break. Xiao Xing stopped at the door and called Bai Moqing into her office with one look.
“Xiao Mo, I went to see Sikou Yan…”