Xie Jue leaned forward slightly, one hand braced against the table as he stood before Yun Miao, bending down to meet her gaze directly, as if seeking the answer he desired from her eyes.Yet those amber irises, clear as glass beads, appeared pure and transparent, even the hint of possessiveness within them neatly concealed."Clatter—"As Xie Jue drew closer, the porcelain spoon in Yun Miao’s hand slipped abruptly from her fingertips, striking the side of the bowl with a crisp sound. The medicinal broth inside splashed out, staining Yun Miao’s hand.Some even splattered onto the back of Xie Jue’s hand resting on the table.Yun Miao instinctively looked down. The pale skin was dotted with brown stains of the broth, the damp, warm sensation causing her to frown involuntarily.She disliked this feeling.Gazing at the scattered droplets of medicine on her hand, she extended her other clean hand to reach for her handkerchief.But just as she began to move, a large hand reached over, capturing Yun Miao’s hand, and a moon-white handkerchief was placed over it.The plain handkerchief quickly absorbed the broth, leaving patches of brown stains.His movements were gentle and meticulous, as if polishing a fine, fragile piece of porcelain.Yun Miao stared blankly at the handkerchief covering her hand.It looked familiar—it seemed to be hers. How had it ended up with him?"This is…""Your handkerchief." Xie Jue continued his motions without pause, turning Yun Miao’s hand over and carefully wiping away the broth from her palm. "You gave it to me last time. It was stained with blood, but I just washed it clean and hadn’t yet returned it to you."The tickling sensation in her palm caused Yun Miao to reflexively pull her hand back.But just as she began to withdraw it, Xie Jue’s hand, still holding the handkerchief, gently grasped hers, and his questioning gaze immediately met hers."What’s wrong? There’s still a bit left to clean.""It tickles."The warmth from the man’s palm seeped through the handkerchief. Yun Miao’s eyelashes fluttered slightly as she answered truthfully.Before her words fully faded, the hand held in Xie Jue’s palm curled slightly.Hearing this, a faint smile touched Xie Jue’s eyes, and he shook his head almost imperceptibly. Yet his hand naturally tightened around Yun Miao’s curled fingers.Then, taking advantage of Yun Miao’s momentary distraction, he released her hand and swiftly wiped away the remaining traces of medicine from her palm."Done." Xie Jue folded the soiled handkerchief and tucked it back into his sleeve. "This handkerchief is dirty now, so I’ll keep it for the time being. I’ll wash it clean before returning it to you."Yun Miao withdrew her hand. The earlier damp warmth on her palm had been wiped away.Her gaze followed Xie Jue’s movements to his sleeve before quickly returning. She picked up the porcelain spoon again, scooping up some of the medicinal broth and bringing it to her lips.A bitter taste immediately spread across her tongue, causing her to frown.After a few sips, Yun Miao quietly set down the spoon and looked up at Xie Jue, changing the subject. "Xie Jue, the matter in Peach Blossom Village has been settled. The remaining disciples from Xunyin Hall will take over, so after discussing with my senior brother, we’ve decided to return to Xuantian Sect in the next couple of days. You…"Perhaps because the person before him once again overlapped with the memory of that scene, an unnamed unease spread from the depths of his heart, stirring Xie Jue into a state of panic.Thus, he dared not listen to what Yun Miao would say next. Without waiting for her to finish, he interrupted her first."You said you would take responsibility for me."Hearing this, Yun Miao was taken aback. It seemed she detected a hint of grievance in the other's words, reminiscent of the little black dog she once fed—aloof yet unable to resist drawing closer after not seeing her for a long time.She thought Xie Jue might have misunderstood something and couldn't help but smile. "That's not what I meant. I wanted to ask if you had something to attend to when you appeared there that day. If there's still unfinished business, I can tell my senior brother we'll return to the sect a couple of days later."Meeting Yun Miao's smiling eyes, Xie Jue recalled his earlier reaction and seemed somewhat embarrassed as he turned his head away. "Sorry.""Xie Jue, you want to go back to the Xuantian Sect with me."Yun Miao's words were a statement, not a question."Xie Jue, do you like me?"Watching Xie Jue's reddened ears, an unconsidered sentence slipped from Yun Miao's lips.Even after saying it, Yun Miao herself was momentarily stunned.Because, in truth, she didn't know what "like" meant or what it entailed.Yun Miao pursed her lips, clearly regretting her impulsive words. She lowered her gaze, wanting to say something to make amends, but before she could, the other's response already reached her ears."Mhm."Wrapped in the young man's magnetic voice was a brief yet affirmative answer.Hearing this reply, Yun Miao was clearly surprised.Almost simultaneously with hearing the answer, Yun Miao's lowered eyes snapped upward, meeting the young man's gaze.His amber eyes seemed transparent, without a trace of falsehood or concealment."Plop—"A small stone was tossed into the lake of her heart.For Yun Miao, this was an utterly unfamiliar feeling.Ripples spread across the lake's surface, colliding and intertwining, much like Yun Miao's tangled and perplexing thoughts at that moment.Yun Miao didn't know what to say. After holding back for a long while, she could only ask, "Why?""You treat me differently from others."Xie Jue had long shed his earlier demeanor, looking calmly and solemnly at Yun Miao as he spoke.After all, in this regard, he was telling the truth.However, what he didn't tell Yun Miao was that he had already fallen for her during those days she took him in and they lived together."Oh."Yun Miao nodded, half-understanding.She treated him differently from others…Yun Miao's mind involuntarily recalled Xie Jue's particularly vulnerable appearance earlier.He must have endured many strange looks because of his half-demon identity in the past, she thought.Yun Miao felt this likely didn't count as romantic affection between a man and a woman, but she didn't seem to know what truly constituted "like," nor did she know how to explain to the other what "like" really meant.But since she was already obligated to take responsibility for him, and she didn't dislike him either, dwelling on these matters seemed pointless. Yun Miao simply steered the conversation back to where it began."So, did you originally have something to attend to in Jintian Town?"Jintian Town was the small town at the foot of the Xuantian Sect where the two had first met.When Yun Miao was at the Xuantian Sect, she, like the other disciples, would occasionally sneak off to Jintian Town, yet she had never heard of any half-demons living there.After all, half-demons were a rather awkward existence. Though not extremely rare in number, they were seldom seen whether they lived in the human realm or the Demon Realm. Most lived in seclusion, away from humans and the Demon Race, either alone or in small communities.Thus, Yun Miao was certain that Xie Jue must have had some specific reason for going to Jintian Town.It was just that earlier, she had been in a hurry to deal with the matter in Peach Blossom Village and hadn’t had the chance to ask.“It’s nothing urgent. I lost an object.”To be more specific, it had actually been stolen.If it had been somewhat important to Xie Jue before, now…Xie Jue’s gaze fell on Yun Miao’s face.At this point, that thing was of little use anymore.Meeting Xie Jue’s eyes, Yun Miao asked again, “In that case, do you still want to go look for it?”Xie Jue shook his head.“It’s fine.”Seeing no urgency on Xie Jue’s face, Yun Miao assumed it wasn’t anything important.Remembering his earlier reaction, she added with a playful tone, smiling, “Then we’ll return to the Xuantian Sect tomorrow.”She deliberately emphasized the word “we.”Xie Jue quickly caught her meaning and curved his lips.“Alright.”/At the foot of the mountain, lush trees stretched endlessly, and countless long stone steps paved their way from the base all the way up into the clouds. Amidst the drifting mist, faintly visible halls and pavilions stood clustered together.“Woof, woof, woof—”Just as the three of them stopped before the barrier, a burst of barking came from a nearby thicket.Hearing the sound, all three turned toward the source.However, unlike the others, Yun Miao had already crouched down in that direction.The rustling in the bushes grew louder, and soon a small black dog emerged, darting straight toward Yun Miao.The excited puppy raised its front paws, scratching at Yun Miao’s knees, and kept licking her.Yun Miao’s moon-white outer robe quickly turned dusty under the puppy’s paws, but she didn’t mind. However, she was a bit overwhelmed by the overly enthusiastic dog, laughing as she tilted her head left and right, her crouched body leaning backward, her footing unsteady.The sensation of losing her balance backward made Yun Miao quickly call out “Xiao Wang,” trying to stop the puppy’s overly affectionate advances.Before Yun Miao could steady herself, a force from behind supported her, and the wet, warm sensation on her face disappeared.In its place was the sound of the puppy struggling and yelping.Opening her eyes, Yun Miao saw the puppy held by the scruff of its neck by a large hand, whimpering pitifully as it met her gaze.Faced with the puppy’s pleading eyes, Yun Miao’s heart softened completely.Following the glimpse of a dark figure in her peripheral vision, she turned to look beside her.Xie Jue was leaning over, one hand supporting her, the other holding the puppy by the scruff of its neck.“Xie Jue.”Yun Miao snapped back to attention and patted Xie Jue’s hand holding the puppy. Understanding her meaning, Xie Jue released his grip, and Yun Miao took the puppy into her arms, soothingly stroking its head. The puppy nestled contentedly in her embrace.But the next moment, the puppy seemed to see something that frightened it, turning its head away and burying itself deeper into Yun Miao's embrace.Seeing this, Yun Miao glanced in that direction but only saw Xie Jue, whose expression remained unchanged.Meeting Yun Miao's searching gaze, Xie Jue tilted his head slightly, as if silently asking a question."Ahem."A cough came from beside them, interrupting the two's eye contact, followed by Shen Qingliu's teasing words."Junior Sister, you two should tone it down a bit. I'm still here, you know."Under Shen Qingliu's teasing gaze, Yun Miao lowered her head somewhat sheepishly, placing the puppy down and feeding it some food."Little Wang, I'll come see you next time."As if understanding Yun Miao's words, the puppy stopped what it was doing, looked up, and barked twice.Yun Miao stood up and glanced at Xie Jue and Shen Qingliu. "Let's go."Only then did the three of them head back toward the long staircase.But just before leaving, Xie Jue took one last deep look at the puppy, which was now focused on eating.Remembering how it had nuzzled against Yun Miao earlier, his dislike for it grew even stronger.As if sensing Xie Jue's gaze, the puppy raised its head.The moment it met Xie Jue's rather intimidating stare, it instinctively prepared to bark.Xie Jue naturally noticed its intention and narrowed his eyes, casting a Restriction Seal on it."Xie Jue."Yun Miao had walked a few steps ahead and, noticing that the person beside her hadn't followed, turned back.Hearing her voice, Xie Jue immediately turned around. "Coming."Before the words had fully left his mouth, Xie Jue quickened his pace and returned to Yun Miao's side.
Chapter 14
Mistakenly Believing I Was Given the Substitute Lover Script