Ruan Jianguo’s face turned pale as he was rebuked, and his hand meekly withdrew, leaving him even more at a loss.
Shu Lang sighed and said, "It’s actually my fault, I should have taken out this amulet earlier." When he knew he was coming, Shu Jiao had given him this amulet, earnestly instructing him to not lose it and to put it on Ruan Jiaojiao as soon as he saw her, but he had not taken it seriously.
"This has nothing to do with you," the Ruanlin Family’s matriarch said, her voice betraying her distress despite her rationality.
But then, "This amulet, you said it was given to you by your sister?"
"Yes, she gave me strict instructions, and still, I ended up delaying it," Shu Lang nodded, his regret deepening especially after seeing Ruan Jiaojiao in a nightmare, unresponsive.
Upon hearing this, the Ruanlin Family’s matriarch fell silent, her expression inscrutable.
Meanwhile, Ruan Jiaojiao looked up from her embrace, also gazing at Shu Lang with a questioning look.
It was given by Shu Jiao?
Why would she give her an amulet?
Could it be—did she know something? Did she want to protect the original owner with this amulet? But... if that were the case, shouldn’t this amulet have had the opposite effect on her?
Ruan Jiaojiao looked down, scrutinizing the amulet on her body with suspicion.
"Jiaojiao, you must always wear this amulet and not damage it," Shu Lang said softly, thinking she was reminiscing about Shu Jiao. "Your mother said to be good and wait for her to come back. She’ll bring you lots of pretty clothes and tasty things."
But what Ruan Jiaojiao was considering was the possibility of getting rid of the amulet.
If it had been the moments right after her arrival, she would never have competed with the original owner for the body. She would have yielded it had the original owner desired it, as it was all the same to her.
Yet now, she selfishly wanted to remain here and stay with the Ruan Family.
It wasn’t until Ruan Jiaojiao had completely settled down that the Ruanlin Family’s matriarch felt inclined to resume cooking.
However, the lunch she prepared was simple, far from the lavish spread she had initially planned.
Seeing the few modest dishes on the table, the Ruanlin Family’s matriarch apologized with a hint of guilt, "Xiaolang, for this noon, please make do. I’ll make a few more good dishes for you in the evening," she said.
"Auntie, you’re too polite. These dishes are already very nice. You’re quite the cook," Shu Lang replied, giving a thumbs-up. It wasn’t just politeness on his part; accustomed to canteen food and seldom having home-cooked meals, he found every dish uniquely delicious—the Ruanlin Family’s cooking was indeed praiseworthy.
The Ruanlin Family’s matriarch laughed cheerfully and added plenty of dishes to his bowl.
After lunch, as the Ruanlin Family’s matriarch cleared up, Ruan Jiaojiao and Xiu Xi sat at the threshold of the back courtyard.
Xiu Xi asked her, "Did you have another nightmare about them? Who was it this time?"
Ruan Jiaojiao shook her head.
It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Xiu Xi. She could discuss nightmares involving any of the Ruan Family with him and ask for his help, but she dared not speak of those about herself, not even a single word.
Because she was an impostor, occupying a body beloved by everyone.
She feared that if she spoke up, she would lose everything.
She had become selfish.
She dared not say anything, less keen on returning the body to its original owner.
As Ruan Jiaojiao hung her head in silence, Xiu Xi had no solution but to sit quietly beside her.