Chapter 359: Chapter 357: Sometimes the World Can Be Gentle to People
"Next one!"
Ming Shuiyun came out of the bathroom, wiped her wet hair with a towel, and walked to the balcony sink to brush her teeth.
The balcony of the student dormitory faced a line of towering trees. The cool night breeze blew, birds chirped, insects hummed, but it didn’t feel eerie at all. Streetlights illuminated the path below one after another.
As Ming Shuiyun brushed her teeth, she glanced at the mirror hanging on the wall and suddenly froze.
She reached out to touch the area of her collarbone next to her neck. Her freshly showered skin was smooth, soft, with a slight plumpness. ’Have I gained weight?’ she thought instinctively.
But more than that, what Ming Shuiyun cared about was that her previous wound had disappeared.
The mark that proved she was Le Yin’s master, left on her by Le Yin, had healed.
Thinking back, it’s been half a month, and Ming Shuiyun has seen Le Yin fewer times than she hasn’t—although she wasn’t particularly thrilled to be Le Yin’s master, the fact that Le Yin hadn’t touched her again after the first time made her feel quite uncomfortable.
It felt like she had been unsealed only for the other party to lose interest.
As if they had just set a contract, and the other party turned away and sent his sister over as a stand-in.
In simple terms, Ming Shuiyun felt unrest as if she hadn’t been bitten for half a month, in short, she felt "bite-deprived".
Originally, Ming Shuiyun thought that she had contracted a powerful Sword Sheath in distress and that it was supposed to be a story of them supporting each other through hard times. But who would have thought the Sword Sheath not only had a strange personality but was also rather distant from her—let alone mutual support. If it weren’t for the rules of the sword-seeking competition requiring a Sword Master, she suspected Le Yin wanted to go solo.
The world is never gentle to people.
"What, discovered you’re looking even better?"
Ming Qingyun in silk pajamas came to the balcony to brush her teeth, saw Ming Shuiyun staring blankly in the mirror, and couldn’t help teasing a bit. Ming Shuiyun retorted grumpily, "As good-looking as you are."
What Ming Shuiyun said was not unfounded. Since the title "Radiant Celestial Maiden" spread, naturally, there were busybodies ranking their looks. Some even mimicked the Unrivaled List and created a beauty list posted on the bulletin board, encouraging people to vote—then this was stumbled upon by Zhu Yan, who found out it was done by his own guard department’s student. That student was punished to sweep the yard for a month or lose five credits.
Getting caught by Cha Huan would mean getting beaten to tears at most; getting caught by Zhu Yan meant getting punished to tears.
Though the voting was aborted, through the number of confessions, the sisters had some idea of who was more popular.
In fact, with the royal bloodline optimized over thousands of years, and given that the Imperial Family’s partners wouldn’t be ugly, the looks of the seven sisters weren’t far off from each other, one could say each had their unique charm.
But just like the Chong people liked pale hair, the Radiant people too had a preferred type of beauty. Ming Qingyun was subtly considered the most beautiful princess—gentle and pure-looking, with adorably chubby cheeks, graceful demeanor, and just the right figure. When still, she looked pitifully charming; when moving, she was lively and cute, praised as the ’Prosperous White Lotus,’ with many hardworking male students aspiring to become Ming Qingyun’s prince consort daily.
In comparison, the flamboyant Ming Shuangli, the quirky Ming Taolang, the gorgeous Ming Dailan, the sleepyhead Ming Chaoyan, and the dark-circled Ming Yueyan, seemed imperfect.
"What? You actually care about your looks now?" Ming Qingyun leaned over, nudged Ming Shuiyun’s elbow, and laughed, "Did my dear Shuiyun’s heart finally stir? Who are you dressing up for? Your Sword Sheath?"
Ming Shuiyun’s face flushed slightly and she quickly changed the subject, "Always talking about me, what about you? How’s your relationship with the Sword Sheath?"
"My Sword Sheath, huh, sigh..." Ming Qingyun sighed, took a sip of water, tilted her head back, gargled with a gurgling sound, then spat it into the sink, and complained, "Sometimes I really wish I could switch with you, if only my Sword Sheath could be Teacher Qin..."
"Is your Sword Sheath that bad?" Ming Shuiyun said in surprise. She knew that Ming Qingyun wasn’t one to harbor ill intentions, not habitually critical of others. For Ming Qingyun to complain so much, it was evident she couldn’t handle her Sword Sheath.
"It’s not about being good or bad, it’s just..." Ming Qingyun’s expression was complicated before finally putting down her toothbrush, patting Ming Shuiyun’s shoulder, "Shuiyun, tomorrow is the Eye of Omniscience exam."
"Mm."
"Let’s do our best together." Ming Qingyun extended her hand.
Ming Shuiyun was slightly taken aback, then gently high-fived her, "Let’s do our best together."
After finishing her washing up, Ming Shuiyun returned to her desk and opened "Luminous Stone Alchemy" to review. Even though tomorrow was the Eye of Omniscience exam, she had nothing special to prepare for. Among her subjects, "Luminous Stone Alchemy" was the one she struggled most to keep up with, so she might as well review it if she had time.
Another reason was that—right before sleeping, reading "Luminous Stone Alchemy" helped induce sleepiness quickly. That way, once she hit the bed, she could fall asleep fast, resulting in very good sleep quality.
"Shuiyun, Shuiyun, come over here for a bit."
Ming Chaoyan, busy with her homework from the back left, waved at her, "How do you solve these questions?"
"We covered these questions in class..." Ming Shuiyun sighed, "If you can’t do even this, how will you handle the exam?"
Ming Chaoyan looked at her with teary eyes, as pitiful as a little puppy abandoned. Unable to help it, Ming Shuiyun had to explain the questions to her one by one.
After Ming Chaoyan finished her homework, she took Ming Shuiyun’s hand, blinked, and said, "I actually have several more assignments not done. Shuiyun, could you..."
Ming Shuiyun sighed, took out her homework, "I can’t even guarantee it’s correct..."
"Copying even the wrong answers!"
"Don’t copy exactly the same..."
"Don’t worry, I get it!"
Ming Chaoyan was most energized at times like this.
Ming Shuiyun gave her a playful tap on the head, and Ming Chaoyan chuckled foolishly, grabbed her hand, glanced at the other sisters in the dorm, and whispered, "Shuiyun, the Eye of Omniscience exam is tomorrow."
"Yeah."
"Let’s do our best together!" Ming Chaoyan said earnestly.
Ming Shuiyun was slightly taken aback, then nodded, "Let’s do our best together."
Just then, the bathroom door swung open with a bang, and Ming Taolang strode out, rubbing her hair, water vapor rising from her body, "I’m done showering too!"
"We know you’re done." Ming Dailan, who was applying powder to her face for skincare, turned her head and said, "And Taolang, could you dry off before coming out next time? Every time you come out, the floor is soaked."
"Eh? Really? Sorry, I’ll remember next time!" Ming Taolang apologized immediately.
"Actually, this conversation seems to have happened five times already." Ming Yueyan, who was quietly reading, said, "Taolang, every time you apologize promptly and never change."
"Eh? Really? I don’t remember!" Ming Taolang blinked her big eyes, her chest bouncing with her steps, playfully muddling through, and ran over to hug Ming Shuiyun, "Hehe, Shuiyun and I use the same soap~"
Ming Shuiyun was accustomed to Ming Taolang’s closeness, everyone felt that Ming Taolang was not really there for the sword competition, but simply to enjoy school life. She was carefree, spoke without distinguishing enemies from friends, and sometimes childishly asked them for help, but her sincerity made it hard to refuse.
In just half a month since enrollment, Ming Taolang had made many friends, and everyone would greet her as she walked around the academy, clearly on track to become the next head of the Catastrophe discipline.
Ming Shuiyun hugged her back, "Taolang, I’m going to bed now."
"Shall we sleep together tonight?" Ming Taolang tilted her head.
"No, it gets too hot with two people, and the bed is too small."
Ming Shuiyun glanced at Ming Taolang, thinking: and you’re too big.
"Alright, when it gets cold, we can snuggle in the blankets and chat." Ming Taolang said with anticipation, "When I was young, I loved chatting and playing under the covers with my brother!"
Eh? Does Ming Taolang have a brother... Without waiting for Ming Shuiyun to ask, Ming Taolang suddenly lowered her voice, clenched her fist, "Tomorrow’s the Eye of Omniscience exam, Shuiyun, let’s do our best together!"
Ming Shuiyun blinked, responded with an "Oh": "Let’s do our best together."
She returned to her desk, planning to finish a Chapter of "Luminous Stone Alchemy" before going to bed, when Ming Dailan, who was looking in the mirror, suddenly pushed over a piece of paper and a cup of tea:
"Sleep well tonight, recharge your energy. Tomorrow, for the Eye of Omniscience, let’s do our best together."
Ming Shuiyun glanced at Ming Dailan in surprise, Ming Dailan winked and took a sip of tea herself, "This is orange blossom tea, a cup before bed relieves fatigue, aids sleep, and has a whitening effect, my mom drinks it every night."
Ming Shuiyun thought for a moment, picked up a pen to write "Let’s do our best together, thank you" on the paper, then pushed it back, sipping tea while reading.
When the night bell outside tolled, the Platinum Tower seized the opportunity, and the dorm was completely darkened, Ming Shuiyun also climbed into bed to rest, the room dimly lit only by the faint light from the street lamps through the balcony window.
Just as Ming Shuiyun lay down for a moment, she felt a tap on her head. She turned her head to see Ming Shuangli leaning on her elbows, gazing at her like a blooming flower.
"Shuangli?" She mouthed without making a sound.
Ming Shuangli grasped the bed rail, noiselessly approached Ming Shuiyun, and whispered into her ear, "Tomorrow’s Eye of Omniscience exam, first place is mine, no one can take it."
Ming Shuiyun blinked, saying nothing.
"And second place is yours, no one else can take it." Ming Shuangli gently bumped foreheads with Ming Shuiyun, then retreated, mouthing, "Let’s do our best together."
Ming Shuiyun touched her forehead, nodded firmly, "Let’s do our best together."
As Ming Shuiyun drifted into sleep, staring at the dim ceiling and listening to the sounds of birds and insects outside, her heart was no longer low but alight with anticipation and hope.
She hadn’t expected that these sisters, even in a competitive environment, cared so much about her, one after another cheering her on. Hearing the repeated ’Let’s do our best together,’ Ming Shuiyun felt she had the courage to fight on, even without the help of the music of Le Yin!
Sometimes the world is kind to people.