I Ruined the Long Ao Tian Script-Chapter 65

The Fragrance of Magnolia

The two jumped off the boat and, after flying for a short while, arrived at the small town Bai Roushuang had glimpsed from the deck.

They landed in this town called Liuxian. Bai Roushuang took a deep breath—she had not set foot in this place since she was six years old.

Only in her early years at the brothel had she pleaded with people again and again: "My home is in Fenxian Village, right next to Liuxian Town. Please, help me send a message back."

These people included the brothel’s clients, the servants who waited on them, the farmers who delivered vegetables to the kitchen, even girls who were about to be bought out.

Her desperate pleas were sometimes met with scornful laughter, sometimes with a beating from the madam upon hearing of it, sometimes with a swift and dismissive refusal, and occasionally with a sympathetic look accompanied by the words, "Don’t you understand yet? Your family won’t come to redeem you."

Truthfully, Bai Roushuang did understand.

If they had been willing to redeem her, they wouldn’t have sold her so easily in the first place.

But without some hope, how could she endure those days?

So she deceived herself, over and over, insisting that her mother must have had no other choice.

Sometimes, in the depths of night, she would question it—even if her mother couldn’t afford to keep her, what possible reason could there have been for not walking a few towns over, asking wealthy households if they needed a servant?

What kind of place was a brothel? What would happen to the girls there? How could her mother not know?

"Can you still find that sugar painting shop?" Xu Shulou’s voice pulled her from her thoughts.

Bai Roushuang nodded and led the way, walking with ease to the place she remembered.

Looking up, they were pleasantly surprised to find the slightly weathered sign above the shop still bore the characters: "Li’s Sugar Paintings."

Biting her lip, Bai Roushuang hesitated, suddenly overcome with something akin to homesickness.

Xu Shulou took her hand and stepped inside first.

Behind the counter sat an elderly man with white hair and beard, who greeted them warmly. "What would you ladies like?"

"A phoenix! No, a butterfly—no, a rabbit!" Bai Roushuang blurted.

Xu Shulou smiled at the old man. "One phoenix, one butterfly, and one rabbit, please."

Bai Roushuang gave an embarrassed laugh and fell silent. Even now, she could afford every sugar painting in this shop, but the warmth in her heart at this moment had nothing to do with money.

The old man chuckled. "Of course."

Xu Shulou thought for a moment. "And one with an apricot blossom design for me."

Nodding, the old man began carefully crafting the sugar paintings, his hands steady. Soon, the phoenix Bai Roushuang had asked for took shape.

It was like being a child again—peering through the window, eyes wide, drinking in the scent of boiling sugar syrup. Her mother, embarrassed by her eagerness, would often drag her away by the ear.

"The phoenix is ready." The old man attached a thin wooden stick and handed the hardened sugar painting to Bai Roushuang before starting on her butterfly.

Holding the phoenix, Bai Roushuang admired it for a long moment before finally taking a small, reluctant bite. "It tastes exactly how I imagined."

Xu Shulou’s apricot blossom was soon finished. She took a bite. "It really is delicious. No wonder you’ve remembered it all these years."

Seeing their delight—especially the genuine joy on Bai Roushuang’s face—the old man couldn’t help but smile. "I’ve also got some pine nut candies and twisted sugar threads in the shop. Let me pack some for you to try. If you like them, come back again."

Bai Roushuang carefully accepted the oil-paper package. "Thank you."

Leaving Li’s Sugar Paintings, Bai Roushuang couldn’t resist turning back for one last look.

"This feels so nice."

"Hm?"

"I don’t know how to describe it. Just... a soft, bittersweet feeling inside."

Xu Shulou smiled. "I understand."

Passing by a tailor’s shop, Bai Roushuang glanced inside. "I remember this place too."

When she was six, her mother had taken her out, but seeing how ragged her clothes were, she had brought one of her own unused garments here to have it altered into a dress for her. It was the first new clothing Bai Roushuang had ever worn, and she had been overjoyed. Who could have guessed that the very outing had been to sell her?

"..." Xu Shulou didn’t press further, simply leading her inside. The tailor’s shop in this small town didn’t have any particularly fine ready-made garments, but Xu Shulou picked out one embroidered with large peonies—a bit gaudy, but Bai Roushuang laughed brightly the whole time she wore it.

Xu Shulou even bought her a child’s tiger-head hat. Bai Roushuang tilted her head, the little hat with its two ears making her look adorably bewildered.

Leaving the tailor’s shop, Xu Shulou bought two bamboo-tube zongzi from a street vendor, and the two shared them. Biting into the red bean filling, Bai Roushuang smiled softly. "This is a local specialty of Liuxian Town—available all year round."

The street was blanketed in thick snow. A parent passed by, pulling their child on a small sled with a rope. Both were laughing, and even after they had gone down the long street, the child’s bell-like laughter seemed to linger in Bai Roushuang’s ears, making her pause and look back.

"Never rode one as a child?" Xu Shulou asked.

Bai Roushuang shook her head. "No."

"Then let’s try it now." Xu Shulou pulled her along.

Bai Roushuang hesitated. "I’m too old for this."

"Age doesn’t matter. I promised to give you back your childhood—how can we skip this?"

Laughing, Bai Roushuang watched as her senior sister rented a small sled and gestured for her to take a seat.

Curling her legs, she squeezed into the sled and let Xu Shulou pull her through the snow. Unpracticed, Xu Shulou sometimes ran too fast, accidentally flipping the sled and sending Bai Roushuang tumbling into the snow.

Bai Roushuang pushed herself up, laughing, and threw a snowball at her. Naturally, Xu Shulou retaliated, and soon their laughter and shouts filled the street.

After their playful fight, Bai Roushuang returned the favor, gesturing for Xu Shulou to sit in the sled while she pulled. Though equally inexperienced, Bai Roushuang was far steadier, taking her senior sister for a smooth ride around the town’s long street.

Curled up in the sled, Xu Shulou spotted a frozen pear vendor and tugged the rope to signal a stop.

Understanding, Bai Roushuang soon returned with two dark, frozen pears, grinning. "You really know how to enjoy the good things in life."

Xu Shulou accepted one with a smile, taking a bite. The icy, crisp fruit burst with fragrant juice, flooding her mouth with sweetness.

Bai Roushuang closed her eyes nostalgically. "Just like when I was little."

"If you like them, we can freeze some every year when we return to Bright Moon Peak," Xu Shulou mused. "And yellow peaches, plums, lychees..."

Bai Roushuang nodded, smiling. "Yes."

After eating frozen pears, Xu Shulou accompanied her junior sister Bai Roushuang in playing games—kicking shuttlecocks and spinning tops. Bai Roushuang only managed to win because her senior sister deliberately went easy on her. Surprised, she asked, "How are you so good at even these things?"

Xu Shulou lifted her chin proudly. "As a senior sister, one must be flawless in all aspects."

Bai Roushuang laughed. When they grew tired, the two lay side by side in the snow. Xu Shulou asked, "Is there anywhere else you'd like to go?"

After a moment’s thought, Bai Roushuang nodded. "There’s an eatery at the end of the street. When I was little, Uncle Wang the Second from next door would send me out to play so he could take my mother there. I remember once she brought me back some slices of roasted lamb—it was so delicious. I ate a huge piece of flatbread with it."

"Then lead the way."

This time, Bai Roushuang’s steps were much lighter. They walked to the end of the street and immediately spotted the small, somewhat shabby eatery by the roadside, its tables stained with years of unwashed grease.

"I used to yearn for this place as a child, always hoping my mother would take me with her," Bai Roushuang said, glancing around. "I don’t know if it’s a different shop now or if my memory romanticized it."

They settled at a small table by the window and ordered the roasted lamb along with a few other signature dishes.

The food arrived quickly, the lamb glazed in rich, dark sauce soon placed before them.

Bai Roushuang picked up a steaming slice and took a bite. "Mmm, it really does taste just like I remember."

Xu Shulou also tried a piece but offered no comment.

The shopkeeper kept stealing glances at Bai Roushuang, who noticed and asked, "What is it?"

He smiled awkwardly. "You look familiar, miss."

Realizing something, Bai Roushuang said, "My surname is Bai."

The shopkeeper’s eyes lit up. "There used to be a frequent customer, also surnamed Bai. She always wore white and loved this roasted lamb dish the most. I remember her quite well—are you related?"

"...You could say that. Did she... live well?"

"Ah, I think so. After she married, her husband often brought her here."

"Her husband?" Bai Roushuang interrupted.

"Yes, that fellow surnamed Wang. The two of them were so affectionate with each other," the shopkeeper chuckled warmly. "But a few years later, she moved away with him. I don’t know how she’s doing now."

Surnamed Wang... as expected. Bai Roushuang nodded. "Thank you for telling me."

She seemed lost in thought, clearly needing to talk. Sensing this, Xu Shulou asked, "What was your mother like?"

"She was beautiful," Bai Roushuang recalled. "Delicate features, a slender figure—the kind of woman who couldn’t bear hardship, who always needed someone to take care of her."

"... "

"From what I remember, it was always Uncle Wang the Second next door looking after us. I barely recall my birth father—they say he was no good. Sometimes my mother would cry at me, calling me heartless. Every time she did, I’d panic, thinking I’d done something wrong, and try even harder to please her. Later, I realized she was just using me to vent her anger at my father."

"... "

"Sometimes she was kind to me," Bai Roushuang murmured. "Other times, she’d stare at me and sigh, saying if not for me, she wouldn’t have to live like this."

"... "

"So in the end, when she sold me off, maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised. Honestly, if she’d just done it to remarry and rid herself of a burden, I could’ve understood. But..." She paused. "What I couldn’t fathom was why she’d sell me to a brothel. Even if it had been to some wealthy household as a servant, it would’ve been better."

"Did you hate her?"

"I did," Bai Roushuang admitted frankly. "When I first arrived at the brothel, I was scrawny and too young to... work. But the madam wouldn’t let me idle, so she made me do chores. Once, I stumbled into a room with a client inside. He was furious I’d ruined his mood and kicked me hard in the stomach. That time... I nearly died."

"... "

"The pain was unbearable—so bad I couldn’t even cry. That was when I first learned what hatred felt like."

"... "

"I used to be desperate to find my mother and demand an answer," Bai Roushuang smiled faintly. "The year the madam decided I was old enough to work, I climbed out from the third floor at midnight, risking broken legs, just to ask her why. But the guards caught me, dragged me back, and beat me black and blue. Sister Lan at the brothel found it baffling. She asked why I still held onto hope. ‘Even if she had no choice when she sold you,’ she said, ‘the fact that she never once came to see you all these years proves she’s erased you from her life.’"

"... "

"Now I’m free to seek her out, to demand answers," Bai Roushuang gazed out the window. "But it feels pointless. No matter what she says, it won’t satisfy me. Maybe she has other children now. Maybe she’s become a good mother to them. But that... has nothing to do with me anymore."

"... "

"Senior Sister, I’m not ready to forgive her."

"You don’t have to."

"Wouldn’t that hinder my Dao Heart?"

Xu Shulou chuckled. "The Dao Heart isn’t measured that way. Forcing yourself to forgive those who’ve hurt you doesn’t equate to spiritual harmony. Let love, hatred, anger, and longing flow naturally."

"I see," Bai Roushuang nodded. "Then I won’t forgive her."

Xu Shulou reached out and gently stroked her hair.

"Senior Sister... do you think she ever regretted it?" Bai Roushuang suddenly asked.

"Does it matter?"

After a pause, Bai Roushuang replied, "You’re right. It doesn’t. Whether she feels remorse or justifies it—it’s none of my concern now."

"... "

"After joining Dustless Island, there was a time I wanted to flaunt my status as a cultivator in front of her. I kept wondering—if she knew I had the talent for immortality, would she regret selling me?"

Xu Shulou said softly, "Losing you was her loss. She should regret it—not because you can cultivate, but because you could’ve been the one who cared for and loved her most in this world."

A girl like Bai Roushuang, loyal and grateful, would have been her mother’s most devoted comfort—had she been raised with love.

Hearing this, Bai Roushuang finally let her tears fall.

Outside, a vendor passed by, hawking jade orchid bracelets. Distracted, she murmured, "So it’s this season again..."

When she looked back, Xu Shulou had vanished from the opposite seat, leaving only an empty bench behind.

"Senior Sister?" Bai Roushuang craned her neck, searching for her ever-elusive, yet somehow reliable, senior sister.

Xu Shulou left quickly but returned just as fast, holding two magnolia flower bracelets in her hand, which she offered to her junior sister: "For you."

Bai Roushuang sniffled. "How did you know I wanted these?"

"I didn’t. I just wanted to cheer you up." Xu Shulou carefully tied the bracelets around her junior sister’s wrist. The white magnolia blossoms were delicate and vibrant, their faint fragrance lingering on her skin.

Bai Roushuang gazed at her senior sister in silence for a long moment before speaking softly, "I no longer need my mother’s answer. She was just a part of my past, and I should have moved on long ago."

"..."

"She was the most important person in my life for the first dozen or so years. Whether it was the adoration of childhood or the hatred that came later, she was always on my mind. But not anymore. It’s been a long time since that was true." The daughter who once sought revenge was gone. The daughter who longed for her mother’s remorse no longer existed either. Even if remorse came now, it would be too late—meaningless.

"..."

"Senior Sister, you are my family now."

"..."

"After joining the sect, I found people who cherish me, who love me. The Bai Roushuang who came from the brothel—full of fear, desperately trying to please everyone—slowly disappeared after meeting you and the others."

"I could tell," Xu Shulou replied, her eyes gradually warming with a smile. "I’m happy for you."

Bai Roushuang smiled. "I suddenly feel like visiting the village again."

The two left the eatery and strolled down the street, buying a bag of sugar-roasted chestnuts to snack on as they walked. Soon, they arrived at the village where Bai Roushuang had spent her childhood.

She looked at the old locust tree at the village entrance. "I still remember this place. In autumn, a whole field of balsam flowers bloomed nearby—so beautiful. My mother always made me pick them to dye her nails."

"Can you still find the house you lived in as a child?"

"I could, but there’s no need. It’s enough to be here."

With that, Bai Roushuang knelt and kowtowed toward the village.

A group of gossiping women at the village entrance stared at her curiously, but she paid them no mind.

First ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‍bow—thank you for giving me life.

Second bow—forget your indifference and cruelty.

Third bow—our bond as mother and daughter ends here.

From now on, I will neither hate you nor forgive you. Between us, strangers we shall remain.

With this, my heart is clear, free from all lingering attachments to kinship.

As she bowed, the fresh scent of magnolia blossoms from her bracelet drifted to her nose, filling her with an unshakable calm.