Chapter 76 Annoyed: Why can't I like you?
Zhe Qing was stunned for a full three breaths.
Mu Meng clearly felt that after she kissed his cheek and confessed her feelings to him, his whole body instantly stiffened into a statue.
However, his reaction was within her expectations. Mu Meng did not urge him and patiently waited for him to come to his senses.
A moment later, Zhe Qing seemed to snap out of a huge void. Her first action was to break free from Mu Meng's arm and take a large step back, her face showing unprecedented panic.
"Meng, Mengmeng, do you...do you know what you're doing...?"
Mu Meng looked at him innocently, then winked and smiled: "I know, I'll tell you my secret."
Zhe Qing choked for a moment.
He opened his mouth, and it took him a long time to find his voice: "Mengmeng, I'm not joking with you. How could you... how could you be so reckless? You're an innocent girl, how could you... how could you just kiss someone else like that?"
He spoke haltingly from what should have been a perfectly good conversation, but Mu Meng listened patiently until the end, his tongue still fluent: "I didn't kiss anyone else. Didn't I say I like you? So I'll only kiss you?"
Zhai Qing seemed even more agitated, her fingers trembling.
Although she knew he was wearing a disguise, a faint blush had already crept onto her cheeks, and even her slender neck and fair ears were completely red.
"...Wh-what?? Mengmeng, how could you say such a thing? Don't you even know how to think about yourself? There are only the two of us here, how come you don't know how to protect yourself? Do you even know me? What if you get bullied if you do this?"
Mu Meng looked him over thoughtfully, then nodded and said, "Indeed, your spiritual power is a little bit higher than mine."
She took a step forward and retorted, "Are you bullying me?"
Zheqing immediately took a step back.
Mu Meng stepped forward again and asked, "Are you bullying me?"
Zheqing took three steps back.
Look, who's bullying whom here? Mu Meng struggled to suppress her laughter. "Hey, you said that long speech just now, it was pretty impressive. Why are you hiding? Don't back down anymore."
Zhe Qing was indeed very obedient. She told him not to back up, and he actually stood still obediently, not daring to move.
Although he didn't move, he raised his hand and gently stroked the uneven scars on his face, a quiet look of frustration and sadness appearing in his eyes.
Mu Meng understood his expression at a glance, and at the same time, she couldn't help but feel a pang of pity for him—he wasn't sad because she had kissed him, but because he was insecure and self-loathing. She had kissed his scar, and he was sad for her.
“Covering up the blue…”
"How could you like me? How could you like me..." He seemed utterly incredulous, shaking his head as he murmured, "What's so good about me?"
He looked as if he was about to cry. "How could you like me? I am all alone and have nothing. I don't even have a healthy body or a normal appearance. You—you are a princess of the Celestial Clan. You have so many outstanding talents around you... General Xuantian of the Celestial Clan, the Second Young Master of Yunze Realm, the Crown Prince of the Demon Clan, and even the Ghost King of the Ghost Realm. Aren't all of them a thousand times better than me in terms of character, appearance, and family background? How could you like me?"
Mu Meng raised her chin: "Why not? They're all great too, but I don't like them. I only like you."
Zhe Qing seemed to have suffered a huge blow, as if she had jumped out from between the two of them and become an objective third party, repeatedly blaming herself, "How am I worthy? You don't even know what I look like, what my background is, or what my name is. How can you be so aggrieved? Why do you like me?"
“Yes,” Mu Meng said earnestly, her eyes bright, “I don’t even know what you really look like, your specific background, or your original name, but I still like you very much. Doesn’t that just prove that you are more outstanding and more worthy of liking than the rest of the world?”
What kind of twisted logic is this? Zhe Qing took a long time to process it before retorting in a low voice, "I'm not worthy. We haven't known each other for very long, so you have no idea what kind of person I really am. You've only seen one side of me. Do you know that I was once a wicked person who committed countless evil deeds?"
Looking at his expression, Mu Meng smiled slightly and said, "Maybe, but I know that truly bad people don't go around shouting that they are bad, and those who realize they have done bad things will definitely repent and make amends. You have always done that."
She looked at him and said, "If you were really as bad as you say, you wouldn't be the way you are now."
He never concealed the scars on his face, openly exposing the defects in his body, as if they were his shackles, waiting for his crimes to be brought into the world;
From the moment he entered the world, he tirelessly eliminated evil and protected the righteous, killing one villain after another, yet he dared not reveal his face or leave his name, as if he did not deserve people's gratitude and love.
He never valued his own life and always risked his life to save others, as if the lives of everyone in the world had to come before his own.
Maybe so, maybe he was a bad person.
But now, even he himself doesn't realize that his kindness and compassion are already ingrained in his very bones.
She likes him—he's a good person, why can't she like him?
Zhe Qing understood Mu Meng's meaning. After a moment of silence, she said quietly, "I'm just atoning for my sins. Don't think too highly of me. Perhaps I've done a few good deeds, but that's nothing. How can the light of a firefly compare to the bright moonlight? Your Highness, you are like the rosy clouds in the sky, pure and untainted. Why would you be so unwilling to befriend the mud?"
This was the first time he had suppressed all his gentleness, his tone so cold and distant, as if he were desperately trying to distance himself from her.
Mu Meng looked at him, feeling helpless and heartbroken. Zhe Qing spoke seemingly indifferently, but his voice was unsteady, and even his long, curled eyelashes trembled slightly. One could imagine the inner conflict he was going through.
After thinking for a moment, she took a few steps forward and walked to Zhe Qing's side: "Alright, there's no need to say these things. Do you think I'll obediently give up on you and turn away just because you belittle yourself a few times? Zhe Qing, I know you never lie to me. Raise your head and look at me honestly."
She was gentle yet firm, and her words seemed to have a magical power. Zhe Qing involuntarily raised her head, her helpless gaze falling silently onto Mu Meng's clear black and white eyes.
"Don't think too much. I'm just telling you now, I like you. Do you like me?" Mu Meng asked him frankly and directly, her eyes smiling.
He immediately added, "No silence, no beating around the bush, answer me."
Whether he has a physical disability, an unattractive appearance, a low social status, or feels inferior and self-loathing—as long as he likes him, none of these things matter.
Zhe Qing closed her eyes resignedly, then gave a bitter laugh: "Your Highness is like a gentle breeze and a bright moon; who wouldn't admire you?"
"It's good that he's willing to tell the truth," Mu Meng's smile widened even more: "Then..."
"But this kind of admiration is like a drifting duckweed relying on a towering mountain. It's perfectly normal for a tiny thing to be amazed by the brilliance of another. After that, the drifting duckweed went with the wind, while the mountain stood tall. Your Highness, I am just an insignificant passerby in your life. Please don't pity me like that. I really don't deserve it."
He truly didn't understand how things had turned out this way. What had he done to entice Mengmeng to take notice?
Zhe Qing's eyes reddened as she tried her best to finish speaking calmly, and finally sighed softly: "Mengmeng, you just feel sorry for me because you think I'm pitiful. I know you're kind-hearted, but don't make yourself suffer like this."
Mu Meng was already somewhat displeased when he called her "Princess" several times, but this sentence ignited her anger, sending flames soaring to the top of her head: "Sympathy? Why should I sympathize with you? You stand upright, act chivalrously, hate evil, and are free-spirited. You are intelligent, resourceful, and possess great spiritual power. Although you bear scars, you have never uttered a single word of complaint. Ordinary people would only feel admiration and respect for someone like you. Why would I sympathize with you?"
"Feeling wronged? What do I have to feel wronged about? I like someone, and I openly and honestly tell them. I don't hold back and hide it, leaving myself with regrets. Why would I feel wronged? You're the one who should feel wronged!"
Zhe Qing's thin lips were slightly pursed, the curve revealing a sense of helplessness. His gaze was soft, and his tone was gentle: "Mengmeng, don't be angry. I never wanted to make you angry."
Mu Meng remained silent for a moment. She didn't want to be angry with Zhe Qing either. She knew he was sensitive and insecure, and it was impossible for him to accept her feelings immediately. She had originally planned to talk to him properly and take it slowly.
But listening to what he just said, not a single word of it was pleasing to the ear.
Seeing that her attitude had softened, Zhe Qing sighed almost imperceptibly, his heart aching with pity and tenderness: Not to mention that he was completely unworthy of Mengmeng, he didn't even have a normal lifespan. Anyone who truly loved Mengmeng could bear to see her jump into a fire pit.
And of course, it was himself. He loved her and wanted her to be safe and happy more than anyone else. He desperately hoped that someone could love Mengmeng deeply for a lifetime, but that person could not be himself.
He would no longer lie to her, but he could not reveal his true identity.
He would rather endure more torment than bring Mengmeng even the slightest bit of misery.
Zhe Qing clenched her fist and pressed it to her lips, cleared her throat and coaxed softly, "Mengmeng, you must be tired from standing here for so long. Go inside and rest for a while. I'll go prepare something for you to eat, okay?"
Mu Meng looked him up and down, a vague guess forming in her mind, but she held back for now, raising an eyebrow and saying, "So we're not going to talk about this anymore?"
"You rest for a while, we'll talk later..."
Mu Meng sneered: "Forget it. Don't think I don't know what you're thinking. When I open my eyes again after I've rested, I'll surely see the place deserted again, right? I can't say anything about your other abilities, but your ability to run away is the best in the Six Realms. Do you think I would let myself go through this infuriating feeling again?"
Zhe Qing was stunned, then waved her hand slightly and said, "No..."
Mu Meng angrily picked up a small wooden stick from the ground and threw it at him, but the stick was too light. It hit him with a "thud" and fell to the ground without him even noticing. Zhe Qing's clothes didn't even tremble.
Mu Meng didn't think his revenge was childish. After throwing the tree branch at the person, he said viciously, "I've seen through you! If you run away this time, you'll avoid me from now on! Dream on! I won't give you another chance to run away. I won't let myself be humiliated again. I'm leaving now!"
She angrily threw down a sentence and turned to leave.
In a panic, Zhe Qing immediately rushed forward to chase after her, but stopped after taking two steps. Oh well, these chance encounters were already his sins. Since Mengmeng wanted to leave, he should let her go. He must not disturb her or disturb her peace of mind any further.
He didn't chase after it. Instead, he walked to the side, picked up the silver mask from the ground, gently brushed off the dust, and flicked away a withered blade of grass.
Zhe Qing forced himself to focus on the thing in his hand, barely managing to concentrate on wiping his mask clean. His body and soul seemed to be separated; his heart had already followed it, but his eyes were still fixed on something unimportant.
After a long while, his hands finally paused slightly.
Zhe Qing resignedly closed her eyes, but finally couldn't help herself. She suddenly strode to the door and looked in the direction Mu Meng had left.
But they had already disappeared without a trace.
Zhe Qing stood there blankly for a long time, then slowly raised her hand and gently covered the cheek that Mu Meng had just kissed. Her fingertips caressed the cheek inch by inch, where the softness and warmth of Mu Meng's lips seemed to still linger.
Mengmeng kissed him.
She said she liked him.
Finally, Zhe Qing began to smile little by little.
His smile looked worse than his tears.
...
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