The Black Lotus Stole the White Moonlight (GL) - Chapter 13
Mu Tianyin’s embrace was cold, yet fragrant.
Bai An’an threw herself into her arms, wrapping her arms around her slender waist, wiping her tear-streaked face on her snow-white lapel.
Mu Tianyin naturally knew how Bai An’an’s candied hawthorn had disappeared.
So, she loosely held the frail girl, raised her arm, and gently patted her shoulder and back, “Don’t be sad. If you like it, I’ll buy you another.”
Bai An’an raised her head from her embrace, her face still covered in tears, her red eyes pitiful, she shook her head, “It’s not the same.”
Mu Tianyin looked puzzled, “How is it different?”
Bai An’an was silent for a moment, looked at her, then lowered her eyelashes and whispered, “It was the first gift I’ve ever received in my life.”
She lowered her little head, revealing only the fluffy top of her hair, her small body sitting in Mu Tianyin’s arms, her figure thin, making her even more lovable.
Mu Tianyin’s eyelashes trembled slightly, her finger raised, fell, and landed on Bai An’an’s head.
For the first time, she felt helpless, not knowing how to comfort this little girl. She could only silently rub her head as a form of comfort.
After a long time, she slowly uttered, “It’s okay, I’ll buy you more in the future.”
Hearing this, Bai An’an couldn’t help but chuckle. She lifted her small face and looked at Mu Tianyin with a smile, “Fairy sister, is that all you can say?”
Mu Tianyin looked at her with gentle eyes, a slight smile appearing at the corners of her mouth, “Whatever you want, you can ask me…”
Bai An’an reached out and placed her finger on Mu Tianyin’s soft lips.
Her warm fingertip touched her soft, cold lips, causing Mu Tianyin to feel a moment of distraction.
Bai An’an paused, then whispered, “I don’t want anything.”
She looked at Mu Tianyin, pursed her lips, and said, “Fairy sister, is there any way to make An’an grow up faster?”
“I want to grow up quickly and learn skills from fairy sister. When An’an becomes strong, I can take mother back to the outside world.”
“You don’t know, my mother came from outside. She doesn’t like it here, I know.”
Mu Tianyin softly asked, “Even if your mother hits you, it’s okay?”
Bai An’an shook her head, her tone serious, “I don’t blame her. Mother gave birth to An’an and gave An’an food. An’an is already very satisfied.”
Mu Tianyin was stunned, not expecting her to say such a thing.
Bai An’an glanced at the dark night outside the window, lowered her eyelashes, and said, “I know, if mother doesn’t want me, I’ll have to live like those little beggars, exposed to the elements, not knowing where my next meal will come from.”
“There’s also Xiao Tao and sister Cuiyan here, they’re all very kind to me.” She lifted her face, illuminated by the moonlight outside the window, her eyes softened, and her whole little face seemed to glow.
After a long time, her childish voice softly sounded, “Besides, I have fairy sister!”
“Fairy sister, you gave An’an a gift, and An’an wants to give you a gift too.” Saying this, her bright eyes dimmed, “Unfortunately, An’an has no money, so she can’t give you anything.”
Even though she was in a dark place, she yearned for light, her heart was open and honest, without a trace of gloom.
What was this? In Bai An’an’s own words, she was practically radiating the light of a saint!
She didn’t believe that even after she had gone this far, Mu Tianyin wouldn’t be moved.
Bai An’an secretly glanced at Mu Tianyin from the corner of her eye. Seeing the light flickering in her eyes, she guessed that she must be very unsettled, so she immediately became smug.
If Mu Tianyin wasn’t in front of her, she would have laughed out loud.
She pursed her lips, barely managing to keep herself from being too complacent.
Mu Tianyin sat by her bed until she fell asleep before leaving.
When Bai An’an woke up the next day, rubbing her eyes and climbing out of bed, Mu Tianyin was gone.
This time, she had asked Mu Tianyin to explore all her ‘memories’ in one go, so she had to give her another dose of strong medicine before her scumbag father appeared.
A knock sounded on the wooden door, three knocks, and then the door was pushed open rudely.
Xiao Tao stood at the door, looking excited, and shouted to Bai An’an, “An’an! Come out quickly, Master Chen is here!”
Seeing Bai An’an still sitting on the bed, looking confused, she rushed over in a few steps, grabbed Bai An’an’s hand, and tried to pull her off the bed.
She pulled her while saying, “Master Chen is the most generous! If we go up and pour tea and water and say a few auspicious words, we can get a tael of silver as a reward!”
Bai An’an quickly stopped her, saying, “No, I’m not going.”
Xiao Tao scratched her cheek in confusion, tilting her head, “But if you have money, you can buy lots and lots of candied haws!”
Hearing this, Bai An’an’s eyes suddenly lit up.
She blinked, seeming to think of something, hurriedly got out of bed and dressed, and then, without Xiao Tao needing to persuade her, she pulled her hand and ran quickly to the hall.
Master Chen was a well-known playboy in the vicinity, indulging in debauchery.
When Bai An’an and Xiao Tao arrived at the hall, the first floor was already crowded with people.
Several young men in silk and satin sat on round stools, holding folding fans, leering at the girls, and no one knew which one was Master Chen.
Bai An’an and Xiao Tao had heard of Master Chen’s lavish generosity, but they had never seen what he looked like. Now that there were three young men sitting in the hall, they looked at each other in confusion.
Xiao Tao scratched her head, “What should we do? I don’t know which one is Master Chen.”
Bai An’an said, “We’ll find out by asking, but Master Chen’s friends should be just as generous, right?”
Xiao Tao nodded, saying confidently, “Then we’ll each choose one? And split the reward later?”
Bai An’an nodded.
They each went up to one of the men.
Bai An’an approached a young man in white.
The young man in white was holding a beautiful woman in green in his arms, and upon closer inspection, it was a familiar face.
Bai An’an glanced at Cuiyan, then poured a glass of wine for the young man in white, keeping her eyes down.
Just as the glass was filled, she suddenly heard a childish cry of surprise.
Bai An’an’s eyes flickered slightly, and she immediately looked up.
She saw across the table, a greasy-faced young man grabbing Xiao Tao’s hand and lightly stroking her chin.
Master Chen, who was sitting here, raised his eyebrows in surprise, “Brother Li, what are you up to?”
Leaving the beautiful women aside, he was flirting with a young girl.
Master Li curled his lips, giving a lewd smile, “A pear blossom pressing a crabapple, the flowers are still better when they’re fresh. Brother Chen, you don’t know the beauty of it.”
Xiao Tao didn’t know what was happening, but she instinctively felt scared. She looked at Bai An’an, stammering, “An’an…”
Master Li followed Xiao Tao’s gaze and immediately saw Bai An’an pouring wine for Master Chen across the table.
He looked her up and down, his eyes suddenly lighting up, “You, come here and let me take a look.”
Bai An’an trembled, walked over uneasily, and looked at Master Li timidly.
Master Li released Xiao Tao’s hand, grabbed Bai An’an’s chin, and lifted her face to examine her carefully.
Xiao Tao, having regained her freedom, didn’t want the reward anymore. She glared at Bai An’an and ran away.
Seeing Xiao Tao running away without hesitation, Bai An’an’s lips curled into a mocking smile, which quickly disappeared.
She deliberately looked sad and stood still, letting Master Li hold her chin and examine her.
Master Li was more and more satisfied, reaching out to touch Bai An’an’s face, “A good piece of goods, born with charm at such a young age. Given time, you’ll be limitless.”
Although Bai An’an looked thin and weak, her features were still there.
Before, she was just too young to be noticed.
Now, she had met Master Li, this pervert—
In Bai An’an’s memory, there were indeed two characters, Master Chen and Master Li.
Master Chen was just an ordinary playboy, and he hadn’t offended her.
But this Master Li in front of her…
Bai An’an narrowed her eyes slightly, a flash of red light passing through them.
If it weren’t to trick Mu Tianyin, why would she let this trash touch her face?
Even if it was just a memory, it made her so disgusted that she wanted to chop off his dirty hand right then and there.
“An’er…” A voice suddenly broke Bai An’an’s thoughts.
Her cheap mother, draped in a long purple gauze, walked down the stairs from the second floor, exuding charm.
She walked gracefully to Master Li, reached out to adjust the long hair that had fallen on her shoulder, and said in a delicate voice, “I wonder if a flower like Ziyuan can catch Master Li’s eye?”
Her cheap mother was the top courtesan in the brothel and rarely showed her face.
Her descent at this moment gave the three men a great deal of face.
The matter was thus glossed over.
After returning to her room, Bai An’an thanked her cheap mother awkwardly.
Her cheap mother sat in front of the dressing mirror, combing her long hair, and said casually, “I didn’t help you. An’er, how old are you this year?”
Bai An’an was stunned. In the world of memories, she could set her age as she pleased. Looking at her current stature, she was probably almost seven?
Her cheap mother said slowly, “In a few years, you’ll be able to receive guests too.”
She turned to look at her, her expression calm, “I’ll help you this time. Next time, you’ll have to fend for yourself.”
Her cheap mother saw the look of despair on Bai An’an’s face and revealed a pleased expression. She walked over, leaned in, and looked at her, “Remember, once you enter a brothel, you’re no longer pure. You might as well receive guests like the prostitutes in the brothel.” She patted the child’s thin face.
Bai An’an seemed to wake up from a dream, looking at her in disbelief, and shouted, “I don’t want to!”
A slap suddenly landed on Bai An’an’s face, turning her head to the side.
Her chin was grabbed forcefully, and her cheap mother’s twisted face was right in front of her, “Who do you think you are looking down on? It’s me, a prostitute, who raised you! What’s wrong with me letting you stay in the brothel?! Where else can you go? Or do you want to be like that b1tch Cuiyan, being infatuated with a man?”
Bai An’an covered one side of her face, her eyes red, “I’m not looking down on mother, I just don’t like this. I want to learn skills from the fairy sister! And then take mother out!”
Her cheap mother released her grip, as if listening to a fairy tale. She pointed at her, laughing uncontrollably, “You? Don’t dream!”
Bai An’an rebelled against her cheap mother for the first time, clenching her fists and holding them in front of her, stubbornly staring at her, “The fairy sister said she would accept me as a disciple!”
She threw down these words forcefully, ignoring everything, and turned and ran out.
She ran to the backyard in one breath, squatting there, panting.
Xiao Tao caught up with her, her face red, and stuffed a handful of loose silver into her hand, “An’an, I’m sorry… I was wrong just now.”
Bai An’an stubbornly refused to take the money, hugging her legs and squatting on the ground, burying her little head.
Seeing that she was unyielding, Xiao Tao became annoyed, “What’s wrong with you? I already apologized!”
Bai An’an looked up at her with red eyes, saying something out of the blue, “I’ll have the fairy sister teach me magic and leave here…”
“What fairy sister? What nonsense are you talking about?” Xiao Tao looked at her, confused.
“I’m not talking nonsense, there is a fairy sister!” Bai An’an shouted, then rushed over, took the loose silver from her hand, and turned and ran.
Holding the silver, she stood on the crowded street, looking lost, not knowing where to go.
Several children, holding windmills and paper kites, ran past her, laughing and carefree.
Bai An’an immediately looked envious, her eyes falling on the toys in the children’s hands.
A tall figure, dressed in white, immaculate, appeared beside Bai An’an. She looked down and softly asked, “Do you want them?”
Hearing Mu Tianyin’s voice, Bai An’an narrowed her eyes, and after a moment, she looked surprised and opened her palm to her, “Fairy sister! An’an has money!”
She swept away her sad look and excitedly chattered, “Whatever fairy sister wants to buy, you can tell An’an, and An’an will buy it for you!”
She still had a bright red handprint on her face, tears still wet in the corners of her eyes, and she hadn’t even mentioned what had just happened.
Even though she knew Mu Tianyin had the ability to solve these problems for her, even to avenge her.
Mu Tianyin looked at the childish child, and her cold heart suddenly became both sore and soft.
For the first time, Bai An’an’s image was completely imprinted in her tea-colored eyes. She raised her arm, placed her finger on her head, and sighed, “Okay.”
“If there’s anything I want, I’ll definitely ask you for it.”