The Villain is Soft and Clingy [Transmigration] - Chapter 16
Zhang Lan’s eyes suddenly widened. She looked up in disbelief, stammering, “…Sen-Senior Sister?”
Xia Zhitiao smiled at her, her eyes curving slightly, and gently comforted her, “Don’t be afraid.”
Zhang Lan’s breathing instantly lightened. Her eyes grew even redder. Her left hand was tightly held by Xia Zhitiao, and her right hand hung by her waist, nervously clutching her clothes.
“Junior Sister Xia, you don’t know, disciple Yuan Shuang found a sound-recording stone that recorded the entire process,” Huai Ruishi said gravely. “The evidence is ironclad. Why are you still defending her?”
“Everyone, although I haven’t spent much time with my junior sister, I believe in her character,” Xia Zhitiao faced the crowd, speaking slowly, word by word. “She would never do such a thing.”
“Senior Sister, don’t be fooled by her fake appearance,” some disciples couldn’t stand it and shouted. “This person claims to want a detailed investigation, but she’s completely uncooperative!”
Huai Ruishi nodded and said, “We have already seen the sound-recording stone footage. This person has malicious intent and cruel methods, and will certainly receive severe punishment.”
“Exactly! Earlier, she even accused the masters of inaction, saying she’d dismantle the Yashan main hall and throw it into the lake.” The crowd chattered, indignant.
*…Wow, when I wasn’t around, was the soft and cute junior sister actually that ferocious?*
Xia Zhitiao instinctively turned to look, just as Zhang Lan looked up, timidly gazing at her.
Her face was pale, her thin lower lip bitten until it showed a hint of bl00d. Her eyes were misty: “Senior Sister, it wasn’t me.”
“It really, really wasn’t me,” her voice was very low, murmuring repeatedly, “I, I would never…”
*This child, junior sister, is actually so insecure.* Xia Zhitiao comforted her, “It’s alright, why are you nervous?”
“If you’re scared, then I’ll say it again for you to hear.”
Xia Zhitiao released Zhang Lan’s hand. Seeing the other’s expression instantly tense, she smiled and ruffled her hair, her voice serious: “Listen closely.”
“Zhang Lan, I believe you.”
“Regardless of whether their so-called evidence is true or false, from me personally, from my heart, from my intuition—I believe you.”
Xia Zhitiao saw Zhang Lan staring blankly at her, looking dumbfounded. She couldn’t help but reach out and pinch her still slightly reddened cheek, teasing, “With that timid look of yours, even holding hands makes you tremble. How could you possibly do such a thing?”
Her voice wasn’t loud or quiet, nor was she deliberately concealing it. Everyone in the main hall heard it clearly and couldn’t help but exchange glances, their discussions softening.
The bearded Grand-master, who had been out of the loop for a long time and ignored by everyone, quietly “coughed,” rubbing his beard, and meekly said, “Actually, Zhang Lan is a child I knew from before, and I also feel there’s something fishy about this matter.”
Xia Zhitiao: “…………”
*You, as the Grand-master, have the most authority to speak, yet you watched for half a day before finally speaking up. What were you doing earlier?!*
Huai Ruishi, sitting on the high platform, was silent for a moment, then slowly spoke: “Since Grand-master Hu and Junior Sister Xia have expressed themselves this way, I apologize for my previous presumptuous remarks.”
He stood up, his hair crown tied high, looking dignified and naturally authoritative.
“However, before concluding, I would like to invite Junior Sister Xia, along with all of us, to watch the contents of the sound-recording stone once more.”
Saying this, he slightly raised a hand, and a disciple respectfully presented a dark green stone tablet. “Junior Sister Xia, what do you think?”
“Good,” Xia Zhitiao nodded without hesitation. “But no matter how many times you play it, it won’t change anything. I believe Zhang Lan.”
Huai Ruishi didn’t respond. He calmly placed his fingers over the sound-recording stone. Streaks of light flowed within the dark green crystal, and countless light dots leaped out in succession, forming clear images in the empty hall.
In the footage, Xia Zhitiao exchanged blows with “Zhang Lan” over ten times. Unable to defeat her opponent, she was injured in the abdomen and pushed into Shuijing Lake.
The last segment paused exactly on “Zhang Lan’s” face, with details fully exposed. Anyone who had seen Zhang Lan could almost certainly confirm it was the same person.
Xia Zhitiao knew the problem, scoffing inwardly, but the junior sister herself… seemed to be seeing it for the first time.
Zhang Lan was extremely nervous throughout, flustered and losing all color in her face by the end: “This, this, could it really be me who injured Senior Sister—”
Xia Zhitiao slapped her on the back of the head, stopping the child’s wild thoughts: “Are you silly? This person is fake.”
“The footage isn’t complete; it’s only a small excerpt intended to mislead everyone,” Xia Zhitiao explained to the crowd. “I already noticed something was off about that person during the fight.”
Huai Ruishi said, “Then, Junior Sister Xia, have you ever seen that person’s true face, or is there a difference in their voices?”
“This…” Xia Zhitiao paused, momentarily speechless.
The most infuriating thing about that person was how good their disguise was. They never took off the mask, and even their voice was perfectly imitated. Xia Zhitiao truly didn’t know who they were.
“Junior Sister Xia, then may I assume: you cannot confirm that person is not Zhang Lan.”
Huai Ruishi’s tone shifted, saying, “You are simply, out of personal affection, choosing to shield her, even when she tried to take your life.”
His words were loaded, deliberately guiding the implication. Zhang Lan’s face was pale, her voice trembling: “Senior Sister…”
“Mm, I’m here,” Xia Zhitiao tightened her grip on her hand and whispered, “It’s alright.”
Huai Ruishi was aggressive. Xia Zhitiao couldn’t immediately think of a counter, so she had to grit her teeth and say, “It’s not shielding. I… I have evidence that it wasn’t her.”
“Please,” Huai Ruishi nodded.
*I don’t have evidence! Can I just say I’m relying on a woman’s sixth sense…?* Xia Zhitiao’s face was calm, but she was anxious inside.
Just as she was pondering whether to fabricate something, an unexpected group appeared at the main hall entrance.
Qin Zhi slowly walked in, followed by a line of disciples.
Wang Yan tugged at her brother, craning her neck to peek. Catching sight of Zhang Lan, who was slumped with her head down, she exclaimed in surprise, “Oh, she’s actually here!”
Qin Zhi rubbed her forehead, “Wang Yan.”
Called out, Wang Yan immediately stepped forward. The fourteen-year-old bright young girl bowed respectfully: “Grand-master Hu, Senior Brother Huai.”
She straightened her back, her voice clear: “Zhang Lan and I share a room. Yesterday morning, we practiced swordplay all morning, with Master Qin supervising.”
Qin Zhi nodded slightly in agreement.
Wang Yan said, “Zhang Lan was with me until noon, but she was a bit absent-minded during sword practice…”
“Get to the point,” Qin Zhi interrupted her.
Wang Yan stuck out her tongue and continued, “Then Senior Sister Lu said Senior Sister Xia was missing, and Zhang Lan panicked. She even forgot her things and rushed out to look for you.”
Xia Zhitiao quickly added, “I was struck in the early morning, so Junior Sister should have still been at the training grounds.”
Qin Zhi begrudgingly agreed, “That is true.”
Qin Zhi was much more reliable than the bearded Grand-master. Since she was willing to speak up, the junior sister should be fine. Just then, another disciple stepped forward.
Xia Zhitiao actually recognized her. That was Mu Si, the top disciple of Zhang Lan’s batch, but she was very low-key and rarely spoke.
Mu Si’s face was expressionless as she said, “One more thing: height.”
At first, no one understood what she meant, but when Mu Si reached out and adjusted one of the frames on the sound-recording stone, they suddenly understood—
In the recorded footage, “Zhang Lan” had a similar build to Xia Zhitiao, so when she attacked with a bent arm, the dagger happened to pierce the abdomen. However, in the main hall, Zhang Lan, even when standing straight, only reached Xia Zhitiao’s shoulder, a full head shorter.
“Height doesn’t match,” Mu Si said slowly. “Not the same person.”
Xia Zhitiao turned to look at a certain unhappy-looking shorty and couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle.
“…” Zhang Lan puffed her cheeks, glaring resentfully at Xia Zhitiao.
“Alright, alright, I won’t laugh,” Xia Zhitiao said, suppressing her laughter and comforting her. “I won’t rub your head anymore. You still have a chance to grow taller.”
“Rub it if you want,” Zhang Lan grumbled. “Only you can rub it.”
Xia Zhitiao was amused, thinking this child was the epitome of saying one thing and meaning another.
Huai Ruishi was silent for a moment, then said, “I was too aggressive. Disciple Zhang Lan, I apologize to you.”
Zhang Lan now felt emboldened, glaring fiercely at him. Her small action, to Xia Zhitiao’s eyes, was inexplicably cute.
Huai Ruishi paused, then continued, “I will thoroughly investigate this matter with the disciples of Jingting Peak and will certainly provide a clear answer to everyone, clearing the name of the wrongly accused.”
Huai Ruishi’s words were rather vague. He spoke of “clearing a name” but didn’t directly mention Zhang Lan’s name.
Xia Zhitiao suspected he still doubted the junior sister, but it was awkward to say so given Master Qin Zhi’s presence.
—
At any rate, having escaped this ordeal, Xia Zhitiao breathed a sigh of relief. She also released Zhang Lan’s hand, which she had been holding.
“Senior Sister,” Zhang Lan still seemed a bit anxious. She nervously looked up and softly asked, “Um, is your injury better now?”
Xia Zhitiao smiled sweetly and said, “Much better already.”
Strangely, despite such a severe injury yesterday, her spiritual power was unusually abundant, flowing smoothly, showing signs of overflowing. She should be able to break through another realm soon.
The junior sister breathed a sigh of relief, lowering her head, and murmured, “That’s good.”
“Oh, don’t cry anymore,” Xia Zhitiao said, feeling a little heartbroken, pinching Zhang Lan’s nose. “Your eyes are so red, like a little rabbit’s.”
Zhang Lan felt wronged and whispered, “I didn’t.”
While the two were chatting, Wang Yan, pulling her brother with one hand and Mu Si with the other, rushed over: “Zhang Lan!”
Zhang Lan looked up at them, reluctantly saying, “Thanks.”
“Your thanks are so unwilling, I don’t even want them!”
Wang Yan put her hands on her hips and said, “So what was going on with you yesterday morning? You were absent-minded during sword practice, and then you even sent your sword flying! My wrist still hurts!”
Zhang Lan paused, saying nothing.
Wang Yan didn’t care and continued on her own: “And when Senior Sister Xia went missing, you clutched Senior Sister Lu’s collar so tightly, your expression was terrifying, full of murderous intent!”
“Wang Yan,” Wang Ze interrupted his sister helplessly. “That’s enough.”
Wang Yan pouted, then turned to Xia Zhitiao, asking with considerable curiosity: “Senior Sister Xia, you fell into Shuijing Lake. Who saved you?”
Author’s Note:
Zhang Kuang: If it weren’t for Taotao stopping me, your Yashan Sect would already be gone.