Willing to Be for Her - Chapter 11

The shopkeeper abruptly switched off the television.

Chi Li coughed twice, then changed the subject. “Xuanxuan, does President Ning really like the gift you gave her?”

*Gift?* Luo Xuan thought of the shattered White Sandalwood flower, a pang of sadness fleetingly crossing her heart. But only for a moment.

She wanted to give Ning Yiqing the perfect gift. If one broke, she’d simply make another.

Noticing Luo Xuan’s troubled expression, Chi Li pressed for details. After hearing the whole story, she huffed indignantly.

“That He Qiuyue is going too far! And you—President Ning just buys you off with a meal and a promise?”

“I don’t know why, but no matter how I try to blame her, I just can’t,” Luo Xuan said, her gaze drifting to some distant, unknown horizon.

She knew she had wanted He Qiuyue to pay the price she deserved. But she didn’t want Ning Yiqing to see that violent side of her again.

After rebelling for twenty years, she suddenly wanted to be obedient and sensible in front of that one person.

Luo Xuan involuntarily reached up to touch her eyes. Sometimes, when she looked in the mirror, she felt like a stranger, filled with fear.

She harbored so much anger and resentment toward the world—losing her health, her mother, her complete family; enduring others’ slander and her classmates’ ostracism. At times, she felt like a skinned monster, capable only of helpless roars.

But no one likes monsters, and Ning Yiqing probably wouldn’t either.

So, she just wanted to slowly become radiant, as radiant as the stars.

“You shouldn’t be so easily won over sometimes,” Chi Li said, scratching her head. “If someone shows you a little affection, you wag your little tail like a puppy. You need to be more reserved, more aloof. Act your age—be a bit willful, a bit spoiled. Be assertive outside, and be assertive at home too.”

Luo Xuan smiled faintly, her pale, beautiful face as translucent as dew on a bamboo leaf.

Suddenly, a commotion erupted outside the milk tea shop. A crowd was shouting someone’s name, the scene buzzing with excitement.

Several black-suited bodyguards entered the shop first, followed by a tall, striking Alpha woman in the center. She wore a radiant smile, exuding elegance and intelligence.

“It’s Luo Wei! What’s she doing back at our school when she should be filming?” Chi Li asked, her expression a mix of confusion and hostility as she glared at Luo Wei, who was being treated like a celebrity.

Luo Wei strode in, wearing a luxurious long trench coat, looking both beautiful and commanding. When she spotted Luo Xuan, her face lit up with surprise and delight.

“Sister! What a coincidence! Our film crew came to my alma mater to scout for actors, and I never expected to run into you here.”

“Indeed, what a coincidence,” Luo Xuan replied, her dark, ink-like lashes lifting slightly, her tone ambiguous as she greeted Luo Wei.

Luo Wei stood before them, poised and graceful, radiating the elegance and politeness of a seasoned actress. A crimson cord hung around her slender neck, suspending a snow-blue jade bead. Her face wore an expression of perfectly measured concern for her younger sister.

“What? Luo Xuan is Luo Wei’s sister?” A classmate who recognized Luo Xuan exclaimed, sparking a flurry of whispers. “An S-Class and a C-Class? The difference is astronomical!”

“I never would have guessed these two were sisters. One’s like an angel from heaven, the other… well, you know.” The speaker winked at his friend, sharing a knowing smirk.

Chi Li, standing nearby, overheard every word. Rumors about Luo Xuan had been circulating at school for ages.

Many had confessed their feelings to Luo Xuan, only to be rejected. Some turned to resentment, while others seethed with envy.

These people couldn’t bear to see something beautiful and good, so they sought to tear it down.

Noticing Chi Li’s furious expression, Luo Xuan gently tugged on her sleeve, her crimson lips curving into a dazzling smile. “Don’t waste your energy on these insignificant people.”

Chi Li stared blankly at Luo Xuan for a moment, her dark hair cascading over the girl’s pale face, as translucent as mountain rain after a storm. The sight stirred a pang of melancholy.

Just then, Luo Xuan’s phone vibrated. She glanced at the screen and saw a text message from Ning Yiqing.

The message was brief and bland:

I’ll be back the day after tomorrow to see you.

Just as Luo Xuan sent her reply, she looked up to see Luo Wei finishing signing autographs for her fans and gracefully approaching.

Luo Wei leaned down to sign Luo Xuan’s autograph, her voice low and husky. “Luo Xuan, a C-Class Alpha will always be considered inferior. All Omegas yearn for the mark of a higher-ranked Alpha—it’s in their nature.”

“You’re too weak,” she continued with a smile, making onlookers believe they were sisters sharing a tender moment.

Luo Xuan narrowed her eyes, silently studying Luo Wei. She understood the significance of the mark.

An Alpha forbidden from marking their Omega was no better than a despised wild beast, destined to be either abandoned or sacrificed.

“Enjoy your life while you can,” Luo Wei said, patting Luo Xuan’s shoulder with practiced grace, as if encouraging her younger sister to live life to the fullest.

The renowned celebrity departed amid a throng of admirers. Chi Li frowned as she approached. “What did she say to you? You look so troubled and upset.”

“It’s nothing,” Luo Xuan replied, shaking her head with a serene smile, her fingertip tracing the edge of the table. “Just the same old rhetoric.”

Chi Li sighed meaningfully. “Marriage has really changed you. You’ve become so patient.”

“Luo Xuan, why are you suddenly making a mask? It doesn’t quite fit your usual style, and it’s even shaped like a phoenix?” Xia Zhiwan asked softly, knocking on the door of Luo Xuan’s studio as she held a late-night snack.

“Sister Zhiwan, what brings you here?” Luo Xuan carefully set down the mask and looked at Xia Zhiwan with a slightly awkward expression.

“I was passing by and saw your light was still on, so I decided to drop in,” Xia Zhiwan said, blinking her eyes as she gazed at Luo Xuan’s fresh, youthful face. Her words were half-true, half-teasing, inviting further inquiry. “You still haven’t answered my question: why are you making a mask?”

“I’m making it as a gift.”

“A phoenix mask… what does that symbolize?” Xia Zhiwan asked, her interest piqued.

“Freedom.”

“And why would the person you’re giving it to need freedom?” Xia Zhiwan asked with a knowing smile. “Still, it’s clear you care about her deeply.”

Surprised by Xia Zhiwan’s sharp intuition, Luo Xuan’s heavy mood lightened somewhat, and her awkwardness around strangers lessened considerably.

She lowered her head, gazing at the gilded phoenix beak. Her enigmatic eyes, tinged with both confusion and resolve, murmured, “Even the shackles on the throne are still just shackles. I hope she can be freer than I ever was.”

Xia Zhiwan stared in stunned silence at the thorn-crowned girl before her, a faint tremor in her heart.

A ringing phone shattered the silence. Luo Xuan answered, Chi Li’s voice bursting through the speaker, urgent and loud.

“Xuanxuanxuan! Check the trending topics right now! I’m about to explode with anger!”

Suppressing her confusion, Luo Xuan opened Weibo on her tablet and saw the top trending topic:

#SheGaveHerTheOnlyOne#

Clicking through, she found the post:

“I’m dying from this! The CEO descended from her throne for love, plucking a snowy bead from her prayer beads and placing it like a star on the heart of her beloved. How could there be such a subtle yet utterly romantic way to express love? I’m calling it ‘Prayer Bead Romance’! The ship name is officially ‘The Only One’!”

The accompanying image was crystal-clear and breathtakingly beautiful. Luo Xuan recognized it instantly:

Ning Yiqing’s snow-blue prayer beads encircling her jade-white wrist, and a matching jade bead nestled between Luo Wei’s collarbones.

The snow-blue beads intertwined with the pale skin, sparking endless fantasies.

It was impossible not to imagine those luminous, slender hands removing the bead and fastening it around Luo Wei’s neck.