[To Become a River of Stars] Dong Xiange - Chapter 45

Afterward, Shiliu tried hard to ignore the corpse lying nearby—eyes wide open in death, an arrow protruding from its mouth—and focused on sealing the soul into the pearl.

Shuisheng carefully retrieved the pearl, finally sensing a familiar aura circulating within him. He couldn’t speak, only clenching his teeth tightly against the sour, aching feeling in his heart.

Shiliu watched the magistrate clutching his daughter and Shuisheng, who seemed both joyful and burdened. Her heart felt as if struck by a gong—loud and unsettling, yet she couldn’t quite grasp why.

Such entanglements were frustrating to witness, weighing on the heart for no reason.

Shiliu had never known her parents; she had grown up happily with her master and senior brothers.

Only now, seeing this, did she understand what family meant—unbreakable, inseparable, blinding the mind and severing reason, willing to do foolish things without regret.

She sighed and returned to Li Xuanci’s side, saying quietly, “It’s finally resolved. Everything should be fine now.”

But Li Xuanci’s beautiful eyes narrowed as he assessed this fool who was so easily pleased for others. He curled his lips, a cold edge to his expression.

“Fine?” His tone lifted slightly, carrying a subtle pressure.

Shiliu was puzzled. Wasn’t it fine?

Given her recent track record of being just a tad short on cleverness—and with a bloody example right there on the ground—she decided to swallow her pride and ask.

“The soul is saved, the pearl isn’t lost, the child isn’t dead, and the floods will subside. Everything’s settled.”

If she were on the mountain, Shiliu would have counted them off on her fingers, but she always maintained a dignified demeanor outside, so she only listed them verbally.

“Even if your brain is only the size of a melon seed, you should at least remember why we came here, shouldn’t you?”

Li Xuanci looked at Shiliu. Though she didn’t actually raise her hand, her fingers twitched with each item she mentioned. What was this—was she counting on an abacus like a child?

She was even more foolish than he had imagined.

Only then did Shiliu remember: she had received a secret message from her senior brother saying that a great flood was imminent here, supernatural creatures were fleeing, and there were sightings of strange, winged bird monsters—possibly the one she was looking for.

Now it seemed the creatures had fled because the dragon guarding the river had been forcibly stripped of its pearl. And the winged bird monster was likely the Huashe.

Without the dragon to suppress it, the Huashe had emerged to wreak havoc.

If… if that were the case, then while Shuisheng and the others’ problems were resolved, she, Little Shiliu, would still be stuck with this tyrant.

Shiliu barely managed to keep herself from turning into a bitter melon, swallowing her distress and bravely saying to Li Xuanci, “We can’t rush these things. We’ll just have to keep looking.”

But Li Xuanci seemed to see right through her hidden bitterness, replying with a mocking smile, “What? Getting used to clinging to me?”

His expression was openly provocative, clearly trying to provoke her.

Shiliu’s stomach churned. Pfft, who wants to cling to you? She wished she could cut the red thread on her wrist right then to prove her point.

But circumstances were against her—her life was in his hands now.

And she had just dragged him along on this wild goose chase. Feeling somewhat guilty, Shiliu could only swallow her anger for now.

“I promise I won’t cling to you, alright?” she said, hanging her head dejectedly.

Li Xuanci looked at Shiliu, docile as a quail, and inwardly scoffed.

She’s hiding her claws well this time.

How boring.

“I don’t mind letting you cling a bit longer. After all, you still owe me.”

With that, he turned and walked away, leaving Shiliu secretly throwing punches at the air behind his back in frustration.

But Li Xuanci seemed to have eyes on the back of his head.

Just as Shiliu was ferociously executing a “Black Tiger Steals the Heart” move, he turned around, forcing her chubby claws to abort mid-air and awkwardly pretend she was scratching her head.

Li Xuanci gave her a deep look, suppressing the fierce “Black Tiger” back into a meek quail before turning to leave again.

The river calmed. A breeze swept over the water, stirring the high ponytail tied with a red cord at the back of the young prince’s head.

As his black hair fluttered, one could faintly see a faint, unconscious smile on the young man’s lips.

As for the aftermath, the young prince naturally had no patience to involve himself. He dumped all responsibilities onto the magistrates and prefects, who had been slow to react, and left outright.

This trip was incognito. Although he had secretly deployed personal soldiers to ambush the island, it wasn’t appropriate to make a grand display.

So, they split into two groups: the personal soldiers remained undercover, while Li Xuanci took only his close guards like Jin Zhan and left with the deadweight.

That deadweight was Shiliu.