Chapter 291: [Unswerving Devotion] Sneaking Out
Bai Cha and Xu Taotao squeezed together onto the single bed.
Xu Taotao was in high spirits, conversing with Bai Cha continuously.
She answered every single one of Bai Cha’s inquiries as well.
Bai Cha asked a bit about the world’s background—not posing questions so directly, naturally, but probing indirectly instead.
Xu Taotao had never stepped outside the house.
She had simply grown up inside this courtyard all along, stepping out to wander through the lantern festival on the Lantern Festival each year at most.
Apart from that, her life could be described as an absolute dead silence.
Yet whether regarding her parents or her understanding of the outside world, it remained logically coherent—after all, she had never ventured outside.
Until Bai Cha asked about spousal suicide out of love and devotion.
“Then… for married couples on your end, if one party dies, does the other perform spousal suicide as well?”
Xu Taotao paused in surprise.
She fixated a silent gaze on the bed canopy overhead, speaking only after a good while had passed: “That is precisely why I said I do not wish to marry.”
“Everyone considers that a deeply touching love story, believing that being together with someone willing to die for you proves they care about you deeply.”
“Yet I feel it is somewhat terrifying. I do not know if I am the only one who feels this way, if I am the sole oddity—I truly cannot accept it. Because if he is willing to die for me, does that not imply he will demand that I die for him as well?”
Xu Taotao looked at Bai Cha, her eyes brimming with confusion.
“I do not wish to die for anyone. Can I not simply live?”
Hearing these words, fine goosebumps rose across Bai Cha’s skin.
She pulled Xu Taotao into a brief embrace.
“You naturally possess the right to live. So spousal suicide is not voluntary then?”
Xu Taotao shook her head, saying, “I do not know, but every single married couple operates like that. If a husband or wife dies, and the surviving wife or husband refuses to commit spousal suicide, they will be pointed and whispered at by everyone.”
“Much like how if I refuse to marry, I will be driven to death by people as well.”
“I understand…” Bai Cha patted her gently.
If the plotline developed according to this trajectory, Xu Taotao’s father might pass away very soon, requiring Lady Li to commit spousal suicide—regardless of whether she personally wished to or not, she would have to perform spousal suicide.
Otherwise, she would be defying the rules of this world.
Similarly, Xu Taotao refusing to marry counted as defying the rules as well.
And so long as the rules were broken—rendering this world non-existent, or rather forcing the City Lord’s wife to reveal herself due to far too many rules being broken—a way to break the deadlock would emerge.
As for the relationship between herself and Xu Taotao, if the instance were destroyed, it ought to be resolved as well.
“Let’s go out to play tomorrow,” Bai Cha said.
Xu Taotao froze.
“Go out to play?”
No one had ever uttered such words to her before.
“Yes. However, we’ll sneak out; otherwise, your family likely won’t agree.”
Recalling the consequences of raising the idea of stepping outside to her family, Xu Taotao wrinkled her nose.
“True. If we tell them, we won’t be able to get out. So how do we sneak out?”
Bai Cha pondered for a moment.
“First, pretend to fall ill and require rest. Do not allow anyone to come into the room to disturb you.”
“Yet what if we get exposed?” Xu Taotao felt somewhat nervous.
“What is there to fear? I can act in your stead.”
Xu Taotao agreed.
“After feigning illness, how do we get outside?”
“What lies beyond that window behind you? Do servants usually pass through there? You are very familiar with this place, right? Does the house have a back door?”
Xu Taotao gave it serious thought, saying, “Behind my room lies a small garden alongside a pond. Someone goes over to clean it periodically, and it was likely just cleaned yesterday, so there shouldn’t be people around tomorrow. There is a back door over by the rear kitchen, but people are inside the kitchen.”
“Not a major issue, so long as we exercise a bit of caution.”
Infected by her assertive, confident tone, Xu Taotao nodded instantly, her heart brimming with anticipation.
“Alright, get some sleep now; otherwise, you won’t have the energy to play tomorrow,” Bai Cha patted her gently.
Knowing her own body full well, staying up late in the dead of night was a massive penalty to health.
Nodding obediently, Xu Taotao closed her eyes.
This caused the look Bai Cha cast at her to turn all the more complex.
So is this truly myself?
The next day, Bai Cha had Xu Taotao hide inside the wardrobe.
She would play the role of feigning illness.
At any rate, that body held poor health to begin with, so falling ill was a frequent occurrence. After the doctor came over for an examination, guided by her intentional and unintentional cues, he instructed her to rest in bed as well.
Lady Li refrained from coming over; hearing that she had been tending to Xu Taotao’s father all along, she merely arranged for Biyun to keep a close watch on Xu Taotao.
Bai Cha put on an act of feeling irritable and racked with pain due to illness, instructing Biyun that she was forbidden from disturbing her today—otherwise she would drive her away.
Biyun had indeed never heard such words before, scurrying outside hastily.
Thereafter, Bai Cha sat up, her eyes narrowing.
This Biyun—she indeed felt something was off about her.
Thinking back carefully, she seemed to have never addressed herself as “this servant”.
Although Bai Cha felt deep revulsion toward concepts like social hierarchies to begin with.
Yet this was a game world—a world where social hierarchies and master-servant order genuinely existed.
“Does she usually address herself as ‘I’ when talking to you as well?”
Xu Taotao paused, saying with hesitation, “I haven’t paid much attention, but it seems so…”
Although their family was merely an ordinary household without overly strict adherence to formal etiquette, a maid addressing herself as “I” would indeed draw criticism as well.
Bai Cha lowered her eyes.
She hadn’t sensed the aura of a Dodder Vine seed on Biyun, so Biyun shouldn’t be the City Lord’s wife, yet she was bound to hold a connection with the City Lord’s wife.
“Set her aside for now. Let’s go.”
Bai Cha taught Xu Taotao how to tie her clothes up to make her attire more nimble and capable; otherwise, she might fail to even leap out the window.
Xu Taotao found it quite novel; by rights, pulling the skirt hem up and tying it ought to feel rather embarrassing, yet she experienced very little such feeling.
All she could think about right now was being able to step out the door.
The window was pushed open gently.
They successfully climbed through the window, heading toward the rear kitchen.
Because Master Xu was ill, many maids and servants were prioritized toward the main courtyard up front, where more hands were needed for care.
The household held few servants to begin with, so apart from nearly bumping into someone midway, they arrived at the rear kitchen’s back door with zero real danger.
The back door was locked with a padlock, however.
“This lock is easy to pick. Keep watch for a moment—you can let your skirt down now.”
Tying up the skirt and attire was to prevent wide sleeves or flowing hems from snagging on tree branches and making noise.
Yet if they stepped onto the street dressed like that, it would draw far too much attention.
While tidying her skirt, Xu Taotao surveyed her surroundings nervously.
With a soft clack, the lock clicked open already.
Casually letting her own skirt down as well, Bai Cha took Xu Taotao by the hand, and the two slipped outside without a sound.
Right in the dead of winter, snowflakes had begun fluttering down from the sky at some unknown moment.
It remained exceedingly cold outside.
Yet Xu Taotao looked upon the outside world with greedy, brimming excitement.
She could be said to have never witnessed what the outside looked like during the daytime.
Virtually no people walked the streets, for today was already the twenty-ninth of the twelfth lunar month, with New Year’s Eve arriving tomorrow.
New Year’s goods and supplies had long been purchased.
Right now, virtually everyone was preparing for the New Year inside their homes, with no one stepping outside at all.
Yet having no people around proved all the better.
Holding Xu Taotao by the hand, Bai Cha set off into a light jog.
