Chapter 384: Darling Husband
"Why would you think I'm not from this world?" Li Meirong asked, her eyes growing wide as, instead of giving him an answer, she responded with a question of her own.
She looked completely and honestly bewildered, and Mo Cheng frowned at her with an uncertain expression.
"At first, I wasn't so sure," he admitted. "I thought you were, perhaps, a side character who had never been important enough to be introduced into the main storyline. But then, after inspecting your writing and your mathematical equations, I harboured suspicion."
At that juncture, Li Meirong's look of surprise gradually disappeared, and her eyes narrowed slightly.
A soul possession was considered a sinful deed, and it was not a topic to be easily spoken of in this particular realm. It was not unheard of for a person who had been possessed to be hunted down and exorcised like some kind of malevolent ghost come to terrorize mankind, regardless of the truth of the matter.
It was unnecessary to mention that opting for secrecy was definitely the better, and much safer, option.
As such, Li Meirong had never actually confessed her true origins to anyone. Even though she hadn't outright stated her experience of her soul transmigrating from a completely different world into her current body, she also hadn't been overly meticulous about hiding all traces of her transmigration. At least, not around those she had considered close, trustworthy friends.
Mo Cheng had been on that short list of confidants, once upon a time.
There had never really been much need for a detailed pretense, either. Since she had joined the sect and released any relations the original owner of this body might have been part of, the simple excuse of 'memory loss' had been enough to cover the traces of her unknown past.
It now seemed, however, that she had been far too lax, and not nearly cautious enough. The cat was out of the bag.
But Li Meirong was in no hurry to admit anything about her past.
Instead of admitting to Mo Cheng that he was right, she covered her face with the back of her hand and let her eyes crinkle as if she was attempting to conceal a smile.
"So you've seen my notes and writing, and now, all of a sudden, I'm supposedly from another world?" she asked, being sure to sound sceptical about it. "And what do you mean by saying I'm a side character? Talking about a storyline… are you suggesting we are stuck inside some book?"
Mo Cheng's face remained stoic at her mocking tone, and his reaction, or lack of, gave Li Meirong pause. Her nervousness grew.
How much did he know about her? And why did he sound so certain of himself?
And, worse yet, did he honestly think this whole world was just some book they had both been shoved into?
Mo Cheng closed his eyes and shook his head.
"That isn't the main reason I know you're not from here, but it certainly helped confirm my suspicions. You haven't been particularly careful about concealing your knowledge from our world. Cars… planes… toilet seats? Come on," he scoffed a little, "people here might not have a clue what they are, but I don't have to be a detective to join the dots. You know people in this sect never stop gossiping. Even if it's something you mentioned once in passing, eventually the whole sect will find out about it."
Li Meirong went pale; her private conversations with Chou hadn't gone unnoticed! Her lower lip trembled, but she remained silent, dreading what he would say next. She really wished she could go back and slap her mouth shut before she'd let such clues slip out!
Mo Cheng patted the seat beside him in silent invitation, but Li Meirong didn't budge from her spot. It was as if she was rooted to the ground.
He sighed, as if having expected her response.
"I can only imagine how shocked you must be. Yes, we are inside a book. It's a story I once read as a kid, in which the protagonist, who happens to have the same name as me and whose body I have ended up in, saves the world by defeating a great evil."
When Mo Cheng realized that Li Meirong had no intention of moving, he rose from the bench and circled her slowly.
"Here's the funny thing in all this," he said casually, as if commenting on the weather. "Every character in this sect plays a certain role in the story, one way or another. Everyone, that is, except for you." He stopped in front of her, staring at her dead in the eye. "You are not mentioned at all. It is like you are not supposed to be here, like you came to be part of this plot entirely by accident."
Li Meirong knew then that he was being utterly serious. Mo Cheng had always possessed a sunnily cheerful disposition and had, at times, laughed and told the silliest of jokes to lighten the moods of those around him. Right now, though, there was no sign of that, and that was what drove the point home. Not a trace of a smile was visible on his face at that moment.
She grasped at the sides of her robe with her fingertips, arms wrapped around herself as if in comfort, and gulped hard before she finally spoke again.
"If what you say is true, and you are the protagonist here, then how does this story end?" she asked. "How do you save the world, and who is this great evil you're supposed to defeat?"
"That's what I've been trying to tell you," Mo Cheng snapped.
Li Meirong bit her lower lip, her tone doubtful. "Wait, don't tell me you're talking about Zhu Qingyue again. Is this why you kept calling him evil and told me I shouldn't be with him?"
"My words may sound ludicrous but I speak the truth." Mo Cheng's mouth stretched thin and wide. It was almost a smile, but lacked any of the emotion that would usually be evident in one.
Li Meirong cast her gaze to the ground. She couldn't take Mo Cheng's words too seriously. Maybe he really had come from the same world as she had, like he said. But her world had no shortage of lunatics. If he couldn't come with any solid piece of evidence for his accusations, then there would be no way she'd suspect Zhu Qingyue for being some sort bad guy, based on Mo Cheng's theories alone.
"And how does this story end?" She asked again.
"The story ends with the protagonist's ascension to a different realm, along with his concubines. As for Zhu Qingyue, the one who attempts to destroy the world…" Mo Cheng's lips twisted, and he all but spat out his next words. "That is the villain I must defeat: your supposed 'darling husband'."