Ao Cunxin was carried, still unconscious, into the stone chamber where Anna Yang lived. It took considerable effort to wake her, and the moment she opened her eyes to see Monkey King and the ring of demons, she burst into tears again. She said nothing at all—just cried and cried.
Her sobbing was so relentless it left Anna Yang frazzled and exhausted; no amount of comfort could soothe her. In the end, Anna had no choice but to drive Monkey and the rest out of the room.
Only after Anna closed the door did Ao Cunxin's state improve a little. Anna herself finally felt a bit of relief.
But it was only a little. After staring blankly at Anna Yang for a while, Ao Cunxin suddenly covered her face and began sobbing again.
"Sister-in-law, why are you crying again...?"
Gripping Anna's hand, Ao Cunxin wiped her tears and choked out, "Sister, you have to help me. Your brother—he’s heartless! A cad! He said it was a fake divorce, but I’ve been stuck at Guang River Estuary for half a month and he hasn’t visited once. I knew it! He never truly loved me. He only married me because the Heavenly Court declared a drought at Guang River Estuary and needed me to bring rain. That heartless man, that cold lover! So ungrateful!"
As she spoke, she tugged at the bedding and pounded the mattress, making a loud racket.
Anna Yang was speechless. She wiped a cold sweat from her brow and sighed, "Didn’t you help him bring rain even before he married you?"
"That’s not the same!" Ao Cunxin cried. "He must have been afraid that if he didn’t marry me, I wouldn’t help him with the rain anymore. With a dragon at home, he’d never worry about drought. That’s got to be it. Now that the drought’s gone, he’s abandoned me! Boo hoo hoo... He starts out loving me and ends up tossing me aside! Now he’s got someone new and forgets the old love!"
"Do you really think my brother would find someone new?"
"Why wouldn’t he? Just because you haven’t found out, doesn’t mean it isn’t happening. Maybe some fox spirit has bewitched him, turning him cold and heartless. He never used to be like this—that heartless man! Scoundrel! Scoundrel, scoundrel, scoundrel! I’ll never see him again, never ever!"
Anna Yang was at a loss for words. She could only sit there, watching Ao Cunxin cry and cry, wringing the handkerchief dry again and again, until finally exhaustion forced her to stop.
At last there was a moment of quiet, but it truly was just a moment.
After a brief silence, Ao Cunxin lifted her head, gazed at Anna Yang with hopeful eyes, and edged closer, clutching her arm. In a small, pouty voice, she asked, "Sister, when are you going back to Guang River Estuary?"
"Why?"
"I want to go back with you. He’s divorced me, but he hasn’t cut ties with you as his sister. He’ll definitely see you..."
"Didn’t you just say you never wanted to see him again in this life?"
Ao Cunxin’s lips trembled, her brows knit, and it looked like she was about to cry again.
Anna Yang hurriedly exclaimed, "Alright, alright, I take back what I just said."
Only then did Ao Cunxin seem to calm down a little.
"Sister, when are you going back...? I miss your brother so much, it's been ages since I saw him..."
"Can we please not talk about him right now?" Anna Yang sighed.
"Then who should we talk about?"
"Anything else—anything at all, just not him!"
Ao Cunxin took a deep breath, clutching her chest to steady herself, and said plaintively, "Fine, let's not talk about him. Every time I mention him, I get upset and just want to cry... Wuwuwu... It's better not to talk about him, really. Huhu..."
She bowed her head in silence for a moment, then looked around the chamber, eyes shimmering with unshed tears.
"Princess Coral, could you please stop this?" Anna Yang was on the verge of losing her temper.
Ao Cunxin scooted closer, looping her arm through Anna's and leaning on her shoulder, sighing, "Sister, you really have it rough, living in a cave like this. How can anyone call this a home? Even your sister-in-law's heart aches for you... Why don't you move into the Western Sea Dragon Palace and stay with me? There's plenty of room there—much grander than General Erlang's manor at Guang River Estuary. Then we could go back to Guang River Estuary together."
"Princess Coral, we're organizing a rebel army to rise against the Heavenly Court. You think we can just move into a city fortress? Are you trying to get us all killed?"
"You're organizing a rebel army?" Ao Cunxin straightened up, staring at Anna in shock.
"That's right."
Frowning in thought, Ao Cunxin fixed her gaze on Anna and asked, "That monkey just now—he's not your leader, is he?"
Anna nodded, "He is our leader. His name is Simon Sun."
At this, Ao Cunxin grabbed Anna's hand and said earnestly, "Sister, don't be so foolish. Even if your brother won't rebel, you can't just pick any random demon to lead a revolt. Uprising against Heaven isn't something just anyone can do—it's not like picking cabbages or beans! It takes someone like your brother. Look at that monkey—he's so shabby, his fur's all split, and as if wearing a patched leather cuirass wasn't bad enough, the patchwork is so poorly done the stitches aren't even straight!"
She gestured with her hands: "I may not do much needlework, but even I could sew a hundred times better than that!"
Anna's cheeks flushed a delicate pink.
Noticing Anna's reaction, Ao Cunxin paused and asked, "Sister... don't tell me you did that patchwork?"
Anna's face turned as red as an apple. She lowered her head and coughed awkwardly. "Princess Coral, you know I've never learned needlework since I was little... so..."
Ao Cunxin's brows knitted as she stared intently at Anna, asking seriously, "Does your brother know his future brother-in-law is a monkey? If word gets out, how will he ever hold his head up again?"
Anna shot to her feet. "Princess Coral! You—! My sister-in-law is a dragon and I never said a word... No, I mean, we're not that kind of couple!"
Seeing Anna Yang so flustered, Princess Coral’s frown deepened. She pursed her lips and nodded emphatically at Anna. "I can tell—there's definitely something going on between you two!"
"There isn't!"
"There is!"
"I said there isn't!" Anna shrieked.
"Even if there isn't now, there will be sooner or later!"
The two of them stared at each other for a long moment. Finally, Anna sighed. "Let's just go back to talking about my brother."
"But—" Princess Coral twisted her hands shyly. "Sister-in-law thinks this is important, too. Your husband is a split-fur monkey—how will you ever hold your head high when you return home? Poor girl, you really have it tough. It breaks my heart just thinking about it."
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She wiped her tears again. "As your elder sister, I can’t ignore this!"
A piercing scream!
With a loud bang, Anna bolted out the door, slamming it shut behind her.
Clutching her forehead, she trembled, panting. "How did I, Anna Yang, end up with a sister-in-law like this?"
Her fist clenched so tight it cracked audibly.
When she looked up, she saw Shadow and a ring of demons standing at the doorway, mouths agape, staring at her in shock.
"Anna—uh, I really didn't know what was going on today, so—I swear, I only tied her up, nothing else happened..."
"Get out!" Anna screamed hysterically.
The crowd of demons scattered in terror, scrambling away.
Through the crack in the door, Princess Coral peered out, eyes still wet with tears. "Sister, I'm hungry. Do you have anything to eat? I want fish. Also, I'll help you keep your monkey husband a secret from Erik Yang for now, so—when are we going back to Guang River Estuary?"
"Skyhowl! If I catch you, you're dead!"
......