Rejected Beauty Practices the Villain Play

Chapter 696 - 676: Disguise

Xie Jue didn’t follow Lan Ningzhen’s nonsensical chatter. He never had the privilege to act recklessly—not as a child, nor as an adult. Lan Ningzhen, however, didn’t push him either. Amid the icy heavens and snowy earth, he stood with his hands behind his back, leisurely watching Xie Jue clumsily learn to skate. Xie Jue fell countless times on the icy surface. The thick winter clothes prevented pain, but every fall was followed by Lan Ningzhen’s laughter, delighting in his moments of embarrassment.

Xie Jue kept a cold expression, secretly vowing that he would master ice skating.

Just as Lan Ningzhen skated gracefully across the ice like flowing clouds and moving water. Lan Ningzhen was a good mentor, giving him guidance from behind on how to exert force and maintain balance.

"Don’t be afraid. Be bolder when you glide forward."

"Put your right foot forward first. It’s fine if you fall... Oh no, you’ve fallen again. Does it hurt?"

"Make larger movements. Don’t tilt your upper body—that’s an easy way to fall."

"Good... Keep it steady."

"Enough. Let me hold your hand and lead you for a bit, so you can get a feel for it!"

Lan Ningzhen, who had been standing behind him all along, skated over and held Xie Jue’s hand, guiding him forward. The weather on the snowy mountain was unpredictable, but today seemed to offer its favor. Despite the heavy wind and snow, the sun was shining brightly—a rare sight compared to Ningzhou. Such intense winds and snow, yet the bright sun blazed overhead. However, even as the sunlight bathed their bodies, it offered no warmth.

Yet inexplicably, he felt a sense of warmth emanating from Lan Ningzhen. He wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination.

The two skated hand in hand across the ice, like elegant cranes dancing in unison. In the vast, boundless expanse of the world, it felt as if only they remained—silent, desolate, yet achingly beautiful.

After leading him for a while, Lan Ningzhen let go of Xie Jue’s hand, leaving him to skate on his own.

The outdoor temperature was bone-chilling. Beneath the snowy mountain, it felt even colder than Fox City. Xie Jue was too stubborn and persistent, ignoring the strange sensations on his face until he fell on the ice yet again. It was as he accidentally touched his icy-cold cheek that he was suddenly struck with shock.

The right side of his face felt frozen stiff, itchy, and prickly with pain. His delicate skin seemed to be covered by a thin layer of ice that would shatter with the lightest touch. He couldn’t even manage to make an expression. Although Ningzhou was cold, compared to Fox City in Beiman, it was relatively warm. Xie Jue had no appropriate response, his tension causing him to grab at Lan Ningzhen.

"What’s wrong?" Lan Ningzhen skated over laughing, but the sight of his cheek caused her smile to instantly vanish. That always-smiling gaze of hers flickered with a flash of panic, startling Xie Jue. Something was clearly wrong with his face, and instinctively, he raised his hand to touch it.

Lan Ningzhen suddenly grasped his wrist, and in a moment of urgency, her words came out in the Yanyang dialect, "Don’t touch it!"

"What’s wrong?" Perhaps the snowstorm was too fierce, for the stabbing pain and itching on his face occupied all of Xie Jue’s thoughts. He didn’t notice what was amiss.

Lan Ningzhen gripped his hand tightly. "Your face is frostbitten. Don’t touch it. Come with me!"

She quickly ripped a piece of fabric from her inner lining to cover Xie Jue’s face, then pulled him forward. This spot was quite far from Fox City. Instead of taking him back to Fox City, Lan Ningzhen led him to a nearby small town. Though the town wasn’t large, its location shielded it from the worst of the wind and snow. Lan Ningzhen took Xie Jue into a medical clinic.

Xie Jue’s right cheek was bright red, stiff, and faintly marked with thin bloodlines. The doctor took one glance and immediately recognized frostbite, a common condition in Beiman. However, frostbite was typically seen in children, with adult cases much less frequent. The doctor prescribed an ointment for Xie Jue to apply to his face and massage gently. Originally, the doctor intended to perform the massage himself, but Xie Jue silently took a step back, his brows furrowing slightly—Lan Ningzhen understood that his aversion to unclean things was acting up.

The lack of resources and harsh cold in Beiman meant that residents of the small town often worked at mining sites, their hands smeared with oil and grime. For months at a time, the severe weather made bathing uncommon, and the people carried a faint, unpleasant odor on their bodies. The Beiman population paid little heed to this, as everyone harbored such scents to varying degrees. Xie Jue, however, was fastidious. Let alone allowing oily hands to touch his face—he couldn’t even tolerate the thought of disheveled hair strands.

"Let me do it!" Lan Ningzhen chuckled lightly, taking the ointment and leading Xie Jue to a secluded courtyard in the back. This season saw more patients with colds than frostbite. Lan Ningzhen fetched a basin of hot water and washed her hands thoroughly in preparation to apply the ointment. Xie Jue resisted, saying, "I’ll do it myself."

"Do you know how?" Lan Ningzhen soaked a towel in hot water and brought it over, her gaze devoid of its usual mirth as it fell upon his cheek. "It’s your first time with frostbite. Do you really know how to treat it?"

"It’s just applying some ointment."

"Improper treatment can lead to itching, ulceration, and pus-filled sores. Are you ready to ruin your face?" Lan Ningzhen wasn’t bluffing—there were indeed precedents for this. Her hands now warmed thoroughly, she wrung out the towel and waited for it to cool slightly before gently wiping the skin on Xie Jue’s face. Xie Jue felt that the disguise on his face was barely hanging on.

He gripped Lan Ningzhen’s wrist, withdrawing with relentless resistance. He couldn’t let his disguise be discovered. "Lan Ningzhen, I’ll say it again—I’ll handle it myself!"

"Afraid I’ll see through your makeup? I’ve already discovered it!" Lan Ningzhen clicked her tongue in annoyance, forcefully swatting away his hand before using the towel to clean the skin on his face. She exercised extreme care, wiping lightly, yet still managed to reveal the edges of Xie Jue’s disguise.

Xie Jue stared at her in utter shock. In that instant, a flash of killing intent swept through his eyes.

This woman, Lan Ningzhen, could not be allowed to live!

She had to die!