He just lowered his head and looked into his eyes, with a hint of anxiety and eagerness there—a hint of anxiety and eagerness that Xue Huai couldn’t understand.
It’s as if… the person in front of him will slip away.
Xue Huai was momentarily speechless.
In everyone’s eyes, this was indeed a marriage that had already been agreed upon. Even though only the two of them knew what was going on, he had been dragging it on until now, which was already very inappropriate.
It’s also not too much to say that he keeps him hanging.
He knew that the marriage certificate from his previous life had been given to him, and as for the phrase “the protector is incompetent,” he could also understand it as he was in the underworld at that time and believed the rumors incorrectly. His previous life was ruined by the word “biased listening.” There is nothing to blame on Yun Cuo except for that last period of time when they didn’t understand each other.
It was he who chose to follow him. A lifetime has passed, a new life has begun, and since we haven’t apologized, let’s settle our grudges.
He had liked him, and so many things had been different in this life. Should he seize this opportunity?
Go… give it a try, and be together with the person I’ve loved in my previous life properly?
After thinking about it for a while, he still felt like he couldn’t make any sense of it. He had never been an indecisive person, but he had hesitated again and again on this matter.
Yun Cuo moved and sat down on the bed that Xue Huai had made for him a few days before, while taking off his outer robe, carefully folding it, and laying down on it. He wrapped himself in the quilt, revealing a pair of calm eyes to look at him.
……And kinda cute.
Xue Huai: “……”
Xue Huai said, “No. I haven’t figured it out yet. Give me some more time to think about it.”
He saw that Yun Cuo was about to speak again, so he said in an ungraceful manner. “No objection. If you say one word now, I’ll think about it for an extra month.”
Yun Cuo really didn’t speak anymore. He nodded and even breathed softly. Xue Huai felt a little pleased with his little capricious success. Just as he was about to step past Yun Cuo, the gluttonous ghost who was sulking with him saw him coming. In order to show its unwavering determination not to sleep with Xue Huai, it rushed out of bed with a whoosh and headed straight for the door.
This rush directly tripped Xue Huai, and as he was about to fall, he quickly held onto one side of the cabinet. However, Yun Cuo, who was sleeping on the floor, also subconsciously got up and tugged him, his slender hand holding his ankle, pulling him back a few steps, and with a loud thud, he fell backwards, following closely into a warm embrace.
Yun Cuo had already sat up when he was afraid he would fall. Xue Huai only felt warm and solid behind him—it was Yun Cuo’s chest.
The sound of long, drawn-out breaths rang in his ears.
The place where Yun Cuo’s hand had held him was hot and painful—at first, he thought it was because his hand was too hot, since Yun Cuo had always carried such a scorching warmth, but later he found out that he had twisted his foot.
He sucked in a breath of pain.
Yun Cuo’s fingertips flashed out a white light, gently pressing on his ankle and slowly rubbing it.
He rubbed it very seriously and looked completely focused, but when he rubbed his fingertips against the delicate skin and it turned red, he thought that it’s a bit charming.
He heard Yun Cuo’s heartbeat again: thump, thump, thump, thump.
After holding his tongue for half a day, Xue Huai asked, “Did you do it on purpose?”
Yun Cuo was puzzled, “En?”
Xue Huai murmured softly, “Did you teach Xiao Tao how to be bad……”
The gluttonous ghost hid outside and listened in the corner of the wall, lazily scraping the door frame. The young man’s clear voice also slowly lowered and was finally interrupted.
It was Yun Cuo’s deep voice: “I didn’t do it on purpose.”
Xue Huai sneered, “Oh.” As he spoke, he struggled to get up. Just as he left a little, he was yanked back.
“……This is on purpose.”
He heard Yun Cuo say.
At that moment, Yun Cuo suddenly moved from a sitting position to a kneeling position. He extended his hands, wrapped Xue Huai in his arms, and placed his chin on his shoulder. It was an extremely bold move, but he was being deliberate on purpose to come and test him to bully him, to come over and mess with him while he was defenseless.
This is his method of renewal—the only way for him to lick honey with the tip of his tongue in this lifetime. Xue Huai can take his life, even if he doesn’t do anything, just holding him like this can already make his heart beat violently and almost explode.
He stuttered while asking, “I deliberately wanted to hold you, would you be angry? If you’re not angry, isn’t it also not particularly annoying?”
By a stroke of fate, Xue Huai said, “Still okay.”
When he realized what he had said, Xue Huai also felt a slight heat on his face.
But he doesn’t plan on changing his tune. His temperament has always been like this: he can do whatever he wants, and if he continues to be awkward, it will really become sentimental.
Yun Cuo froze and asked him, “What? I didn’t hear clearly just now, Xue Huai.”
Xue Huai remained calm and said, “I said it’s still okay. You’re quite a comfortable hugger.”
He raised his eyes and glanced back at him with a bit of diffidence and playfulness in them. Like a cat, due to its lazy nature and craving for warmth, he can give it a warm embrace and is willing to nestle on someone’s lap, stretching its fur to be stroked.
This is provocation, and it can also be considered some kind of indulgence.
At that moment, Yun Cuo dared not even move—even breathing and blinking might startle away the person in his arms. It was a brief moment of peace he had stolen.
He didn’t even dare ask Xue Huai what he meant—could he take it seriously, or was it just a whim when he’s being naughty?
With that, he half-kneeled behind him and took him into his arms in a position of total possession, quietly listening to each other’s heartbeats. It was evening, and the westward-sloping sun was sinking fast, taking away the brightness of the room, which was colored by dusky yellows and oranges.
The gluttonous ghost has already fallen asleep by the door.
Xue Huai said, “Alright, let me get up.”
Yun Cuo said, “Okay.” But there was no intention of moving, so Xue Huai had to struggle to pull his arms off his waist and tuck them back into the quilt.
He looked at Yun Cuo. Yun Cuo immediately realized something and wrapped himself tightly in the quilt without saying a word, which meant he was going to sleep.
He was going to bed, so Xue Huai shouldn’t be so cruel as to kick him out again, right?
Xue Huai doesn’t know whether to laugh or to cry. “It’s not even moonrise, and you’re already sleeping? Get up. Get up. Let’s eat. If you want to sleep, go back to bed. I have to study later. I’ll make a lot of noise.” He went to yank Yun Cuo’s arm and grab the man up, but Yun Cuo seemed like an octopus and tried to pounce on him again, hugging him all over.
Yun Cuo whispered, “Xue Huai ge…”
Xue Huai was unhappy and said, “Surnamed Yun, you’ve got to stop this.”
He was clearly not as tall as him, but he solemnly tiptoed and used his fingers to point at the center of his eyebrows, pushing him to the wall. He had the looks of bearing one’s fangs and claws, but there was still a faint smile on his face. That was actually teasing him, not belittling him.
That kind of intimate, open gesture was something he’d never gotten before in his life. In that moment, ecstasy swept through Yun Cuo’s limbs, leaving him at a loss and speechless. The past haze was swept away. A while later, he realized that Xue Huai was talking to him.
Even the fear and unease that made him tremble during the day dissipated.
Xue Huai looked at him, “Hey, are you listening? I don’t want to go to the dinning hall to eat anymore. Should we ask the green bird to buy food back, or do you want to cook?”
Yun Cuo quickly said, “I’ll cook. What do you want to eat, Xue Huai?”
Xue Huai thought for a moment, “Whatever. I’m not too picky, and I don’t eat that much. You just need to make your own.”
Their cultivators’ Warm Pavilion was fully equipped, and there was a small kitchen in each disciple’s room, except that the one on Xue Huai’s side had never been touched. The young master of his Xue family has no need to fend for himself1十指不沾阳春水 or Shí Zhǐ Bù Zhān Yáng Chūn Shuǐ is a Chinese idiom meaning to lead a pampered life.The only household chore he knows how to do is tidy up his own room, because he never allows anyone outside the gluttonous ghost to touch his things.
Of course, there are no ingredients, no pots and pans, and no seasoning.
Xue Huai said, “This is easy to handle.” He found a piece of paper and handed it to Yun Cuo, asking him to write down what he needed on the paper. Then he put it together with twenty golden melon seeds into a sachet and hung it around the gluttonous ghost’s neck. “Xiao Tao, be good, go to the merchant at the foot of the mountain and buy the things back.”
The gluttonous ghost went out reluctantly and condescendingly.
Yun Cuo looked at Xue Huai and said, “You’ve taken good care of it.”
Xue Huai said, “That’s natural. One day, Xiao Tao will learn how to cook, fight, carry people, watch the house, and do many other things which are much more convenient than humans. I will cultivate it into the best gluttonous ghost in the Six Realms.”
Yun Cuo calmly began recommending himself. “But you see, it may take a lot of time to teach so many things. Before that, do you want to consider…”
Xue Huai immediately interrupted him and said, “You fouled again. I just said something, I haven’t figured it out yet, so you can’t push me anymore. If you say one more word about this topic, I’ll think about it for an extra month.”
Yun Cuo stopped talking again.
Xue Huai is very satisfied.
He and Yun Cuo cleaned up the small kitchen that had never been touched before and then made time to write down two dates on paper.
One is the day of their extreme trial, which will start in a few days.
The other is the day when Xue Zong had an accident in his previous life, around the time of their spring break.
Xue Huai drew a brief mark in the gap between them, hastily wrote Yun Cuo’s name, and also wrote the three words “mindfulness.”
He decided to think about it sooner rather than later, and for the first time in his life, he put “whether or not to fall in love with someone” on the agenda.
As for the mind-viewing technique and the trial a few days later, he and Yun Cuo are both very serious people. Although it is a small trial, and it should not be difficult for them, but Xue Huai also decided to prepare well.
Not long after, the gluttonous ghost happily returned, obviously feeling much better after going out for a walk—it spit out several sealed big bags for Xue Huai, which were what they wanted.
Xue Huai praised the gluttonous ghost, rewarded it by letting it eat a few more stones, and then watched Yun Cuo cook.
Halfway through, Yun Cuo grabbed him and started a fire. “Xue Huai, don’t be idle either. Come and control the growth of these pieces of wood, don’t let them burn so fast.”
Xue Huai muttered, “So, do you need to add firewood to cultivate the wood spiritual root? Actually, I’m quite skilled at water spiritual root. I used to wash dishes.” He obediently went over.
Yun Cuo was taken aback for a moment, as if thinking of something, and then a smile appeared in his eyes: “Are you still washing dishes at home?”
Xue Huai said, “When I was a child, I loved playing and manipulating water. At that time, I washed all the dishes and utensils at home.” There was another half of the story he hadn’t told; in his previous life, in the military, he also washed dishes when he wasn’t busy.
Yun Cuo didn’t say anything anymore.
He made four dishes and one soup, all of which Xue Huai loved: Xianjia Three Crisps, Lingzhi Stewed Chicken, Baihua Hoof, Peach Rice, and Jade Bian Flower Soup. They are all light and refreshing dishes.
Xue Huai held his chopsticks and hesitated. “There’s nothing you love to eat, what about you?”
Yun Cuo said, “You don’t have to worry about me.”
Xue Huai watched as he added a little bit to everything and then somehow took out a can of something similar to ordinary pickled rice dishes and mixed them together in the rice.
Seeing Xue Huai looking at him, Yun Cuo felt a bit reserved and repeated, “It’s nothing, I have a rough taste, you don’t have to worry about me.”
Xue Huai looked at the jar of pickled vegetables in his hand and asked, “What is this? Can I try it?”
Yun Cuo became even more nervous. He quickly put away the jar and said, “It’s nothing delicious. This is what the people of the Demon Realm eat, with a strong taste and spicy oil. The Demon Clan often eats it with their wine, and it can’t be served on the table. You won’t like it.”
Xue Huai, however, refused to let go and came over from the table to grab it. He picked some up, put them in his mouth, and chewed a few times before commenting, “Still okay, just… whoa, it’s a bit spicy.”
He couldn’t eat spicy food very well. He felt a pain in his tongue after taking such a bite, and it quickly burned up. He quickly took a sip of hot soup, using poison to fight poison, suppressing it until tears welled up in his eyes.
“Just say… it not delicious.” Yun Cuo said in a low voice.
He has never been used to eating things from the Immortal Realm. In his previous life, he ate the popular pickled immortal grass among the vulgar people in the Demon Realm, and he never let Xue Huai know. He was afraid that his little immortal would not like it.
His Xue Huai is pure and clean, so he can’t let him see the dusty grayness around him.
Xue Huai waited for the spiciness to pass, then wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and wondered. “I really think it’s delicious. I think it should also be a bit spicy when it comes to food. Can you help me get some non-spicy one next time? I’ll mix it with noodles and crab meat cakes to eat.”
Yun Cuo was taken aback and asked, “Do you… really want it?”
Xue Huai stared at him for a while and already roughly guessed what he was thinking in his heart. So he lazily leaning back in the chair, “I don’t think there are things in the Immortal Realm that can be compared to the Demon Realm, some of them are so bad too, they can’t even keep up with my Xiao Tao. I know that in the past, many people looked down on the Demon Realm during the Immortal and Demon War, and now there are also people who have prejudice against the Demon Realm, which is really very dull. Or…… do you think that I’m some kind of ungrateful person? To be honest, I am actually very ordinary and have nothing to do with the world.”
The gluttonous ghost listened for a while and felt that Xue Huai had praised it for such a long time with such a big speech, so with a high-flying wail, it pounded into his arms, flopping him right down on his back and desperately licking his face with its tongue.
Then it was caught by Xue Huai, and was beaten up again.
Yun Cuo smiled and pulled away the pet from his favorite person, then whispered to Xue Huai, “Thank you, Xue Huai ge.”
Xue Huai knew he understood his meaning, so he didn’t say anything anymore. After quietly finishing his meal, he got up and was about to go wash the dishes. However, Yun Cuo held him down, and he went to wash instead.
After cleaning up, Xue Huai politely said, “It’s getting late, I’ll take you back ba.”
Yun Cuo said, “Xue Huai, let’s discuss the trials in the next few days ba.”
Without knowing where to find the brush and paper, he sat down at Xue Huai’s table with a serious attitude towards discussion.
Xue Huai said, “It’s the same if we discuss tomorrow.”
Yun Cuo remained calm and said, “By the way, we can also discuss how to improve the mind-viewing technique. Xue Huai ge, what do you think?”
Xue Huai: “……”
Three hours later.
Yun Cuo talked to him for a long time but still didn’t talk about the mind-viewing technique. On the contrary, Xue Huai became tired.
He remembered that Yun Cuo was still there drawing pictures for him—drawing the hundreds of randomly appearing formations and terrains of their examination ground. Looking at them he dozed off and fell asleep with his hand propped up on his head.
Half-asleep, he vaguely sensed Yun Cuo urging him to go to bed, so he reluctantly and confusedly leaned towards the bed and was about to fall asleep. But immediately afterward, he sobered up—
The bed sank heavily, and his warm body pressed against his.
Xue Huai warned, “What are you doing?”
Yun Cuo’s voice was imperceptible, and he whispered from behind, “Help you tuck in the quilt, you can sleep peacefully ba.”
After being vigilant for a while, Xue Huai realized that Yun Cuo was really busy making his bed, adding blankets, and tucking in the corners, going back and forth. Feeling a little embarrassed, he struggled to get up to get it himself, but Yun Cuo held him down with one hand.
He gently nuzzled his soft neck and rubbed the side of his ears twice, and the low “be good” seemed to break through a cloud of hot steam, sinking and swelling, opening up some indescribable hidden joy.
Whenever Xuehuai was about to fall asleep, he would reveal his true nature as if he had sought an opportunity, tearing apart his usual pitiful and gentle demeanor, revealing his rebellious, domineering, and aggressive lining.
He carefully lay down and hugged Xue Huai with the blanket. At first, he was very light and afraid of disturbing him. Later, when Xue Huai fell asleep, he slowly relaxed and lowered his weight down to encircle him solidly.
As a result, Xue Huai woke up—he immediately realized what Yun Cuo was doing. He turned around and tried to push him away. “Let’s go, let’s go. What are you doing? Are you a dog? If you want to go to sleep, then go, I think you are……”
What he said, half asleep and half awake, actually had no deterrent power at all but instead had a soft, sleepy sound.
Yun Cuo smiled, and taking advantage of the situation, he slouched him a little tighter. Previously, Xue Huai’s back was facing him, but now it’s just right. Xue Huai took the initiative to turn around and face him, just in his arms.
This time, he could not break free, and Yun Cuo climbed up the pole and took the man directly into his arms, not caring that Xue Huai would scratch him and coax him. “Sleep ba, sleep ba, Xue Huai ge.”
Xue Huai was still talking, gibbering a great deal, in continual protest against his behavior, muffled and inaudible by the blanket and his embrace. Only Yun Cuo’s voice could be heard clearly: “Sleep, sleep, go to bed early. Don’t you have to go to Shizun’s place tomorrow to handle business? Go to sleep. Go to sleep. It’s okay.”
After coaxing for a while, he finally saw Xue Huai no longer struggling and obediently sleeping.
He carefully used his techniques to suppress his own heartbeat, holding the person in his arms motionless, and spent the whole night like this.
The author has something to say: Xue Huai (suddenly being embraced): You, surnamed Yun, # ￥%&*
Yun Cuo: (*￣︶￣) Be good, be good, okay, Shun Shun Mao2顺毛 or Shùn Máo is an internet slang meaning to comfort someone as if petting an animal.wife.
