"Ah—"
Chai Xiaomi gasped and suddenly opened her eyes.
Still caught in the inertia of her dream, she lost her balance, tilted to the side, and fell off the stool.
In the nick of time, a sword scabbard pierced through the air. In the instant before she hit the ground, it firmly supported her back and gently pushed her back onto the stool.
Chai Xiaomi sat steady, her heart still pounding, and subconsciously raised her hand to pat her chest.
Her mind was still filled with a vast white fog, as if she were still sinking in that bottomless pool of water.
Ever since she was trapped in that great demon's illusion the day before yesterday, she had been having this dream repeatedly. She thought it was probably because watching Wu Li sink to the bottom of the pool at the end had left too deep an impression on her heart, causing her to be trapped in the same underwater scene every night, trapped in images related to Wu Li.
But the content of the dream...
Although she had been single since birth, living in the complex internet age, she had accumulated a certain amount of viewing experience. Even if she hadn't eaten pork, she had seen pigs run.
Yet in the dream, clearly nothing had happened, but she felt as if her heart was placed in a sealed bottle, shaking, swaying, and tumbling. The continuous boiling heat in her chest was like a furnace beneath the bottle, burning so hot that she felt like she was going to explode.
"Xiaomi," Jiang Zhiyu retracted his scabbard and sat down beside her, his tone filled with concern. "You don't look too well. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, I'm fine." Chai Xiaomi suddenly snapped back to reality, forced a smile, and casually prevaricated, "I just suddenly felt sleepy while eating and had a nightmare."
Falling asleep while eating?
Jiang Zhiyu originally thought that after suffering such a great fright the night before, she would definitely have trouble sleeping and eating. He didn't expect her appetite and sleep to be quite good.
He looked at the un-wiped brown sugar crumbs on the corner of her mouth, then at the Duyun steamed cake on the table, and for a moment actually felt a bit of admiration.
Jiang Zhiyu's fingers subconsciously twitched, but he finally restrained his movements.
"This is very normal. Pregnant women naturally tend to be lethargic."
Another person sat down at the table. This person had a slender figure and had just been following behind Jiang Zhiyu. Similarly disguised with a stubbly beard, Chai Xiaomi originally thought it was a subordinate Jiang Zhiyu had brought along. It wasn't until she spoke with a familiar female voice that Chai Xiaomi suddenly recognized her.
"Song... Female Lead Baby!" Chai Xiaomi corrected herself in time, lowering her voice so that the exclamation could only be heard among the three of them.
Right now, the Yuebai tribe was in chaos.
After the human skin of the clan leader, Qi Lao, was discovered in the drum tower by the crowd, the news that he had been replaced by a great demon also spread.
And the tribe's greatest treasure, the Illusion Color Stone, along with the bride Song Yueyao, had unexpectedly vanished on the same night. For a time, rumors flew everywhere. Some even guessed that it was the princess of Liangya State who, unwilling to marry the aging clan leader, allied with the demon to kill Qi Lao and steal the treasure.
The tribe had already sent out several groups of people to search everywhere for Song Yueyao's traces.
Chai Xiaomi had originally thought they had already taken advantage of the chaos to leave Yuebai, and she was still pondering the upcoming plot. Logically speaking, upon seeing Song Yueyao, Wu Li should have resolved to join the protagonist group, but looking at his appearance these past few days, he seemed to still be hesitating about something.
Hearing Chai Xiaomi's blurted out "Female Lead Baby", Song Yueyao was stunned at first, and then a hint of a smile rippled in her eyes.
Although this title was strange, it wasn't annoying; instead, it held an indescribable intimacy. It was just that the word "Baby" always sounded like calling a young child, so she asked about Chai Xiaomi's age.
Chai Xiaomi answered with a smile: "Nineteen."
Song Yueyao paused. The girl in front of her had round almond eyes and a childish playfulness when she smiled. She had thought the other party had only recently reached coming-of-age, but didn't expect her to be the same age as herself.
Upon detailed inquiry, she was only a few months younger. Song Yueyao's expression softened a bit, and she said gently, "Don't call me 'Baby' from now on. I am slightly older than you, and I feel a special affinity with you. If you are willing, just call me sister."
She touched the fake beard on her chin, changed the subject, and pointed her fingertips vaguely in Jiang Zhiyu's direction. "He is the oldest, so you can call him Grandpa Jiang!"
Jiang Zhiyu: "...?"
"Xiaomi, don't listen to her nonsense," Jiang Zhiyu hurriedly cleared himself, taking out his folding fan from who knows where and snapping it open. He fanned himself a few times, but unfortunately, the fake beard on his face didn't budge at all, lacking any elegance. "I'm only in my early twenties, in the prime of my youth. Do you know how many young ladies from official families in Lingyu State look upon me with favor, flocking to me one after another? That scene..."
"Then how come you're getting on in years and still not married?" Chai Xiaomi interrupted him, pretending not to understand.
She still remembered that in the original novel, the male and female leads went back and forth for a long time in the early stages without officially establishing a relationship. The female lead, because her mother was under house arrest by the Liangya State Lord Song Hu, could only allow herself to be manipulated.
Otherwise, with Song Yueyao's fiery temper in the original novel, she would not have obediently submitted to humiliation, swallowed her pride to go to Lingyu State as a hostage, or even agreed to this absurd arranged marriage.
The words "getting on in years" choked Jiang Zhiyu so much he couldn't catch his breath, and he coughed violently a few times.
"Isn't it because..." He glanced at Song Yueyao, a hint of unwilling grievance mixed in his words. "Someone is still unwilling to nod."
Song Yueyao's eyes suddenly darkened, and the slight smile on her lips quietly faded.
As her gaze shifted, she suddenly caught sight of an inconspicuous brown sugar crumb on the corner of Chai Xiaomi's mouth.
Her heart softened for no reason, and she subconsciously reached out her hand, wanting to gently wipe it away for her. However, before her fingertips touched it, Jiang Zhiyu on the other side also reached out his hand as if driven by ghosts and gods, his movements almost synchronized with hers.
Both hands stopped in mid-air at the same time. The air instantly froze, and a trace of silent awkwardness spread.
Chai Xiaomi suddenly petrified, leaving only a pair of eyes swinging left and right, staring at the two hands in front of her.
The most fearful thing is the air suddenly becoming quiet.
The most fearful thing is the sudden care of friends.
"Cough," Jiang Zhiyu's hand was still suspended, and he hurriedly explained, "Xiaomi, you have something on the corner of your mouth."
Actually, from the moment he saw that crumb, he had wanted to reach out, but after hesitating several times, he felt it was inappropriate. Just now, seeing Song Yueyao raise her hand, he also moved along, as if some sort of subconscious reaction.
Even he himself couldn't explain why he always unconsciously treated Chai Xiaomi as a child needing care.
"Yaoyao, I..." He turned to Song Yueyao, wanting to say something more.
It was common for women to have some intimate gestures between them, but his own behavior was truly baffling.
But before he could finish his explanation, a sudden burning pain came from his fingertips!
A cluster of flames unexpectedly flared up out of thin air.
Jiang Zhiyu's expression changed slightly, and he quickly dipped his finger into the teacup on the table. With a soft hiss, white smoke curled upwards, and the fire went out.
Although his movements were extremely fast, two or three tiny blisters still formed on his fingertip.
"I have long heard that the Lord of Lingyu State loves his son as his own life and specially invited the world-renowned Alchemist Ji to be his teacher. I didn't know before that Brother Jiang actually knew fire manipulation arts. It really opened my eyes."
"It's just that this fire... doesn't seem to listen to Brother Jiang's commands very well?"
Wu Li's cold, lazy voice came from behind.
The still air felt as though it had been sliced open by invisible blades of wind, carrying with it a subtle chill. Just as Chai Xiaomi was about to turn around, she noticed him holding an exquisite piece of fabric embroidered with a symmetrical floral pattern.
He draped the cloth over her shoulders with casual ease, yet it perfectly covered her entire back like a large shawl. The material was incredibly soft and gentle to the touch. Utterly enamored with the comforting texture, Chai Xiaomi affectionately rubbed the fabric between her fingers.
