Xing’er sat down beside Cui Yunchu with her heart in her throat. “Miss, will this really work? Can ghosts actually be threatened by people?”
Cui Yunchu said, “…Would you like me to slap you?”
She hunched her head down and squeezed her eyes shut.
Xing’er fell silent as well. Master and servant huddled together—one closed her eyes to rest, while the other kept her large, limpid eyes open, glancing around in every direction.
Suddenly, the ancestral hall door was pushed open, and Xing’er and Cui Yunchu let out identical screams.
“A Chu, it’s me.” Shen Xiabai, dressed all in white, hurried to Cui Yunchu’s side. “What happened? I could hear your voice from a long way off.”
Xing’er was shoved aside and lay on the ground, panting, still shaken. Cui Yunchu opened her eyes and stared straight at Shen Xiabai.
“Were you frightened?” He lifted a hand and gently stroked her head. “It’s all right. I’m here. I’ll stay with you. Don’t be afraid, A Chu.”
Cui Yunchu suddenly threw herself into his arms and rubbed her head hard against his chest. “Why did you come?”
Shen Xiabai smiled faintly. “I came to sneak around with you. I went to your courtyard and found you weren’t there, so I thought you must be here.”
Cui Yunchu gave a muffled response. “That old man locked me in here.”
Shen Xiabai’s gaze swept over the objects in the ancestral hall, and he nodded slightly. “Did you suffer any grievances?”
Cui Yunchu shook her head. “Not really. He wouldn’t dare mistreat me. Otherwise, I’d throw a tantrum and roll around on the floor until he couldn’t have any peace either.”
“A Chu is such a good girl.” Shen Xiabai cupped her face, leaned forward slightly, and pressed a kiss to the corner of her lips.
Cui Yunchu smiled.
So even being a troublemaker could earn her praise. So long as it was for someone she loved, anything she did could be considered right.
Cui Yunchu knew that he had come especially to keep her company.
“Lord Shen, thank you for everything these past two days.”
“A Chu’s thanks sound rather perfunctory.”
Cui Yunchu lifted the corner of her quilt and gave him a heartfelt invitation. “Come on. As a reward, you can sleep with me tonight.”
Shen Xiabai had grown up surrounded by gold and jade. Even his bed was made of the finest timber. Yet now he stared at the makeshift bed laid out on the floor from two utterly inadequate quilts, his heart surging with excitement. He could hardly wait to claim this place as his own.
More than that, he was eager to lie down in it.
“A Chu is inviting me?” He leaned closer and slipped an arm around Cui Yunchu’s waist.
Cui Yunchu nodded.
She pointed at the ancestral tablets on the table, then at Xing’er. “The ancestors of the Cui family are all here. Some are dead, and some are still alive. They’re all watching with their eyes wide open. What do I have to fear?”
Shen Xiabai turned stiffly to glance at the densely packed ancestral tablets. The excitement in his heart slowly sank.
He had to remain calm and composed. He couldn’t act on impulse, or all his efforts might very well end in failure.
Cui Qingyuan would most likely become his sworn enemy.
Besides, if they did this here, it would truly count as an illicit affair—and one of the most heinous kind at that.
“What are you thinking about? Why aren’t you saying anything? You don’t want to sleep with me?” Cui Yunchu asked.
Shen Xiabai gave her a sidelong glance, then half reclined with an arm around her waist and pulled the quilt over her. “Stop talking. Recite the Heart-Calming Mantra for me.”
“…”
Cui Yunchu said, “Why would I recite that? This is such a beautiful night, and you’re ruining the mood.”
“If you’re bored, go chant sutras for the ancestors of the Cui family.”
Shen Xiabai’s smile darkened, and he remained silent for quite some time.
Cui Yunchu thought of his father and brothers. Her brows drew together, and she suddenly felt a little guilty. “If you’re uncomfortable, you can go back first. I don’t need anyone to keep me company. I’m fine now.”
Shen Xiabai tightened his arm around her. “Stop talking. I’ll tell you a story.”
Beneath the dim candlelight, the two leaned against a pillar, nestled close together. The man’s voice was soft as he gently told the woman a story, while she rested against him with eyes curved in contentment.
They looked perfectly matched—an absolute pleasure to behold.
“Miss.” A dull voice broke the peaceful atmosphere.
Cui Yunchu turned to look.
Xing’er was lying against the window, pointing outside at Yu Feng, who stood in the cold wind with his arms crossed over his chest, rubbing them as he shivered. “He’s about to be buried in snow. It looks like he’ll freeze to death soon.”
Xing’er didn’t dare turn around and look at the pair being all sweet together. She simply craned her neck and spoke.
Several of them simultaneously remembered the night Yu Feng had crawled into the blankets and been scolded by Nanny Zhang.
More than anything, Xing’er was afraid that Yu Feng would start running around again.
Or perhaps she was simply kindhearted and felt sorry for him.
Cui Yunchu rose from Shen Xiabai’s arms.
Shen Xiabai said, “I thought he had come inside with us.”
Xing’er fell silent.
How could a person that large follow you in without you noticing?
The moment you saw the young lady, you looked as though you’d seen a feast. Who could possibly keep up with you?
Cui Yunchu said, “It’s cold outside. Let him come in too.”
Xing’er immediately leaned out the window and waved to Yu Feng.
Yu Feng entered covered in snow and cupped his hands toward Cui Yunchu in thanks.
Cui Yunchu and Shen Xiabai continued being sweet with each other as they told their story.
Xing’er and Yu Feng sat far away from them, talking beside another brazier.
Xing’er said, “From today onward, I’m your lifesaver.”
Yu Feng shot her a glance and replied with two terse words. “Thank you.”
Xing’er said, “That’s how you repay a life-saving favor?”
“Should I take you as my godmother, then?”
Xing’er turned away angrily and refused to speak to him.
After listening to the story for a while, Cui Yunchu grew drowsy. She turned over and complained softly, “The floor is too hard. It’s uncomfortable to sleep on.”
Shen Xiabai shifted her closer against him. “Is it very uncomfortable?”
Cui Yunchu nodded.
“Then why don’t you sleep on me?”
The moment he finished speaking, his face flushed slightly, and he gave a soft cough.
Cui Yunchu opened her eyes and glanced at him before scrambling up onto him.
Shen Xiabai watched stiffly as she climbed onto his body, lying flat on her back and facing the ceiling, with her back against him. She closed her eyes in comfort. “Much better.”
“…”
Apparently, what she meant by sleeping on him and what he had meant by sleeping on him were two different things.
She nestled in his arms, covered by the quilt with only her head showing, and obediently closed her eyes.
“Keep telling the story.”
Shen Xiabai’s voice grew deep and husky as he continued. But as he went on, the story kept taking strange turns. Cui Yunchu gradually frowned. “Are you sure this is a story and not some little biography written by a courtesan?”
Shen Xiabai’s ears turned scarlet. “…Stop moving around and close your eyes.”
“You’re telling such an exciting story. How could anyone fall asleep?” Cui Yunchu’s eyes opened wide.
“…”
He hadn’t meant for it to turn out that way.
“I’m not telling it anymore. Hurry up and sleep,” Shen Xiabai said.
“Your belt buckle is digging into my waist.”
“…Go to sleep.”
“Will you come again tomorrow?”
“How long will you be staying in the ancestral hall?”
Cui Yunchu thought for a moment. “Hard to say. Probably two days this time. Or I might be let out for one day and then locked up here again.”
“Mm.” Shen Xiabai stroked her head. “Hurry up and sleep.”
“It really is poking me. Can you take off your belt?”
“Go to sleep.” Shen Xiabai’s voice was unmistakably tinged with gritted teeth.
Half asleep and half awake, Cui Yunchu seemed to sense some movement. She frowned unhappily, and Shen Xiabai’s gentle voice immediately murmured by her ear, soothing her. “Sleep. I’m right here.”
Cui Yunchu’s brow smoothed at once, and she drifted back to sleep.
These past two days, without the companionship of the person by her side, she didn’t know how she would have endured them.
