Su Liumeng’s mouth was dry.
With soft jade in her arms and a warm fragrance within reach, few could remain indifferent. As she leaned closer to the girl’s face — which was as lovely as the rosy clouds of dusk — the dryness deep in her throat intensified.
My large, watery eyes widened bit by bit. “W — What are you saying?”
My feet moved uncontrollably.
My subconscious instinct was to run.
What was going on?
Having finally found an opportunity, how could Su Liumeng let me slip away so easily? “Baby, you promised me.”
It was that line again.
As soon as she brought out her finishing move, my whole body stiffened. With a forced smile, I looked up at the girl who was pinning me down against the sofa. “In… In the living room? Isn’t this a bit inappropriate…?”
Su Liumeng took a subconscious glance around. “This isn’t the living room. It’s the corner of the living room, the small tea room.”
“…”
Seeing that I couldn’t escape, I simply grit my teeth and closed my eyes, throwing caution to the wind.
Anyway, no one else was home. To hell with it.
No matter how tough I acted, when my dress — as pure as a snow lotus — was moved aside and my snowy-white shoulders were pushed down onto the carpet, I still trembled a few times like a coward.
‘Aaaah! Why does it have to be here? If… If someone suddenly comes back, won’t I be finished?’
Su Liumeng’s fingertips were very hot, mirroring her burning emotions.
She traced my pale eyeliner. The coolness touched by her fingertips felt like the finest cold jade, until she met my gaze, which was trembling like a startled fawn.
“Are you afraid?”
I pursed my lips, my fingertips curling, and shook my head vigorously.
Su Liumeng’s heart skipped a beat. She gave me a light, butterfly-kiss on my brow. “And you say you’re not afraid when you’re already shaking like this.”
She wrapped her arms tightly around my body. “If you’re really not comfortable, let’s go back to the room.”
My back teeth clenched. Just as Su Liumeng was about to pick me up, I suddenly grabbed her arm. My pale pink fingertips turned white from the force. “No.”
“I don’t need to!” I said, hardening my heart even as it pounded wildly.
Was it a fear that had nowhere to go?
Or was it the thrill of gradually challenging taboos and liberating my nature?
My eyes lowered as I stared at my own fingertips, unable to say for sure.
My hands, like top-quality suet jade, and Su Liumeng’s paused breathing froze into a picture that left me dazed and at a loss.
***
“Still daydreaming.” Su Liumeng pinched my cheek.
My gaze was vacant. My mouth opened and closed before I suddenly reached out my arms and buried my head in her chest.
I was too shy for words.
As the environment grew quieter, both of them knew what would happen next.
I nervously clenched my small hands, not quite daring to look up at the figure before me.
‘What is Xinyan thinking, changing her attitude like that? Has Baby’s life philosophy already fully entered the mid-twenty-first century?’ Su Liumeng wondered.
“Hurry up and finish. I have things to do later.” Seeing that Su Liumeng hadn’t reacted for a while, I reached out and tapped her head.
Lately, I had been getting more and more used to hitting her.
Su Liumeng, “…”
The way she said that made it sound like Su Liumeng’s “ability” in a certain area was negative. It was as if Baby was rushing her to get it over with just to fulfill an obligation.
She decided to show her something impressive.
Su Liumeng produced an item out of thin air. My eyes widened further. “When did you buy this?”
“Hmm?” Su Liumeng’s tone rose slightly. “I’m looking forward to seeing what Baby will say in a little while.”
I was silent.
I… was stiff.
I… saw it, and I couldn’t ignore it.
Because the female lead was me.
Half an hour flashed by.
I gripped Su Liumeng’s back tightly. “Don’t… Don’t do that. It’s a little uncomfortable. Can you be a little gentler?”
“Fine, then I’ll stop.”
My body went rigid.
With the air suddenly devoid of sound, being left hanging was the most uncomfortable feeling.
Su Liumeng’s eyes were teasing, carrying a hint of a wicked smile. She wanted to hear that answer from my own mouth.
‘Why is she so mean?’ I grit my teeth, watching the girl before me slowly pull away. My small hand, which had been idly clutching a corner of the blanket, suddenly reached forward. “You — don’t leave.”
“Didn’t Baby say so herself?” Su Liumeng asked, knowing the answer perfectly well.
My face turned so red it looked like it might bleed. “I… I just told you to be gentler.”
“Who… Who told you to stop?”
“Then what does Baby want?”
I bit my lower lip, my toes nearly digging through the carpet. “An — Anyway, you’re not allowed to leave.”
Su Liumeng saw that the timing was about right. If she teased her any further, a certain someone would probably spontaneously combust.
When teasing one’s wife, one had to take it step by step.
“So Baby isn’t that frigid after all. Your body is unexpectedly honest. You look quite happy…”
My face flushed even deeper as I couldn’t help but retort, “Who’s frigid? If you keep talking nonsense, I’m going to bite you.”
‘She’s always teasing me about being frigid. Who does that?!’
Bite?
Meeting her eyes, which were filled with laughter, I finally clenched my fists and thumped her chest. “Fine, hurry up. At a time like this, you’re still daydreaming. What are you lingering for?”
Receiving the command, the look of satiation in Su Liumeng’s eyes grew even stronger.
I looked up at the ceiling.
The empty living room, the increasingly blurred vision.
The air, which was originally a bit cool, could no longer touch a single inch of my pale pink skin.
To Su Liumeng’s surprise, my fingertips left a trail of red marks across her back.
***
7:00 PM.
I looked at the area near the sofa that had originally been decorated so cozily. A large section had been cleared out. The soft, high-end carpet was long gone, leaving the floor looking a bit bare. My bare little feet couldn’t find a place to land. Under Su Liumeng’s increasingly playful and teasingly ambiguous gaze, I simply retracted my smooth legs and grabbed a nearby small pillow, burying my head in it out of shame.
I didn’t… want to talk to her.
I didn’t have much strength left in my body to begin with, and Su Liumeng kept staring at me, which made me even more bashful.
Su Liumeng watched the girl’s rosy face after the “rain and clouds” had passed. Seeing it completely blocked by those snowy-white arms, she reluctantly withdrew her gaze.
Currently, the dress I had been wearing had been changed into a nightgown after washing up. It was as white as snow, untainted by dust.
*Ding-dong.*
Two figures entered the villa’s front door one after the other.
After returning to modern society this time, they hadn’t gone back to that large flat. Instead, they had moved into a villa in a luxury residential area halfway up a mountain. Because the space was more spacious, there were usually more people to clean it. They were currently screening staff and hadn’t made final decisions yet.
“Madam.” Spring Qiao performed a respectful bow before heading to the kitchen to prepare dinner.
I liked to eat dinner around 8:00 PM, and they always respected my lifestyle habits.
I subconsciously raised my head. The figure beside me had already disappeared.
I didn’t look at Spring Qiao, but instead followed the direction where Su Liumeng had gone.
Stepping lightly off the sofa, my legs suddenly went soft. I nearly fell back down, but in the next second, I dropped straight into a warm embrace.
My gaze was blank as I looked up at Su Liumeng. “Didn’t you go to the study?”
At this point, even if I were stupid, I would know she had been staring at me. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for her to flash over the instant I stumbled.
“Be careful,” Su Liumeng said in a low voice.
Seeing this, I became even more annoyed. “It’s all your fault.”
I glared at her fiercely. Su Liumeng found it adorable — this was a rare, vivid expression from me. She wanted to reach out and pinch me, but I dodged. “Go and get busy with your own things. Why are you hovering around someone as idle as me all day?”
“Don’t you have your own work?” I stood with my hands on my hips, looking quite imposing.
In this house, I was the only unemployed person with nothing to do all day.
“I do,” Su Liumeng said succinctly.
“Then go get busy!”
After Su Liumeng left, I finally breathed a sigh of relief. My previous confidence vanished. The events that had just occurred were a bit of a shock to my worldview, to the point where I didn’t want to recall them. As long as I wasn’t looking at Su Liumeng, I could quietly act like an ostrich.
Although Su Liumeng called this a tea room, I preferred to call it a small living room. The area wasn’t very large. It was a small space setting that I liked; it gave a person a greater sense of security. I picked up the remote and flipped to a TV channel. The news broadcasted by the announcer’s deep voice made me subconsciously stop.
[Temperatures have dropped sharply recently. This is the coldest spring in nearly thirty years. The cause of the temperature change is currently unknown.]
I suddenly thought of the battle near the World Boundary Stone.
Was it pressure from the world of evil cultivators?
Could it be that those evil cultivators could directly influence the weather?
That seemed too incredible. It was probably just a coincidence and me worrying over nothing.
Suddenly, a petite and cute figure appeared out of thin air in the center of the villa. She stood in front of the small living room sofa, carrying a faint scent of milk. Like a swallow returning to its nest, she dove straight into my arms.
“Mommy!”
Xi Zhiruo was as clingy as ever. She looked up and held a spiritual herb in her small hand, offering it like a treasure. “Zhizhi found another spiritual herb! Am I great?”
“A Thousand-Year Thousand-Heart Grass. Not bad. Only the last of the three main medicines is left. My baby is indeed amazing. You can easily get things that others can’t find at all.” I smiled and held her legs, letting her sit on my lap.
“Hehehe.” Xi Zhiruo swung her small legs and suddenly noticed the change on the floor. “Mommy, where did the carpet here go?”
My expression froze. I said nonchalantly, “Your Aunt Su Liumeng threw it away.”
“Because it got dirty.”
Xi Zhiruo tilted her head, not caring too much about the issue. “Since it was dirty, we can just buy another one tomorrow.”
I pinched her small face, my smile deepening. “Does my darling want to buy one herself?”
“Let Mommy see how much money you have.”
Xi Zhiruo counted on her fingers, tallying her small vault. “I have 20,000 yuan now. I should be able to buy a carpet.”
I took the opportunity to squeeze her small paws. Her cool little hands were always soft and comfortable to hold. “Is that the money Mommy gave you?”
“Yes.” She looked at me in confusion. “It’s the pocket money Mommy gave me last time.”
I continued playing with her hands. “When you turn 2 years old, Mommy will give you 100 billion, okay? Didn’t you always want to try the financial markets? After studying for a while longer, you should be able to barely complete your apprenticeship.” I never doubted my daughter’s intelligence; I just hadn’t given her much pocket money because she was still small.
‘100 billion? How much money is that?! It turns out Mommy is a little rich lady.’ Xi Zhiruo’s eyes widened. She suddenly broke into a surprised smile and kissed my cheek with her soft lips. “I’m so happy! Thank you, Mommy.”
Xi Zhiruo’s small hands struggled a bit, and I loosened my grip.
“Mommy.” She pulled out an ice cream and obediently handed it to me. “Eat — ice cream.”
Her cute little face and soft voice made my heart melt.
“Mmh, such a good girl.” I took the cone and took a small bite. The sweetness melted into my heart.
“Did you buy it on your way back?”
“Yes,” Xi Zhiruo answered honestly.
The money I gave her last time was meant for her to use as change for buying things.
20,000 yuan was definitely enough for snacks.
She had grown up a bit now, and I had educated her many times. She shouldn’t be buying junk food or overeating. This was one of the reasons I could feel a bit more at ease letting her go out.
“Did you eat any?” I took another bite.
I didn’t particularly like ice cream.
But since it was something my daughter bought for me, I would definitely finish it.
In my memory, this was the first time Zhizhi had brought me food, right?
“I ate one.” Xi Zhiruo raised her hand, promising me. “Zhizhi listened to Mommy. I only ate one.”
“Because Mommy said I had to come back for dinner tonight.”
She tilted her head, suddenly remembering something. “Oh, right. When I was coming back, there was a very enthusiastic lady who wanted to give me a lollipop. I think she’s a kidnapper who specifically tricks children. She saw me out alone buying ice cream and targeted me.”
“But I don’t like lollipops. I like bubble gum better.” Though she was small, Xi Zhiruo spoke very logically.
“Not eating things from strangers is a good habit. Did you not follow her to confirm her identity?” My gaze shifted.
“No, I was in a hurry to get back. She wasn’t an important person. If she really annoyed me, I would have slapped her into a meteor shower with one strike.”
Xi Zhiruo’s small canine teeth were just like mine. She was exceptionally cute when she was angry.
“Mmh.”
I hummed softly in response, not paying much attention to the matter.
There shouldn’t be anyone in this world capable of kidnapping my daughter.
Xi Zhiruo hummed a song, swinging her small feet.
Hearing the sound from the TV, she subconsciously turned to look. “Temperature drop? Isn’t that because the evil cultivators outside are setting up a formation?”
My breath hitched.
“When I went out to the Secret Realm this time, I happened to see people secretly setting up a formation outside the world. It’s probably because there are too many people guarding the World Boundary Stone, so they hope to break a gap from somewhere else.”
“After all, among the six worlds, only our world has a gap. By the same logic, they can deduce that our world’s barrier is the weakest of the six. They might actually be able to open another gap elsewhere. The drop in temperature is just a side effect of the formation of a large-scale array.”
I was silent.
Xi Zhiruo shook my arm. “Does Mommy want me to help?”
I shook my head. “No need for now. We’ll talk about it when the day it breaks comes.”
I could barely take care of myself; I didn’t have time to worry about others.
I was also distressed by my daughter’s recent busyness.
The world belonged to everyone; the responsibility wasn’t mine alone.
Admittedly, I wasn’t completely cold-blooded.
But that would have to wait until others actually broke in. Before that, other people would naturally find ways to solve it.
Su Liumeng was currently in seclusion in the study. I took out a paper crane used for transmitting messages, wrote down the information Zhizhi had just given me, and sent it over.
“Okay, I’ll listen to Mommy.” The Little Dumpling gave a yawn. Having been out all day, traveling tens of thousands of kilometers and conducting a carpet search in the Secret Realm, she was now very, very tired. Otherwise, why would she want a hug as soon as she returned? Nestled in her mother’s embrace, she easily grew drowsy.
Seeing her yawning repeatedly, I picked up the remote and turned the TV volume to the minimum until it was basically silent. Then, I lightly patted her back. “Go to sleep, go to sleep.”
I reached out and pulled off her small shoes.
I also felt the socks she was wearing. They didn’t feel damp, so she probably hadn’t sweat.
—
Su Liumeng was practicing in the study.
The circulating energy formed a materialized True Dragon around her.
She had to raise her state to the absolute limit to deal with the upcoming entry into the Su Family’s first Secret Realm. This was the Su Family’s final foundation, with only one opening chance remaining. It was not a safe nursery for children; one could even lose their life if they weren’t careful.
She had a faint intuition that her birth in this world might be inextricably linked to that Secret Realm.
It was time to confront those people from the Su Family and demand clarity.