Buying Clothes for Jin Ping'er

"Husband?"

"Hmm?"

"What were you... doing just now?" Jin Ping'er gestured with her hand, mimicking the way he had just raised his arm to tap the air. "You suddenly stopped and started gesturing at the air. What were you doing?"

Lu Jiuyuan's movements paused for a moment.

He looked down at Jin Ping'er's face, which was filled with curiosity, and his mind raced.

He couldn't talk about the Myriad Worlds Peerless Beauty Group.

If he told her, he would have to explain what a system was, what the Myriad Worlds Peerless Beauty Group was, and why he was chatting with seven or eight different women.

The explanations would be endless, and this wasn't the right occasion for it anyway.

He leaned down without changing his expression, his lips brushing against her ear.

"Setting up a sound-dampening barrier."

Jin Ping'er was stunned. "What?"

"A sound-dampening barrier." His voice was very low, carrying a sense of matter-of-fact certainty. "To prevent anyone from eavesdropping."

Jin Ping'er stared at him for several seconds, her expression shifting from confusion to speechlessness, and then to a desire to laugh.

"Lu Jiuyuan, there is no such thing as a sound-dampening barrier in this world."

"The Qingyun Sect has them."

"I have never seen such a thing in the ancient texts of the Qingyun Sect."

"It's a secret technique of Xiaozhu Peak."

The corner of Jin Ping'er's mouth twitched; she clearly didn't believe a single word.

But she didn't press the issue, merely reaching out to tap his chest lightly, her tone tinged with helplessness.

"Fine, fine, a sound-dampening barrier. If you say so, then it is."

Lu Jiuyuan breathed a secret sigh of relief, lowered his head to kiss her lips, and blocked out any further questions.

The bed frame began to creak once more.

Jin Ping'er didn't ask about the barrier again; her attention was quickly occupied by other things, her body sinking into the hay as her fingers tightened in his hair.

The night was long!

It was so long that the moonlight moved across the broken window and back again, so long that the clouds covered the moon and drifted away, and even the last night insect in the village grew tired of chirping and fell into a deep sleep.

Six hours.

They passed in the blink of an eye.

The sky grew bright.

Sunlight poured in through the broken window, illuminating the entire room.

On the bed, the traces of last night had nowhere to hide.

The crumpled robes, the scattered long hair, and the deep and shallow red marks on Jin Ping'er's body.

Lu Jiuyuan got up to get dressed, his movements light, but Jin Ping'er still woke up.

Jin Ping'er squinted at him, and just as she tried to sit up, she let out a hiss and curled back into a ball.

"What's wrong?"

"My whole body hurts..." Jin Ping'er frowned, her voice soft and weak, carrying a helpless, coquettish tone. "It's all your fault."

Lu Jiuyuan crouched beside her and reached out to check her forehead; she didn't have a fever. He looked at her complexion, and aside from exhaustion, there was nothing unusual.

He took a Huiqi Pill from his storage bag and held it to her lips.

"Eat this."

Jin Ping'er opened her mouth and swallowed it. The pill dissolved into a warm stream of spiritual energy that flowed through her limbs and bones, easing the soreness, though she still felt weak all over.

She lay on the bed, watching Lu Jiuyuan dress and tie his belt, her gaze falling on the red marks on his back as the corners of her mouth curved upward.

"Husband."

"Hmm?"

"I have no clothes to wear."

Lu Jiuyuan's movements paused, and he turned to look at her.

Jin Ping'er lay on the bed, her charms fully exposed.

The clothes she had worn last night were already ruined.

They had been too hurried and too immersed last night; neither of them had thought about clothes.

Jin Ping'er looked down at herself, then back at him, a faint blush rising on her face. "What is that look in your eyes supposed to mean?"

"It doesn't mean anything." Lu Jiuyuan looked away, though his mind was racing.

His clothes would be too big for her, and her own clothes were no longer wearable. He couldn't just let her walk out naked.

A flash of inspiration struck his mind.

The Shop.

He hadn't had a chance to look at the shop function that unlocked after leveling up to LV5 last night.

Lu Jiuyuan opened the shop interface.

The shop's goods were dazzling and categorized into sections: cultivation techniques, medicinal pills, weapons, and a "clothing" category.

He tapped on the clothing category, set the filter to "women's wear," and sorted by price from low to high.

The cheapest item was a coarse linen garment for 1 point.

The most expensive was a glowing immortal dress that cost 9,999 points.

He checked his balance; the LV5 upgrade had granted him 500 points, and combined with the rewards from previous missions, he had a total of 680 points.

He flipped through a few pages, his gaze stopping on one set of clothes. A moon-white top with a pale cyan skirt; the fabric looked soft and light, and the style was simple and elegant—neither flashy nor shabby. Price: 80 points.

The product description read: Yunjin Plain Garment. Woven from Heavenly Silkworm Silk and cloud brocade, the texture is soft and breathable, suitable for daily wear. Includes an automatic cleaning function, no washing required.

He tapped "Purchase."

A flash of white light flickered, and a neatly folded set of clothes appeared in his hands.

Jin Ping'er stared at the women's clothing in his hands, her eyes widening.

"Where did you get that?"

"It's a secret."

Jin Ping'er took the clothes and unfolded them to take a look. The moon-white top and pale cyan skirt were as soft as clouds, shimmering with a faint luster under the sunlight.

Her fingers brushed over the fabric, and a flash of pleasant surprise crossed her eyes.

"Is this... Heavenly Silkworm Silk?"

"Mm."

Jin Ping'er looked up at him, her gaze filled with complex emotions.

She didn't ask where the clothes came from, nor did she ask why he had such things; she simply lowered her head and hugged the outfit to her chest.

"Turn around."

Lu Jiuyuan turned his back, muttering, "I already saw everything there was to see last night!"

Behind him came the sound of rustling, the friction of fabric, the noise of her dressing, and a very soft sigh.

"Alright."

Lu Jiuyuan turned back around.

Jin Ping'er stood before the bed, wearing the moon-white and pale cyan dress.

The clothes fit perfectly, as if they had been custom-made for her.

The moon-white set off her snow-white skin, while the pale cyan added a touch of refined elegance.

She looked like a completely different person from the bewitching Miao Gongzi in purple who usually appeared, resembling instead a young lady of a noble family who had stepped out of a painting.

She lowered her head, using her fingers to smooth out the wrinkles on her skirt, then looked up at him.

"Does it look good?"

Lu Jiuyuan looked at her for several seconds.

"It looks good."

The corners of Jin Ping'er's mouth curved upward, but she quickly suppressed it, pretending to be calm as she adjusted her cuffs.

She bent down to pick up the items scattered from last night: hairpins and a few hidden weapons she carried with her.

The moment she bent over, she swayed, nearly losing her balance.

Lu Jiuyuan stepped forward and caught her arm.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine... my legs are just weak." Jin Ping'er leaned against his arm, her voice much softer than usual. "It's all your fault."

Lu Jiuyuan didn't speak; he simply scooped her up into his arms.

"What are you doing? Put me down!"

"Can you walk?"

Jin Ping'er struggled for a moment, but her body was limp and sore, and her efforts felt like nothing more than a tickle.

She glared at him, then resigned herself to wrapping her arms around his neck, burying her face in the crook of his shoulder.

"What if someone sees us?"

"Let them see."

"You!" Jin Ping'er bit his shoulder, not hard—it was more like venting her frustration. "Lu Jiuyuan, you did this on purpose."

Lu Jiuyuan chuckled and carried her out of the room.