Embraced on Both Sides

"Ah! Carrots!"

Xiao Wu's arm blurred into an afterimage before she swiftly darted aside.

By the time Lu Chen reacted, Xiao Wu was already hugging the carrots and sniffing them over and over.

"They're actually premium carrots!! ⊙▽⊙"

Xiao Wu was delighted. It had been a long time since she had eaten carrots this sweet and fragrant.

"Of course. My grandpa grew them himself. In our village, only my grandpa can grow carrots that delicious. Oh, and my grandpa's martial soul is a carrot too."

Lu Chen looked immensely proud. He had dangled such a huge temptation before her—was he really afraid this little rabbit would not take the bait?

"Lu Chen, I like you—no, no, I like your grandpa! When are we going to meet your grandpa?"

Xiao Wu hopped over to Lu Chen, hooked her arm around his, and swayed it from side to side, looking incredibly eager.

"Uh, I'm afraid that won't work. Grandpa is most afraid of rabbits. He really hates rabbits."

Lu Chen broke into a cold sweat. She had been neither warm nor cold toward him before, but now her attitude had taken a complete turn.

"Then what should I do? I really, really like carrots."

Xiao Wu clung to Lu Chen's arm and looked at him with tearful eyes, clearly giving off the impression that she would not let go unless he agreed.

"Brother Chen, why do I suddenly feel like you're setting me up? Like you knew this would happen beforehand."

Tang San watched Xiao Wu cling to Lu Chen's arm so intimately and spoke with a hint of envy.

"Little San, don't talk nonsense. Is that any way to speak to your big brother? What do you mean, 'you feel'? I don't care what you feel—I care what I feel. Women will only slow down your cultivation. Your talent is above mine. You have the makings of a great emperor. You shouldn't let romantic entanglements delay your cultivation."

Lu Chen spoke sternly. What was with Little San? Couldn't he see his big brother was courting a girl? Or did he have designs on his big brother's woman?

"But..."

Tang San wanted to say more, but before he could get the words out, Lu Chen mercilessly cut him off.

"But what? Are you teaching me how to do things? Stand down!"

Tang San was speechless. Just as he was about to move aside, Lu Chen called out to him again.

"Brother Chen, is there something else?"

"I bought this new quilt. Go help me make the bed."

Lu Chen tossed the quilt he had brought to Tang San. Then, ignoring Tang San, he led Xiao Wu aside, put an arm around her, and said, "Come on, let's continue talking about carrots."

Tang San was speechless. At that moment, he suddenly felt as though he had lost his human rights. He desperately wanted to become stronger, defeat Lu Chen, and ensure that he would never be oppressed again.

"Which one of you is Tang San? Come out for a moment."

Just then, a young man appeared at the entrance to Dorm 7.

"That's me. May I ask what you need, big brother?"

"Grandmaster asked me to bring you these bedding supplies. He said Dorm 7's bedding is rather worn out and was afraid you wouldn't be used to sleeping on it. Grandmaster also asked you to go see him later."

After handing the bedding to Tang San, the young man left directly, leaving behind only a deeply moved Tang San.

"That's right, I still have Grandmaster. With Grandmaster's guidance, I'll definitely become stronger and defeat Lu Chen."

Meanwhile, after Xiao Wu wheedled and pleaded with him for a long time, Lu Chen finally agreed to feed her premium carrots every day.

"From now on, I'm the boss of Dorm 7. You all have to call me Sister Xiao Wu—especially you, Tang San. You've left a very bad impression on me!"

Standing on top of a table, Xiao Wu formally announced herself as the big sister of Dorm 7, her delight overflowing.

After that, Xiao Wu chose her bed. It was right beside Lu Chen's. After setting down her luggage and school uniform, she suddenly remembered something.

"Oh no, I forgot to buy bedding. What am I going to do?"

Xiao Wu looked at the old, tattered bedding originally in the dorm with disdain. She looked around before her gaze finally settled on Tang San.

"Wow, this bedding is so soft and smells so nice. I want it."

"Sister Xiao Wu, that bedding belongs to Brother Chen. If you take it, Brother Chen won't have any bedding," Tang San hurriedly reminded her.

"Then give me yours." Xiao Wu glared at Tang San.

"Master gave this to me. I forgot to bring bedding too, and I don't have any money." Tang San looked somewhat guilty.

"Hmph, I have my ways."

As she spoke, Xiao Wu pushed her bed together with Lu Chen's, then deftly made the bed.

"Huh? This bedding is pretty big. It fits two beds perfectly."

"Xiao Wu, isn't this a little inappropriate? We only met today, and we're already sharing a bed?"

As he spoke, Lu Chen placed his pillow beside Xiao Wu's.

The other students of Dorm 7 all gave him a thumbs-up at the sight.

On the first day of school, everyone was busy with their own affairs. By the time Tang San returned from meeting Grandmaster, the students of Dorm 7 were already asleep.

"Huh? Brother Chen, you just got back too?" Tang San was puzzled. He had returned so late because Grandmaster had something to discuss with him, but why had Lu Chen returned so late?

"Oh, I just went to see someone. Don't worry about it. Hurry up and sleep. Classes start tomorrow."

"See someone?"

Tang San was even more confused now. How did he not know that Lu Chen knew anyone at Nuoding City Junior Soul Master Academy?

Unable to figure it out, Tang San stopped thinking about it. He would probably find out eventually. Then he closed his eyes and went to sleep.

As for Lu Chen, when he saw Xiao Wu's unsightly sleeping posture and the boundary line she had piled up in the middle of the bed using luggage, he could not help but laugh.

"With a sleeping posture that bad, what's the use of putting up luggage? I bet that when you wake up tomorrow, you'll definitely be hugging me in your sleep."

The next morning.

When a ray of sunlight shone through the window onto Lu Chen's face, he finally woke from his dream.

He wanted to sit up, but suddenly realized that something was pressing down on both sides of him.

Turning his head, he saw that Xiao Wu, who had originally been on the other side of the bed, was tightly hugging him as she slept soundly.

When he looked to the other side, he found that Gu Yuena, who should have been sleeping in her own dormitory, had somehow secretly climbed into Lu Chen's bed.

"Who's that girl? She's so pretty!"

"I've never seen such a cute girl before."

"Is she new too? Why didn't we see her yesterday?"

"Why is she sleeping in Brother Chen's bed and hugging him? I'm so jealous."

The surrounding chatter reached Lu Chen's ears, and only then did he realize that quite a few students from Dorm 7 had gathered around him. Little San was among them as well.

"Mmm~ It's so noisy this early in the morning. Are you going to let people sleep or not?!"

The noisy chatter finally woke Xiao Wu from her sleep.

She opened her eyes, and the first thing she saw was Lu Chen's awkward yet polite smile.

Xiao Wu was startled. Almost on reflex, she kicked out with her rabbit leg. Just as her foot was about to strike Lu Chen in the face, she saw an exceptionally beautiful girl sleeping peacefully in Lu Chen's arms beside him.