Sharing a Bed

By the time they returned to Dorm Seven, it was already evening, and there was no one in the dormitory.

"Where is everyone?" Xiao Wu asked in confusion when she saw the empty room.

"They should have gone to dinner around this time." Lin Qing placed the two sets of bedding on the bed.

"All right, come help me make the bed. We can have dinner after we finish."

"Okay, coming."

Xiao Wu walked over to Lin Qing.

First, they pushed the two beds together. Then they took out the carrot-patterned bedding and spread it out, folding the other set of bedding and placing it beneath the bed.

After making the bed, Lin Qing and Xiao Wu went to the cafeteria. This time, they did not eat on the second floor. They would have to eat on the first floor for the next few days; after all, spending so much money at once still pained Lin Qing.

Aside from the bedding, they had bought quite a few snacks at the market that afternoon. They had also each purchased several sets of clothes. Together with the bedding, they had actually spent a total of eighty-five Silver Soul Coins. Terrifying!

After subtracting the cost of dinner that night, Lin Qing only had fifty-one Silver Soul Coins left.

Feeling the emptiness of his wallet, Lin Qing had no appetite throughout the meal.

As if she had seen through Lin Qing's worries, Xiao Wu comforted him. "Lin Qing, don't be sad. Once I get my Spirit Ring in a couple of days, I'll be able to claim a Gold Soul Coin too. I'll give that Gold Soul Coin to you then, okay?"

"Really? You'll really give me all the Gold Soul Coins you get from Spirit Hall?" Lin Qing asked pitifully.

"Of course! Don't you trust Sister Xiao Wu's character?!" Xiao Wu declared, patting her chest.

"Okay!" A smile of triumph finally appeared on Lin Qing's face.

Yet when Xiao Wu saw that smile, rather than feeling happy that Lin Qing's mood had improved, she felt a faint sense of dread, as though something important was about to leave her.

Sure enough, the next moment, Lin Qing spoke, uttering the words Xiao Wu least wanted to hear in his devilish voice. "From now on, whenever you go collect your money, I'll go with you. All the money you receive from now on will be handed over to me for safekeeping."

"Why?!"

"Didn't you say it yourself? You said you'd give me the Gold Soul Coins you received from Spirit Hall," Lin Qing said.

Xiao Wu was just about to retort when she thought back carefully. It seemed Lin Qing really had said that she would give him all the money she received, and she had not scrutinized his wording at the time, carelessly agreeing to it.

"Xiao Wu, people need to be honest. You should obediently hand over all your money from now on," Lin Qing said.

"Ah! You hateful Lin Qing! Sister Xiao Wu has decided not to speak to you for an hour!" With that, Xiao Wu sat down and ate alone in a huff.

Seeing Xiao Wu like this, Lin Qing could only comfort her helplessly. "Xiao Wu, it's not that I'm greedy for money. It's just that you spend too freely. I'm afraid you'll use up all your money within days of receiving it and have none left afterward. I'm not trying to take your money for myself. I just want to stop you from spending recklessly, or from being tricked out of it by swindlers outside. I'll keep it for you. If you need money, just tell me. Would I really refuse to give it to you?"

"Hmph!" Xiao Wu turned her head away, looking utterly unmoved, her cheeks puffed up with anger. "I said I wouldn't talk to you for an hour, but since you really are doing it for Sister Xiao Wu's sake, I'll reduce it to half an hour."

Lin Qing sighed in relief. As long as Xiao Wu was no longer angry, it was fine. After finishing his meal, Lin Qing looked at Xiao Wu, who was still stuffing herself with food, and found himself staring blankly.

Noticing Lin Qing's gaze, Xiao Wu raised her head and met his eyes. Her cheeks immediately reddened as she asked shyly, "Y-you, what are you looking at!"

"Nothing. I just think you look rather cute when you're all puffed up like that." Lin Qing continued gazing stupidly at Xiao Wu's face.

"W-what are you saying! Honestly, I'm not talking to you anymore!" With that, Xiao Wu hurriedly lowered her head and buried herself in her food.

By the time they finished dinner, night had fallen. A bright moon hung high in the sky, draping the land shrouded in darkness in a layer of pure radiance.

The sounds of people in the teaching building, cafeteria, training field, and all around the academy gradually faded away, leaving behind only silence.

A young man and a young woman walked hand in hand beneath the round, jade-disc-like moon. They strolled across the training field, passed through the teaching building, and entered the academy's quiet woods. Passing through a small grove, they arrived at a lake, across which an arched bridge stretched from one side to the other.

A youth and a girl walked hand in hand along the lake's arched bridge. Step by step, they reached the middle of the lake. Moonlight fell upon their shoulders as they faced one another, fingers intertwined, like the Cowherd and Weaver Girl meeting upon the Magpie Bridge. They gazed at each other, then finally embraced.

After their walk, Lin Qing and Xiao Wu returned to Dorm Seven arm in arm.

"You're all still awake?"

Lin Qing pushed open the door and entered the dormitory with Xiao Wu, only to find Wang Sheng and the others sitting on their beds, still awake.

"Boss, we saw that you and Sister Xiao Wu hadn't returned, so we kept waiting for you," Wang Sheng said.

"Thanks, everyone," Lin Qing replied.

Aside from Wang Sheng and the others, Tang San was also there. Seeing that Xiao Wu had not returned so late at night, Tang San had been extremely worried and had kept waiting for her.

He had originally been happy to see Xiao Wu return, but when he saw Lin Qing and Xiao Wu linked arm in arm, he immediately became unhappy. What was more, from the looks of things, Lin Qing and Xiao Wu's relationship seemed to have grown even closer.

"All right, everyone. Xiao Wu and I are fine, so you don't need to worry. Go to sleep," Lin Qing said.

Then Lin Qing and Xiao Wu walked over to their joined beds, preparing to get in and sleep together.

When Tang San saw Lin Qing and Xiao Wu preparing to sleep in the same bed, he immediately jumped down from his own bed, pointed at Lin Qing, and roared, "Lin Qing, what are you doing?! Don't you know that men and women should not have intimate contact? What do you mean by sleeping in the same bed as Xiao Wu?!"

"Tang San, are you done already?! Sister Xiao Wu hasn't said anything, so why are you meddling so much!" Xiao Wu was genuinely angry. This Tang San was like a persistent ghost. In just one day, he had already picked fights with her and Lin Qing several times. He was truly annoying.

"Xiao Wu, I'm only worried about you. Don't let Lin Qing deceive you. A girl's reputation is the most important thing. Even if Lin Qing doesn't care about appearances, you should still be careful!" Seeing Xiao Wu get angry, Tang San immediately softened his tone.

"None of your business!" Xiao Wu snapped. "And it wasn't Lin Qing who asked to sleep together—it was me! All right, Tang San, stop bothering me! I'm going to sleep!"

With that, Xiao Wu immediately slipped beneath the covers, seemingly unwilling to hear Tang San's irritating voice any longer.

Lin Qing's face remained expressionless at the sight, but inwardly, he was delighted. Xiao Wu's favorability toward Tang San was getting lower and lower. It was probably about to become negative.

All he could say was that Uncle Tang San was truly impressive. A kind little girl like Xiao Wu had managed to have her favorability gradually drop to zero in a single day, and it was still declining in reverse. Lin Qing could not help but admire him.

"Lin Qing, I challenge you! Do you dare accept?!" Seeing that Xiao Wu was ignoring him, Tang San redirected his anger toward Lin Qing.

"What, was this morning's beating not enough? Do you want another one?" Lin Qing was somewhat annoyed as well. It was one thing for Tang San to provoke him, but he had repeatedly bothered Xiao Wu too. If not for his wariness of Tang Hao behind him and that person above, Lin Qing would have killed Tang San long ago.

"In today's fight, you only won by relying on your Spirit Ring. After tomorrow's opening ceremony, the teacher will take me to hunt Spirit Beasts. Once I obtain my first Spirit Ring, I'll definitely wash away today's humiliation!" Tang San said.

"Whatever. With that useless Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul of yours, you still think you can defeat me? Heh." Lin Qing said no more and climbed beneath the covers as well, no longer listening to Tang San's barking.