Expelled from Humanity

Song Zhizhi looked at the two familiar dishes, picked up a bite, and tasted it. It was the familiar flavor, exactly the same as the two dishes she had eaten last night. Looking at Xie Xiuji, she asked, "Were all those meals before made by you too?"

Sword Venerable Mingxiao nodded.

Song Zhizhi: So you were the mysterious master chef! No wonder no matter how she asked before, she could never sniff out where he had bought these dishes. They had all come from the kitchens of Red Cloud Peak.

"How does it taste?" Sword Venerable Mingxiao looked at Song Zhizhi with burning eyes.

The corners of Song Zhizhi's lips lifted beyond her control. "It tastes great. Keep it up!"

The man gave a low hum, and a trace of amusement overflowed from his cool, detached brows and eyes.

The next day, Sword Venerable Mingxiao arrived at Clear Snow Peak on time to transfer spiritual power to Song Zhizhi. Song Zhizhi rested her hand on her stomach as well, wanting to feel her little treasure's spiritual sense brush against her.

"Zhizhi." Sword Venerable Mingxiao's other hand, hanging at his side, curled faintly into a fist. "Let's get married."

From the moment he learned that Song Zhizhi was pregnant with his child—no, rather, from more than a month ago—he had harbored this thought. He wanted to marry Song Zhizhi, not merely out of responsibility, but also out of selfish desire.

He wanted to shelter Song Zhizhi beneath his wings, take care of her, and protect her.

Song Zhizhi raised her head in surprise and met Xie Xiuji's gentle, limpid eyes. She could see a thread of unease and anxiety in his gaze.

Counting that chaotic night, this was the second time Xie Xiuji had proposed to her. If, more than a month ago, hearing those words had only made her want to stay far, far away from Xie Xiuji so she would not be dragged down with him, then now, her state of mind had changed considerably.

The plot of the original novel had already begun to change. Perhaps Xie Xiuji's fate was different from the one in the story as well. Someone as upright and kind as him should not become the villain everyone cried out to beat.

She did not know what Xie Xiuji had gone through to become as he was in the original novel, but if she stayed by his side, perhaps she could help him avoid those terrible things.

Song Zhizhi did not know that her unintentional act on the very first day she had transmigrated had already changed Xie Xiuji's fate. Now, filled with lofty ambition to change his destiny of becoming a villain, she nodded lightly beneath Xie Xiuji's gaze.

Just as she was about to answer, a crisp, cheerful voice rang out from outside. "Little Zhizhi, your master is back! Look what your master brought you—" Qingyu stepped into Song Zhizhi's courtyard. The door was not closed, and she saw her obedient disciple, dressed in thin sleepwear, leaning against Xie Xiuji's chest with flushed cheeks, while Xie Xiuji's hand was still inside her disciple's sleepwear!

Qingyu halted mid-step. She looked up at the sky, then down at the ground. The sun had not risen in the west, nor were fish running across the earth. She was not sleepwalking, but why did it seem as though she had seen something she should not have seen?

She pinched herself. It hurt a little. This was not a dream, nor was it an illusion.

"What are you two doing?!" Qingyu's eyes widened, her voice nearly cracking.

Author's Note:

As I wrote the final scene, all I could think of was a line from Empresses in the Palace: "Consort Sun's crimson mandarin-duck bellyband is still hanging from that madman's belt." Covers face.

They were only touching her stomach while transferring spiritual power. This was nothing yet, hehehe.

This chapter was the update for the 6th. The next update will be posted at noon on the 7th, probably around six thousand words. I won't be managing ten thousand words a day anymore. Weakly.

Expelled from Humanity

Song Zhizhi looked at Qingyu, then at Xie Xiuji, then at the position the two of them were currently in. Anyone who saw them would not think there was anything innocent between them—though they really were not all that innocent.

Song Zhizhi felt as though she had been caught by a parent while kissing her early-romance boyfriend. Faced with Qingyu's shocked, disbelieving gaze, she felt inexplicably guilty. "Master..."

A rare trace of awkwardness appeared on Xie Xiuji's handsome face. He withdrew his hand and shifted sideways, blocking most of Song Zhizhi from view. Keeping a composed expression, he said, "Martial Aunt Qingyu."

Qingyu: ...

Oh, heavens. It really was not an illusion!

Why was it not an illusion?

Qingyu's head was buzzing. The scene from just now lingered in her mind and would not disperse. She looked at Xie Xiuji, then at Song Zhizhi. Her expression turned into a riot of colors, complicated beyond measure. In the end, she said nothing, merely shot Xie Xiuji a glance before sweeping her sleeve and shutting the door.

Song Zhizhi and Xie Xiuji looked at each other for a while. She tugged on his sleeve. "Xie Xiuji..."

Was Master angry?

Though Song Zhizhi had not spent much time with Qingyu, she could always sense a comforting presence from her, like that of a dependable elder. Master Qingyu had dragged Xie Xiuji over because she wanted her to practice swordsmanship properly with him, yet Qingyu had instead witnessed such an ambiguous scene. It was like when your parents spent a fortune hiring the top scorer of the National College Entrance Examination to tutor you, hoping you would become the next top scorer, only to turn around and find you dating the provincial top scorer instead. Recalling Qingyu's expression just now, Song Zhizhi felt as if she had let down an elder's expectations.

Song Zhizhi worried that Master Qingyu might be disappointed in her.

Sword Venerable Mingxiao pressed at his brow. He had been careless. The Sword Sect was very safe, and Song Zhizhi was the only one on Clear Snow Peak. Afraid that spreading out his spiritual sense would let him see things he ought not see, he habitually restrained it whenever he was with Song Zhizhi. That was why he had failed to notice at once that Martial Aunt Qingyu had returned.

Sensing Song Zhizhi's unease, he gently stroked her hair and said softly, "Don't worry. With me here, it will be fine. Once I finish transferring spiritual power to you, go back and change your clothes first. I'll explain things to Martial Aunt."

Song Zhizhi felt Xie Xiuji's warm palm pass over the top of her head. There seemed to be a power within him that could put people at ease, driving away the nervousness that had just risen within her. Song Zhizhi nodded. "All right."

Looking at Xie Xiuji, she blinked, now in the mood to joke as well. "You're finished. In my master's eyes, you're probably a lecher now. If my master wants to beat you up later, remember to run."

Rankings

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Transmigrated into a Book

Sweet Romance

Transmigration and Rebirth Romance

Tu Yanyan

Amnesia Trope