Beiming Xue slept soundly and did not slowly open her eyes until nearly noon.
"Mmm..."
She gave a soft murmur, the kind peculiar to a girl who had just woken up, a little drowsy and a little sweet.
Beiming Xue slowly turned her gaze toward the window. Sunlight streamed through a gap in the curtains and fell across her face, making her squint.
She shifted gently, feeling the softness and warmth of the quilt, then looked around the room.
As her mind gradually cleared, memories of the previous night came flooding back.
She remembered Yun Tian coming to her room last night and massaging her stomach. It had felt so comfortable that she had drifted off without even realizing it.
At the thought of Yun Tian massaging her, Beiming Xue blushed bright red. She wrapped the quilt around her entire body, looking like a giant silkworm cocoon. From inside the quilt, she kept muttering,
"Brother Yun massaged me."
"How embarrassing."
Beiming Xue kept murmuring to herself, completely absorbed in her own little world. Only when her stomach suddenly growled did she realize she was hungry.
So Beiming Xue stopped muttering and began tidying her room. First, she made the bed, then picked up the clothes scattered across the floor and put them in the wardrobe. After that, she cleaned the floor, clearing away all the dust and clutter.
When Beiming Xue finished tidying and came into the living room, she found Yun Tian busy cooking in the kitchen. Ling'er and Bailing were sitting on the couch, engrossed in a game and occasionally letting out excited cries.
Hearing Beiming Xue emerge from her room, Yun Tian glanced over his shoulder and teased her with a smile. "Oh, you finally decided to come out!"
Beiming Xue smiled a little bashfully. "I was just tidying my room."
"Your timing's pretty good," Yun Tian said with a smile. "Lunch is almost ready."
Yun Tian's teasing made Beiming Xue's face instantly turn as red as a ripe apple. She shyly lowered her head, not daring to look at him again. Seeing this, Bailing and Ling'er hurried over to her, each taking one of her hands and looking at her with concern.
Bailing spoke first, chiding Yun Tian in a sweet voice. "Husband, how could you say that to little Xue? She's such a shy girl!"
"Exactly, Husband. You'll embarrass little Xue like that," Ling'er agreed. Then she turned to reassure Beiming Xue. "Don't listen to his nonsense, little Xue. He just likes to joke around."
Finally, Bailing and Ling'er turned to Yun Tian and asked in unison, "Husband, isn't that right?"
Seeing all three of them united against him, Yun Tian smiled helplessly.
"Ling'er's right. Little Xue, I was talking nonsense."
"That's more like it," Ling'er said.
Ling'er and Bailing led Beiming Xue to the couch and began sharing private girl talk. Yun Tian smiled at the sight.
The three chatted while Yun Tian continued working in the kitchen. Half an hour later, Ling'er and the others seemed to have finished their conversation and came into the kitchen hand in hand. Seeing them, Yun Tian asked,
"What did you talk about that made you three so close?"
"We were talking about secrets between girls," Ling'er said.
"Oh? Can you tell me about them?"
"No."
"Really?"
"That's right."
"All right." Seeing how firm Ling'er was, Yun Tian could only give up.
Then Ling'er asked,
"Husband, is lunch ready? We're all hungry."
"It's ready. Everyone, time to eat!"
Big White, who had been sleeping soundly, suddenly heard the call of "Time to eat!" As though under a spell, Big White sprang out of bed in an instant. Moving like lightning, as if riding wind-and-fire wheels, Big White reached the dining table in the blink of an eye.
Meanwhile, Shennong Beast was also awakened by the commotion. Still bleary-eyed, Shennong Beast climbed out of the corner and tottered toward the dining table, looking a little dazed.
Yun Tian watched Big White's astonishing series of movements with his mouth hanging open wide enough to fit an egg, disbelief written all over his face. Eyes wide, he pointed at Big White and stammered, "Holy crap, Haji White, you little..."
Everyone soon took their seats at the dining table. Looking at the dishes, Ling'er asked,
"Husband, why is today's meal so lavish?"
"Well, little Xue just got here, so I made a few substantial dishes."
Hearing that, Ling'er immediately nudged Beiming Xue with her elbow.
"Look, little Xue. Husband made these dishes especially for you."
"Oh, Sister Ling'er, you're so mean! All you ever do is tease me."
"All right, stop fooling around and eat," Yun Tian said.
"Okay."
As they ate, Bailing asked,
"Little Xue, why were those bad guys chasing you and Shennong Beast?"
Beiming Xue told them everything that had happened. After hearing her story, Ling'er and Bailing were stunned.
"Damn, that Beiming Lei is a real piece of work."
"Exactly. He'd rather believe an outsider than his own little sister."
"Beiming Lei is a complete fucking idiot."
"You're right, Sister Ling'er. That Beiming Lei is all brawn and no brains. I'm starting to wonder if his cerebellum never fully developed and his brain never developed at all."
Then Bailing looked at Beiming Xue. "Little Xue, are you and Beiming Lei really biological siblings? Why are you so clever while he's so stupid?"
"Uh, I think so." After hearing Ling'er and Bailing's complaints, even Beiming Xue began to doubt herself. Thinking it over, she felt they had a point. Why was her brother such a fucking idiot?
So Beiming Xue turned to Shennong Beast.
"Shennong Beast, you've been with my father for a long time. Do you know whether Beiming Lei and I are biological siblings?"
"Um, miss, I don't know either. Young Master Beiming was already there when I began serving the Manor Lord."
"Uh..."
"It's all right," Yun Tian said. "You can stay with us now. Those people are nothing to worry about."
"Exactly!" Bailing agreed. "We have Husband. If that idiot Beiming Lei dares come here, we'll have Husband teach him a lesson."
"Okay. Thank you, everyone."
"Don't worry about it. We're family."
"Yes, family."
Yun Tian and the others ate cheerfully inside the vehicle, but things were not going so well for Nangong Wentian.
Nangong Wentian's group had already arrived in West Gate City and begun their plan to rescue Ximen Hao, following the plot. Things then unfolded just as they did in the story: they encountered Fierce Yama, Nangong Wentian transformed, unleashed his ultimate move, and defeated him. Just as everyone was about to go forward and capture Fierce Yama, Dongfang Tiexin arrived riding the Phoenix.
She looked at Fierce Yama.
"What a useless fool. You couldn't even handle something this simple."
"Princess, save me!"
"Useless fool. Get on."
"Thank you, Princess." With that, he jumped onto the Phoenix.
Dongfang Tiexin then turned to Nangong Wentian.
"Where's Yun Tian? Where is he? Tell him to come out."
Nangong Wentian was dumbfounded. He had thought Dongfang Tiexin was looking at him because she wanted to ask him something, but instead she went straight to asking about Yun Tian. That really stung.
"Um, Princess, I don't know where Brother Yun is either."
"How is that possible? You're lying to me."
"I'm not. Brother Yun left after what happened last time, and he hasn't shown up since."
Before you continue