The sun rose in the east, spilling golden morning light over the mountain walls. The snow in the fortified settlement at their foot had grown a little deeper.
Niao Niao, whose feathers were snowy white, perched on the stone house's roof, almost blending into the snow. With nothing but heavy snow all around, the bird had settled down to sleep in.
Inside the stone house below, the old wooden door had been shut and the stove had gone out, causing the temperature to fall rapidly and adding a few threads of chill.
Ye Jingtang lay on his robe with the slender Yunli in his arms, their clothes spread over them both.
Perhaps because she was a little cold, the still-sleeping Yunli nestled tightly against him, her cheek pressed to his chest and a lingering blush on her face.
Ye Jingtang held Yunli in both arms. He had not slept during the night; after making Yunli his bride, he had held her while silently practicing his cultivation, replenishing his utterly depleted body.
Only when he noticed that daylight had fully arrived and the room was growing cold did Ye Jingtang open his eyes and look down into his arms.
"Yunli?"
"Mm... huh?!"
Zhe Yunli answered groggily, but immediately noticed something amiss. Her face visibly stiffened before she opened her eyes.
Their eyes met, and that familiar, handsome face filled her vision.
?!
Perhaps still half asleep, Zhe Yunli's first reaction was to widen her eyes and scramble upright, clutching her chest, embarrassment and alarm showing in her eyes.
But she immediately remembered that they had bowed in marriage yesterday. Sleeping together was perfectly natural, and her expression turned bashful instead as she pulled her dress up around herself.
"How is it already daylight..."
Ye Jingtang sat up and helped straighten Yunli's