Seeing how conflicted and helpless she looked, An Yi could no longer hold back and chuckled softly.
"Why have you become so awkward?"
Bibi Dong ignored him and turned her head away in a huff, showing him only her cold profile.
An Yi didn't mind and sat back down.
This time, however, he didn't tease her any further. He reached out and pulled Bibi Dong straight into his arms.
Bibi Dong stiffened and instinctively tried to struggle.
"Don't be nervous."
An Yi patted her shoulder gently. "Get some rest. I'll hold you tonight."
Bibi Dong's thoughts were tangled like a skein of silk, and she wanted to push An Yi away.
Reason told her she shouldn't accept such closeness, much less let down her guard before this man time and again.
Yet she never quite put any real strength into it, because she discovered that she was actually a little reluctant to let go.
The feeling frightened her.
Over the past ten years, she had long since grown used to facing everything alone.
Pain or anger, she had buried it all deep in her heart.
She wouldn't allow herself to be weak, much less let anyone see her vulnerable side.
But An Yi was different. This man could always throw her off balance with ease.
He would mercilessly strip away her disguise, talk back when she lost her temper, and, when she was at her most miserable, ask nothing and simply hold her in his arms.
He was so hateful, so why did he make her feel safe?
Bibi Dong lowered her eyes, her palm still pressed against An Yi's chest.
She could feel the coolness coming from him.
An Yi's embrace wasn't warm; it was even a little cold. Yet that very coolness seemed capable of dousing the restless killing intent and agitation that had always stirred in her heart, giving her a peace and tranquility she hadn't felt in a long time.
She didn't know why.
Was it because of An Yi's Martial Soul? Or because of the presence he gave off?
Or was it simply because he was the one holding her?
Bibi Dong couldn't figure it out.
She tried to struggle several times, but each time she only moved her hand before finally stopping again.
An Yi noticed her movements and looked down at her. "Still want to push me away?"
Bibi Dong's expression darkened. "Don't flatter yourself!"
"All right, then go on and push." An Yi loosened his hold a little.
Bibi Dong: "..."
She raised her head and glared at him.
An Yi didn't look away, simply gazing back at her with a smile.
A moment later, Bibi Dong ultimately couldn't bring herself to do it.
She looked away in annoyance and muttered, "Rogue."
"Mm, I know." An Yi answered without a care and settled her back into his arms.
"So stop struggling and get some rest."
Bibi Dong pressed her lips together and said nothing more.
She still felt that this was terribly inappropriate, and she still couldn't understand why she indulged him again and again.
But after struggling for a long time, she finally gave up.
The hand pressed against An Yi's chest slowly dropped, and her body gradually relaxed.
Cool moonlight fell over them both.
Bibi Dong leaned against him, listening to the steady breathing beside her ear, and her jumbled thoughts gradually grew quiet.
She didn't want to admit it, but at least for this moment, she truly didn't want to leave.
Even if it was only for tonight, let her temporarily forget that pain and the past she could never change, no matter what.
Noon the next day.
The blazing sun passed overhead, and the faint halo flowing around An Yi gradually dispersed.
Bibi Dong was still leaning against him, her eyes half closed as she pretended she hadn't fully woken up.
As for Qian Renxue, An Yi had sent her away at daybreak.
Bibi Dong had pretended not to know all along. A large part of the reason was that An Yi had soothed her emotions, and she did feel somewhat guilty toward Qian Renxue. On top of that, the girl had looked so pitiful sneaking over that Bibi Dong ultimately couldn't harden her heart and push her away.
But that absolutely didn't mean Qian Renxue could take an inch and demand a mile.
If the girl got too brazen, Bibi Dong might turn on her at any moment.
This unspoken understanding between them was the best arrangement for now.
Some things didn't need to be said aloud; it was enough to know them in one's heart.
An Yi lowered his head and raised a hand to pat Bibi Dong's back.
"It's noon."
Bibi Dong's eyelashes fluttered. She slowly opened her eyes and, pretending she had just woken up, sat up straight at an unhurried pace.
She smoothed her slightly mussed long hair and looked at An Yi with a complicated expression. "Why... why are you doing this?"
An Yi looked puzzled. "Doing what?"
Bibi Dong turned and looked him straight in the eye. "Do you... pity me?"
An Yi froze for a moment. "Why would I pity you?"
Bibi Dong was briefly at a loss for words, but hearing his answer, she inexplicably felt relieved.
She looked away. "Then why?"
An Yi leaned a little closer, staring at her profile. "What do you want the reason to be?"
Bibi Dong averted her eyes, shoved his approaching face away, and turned her head. "Don't play the rogue with me."
An Yi found it a little funny. "That's playing the rogue? Then weren't you a rogue yourself back then?"
Bibi Dong whipped her head around and glared at him through gritted teeth. "When was I ever a rogue?"
An Yi raised an eyebrow. "Who was it that insisted on dragging me aboard a ship and taking me to Sea God Island to broaden my horizons?"
Bibi Dong's expression froze. "I..."
"And who was it that held me in her arms when I was too scared to sleep in the middle of the night and asked if we could turn back, and told me she'd protect me and that I didn't need to be afraid?"
Bibi Dong had no answer. Her cheeks burned, and she simply turned her back on him and stopped looking at him.
An Yi looked at her back and shook his head with a smile. Reaching out from behind her, he gently wrapped his arms around her.
"I'm not blaming you. After all, you didn't know what Sea God Island was really like back then."
Bibi Dong's body stiffened slightly.
An Yi rested his chin on her shoulder, his voice softening. "But since you played the rogue with me back then, now that I'm playing the rogue with you, I suppose this counts as retribution, doesn't it?"
"I don't blame you, so don't be angry with me either."
Bibi Dong let him hold her and remained silent for a long time.
Just when An Yi thought she was going to continue giving him the cold shoulder, she suddenly spoke in a low voice:
"I'm hungry."
After eating lunch with Bibi Dong, An Yi strolled back to his own courtyard.
As soon as he entered, he saw Qian Renxue sprawled over the stone table in the pavilion, her chin propped in both hands as she stared at the courtyard gate in utter boredom.
Hearing footsteps, she sprang to her feet.
"Teacher!"
Qian Renxue stood ramrod straight and said loudly:
"I finished my cultivation this morning! I didn't slack off!"
An Yi walked over and sat on a stone stool, glancing at her. "What are you so excited about?"
"Don't tell me you want me to praise you. You're not a two- or three-year-old who needs to be told 'well done' for eating by yourself."
Qian Renxue's expression froze, and she defended herself in a quiet voice. "I was just worried you'd think I hadn't cultivated."
An Yi picked up the teapot. "I can see whether you've cultivated or not."
Qian Renxue froze, looking utterly bewildered. "You can see? Weren't you with Mom all morning? How did you see?"
An Yi raised his hand and pointed at the sky. "The sun is my eye too."
Qian Renxue: "???"
"What does that even mean?"
An Yi had said before that the moon was his eye, and now even the sun was one?