Volume One, Chapter 18: Sharing a Bed, Divergent Dreams

Xiao Yuanyi simply smiled.

How could that be possible? Setting aside whether Lou Hejing would even give her that chance, even if she shamelessly insisted on keeping the child, would the Lou family accept her? Perhaps her child would also be condemned alongside her.

She did not want to suffer such misery.

“Miss! Sir is here!” Xiaguang burst in excitedly to report.

Xiao Yuanyi stood up, somewhat at a loss, and looked toward the door.

Lou Hejing entered, removing his heavy cloak. Seeing that Xiao Yuanyi did not react, Xiaguang took the initiative to help him.

He was quite at ease, sitting on the soft couch to read a book.

Just now, Xiao Yuanyi had also been reading and practicing calligraphy there; Lou Hejing glanced over and noticed her handwriting was excellent.

“Why has the general come over?”

Xiao Yuanyi was puzzled. At this hour, shouldn’t he be indulging in pleasure elsewhere?

“This is my courtyard. I come whenever I want.”

Xiao Yuanyi said nothing. She had someone bring water for washing and pondered how to sleep tonight.

Since he left that night, he probably did not want to sleep on the floor either.

Lou Hejing remained motionless; she had no mood to bathe, so she changed into clean nightwear and asked Long Yu to bring another quilt, then just... laid it on the bed.

Long Yu was a bit surprised but complied.

It was the middle watch of the night. Xiao Yuanyi lay deep inside the bed, wrapping herself tightly in the quilt. At the slightest sound, she could not help but glance at Lou Hejing, but he sat still like a statue.

Finally, he stood and went to the cleansing chamber.

Clutching the embroidered quilt, Xiao Yuanyi thought that Long Yu’s words were not without reason.

If the Lou family truly wanted to kill her to avenge the two generals, and if her parents had abandoned her, she could not think of a way out. This seemed like the only lifeline.

After all, it was Lou Hejing’s child; for his sake, they might spare her life.

But the radiant, noble face of Xie Jingyi suddenly appeared in her mind, along with his solemn vows, vivid as ever. No matter how she racked her brain, she could not shake those images.

She pulled the quilt over her head.

---

Footsteps approached. Lou Hejing was about to take the quilt away when he heard a whispered murmur. He did not catch it clearly and thought Xiao Yuanyi was talking in her sleep again.

He picked up the quilt and left. Xiao Yuanyi turned over, and this time he heard clearly:

“Winter is cold, this bed is large, let’s... sleep together.”

She dared not look up at him and quickly explained, “I don’t mean that—I mean... just squeeze a little.”

The three words churned in his throat but somehow went down again. After all, this was his territory; did he have to suffer sleeping on the floor all this time when the people from the Nan’an Prince’s mansion were around?

So he said nothing and climbed onto the bed.

Xiao Yuanyi hurried to move inward. The bed was indeed large enough for several of her to roll around, but when Lou Hejing got on, for some reason it suddenly felt so small she could barely move her limbs.

The candlelight flickered dimly, and with the bed canopy drawn, she could see nothing but could hear his steady breathing.

Her heart pounded fiercely, but thinking he would not touch her, her sleeplessness gave way to relaxation, and she slowly closed her eyes.

The girl’s breathing was light, with a faint snore, like a kitten in light slumber.

It was still his bed as before, but the scent had changed—especially with the fire stove burning after years of neglect, the warm, sweet fragrance was dizzying.

Lou Hejing shook his head, a thin sweat breaking out on his face, regretting coming here to seek suffering. Even if he refused to show face to Xiao Yuanyi and the Nan’an Prince’s people over this matter, what could they do to him?

“Ugh...”

Just as Lou Hejing was about to lift the quilt and leave, the words froze him, muscles tense, throat tightening.

He was in the prime of youth; such feelings were not unfamiliar. But the person beside him was clearly the sister of an enemy. Could he really not be selective?

He suppressed his distractions, closed his eyes, and soon fell asleep.

“Lou Hejing, am I going to die...?”

“Can you save me?”

In his dream, the girl’s pale fingers clung to his shoulder, her red lips parted to utter a soft, pitiful voice, her gaze shy and timid.

Sweat beaded on Lou Hejing’s face, his thin lips pressed into a straight line.

He told himself he could not be like this; she was Xiao family’s daughter, bound by a deep, bitter hatred.

Yet in the vision, she was apologizing to him.

---

Apologizing? But then again, what had she done to deserve his apology?

Lou Hejing snapped his eyes open, his hand reacting faster than his mind. When he felt that soft, warm touch, he realized it was Xiao Yuanyi’s hand.

He did not know when she had moved close; only when she was near did he suddenly awaken!

His grip was too strong, painfully waking Xiao Yuanyi. She opened her eyes to see Lou Hejing holding her wrist, their clothes disheveled. Instinctively, she covered her chest with a terrified expression and recoiled.

Lou Hejing’s temple twitched violently. It was clearly her restless sleep that caused this, yet she turned around and treated him like a villain?

Besides, they were already husband and wife. If not for what had happened before, perhaps she would have already been pregnant with his child.

“Don’t forget you’re married. No matter how much you like someone else, you should keep your heart in check!”

Xiao Yuanyi’s eyes widened. It seemed he really had heard that day.

But so what? Weren’t they the ones who hated her with a passion, eager to grind her bones to dust to comfort the souls of the two generals? Not to mention acknowledging her status in the Lou family.

She had already been considerate and yielded, willing to save her life no matter how they treated her, even going so far as to uphold everyone’s face. Wasn’t that exactly what they wanted?

Now they expected her to regard him as her husband—what kind of farce was this?

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I entered the Lou family with a clean reputation. You may resent my brother’s failure, but you cannot slander my honor.”

A woman’s reputation was precious—one misstep could bring death.

Though she had grown up with Xie Jingyi and nearly arranged marriage, both were pure and innocent. She was not afraid if Lou Hejing investigated.

“Did I say anything wrong? Don’t you regret not marrying him?”

Lou Hejing scoffed. He had had enough. She always avoided contact with him—did he want to touch her?

“Oh no, your regrets are useless. He would never marry a woman with a tarnished reputation.”

Those old wounds and humiliations were cruelly exposed. He was clearly uninvolved, clearly ignorant, yet still could mercilessly hurt her.

A surge of bitterness rose to Xiao Yuanyi’s forehead. Anger replaced reason. Gritting her teeth, her voice trembling, tears streaming down, she said, “Get out of my sight!”