Xia Lianqiao silently hugged her head. She had heard before that ancient women slept on the outer side of the bed, supposedly for two reasons.
The first reason was to make it easier to serve tea, pour water, or handle the chamber pot, attending to others.
The second reason was to avoid disrespectfully stepping over their husbands when getting up at night.
At the time, she had silently mocked in her heart, "Did ancient women never take the top position?"
The tall-faced maid earlier had probably been busy serving Ling Chongxiao, bringing him tea and clothes, while also scolding Xia Lianqiao for being inconsiderate. Perhaps in the midst of her busyness, she had forgotten this detail.
As for Ling Chongxiao, a young man of about seventeen or eighteen, he wouldn’t have thought about the sleeping arrangements of mortal couples either.
Xia Lianqiao had originally planned to hold it in for a while, thinking she’d fall asleep soon enough.
…Wait, what if she dreamed about a bathroom and ended up going to the toilet in her sleep?
At the thought of this possibility, Xia Lianqiao’s lips twitched, and she hurriedly opened her eyes.
With this worry on her mind, falling asleep became even more impossible. Her eyes were wide open, as alert as a pair of copper bells.
The pressure in her lower abdomen grew stronger, and Xia Lianqiao finally couldn’t hold it any longer. She took a deep breath, carefully lifted the blanket, and sat up.
She tried to move as quietly as possible, but the quieter she was, the more the stillness of the night was accentuated. Even the sound of fabric rubbing against the bedding was crystal clear.
Not to mention the exaggeratedly large canopy bed, which creaked and groaned with the slightest movement.
Ling Chongxiao opened his eyes just as Xia Lianqiao was "straddling" his waist.
The room wasn’t completely dark. The moon hung high in the sky, casting its light into the room, faintly illuminating the outlines and features of their faces.
Back in the immortal sect, he rarely slept, often substituting sleep with daily meditation. Even when he did sleep, it was always light.
But this body was too frail, with an itchy, painful feeling in his chest and lungs. The slightest disturbance had woken him.
When their eyes met, Ling Chongxiao’s dark pupils fixed on Xia Lianqiao for a second, then two.
"Get down," Ling Chongxiao said.
Xia Lianqiao: "…"
Meeting Ling Chongxiao’s dark gaze, her entire body stiffened, and she remained frozen in that position, not daring to move.
Xia Lianqiao even felt as though her legs had gone weak.
"Let me explain," Xia Lianqiao said, forcing herself to speak.
The young man slightly closed his eyes and said coldly, "Get down."
She wanted to get down too, but her legs were too weak!
Her heart pounded wildly as Xia Lianqiao hurriedly shifted her body to move away. But the more flustered she was, the more mistakes she made.
In her panic, Xia Lianqiao felt as though she had stepped on Ling Chongxiao’s calf, and her not-yet-healed ankle twisted again, causing her to tumble and fall toward his temple. She caught a whiff of the strong scent of medicinal herbs.
In her flurry, her hands instinctively reached out for support and landed on the young man’s chest.
His skin felt warm and smooth, like carved jade. His collar had loosened slightly, revealing his fair, lean chest muscles. His bones were firm, and the contours of his muscles were strong and well-defined.
"…"
A flash of unmistakable anger crossed Ling Chongxiao’s dark brows.
Oh no, I’m really going to die!!!
It wasn’t her imagination—the room seemed to have suddenly fallen into complete silence.
Xia Lianqiao felt Ling Chongxiao’s breath hitch. Seizing the moment before he could react, she quickly rolled off the bed.
Ling Chongxiao had already sat up slightly, his long, dark hair cascading down as he looked at her expressionlessly. The exposed jade-like skin of his chest rose and fell with restrained breaths. "Explain yourself," he said.
Rather than being misunderstood as trying to take advantage of him in the middle of the night, Xia Lianqiao decided to stammer out the truth in a low voice: "I… I need to use the bathroom…"
Her voice was too soft, and Ling Chongxiao didn’t catch it. He frowned. "What?"
Xia Lianqiao, resigned to her fate, repeated, "I need to use the bathroom."
This time, Ling Chongxiao heard her clearly. In the darkness, his silhouette visibly stiffened.
Suddenly, there was silence.
For the sake of their peaceful coexistence that night, Ling Chongxiao really shouldn’t have asked so many questions.
Xia Lianqiao hesitated. "So… I’ll go now?"
The young man pursed his lips tightly, his ears burning red, as if to say, "Do you really need to report this to me?" or "If you say one more word, you’ll regret it."
It was a natural human need, after all.
But after lying back down, Ling Chongxiao found himself unable to sleep. His eyelashes fluttered slightly, and he silently pursed his lips, gazing at the sparse moonlight filtering through the window.
The night was utterly silent, making the sound of Xia Lianqiao opening and closing the door especially clear.
After taking care of her business and washing her hands, Xia Lianqiao steeled herself and tiptoed back.
She hoped Ling Chongxiao would be asleep by now.
Quietly pushing the door open, the figure on the bed seemed to hear the noise and slightly turned his head to look.
Through the darkness, Xia Lianqiao met those beautiful, cold phoenix eyes. They were like pine trees dusted with snow under the moonlight—cold and clear, showing no trace of drowsiness.
Xia Lianqiao asked blankly, "You… you’re still awake?"
Ling Chongxiao didn’t answer her rhetorical question.
"Ah, right," Xia Lianqiao hesitated for a few seconds before clumsily climbing back over Ling Chongxiao to her side of the bed.
Ling Chongxiao: "…" He could have sat up, but Xia Lianqiao was too nervous to think of that, and Ling Chongxiao naturally didn’t point it out, pretending not to notice either.
Perhaps because she had just returned from the courtyard, the girl’s body was slightly cool, carrying the scent of night wind and well water.
The cold fabric brushed against his exposed wrist.
Ling Chongxiao’s eyelashes trembled, and a shiver ran through him, as if stepping into a cold stream, the water chilling his bones. The last trace of sleepiness vanished.
He was fully awake now.
Now neither of them could sleep. Ling Chongxiao’s breathing was light and shallow, but in the quiet of the night, it was unmistakably present. Especially the faint, bitter scent of medicinal herbs that seemed to drift over from him.
Xia Lianqiao opened and closed her eyes several times, her expression betraying her inner turmoil.
She really wanted to turn over, but she didn’t dare move.
She couldn’t remember when she finally fell asleep, but when she woke up, the room was already bright with daylight. Groggily reaching out, she found the other side of the bed empty.
Xia Lianqiao sat up, hugging the blanket, and scanned the room until her eyes landed on a familiar figure.
Ling Chongxiao sat upright, his long black hair cascading down like a waterfall, his white robes as pure as snow. He sat gracefully in the morning light, his demeanor otherworldly, his expression cold and aloof, like jade or ice.
Noticing her movement, Ling Chongxiao looked up. "You’re awake? Today, we must pay our respects to Chen Xuan’s parents."
Seeing this scene first thing in the morning was a visual treat. It took Xia Lianqiao a while to tear her gaze away from Ling Chongxiao’s face.
After just one night, she felt like Ling Chongxiao had somehow become even more handsome. What was going on?
By then, maids had already entered the room with washing utensils. With their help, Xia Lianqiao was soon ready to go. She followed Ling Chongxiao through the long covered walkway to greet Chen Xuan’s parents and relatives.
If she had to describe her feelings about the experience, the answer was: she had none. The main hall was packed with members of the Chen family. Xia Lianqiao was already a bit face-blind, and after the morning, she could barely remember anyone except for Chen Luanzhu, Chen Xuan’s younger sister who had stood in for him during the wedding.
Chen Luanzhu was young, only about ten years old, with a round face and a refreshingly cheerful demeanor.
The girl’s expression was bright and innocent as she waved eagerly. "Sister-in-law is here!" She was by far the friendliest person in the entire Chen Manor.
The other members of the Chen family were polite enough, with no obvious faults in their behavior, but they weren’t particularly warm either—just indifferent.
As for Chen Xuan’s parents, the father carried himself with the air of a patriarch, and Xia Lianqiao barely got a clear look at his face. Chen Xuan’s mother, however, was a middle-aged beauty with an oval face. She smiled warmly as she looked Xia Lianqiao up and down, her words gentle. She even slipped a jade bracelet of exceptional quality into Xia Lianqiao’s hand, urging her to take good care of Ling Chongxiao from now on, to work together as a couple and live harmoniously.
Xia Lianqiao couldn’t help but glance at Ling Chongxiao. Though she knew the "Chen Xuan" beside her wasn’t the real Chen Xuan, the idea of living with Ling Chongxiao was still terrifying.
Ling Chongxiao, however, took it all in stride. Calmly, he said, "As their son, it is only right."
Of all the people present, none impressed Xia Lianqiao more than Ling Chongxiao.
The young man perfectly embodied the concept of being aloof and detached, yet effortlessly composed.
She remembered that the immortal sects in the original story were nothing more than a society built on human connections. Although Ling Chongxiao was aloof and indifferent, he was not truly an untouchable flower on a high peak, detached from worldly affairs. Being part of such a society, the dealings of interests and the games of ambition were inevitable.
The fact that Ling Chongxiao could get out of bed the very night after the wedding ceremony brought great joy to Chen Xuan's parents. The entire room was filled with people who held Ling Chongxiao's hands, showering him with concern and warmth.
Though he detested such intimate contact with others, the young man only furrowed his brows slightly, almost imperceptibly, and said nothing.
In any case, the star of today's grand show was Ling Chongxiao. Xia Lianqiao, who saw herself as a mere supporting character, thought she had performed quite well. Chen's mother, unlike her portrayal in the book, did not seem particularly harsh.
Little did she expect that upon returning to the Canglang Courtyard where they lived, the long-faced maid from last night would reappear, bringing with her a message: the lady of the house had specially arranged for a governess to teach her manners.
It was worth noting that even Xiao Lingbo had undergone training from a governess before her marriage. This was a subtle way of expressing dissatisfaction, implying that Xia Lianqiao still fell short.
Recalling the kind and gentle expression on Chen's mother's face, Xia Lianqiao thought to herself: "..." It seemed she was the naive one after all.
The relationship between a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law was undoubtedly one of the most challenging dynamics in the world.
If Chen's mother was like this, it was no surprise that her son, Chen Xuan, took after her.
The Chen family had been a scholarly clan for centuries, and Chen Xuan was known for his cold and haughty demeanor. Xiao Lingbo, being the daughter of a fisherman, had almost nothing in common with him, which was to be expected.
Thus, barely a week after meeting Ling Chongxiao, Xia Lianqiao found herself embarking on a newlywed life with him.
At night, as she watched the young man reading by the desk, Xia Lianqiao rested her chin on her hand, feeling as though she was teetering on the boundary between dream and reality, caught in a fleeting moment of weightlessness.
Over the past few days, she had tried sleeping in separate beds from Ling Chongxiao, but the Mirror of Shattering Illusions, having gained a bit of sentience in its obscurity, seemed determined to thwart her efforts. It forced them to relive the memories within the mirror exactly as they had happened. While minor details might be overlooked, deviating from key plot points caused both Xia Lianqiao and Ling Chongxiao excruciating pain.
As a swordsman, Ling Chongxiao could endure it to some extent, but he couldn't understand why Xia Lianqiao was so delicate. The disciples of the Righteous Sword Sect were known for their unyielding spirit and indomitable will in the face of hardship.
Only Xia Lianqiao was fragile.
Ling Chongxiao flipped the page of the book before him, his eyelashes fluttering slightly, his lips pressed tightly together.
In his eyes, Xia Lianqiao was now an unruly, arrogant, and utterly bizarre creature.
Though they were forced to travel and live together, and though he found her temperament insufferable, he still had to ensure her safety.
During these days, they slept in the same bed, separated by a quilt that served as a boundary. Sharing a bed with someone was already a significant concession for Ling Chongxiao.
However, Xia Lianqiao didn't see it that way. She was astonished at how resilient she had become. If her mother could see her now, behaving so virtuously, she would probably shed a river of tears.
Every day, she attended the governess's lessons, though the content often reminded her of those archaic "women's virtue" classes, making her roll her eyes internally.
Aside from etiquette, the core message of these lessons was that Ling Chongxiao was her heaven and earth, and she must take good care of his every need.
While the governess droned on like a buzzing fly, Xia Lianqiao secretly flipped through Daoist texts, trying to exploit loopholes to cultivate.
That was, until the wrinkled, sour-faced old woman suddenly fast-forwarded to the topic of producing an heir for the Chen family.
Xia Lianqiao: "..."
Wait, wasn't this progression a bit too fast?
Just yesterday, the governess had been lecturing on filial piety toward one's in-laws, and today she jumped straight to the issue of continuing the family line. Clearly, this was at the behest of Chen's mother.
After class, Xia Lianqiao ran into Chen Luanzhu, who was also attending the lessons.
Chen Luanzhu, Chen Xuan's younger sister and Chen Chifeng's great-grandmother, was another victim of the governess's teachings.
Chen Luanzhu was lively and rebellious, and no matter how many times she was corrected, she never changed. Frustrated, Chen's mother decided to have the governess teach Xia Lianqiao first, then repeat the lessons for Chen Luanzhu.
When the two met, they commiserated over their shared plight.
"Producing an heir?" Chen Luanzhu exclaimed in surprise. "Sister-in-law, are you really going to have a baby with my brother?"
Xia Lianqiao hesitated. "Well... maybe not so soon?"
Chen Luanzhu pouted. "Why not? My parents have been longing for a grandchild, and I'd love to have a little nephew to play with. Babies are so soft and cute!"
The problem was, Xia Lianqiao didn't find them cute at all!
Thinking of Ling Chongxiao's icy expression, Xia Lianqiao shuddered and reluctantly replied, "Well, your brother isn't exactly... cooperative?"
Considering Chen Luanzhu's age and her status as a proper young lady from an ancient noble family, Xia Lianqiao was about to brush off the question when the girl's dark, sparkling eyes lit up with mischief.
"Sister-in-law, are you heading back to your room to see my brother now?"
Xia Lianqiao dragged her feet, reluctant to move. "..."
Perhaps her hesitation and resistance were too obvious, because Chen Luanzhu picked up on it and asked curiously, "Sister-in-law, can I ask you something?"
"What's going on between you and my brother? Why do you always seem so reluctant to go back to your room to rest?"
Alarm bells rang in Xia Lianqiao's mind. She feigned confusion. "Huh? Do I?"
Chen Luanzhu sighed dramatically, as if stating the obvious. "I feel like you and my brother don't really act like a married couple. Look at him—he's so delicate, with that pale face, even more delicate than some young ladies. Before this, so many girls would pester me for information about him."
Xia Lianqiao hesitated. "Well... there's a reason for that."
"Oh?" Chen Luanzhu's interest was piqued.
What reason... what reason...
Xia Lianqiao racked her brain, and then inspiration struck. She blurted out, "He's... incapable!"
Chen Luanzhu was stunned. "What?!"
The girl was bold and straightforward. "My brother is incapable?!"
Xia Lianqiao put on a pained expression. "Luanzhu, I don't know what to do. He looks good, but... well... you know..."
Chen Luanzhu was even more direct. "A silver spear that's actually made of pewter?!"
Xia Lianqiao winced. "Let's not embarrass your brother too much."
Chen Luanzhu was still in shock. "How could that be?"
"Well, look at his physique..." Xia Lianqiao hinted delicately. "Your brother... ahem, he's always been frail. He's been soaking in medicine since he was a child. You know that."
Chen Luanzhu thought about Ling Chongxiao's cold, delicate, and almost feminine appearance.
It did seem plausible.
Someone so beautiful and fragile, like a delicate flower, might indeed be... incapable.
Xia Lianqiao's acting grew more convincing as she went on, shaking her head mournfully.
Chen Luanzhu gave her a complicated look, sighed, and patted Xia Lianqiao's hand in sympathy.
The girl, having read too many scandalous novels, now regarded Xia Lianqiao with deep pity.
"This is a lifelong issue," Chen Luanzhu murmured.
"Indeed," Xia Lianqiao sighed.
Just then, a cold, emotionless voice, icy enough to freeze water, interrupted them. "Luanzhu."
Both Xia Lianqiao and Chen Luanzhu froze, turning their heads in shock.
There stood a young man in white, cold and composed, with a face as exquisite as if carved from jade, a crimson mark between his brows like a drop of blood. His expression, however, was far from pleasant.
