Chapter 22: Sharing the Same Bed and Pillow

Habits are a terrible thing; they can subtly and unknowingly alter a person's spirit.

During their wedding procession, Xiao Che tried to help Xia Qingyue, but she mercilessly froze his arm. The first time he called her "wife," she nearly flew into a rage. The first time he held her hand, Xiao Che could feel her icy killing intent...

Yet, in just a few days, "Qingyue wife" rolled off Xiao Che's tongue more and more smoothly. She had come to accept it, regardless of what she truly thought; on the surface, she had fully embraced the title. Not only did she no longer object to him holding her hand, but even undressing in front of him no longer felt awkward.

For the past few days, Xiao Che had undoubtedly slept in the corner, though the thick blanket on the floor made it somewhat less uncomfortable. Every morning at 3 AM, he would voluntarily wake up to perform "conditioning" on her with silver needles. In these past few days, she had increasingly felt the astonishing changes happening to her physique.

The light was dim, yet Xia Qingyue's bare back was like jade, her skin radiant as snow. Xiao Che held the silver needles, his fingers dancing. Before long, he was drenched in sweat. Two quarters of an hour later, another "Profound Opening" session was complete. Xiao Che put away all the needles, letting out a long breath. In his exhaustion, his mind suddenly reeled, his body swayed, and he collapsed directly onto Xia Qingyue's bare back. An indescribably warm, soft, and smooth sensation instantly spread from his chest.

Xia Qingyue's eyes snapped open, a flash of anger in their depths. Just as she was about to use her power to push Xiao Che away, she suddenly realized that his aura was incredibly weak... several times weaker than any previous time.

Xia Qingyue immediately withdrew her profound energy, using only a small amount of force to push Xiao Che away. She then swiftly pulled on her clothes, turned, and reached out to support Xiao Che's body, asking, "What's wrong?"

Xiao Che's face was so pale it had lost all color, and his eyes were half-closed, as if he lacked the strength to fully open them. He shook his head slightly, saying weakly, "It's nothing... just a bit... of overexertion of strength and energy... I'll be fine after some rest."

Xia Qingyue's eyes flickered slightly, and an unwelcome pang of pain resurfaced in her heart. After his first acupuncture session for her, he had been completely drained. While a single instance of exhaustion might be relatively easy to recover from, for the past few days, he had performed acupuncture on her daily, each needle requiring his absolute maximum profound energy. His body was already weak; how could he endure such continuous weakening? This could very likely cause permanent damage to his body.

"...You don't need to push yourself so hard for my sake," Xia Qingyue said, her gaze complex.

Xiao Che grinned and laughed, "No, you're worthy... because you are my... lawfully wedded wife!"

Xia Qingyue: "..."

Xiao Che closed his eyes, slowly recuperating his strength, and said in a very soft voice, "Even though you married me only out of gratitude and never truly considered me your husband, I can't help but treat you as my wife. Unless I divorce you, treating one's own woman well is one of a man's most basic responsibilities and dignities..."

After saying these words, a warm feeling spread through Xiao Che's chest... Good heavens! Even I'm moved by that. I refuse to believe you, a woman, feel absolutely nothing!

After a moment, he didn't hear Xia Qingyue speak. He opened his eyes, panted a few shallow breaths, and said with a pitiful expression, "Qingyue wife, I might not be able to walk right now. Could you... help me over there?"

His gaze indicated the corner... where he slept.

Xia Qingyue glanced at the blanket spread on the floor, and the unwelcome pang of pain in her heart deepened slightly. She shook her head, turning towards the bed. "You sleep on the bed; I'll sleep there."

Hearing this, Xiao Che immediately became anxious. He didn't know where he found the strength, but he swiftly reached out and grabbed Xia Qingyue's arm. "No! Absolutely not! Even though you're stronger than me in every way... I'm a man, and you're a woman! As a man, how can I sleep in the bed while a woman sleeps on the floor?! If you sleep there, I'd rather sleep in the courtyard!"

His voice was urgent, filled with an irrefutable resolve. After speaking, he struggled to sit up, as if to get out of bed.

A complex expression immediately appeared on Xia Qingyue's face. She bit her lip slightly, and after a brief internal struggle, she finally made a decision, gently pushing Xiao Che's weak body further onto the bed. She then pulled the large red blanket over both herself and Xiao Che.

"Don't touch me," Xia Qingyue said as she lay down on the outer side of the bed, her back to Xiao Che, preventing him from seeing her expression at that moment.

Xiao Che silently chuckled. He swiftly settled into the most comfortable sleeping position and happily closed his eyes. "Don't worry. With your profound energy, even if I wanted to, I couldn't do anything to you... *Phew*, sleeping together... that's what makes a couple, isn't it?"

Xia Qingyue: "..."

"So tired... Qingyue wife, I'm going to sleep first... Mmm, tomorrow, I'll ask Aunt to make me some snow ginseng chicken soup for a big boost... Mmm..."

Xiao Che's voice grew softer and softer. By the time his voice completely faded, his breathing had become exceptionally steady... He had peacefully fallen asleep from sheer exhaustion.

Xia Qingyue quietly turned over, looking at Xiao Che's face, which was just inches away. Her eyes flickered with an extremely complex emotion...

Since joining the Ice Cloud Immortal Palace, she had resolved to live a life free of emotional attachments and desires. She had never imagined she would one day sleep in the same bed as a man. She had always firmly believed she would never allow such a thing to happen. Before marrying Xiao Che, she wouldn't even allow him to touch her in the slightest...

But now, she was sleeping in the same bed as him, and surprisingly, she didn't feel too much rejection...

What is happening to me? Is it because of the guilt I feel towards him?

Perhaps...

Thinking with a troubled mind, she unknowingly drifted off to sleep. She didn't realize that being able to fall asleep so quickly with a man lying beside her meant that, in her subconscious, she harbored almost no wariness or rejection towards Xiao Che.

Xiao Che slept until well past sunrise before waking up. When he opened his eyes, Xia Qingyue was no longer beside him, nor was she anywhere in the room.

Although he had rested all night, his body still felt a significant ache and weakness. Xiao Che sat up, let out a heavy sigh, and muttered to himself, "If this continues, my body might truly collapse. I seem to have overdone it a bit."

"But only by doing this will she actively seek those three items for me."

Xiao Che got out of bed and changed his clothes. As he took off his outer garment, he touched the pendant hanging around his neck, pausing for a moment in thought... On the very first day of his reincarnation, overlapping memories had raised huge questions about this pendant. Because in his previous life on the Azure Cloud Continent, he also had an identical pendant around his neck! The pendant appeared to be silver and could be opened down the middle to reveal two smooth, small mirrors, but that was all; there was nothing else particularly special about it.

On the Azure Cloud Continent, his master had told him that he was already wearing this pendant around his neck when his master found him. The one he currently wore had also been on him since he could remember. His grandfather had told him that his father, Xiao Ying, had obtained it from an unknown source and placed it on him after his birth, making it a relic from his father.

Two lives... an identical pendant... What was going on?

After changing, Xiao Che's consciousness entered the Sky Poison Pearl. In the verdant world, the red-haired girl still floated silently in her original posture, showing no signs of waking.

For the past two days, he had subtly inquired with his grandfather and Xia Qingyue about the existence of people with red hair, but the answer was always "never heard of them." This only increased Xiao Che's curiosity and confusion about the girl's identity. However, he had not told anyone about the girl's existence.

After changing into more comfortable clothes and stretching his body, an enticing aroma suddenly wafted into Xiao Che's nose, making his mouth water instantly. Following the scent, he immediately spotted a soup pot on the table. He rushed over, opened the lid, and a puff of steam, accompanied by an irresistible fragrance, slowly rose.

"Snow ginseng chicken soup... *Phew*! Aunt is the best!" Xiao Che's stomach instantly rumbled, and he grabbed his chopsticks and began to devour it. When he was about halfway through, the door was pushed open, and Xiao Lingxi, dressed in light yellow, gracefully walked in. Seeing Xiao Che's eating, she parted her lips and said, "Huh? Chicken soup? It smells so good! It even smells like snow ginseng. Xiao Che, who made you chicken soup? Humph, and you didn't even tell me, secretly eating it all by yourself!"

Xiao Lingxi's words made Xiao Che freeze. "Aunt, didn't you bring this?"

"Of course not!" Xiao Lingxi finished, her eyes suddenly becoming strange. "In this Xiao Clan, other than me, hmm... the only one who would give you soup is probably your Qingyue wife! It seems your marital relationship is quite good."

There was a clear hint of sourness in Xiao Lingxi's words. Xiao Che put down his chopsticks and whispered, "She... how could she... make me chicken soup..."

That's completely illogical!

"Hmph! I don't care who made it for you; you like chicken soup anyway, just drink it all... I came to tell you that the people from the Xiao Sect will arrive this afternoon. The entire Xiao Clan is preparing, so you must be careful not to accidentally offend anyone from the Xiao Sect." Xiao Lingxi said very seriously.

"Got it. At most, I just won't go out. Anyway, they couldn't possibly choose me," Xiao Che responded indifferently.

"Not going out is not an option," Xiao Lingxi said gravely, wagging a slender, jade-like finger at him. "I heard the clan master say that the young master from the Xiao Sect wants to review everyone in our Xiao Clan... not a single person can be missing! At that time, you absolutely must not lose your manners."

"You don't need to worry about that either. Aunt, you know I've always been the most polite," Xiao Che replied with a smile. Then he lowered his head and started eating ravenously again.

"Alright. I'll go help Father first. If you're done with your chicken soup and have nothing to do, come over too." Xiao Lingxi finished and then left.