Huang Lin arranged rooms in the residence for Ye Chu and Bai Xuan, and sent servants to look after Yao Yao. Huang Lin often brought people back to the residence, so the household staff were used to it and thought nothing of it. The only thing that made them sigh was that the woman Huang Lin had brought back this time was far too alluring and maturely seductive, so beautiful that it was almost impossible to look directly at her.
Huang Lin was not a woman who could sit still. She chattered endlessly around Ye Chu, asking this and that, until Ye Chu seriously considered throwing her out.
It took Ye Chu quite a lot of effort to finally coax Huang Lin away. By then, the sun had already set outside, and Ye Chu somewhat regretted choosing to stay at the Huang residence.
“Do you really find Huang Lin that annoying?” Bai Xuan asked with some amusement. Ye Chu had actually tricked Huang Lin by telling her that the weather was warm today, and that hiding under the blankets to drink papaya juice would have an excellent effect, following the principle of thermal expansion and contraction. Huang Lin had scampered off delightedly to give it a try.
“This little brat doesn’t know when to behave. It’s rare for Yao Yao to be willing to follow the maid. We finally get some time alone as a pair, and she still has to get in the way.” Ye Chu laughed and cursed lightly. He walked over to the bed that Bai Xuan had just made and, ignoring her attempts to stop him, sat down directly on it.
Bai Xuan was radiant and captivating, possessing a mature allure that no young girl could match, yet she still carried the shy coyness of a maiden. Hearing Ye Chu’s nonsense, she gave him a reproachful glance, her eyes flickering away, not daring to meet his intense gaze.
“Didn’t you say you were tired? Why don’t you go back to your own room and sleep early?” Bai Xuan said, a little shy, trying to send Ye Chu away.
“I don’t need to enlarge my chest!” Ye Chu laughed. He reached out and pulled Bai Xuan over, making her sit beside him. “Stay and talk with Sister Bai Xuan for a while!”
Bai Xuan did not struggle. She sat down next to Ye Chu. Though she felt a little shy, she quietened down. Her long lashes trembled gently as her beautiful eyes looked at Ye Chu. “What do you want to talk about?”
Bai Xuan was sitting very close to Ye Chu. She could feel the warm breath coming from his body. In that moment, she felt a little dazed, unconsciously wanting to lean closer to him. In an unfamiliar environment, it was easy for a person to let themselves sink. That was exactly how Bai Xuan felt right now. Compared to being in Yao City, she felt far more at ease in front of Ye Chu.
“The imperial city is a strange place for you, Sister Bai Xuan. I know you’re feeling a bit panicked and unaccustomed to it. But that’s alright. I think it won’t take long before you get used to things here.” Ye Chu reached out gently and wrapped an arm around Bai Xuan, drawing her to lean against his chest.
Bai Xuan wanted to refuse at first, but hearing Ye Chu’s words, the tension in her body melted away. She nestled into his embrace, resting her head on his shoulder.
“Over these years, Father took me from one place to another. Even in Yao City, we never stayed for three full years.” Bai Xuan sighed softly. “Although I don’t like this wandering life, I’ve grown used to it. Still, every time we leave a place, there’s always a touch of melancholy, a suppressed sadness that’s hard to bear.”
“Women are sentimental. Having melancholy just proves that Sister Bai Xuan is truly a woman!” Ye Chu said with a laugh. “No wonder three years ago you weren’t ruined by me. Turns out you weren’t even in Yao City back then.”
His words made Bai Xuan want to burst out laughing. “You really think of yourself as some world-destroying demon, don’t you!”
When Bai Xuan smiled like that, her charm was overwhelming. Ye Chu was momentarily stunned, his gaze falling on her exquisite, perfectly curved figure. He thought to himself that this was truly a woman seductive to the very bone, capable of setting any man’s blood ablaze.
Ye Chu’s hand unconsciously slid to Bai Xuan’s slender, supple waist, pressing their bodies even closer. He could feel Bai Xuan’s full, rounded hips pressed against his thigh. In that instant, Ye Chu felt his heartbeat quicken.
Bai Xuan’s body also grew warm. She could sense the roughness in Ye Chu’s breathing, and she felt herself becoming dazed. The waves of warm breath coming from Ye Chu made her shy and flustered, yet she had to admit that right now she felt an unprecedented sense of security and solidity.
The warm body heat transferred to her skin, leaving her slightly numb. This was a sensation Bai Xuan had never experienced before. It made her feel dazed and sinking deeper. She even felt a dampness between her legs.
Her shyness made her want to struggle free, but she could not bear to lose this wonderful feeling. The tenderness was so comfortable.
“I only see Ye Chu as a younger brother!” Bai Xuan comforted herself inwardly, unsure whether she could even believe her own lie. Yet that very lie eased her shyness, allowing her to rest quietly in Ye Chu’s arms.
“Sometimes I wonder why I came to this world at all. I’m naturally lazy. Apart from cultivating to keep my life from being taken by others, I just live one day at a time. I always felt that nothing could truly touch my heart.” Ye Chu laughed and looked at Bai Xuan.
Bai Xuan could not help reaching out to hug Ye Chu. She thought of how sometimes when she saw him, he carried an air of loneliness and detachment from the world that made her feel stifled.
“How could you not know? Everyone has something they care about in life.” Bai Xuan said softly.
“I didn’t know before, but now I do. Just like you said, Sister Bai Xuan, people always have things they care about. For example, you. Today I was thinking, what if I really had no roots in the imperial city? What if the You family had taken you away? What would I have done?” Ye Chu paused for a moment before continuing. “I thought about it for a long time. If something like that really happened, I think I would go mad. The things a person cares about may not be many, but the ones right beside them should always be protected.”
Bai Xuan stared blankly at Ye Chu, feeling her heart deeply touched in that moment.
“So when Sister Bai Xuan comes to the imperial city, there’s no need for melancholy or suppressed sadness. You still have me. I am your family. With family by your side, isn’t every place home?” Ye Chu looked at Bai Xuan and smiled brightly. His eyes shone with a captivating light.
Bai Xuan’s voluptuous body was held tightly in Ye Chu’s arms. She felt as though an overwhelming emotion had enveloped her entirely, warm and deeply moving.
Bai Xuan suddenly hugged Ye Chu tightly. The last rays of the setting sun fell from the clouds. Her soft little hands gripped Ye Chu firmly. She felt extraordinarily fortunate. Without Ye Chu entering her life, perhaps her path would have been entirely different.
“Sister Bai Xuan!” Ye Chu suddenly called.
“Hm?” Bai Xuan heard him call her name. Her beautiful eyes turned towards him, only to meet Ye Chu’s burning gaze, filled with the unique intensity of a man. In an instant, Bai Xuan’s face flushed crimson, intoxicatingly beautiful.