Bright moon in the sky, starlight at the edge.
Su Bei carried the soundly sleeping Xiao Ruoqing and gently laid her down on the only bed in the room.
Her somewhat tattered plain gauze skirt casually covered her body, and her chest rose and fell in plump curves.
The clear, water-like moonlight spilled down, and Xiao Ruoqing's exposed, slender calves were as smooth and alluring as mutton-fat jade.
A pair of white embroidered-orchid shoes stuck out past the edge of the bed.
Because of the alcohol, a flush of red adorned her breathtaking face.
Her long, slender eyelashes fluttered with her even breathing.
Seeming to sense that she had left Su Bei's embrace and feeling a bit cold, Xiao Ruoqing instinctively curled her entire body up.
Yet that tiny, rosy fist still tightly clutched the lapel of Su Bei's robe.
Su Bei looked down at his mentally questionable disciple.
Youthful yet glowing like warm jade, her red lips resembling a coat of lacquer, her rhythmically rising and falling breath lightly brushed against his face, tickling him slightly.
Su Bei let out a soft sigh and muttered to himself:
"A fallen family, both parents deceased."
"You truly are a pitiful soul..."
"Yet your luck is genuinely extraordinary, to have such a handsome, profoundly cultivated, ideologically positive, great and outstanding Master."
"This just goes to show that some things are predestined by the heavens..."
"......"
This female disciple lacked a sense of security far too much.
Su Bei leaned down and, with a mischievous streak, stroked Xiao Ruoqing's head. From this angle, he happened to see that pair of embroidered shoes sticking out past the bed's edge, looking awkward no matter how he viewed them.
He instinctively glanced left and right, gave a light cough, and said with a righteous and solemn air:
"How can anyone sleep with their shoes on?"
"Who sleeps wearing shoes?"
"Master will take your shoes off for you!"
"......"
The Thatch Cottage was very quiet. From time to time, Xiao Ruoqing's lips could be heard parting as she murmured softly.
Walking on tiptoe with the utmost righteousness and a caring expression, Su Bei grasped Xiao Ruoqing's embroidered shoes, preparing to take them off.
After all, how uncomfortable is it to sleep wearing shoes?
Yet just as his fingers touched her ankle, he heard a soft moan.
"Mmm~"
Followed by a sleepy mutter:
"Don't touch me, ugh, Master, don't touch me..."
"..."
Su Bei's expression became extremely peculiar.
From the very beginning, this disciple of his had been calling out for Master!
Who in the world dreams about calling for their Master?
Could it be... that the towering figure who rescued her left such a massive impression in her heart?
Indeed!
That must be it!
Never had he imagined he could be so magnificent!
Su Bei couldn't help feeling his eyes grow hot with unshed tears.
——And so the movements of his hands grew even more enthusiastic!
He gently placed those somewhat chilly little feet onto the bed.
Gazing at the disciple curled up like a small cat, Su Bei's eyes rarely revealed a trace of tenderness.
He draped the Crane Cloak that had been resting on his shoulders lightly over her. Disregarding whether she could hear him or not, he gave a soft scolding:
"You curious little creature."
"That jar of wine was just sitting on the table, whatever did you drink it for?"
"Such a huge jar, it's a miracle you're still in one piece after drinking it all."
"Thank goodness it was just wine. If it had been poison, you'd have gone straight to join your parents and wouldn't even need to worry about revenge..."
"......"
Shaking his head, Su Bei curled the corner of his lips.
He gently pulled her hand away from his lapel and tucked it back beneath the Crane Cloak draped over her.
Then, eyeing the copy of the Sword Canon that Xiao Ruoqing had dragged out to use as a mattress pad, he turned and walked out of the Thatch Cottage, muttering to himself:
"This Qi Condensation manual used as a bed pad simply won't do!"
"Tomorrow I must head to the Sword Hidden Pavilion to search properly and see if there are any fragmentary manuals starting with titles like Supreme Wuji Eternal Peerless..."
"......"
Early the next morning, light snowflakes drifted slowly down upon Bujian Peak.
A somewhat chilly wind swept through the Thatch Cottage on Bujian Peak, causing the window that wasn't latched tightly to creak back and forth.
"Mmm~"
A faint, indistinct murmur sounded softly.
Xiao Ruoqing opened her eyes. Her head felt heavy, accompanied by lingering, intermittent throbs of pain.
Her entire body ached all over, and her stomach rumbled loudly.
Amidst her grogginess, she only felt a warm glow enveloping her.
Xiao Ruoqing let out a soft yawn, her consciousness gradually returning as she stared dazedly at the warm black-and-white Crane Cloak draped over her body.
She knew it far too well.
This belonged to Su Bei.
It still carried his scent.
Her head felt like it was splitting.
Because the Crane Cloak was so warm, Xiao Ruoqing had broken out in a fine layer of sweat, carrying the mellow fragrance of alcohol.
Her plain gauze dress was tattered, hanging loosely across her body.
She couldn't tell if she had done it herself after getting drunk, or if...
Thinking of this, Xiao Ruoqing hurriedly and meticulously checked herself from head to toe.
Seeing that everything remained safe and sound, Xiao Ruoqing let out a lingering sigh and collapsed back onto the bed, feeling rather weak.
Her clear eyes gazed up at the ceiling, an indescribable feeling churning in her heart.
His heart was still so delicate and gentle.
Yet, ha!
All of this was merely a gentle trap, an illusion!
This man was nothing more than an upright-looking beast!
He was a hypocrite!
A smiling tiger!
A scoundrel and scum who had deceived everyone!
Xiao Ruoqing covered her face with her delicate, tender hands, recalling with a headache what had happened after she got drunk.
Why on earth had her brain short-circuited to drink that jar of wine?
She had never encountered wine with such a piercingly spicy taste before.
Just the tiniest sip, and she had already reached such a state of intoxication!
She hadn't done anything embarrassing, had she...
When drunk, she must not have exposed any flaws!
One had to know that nothing could ever be kept hidden from that man!
He was quite literally her inner demon.
Feeling as though her strength had recovered quite a bit, Xiao Ruoqing slowly climbed out of bed.
She noticed a bowl of pale yellow honey water sitting on the table beside the bed, still warm to the touch.
Next to it was a neatly folded set of clothing.
Xiao Ruoqing recognized that outfit instantly.
It was the standard attire for female disciples of the Sword Sect.
——Except.
Unlike her previous life, why did this set of clothes seem to include an extra item that looked somewhat like trousers yet also like socks?
To call it trousers seemed a bit too small, yet to call it socks made it much too large!
Xiao Ruoqing's delicate brows furrowed slightly as she picked up the strange garment resting atop the stack of clothes.
She observed it closely.
The moment it touched her hands, she felt a texture that was both smooth and possessed an indescribable roughness.
The color was entirely black, presumably woven from the silk spun by ice silkworms.
She gave it a gentle tug; it was tight and possessed strong elasticity.
"What on earth is this?"
Xiao Ruoqing blinked her eyes with a hint of confusion.
Somewhere in the void, an intangible voice seemed to be whispering constantly in her ear:
"Put it on!"
"Put it on!"