Shen Wang asked again: “Where are you hurt?”
Gu Shengsheng blinked her almond eyes. It took her a moment to remember. Before those people arrived, she had told Shen Wang that she hurt her hand while peeling crab meat.
The room fell silent. When no answer came, Shen Wang frowned. Two warm drops suddenly landed on the back of his hand. His fingertips trembled—the skin felt scalded. “What are you crying for?!”
“Who’s crying!” But before she even finished speaking, her voice was already thick with nasal sobs, soft and milky like a child’s.
Shen Wang slowly exhaled, his voice turning colder: “Did they hit you? Where? Who did it?”
Gu Shengsheng’s vision gradually blurred. Earlier, when Shen Jiaxuan called her ugly, she hadn’t cried. When Liu Ping aggressively questioned her, she hadn’t cried. When a whole group stood by coldly watching her get beaten, she hadn’t cried. But now, hearing Shen Wang’s fierce, gruff words, the dam inside her suddenly burst. She let out a loud “wah” and started sobbing openly.
Shen Wang’s whole body stiffened. His clothes were soaked with her tears, warm and clinging to his chest. He wondered if there was snot too… The thought made him reach out instinctively to grab the back of her neck and fling her away.
In the end, he only placed his hand on top of her head and rubbed it awkwardly: “Idiot. People like that aren’t worth getting upset over.”
He had never seen this woman cry like this before.
All these days, she would laugh, act spoiled, and even cry in that soft, tender way—but this was the first time she cried so heartbrokenly. It wasn’t like other women, who cried delicately and charmingly, melting a man’s heart until he was dizzy and eager to give them whatever they wanted.
Gu Shengsheng’s crying was exactly like a little milk kitten that had been bullied outside. Only after returning home did it bury itself in its owner’s arms and wail nonstop, holding back all its grievances.
And she was crying over another man.
Thinking of this, Shen Wang grabbed the back of her neck, a little annoyed: “That’s enough.”
Gu Shengsheng’s cries immediately rose in pitch: “Wuwuwu I’m not done crying yet! They ganged up on me because there were so many of them! They… they even said I was ugly wuwuwu…”
Gu Shengsheng’s grief poured out uncontrollably. She had never suffered this kind of grievance before!
A faint smile curved at the corner of Shen Wang’s lips.
Just how ugly was Gu Shengsheng, exactly? He found himself a little curious.
—A delicate, crybaby… little monster.
Anyway, he couldn’t see her face, so there was no way for him to dislike her. Listening to her soft, tender voice crying in his arms actually stirred up a different kind of heat inside him.
Shen Wang frowned. While pressing down those inappropriate thoughts, he patted Gu Shengsheng’s back in a perfunctory way, hoping she’d finish crying quickly and get out of his embrace.
Unexpectedly, he used too much force—almost knocking the breath out of her.
Gu Shengsheng coughed until her small face turned bright red. Suddenly, she didn’t feel like crying anymore. She sat up from Shen Wang’s arms, rubbing her eyes as she said, “Oh no, I completely forgot about lunch!”
A whole table of dishes sat untouched, all stone-cold now. Gu Shengsheng had hurt her hand for nothing.
Shen Wang had taken one bite of the snowflake crab pouch. The crab meat had gone cold, but it carried a unique fresh sweetness, and the texture felt even firmer.
But after just one bite, Gu Shengsheng snatched it away. “Cold crab hurts the spleen and stomach. Eating too much will give you a stomachache! There are still two crabs left in the kitchen—I’ll break them down and make crab congee for you.”
Shen Wang said, “Cook a pot of longan and lily bulb congee.”
Gu Shengsheng agreed immediately. At this moment, even if Shen Wang had asked for a full Manchu-Han imperial banquet, she would have happily made it for him—let alone a simple pot of congee. “Okay! Do you want it sweeter or lighter?”
Shen Wang replied, “Milk-fragrance buns.”
Gu Shengsheng said, “Got it.”
Sister Li, who was clearing away the leftovers, listened in complete confusion. Only when she reached the kitchen did she dare ask, “Madam, you asked Sir if he wanted it sweeter or lighter, and he answered ‘milk-fragrance buns’? What does that mean?”
Gu Shengsheng laughed. “It means he wants it as sweet as milk-fragrance buns. You really couldn’t figure that out?”
Who could possibly understand that?! Sister Li sighed in admiration. “Madam really understands Sir. In you young people’s words… oh right, this is called ‘chemistry’.”
Gu Shengsheng gave a light shrug. “What chemistry? I’m just pretty good at raising cats, that’s all. Sister Li, help me get some longans—Sir wants lily bulb and longan congee.”
“Coming right up.” Sister Li turned away to hide her smile.
Lily bulb and longan congee calms the mind and soothes fright. Sir must be feeling sorry for Madam. She had known all along—a good girl like Madam wouldn’t have such a bad fate.
That pot of longan and lily bulb congee was sweet, warm, and comforting—but unfortunately, it couldn’t settle Gu Shengsheng’s spirit.
The lingering resentment of the original owner had been triggered. It shook Gu Shengsheng’s state of mind as well. Her emotions became unusually sensitive, and at night, nightmares came.
Pouring rain, lightning tearing across the sky. Countless figures in cloaks, riding spirit beasts, stood at the edge of the cliff, shouting: “Don’t let the cauldron escape!”
Gu Shengsheng stood at the cliff’s edge, nowhere left to retreat. Her last guardian had already died. Only she remained.
She had once been the number one beauty in the cultivation world—until a spirit-testing stone revealed her pure yin constitution. In an instant, everything flipped. The former top beauty became prey that cultivators fought over.
In the cultivation world, strength ruled. Major clans and families plundered water-element pure yin girls everywhere, using them as cauldrons to rapidly boost their cultivation. Once a woman became a cauldron, in the eyes of cultivators she was no longer human—she was merely a cultivation tool and tonic. As an extremely high-grade water-spirit-root cauldron, Gu Shengsheng naturally became the prime target for every major clan.
Many parents willingly offered their daughters to great families for protection. The Gu family was not among them. Her parents pretended to accept marriage proposals from the four great clans while secretly sending a squad of death warriors to escort Gu Shengsheng to the Northern Frontier.
The Northern Frontier was the domain of the demon dragon. Gu Shengsheng had once had a fateful encounter with the demon dragon—perhaps there was still a slim chance of survival.
But only one cliff separated her from the north. With no spiritual power left, Gu Shengsheng couldn’t cross it.
The leading cultivator laughed with absolute confidence. “Fairy Gu, my young master has admired you for a long time. Be good and come back with us!”
“Dream on!” Gu Shengsheng shouted back furiously—only to be met with lewd, malicious laughter.
She couldn’t clearly see their faces. Under the firelight, shadows loomed like ghosts.
Gritting her teeth, Gu Shengsheng raised the bright yellow talisman paper her mother had left her and formed hand seals.
The cultivators who had been sneering suddenly panicked. “That’s a Tribulation Fire Talisman! Don’t let her detonate it—grab her! Take her alive!”
Countless shadowy figures roared and surged forward: “Catch her!!!”
Gu Shengsheng retreated in panic. A violent sensation of weightlessness hit her. Her fingers loosened—the talisman was swept away by the gale.
Ten thousand feet of abyss stretched below, bottomless, with the faint, deep rumble of the demon dragon echoing up.
As Gu Shengsheng plummeted, the fierce wind forced her eyes shut. She didn’t see the talisman suddenly flare in mid-air, transforming into a gate of void.
“Ah!” Gu Shengsheng jolted awake with a violent shudder.
A muffled grunt sounded above her head. The mattress trembled slightly. Gu Shengsheng fumbled around in a daze before realizing she was lying on Shen Wang’s chest.
She turned on the bedside lamp and saw that Shen Wang’s collar was wrinkled and soaked with wet tears—and some shiny, unidentified liquid. He was covering his chin, his face looking extremely unpleasant.
The aftereffects of the soul shock were long-lasting. For the next few days, Gu Shengsheng woke up screaming from nightmares every night, which also kept Shen Wang from sleeping well.
Before Shen Wang could lose his temper, Gu Shengsheng hurriedly apologized: “I’m sorry! Does it hurt?”
A man bleeds but doesn’t cry—could he admit it hurt? Could he?!
Apparently, he could. Shen Wang pinched her soft cheeks, a cold smile tugging at his lips. “Does it hurt? Hm?”
“It hurts, it hurts, it hurts… wuwu I was wrong.” Gu Shengsheng didn’t dare play clever anymore. Tears brimming, she begged for mercy repeatedly.
Shen Wang didn’t like people crying. The moment she cried, he would get annoyed and let her go. Sure enough, he tsked and released her. “Get off. Bring me a clean set of clothes.”
Gu Shengsheng obediently rolled out of bed, fetched clean pajamas, and helped Shen Wang change. She washed her own face, poured some hot water, and drank. Shen Wang heard and wanted some too, so she fed him a couple of sips. These days, he was getting very comfortable ordering her around—no longer stubbornly refusing water even when thirsty like before.
After the two of them lay back down, Shen Wang stayed perfectly still and quiet. Gu Shengsheng, on the other hand, rustled and fidgeted under the covers. When she slept, she liked to tuck the edges of the blanket in tightly, turning it into a snug little cocoon—like a small animal building its own nest.
This little habit had started when she was a child and got scared by ghosts and spirits. Even the tiniest gap in the blanket made her feel a chill on the back of her neck. Most of the time Shen Wang ignored it, but if it really annoyed him, he’d snap at her once. Tonight, though, Shen Wang was unusually quiet. Even when Gu Shengsheng tossed and turned, wrinkling his pajamas into a mess, he didn’t push her off the bed.
Finally, Gu Shengsheng tucked in every corner perfectly. She pressed her little feet against the edges to secure them, then leaned back against Shen Wang’s scorching-hot body. It gave her an incredible sense of safety. Whatever else you could say, Shen Wang’s body radiated blazing yang energy—nothing evil could get near. Sleeping next to him these past days had been the most peaceful feeling in the world.
Gu Shengsheng called softly, “Shen Wang, Shen Wang… are you asleep?”
Shen Wang’s tone was flat, his voice carrying that special laziness of someone just woken up: “I was just about to fall asleep.” And you woke me up again.
Gu Shengsheng didn’t catch the unspoken complaint. She rolled over to face him. “I can’t sleep either. Let’s chat for a bit.”
Shen Wang couldn’t be bothered. “Stop clinging.”
“But I really can’t sleep.” Gu Shengsheng secretly pressed her cold feet against his leg for warmth.
“If you can’t sleep, play on your phone.”
Phones were such fun things—Gu Shengsheng didn’t want to enjoy them alone. “Then I’ll play some funny short videos. We can listen to them together.”
Shen Wang took a deep breath. “What do you want to talk about?”
Gu Shengsheng rolled over again to face him fully. “That day Shen Jiaxuan told me that you…”
“Abused and killed small animals? Killed my own dog? Or that I pushed a pregnant Liu Ping down the stairs and almost killed Shen Tingchen?” With each sentence, Shen Wang’s voice grew colder until it felt like the bedroom’s warm air had frozen solid.
Those were indeed the things the original owner knew about.
But hearing the tone in Shen Wang’s voice, Gu Shengsheng felt as if someone had viciously twisted her heart—sour and aching.
Shen Wang was right beside her, yet after those words, it felt like a wall of ice had risen between them. She puffed out her cheeks and scooted closer. “I don’t believe it! Not a single word of the bad things Shen Jiaxuan said about you!”
These past few days of nightmares had also brought dreams of the original owner’s life and experiences. Gu Shengsheng vaguely sensed that this book was written from Shen Tingchen and Gu Yunyan’s perspective. The portrayal of Shen Wang as the big villain might not be the full truth.
Gu Shengsheng grabbed Shen Wang’s sleeve and whispered firmly, “I’m on your side.”
I’m on your side. It sounded just like kindergarten kids sharing candy, holding hands and saying it with childish affection. Though, from kindergarten through elementary school, Shen Wang had never had a single friend.