All the fatigue in her body melted away.
She couldn’t help closing her eyes, leaning back and resting for a while.
At this point in her previous life, her taste had truly been terrible. Misled by Bai Jingya into pursuing some so-called “individuality,” she had dressed absurdly.
Meanwhile, Bai Jingya herself dressed like a pure little white flower. It was as if Xu Zhixia’s brain had been missing a piece.
Outside, Lu Xiuyuan had calmed himself down, smoked a cigarette, and taken several deep breaths to steady his emotions.
Only after a while did he return.
The moment he entered, he realized Xu Zhixia was gone.
Heh. So she regretted it after all.
Just as he was about to leave, he heard the faint sound of running water from the end of the hallway soft and subtle.
He walked closer to the bathroom and confirmed it was real.
He was about to return to the bedroom to wait when Xu Zhixia came out, draped in one of his shirts.
His shirt was oversized, long enough to cover her hips, but her smooth, slender legs were left completely exposed.
Xu Zhixia had naturally fair skin.
With the makeup washed off, framed by her jet-black hair, her small face looked like warm jade, glowing softly.
She held a towel in her hand, drying her hair.
Seeing Lu Xiuyuan, she looked up and asked,
“Did you find the medicine?”
He responded with a flat “Mm.”
Noticing him staring at her, Xu Zhixia explained,
“I forgot to bring clothes into the bathroom. I saw a clean shirt there and just put it on. I’ll wash it and return it to you later.”
If she forgot clothes, naturally she had also forgotten underwear.
As she walked, she still felt slightly unaccustomed the air brushing against her skin seemed to slip in everywhere.
By the time they reached the bedroom, her hair was almost dry.
She sat directly on the bed, looking at Lu Xiuyuan, who stood in front of her holding the ointment.
She felt embarrassed.
She had blurted that out in a moment of desperation. She hadn’t expected him to actually agree.
“Lie down. I’ll apply the medicine.”
Hearing the lack of emotion in his voice, she felt a trace of disappointment.
She had already gone this far, yet he still seemed unmoved.
Standing there, Lu Xiuyuan was doing his best to control his expression. Only now did he realize she wasn’t wearing anything underneath.
His shirt was far too large for a woman.
From his angle, looking down the neckline, everything was visible at a glance.
He just wanted to finish this quickly and leave.
Xu Zhixia obediently lay down.
The moment she did, nervousness crept in; even the inside of her thighs tingled faintly.
She wanted to see if this man could truly remain calm and unaffected.
To her surprise, Lu Xiuyuan really did sit down and lift the hem of her shirt.
Suddenly, Xu Zhixia remembered she was pregnant.
Many swelling ointments promoted blood circulation who knew whether she could use them?
She quickly sat up and grabbed his hand.
“Don’t. I’m fine now.”
Lu Xiuyuan’s gaze sharpened.
“Fine. Then I’m leaving.”
Just as he thought it had all been fake.
Seeing him angry again, Xu Zhixia suddenly swung a leg over and sat on his lap, pouting as she leaned close.
Lu Xiuyuan held her shoulders, afraid of hurting her, so he didn’t use force.
And so Xu Zhixia succeeded.
She pressed her lips to his, though the force of the kiss was gentle.
Then she said softly,
“I have a fever. Can you stay with me tonight?”
He reached out to feel her forehead. It was only slightly warmer than his own—nothing like a real fever.
“No fever.”
She took the opportunity to hold his hand.
“But I’m cold. I might get a fever in the middle of the night. Can you stay?”
Lu Xiuyuan frowned, unable to understand what she was trying to do.
But she kept pleading with him to stay.
Fine. He might as well stay and see what this woman was up to.
Would she turn out to be like earlier a paper tiger who regretted everything moments later?
After thinking it through, he stopped hesitating.
“I’ll take a shower. Go to sleep first.”
Lu Xiuyuan had never lied to her. Xu Zhixia finally breathed a sigh of relief. As long as he was willing to share the bed with her, there was still hope.
Watching him take his clothes into the bathroom, she relaxed and lay down.
Perhaps she had run around too much that day. As soon as she lay down, her eyelids grew heavy.
Before long, she fell asleep.
When Lu Xiuyuan returned to the bedroom, he saw that Xu Zhixia had fallen asleep without even covering herself.
His shirt outlined her delicate curves, and the marks he had left on her body were still clearly visible.
He pulled the blanket over her.
Only a dim yellow lamp was on in the room, making her pale, tender face stand out even more.
He reached out, wanting to touch her but ultimately lowered his hand.
Since he had promised to stay, he wouldn’t sneak away.
He climbed into bed and lay on the other side.
Perhaps too much had happened that day. He lay there stiffly, unable to fall asleep.
Just as he was finally drifting off, Xu Zhixia suddenly draped a leg over him.
Lu Xiuyuan froze.
He reached to move her leg away, but her arm wrapped around him next.
The more he tried to push her away, the tighter she clung.
Even her warm breath brushed against his neck.
For a moment, he almost thought she was pretending to be asleep deliberately teasing him.
It set his whole body on fire.
Yet the culprit breathed evenly, sleeping soundly. He had never realized before how terrible her sleeping posture was.
After several hours of struggle, he finally managed to get a bit of sleep.
At dawn, he got up and went out for a run.
Xu Zhixia woke with a start in the morning. The bed beside her was already cold.
She had had a dream.
When she had been reborn yesterday, everything had been so rushed that she had forgotten about a jade pendant left in her bedroom at the Xu family home.
Whenever Lu Xiuyuan wasn’t home, she usually stayed at her parents’ house. All her belongings were there.
Including the jade pendant gifted to her by the Lu family.
In her previous life, after divorcing and returning to the Xu family, Bai Jingya had repeatedly praised her pendant its clarity and luster.
She had asked to borrow it to wear.
And once borrowed, it was never returned.
When Xu Zhixia was transported into the apocalypse, she had inexplicably been holding that very jade pendant.
It had become her greatest reliance in that world.
Inside it was a spiritual spring with healing properties and fertile black soil for planting.
She stayed in the base, occasionally going out with a small team to gather supplies.
Thinking of this, her fists clenched.
In her previous life, Bai Jingya had constantly befriended influential figures so it turned out she had stolen the jade pendant.
Xu Zhixia couldn’t lie still anymore.
She had already fallen out with Bai Jingya yesterday. Who knew if Bai Jingya might steal the pendant?
Such a treasure had to be in her hands before she could feel at ease.
Without waiting for Lu Xiuyuan to return, she quickly got up, changed clothes, and hurried to the Xu family home.
When Lu Xiuyuan came back, he first prepared the dishes Xu Zhixia liked in the kitchen.
He waited until the food had gone cold, yet she still hadn’t come downstairs.
When he went to check, her bed was already empty.
Then he remembered the message he had just received she had booked a train ticket for that evening with Zhou Chunsheng.
And here he had been, foolishly waiting.
He let out a mocking laugh.
Just because someone smiled at him a couple of times, he had really thought she’d changed.
Reality had slapped him hard in the face.
Everything felt ridiculous.
He clenched his jaw.
If he ever believed her again, he’d be a dog.