Vоlumе 1 Сhapter 25: Whо Gеts Jealоus of Thеir Сhildhооd Sеlf?
Yаn Shi loоkеd аt hеr hopеfully, as if awaiting hеr vеrdict.
“Оkау,” thе рersоn оn tоp of him sоbbеd in reрly.
Okaу?
For а moment, Yan Shi sеemеd unablе tо believе it, unable to соmрrеhend.
Bеfоrе hе could rеaсt, she criеd out in a dеlicatе, tearful voiсе, “Сan уоu hold me now?”
“Yоu didn’t evеn сomfort mе.”
Yan Shi raisеd his arm tо рull hеr clоse, and thеy fell оntо thе bed. “Holding you, don’t cry аnуmore.”
Yun Jiao асcused, “You dоn’t likе me anymore, you won’t comfort me!”
“I do,” Yan Shi’s voice was low and heavy. “I like you very much.”
“You don’t believe me either. I clearly made a Blood Oath with the Prince, vowing to never part in life or death, to share hardships together—and the Prince forgot that too!”
Yun Jiao, emboldened and fearless, listed his crimes one by one.
Yan Shi’s collapsed world slowly began to rebuild itself.
How could he have forgotten? He simply didn’t dare remember.
After all, who would truly be willing to follow a demon into hell?
Except for her—this little girl bold enough to keep drawing near him, yet so delicate she’d cry until her face was a mess of tears at the slightest provocation.
He tightened his arm around her a little. “I’ll never forget again.”
“And what else?” Yun Jiao propped herself up, staring at him.
“I’ll never not hold you again.”
“And what else?” She kept staring.
“I’ll never not comfort you again.”
“And more.” She continued staring.
“I’ll treasure you like a precious gem.”
“And more.”
“And more?” Yan Shi finally frowned, unable to think of what else there was.
Yun Jiao pinched his cheek. “And you must never let yourself bleed again, never get hurt, never stand there and take a beating.”
Yan Shi was momentarily stunned. These seemed to be words of concern for him.
He felt somewhat at a loss. He couldn’t quite describe this feeling, only that his chest felt very warm—warmer than when he was a child, enduring a night of bitter cold in the side courtyard and finally being bathed in sunlight.
A feeling that was intoxicating, addictive.
Yan Shi lifted his eyelids to look at her; there seemed to be a faint light in his eyes. He took her hand from his cheek.
That hand was so small it only covered half his palm, her fingertips neatly trimmed and rounded, her nails delicate and tinged with pink. How could such a tiny hand make him feel so utterly weak and tingly?
He opened his mouth and gently bit her fingertip, chuckling softly as he spoke, “As you command.”
Yun Jiao’s fingertip felt as if it had touched fire, and her heartbeat quickened.
The tips of her ears flushed pink, prompting Yan Shi to let out a few soft, low laughs. He took her hand and began to play with it.
Yan Shi’s body was sturdy, somewhat hard, and leaning against him felt very secure. Yun Jiao lay on top of him, letting him play as he wished.
Suddenly, a voice came from above her head. “So how did Jiao Jiao come to know about it?”
Yun Jiao’s body stiffened slightly. She thought he had forgotten.
Her eyes darted around. How could she explain it in a way he would believe?
After a long moment without hearing her voice, Yan Shi hummed questioningly. “Hmm?”
Yun Jiao used her other hand to trace circles on his collarbone. “I had a dream, a very long dream.”
Yan Shi said nothing, listening quietly.
“I dreamed of the Prince when he was little, just as handsome as he is now—both handsome and adorable.”
Yun Jiao started off with a stream of compliments, all while secretly observing his expression.
“But the Prince when he was little wasn’t clever at all. He wouldn’t dodge when whipped, wouldn’t hide when scolded, wouldn’t run away when pricked with needles.”
Yan Shi narrowed his eyes, his expression growing restrained.Though she had mentioned these things lightly, they still overlapped with certain memories.
That was his filthy, wretched past.
Though he didn’t know why she had dreamed of these things, they were indeed from his childhood.
No wonder she had pinched his earlobe and touched the scars on his back.
She knew everything, yet she had cried in heartache for him.
His treasure truly did love him.
For some reason, he felt a pang of sorrow for the first time in his life, along with a touch of grievance.
But now he was even more eager to know another answer.
“So, Jiao Jiao, do you prefer This Prince from childhood or This Prince now?”
“Huh?”
Yun Jiao looked up in surprise, somewhat taken aback. Yan Shi seemed difficult to approach and a bit mad, but he was actually quite easy to understand.
For example, he was possessive and prone to jealousy.
But she never expected that he would even be jealous of his younger self!?
Seeing her not answer, Yan Shi continued, “You’ve never said that This Prince now is cute.”
“…”
Yun Jiao was about to lose her mind—weren’t they the same person!
“Is This Prince not cute now? Why did you praise This Prince from childhood?”
Yan Shi seemed to be competing with his younger self, even showing a hint of hostility in his eyes.
Yun Jiao blinked, stammering, “Of course, it’s because the Prince back then was like a little dumpling, only reaching my leg, so tiny.”
Afraid he wouldn’t believe her, she added, “Tiny things are all cute.”
Yan Shi was displeased. He was now six feet tall—how could he shrink to the height of her leg?
He couldn’t just press his head against her leg.
Frowning, he seemed to struggle for a moment. “Is This Prince not cute now?”
“The Prince has grown up now, too big.”
Yan Shi frowned even deeper as he looked at her. “You don’t like big ones?” Or did she think he was old?
“?”
“!!”
Yun Jiao widened her eyes, her ears turning red. Something felt off, but Yan Shi wore a serious expression, making her seem like the perverted one.
She coughed lightly, her face flushing. It seemed no answer would be right.
If she said she liked the grown-up him, he would press her on why she didn’t like the younger him.
She chose not to choose—she wanted both.
“I like them both. I like the Prince from childhood and the Prince now.”
The furrow between Yan Shi’s brows remained, determined to compete with his younger self.
“Do you prefer the small one or the big one? You can only choose one.”
Yun Jiao was nearly in tears, her ears practically steaming.
Unable to argue with him, she closed her eyes and said, “I prefer the big one. I prefer the present you.”
“Good, you know what’s best.” Only then did Yan Shi let her off.
Seeing him appeased, Yun Jiao sighed in relief and called out to him softly, “Prince.”
“Hmm?”
Yun Jiao scratched his collarbone. “Can we die a little later?”
“Why?” Yan Shi’s voice lowered.
Yun Jiao hurriedly explained, “I haven’t eaten enough delicious food yet.”
Yan Shi paused, suddenly remembering the day he met her, when she said she was a glutton.
How pitiful.
It would truly be unfair to her to die now.
He patted her head. “Alright, we’ll die together once you’ve eaten your fill.”
Yun Jiao counted on her fingers. “I also haven’t seen enough beautiful scenery. I grew up in the countryside, and after my birth parents found me, they kept me locked up in the mansion for years.”
How pitiful.”Alright, we’ll wait until you’ve seen everything before we go to our deaths together.”
“And also, we can’t hang ourselves—our tongues will stick out, and that’s very ugly.”
She cared about her appearance.
“Alright, as you wish.”
“We also can’t jump into the river. What if the Prince gets rescued? I would miss you terribly in the underworld.”
Yan Shi agreed, “Alright. No jumping into the river.”
“And also, we can’t die in winter—it’s too cold. I’m also afraid of pain, so you can’t strangle me, we can’t take poison, we can’t slit our throats, we can’t…”
Yan Shi was overwhelmed by the list, feeling for the first time that even death could be so troublesome.
He sighed helplessly and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Darling, then how do you want to do it?”
Yun Jiao whispered softly, “I want… a way that allows me and the Prince to die together, but without any pain.”