The first ray of morning sunlight slipped through the cracks of the wooden house and fell across Chen Mo’s face.
The moment he woke up, he felt a soft weight pressing down on him, making his arm sore and numb.
Lowering his gaze, he saw Hu Tao with her messy hair all over the place.
Like a sloth clinging to a tree, one of her arms was wrapped around his neck as she sprawled over him, sleeping soundly.
Drool trickled from her cherry-like lips, making them look even more moist beneath the faint morning light.
Her clothes were in complete disarray.
The red undergarment beneath them was faintly visible, and even her waist and stomach were exposed to the air.
If Granny Ruoxin happened to see them like this, she might really think the two of them had spent the entire night discussing “the birth of life.” “Qiqi…
caught you…” Hu Tao mumbled in her sleep.
Her sleeping posture was still as unrestrained as it had been when she was little.
Chen Mo vaguely remembered that, in the past, she would often roll off her own bed in the middle of the night and end up on his bedding.
He carefully lifted his upper body and retied the loosened little strings, tidying Hu Tao’s clothes for her.
Looking at the doll-like sleeping face before him, he could not resist being mischievous and poked her cheek again and again.
“Stop it…!” Hu Tao frowned, looking troubled.
She was probably dreaming that Qiqi had run away again.
Seeing that she still showed no sign of waking, Chen Mo’s courage grew.
His finger slowly moved toward the girl’s lips.
Knock, knock, knock!
The sudden knocking on the door scared him so much that he abruptly pulled his hand back.
“Children, wake up and have breakfast.” The little girl in the middle of her sweet dream was forcibly awakened.
Hu Tao opened her eyes in a daze, Chen Mo’s conversation with Granny Ruoxin echoing in her ears.
She looked around, then unintentionally lowered her head and saw Chen Mo beneath her, being used like a mattress.
Beside the buttons of his clothes, there was a dark damp spot that had seeped into the fabric.
The girl held her breath, and her brain finally finished booting up.
The sensation of liquid at the corner of her mouth made her understand everything in an instant.
That was the mark left by her own drool!
“Wuaaah—!!” Hu Tao felt that her image had been completely ruined.
In all these years, even when she had been warned by the Ministry of Civil Affairs for illegally promoting her funeral services, she had never felt this embarrassed.
She hurriedly climbed out of bed and ran to the corner of the room, leaving only her back facing Chen Mo.
“Did Little Master Hu sleep comfortably last night?” “Aren’t you asking the obvious?!” Chen Mo walked over to Hu Tao’s side, lifted her hair, and gently smoothed it out.
“Go sit back down.
I’ll help you fix your hair.” As he spoke, he took a small wooden comb from inside his coat.
“You carry that around with you every day?” “Of course not.” He shook his head.
“I borrowed it from Granny Ruoxin in advance last night.” “Hmph.” Hu Tao turned around sulkily and sat back down by the bed.
“You really think of everything…” Because her sleeping posture was terrible, she had to spend quite a lot of time fixing her hair every morning after waking up.
When she was little, her grandfather had always helped her with it.
After the old man passed away, this routine naturally fell onto Chen Mo’s shoulders.
Since he had done it so often, Hu Tao’s hair had been maintained extremely well.
Every strand was smooth and distinct, with a texture like perfectly fine silk.
“Do…
do you not mind that it’s…
dirty…?” Her voice was soft and sweet, carrying a trace of timidity.
“I’ve already tasted it before, so how could I mind it being dirty?” “Ughhh…” Thinking of how he had stolen several fierce kisses from her before they went to sleep last night, Hu Tao wished she could immediately rush outside, find a patch of ground, and bury herself in it.
“How about I change your hairstyle?” Chen Mo picked up the plum blossom and used it as a hairpin, tying up her hair into a neat bun.
The two low twin tails he separated were carefully combed smooth before being placed in front of her shoulders.
Compared to her original, simple twin tails, she now had less of her usual childish air and gained a touch of gentle, cool elegance, making her appear more mature and composed.
“Let’s go.
We should say goodbye to Granny Ruoxin.” He picked up the hat from the table and helped Hu Tao put it on.
When they arrived at the pavilion outside the house, they exchanged a few pleasantries with Granny Ruoxin, who had been waiting there.
Chen Mo took the flatbread and soy milk she had prepared, then set out on the road with Hu Tao.
When they reached the small bamboo forest outside the village, he would hold her hand and gently swing it in the shade.
When they reached the stone path of Dihua Marsh, he would lift her petite body so she could collect the Geoculus floating in midair.
When they reached Wangshu Inn, he would sit beside her, pick the bones out of the boiled fish, and then lift the fish meat to her lips.
The journey back to Liyue Harbor seemed to have turned into a sweet date for the two of them.
Hu Tao walked at the very front.
When she saw pairs of finches flying together, her little heart fluttered along with their wings.
The girl’s shyness lasted until faint rosy clouds appeared on the horizon.
“Ah!
It’s Brother Chen Mo and Sister Hu Tao!” A childish voice came from the distance.
The two followed the sound and looked over.
At a glance, they saw a little dumpling-like child standing on the opposite side of the bridge, waving her little hands in their direction.
Hu Tao’s heart skipped a beat.
She had not expected to run into someone familiar the moment they returned to Liyue Harbor.
She was not ready to let outsiders know about her relationship with Chen Mo yet.
She took a deep breath of cool air and tried her best to act as if nothing had happened.
“It’s Yaoyao.
Are you taking a walk with Madame Ping?” “That’s right.” Her big eyes were bright and clear.
Yaoyao looked at Chen Mo, who was slowly walking over, and asked innocently, yet curiously, “Was Sister Hu Tao also taking a walk with Brother Chen Mo?” “Sort…
of.” Yaoyao tapped her dimple with her finger and asked again, “Sister, your hair looks so pretty today.
Did you style it like that because you were taking a walk with Brother?” “This…
of course…
not…” Hu Tao’s words became incoherent.
She secretly glanced at Chen Mo, her pleading gaze carrying quite a bit of hidden resentment.
It was as if she were blaming him: Look what you’ve done!
“Silly child, your brother and sister weren’t merely out for a walk.” Madame Ping chuckled behind Yaoyao.
As an adeptus living in seclusion among mortals, her wealth of experience went without saying.
With just one glance, she had seen through the subtle change in the relationship between the two young people.
Not to mention that, in ancient Liyue, an updo was a hairstyle typically worn by married women.
Even in modern Liyue, very few young girls would tie their hair up like this.
Unless…
“There have been many strange incidents around Wuwang Hill lately.
Your brother and sister went to catch ghosts.” Madame Ping smoothly helped them out.
Hearing this, Hu Tao quickly followed the offered excuse.
“That’s right, that’s right!
Tying my hair up makes it more convenient for me to catch ghosts in the mountains!” “Hm?
So that’s what happened.” Hu Tao let out a sigh of relief.
The heart that had been stuck in her throat could finally settle back down.
Although she had not managed to fool the old woman’s eyes, at least she had successfully coaxed the child.
Madame Ping was famous throughout Liyue Harbor for being steady and composed.
Besides, she was an adeptus living in seclusion among mortals.
Surely she would not take a young couple’s little secret and turn it into idle gossip over tea, right?
Chen Mo took in Hu Tao’s distracted expression completely.
To him, the contrast of the little girl’s embarrassed appearance was something he could never get tired of watching.
That was also why Chen Mo had not said anything until now.
Vaguely sensing the amused gaze coming from behind her, Hu Tao’s earlobes began to turn red again.
She really wanted to find an excuse to hurry back and hide inside Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
Just then, a purple figure approached from the distance.
“I finally found you.”