The cries of foxes echoed through the hall—one low and rumbling, the other sharp and piercing. The shrill cry was particularly mournful, as distraught as Shen Yi’s weeping.
Shen Yi wept and pleaded with her to spare Gu Luoyuan, yet she couldn’t get close to Shen Xin, just as Shen Xin couldn’t break through the barrier to save Gu Luoyuan. All she could do was cry out helplessly.
It should have been a heart-wrenching sound, but at this moment, Shen Xin couldn’t hear any of it.
All she could hear was that low, husky, magnetic voice by her ear, carrying the soft, cool breeze of the night—mesmerizing, yet startling enough to jolt her awake in an instant.
For Shen Xin, her ears were an extremely sensitive spot. The moment he gently nibbled her earlobe, half her body went weak.
Instinctively, she clutched his robe, afraid she might collapse in a pitiful heap.
His words made her bones feel as if they were melting, because she couldn’t help but imagine the scene he described:
Her beneath him…
Shen Xin’s cheeks flushed crimson.
She couldn’t resist asking Xiao Ai through her Divine Sense, “Be honest with me—is the effect of that y-card from before still lingering?”
This version of Qin Weiji was becoming increasingly difficult to handle, straying further and further from her initial judgment and understanding of him.
Xiao Ai giggled, [I told you before, men in 18x worlds can turn wild at any moment, yo yo yo. But this kind of wildness is sooo appealing, oh oh oh.]
Shen Xin, “…”
Too exhausted to retort, and with no time to do so, her silence prompted Qin Weiji to bite her earlobe again.
The bite wasn’t hard—just a faint sting—but it was enough to snap her back to reality.
Her eyelashes fluttered as she steadied herself and replied obediently, “Of course I wouldn’t lie to you, husband.”
After all, by the time he realized she had deceived him, she would have already completed her mission and left this world.
A twinge of guilt pricked her, but there was no other way—she was forced into this.
Shen Xin blinked, her lashes lightly brushing against the palm he used to cover her eyes, evoking a delicate tickle.
Qin Weiji’s gaze shifted slightly as he glanced at the two foxes still entwined within the barrier. He didn’t remove his hand from her eyes but released her poor little ear.
Noticing the faint teeth marks on her jade-like earlobe, he raised a brow and suddenly asked, “So, Yao Yao, when did you fall in love with me?”
His voice was as soft as a whisper, yet unmistakably cold.
Shen Xin sensed that this question was a trap.
Since Qin Weiji already knew she wasn’t the original Shen Xin, she couldn’t reuse her earlier excuses about loneliness and longing for him during those nights spent alone.
If she answered poorly, he wouldn’t believe her and would only grow more suspicious.
After a brief hesitation, she smiled sweetly and said, “What if I told you it was love at first sight? Would you believe me?”
“Love at first sight?”
Qin Weiji studied her curved red lips, as if the phrase intrigued him.
Shen Xin kindly explained, “It means that the moment I first saw you, I felt you were my destined one. I had already fallen for you then.”
Qin Weiji pondered this. “So, when was that first moment?”
Shen Xin paused briefly, the curve of her lips softening. “It was… when you asked me if I wanted a divorce from you.”
Qin Weiji’s gaze flickered slightly, “You mean, today.”
When he said “today,” Shen Xin still felt somewhat dazed. So much had happened, yet not even a day had passed.
But upon second thought, it made sense—a day in heaven is a year on earth.
The time they experienced was never ordinary 24-hour cycles.
So she nodded slowly, answering honestly, “Yes, when I opened my eyes today and saw my husband, I knew you were the one I was looking for.”
Sincerity is the ultimate weapon; sometimes the truth can become the most perfect lie.
Qin Weiji indeed fell into deep thought because of her words.
He had assumed she had occupied Shen Xin’s body for a long time, which explained why Shen Xin had become so shameless after marriage. But it turned out she had only arrived today?
Yet this seemed to explain why she suddenly changed her mind after proposing separation, and why her personality had transformed so drastically since then.
Remembering what he had seen in her Sea of Consciousness, his gaze grew even more obscure. “Where exactly… do you come from?”
Shen Xin tilted her head. Though her eyes were blocked from seeing his expression, she could tell he already believed her.
Thus, she relaxed even more. “I come from a very ordinary yet beautiful world.”
Her voice gradually softened, carrying obvious sorrow. “Ordinary because there are no gods or ghosts like here. Beautiful because… there were people who loved and cherished me most.”
Qin Weiji’s brow tightened instantly, clearly misunderstanding something.
Watching her sudden melancholy, he slowly articulated, “The ones who loved you most… cherished you most?”
Just as Shen Xin was about to nod and confirm, she heard him chuckle lightly. In that instant, an overwhelming sense of danger crushed down upon her.
Her heart tightened, and she instantly stiffened, unable to move.
Shen Xin was bewildered.
This pervert—they were having a normal conversation! Why did he suddenly invade her Sea of Consciousness again?
Without further hesitation, she hurriedly followed him in. Stepping into the Sea of Consciousness and spotting the silver-white figure, she couldn’t help but snap, “Why do you always barge into other people’s Sea of Consciousness like this?”
As she finished speaking, the figure turned to look at her, displeased. “Where’s the Ferris wheel? What is this?”
Shen Xin, “?”
She froze, then looked up.
Only then did she realize her Sea of Consciousness had changed again—no longer an amusement park.
Instead, it was her home, her room.
Probably because she had just spoken about it, missing her parents and homesick.
She stared blankly at the room before her.
She had grown up showered with her parents’ love, always the princess cherished by everyone.
Thus, her tastes remained quite childish—dreamy and girlish.
An exquisite princess room, from lace curtains to plush carpets, an entire wall transformed into a crystal display case holding thousands of princess figurines, and the globally unique diamond crown she wore at her coming-of-age ceremony.
The bed was naturally a princess bed, spacious and adorned with numerous princess dolls.
Because her daddy only loved blue, everything at home had to be blue since childhood. Influenced by this aesthetic, her room was entirely themed in pink and blue.
Though she hadn’t been gone long, staring at all this made Shen Xin feel as if she had been away for ages.
Her eyelashes fluttered slightly, and she suddenly wanted to cry.
She missed home so much…
Qin Weiji once again carefully surveyed the room. He wasn’t particularly curious about the unfamiliar objects until his gaze fell upon a “painting.”
Though it was called a painting, it was far too lifelike. He didn’t know what it was, but that didn’t stop his expression from turning cold and stern.
He stared intently at the person in the “painting” and let out a soft, mocking laugh. “Is this him? The one who loves and cherishes you the most?”
Shen Xin also looked over. It was a photograph.
The photo was taken on her 18th birthday, the day of her coming-of-age ceremony. She stood in front of the castle where the celebration was held, wearing a bright blue princess gown, her long hair tied up in a bun, adorned with a crown made of blue diamonds—more beautiful than Snow White.
Beside her was a boy around the same age, dressed in a black hoodie, a black baseball cap, and a black face mask, tilting his head as he looked at her.
The boy’s expression was unclear, and even his features were hard to make out. What was alarming, however, was that it was unmistakably clear that she had her arms wrapped around his waist, her head resting against his arm, smiling sweetly at the camera.
Shen Xin, “?”
She was completely baffled.
What was this photo? Who was this boy?
She had no idea.
Instinctively, she walked over and picked up the photo, examining it carefully. The more she looked, the more astonished she became.
In the corner of the photo, her parents had been captured in the shot. Her mother was smiling gently in their direction, while her father was only looking at her mother, his hand resting on her head as he leaned in to whisper something in her ear.
Shen Xin was utterly confused.
Had she lost her memory? What was going on?
What was the story behind this photo?
Qin Weiji’s soft, mocking laugh sounded close behind her ear, dripping with sarcasm. “Love at first sight for me?”
Shen Xin grew nervous, her hand trembling slightly as she held the photo. She didn’t dare look back at him and said weakly, “What if I told you I don’t know him and I’ve never taken this photo? Would you believe me?”
Qin Weiji chuckled, a dangerous and icy laugh.
Shen Xin bit her lip. “The ones I said love and cherish me the most are my parents—them.”
She pointed urgently at the two people in the corner of the photo. “Really, I truly don’t know this boy, and I’ve never taken this photo. I don’t know why it’s like this…”
A dark, fragmented light gleamed in Qin Weiji’s eyes as he looked toward where she was pointing. When he saw the man and woman, his brow twitched slightly. “Father and mother?”
Shen Xin glanced up at him quickly. “Yes, father and mother, dad and mom, the emperor and empress!”
Qin Weiji’s brow furrowed even more. “They are your parents?”
Shen Xin nodded emphatically.
Qin Weiji’s long eyelashes fluttered slightly. “What is your father’s name?”
Without hesitation, Shen Xin replied, “Shen Suizhi.”
“Shen Suizhi?”
The light in Qin Weiji’s eyes grew meaningful.
The appearance matched, but the name was different.
Perhaps it wasn’t him after all?
Qin Weiji stopped dwelling on it and turned his attention back to the girl in the photo and the boy she was embracing.
Her smile was too sweet—so sweet it made him want to destroy it and make her cry.
Narrowing his eyes, the icy fragments in his gaze completely froze over. He tilted his head to look at Shen Xin, a smile on his lips that was chillingly indifferent. “How many men has Yao Yao fallen in love with at first sight, hmm?”
Shen Xin’s breath hitched. “I already said there’s no—”
Before she could finish, he suddenly turned and walked toward the princess bed.
Shen Xin was momentarily stunned, watching as he sat down at the edge of the bed and glanced up at her nonchalantly. “Is this your bed?”
“Ah…”
Shen Xin nodded in a daze, and Qin Weiji lazily reclined against the headboard.
Shen Xin, “?”
Was he being too casual?
Qin Weiji leaned against the headboard, picked up a princess doll by the pillow, glanced at it, then tossed it aside with a hint of disdain, offering only a one-word evaluation: “Ugly.”
Shen Xin, “?”
He glanced sideways at her. “Has he slept here?”
Shen Xin, “Huh?”
He curved his lips, his tone light and devoid of emotion. “Your lover.”
Shen Xin, “…I already said there’s no lover.”
Qin Weiji clearly didn’t believe her, as the evidence was coldly laid out before them.
He merely lifted the corner of his lips in a cold smirk and beckoned her with a finger. “Come here.”
Shen Xin frowned, tilting her head to study him for a moment, unable to decipher his current mood.
In the end, she shuffled over reluctantly, standing by the bed with a conflicted expression. “I really don’t have…”
Before she could finish, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her onto the bed, flipping over effortlessly to pin her beneath him.
Shen Xin’s eyes widened instantly, and in that moment, she saw clearly into the depths of Qin Weiji’s dark, unfathomable gaze.
Her eyes drifted downward, noticing the slight bob of his Adam’s apple.
Suddenly, his earlier threat echoed in her mind:
“This lord wonders what Yao Yao would look like beneath me…”
Her breath hitched.
Was Qin Weiji really this impulsive?
The timing and place didn’t seem appropriate, did they?
He leaned over her, his face slowly drawing closer. His scorching breath warmed her cheeks, yet her body inexplicably softened.
Her heart raced so fast she could almost hear its frantic beats.
“Shen Yaoyao…”
He stared intently at her, his voice low and deliberate. “This lord doesn’t care how many lovers you’ve had before, nor how many men have lain on this bed…”
Shen Xin’s pounding heart skipped a beat. His words were too harsh.
As she thought this, he continued, “From the moment you declared your love for this lord, you belong only to me. You may only lie beneath me.”
He slowly tightened his grip on her slender fingers, gradually interlacing them with his own until their hands were tightly clasped. “Do you understand?”
Even if he didn’t love her, his woman could not yearn for another.
Since she claimed to love him, she must love only him.
If it were a lie, then he would make it true, just as the career-driven had suggested…
For the first time, Qin Weiji realized how possessive he truly was.
He gently brushed his lips against the corner of her mouth, his movements tender, but his words were anything but gentle. “Has Yao Yao’s lover kissed her like this?”
His breath lingered at her lips, their intertwined fingers tightening as if squeezing her heart, leaving her breathless.
Before Shen Xin could utter “No,” he murmured again, “Or like this…”
With those words, his lips pressed firmly against hers in a searing kiss. A surge of possessiveness overtook him as he effortlessly parted her lips, his tongue tangling with hers in a deep, lingering caress.
Shen Xin whimpered softly, passively surrendering to his sudden, intense kiss, allowing his tongue to explore and claim her territory.
Her eyelashes fluttered. She thought she would resist—after all, the timing and place were far from ideal.
Yet, the truth was, she quickly succumbed, her slender fingers gradually tightening around his in their interlaced grasp.
A breeze seemed to drift through the window, stirring the pale blue lace bed curtains as soft light spilled in, flowing in a lingering embrace.
This was Shen Xin’s current state of mind—the previous kisses and the sensations this one brought her were entirely different.
Because this was her Sea of Consciousness, her room, her bed, her most private sanctuary.
And he had barged in just like that, domineering and unyielding, imprisoning her here.
How long the kiss lasted, Shen Xin didn’t know. It wasn’t until the fox’s piercing, almost ear-splitting wail echoed that she was jolted back to awareness.
In a daze, her thought was:
This fox is quite impressive—seems like it lasted a long time.
Then, suddenly, another thought arose: Qin Weiji’s kisses seemed to last even longer…