Although her first attempt at crafting had failed, Huang Xiaoxiao wasn’t worried at all.
She had plenty of ways to solve the problem.
She moved the cauldron outside and placed it in the thick snow.
Looking up at the bright sunlight overhead, she thought that with such good weather today, she would definitely succeed.
She placed the materials into the cauldron one by one.
Then she released her spiritual power.
Whoosh!
A huge flame immediately burst out.
Huang Xiaoxiao quickly jumped back and grabbed the shovel she had prepared beforehand.
Swish!
Swish!
Swish!
She shoveled up snow from the ground and threw it toward the cauldron.
The raging fire was brought under control.
Not bad!
Huang Xiaoxiao wiped away sweat that didn’t actually exist on her forehead.
Then she followed the steps for crafting a storage artifact.
Whenever the flames looked like they were about to flare up, she threw more snow on them.
This strange behavior attracted the attention of people nearby.
The longer they watched, the more convinced they became that something was wrong with her.
Most artifact refiners worried that their flames weren’t strong enough.
This woman was actually throwing snow into the fire.
If that wasn’t crazy, what was?
The bizarre scene spread from person to person.
Within a few days, everyone knew that a fool had moved into the military district.
And that fool happened to be living in Major General Zhuo Yi’s house.
But that was a story for later.
…
After much effort, Huang Xiaoxiao sensed that the item inside the cauldron was finally taking shape.
Excitement surged through her heart.
She was about to succeed!
For the first time in both of her lifetimes, she was finally crafting something successfully.
How could she not be excited?
Snowflakes gradually began drifting down from the sky.
Cold winds blew in from the distance.
The icy air brushed against her skin and lifted her soft hair into the air.
Huang Xiaoxiao stood quietly in the snow, waiting.
It was as if she didn’t even notice the wind or snowfall.
The tip of her nose had turned red from the cold.
Yet her eyes shone brighter than ever.
Slowly, the flames died down.
Huang Xiaoxiao took a deep breath.
With trembling hands, she lifted the lid of the cauldron and looked inside.
A black bracelet came into view.
The tension she had been carrying instantly melted away.
Her nose tingled.
Her eyes became slightly red.
She had succeeded.
She had really succeeded!
Carefully, she picked up the bracelet.
She wondered how large the storage space inside would be.
Her consciousness entered the bracelet.
Hm?
Hm??!!
Hm???!!!
What was going on?
Huang Xiaoxiao wondered if she had seen it wrong.
She withdrew her consciousness, shook the bracelet, and checked again.
Then…
Wait…
One square meter?!
Huang Xiaoxiao was dumbfounded.
What was she supposed to do with a storage space that small?
…
Lin Ruiyang happened to pass by Zhuo Yi’s house after finishing some errands.
He saw Huang Xiaoxiao standing beside the cauldron with a bracelet in her hand.
He froze.
Who said she was useless?
Hadn’t she just successfully crafted something?
Immediately, he felt that everything Zhuo Wenxuan had said before must have been deliberate slander.
Perhaps she simply didn’t like Huang Xiaoxiao becoming her sister-in-law.
At that moment, Lin Ruiyang decided that in the future, he shouldn’t judge things based only on what others said.
He firmly reminded himself of that lesson.
Then he returned and told his friends about seeing Huang Xiaoxiao successfully craft a bracelet.
…
Sigh…
Huang Xiaoxiao looked helplessly at the falling snow.
Her heart felt as cold as the weather.
Was she really useless?
She couldn’t even master the most basic fire control.
After all that effort, she had finally crafted something—
Only for it to turn out to be trash.
It wasn’t even as good as the lowest-grade storage bag.
At least those had ten square meters of storage space.
So, what was the point of having this spiritual power?
She opened her palm.
Transparent spiritual energy swirled around her fingertips.
Sigh.
The more she looked at it, the more displeased she felt.
With a casual flick of her hand, she shot her spiritual power toward the bottom of the cauldron.
The flames immediately roared to life.
The entire cauldron became engulfed in fire.
In disgust, she tossed the bracelet into the cauldron.
Let it disappear.
Let it melt into useless slag.
That way she wouldn’t have to look at it anymore.
…
That evening.
“You successfully crafted something today?”
The moment Zhuo Yi returned home, he asked about it.
“How did you know?”
Huang Xiaoxiao looked at him in surprise.
“Ruiyang happened to pass by and saw it.”
Zhuo Yi smiled as he explained.
“Can I see it?”
He looked at her expectantly.
“Uh…”
Huang Xiaoxiao glanced toward the yard.
The bracelet had probably already melted into waste by now.
“Is it outside?”
Noticing where she was looking, Zhuo Yi stood up.
“Wait!”
Huang Xiaoxiao tried to stop him, but he had already gone outside.
She hurriedly put on her shoes and followed after him.
“Not bad. Two square meters.”
Zhuo Yi held the bracelet and examined it from side to side, generously offering praise.
“Huh?”
Huang Xiaoxiao stared in shock.
The bracelet was still there?
It hadn’t melted into useless scrap?
And what did he mean by two square meters?
She had checked it twice that afternoon.
It had definitely only been one square meter.
“Let me see.”
She quickly snatched the bracelet away.
Her consciousness entered it.
Sure enough.
The storage space had become two square meters.
What was going on?
Had she hallucinated?
Impossible.
She wasn’t sick, and her mind had been perfectly clear.
If it wasn’t a hallucination, why had the space suddenly doubled?
Huang Xiaoxiao couldn’t figure it out.
“What’s wrong?”
Seeing her strange expression, Zhuo Yi asked worriedly.
“Nothing.”
She turned and gave him a smile.
Although the smile looked extremely forced.
“It’s alright. Don’t worry. You’ve already done very well. Crafting takes practice. The more you practice, the better you’ll become.”
After thinking for a moment, Zhuo Yi guessed that she was upset because the storage space was too small.
So, he immediately tried to comfort her.
Practice makes perfect.
The more you practice…
Huang Xiaoxiao suddenly froze.
She raised her head and stared at Zhuo Yi.
A brilliant light burst into her eyes.
“W-What’s wrong?”
Zhuo Yi was startled by the sudden change in her mood.
Hahaha!
She thought she had figured out why the bracelet’s storage space had doubled.
Huang Xiaoxiao was ecstatic.
“Zhuo Yi, you’re amazing!”
She rushed forward, wrapped her arms around him, and kissed him on the cheek.
The soft touch lasted only an instant.
Zhuo Yi stood frozen in place.
His pupils contracted slightly.
Meanwhile, Huang Xiaoxiao ran back to the cauldron and tossed the bracelet inside.
Then she released her spiritual power.
The flames surged upward once again.
Everything looked exactly the same as before.
The firelight reflected in her eyes, illuminating her dark pupils.
“I hope my guess is correct.”
Huang Xiaoxiao clasped her hands together in front of her chest and silently prayed.
“Don’t you need to control the flames?”
The sudden blaze startled Zhuo Yi.
Seeing that she made no attempt to intervene, he couldn’t help asking.
“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”
Huang Xiaoxiao had no attention to spare.
Her eyes remained fixed on the cauldron without blinking.
Even when her eyes became tired from staring, she refused to look away.
“The wind is picking up. Let’s go back inside.”
After a long while, Zhuo Yi gently tugged at her sleeve.
“It’s fine. You go ahead. I’ll come in later.”
Without seeing the result, Huang Xiaoxiao refused to give up.
Zhuo Yi frowned.
He couldn’t understand what she was trying to do.
What could possibly be more important than her own health?
“Xiaoxiao, be good. Crafting isn’t that urgent.”
His voice became noticeably stern.
To be honest, a serious Zhuo Yi was a little intimidating.
Huang Xiaoxiao pursed her lips.
She didn’t dare argue.
After all, she was living under someone else’s roof.
Sometimes it was best to keep her head down.
…
As soon as they entered the house, warmth rushed toward them.
Only then did Huang Xiaoxiao realize how cold she had become.
It felt as though her entire body had frozen stiff.
“Drink some hot water.”
Zhuo Yi poured her a cup and set it in front of her.
Then he raised the indoor temperature slightly.
He didn’t say anything.
Yet his quiet actions carried a comforting warmth.
Holding the cup, Huang Xiaoxiao sipped the hot water little by little.
Meanwhile, Zhuo Yi went into the kitchen to prepare dinner.
“What would you like to eat tonight?”
he asked before leaving.
“Anything is fine.”
Huang Xiaoxiao watched his retreating figure.
She couldn’t understand why he had married her.
He wouldn’t let her do anything.
Instead, he took care of her.
No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t understand.
Since she couldn’t figure it out, she stopped trying.
Her attention remained fixed on the cauldron outside.
Dragging over a stool, she sat by the window and stared at it.
A long time passed.
“Dinner’s ready!”
“Coming!”
Huang Xiaoxiao rushed out immediately.
Zhuo Yi stood there holding two plates of food, watching her disappear like a gust of wind.
A vein twitched faintly at his temple.
Huang Xiaoxiao lifted the lid of the cauldron and eagerly grabbed the bracelet.
Because it had just finished refining, she accidentally burned her hand.
Quickly, she wrapped it with her clothes.
Then she extended her consciousness into the bracelet.
“Hahaha…”