Shen Mianmian asked quietly as they walked,
“Young Master.”
Bai Qingzhou emerged from his thoughts and replied gently,
“What is it?”
“Am I beautiful?”
The question caught him completely off guard.
“Of course you’re beautiful.”
“If Mianmian isn’t beautiful, then there are no beautiful women left in this world.”
There was a trace of coaxing in his words.
But they were also entirely sincere.
Shen Mianmian raised an eyebrow.
“Then why have you been so distracted all day?”
Bai Qingzhou paused.
For a moment, he seemed unsure whether to answer.
Eventually, he lowered his gaze and smiled faintly.
“Because I’m worried about tonight.”
“Worried about the family dinner?”
“Partly.”
He walked several steps before continuing.
“Mother suddenly inviting everyone together means she probably wants to discuss children.”
Shen Mianmian nearly applauded.
See?
Not stupid at all.
The guy understood everything.
Bai Qingzhou continued softly,
“Father’s health isn’t a secret within the family.”
“I’m the only son.”
“Everyone hopes I’ll have children soon.”
His voice was calm, but Shen Mianmian could hear the exhaustion hidden underneath.
She suddenly remembered something.
In the original novel, Bai Qingzhou was always described as immature, impulsive, foolish, and incapable.
But lately, the more she interacted with him, the less those descriptions matched reality.
Yes, he could be impulsive.
Yes, he was naïve.
But stupidity?
Not really.
At least not in the way the novel claimed.
“Then why not just have children?” she asked.
The words slipped out before she could stop them.
Bai Qingzhou’s footsteps halted briefly.
Then he looked at her.
His dark eyes were unusually serious.
“With whom?”
“…”
Shen Mianmian suddenly regretted asking.
Because the answer seemed obvious.
His wife.
Jiang Yinjin.
Yet somehow neither of them said her name.
After a moment, Bai Qingzhou looked away.
“If a child is born, responsibility follows.”
“A mother, a child, a family.”
“I don’t want to bring a life into this world simply because others expect it.”
Shen Mianmian blinked.
That answer surprised her.
For this era, it was an almost strange way of thinking.
Most people cared about heirs.
Bloodlines.
Family succession.
Very few would think first about responsibility.
For a moment, neither spoke.
The evening breeze stirred the edges of their sleeves.
Finally, Shen Mianmian sighed.
“You’re overthinking things.”
Bai Qingzhou glanced at her.
“Am I?”
“Yes.”
She pointed at herself.
“Look at me.”
“I got dragged into a novel.”
“I don’t know when I’ll leave.”
“I don’t know whether I’ll survive.”
“I don’t know if tomorrow some disaster will fall from the sky.”
“So what do I do?”
“What?”
“I eat when it’s time to eat.”
“I sleep when it’s time to sleep.”
“I copy scriptures when it’s time to copy scriptures.”
“And I admire my own face when it’s time to admire my own face.”
Bai Qingzhou couldn’t help laughing.
The gloom surrounding him lightened considerably.
“Admire your own face?”
“Of course.”
Shen Mianmian spoke with complete confidence.
“If I looked like this and didn’t admire myself, wouldn’t that be disrespectful to heaven?”
This time Bai Qingzhou laughed outright.
The sound was clear and bright.
For the first time that day, the heaviness in his eyes faded.
Shen Mianmian secretly relaxed.
Good.
The depressed phoenix chick was temporarily fixed.
As they continued toward the main courtyard, she glanced sideways at him.
The setting sun painted his silver-white robes with a faint golden glow.
His expression was relaxed now.
His steps were lighter.
For some reason, Shen Mianmian suddenly thought:
Maybe this guy was never the useless cannon fodder the novel described.
Maybe he was simply born into a story that had already decided his ending before it ever bothered to understand him.
The thought lingered in her mind.
And for the first time since entering this world, she felt a tiny bit unwilling to watch that ending happen.