I'm Already the Richest Man, Why Did My System Just Arrive?

Chapter 256: Chapter 165: Illusory Dream

For a moment,

it was utterly silent in the darkness.

The only sound was their breathing, rising and falling.

Zheng Xiu didn’t move.

He kept telling himself that this was Gongsun Mo’s memory. It was all fake.

And yet, the soft, warm touch against his chest was a constant reminder. Even if it was fake, it didn’t feel fake at all. It felt just like the real thing.

For an instant, Zheng Xiu couldn’t tell if he was in a painted scroll, a phantom dream, or the depths of Gongsun Mo’s memory. Or was he truly living as Gongsun Mo, having traveled through time to the Daqian Dynasty of two hundred years ago?

The bedding was cool at first. But after Xiaotao slipped in, both Zheng Xiu and the blankets began to heat up.

Xiaotao stretched her bare feet deep down under the covers.

At first, Zheng Xiu thought she was up to something and flinched instinctively.

But soon, he realized with a sense of exasperation that her action... was a very earnest attempt at ”warming the bed.”

”Young Master...” Xiaotao’s voice trembled, soft and silken. ”Is it... *warm*?”

”Hah...” He breathed out. ”What exactly did your miss tell you?”

Xiaotao pressed against his chest, curled up and terrified.

But Zheng Xiu made no further moves. His gentle voice gradually calmed her. She whispered, ”Miss told me to warm the bed for you, Young Master.”

”And... that’s it?”

”Miss also said that I don’t need to understand. As I warm it, I’ll eventually find out.”

Zheng Xiu was stunned to hear this.

After a moment of silence, Zheng Xiu asked cautiously, ”Xiaotao... how old are you this year?”

”Replying to Young Master, I just turned fourteen.”

The moment Zheng Xiu heard that, all the heat and impulse in his body vanished without a trace. He couldn’t help but curse, ”Damn!”

Under the covers, Xiaotao was confused. ’What a novel word,’ she thought, and asked quizzically, ”Young Master, what does... ’damn’ mean?”

”It means... ’warm’.”

Xiaotao giggled, and her soft body suddenly stopped trembling. ”You’re very warm, Young Master.”

”You... should probably stop talking.”

”Alright, I’ll listen to the Young Master.”

Zheng Xiu fell silent.

He didn’t know if the Gongsun Mo of the past had given in and acted like a beast, or if he’d been worse than a beast and done nothing.

But right now, Zheng Xiu chose to be worse than a beast.

The ancients said that a melon plucked by force can still quench your thirst. But Zheng Xiu wasn’t thirsty.

As the saying goes, with no woman in your heart, your blade will strike with divine speed.

He was here to save Feng Bei.

”You can go. The bed is warm now.”

”Young Master!” Xiaotao grew anxious, her eyes welling with tears and her voice taking on a sob. ”Is it because you despise my lowly status? My miss has shown me immense kindness, and I can’t bear to disappoint her! If I step out of this room tonight, tomorrow, tomorrow, my miss will surely punish me.”

Zheng Xiu sighed softly in the darkness, and in that moment, he understood a great deal.

”Then... go to sleep.”

Whatever fleeting thoughts Zheng Xiu had harbored moments ago had long since faded. Upon further reflection, he found the whole situation utterly tasteless.

Unaware of Zheng Xiu’s mood, Xiaotao nodded happily. Like an obedient kitten, she curled up in his arms, closed her eyes, and soon began to snore softly.

「The next day.」

The sun was high in the sky. Zheng Xiu hadn’t slept at all during the first half of the night and only managed to doze off fitfully in the latter half.

When he woke, he saw Xiaotao rolling up her sleeves, revealing her slender, pale arms. She was carrying a basin of hot water as she tiptoed through the door.

When Xiaotao saw Zheng Xiu was awake, she recalled her boldness from the ”bed-warming” last night. A blush crept onto her cheeks, and a faint, dimpled smile appeared on her face. But a breath later, the smile turned to panic, and she placed the basin on the table with flustered hands.

”Young Master, was it me? Did I wake you?”

”Not at all.”

Zheng Xiu rubbed his eyes and got out of the warm bed, which held the faint, innocent fragrance of a young maiden. Xiaotao thoughtfully took a long robe from the bedside and draped it over his shoulders.

”Young Master, be careful not to catch a chill.”

Zheng Xiu looked up. When he saw how Xiaotao was dressed, a cold sweat broke out on his back, and he hastily threw back the covers.

Yesterday, Xiaotao had looked like a young girl. This morning, she had her hair done up in the style of a married woman.

There was no telltale crimson stain on the sheets. Zheng Xiu breathed a sigh of relief.

This was a huge misunderstanding.

After Xiaotao helped him dress, Zheng Xiu washed his face.

After some hesitation, Zheng Xiu decided to shut the door tight, pull Xiaotao over to sit on the bed, and discreetly give her a lesson on the facts of life.

Xiaotao’s parents had died young. Normally, before a girl married, her mother would personally explain the matters of the wedding night. Xiaotao had missed this step, leading her to mistakenly believe that after last night’s ”bed-warming,” she now belonged to Zheng Xiu.

This wouldn’t do. The misunderstanding was too great.

Zheng Xiu explained that last night, they had only warmed each other up; they hadn’t consummated the relationship. He told her that consummation would hurt and cause bleeding, and if there was no pain and no blood, it didn’t count.

Zheng Xiu also stated unequivocally that he liked women who were eighteen and older.

After finally finishing this rather dry, illustration-free health class, Zheng Xiu’s forehead was beaded with sweat. He felt more exhausted than if he’d actually gone through with it.

Hearing this, Xiaotao was completely bewildered. She was dumbfounded, staring with her clear eyes, which were now brimming with tears.

’So last night... was all for nothing?’

Zheng Xiu thought Xiaotao was worried about being punished by Xie Luohe, so he smiled and patted the cute married woman’s hairstyle she had put up that morning. ”Don’t worry,” he said with a smile. ”If Xie Luohe tries to punish you, I’ll talk to her.”

Xiaotao’s mind was still preoccupied with the question of whether last night had been ”for nothing.”

Zheng Xiu stepped outside and took a deep breath of fresh air.

”Oh, and change that hairstyle.”

Zheng Xiu called back as a reminder.

Inside, Xiaotao nodded, crestfallen and completely bewildered.

Perhaps it was because he was a Painter, but as Zheng Xiu stood high above and looked down, Yunhe Village always gave him a sense of iron, blood, and coldness. If he closed his eyes and pictured the scene as a painting, Zheng Xiu could even imagine the varying shades of ink. With just a few strokes in black and white, he could sketch out this savage little world before him.