Xie Yun didn’t know why he bothered to talk to someone who was sleep-talking, but he casually asked, “Call you what?”

Sang Yao pursed her lips and fell silent.

Of course, he didn’t expect her to say anything meaningful. But just as Xie Yun turned to leave, the girl whispered softly.

“…Baby.”

•  

By the time Sang Yao woke up, the sunlight wasn’t as intense.

She was still lying on the table, but her arm didn’t feel as numb as it did at the beginning. She opened her eyes drowsily, still in a daze.

The first thing she remembered was her dream.

Compared to the previous times, she was much calmer this time.

She felt like there might be something wrong with her brain, or why else would she keep dreaming about Xie Yun?

Of course, today’s dream couldn’t really be classified as a spring dream, but it still had something to do with him.

Intimacy.

She hadn’t flipped through that little booklet for a long time. She only occasionally glanced at it, perhaps because she had seen enough serious stuff and occasionally wanted something less serious.

Sang Yao thought expressionlessly. It seemed like she had really been too influenced by those booklets. She couldn’t continue like this in the future. If Xie Yun found out she occasionally had these kinds of dreams, she might as well be dead.

After a while, Sang Yao gradually came to her senses from her dream, suddenly feeling like there was something soft under her cheek.

At first, she thought it was her own arm and didn’t pay much attention. But after a while, she realized her two arms were properly placed beside her.

Huh?

Sang Yao silently lifted her head and looked down.

Then she saw a big, black, soft spider.

“!!!!”

Sang Yao instantly snapped awake, nearly scared out of her wits.

Just as tears were about to roll down from her scared eyes, she belatedly realized that this spider seemed to be the one she had taken earlier to scare Li Yaoge.

It was said to be made by Sang Yinyue herself, very lifelike, with dyed black rabbit fur on the outside and cotton inside. It felt incredibly soft, much better than a pillow, no wonder she found it so comfortable to rest her head on.

Sang Yao’s heart gradually calmed down. She sat up straight and looked around.

The door was still closed tightly, but Xie Yun, who had been sitting at the desk before, was nowhere to be seen. The room was empty, with only her in it.

Sang Yao lowered her head again to look at the flattened spider.

She remembered that before she fell asleep, this big spider was placed next to her.

Could it be that she brought it over while dreaming?

That didn’t seem likely.

After thinking for a while, Sang Yao concluded that someone must have placed it there for her.

If that person had considered that she might get scared and deliberately turned the spider over before giving it to her to rest her head on, she would suspect that person was intentionally trying to scare her.

That person could only be Xie Yun.

Sang Yao rubbed her cheeks, holding the big spider, her expression complicated.

Although she hadn’t experienced it herself, she had seen it in many storybooks.

Since Xie Yun liked her, according to the usual progression, shouldn’t he have gently put her to bed first before leaving? But instead, he gave her a big spider to rest her head on.

What kind of man was he?

The big spider didn’t look much different on either side, except that one side had eyes while the other didn’t.

Now that it was flattened, it didn’t seem so intimidating anymore. In short, it couldn’t be used to scare anyone anymore.

Sang Yao stood up and suddenly heard someone knocking on the door.

“Sang Miss, are you awake?”

Sang Yao heard the voice of a young eunuch.

She joyfully opened the door. The little eunuch was standing outside, holding a grass-woven nest with a black and white kitten nestled inside.

Sang Yao quietly glanced around, and the young eunuch said, “Miss, don’t worry, there’s nobody around right now.”

Sang Yao nodded and then took the kitten.

Although the Crown Prince had tricked her, making her somewhat angry, this little kitty was really cute.

Meanwhile, inside the grand palace, it was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.

Xie Yun stood by the window, the warm light falling on his sharply defined profile, softening it slightly, yet failing to alleviate the almost stagnant atmosphere at the moment.

Xie Yun’s tone was cold. “Your Highness, you don’t need to apologize to me. You should understand, as the Crown Prince, you should bear the consequences of your mistakes.”

Liu Li lowered his head and said, “…But Xie Yun, don’t you like her? I was just helping you.”

Xie Yun didn’t bother to explain his relationship with Sang Yao further. Instead, he asked, “So what?”

“Did she agree to your deception?”

Liu Li clenched his fists and said, “But even if she did, Xie Yun, why are you angry with me over such a small matter?”

Xie Yun replied, “Your Highness, you have your own way of doing things on a daily basis, and I have no right to interfere.”

He looked at Liu Li, and though his gaze seemed light, it felt as heavy as a thousand pounds to Liu Li. “But you shouldn’t use these little tricks on me. This is the last time.”

After saying that, he walked past Liu Li and out the door.

The room fell silent again, and Liu Li stood there trembling.

The eunuch beside him approached and comforted him softly, “Your Highness, Mr. Xie…”

But Liu Li suddenly raised his hand and swept the porcelain off the table. His face was flushed, and he grabbed the young eunuch’s shoulder, saying, “…He’s always dissatisfied with me.”

“Do you think… he doesn’t want me to be the Crown Prince?”