Chapter 7

Bai Jiaojiao lay on the sofa like an old man, appearing relaxed and carefree, but in reality, she didn’t dare look at Xiaozhou sitting across from her.

Clack.

The sound of a bowl being placed down startled her. She instinctively peeked over and locked eyes with Xiaozhou.

His gaze was deep and cold, naturally intimidating without needing to show anger.

Bai Jiaojiao jumped in fright and quickly looked away, pretending she hadn’t seen anything. Inside, she felt both sad and relieved.

Sad that she’d offended the villain.

Relieved that his expression finally matched what she expected — he definitely wouldn’t touch her again or do anything that he’d regret once his memories returned.

Xiaozhou glanced at the food mixed together in one bowl. The aroma of the fish still lingered, but perhaps because she’d touched it, it seemed to carry a faint sweet scent, like the fragrance he’d smelled when he brushed against her cheek earlier.

He wondered if her lips would taste even sweeter.

As that thought crossed his mind, he looked over at the woman resting nearby — and forgot to hide the thoughts in his eyes.

Startled by his gaze, Bai Jiaojiao immediately shrank back in fear.

Xiaozhou pressed his lips together. Was she upset because he kissed her on the cheek earlier? Was that why she acted angry, cursed at him, and made him pick out fish bones?

Suddenly, Xiaozhou seemed to understand why the man he used to be had once forced her to do those kinds of things.

If it were him now, he might not be able to hold back either — in fact, even tonight…

After all, they were married.

He closed his eyes and quickly finished all the food on the table. Bai Jiaojiao, feeling guilty, didn’t dare look at him again.

She wanted to wash the dishes but reminded herself she had to be “mean” to him now, so she let Xiaozhou clean up himself.

There wasn’t much fun to be had in the 1970s, and it got dark early in winter. Bai Jiaojiao crawled into bed before 7 p.m., stretching out comfortably.

It wasn’t her fault. She had insisted on sleeping separately on the sofa, but Xiaozhou had refused.

Bai Jiaojiao had imitated the original host’s attitude and yelled, “Someone like you isn’t even worthy of sleeping in the same bed as me!”

(Of course, the original host had never said that — she had actually wanted to sleep with Xiaozhou. But Bai Jiaojiao didn’t dare.)

In the end, Xiaozhou agreed, but only if he slept on the sofa and she took the bed — otherwise, they’d sleep together.

Watching him curled up on the narrow sofa, Bai Jiaojiao felt a pang of guilt. No wonder the original host had wanted to sleep with him. Xiaozhou, when he was kind, was really very sweet. And handsome.

That night, Bai Jiaojiao slept uneasily. At around 3 a.m., she finally couldn’t help getting up and walked over to the sofa.

Outside, the rain fell steadily, muffling all indoor sounds. Bai Jiaojiao reached out to nudge Xiaozhou awake — but her wrist was suddenly gripped tightly by a large hand.

With just a little force, there was a sharp crack. Bai Jiaojiao cried out in pain.

Xiaozhou realized what had happened immediately and let go, quickly lighting the oil lamp to check her wrist — it was slightly dislocated.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. I can handle it myself.” Bai Jiaojiao’s eyes turned red as she tried to pull her hand back. Her body was naturally delicate and sensitive; even the slightest pressure left marks. Now her wrist was a glaring bruise.

Avoiding the injured area, Xiaozhou gently held her hand. When she tried to pull away, he held on tighter but still took care not to hurt her as he examined the injury. His expression gradually turned grave.

Suddenly, he let go of her hand. Just as Bai Jiaojiao was about to withdraw it, she saw him grab his own wrist — and with one powerful twist, crack — the sound was even louder than hers.

She froze.

Xiaozhou’s face didn’t even flinch, as if it wasn’t his hand he’d just dislocated.

“What are you doing?!” she cried, stunned.

Xiaozhou reached out with his uninjured hand and gently patted her head. “I hurt you. I should be punished.”

“You…”

Bai Jiaojiao didn’t even know what to say. He was already tending to her wound again. With a precise move, he reset the joint, then rushed into the bathroom to wet a towel with cold water and wrapped it around her hand, his eyes filled with guilt.

Bai Jiaojiao tried her best to hold back, but the tears still streamed down uncontrollably.

If it weren’t for the cold towel numbing the pain, she felt like she might’ve passed out from it.

Xiaozhou carefully wiped away her tears with his rough hand. Bai Jiaojiao sniffled and said, “Your injury still needs to be treated.”

“I’m fine,” Xiaozhou replied. “I don’t even feel pain. But seeing you hurt — that hurts.”

“Just treat it already,” she said, frowning, then added worriedly, “I’ll help you.”

Seeing her ignore her own injured hand, Xiaozhou frowned. “Jiaojiao, you’re hurt. Don’t move.”

Her ears turned red. Why did this feel like a love confession? She felt like she was going to lose her cool again.

Why was the villain, after losing his memory, suddenly so charming?

Bai Jiaojiao fought to stay calm. She racked her brain for ways to make the villain fall out of love and shut himself off. Eventually, she remembered a character from the original novel who was clingy, domineering, and unreasonable — and how the villain had rejected her without hesitation. In fact, she had made him hate women even more.

“You’re being mean to me,” she pouted, eyebrows drawn tightly together.

Xiaozhou was helpless and softened his voice: “…I wasn’t. I just didn’t want you to get more hurt.”

“You were mean.”

Xiaozhou had no idea how he used to comfort his wife. His mind was completely blank.

After thinking hard, he finally said: “I’m sorry. It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have laid a hand on you.”

Bai Jiaojiao shook her head. “You’re not wrong… No, wait, you are wrong. Do you know what you did wrong?”

She suddenly stopped crying and stared at him seriously.

Cold sweat formed on Xiaozhou’s forehead. “I was wrong to hurt you.”

“Wrong! You were wrong for hurting yourself,” she said, pointing to his injured hand.

Xiaozhou was stunned.

“If anyone’s going to hurt you, it should be me. You don’t deserve to hurt yourself!”

She looked at him sternly. “From now on, you’re not allowed to hurt yourself. Got it? Otherwise, I’ll be really… really mad!”

Xiaozhou lowered his gaze. “I understand.”

“Good. Now set your hand yourself. So troublesome,” Bai Jiaojiao muttered.

She tested her own arm — both hands weren’t quite usable now. Since he could reset his own wrist with one hand, it meant he’d be fine.

She stood up and was about to fetch him another cold towel. She had acted unreasonable and domineering — just like the character from the book. Surely now the male lead would think she was annoying and clingy. Perfect.

Suddenly, her hand was grabbed.

The man’s strength was immense. With just a light pull, Bai Jiaojiao nearly lost her balance and fell straight into his warm embrace.

“Jiaojiao,” his voice low and heated, “I didn’t expect that I mean so much to you.”

“Even I… can’t hurt myself?”

He murmured the words, and before Bai Jiaojiao could say anything in return — her lips were already captured by his.

Bai Jiaojiao: “!!!”

This… was not part of the plan!