Chapter 41

At noon, the palace was always particularly quiet, even if eunuchs or palace maids passed by, they did so quietly.

The doors were tightly shut, but the bright sunlight still filtered through the window paper, casting shadows.

Perhaps this movement was uncomfortable, so the young girl unconsciously shifted her position after a while of sleep.

In the silence, Xie Yun stood up.

The sleeping girl, exhausted, was deep in slumber, completely unaware that the man she had secretly sighed over earlier had slowly approached her.

Today, Sang Yao wore a pale pink gauze skirt. Her body was different from the other thin girls; she appeared a bit plump, especially her round face, which had troubled her for a long time, and her posterior that she had seldom paid attention to.

But she had a small frame, so even though she was somewhat plump, she still looked delicate.

Not only that, although she had a strong appearance, she still gave off a soft feeling. She was often described as slow and never in a hurry.

At this moment, the girl was lying on the round table, resting her head on one arm, the other arm lying haphazardly at her side.

Because the fabric was tight, when Xie Yun lowered his gaze, he could easily see the milky skin peeking through at the girl’s forearm, as well as a section of her exposed neck.

Her soft face was pressed against her arm, her lips slightly parted, her dark lashes obediently drooping, sleeping defenselessly in his room.

Xie Yun lowered his gaze, quietly watching her.

His eyes showed no emotion, let alone desire. It seemed that this soft and beautiful girl was just an ordinary scroll to him, no different from the ones he had just seen.

But the thing was, he wouldn’t linger on the touch of a scroll.

Nor would he fantasize late at night.

But before that, he rarely dwelled on anything, and romantic feelings between men and women were worthless to him.

As for women, he never tried to control himself deliberately. He was simply uninterested and indifferent.

He had no interest in anything related to sex, nor did he have any interest in anything related to love.

It was obvious that he didn’t like Sang Yao, and he wouldn’t ever like her.

But recently, he found that her body did indeed hold some attraction for him.

More precisely, it was curiosity.

This situation was very strange.

Xie Yun had always been a rational person; he would only delve into problems rather than avoid them.

After a while, the man reached out, his fingers that had just held the pen lightly touching the girl’s cheek.

The man’s actions carried an air of exploration, his fingertips gliding from her full forehead downward, tracing over her soft cheeks. With a slight pressure, his fingertips would sink in, finally reaching her chin.

A familiar touch.

His fingertips moved back up to the girl’s rosy lips. As they slid over her lower lip, the sleeping girl seemed to sense the discomfort on her lips and instinctively licked them.

It became even more peculiar.

Just when Xie Yun thought he was becoming familiar with it, she always managed to present something else that made him feel strange yet intrigued.

Xie Yun furrowed his brows and withdrew his hand.

Sang Yao still had her eyes tightly closed.

She didn’t sleep soundly.

But because she was too tired, it didn’t stop her from falling into a deep slumber. Perhaps because she had seen Xie Yun too many times today, in this brief moment, he once again entered her dreams.

This wasn’t unusual anyway.

It was the first time.

She had even dreamed about him twice before, so no matter what she dreamed about, she was used to it.

But today, her dream felt unusually real.

She dreamt that Xie Yun was forcing her to read.

The setting was in this very room, with him sitting there motionless, except now there was a ledger in front of him.

He looked like a stern old master, very serious as he said, “You have to finish reading these by noon today.”

Sang Yao didn’t want to read. She shook her head and said, “I can’t finish it.”

But in her dream, Xie Yun seemed very indifferent. Upon hearing her words, he threatened, “You must finish it, or you won’t be allowed to take a nap.”

Sang Yao felt extremely upset. She laid her head on the table, saying, “But my arms feel so numb.”

After she said that, Xie Yun didn’t show any concern for her; he just looked at her coldly.

Her arms remained numb, although she didn’t know why.

Sang Yao had no choice but to lift her head and negotiate with him through her drowsiness, “Then you have to be gentle with me.”

She suggested, “Like comforting me or something.”

So Xie Yun took her arm and, like an older sister comforting her in childhood, said, “Let’s give Sang Yao some kisses.”

Sang Yao was delighted and said, “Okay, okay.”

Xie Yun hugged her and kissed her.

When she was a child, her sister’s kisses were just on her cheeks, but this person kissed her entire face.

It made her feel uncomfortable.

But maybe because it wasn’t the first time she had dreamed of Xie Yun kissing her, she didn’t feel too emotional about it.

Until Xie Yun in her dream called her by a name that shocked her for eight hundred years.

“… “

If it weren’t for her deep sleep, she would have been startled awake.

But she indeed slept very restlessly.

Xie Yun always thought she would wake up in the next moment.

But in fact, the girl slept even more deeply than he imagined. Even after changing positions twice, she only mumbled a few words in her sleep.

She rested her head on her arm, her cheek against it, and her red lips murmured.

She called out his name.

She frowned, and her tone seemed dissatisfied with something: “… Xie Yun.”

Xie Yun lowered his gaze and responded with a cold nod.

Her voice was soft and sweet, although low, it could still be barely recognized. She said, “Don’t call me that way.”