Song Qingchao woke up groggily.
The carriage swayed like a cradle, making it difficult for her to fully awaken.
She lazily rolled over with her eyes closed, then quietly opened one.
In the sunlight, Bai You'an was even more handsome than he had been at night.
The warm light outlined his profile.
He was like a piece of jade, beautiful but on the verge of shattering, a fragile balance that was a unique kind of beauty.
As the breeze blew, it not only ruffled his hair but also her heartbeat.
"Awake?"
His gentle voice paired with his lazy eyes was enough to make Song Qingchao intoxicated.
If she were to describe Bai You'an.
It would be half beauty, half spirit.
To be more precise, it would be three parts charm, two parts melancholy, enough to melt even the dazzling white snow outside.
But what had he been looking at just now?
Song Qingchao let out a soft hum, then stretched and sat up, "You're not asleep?"
Bai You'an shrugged, "I slept. I slept holding you."
Song Qingchao: "..."
She shouldn't have slept so soundly.
Seeing her constipated expression, Bai You'an smiled, "Just kidding. Come, wash up, then eat."
Song Qingchao regretted it.
She wanted to take back her previous description!
Bai You'an was an invincible big villain!
The days of traveling were extremely monotonous.
Song Qingchao didn't know why, but the journey had been quite smooth.
Bai You'an and Zhou Zhengxi took turns driving the carriage, occasionally stopping to deal with some "troubles" that needed to be resolved.
The rest of the time was spent traveling.
Neither of them allowed her to go out.
Bai You'an said she should take care of her health, and Zhou Zhengxi said she was the master, and if she drove the carriage, he would feel uneasy.
Song Qingchao had nothing to say; she was happy to be at leisure.
However, fearing that Zhou Zhengxi would feel uncomfortable sharing the same room, she would occasionally ride a horse and go hunting.
Although old Mr. Lin had brought plenty of good food, people always needed to eat something warm.
Moreover, Song Qingchao found that after spending more time with Bai You'an, she had also become more relaxed.
But her upbringing still allowed her to maintain her posture.
Kneeling before the desk, she flipped through the books page by page.
Under the desk were all the books she had moved from her space.
These were books recommended to her after she used the third-level search function.
Rather than knowing the answers to her questions directly, Song Qingchao preferred to learn knowledge comprehensively before applying it.
After finishing a book, Song Qingchao directly entered her space with her consciousness.
She had tried to make her main body appear in the space, but the space blocked her.
It was as if she were standing outside the door of the space, unable to open the tightly shut door no matter how much she knocked.
However, she could freely take and use the items within.
She thought that this library space probably hadn't fully accepted her yet, otherwise, it wouldn't have rejected her.
Passing through the main hall on the first floor, Song Qingchao was surprised to find that the hourglass had turned into fluctuating numbers.
She counted several times to make sure how many zeros there were.
This was all her time, her lifeline!
After checking the stored items, she went up to the second floor and picked out a few blueprints that complemented the "gunpowder" she had been researching a few days ago.
She didn't know if they could be made, but first, she had to try.
Finally, she went up to the third floor. She hadn't really looked at the items here since it was unlocked.
It was a dark space with only a blue glowing board suspended in the air.
On the board, there were only the four words "Search Engine."
Song Qingchao shook her head helplessly. She couldn't find anything special about it.
Compared to relying on things that directly gave answers, she preferred to rely on her own judgment.
Finally, she came to the fourth floor.
Looking at the lock, which was different from the first two floors, Song Qingchao's head began to ache.
She had thought that the second level was unlocked when she chose to save Mu Mu and gave up her own life.
The third level was unlocked when she confirmed her feelings for Bai You'an and confessed.
But this fourth level…
Why did the lock surface have an electronic digital screen like the one in the main hall on the first floor?
Song Qingchao studied it for a long time, and then withdrew helplessly.
She was indeed curious about what was on the fourth floor.
But for now, she could only leave it to fate.
She put away the books on the desk and took out another one from the basket below.
The first page opened contained the six characters "All is well, do not worry, return soon."
Her brother…
Ever since Song Qingmu knew she had rushed back, every day when she used the "teleportation" function, she could see these six words in the books he had read.
How anxious he was for her to return quickly…
When she put the books she received from Mu Mu back into her space, she noticed that the numbers on the fourth-level lock had decreased!
Song Qingchao was immediately surprised, but truly shocked, she took out the stack of books again and counted them carefully, finding that they matched the reduced numbers exactly!
After putting her books away, she picked another unread book to read.
When she finished and returned the book to the space, she found that the number had decreased by exactly "1"!
She understood. This represented the quantity of books she should read.
And not only did her own reading count, but others reading them also counted as long as the books were returned to the space in the end!
This great immortal made Song Qingchao very happy. The first two levels were explored by chance, but now that the fourth level had a clear goal, things would be easier.
She just needed to read more! Study more!
But Song Qingchao counted the numbers on the electronic screen uncertainly, units, tens, hundreds, thousands…
Moreover, she unexpectedly discovered that this initial number was the same as the one in the main hall, and as her lifespan increased, the number on the lock also changed…
Song Qingchao immediately became dejected again.
It was too difficult…
Just as she was feeling discouraged, Bai You'an lifted the curtain and entered.
He shook the snowflakes off at the doorway and warmed his hands by the fire, "What's wrong? Looking so glum?"
Song Qingchao looked at Bai You'an with a complex expression.
The current Bai You'an was both good and not so good to her.
Before she could figure things out, she had to stay away from him.
"It's nothing, I want to go out and hunt rabbits," Song Qingchao said, then got up to leave.
As she passed Bai You'an, she was pulled into his embrace.
His cloak covered her along with his arm.
The cool and warm touch instantly sobered Song Qingchao.
"It's snowing heavily outside, it's cold."
Song Qingchao looked up at his eyelashes, which were still wet with melted snow.
"You like meat so much, it seems I'll have to raise a flock of piglets for you to eat when we reach Mobei."
Raise pigs!?
Song Qingchao's eyes lit up instantly, and she didn't even care that Bai You'an was pinching her nose.
With a stuffy nose, she said, "Bai You'an, you are amazing!"
What was amazing wasn't raising piglets, but that she had thought of building a library, and the more people read, the faster her unlocking progress would be!
Joyfully, Song Qingchao directly cupped Bai You'an's face and kissed him.
This action stunned Bai You'an, but seeing the lovely woman in his arms blushing with joy.
His Adam's apple involuntarily bobbed again.
"Miss Song, do you know that you are very dangerous like this?"
The originally happy Song Qingchao stiffened and asked, "Hm?"
A voice echoed in her mind.
Run!