Xiao Shan’s dark eyes gazed at Ling Yao, a low hum emanating from his nose.
“Taking advantage of this general.”
Ling Yao buried her face again, murmuring, “What’s wrong with taking a little advantage? In a few more days, no one would believe you’re my son, you’ll be a grandson.”
Xiao Shan fell silent, holding her tighter.
They went to the doctor’s, who said her age was too advanced, her leg would never heal, and she could only keep it fixed, avoid movement, and walk less, resting in bed.
Xiao Shan bought a farmhouse at the foot of Baiyun Mountain, and he and Ling Yao settled down.
They began to live a relaxed and leisurely life.
He would comb her hair, hiding the falling white strands, and cook her porridge, making it so soft it could be swallowed without chewing, as her teeth had finally all fallen out.
He also trimmed her nails, massaged her feet, and accompanied her as she basked in the sun in the courtyard.
The usually taciturn man even started telling stories, one after another, from who knows where.
Only during bath time did Ling Yao not allow him near.
Her body was too unsightly; even a hundred-year-old person wouldn't be like this. Ling Yao felt like a monster.
Her hair finally fell out completely. Even without a mirror from Xiao Shan, she could see her ugliness reflected in the water.
How could he manage to hold her while sleeping at night?
He never showed any sign of disgust. From the moment he woke up in the morning, he would talk to her, rambling on and on.
Ling Yao would always turn her head, afraid to face him directly.
He didn’t force her, his voice loud and clear, just as it had been in Bozi Village, showing no trace of sadness.
“A Shan, if I really disappear, will you remarry?”
Xiao Shan laughed, “Marry, of course, why wouldn’t I? Ten or eight wives, no one will manage me anyway.”
Ling Yao knew he wasn’t speaking the truth, but she still felt a little unhappy, pursing her dry lips and turning her head.
“Stingy,” he chided with a laugh.
Then he went to the kitchen and brought back a basin filled with fresh mushrooms he had gathered from the forest that morning.
“Don’t be idle, clean them up. I’ll make soup for you at noon.”
She could only have soup now, unable to chew any meat. Ling Yao smacked her lips and began picking through the basin.
At night, Ling Yao suddenly woke up.
She was weak now and slept a lot, often napping during the day and then sleeping soundly until morning. This was the first time she had woken up in the middle of the night.
No one was beside her.
Where had Xiao Shan gone?
Barefoot, she got out of bed, her injured leg unable to bear weight, and quietly opened the door.
A sense of sorrow even crossed her mind: had he actually left the bed after she fell asleep in the previous days, never holding her, still feeling disgusted and repulsed in his heart?
Because even she found herself disgusting!
The moon was full tonight, almost the fifteenth of August.
She saw Xiao Shan sitting on the well platform in the courtyard, motionless, like a sculpture.
She simply stood behind him, watching for a long time. The usually alert him didn’t notice.
If he truly felt disgusted, she could leave. She would find a reasonable excuse.
But at that moment, she heard Xiao Shan’s choked sobs.
“Why?”
“In this life, I’ve already grown ugly, and I wasn’t born into royalty.”
“Why is it still like this?”
He clutched his head, emitting a suppressed, pained whimper, filled with a sense of powerless despair.
Had he remembered the events of his past life as well?
That heavy, despair-inducing past was not something she bore alone.
Ling Yao fled back to the room.
His ease and nonchalance in front of her during the day were all a pretense. He suppressed all his sorrow, daring to release it only in the quiet of the night.
Xiao Shan, Xiao Shan… kuAiδugg
“In this life, I will never leave you again. Xiao Shan, please don’t be sad, alright?”
Ling Yao pleaded with heaven, with her long-gone father king, mother queen, and brothers.
Grant her more memories, allow her to successfully complete her nirvana.
She wanted to be with Xiao Shan and didn’t want to wait for the next life.
Who could guarantee they would meet again in the cycle of reincarnation?
Xiao Shan returned and, after getting into bed, carefully turned her over and pulled her into his embrace.
She had thought that she always slept with her back to him, wondering how she always ended up facing him, curled in his arms in the morning. It turned out he was the one who turned her.
The next day, the weather was fine.
But Ling Yao was far from fine.
She had wet the bed.
She was completely stunned, touching her wrinkled scalp, her toothless mouth, her withered body. It was one thing to be an old monster, but to wet the bed?
She truly wanted to die!
Xiao Shan took the quilt out to air and came back smiling.
“What are you ashamed of? Think of it like Bei Yue and Bei Shang; I’m raising you like my daughter.”
Who wants to be your daughter!
Wuwu, let her die quickly! When will this nirvana happen!
She didn’t want to drink soup every day anymore!
Afraid of wetting the bed, Ling Yao ate very little. No matter how Xiao Shan coaxed her, she wouldn’t drink much.
“Don’t be afraid. How about I wake you up at night to use the restroom?”
Ling Yao thought about it and found it feasible, so she agreed. That night, she drank another bowl of minced meat congee.
However, that night, Xiao Shan did call her, but she was sleeping too soundly to wake up.
Then, then, Xiao Shan picked her up.
And changed her clothes after she had urinated.
When she felt something was wrong and jolted awake, she had already urinated.
She was completely numb.
How could she face him after this? Even if she succeeded in her nirvana, she would die of shame and embarrassment thinking about this!
But soon, Ling Yao didn’t have time to dwell on these things. She had grown so old she couldn’t even get out of bed.
Her sleep time increased.
She no longer had the energy to feed herself or bathe.
What did it matter if she wet the bed or not?
Her mind was in a semi-dormant state. Occasionally, she would unconsciously call out Xiao Shan’s name, then fall unconscious again.
Xiao Shan no longer needed to pretend, nor did he need to hide his sadness from her.
He stayed by her bedside, grief-stricken and helpless.
His beard grew long, but he didn’t bother to trim it.
Who was there to trim it for? The person he was meant to see it for was already in a coma.
“Xue Niang, if you disappear, I will follow you to the next life to find you. I won’t marry anyone else. You must wait for me, don’t ignore me!”
Two more days passed like this. Xiao Shan woke up in the middle of the night.
His mind was momentarily dazed. He thought he had heard Xue Niang’s voice just now, as clear as it used to be.
She had said: Xiao Shan, wait for me to come home obediently!
He had been awake for several days straight, and he must have fallen into a deep sleep, dreaming just now.
He instinctively reached out, but his hand met empty air.
“Xue Niang!”
He sat up abruptly. There was no one on the bed, and the spot where she had been was cold!
How could this be?
She was in a coma, where could she have gone?
No matter how deeply he slept, no one could have entered without him noticing!
“Xue Niang, Xue Niang—”
He ran out, searching the entire courtyard, then ran out of the courtyard…