When Bai Jin woke up, the sunlight outside the window was bright and warm. She sat up, still a little groggy. She stared blankly for a moment before finally standing up and stretching as she got out of bed. The sunlight streamed onto her snow-white skin. Her dress clung to her body as she stretched, her alluring curves slightly transparent in the sun. Jiang Huai also got out of bed. It was time to return to the Snake Clan.
Bai Li would not emerge from the Ancestral Secret Realm until tonight. The day after tomorrow, they would head to the Fox Clan to participate in the grand competition hosted by the Fox Clan. The two returned to the imperial palace in the early morning. Bai Jin asked Jiang Huai if he wanted something to eat. She gave orders for it to be prepared, but Jiang Huai went straight into the kitchen, asked the cooks for ingredients, and by noon, he was serving a table laden with fragrant dishes.
Bai Jin looked at the more than a dozen dishes on the table and then at Jiang Huai, feeling both amused and exasperated. “Little Huai is the one who needs to nourish his body,” Bai Jin said, placing a piece of food into Jiang Huai’s bowl. Hearing this, Jiang Huai became flustered. Seeing his slightly embarrassed reaction, Bai Jin didn’t comfort him further but instead smiled playfully.
After a lunch that left them full, Jiang Huai prepared tea and dessert for them. They sat together in the cool shade of the bamboo forest in the backyard. Autumn had already arrived, and with the drought in the Fox Clan gone, the weather was crisp and clear. Bai Jin changed into a dark qipao. Her legs, hidden beneath the qipao’s slit, were crossed lazily. Jiang Huai sat behind her, gently massaging her shoulders. Bai Jin picked up a grape and held it up. Jiang Huai leaned in and bit it off, a scene that appeared as harmonious as a loving parent and child.
“Little Huai?” “Hmm?” Jiang Huai leaned closer when Bai Jin called him. Bai Jin looked straight ahead, saying softly, “My chest is still a little sore and swollen. Can you massage that too?” Bai Jin’s voice sounded like she was acting spoiled. Jiang Huai’s hand, which had been massaging her shoulders, trembled. Bai Jin turned her head, her eyes gazing at him with a hint of longing or playfulness. “Can’t I?” For some reason, Jiang Huai felt that Bai Jin was deliberately teasing him. Perhaps she was still a little upset that Jiang Huai had refused one-third of the Scarlet Flame Red Dragon Essence Blood on the Spirit Boat? “Yes.” After a moment of hesitation, Jiang Huai came up behind Bai Jin. After a slight pause, he gently placed his hands on her. His massage skills were extensive, and he knew all the necessary techniques, even better than Bai Jin had imagined. Bai Jin’s legs, crossed beneath her qipao, tensed slightly. The tips of her toes, in high heels, lifted slightly. She pursed her lips and closed her eyes. After a while, Jiang Huai withdrew his hands. Although the soft, yielding touch on his hands made him instinctively linger, his current grogginess served as a wake-up call. Bai Jin lowered her head slightly, leaning back lazily in her chair. She said softly, “This feels much better, all thanks to Little Huai.” Jiang Huai remained obediently silent. Then, Bai Jin lifted her leg again and looked back at Jiang Huai. “My feet need a massage too.” Her tone was exactly like Bai Li’s when she was acting spoiled. Jiang Huai sat obediently opposite her, removed her high heels, and placed her snow-white feet on his legs. Bai Jin leaned back lazily, her eyes gazing at him gently and quietly, a smile slowly forming on her lips. Bai Jin’s delicate jade feet were rubbed and kneaded in Jiang Huai’s hands. He massaged her slightly harder than usual, feeling as though Bai Jin’s gaze was playful, as if she were toying with him. Under his kneading, Bai Jin’s eyes narrowed slightly, her pink and white toes curling and then being separated by Jiang Huai, one by one. The wind rustled in the courtyard, and the world seemed to quiet down again. “When Ah Li comes out of the Ancestral Secret Realm, will I tell her about what happened on the Spirit Boat, or will you?” Bai Jin gazed at Jiang Huai with a smile, but her words made Jiang Huai’s hands tremble. He immediately replied, “Perhaps… I should?” Jiang Huai understood the art of language. He wouldn’t lie, but if he chose his words carefully, Bai Li might not be so shocked. If Bai Jin told the truth, Bai Li might sulk with him. “If you’re going to tell her, you must tell the truth.” “Of course.” “Then do you remember how many times you dual cultivated with Aunt Bai?” “Twenty… over twenty times?” “Over twenty?” “Twenty-eight.” Jiang Huai was already starting to sweat. “You remember so clearly.” Bai Jin’s voice remained gentle and serene. She played with a strand of hair by her cheek. “I thought Little Huai wouldn’t remember.” “I… I remember everything.” “Do you have to remember so clearly? Can’t you just obediently forget?” Bai Jin looked up, her tone carrying a hint of playful blame. Jiang Huai stammered and stuttered, unable to speak for a long time, until Bai Jin saw his embarrassed state and burst into laughter. “If Little Huai were in the Western Region’s Fox Clan, I’m sure he’d be quite popular with the fox women.” “Why?” “Fox clan women like gentle and easily bullied men.” Jiang Huai’s eyes darkened. He wanted to stand tall in front of Bai Jin, but due to a series of misunderstandings, he had been too forceful in front of her earlier, and now he couldn’t straighten up. He looked at Bai Jin with a hint of grievance. “Aunt Bai, aren’t you indirectly making fun of me?” “Where did I?” Bai Jin blinked innocently at Jiang Huai. “I’m not laughing at Little Huai. When Little Huai bullies others, he’s not gentle at all. Even if Aunt Bai had you pinned down and told you not to resist any further, you still tried to thrust your waist against Aunt Bai…” Jiang Huai finally understood. Bai Jin was just toying with him. Indeed, he could provoke anyone but women. He covered his ears and shook his head. “I don’t want to hear it, I don’t remember!” Bai Jin laughed heartily, unable to straighten her waist.
In the evening, when Bai Li emerged from the Ancestral Secret Realm, Jiang Huai was waiting for her. Bai Li was wearing a white qipao, her small figure looking cute. The moment she saw Jiang Huai, she bounced over to him. As soon as she reached out her hand, Jiang Huai scooped her into his arms. He carried Bai Li towards the imperial palace. Hearing Bai Li ask, “Is there anything delicious prepared?” “A whole table full.” “Hehe.” Bai Li leaned in and planted a kiss on Jiang Huai’s cheek as a reward. Jiang Huai looked at Bai Li with a slight guilt. It wasn’t the right time to speak yet. Jiang Huai felt he needed to gather his thoughts. If he spoke now, Bai Li might bite his neck. He would first appease Bai Li with dinner. Bai Li leaned closer, sitting on his lap and swinging her legs. She asked Jiang Huai to rub her belly because she had eaten too much. But as Jiang Huai rubbed Bai Li’s belly, he suddenly recalled the scene of him rubbing Bai Jin’s belly the day before. Damn it, he had never bullied any girl this much before. Bai Jin nestled in his arms for a while longer before taking Jiang Huai’s hand and heading towards the bathhouse. She took off her clothes, her small body like porcelain, tender and white. Jiang Huai also took off his clothes and went into the bathhouse. Bai Li once again lifted her white and tender little feet and playfully touched his chest. Jiang Huai firmly grabbed her feet and pulled her body into his embrace, beginning to apply fragrant flower dew. Bai Li shook her little head. “No, I haven’t finished receiving the ancestral inheritance yet.” “I’m not saying I’m going to bully you.” Jiang Huai bent down slightly. Bai Li’s body was tender and smooth, cool to the touch. Bai Li subtly glanced at him but said nothing. Instead, she nestled against him. After a while, they returned from the bathhouse, wearing bathrobes, and walked back to their room. Jiang Huai had just lay down on the bed when Bai Li also got onto the bed. She stood up and, leaning over Jiang Huai, placed a white and tender little foot on his chest. “Huh? We don’t have to be intimate tonight. You must be tired from receiving your inheritance, so why don’t you rest?” Jiang Huai looked at the girl’s delicate, white, and tender feet in front of him. But Bai Li crossed her arms, tilted her chin slightly, and said, “Speak.” “Speak, what?” “You know exactly what you need to say.” “No, no? What is this all about?” “The way you look at me shows you’re guilty. It was the same in the bathhouse and when you were rubbing my belly. Just confess. You have at least three things to tell me.” “You can tell all that?” “Hmph, do you think only you are good at reading people? What, did you play with some foxes while you were in the Fox Clan?” “No, no.” “Still trying to deny it?” Bai Li’s white and tender little foot moved closer, lifting Jiang Huai’s chin. At this moment, her petite figure and slightly youthful face made the gesture particularly amusing. Jiang Huai panicked. “No, no, no, I really didn’t play with any foxes…” “Then did you have an ambiguous relationship with any foxes? Like, did you get another good friend?” Jiang Huai’s eyes widened. Bai Li understood Jiang Huai best. “Let me explain.” “I’m listening.” Bai Li’s white and tender little foot was lowered again, stepping on Jiang Huai’s chest several times. She looked down at him from above. “Confess. If you don’t confess cleanly, tonight you’ll have to confess everything you’ve been hiding to me, at my feet.” Jiang Huai’s head was swimming. He began to tell Bai Li what had happened with Su Qingyi in the secret realm. He felt there was nothing that couldn’t be told. He and Su Qingyi had been innocent, at most he had seen her body, and he had never actively done anything. As for the Fox Saliva and the Fox Nai, those were desperate measures. Bai Li was always reasonable and wouldn’t blame him for such things. “That’s all?” Bai Li tilted her head. “Of course. I have no reason to lie to you.” “But the way you looked at me just now made me feel like you were very, very guilty, as if you had done something very wrong to me.” “I have indeed done something very wrong to you.” Bai Li looked at Jiang Huai, who seemed ready to confess, and was stunned for a moment. Then she chuckled. She couldn’t imagine what Jiang Huai could have done to wrong her, so she sat down opposite him, her white and tender feet moving closer, gently rubbing against Jiang Huai. She looked at him and said, “Take your time and tell me. I’ll listen slowly.” “Can… can you come into my arms? I’ll tell you slowly.” “No, I’ll talk while stepping on you. I know you best. You’re so eloquent when you write books; even the darkest things sound white with a few word changes. I won’t give you a chance to organize your thoughts. Speak now.” As Bai Li spoke, her white and tender feet closed slightly. Her skin was incredibly smooth and tender, soft and slippery without any need for flower dew.
