He wouldn't delay her for too long.
The night wind rustled the treetops, causing accumulated snow to fall continuously.
Yue Zhiheng lowered his gaze to the life jade in his hand, his forehead wound faintly aching.
To the old master of the Yue family, he would probably always be that madman, forever out of place among the noble young masters.
He truly didn't know how long the Spirit Emperor would keep him, nor whether he would survive in the end. He also understood that Zhan Yunwei giving him this life jade was not like an official betrothal between noble families, filled with love and devotion.
But so what? In the end, before he died, he would return what belonged to her.
The life of a spiritual cultivator was so long. Even if this lifetime was a delay, he wouldn't delay her for too long.
Moved by the foolishness of her coming to him on this snowy night, Yue Zhiheng took the translucent jade and said in a low voice, "I don't have a jade like this to give you, but tomorrow, I'll give you something more valuable."
He carefully put away the life jade and glanced at her again. "Wait here."
A moment later, he returned with a box of ointment and, under the gentle light of a pearl lamp, began applying medicine to her wounds. The injuries on her face had been there for days. Since they weren't serious, Zhan Yunwei had ignored them.
A spirit master's spiritual body healed much slower than an ordinary one, making wounds appear more alarming than they actually were.
The faint fragrance of medicine lingered in the air. Feeling the warmth of Yue Zhiheng's fingertips, she couldn't help but look up at him.
They were very close—so close that when she lifted her gaze, she could clearly see the contours of his face.
Eventually, half of her face was almost cradled in his palm.
The fingers that lightly touched her cheek seemed to change in nature. The last time they parted had been on the back of the ghost crane—back then, neither of them knew when they would meet again.
For the past few months, Zhan Yunwei had been traveling and cultivating. Only now did she realize—so much time had passed.
Yue Zhiheng took a slow breath. "Can you not look at me like that?"
She didn't know why such an ordinary sentence made her face heat up. She averted her gaze.
After a while, Yue Zhiheng's voice returned to normal. "It's almost the third watch. Get some rest."
As if the strange atmosphere just now had been nothing but an illusion.
Only then did Zhan Yunwei realize—ever since she returned to the dynasty, she was no longer truly Yue Zhiheng's Dao companion.
Her second aunt had even washed away the Dao companion mark from her spiritual core. Technically, she shouldn't be sleeping here.
Yet Yue Zhiheng's expression remained calm, as if he didn't think it was a big deal.
She hesitated, unsure whether she should bring it up. If she did, it would feel like she was overthinking things.
Yue Zhiheng took one look at her and immediately knew what she was thinking.
He also knew why Miss Zhan had come back. It was certainly not to rekindle anything with him. Even though the dynasty was in chaos, the immortal sects still upheld their ridiculous virtues.
The two times they had been entangled… The first time, Zhan Yunwei had no memory of it. The second time… best left unmentioned.
Her innocent affections were something Yue Zhiheng could see through at a glance. If they truly slept together, it wouldn't matter if nothing happened.
But he had seen what he shouldn't have seen, touched what he shouldn't have touched. Zhan Yunwei, carefree as she was, could still sleep soundly, but he wasn't so sure he could.
So he didn't wait for her to come to a conclusion. Instead, he took out another blanket and lay down on the floor beside her.
That settled things—there was no need to overthink anymore. Zhan Yunwei withdrew her gaze.
After months apart, she once again lay on the jade bed. She had spent this time sleeping rough, and now, with a rare chance to rest on a soft bed, she almost wanted to roll around in comfort.
The bedding beneath her was as soft as clouds. Outside, the wind howled, and snow fell steadily.
Winter in Fenhe County wasn't as lively as summer—it felt more like a beast lying in wait to devour people. And yet, she felt incredibly at ease.
But in such cold weather, she knew that sleeping on the floor wouldn't be comfortable.
It was because of her arrival that things had come to this.
After a moment, she propped herself up on the edge of the bed, looking down at Yue Zhiheng.
Yue Zhiheng kept his eyes closed and said with forced calm, "What now?"
She blinked, as if the past few months of separation had never happened. Yue Zhiheng still looked the same.
"Are you cold, Lord Yue?"
Yue Zhiheng paused and opened his eyes. Since neither of them had sealed their spiritual energy this time, their expressions were clearly visible in the dim night.
"What are you trying to say?"
Yue Zhiheng didn't expect much from her response. Given Miss Zhan's occasionally maddening personality, she was likely to say, If you're cold, I'll get you another blanket.
But instead, she said, "Why don't you come up here and sleep?"
Yue Zhiheng was silent for a long moment before finally looking at her.
Are you sure?
Zhan Yunwei's answer was to shift inward slightly, making space for him.
Although both of them knew there was no deeper meaning behind the invitation, fate had a strange way of working.
Once, Yue Zhiheng had coldly insisted that she sleep on the floor.
Later, Zhan Yunwei had gone so far as to trick his younger self into swearing a soul oath just so they could sleep separately.
But now, Yue Zhiheng no longer pushed her away, and she had begun to care if he was cold, if he was in pain.
Soon, the bed dipped slightly beside her.
At first, Zhan Yunwei thought she could remain composed. But she quickly realized it was harder than she expected.
In the Cold Pool Cave, she had been fully conscious the entire time—there was no way for her to deceive herself as she had before.
She could feel that Yue Zhiheng wasn't asleep either.
Before, no matter if he was asleep or awake, his breathing had always been so light it was almost nonexistent, as cold as ice.
But now, in the stillness of the night, she could distinctly hear his slightly uneven breaths.
After a while, Yue Zhiheng sat up.
His voice was steady. "You sleep first. I'll go get some air."
With that, he left—without even putting on his outer robe.
He went out and didn't return for a long time. Zhanyun Wei didn't even know when she had fallen asleep.
The immortal jade bed was naturally warm, and by the latter half of the night, she even felt a slight heat.
Sensing a cool presence beside her, she instinctively leaned closer. The other person paused for a moment, then, after a long while, tightened the hand resting on her waist.
At dawn, Shihu anxiously went looking for the mute girl.
Last night, when she got up in the middle of the night, she saw the eldest young master bringing back an unfamiliar woman in the wind and snow. Recalling that someone had sent a beauty to the residence just the day before, Shihu felt uneasy and barely slept all night.
She had been allowed to stay only because of the young madam, and it was thanks to Zhanyun Wei that she had been living well all this time.
For so long, there had been no news of Zhanyun Wei, and it seemed that Yue Zhiheng no longer thought about the young madam either.
Servants in the dynasty had no sense of security, and Shihu was no exception.
She knew that if a new madam arrived in the household, the former madam's personal maids would never be tolerated. The kind ones might be dismissed, while the cruel ones might find a reason to have them beaten to death.
Feeling anxious and with no one to confide in, Shihu went to speak with Yue Qingluo.
Yue Qingluo was equally shocked—how was that possible? Heng would bring a beauty home?
Her first reaction was worry.
In the past two years, there had been no shortage of people trying to send women to Yue Zhiheng, using all kinds of methods, most of which were meant to harm him.
The most serious incident involved a high-ranking official who even drugged him at a banquet.
At that time, Yue Zhiheng was still young, newly stepping into the political scene, and had not yet assumed his role as Chief Justice of Chengtian Office. After returning, he forcibly expelled the drug from his system, let out a cold laugh, and said nothing.
But not long after, that official met an untimely death.
Yesterday, Yue Zhiheng had explicitly said he wouldn't be coming back, so his sudden return was suspicious, making Yue Qingluo all the more concerned.
Unable to sit still, she hurried to the front courtyard.
By now, the sky was just beginning to lighten. The kitchen had already prepared breakfast and was delivering meals to the various masters.
Walking through the snow, Yue Qingluo felt a growing unease, her heartbeat quickening.
She knew what the imperial court was like. Even if she hadn't experienced it firsthand, she had heard enough over the years.
If Yue Zhiheng had unknowingly fallen into a trap and something really happened, how would she ever explain it to her younger sister-in-law?
Having spent so much time with Zhanyun Wei, Yue Qingluo understood her somewhat. This kind of thing—neither she nor Yue Zhiheng could accept it, let alone expect Zhanyun Wei to.
She rushed to the front courtyard, nearly slipping along the way.
She just hoped she wasn't too late, that her brother hadn't made a grave mistake.
Unable to speak, she didn't hesitate to raise her hand and knock hard on the door.
Yue Zhiheng had only barely managed to fall asleep by dawn.
But before the sun even fully rose, he woke up again—roused by an embarrassing predicament beyond his control.
Lowering his gaze, he saw the girl in his arms sleeping soundly.
To be fair, Miss Zhan had a very good sleeping posture. But the immortal jade bed naturally adjusted its temperature based on the sleeper's body constitution. Since she was naturally cold, the bed had warmed itself slightly.
After returning from the cold night air, Yue Zhiheng found her instinctively snuggling closer to him.
He didn't say anything and even used his spiritual energy to lower his body temperature. Feeling comfortable, Zhanyun Wei had no intention of moving away.
As dawn approached, Yue Zhiheng remained silent for a moment before gently pushing her out of his arms.
Otherwise, if she woke up, she would surely feel even more embarrassed.
Closing his eyes, he let out a slow breath. She was beside him, but he had no way to relieve himself. Now that Zhanyun Wei's spiritual energy had returned, she was quite perceptive.
He could only suppress himself and wait for it to pass.
But not long after, she evidently felt warm again and unconsciously rolled back into his embrace.
She had been not only impoverished but also sleep-deprived for the past few months. Now, she was finally getting a good rest.
Just when he had nearly managed to calm himself, she suddenly draped a slender leg over him.
Yue Zhiheng fell silent for a moment, then let out a wry laugh and pinched her cheek. "Zhanyun Wei."
She stirred awake and was met with a pair of deep, restrained, ink-colored eyes.
"Move your leg."
Still half-asleep, she instinctively obeyed, shifting her leg away—but her chin remained resting on his chest as she gazed at him in drowsy confusion.
Had she not looked at him like that, he might have just pushed her away.
But since she remained oblivious—
Months of suppressed longing broke free in an instant.
He raised a hand, gripped her waist, and lifted her slightly, then pressed her down, capturing the back of her head.
Her long hair cascaded over his shoulders.
Zhanyun Wei jolted awake, suddenly aware.
She had no idea how she had ended up on top of him—nor how she had somehow initiated a kiss.
Realizing what was happening, she instinctively tried to pull away.
But his hand pressed down on her, forcing her to part her lips as he deepened the kiss.
She grasped his shoulders, breathing unevenly.
After a long moment, she slumped against him, gasping for air.
He patted her back, waiting for her to catch her breath. His voice was low and hoarse.
"Last time… I'm sorry. Do you want to try something different?"
She hesitated. Different?
Moments later, as her skirt was lifted, she instinctively grabbed his hair.
Somehow, she suddenly recalled the things she had read in that book.
Her voice trembled. "N-No, I don't want to try."
Just then, knocking sounded from outside the door.
Yue Zhiheng lifted his head slightly, his tone cold. "Go away."
Yue Qingluo had no choice but to anxiously tap against the door again, making a distressed noise from her throat.
Zhanyun Wei immediately recognized who it was.
Qingluo?
Yue Zhiheng clearly realized it too. He hesitated before saying, "Wait."
Yet he did not immediately move away. Instead, he stopped Zhanyun Wei's attempt to straighten her clothes, causing her to bite her lip in frustration.
Moments later, her entire body trembled slightly, her gaze turning blank.
Yue Zhiheng got up and rinsed his mouth. Seeing Zhanyun Wei's flushed face, he didn't rush to leave. Instead, he gently tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
He hadn't done this for his own pleasure.
He only wanted to make up for the past—to show her that intimacy was not what she had previously experienced. He feared she had developed a lasting aversion to it.
"There's no need to feel ashamed of such things," he murmured. "If you don't like it, we won't do it again."