Chapter 145 Touching the surface—just one more inch closer, and we would truly touch it. ...

Silence fell between them.

Jiang Yuhuo waited for a while, but didn't hear any further requests from Li Mengbai. "Is that all?"

She thought he would want the ancient divine essence of the Ji family, after all, he had exchanged the Heavenly Pillar Marrow for the Earth Flame Vine last time.

“Of course not.” Li Mengbai suddenly leaned down, trapping her between the bed and himself. His gaze lingered unabashedly on her lips, her two thin, red lips slightly parted, completely unguarded. His eyes were filled with infatuation. “The deeper things, I will ask you for after we form our bond.”

Jiang Yuhu frowned slightly; they seemed to be talking about completely different things...

But since she agreed to the contract, she should be prepared for this.

"good."

Almost as soon as she finished speaking, Li Mengbai leaned in, his lips hovering close enough that they could hear each other's breaths.

If we just go in one more inch, we can truly touch it.

Li Mengbai lowered his eyes, vaguely looking at the two pale red patches so close to his face—a forbidden area his gaze had lingered over countless times. Even when he was most craving it because of the love potion, he dared not touch it, fearing that it would make her hate him even more. He could only suppress his desire and hide it in his eyes.

Now, he had her promise, and he could hear his own heart pounding like a drum.

Before even touching her lips, the first thing she felt was the ticklish sensation of her breath on them. Jiang Yuhuo pursed her lips uncomfortably, only to see the person in front of her bob her Adam's apple.

The next moment, their lips met, as lightly as a feather brushing against each other, and then, as they drew closer, the soft touch completely enveloped them.

Jiang Yuhuo suddenly opened her eyes wide.

It's not because of Li Mengbai.

This feeling...

She felt it in the waters of the Moyu River, and in every night she slept thereafter.

It's just that it's cooler, softer, and longer-lasting.

She had previously thought it was just a nightmare, a dream in which she was trapped in the waters of the Moyu River... but the feeling was so vivid, so similar to what she was experiencing now.

A person shouldn't, and can't, dream of things they haven't experienced before. It seems someone will come in the middle of the night and kiss her while she's asleep.

Despite her current level of cultivation, she could not detect any aura.

It's almost self-evident who that person is.

He would conceal his presence in front of her, just as he had when she bumped into his arms in the Western Capital, leaving her completely unaware.

With her thoughts in turmoil, Jiang Yuhuo felt something lick her lips. Her eyes widened and she abruptly separated from Li Mengbai.

Having already tasted the sweetness of success, Li Mengbai wasn't in a hurry. He also seemed to find her appearance quite amusing and chuckled softly, "Why are you looking at me like that? Did I scare you?"

Jiang Yuhuo didn't answer. She couldn't understand what was wrong with these people these days. She understood them less and less.

Li Mengbai was above her, his eyes shimmering with tears, his hair falling softly against her face, tickling her gently.

Jiang Yuhuo felt a little uncomfortable. She raised her hand and found that she had regained some strength, so she tried to brush away the strands of hair.

Li Mengbai, sensing her intention, preemptively brushed aside her hair, but his hand lingered on her face as he whispered, "What should I do, Jiang Yuhuo..."

Just looking at her like this, a certain part of his heart began to swell and itch. The pleasure he felt from seeing her had long since dissipated, yet he still felt exactly the same as when he was poisoned before, unable to suppress the urge to be close to her, constantly yearning to get closer, but even when he was close, it always felt insufficient, never enough...

The night she left Yanling Villa, Li Mengbai stayed up all night clutching a discarded outer garment. He had thought that things would get better as long as he could endure it, but when dawn broke, he realized that he would never get through it.

That morning, he called the old herbalist over, unwilling to give up, and asked him to detoxify him.

Then, he heard the answer he expected: the love poison had dissipated and the remaining poison had been cleared.

"Young Master, why insist on finding an antidote? It's a poison of love, a poison that is triggered by the joy of meeting someone. Instead of being tormented by this poison, you should think about your feelings for Miss Jiang."

The old man was dragged out of bed early in the morning by his subordinates. He was in a bad mood and very impatient.

"Actually, there's something else I forgot to tell the young master last night."

"What is it?"

“Miss Jiang also has the Poison of Encounter” in her body. The old medicine man yawned lazily. “However, this poison doesn’t seem to bother her at all.”

Li Mengbai was stunned. It turned out that he had not made a mistake that day, and Xiang Jianhuan had not deliberately treated them differently. The difference was only in their different hearts.

The old man's expression clearly showed he wanted to see him make a fool of himself.

Normally, Li Mengbai would have exploded on the spot, but that day he was surprisingly calm and simply replied, "I know."

Li Mengbai felt that he needed to calm down and think things through, instead of just venting his emotions.

Later, during the many days Jiang Yuhuo was away, Li Mengbai realized something: his love for Jiang Yuhuo wasn't out of jealousy for Wen Yizhan; he simply loved her. He wanted her, not to see Wen Yizhan suffer, but simply to have her by his side.

He used to think that he was getting close to her in order to destroy her, but in fact, from the very beginning, he wanted to take her away from her.

He liked her so much that he didn't know what to do.

He couldn't resist kissing her again, lightly pressing his lips to her cheek, between her brows, and the tip of her nose...

"It's okay, we'll take it slow."

It sounded like a gentle comforting tone, perhaps because Jiang Yuhuo wasn't used to kissing, and also like a self-answering of the question the other person had just asked.

Li Mengbai lay down beside her, hugging her waist, his head naturally resting on her neck, and closed his eyes contentedly.

Jiang Yuhuo held the jade disc in her hand. The continuous spiritual energy within the disc was restoring her strength. Before long, she should be able to get up.

Li Mengbai grasped her hand that was holding the jade disc, and the spiritual energy within the jade disc was further stimulated under his touch. "I've given you my best things. This is my betrothal gift. I'm betrothing you to me as my wife."

"Jiang Yuhuo, I want you to know that, regardless of the Ji family or the Li family, it is I who want to marry you. Promise me you will take good care of it..."

His voice was very soft. If it weren't for the burst of spiritual energy on the jade disc at this moment, Jiang Yuhuo would have almost thought he was talking in his sleep.

A murmur was heard mixed in with the seemingly dreamlike words of the person next to her, "Jiang Yuhuo, I like you, I really like you."

*

Li Mengbai lay beside Jiang Yuhuo for only a short while. It seemed he had received a message from his subordinate. Although he was extremely reluctant to part with her, he was excited about what was to come. His eyebrows and eyes were full of joy.

Before leaving, Li Mengbai kissed her cheek again, saying, "Take good care of yourself. I'll come back to see you as soon as I'm done with this."

Whether it was Li Mengbai's restriction or something else, just as Jiang Yuhuo felt she could move again, someone pushed the door open and came in.

It's Xiao Jing.

Upon seeing Jiang Yuhuo, Xiao Jing couldn't help but pour out all the words she had been holding back for so many days.

"Auntie, you're finally awake. How are you feeling?"

"They say you assassinated that traitorous emperor of Yong Kingdom. The traitorous emperor was seriously injured, and his bandit soldiers dare not invade anymore. I want to see you every day, but that person from the Li family just carried you directly to the bedchamber. He closed the door and wouldn't let anyone in. He doesn't listen to my father and mother's orders, and I can't beat him..."

Jiang Yuhuo had just sat up when she heard this rapid and dense conversation, and she was momentarily taken aback.

But in the glance she cast at Xiao Jing just now, through the open door, she vaguely saw red outside.

Just as Xiao Jing was about to close the door, she heard Jiang Yuhuo say, "Wait a minute."

"Open the door and let me see."

Xiao Jing was taken aback, and could only silently push a palace door aside to reveal the scenery outside.

Jiang Yuhuo settled down and headed towards the palace gate.

Glazed green tiles and vermilion palaces. Outside the already richly decorated palace, red decorations have now been laid out. Lanterns and colorful decorations adorn both sides of the palace road and between the halls, with red silks fluttering everywhere, creating the atmosphere of a wedding ceremony. Even so, many palace staff can still be seen busily working outside, indicating that the preparations are not yet fully complete.

"This is……"

Xiao Jing frowned as she looked at her. "It's about the wedding arrangements. They said Auntie is going to represent the Great Zhou in a marriage alliance with the Li family..."

Jiang Yuhuo couldn't help but sigh, "So fast..."

She suddenly understood what Li Mengbai meant by "busy"—it had only been a few hours since she agreed to the proposal.

No, he must have started preparing long ago, while she was unconscious.

So you're so sure she'll agree?

"Auntie, you don't want to, do you? You're already an immortal, you don't want to get involved in the mortal world, right?"

As if she had finally found a loophole, Xiao Jing immediately cried out, "I knew it was a scam! Father, Mother, and Master Zhou were all lying to me. They just didn't want me to get married. They even said that you agreed to it!"

"I'm going to talk to them and get to the bottom of this. They can't just let you go like this!" she said angrily, heading towards the emperor and empress.

Jiang Yuhuo pulled her back and laughed, "You're so energetic, it seems you've completely recovered. How come you had such a fever the moment you heard about the arranged marriage?"

Xiao Jing was exasperated. "I was perfectly fine. I didn't get a fever because I heard about the arranged marriage. I probably... I probably just caught a chill from sweating. It has nothing to do with the arranged marriage. I'm not afraid of getting married. Don't you believe me, Aunt? I'm not afraid of anything!"

Jiang Yuhuo certainly believed in her courage, but now that things had come to this, she could use that courage elsewhere. She smiled and said, "Oh? But why did I hear someone mumbling in their dream, 'I don't want an arranged marriage, I don't want to get married'? Did I hear wrong?"

"I am unwilling, but I don't want my aunt to trap herself because of me. My aunt is an immortal and should be free."

Free...

The smile on Jiang Yuhuo's face vanished. From the moment she left Liyue Village to survive on her own, she had lost her freedom.

"It's not for you."

Xiao Jing was stunned; her anger and resentment instantly lost their basis.

Jiang Yuhuo squatted down and said solemnly, "It's for my own sake. I agreed to the marriage with the Li family. No one forced me, and it's certainly not a deception by your father and mother." She put her hand on Xiao Jing's shoulder, "I may not be able to explain it to you now, but I'll tell you slowly when I have the chance. In short, don't worry about me. Since I made this decision, I am naturally aware of all the consequences, and I am sure I can bear them."

These words weren't just meant to appease Xiao Jing; her goals had always been clear: a marriage alliance with the Li family was merely one step in achieving her objectives—a mutually beneficial arrangement. Regardless of her changing status, what she wanted to accomplish would remain the same.

She just didn't expect it to happen so quickly, so quickly that she hadn't even figured out how to tell the people around her, like her master and her senior brother.

When they said goodbye by the Moyu River, she promised her senior brother that she would go back soon.

But now, it seems she can't go back for the time being.

Did they tell you which day the ceremony was scheduled for?

Xiao Jing lowered her eyes. "Tomorrow."