Zhou Jiuzhen and Qin Jinshen were arguing fiercely when they suddenly saw Ling Huanwu disappear in front of them, and they both stared wide-eyed.

The next second, Qin Jinshen burst into laughter, "Haha, even Huanwu finds you annoying and won't take you with her..."

He was clearly used to Ling Huanwu's ability to disappear into thin air, assuming that she had left Zhou Jiuzhen behind and gone off to have fun.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Jiuzhen, whose face was flushed and who was still about to argue, was suddenly pulled by something and disappeared into the stinking room in the next second.

Qin Jinshen's smile froze. He looked at the empty little dark room again and screamed in despair, even knocking over the chamber pot next to him.

As soon as Zhou Jiuzhen arrived in the space, he immediately got busy. "I'll chop some firewood. We'll cook some rice and vegetables later. We can't let you two go hungry."

Ling Huanwu was holding a piece of cured meat that she had just taken out of the warehouse, but Zhou Jiuzhen guessed what she wanted to eat and snatched it from her, vying to do the work.

It was as if she was afraid he would be kicked out of the space if he didn't work.

One of them chopped firewood and started a fire, while the other chopped meat, vegetables, and washed rice. Soon, a pot of fragrant dried vegetable rice was freshly cooked.

The dried vegetable rice in the iron pot was steaming hot, with oily rice grains coated with dried radish and diced cured meat, simmering on the stove until it smelled delicious.

The moment the lid was lifted, the aroma wafted straight to my nose. The fat from the cured pork seeped into the rice, giving it an amber sheen, and the dried vegetables, soaked in the oil, became soft, tender, and glossy.

The two of them didn't even look up as they ate their rice, and soon the rim of their bowls was covered in a ring of oil.

Ling Huanwu had a grain of rice on her lips, and Zhou Jiuzhen reached out to wipe it off for her, his fingertips still carrying the scent of rice.

Before long, the two bowls of rice were empty. Ling Huanwu had just licked the oil off her lips when a soft touch covered her lips, which she left in an instant.

There's no paper in the room, I'll wipe your mouth for you!

Zhou Jiuzhen spoke with a serious and earnest tone, as if it were a fact.

Ling Huanwu stared at his tightly pursed, oily lips, and felt completely numb.

In her previous life, she couldn't understand why the male and female leads in TV dramas would kiss and cuddle while eating. Wasn't that disgusting?

Surprisingly, when it was her turn, she didn't feel any aversion at all, and even thought the food she had just eaten tasted even better.

Ling Huanwu felt she must be going crazy, so she quickly made an excuse to wash the dishes and ran away.

The water in the Spirit Spring Pool shimmered with tiny lights. Zhou Jiuzhen stared at Ling Huanwu's running figure, his face scrunched up like a bun.

His gaze fell on the surface of the Spirit Spring Pool, and he suddenly remembered when Ling Huanwu had just gone to the countryside two years ago.

He was bathing in the stream, and she was secretly drawing him from behind a tree. When Song Yaoyao caught her, her face turned as red as a ripe apple, and she looked incredibly charming.

Later, he often secretly looked at the painting in Ling Huanwu's notebook.

The lines on the drawing paper still trembled with panic, just like the arc of his heart pounding wildly whenever he saw the drawing.

How could this heartless woman lose interest in him in such a short time?

Zhou Jiuzhen had an idea. He turned around, picked up a bucket of spiritual spring water, and poured it onto the stone platform, deliberately pulling his outer robe down a bit.

His bronze back taut out smooth muscle lines, and water droplets slid down his waistline and into his trousers.

He deliberately slowed his movements half a beat when he turned around to grab the towel, secretly glancing at Ling Huanwu out of the corner of his eye, waiting to see her blush and stare at him like before.

To everyone's surprise, Ling Huanwu was squatting in front of the stove clearing the dishes when she caught a glimpse of this scene out of the corner of her eye. She slammed the cloth in her hand onto the stone table with a "thud," and said, "Are you crazy? The spiritual spring water is meant to be saved for watering vegetables and soaking medicinal herbs! And you've gone and used it directly for bathing! How are we supposed to use this water now?"

Her voice was full of heartache, and she didn't look at his body at all.

The towel in Zhou Jiuzhen's hand fell into the bucket with a "thud," and the expectation on his face vanished instantly.

He turned around, water droplets still clinging to his chest, but his tone carried a hint of aggrieved accusation, "You used to secretly draw on me while I was showering, but now that we're married, you don't care anymore. You don't even care about my body anymore. Are you tired of playing around?"

Ling Huanwu was speechless for a moment after hearing those words.

Seeing him standing there shirtless, his brows furrowed so deeply they could trap a mosquito, my heart skipped a beat for no reason.

The old scar on his shoulder was still there; it was from when he jumped down into the cave to save her.

Now, with water droplets clinging to it, it seemed even more fragile than usual.

Before she could object, Zhou Jiuzhen had already grabbed the scarf draped over the stone bench, tied it haphazardly around his waist to cover most of his waist and abdomen, but deliberately exposed his well-defined forearms, and turned to clear the dishes.

He washed the dishes slowly with one hand, his shoulders slumped slightly, and even his back view exuded a sense of grievance, as if he had been "disliked".

That broken yet down-to-earth feeling of a married man made Ling Huanwu's heart flutter.

She touched her slightly protruding belly, cleared her throat, and looked away, but her gaze kept drifting towards him.

When Zhou Jiuzhen finished washing the dishes and turned around, he saw Ling Huanwu standing at the warehouse door, holding a light blue shirt in her hand, her cheeks slightly flushed. "The buttons on my shirt are too tight, and my stomach is a bit protruding, so I can't button them up. Can you help me?"

Zhou Jiuzhen's eyes lit up, and most of the grievances he had just suppressed instantly dissipated. He quickly walked over.

The moment my fingers touched the button, my palms felt hot.

Ling Huanwu's lower abdomen was slightly protruding, and her breathing was light and shallow, characteristic of pregnancy, which felt like feathers tickling his wrist.

Zhou Jiuzhen's Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily, his fingertips moving as slowly as if he were unpacking some treasure.

"Hurry up," Ling Huanwu urged deliberately, her voice soft at the end, but her gaze lingered on his loosely tied scarf.

The exposed shoulder and neck muscles were still damp with the spiritual spring water, which made her heart tremble.

Zhou Jiuzhen chuckled softly, his fingertip suddenly lightly touching her waist. "I only have one hand, so of course it's slow. Besides, these buttons are round, so I have to fasten them slowly so they don't hurt the baby."

As he finished speaking, he deliberately brushed his fingertips against her skin, causing Ling Huanwu to stiffen and her ear tips to turn bright red instantly.

As he fastened the last button, Zhou Jiuzhen's hand suddenly covered her lower abdomen. The warmth of his palm seeped through the fabric, a gentle comfort that put her at ease.

"Did the baby not bother you?" He spoke very softly, his breath falling on Ling Huanwu's hair, carrying the fresh scent of her recent shower, mixed with the lingering aroma of food in the room, making it exceptionally alluring.

"How big is it? The baby doesn't even have hands and feet in the womb, how can it make a fuss?"

Ling Huanwu reached out and hooked her arm around his neck, her nose brushing against the stubble on his chin. She smiled and asked, "But you, you just said I'm tired of your cooking?"

Zhou Jiuzhen's eyes darkened suddenly, and he pulled the person into his arms.

The spiritual spring water in the space was still flowing gently, and the dim light from the warehouse fell on the two intertwined figures. There was no gossip from the villagers outside, only the warmth between them.

"Aren't you tired of it yet? But I've made up my mind, I'll cook you different dishes from now on, I guarantee you won't get tired of it..."

Zhou Jiuzhen made a solemn promise, which made Ling Huanwu laugh in her arms.

"What? You don't believe me?"

Zhou Jiuzhen felt slighted and carefully protected her lower abdomen, leading her to the soft couch beside the spiritual spring. His fingertips brushed through her hair, every movement filled with tenderness.