Chapter 24 Can you stay with me?
After tidying up his clothes, Xiao Sui lay back on the chaise lounge. Only when he heard the princess's breathing gradually become steady did he slowly get up and remove the blanket from his legs.
Even though you can't see it, the sensation is very obvious.
He covered his forehead, thinking dejectedly that if it weren't for this thin blanket, the princess would surely have discovered his filthy thoughts.
Xiao Sui carefully unchained the iron chain, making almost no sound, then slowly got up and left the house.
Zhizhi was already waiting outside, and without any surprise, she said, "Go back to the back and take a bath first. I'll keep watch for you for a while."
Xiao Sui nodded, turned around and groped his way to the backyard. Fortunately, the night was dark and his clothes were dark enough to cover everything.
Zhizhi quietly entered the room and saw that the princess was sleeping peacefully, so she was relieved.
It's unclear what the two of them did each time, but they always left Young Master Xiao to clean up alone, while the princess would just cover her head and sleep soundly.
However, this thought quickly dissipated; she had no right to interfere in the princess's affairs.
Xiao Sui returned to the backyard, drew five buckets of well water, stepped into the bathtub with his long legs, and let the water level reach above his chest.
The biting cold felt like countless needles piercing his body, but it wasn't unbearable; he merely frowned slightly.
What he found even more unbearable was another place, a scorching heat that even the cold well water could not extinguish, constantly scorching his reason.
If the princess finds out... if she finds out, she'll probably feel disgusted and resentful towards him.
He lowered his head and submerged his nose in the water, trying to extinguish another desire with his survival instinct.
A feeling of suffocation overwhelmed him.
In the endless darkness, on the verge of reaching his limit, he seemed to smell a faint fragrance, the scent of the princess.
He suddenly surfaced, water droplets sliding down his muscles and flowing back into the water.
It still didn't work. He gave a wry smile and put his hands into the water.
His breathing became more and more rapid, and his heaving chest created ripples on the water's surface.
Finally, he leaned back against the edge of the bathtub, his eyes slightly glazed over for a moment.
But he quickly stood up and changed the water in the bucket.
This time he washed quickly, changed into clean clothes, and returned to the princess's room.
Zhizhi yawned, switched shifts with him, and complained softly, "Why is it so slow?"
"I'm sorry," he said softly.
Zhizhi didn't say much and quietly closed the door.
With a creak, the last ray of moonlight was shut out, leaving only the two of them inside.
Xiao Sui slowly approached the princess's bedside.
The sweet aroma was a hundred times more real than any illusion, stimulating him to pursue his inner desires.
He released his spiritual power, sensed the princess's location, lowered his head, and brought his face close to hers.
His pent-up emotions seemed to have found an outlet, and his body moved faster than his brain to get closer to her.
His shadow covered the princess's body, and the fabric of his body fell onto the princess's quilt.
One more inch forward...
Xiao Sui suddenly came to his senses and tried his best to soften his increasingly heavy breathing, but in the end he almost held his breath.
He merely released a small amount of spiritual power, in his place, to gently stroke the princess's forehead, eyes, nose, and lips...
——
Ning Qi woke up feeling refreshed and invigorated. She felt she had slept very well the night before, and even had a rare good appetite, drinking a bowl of white porridge with three pieces of dried grilled fish.
The system, as if it couldn't bear to see her happy, said, "The male lead will be in the sect for a while, so your mission will continue. Don't forget the points you lost before."
"So annoying," Ning Qi said, pouting.
Her task during this period was to fawn over the male lead, give him gifts, and try to please him.
Ning Qi searched through her treasure trove and picked out a piece of mutton-fat white jade with excellent translucency. "The male lead just got a new weapon, so let him inlay this jade into it."
The system said quietly, "This jade is extremely valuable. The male protagonist is unlikely to embed it in his commonly used weapon. Giving it to him would be a waste of your time."
Ning Qi pursed her lips, put down the jade, and said, "Then what do you suggest as a gift?"
"As a princess, you can easily possess any treasures in the eyes of the male lead. Therefore, no matter how valuable the gold and silver jewelry you give him, you will not be able to move him or increase his infatuation value."
"That?"
"I suggest you make handmade items yourself. This way, in the male lead's eyes, you'll be more likely to increase his 'devotion value' because you're willing to set aside your status to treat him well. It's perfect for your current situation of negative points growth." The system said.
"...Thank you for your suggestion."
Although what the system said was unpleasant to hear, the logic was sound. Ning Qi pondered it for a moment and decided to adopt it.
But what should we give as a gift?
She wasn't very good at needlework, nor was she good at cooking, but cooking was simpler in comparison, and the male lead hadn't reached the stage of fasting yet.
Ning Qi slapped her hand and made up her mind: she would cook a few dishes and send them to the male lead.
The next day, she pretended to be unwell, skipped her afternoon class, returned to her yard, and went into the small kitchen.
Unexpectedly, Xiao Sui was also there.
Ning Qi felt a little guilty for some reason, and said with a smile, "I'm going to cook a few dishes and go out to eat with my friends tonight."
Xiao Sui hummed in agreement, his face expressionless. "Let me help you."
"No need, no need." Ning Qi waved her hand. "Qian Yu and Zhi Zhi will help me, and I don't need to cook it too well, as long as it's edible."
“That’s perfect.” Xiao Sui walked to the cutting board, picked up the cleaver, and said, “My knife skills aren’t very good, so I’m the one who should do it.”
Ning Xi watched in horror; his eyes were still blurry, and she was terrified he would cut his hand.
Besides, this meal is for the male lead; what if Xiao Sui finds out...?
She pressed down on the back of his hand. "Let me do it."
"I can do it," Xiao Sui said firmly.
Ning Qi had no choice but to withdraw her hand and look around to see if there was anything else she could help with, only to find that all the work was already being done by others.
She was the one who was supposed to cook, yet she was also the one who did nothing.
Ning Xi strolled around for a couple of minutes, then turned back to watch Xiao Sui chopping vegetables, and was so shocked she almost stopped breathing.
"You cut your hand!" she exclaimed. "Don't you feel how much blood you're bleeding?"
The tiny potato slices were almost stained red with his blood!
Ning Xi quickly grabbed his hand, led him out of the kitchen, found gauze to bandage him, and said anxiously while cleaning him, "Doesn't it hurt? Luckily, it was just a cut of skin. If a piece of flesh had been cut off, I would have had to call Physician Chu for you."
The slightly cool touch on his fingertips calmed Xiao Sui's agitated mind a little. In fact, it wasn't as exaggerated as the princess had said. He controlled his strength, so it didn't hurt much and he didn't bleed too much.
If shedding such a little blood can earn the princess's concern, it's actually quite worth it.
"It hurts so much." The insincere words concealed a true feeling. "Could you... stay and keep me company?"
Ning Qi abruptly stopped speaking, then paused, "But I've already spoken to Senior Brother Yan..."
If I stand him up, I'll definitely lose some of my "love points"!
Seeing Xiao Sui's obvious dejection, she added, "I'll be with you every day from now on. I really had something to do today, I'm sorry."
"It's alright, you don't need to apologize." Xiao Sui withdrew his hand, and the newly wrapped gauze began to bleed again. He stood up. "I'll go back to helping."
"Hey, even in this situation, you're still helping out so much."
Ning Qi tried to pull him from behind, but found she couldn't budge him at all, so she could only let him go back to the kitchen.
With everyone's help, the three dishes and soup were quickly prepared and put into lunchboxes.
Qianyu followed behind her with a lunchbox, and they went to the side peak together. The disciples' dormitories were all arranged here, and the male protagonist was no exception.
She strolled around quite ostentatiously before being invited into the house by Yan Chongyan.
The system notification reads: "Devotion value increased by 5, current score 1635."
Ning Qi slightly curved the corners of her mouth.
Yan Chongyan was staying in a double room. His other roommate did not show up; it was unclear whether he had notified him beforehand.
However, Yan Chongyan did not close the door after she entered, to prevent the two of them from being alone together and causing gossip, which showed that he was still mindful of etiquette.
Ning Qi arranged the dishes on the table one by one, and the aroma quickly wafted out. "Brother Yan, you must be hungry after cultivating all day. These are dishes I made myself. I don't know if they suit your taste."
That being said, the food was definitely to his liking, after all, it was information given by the system. She just didn't expect that Yan Chongyan, who seemed so indifferent to worldly desires, would like to eat beef the most.
She didn't really like it, mainly because her fragile body couldn't digest it.
Ning Qi watched as Yan Chongyan picked up a piece of beef and began to chew it slowly and deliberately.
After finishing his food, he put down his chopsticks and said, "It suits my taste perfectly."
The system notification sounded again: "Devotion value increased by 20, current score 1655."
"That's good." Ning Qi immediately smiled. "If you like it, eat more."
After that, only the sound of chopsticks clattering remained at the dinner table. Ning Qi tried to bring up a topic several times, but Yan Chongyan refused each time, citing the saying that one should not talk while eating or sleeping.
Ning Qi simply stopped talking, ate a few bites of vegetables, and didn't particularly like the other meat dishes. She decided to go back and ask Xiao Sui to grill dried fish for her as a late-night snack.
After the meal, Yan Chongyan glanced at the darkening sky and told the princess, who still wanted to chat with him, to go back immediately to avoid walking in the dark.
After Ning Qi left, Yan Chongyan took out a digestive pill from his storage bag. He didn't know when it was made.
He had actually been preparing to fast, and had not eaten for days. He should have refused the princess's invitation.
Why did he agree? He couldn't explain it himself, and he felt a bit annoyed and his stomach felt a little uncomfortable.
He frowned, pressed his hand against his stomach, and went back to his room to meditate.
The next morning, Yan Chongyan woke up and found that his stomach was still a little uncomfortable, but he didn't take it seriously and went up to the main peak to cultivate.
As the spiritual energy circulated, the pain became more and more pronounced, and even fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.
The elder of the swordplay class noticed that he was not feeling well and told him to go back and rest.
Yan Chongyan obtained some medicine for stomach pain from the sect's physicians, pondering whether the problem lay with the princess's food or his digestive pill.
Meanwhile, Ning Qi, who was in a cultivation history class, was having a very lively time, thinking, "Devotion value decreased by 10, currently..."
"Devotion value increased by 15, current score..."
Ning Xi covered her head, "Stop! What's wrong with the male lead? Just tell me the final result!"
After a brief pause, the system finally announced: "Devotion value increased by 5, current score 1660."
"How did five points suddenly appear out of nowhere?" Ning Xi stroked her chin, puzzled.
The system said, "This means the method I told you worked. Now, continue thinking about what to give the male lead next."
Ning Qi: "You're still giving them away?"
When she went back yesterday, Xiao Sui seemed a bit upset, so she didn't dare to mention Nie Nie. When she woke up today, he looked even worse.
She was afraid that if she continued to fawn over the male lead, Xiao Sui would really start to have a problem with it.
"Your points are still negative, there's no room for refusal," the system said coldly.
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Author's Note: The only victim is Yan Chongyan, hahaha.
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