Bai Xiaoruo, wearing a coat, tiptoed downstairs.
Fortunately, the back door to the kitchen was not locked. She gently opened the door and then quickly closed it again.
As it got later, the temperature dropped even faster. It was so cold... Bai Xiaoruo quickened her pace and ran into the ancestral hall.
When the door to the ancestral hall was opened, Xian Mingyu was indeed still kneeling there, motionless and very serious.
Is he planning to spend the second night here as well? Hasn't he thought about asking his grandfather for help or something?
He always calls her an idiot, but isn't he an idiot himself?
Hearing the door open, Xuan Mingyu opened his eyes again. Who would come here so late?
Bai Xiaoruo walked up to him and said, "How much longer are you planning to kneel here? Come back with me."
Didn't she say she was going back to sleep? Why is she here again?
"Bai Xiaoruo, this is my business, you don't need to play the good guy."
"Grandpa and Grandma are asleep now, why don't you take a break and go back to sleep for a while? Otherwise, how can your body handle it? Even if you don't think about yourself, you should... you should think about me too!"
Bai Xiaoruo mustered her courage and shamelessly finished speaking, and she herself was a little embarrassed.
Good heavens, what am I saying?
"What am I thinking about for you? I'm kneeling here willingly, it has nothing to do with you."
"You, you're so stupid! If you keep kneeling here, what am I supposed to do? I can't sleep at all."
Bai Xiaoruo didn't even know what she was saying anymore. These were all words from the bottom of her heart, but they always came out as jumbled messes.
"Bai Xiaoruo, what exactly do you want to say?" She stammered and said a lot of nonsense, and Xuan Mingyu was getting a little impatient. He felt that she was implying something but not saying it directly.
He's kneeling here, what could keep her awake? He didn't disturb her, nor did he kneel where she sleeps, so why would she feel guilty?
He still refused to leave with her, and Bai Xiaoruo, anxious, blurted out without thinking, "I can't sleep if you don't hold me! I... I miss you, is that okay?"
Xuan Mingyu paused for a moment, somewhat surprised by Bai Xiaoruo's answer.
Realizing that her words might lead to some speculation, Bai Xiaoruo quickly added, "Don't overthink it. I didn't mean that. I just meant to hug you, in a very innocent way."
She emphasized the word "simple".
Xuan Mingyu suddenly stood up from the ground, while Bai Xiaoruo took two steps back, looking at him blankly.
She had been trying to persuade him for so long without any response, so why did he suddenly get up now?
"Let's go."
"Huh? Where are we going?"
"I'll go back to sleep with you, or do you want to sleep here with me?"
"I don't want to sleep here!" This is an ancestral hall, with so many memorial tablets displayed, it's as if countless eyes are watching them. How can they sleep in such a solemn and respectful place?
While Bai Xiaoruo was still in a daze, looking around, Xuan Mingyu quickly picked her up and carried her horizontally. Bai Xiaoruo was startled and quickly hugged his neck tightly, afraid of falling.
"Ah! What are you doing... Hey! Put me down right now!"
How could he hug her in a place like this?
"If you shout any louder, are you trying to attract the attention of the patrolling guards nearby?"
"I..." Bai Xiaoruo lowered her voice: "Put me down quickly, you've been kneeling for so long and you're still hugging me, how can your knees take it?"
"Don't worry, I'm not as weak as you think."
Over the years of training, kneeling as punishment has become commonplace. The longest time he knelt was for three days and three nights. He fainted from hunger but got up and continued kneeling. Hsien Ming-yu had long been used to it.
He carried Bai Xiaoruo directly out of the ancestral hall and closed the door.
If it weren't for the rule that one shouldn't do anything disrespectful in front of the ancestral tablets of the Xian family in the ancestral hall, he would have already wanted to pull this little girl into his arms and give her a good kiss.
The person who dared to speak to him like that has become increasingly audacious.
***
As they approached the back door of the kitchen, Bai Xiaoru struggled to get down from Xian Mingyu's arms.
When you go inside and upstairs, you must be extremely quiet and absolutely cannot wake up your grandparents.
As soon as Xian Mingyu put her down, Bai Xiaoruo looked at him with a serious expression, hands on her hips, and said, "When we go in later, you must stay close behind me and absolutely cannot make any noise. If Grandpa and Grandma find out that you came out of the ancestral hall without permission, you're dead!"
"But you asked me to sleep with you, so if Grandpa blames you, you'll be in the same boat."
"You!" This guy, he always speaks so recklessly.
It's clear that Xian Mingyu was the one who made the mistake, but now Bai Xiaoruo herself has become an accomplice.
"Okay, okay, say whatever you want, just remember to stick close to me."
She walked ahead with a crouched posture, and when she opened the back door of the kitchen, her movements were very slow, as if she was afraid that the people inside would hear the noise.
Xian Mingyu followed behind her with his back straight, looking at Bai Xiaoruo's cautious appearance, feeling both amused and exasperated.
This is where he grew up, and he knows every corner of this house better than she does. Yet now she's the one leading the way.
This silly boy, he must think he's terrible with directions.
Her small hand grasped his large, strong palm, and she led him quietly out of the kitchen and upstairs.
Only then did Xian Mingyu realize that her hands were very cold.
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