In matters devoid of face or shame, Ji Cheng had always found it impossible to win against Shen Che.
Shen Che gently pinched Ji Cheng’s earlobe, asking, “Why are you unhappy, A Cheng?”
Ji Cheng turned her head to look at Shen Che, blinking her eyes as she replied, “If I’m unhappy and unwilling, would you still force me?”
Shen Che shamelessly declared, “Actually, forcing is a kind of intimacy between husband and wife. However, if you truly don’t want to, I wouldn’t force you. How about this: this time, let me indulge you as you wish?” After saying this, Shen Che lay back, adopting a posture of complete submission.
Ji Cheng chuckled, pushing Shen Che with her foot. “Who would want to indulge you?”
Shen Che threw her a flirtatious glance. “Miss this opportunity, and there won’t be another.”
Ji Cheng initially intended to ignore Shen Che, but she knew very well that after so long, with so much blood lost, it would be a miracle if he let her off the hook. He was merely pretending to coax her into a good mood, and she did not need to make things too awkward.
Ji Cheng’s eyes darted around; she thought that Shen Che should suffer a bit to relieve her past frustrations.
She straddled Shen Che’s waist and said, “Since this time I’m forcing you, it should at least look like I’m forcing you.” Ji Cheng raised her delicate hand, adjusting her robe, and first removed her waist belt. Then, as Shen Che swallowed nervously, she bound his hands behind his back.
This truly surprised Shen Che; he hadn’t expected Ji Cheng to have such playful interests. He felt like he had struck gold.
Ji Cheng casually grabbed the chest wrap she had just changed out of and waved it in front of Shen Che. “Do you like it?”
“Mm.” Shen Che nodded.
“Does it smell good?” Ji Cheng brought the chest wrap close to Shen Che’s nose.
“Good.” Shen Che felt he was on the verge of losing control but couldn’t ruin Ji Cheng’s fun, so he patiently played along.
Ji Cheng straightened her back and gently tapped Shen Che’s lips with her finger. “Open your mouth.”
With the chest wrap and the command to open his mouth, Shen Che swore he wasn’t thinking too much; obediently, he opened his mouth, expecting to taste a heavenly peach, only to have Ji Cheng stuff his mouth full with the chest wrap.
Now he could no longer utter any lewd words.
After teasing Shen Che, Ji Cheng stood up and clapped her hands. “Ah, I seem to have forgotten something. Oh, I remember now; I need to prepare dinner.”
As soon as Ji Cheng finished speaking, there was a flash before her eyes, and their positions switched. Now, it was Ji Cheng who was left in a fluster, unable to make sense of the situation.
Naturally, it was someone else who went to prepare dinner.
Old Luo had long sensed movement at Sanhao Residence. Earlier in the day, he had come by but felt too embarrassed to get close; as an old bachelor, he trembled at the thought.
By evening, seeing the kitchen lit up with fire, Old Luo approached, hoping to get some good food. However, upon entering the kitchen, he found Shen Che stirring porridge with his sleeves rolled up.
“Why are you here?” Old Luo looked at Shen Che with dissatisfaction, then leaned over to check the pot, only to find a pot of vegetable porridge that he didn’t even want to eat. “Where’s your wife? A gentleman should stay away from the kitchen; what are you doing here?” Old Luo even referred to Shen Che as a “gentleman” just to get a taste of Ji Cheng’s cooking.
Shen Che leisurely stirred the vegetable porridge. “The day after tomorrow, I’ll invite you over for hot pot. You go get a sheep.”
“The day after tomorrow?!” Eating hot pot was certainly appealing, but why wait until then? Old Luo was unwilling.
Shen Che ladled the porridge into a bowl, took a fan to cool it down, and shook his head, saying, “You’re right; I probably won’t be up the day after tomorrow. Let’s make it the day after the day after tomorrow.”
Old Luo was speechless but feared Shen Che might be up to something, so he didn’t dare say more, worried that the day after the day after tomorrow might turn into the year after next.
“Take it easy; be careful of kidney deficiency,” Old Luo said angrily as he left.
Shen Che had no intention of seeing him off, merely tossing out, “I’ll come find you for tea later.”
Old Luo waved his hand without looking back. “Who wants to drink your bland tea?”
Shen Che shrugged it off, carrying the now-cooled porridge bowl into the room.
Inside, it was quiet; Ji Cheng was peacefully asleep. Shen Che first set the porridge bowl aside, brought over a pillow, and gently adjusted the blanket for Ji Cheng. However, he inadvertently caught sight of the view beneath the blanket, and he couldn’t help but gasp. He had been too careless; he felt a pang of regret for losing control. Shen Che didn’t rush to feed Ji Cheng the porridge; instead, he quietly applied medicine to her before softly calling, “A Cheng, wake up and drink some porridge before going back to sleep, okay?”
Ji Cheng was lost in a deep dream and couldn’t hear Shen Che’s words.
Shen Che had no choice but to help Ji Cheng sit up, letting her lean against him as he fed her porridge.
But Ji Cheng refused to open her mouth. Shen Che was at a loss, using a spoon to pry her lips apart. In her dream, she murmured, “Don’t bully me.”
Remembering how Ji Cheng had cried earlier, Shen Che felt a warmth in his heart, but seeing the marks on her neck that couldn’t be concealed, he didn’t dare to overstep.
After tending to Ji Cheng, Shen Che headed to Old Luo’s small room. However, before he could enter, Old Luo kicked him out.
In the lonely mountains, Shen Che hadn’t been there for a long time, and Old Luo’s urge to fight had long been ignited, so he couldn’t wait to throw Shen Che out.
The two fought from one mountain to another and back again, enjoying a good brawl.
“Wait, your technique is off,” Old Luo remarked. He and Shen Che had fought countless times; when Shen Che was young, it was Old Luo who fed him moves, so he was very familiar with Shen Che’s style.
“What’s wrong?” Shen Che adjusted his sleeves.
“Your mindset is wrong,” Old Luo pointed out sharply.
“Mm.” Shen Che nodded.
“What made you suddenly realize not to practice the ‘Cut Off Descendants’ technique?” Old Luo asked, always jokingly referring to the Nine Turns Mysterious Origin Technique as the ‘Cut Off Descendants’ technique because it could only be seen but not used.
“I’ve said long ago that such a technique that extinguishes desires doesn’t last long. What’s the point of being powerful if there’s no joy in being human?” Old Luo said. “Besides, your little wife is so lovely. Back then, saying you’d borrow her to practice was all nonsense, right?”
Old Luo was straightforward in his speech.
Shen Che didn’t respond, only smiled.
“Wait a minute.” Old Luo suddenly remembered something. “You’ve abandoned your previous mindset, yet your skills not only haven’t declined but have improved? How is that possible?”
Shen Che smiled, a hint of pride in his expression. “All techniques are interconnected; it’s just a change of mindset, not a complete abandonment of martial arts.”
“Bah.” Old Luo retorted, “It’s easy for you to say. Don’t try to fool me. If it were that easy, everyone’s skills could be swapped around.”
Shen Che replied, “The process is indeed perilous, like taking chestnuts from a fire, but it’s worth it.”
Old Luo urged, “Quickly tell me, what method did you use?”
“There’s no secret; it’s just a matter of placing oneself in a life-and-death situation and then being reborn,” Shen Che said lightly.
Old Luo was a martial arts enthusiast, and he became engrossed in this topic, muttering, “No, no, if you didn’t abandon the Mysterious Origin Technique, it would be impossible to change your mindset. Moreover, your new mindset must be even more domineering.”
Old Luo’s insights into martial arts were indeed extraordinary, hitting the nail on the head.
“It’s the mindset passed down from the Ji family’s ancestors, the Nine Turns Fiery Sun Technique,” Shen Che said. The name alone sounded domineering.
Old Luo exclaimed, “Oh, this? Weren’t you the one who refused to learn it back then? You said the drawbacks were too great, and if you became infatuated with women, you might waste your life. Speaking of which, how old were you back then to already know about women? Tsk tsk.”
Shen Che smiled. The Nine Turns Fiery Sun Technique was too masculine; it required a dual cultivation method to balance yin and yang, necessitating daily interactions with women, which didn’t align with Shen Che’s nature, so he naturally abandoned it. But now, times have changed, and the drawbacks of the past have become advantages today—who could have predicted that?
Seeing Shen Che’s smile, Old Luo became irritated. “What, are you afraid your little wife will become a living widow?”
Shen Che couldn’t admit that he was struggling to contain himself, so he merely smiled.
Old Luo hated it when Shen Che spoke half-heartedly, as he was cunning. “Quickly tell me, did you abandon the Mysterious Origin Technique? How did you break through the barriers of the two mindsets?”
Shen Che replied, “I abandoned half of it, then used external force to break through the barriers between the two mindsets, so the Mysterious Origin Technique is still intact.”
Old Luo was taken aback. “You’re truly a genius, but you can’t be greedy; practicing two conflicting techniques is meaningless.”
Shen Che couldn’t explain to Old Luo that he had kept the Mysterious Origin Technique to nourish Ji Cheng’s beauty. Although it might slow his progress, to Shen Che, it was worth it as long as Ji Cheng was happy.
Shen Che rubbed his nose and said, “After practicing for so many years, there’s bound to be some attachment.”
“Ha ha.” Old Luo chuckled. It was ridiculous for Shen Che to talk about attachment with him. “What external force did you borrow? To reach your level, you need someone willing to use all their internal energy to help you break through the barriers. Where would you find such a selfless person?”
Shen Che laughed, “You know this person too, Huo De.”
“You finally dealt with him?” Old Luo asked in surprise.
Shen Che nodded. “Since I had to deal with him anyway, I might as well make use of him.”
Old Luo nodded. Having watched Shen Che grow up, he knew that Shen Che had always been cunning and never wasted any opportunity or person, and he was bold enough to use Huo De to help him break through his martial arts.
Shen Che didn’t stay long in Old Luo’s room; he was worried about Ji Cheng, afraid she would wake up and not see him, which made him anxious. However, Ji Cheng was sleeping soundly; even if Shen Che sold her, she wouldn’t have noticed.
It wasn’t until the afternoon of the next day that Ji Cheng stretched and sat up, hugging the blanket.
At that moment, Shen Che was leaning against a pillar by the water, re-carving the wooden plaque for “Sanhao Residence.” Hearing the movement, he turned around to see Ji Cheng, her eyes still hazy, searching for him.
Ji Cheng’s hair fell like soft satin over her shoulders, and as the afternoon sunlight streamed into the room, it reflected a strange and silky glow off her strands. Her dark hair contrasted with her fair, radiant skin, creating an exquisite beauty that was captivating.
Ji Cheng’s eyes hadn’t fully opened yet; she raised her hands, rubbing her eyes with her small fists, her actions adorably childlike.
Shen Che’s gaze lingered on Ji Cheng’s bright red lips, which were not merely rosy but had become moist and red from excessive kissing.
Snow-white skin and red lips—there was nothing more enchanting than this.
Shen Che set down the wooden plaque and sat beside Ji Cheng. “Are you hungry?”
Of course, she was hungry. Ji Cheng’s body ached, and she couldn’t hold out much longer. Seeing Shen Che approach, she naturally leaned into his embrace.
“I’ve made porridge and kept it warm on the stove. I’ll go serve you some,” Shen Che said, gently stroking Ji Cheng’s cheek with his thumb.
“You can cook porridge?” Ji Cheng asked in surprise.
“I can do a lot of things,” Shen Che replied, playfully tapping Ji Cheng’s nose.
“Can you embroider?” Ji Cheng asked teasingly.