hotmtlnovel Chapter 196: Kill You with One Sword
Chapter 196: Kill You with One Sword
Chapter 196: Kill You with One Sword
“This was your room to begin with. I was just borrowing it.”
“No, the storeroom is my room. I just came over to enjoy the air conditioning, absolutely nothing else on my mind.” Xu Qing raised his hand in the dark, swearing an oath.
“Do you think I’d believe that crap?”
Somehow, they ended up sleeping on the same bed.
Jiang He lay awake in the dark, her big eyes staring at the slivers of moonlight by the window.
Tricked. Totally tricked.
“You had bad intentions from the start when you switched rooms,” she thought, having figured out Xu Qing’s scheme.
A classic self-sacrifice ploy.
If he hadn’t insisted on switching rooms with those ridiculous excuses, she would’ve kicked him off the storeroom bed without hesitation. No way he would’ve moved over.
But now, with the room swap complete, Xu Qing had turned it into him being desperate to move in, and she had no way to go back. The moment she tried, he’d pull some shameless stunt again.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. She needed to beat him up.
“What happened to staying pure?”
At first, they were just housemates—nothing but a temporary living arrangement. Now, somehow, that had turned into sharing a bed. Jiang He sensed something was very wrong.
She turned her head in the dark, stealing a glance at Xu Qing, then clutched her small blanket tighter, curling her feet together.
Er Niang, I’ve dragged my benefactor into bed with me.
“We haven’t done anything. My conscience is clear. We’re just a little close, that’s all. Didn’t even touch each other... Compared to actual couples, we’re practically pure as white paper, alright?” Xu Qing argued.
“Back then... back then... we...” Jiang He mumbled.
“Stop with the ‘we.’ I’m staying right here, being a perfect gentleman... The sword’s here too. You can move over a little. Otherwise, you might fall off in the middle of the night...”
“I won’t!”
Jiang He flipped over, glaring at him. “Right now, it’s just sharing a bed. Give it a few days, and you’ll definitely try to take things further. Sooner or later, you’ll end up touching me!” РàƝΟ฿Èș
Xu Qing grinned. “Well, since you already said ‘sooner or later,’ does it really matter if it’s sooner or later...?”
“Give me your hand.”
“Huh?”
Xu Qing was overjoyed. “You want my—ahhh!”
A painful yelp filled the room.
Jiang He, now satisfied, snuggled back under her blanket.
“If it’s gonna happen sooner or later, I might as well strike first.”
Xu Qing clutched his hand. “So... does that mean I can touch you now?”
“If you try, I’ll kick you off the bed.”
???
So he just got smacked for nothing?
The room fell back into silence. The only sounds were the faint hum of the air conditioner and their soft, rhythmic breathing.
After Xu Qing flipped over for the sixth time, Jiang He couldn’t hold back anymore. “Why aren’t you sleeping?”
“I can’t.”
The bed smelled nice.
Nodding, Xu Qing leaned the sword against the wall and caught sight of a covered breakfast on the table. He headed to the bathroom to wash up.
On the sink, Jiang He’s hand cream sat beside the faucet.
He recalled last night’s conversation, frowned, and picked it up. There was still plenty left inside.
Was she being stingy with it?
Xu Qing unscrewed the cap and took a sniff.
...Dabao.
After using it for years, he was absolutely sure.
In the living room, Jiang He was deep in a game, struggling to deal with an enemy hunter as her priest character got pounded. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Xu Qing walking over with her hand cream.
“Care to explain why this smells exactly like Dabao?”
“Huh?” Jiang He’s eyes darted.
“Didn’t you say you bought a new one?”
Xu Qing squeezed out a bit, rubbed it between his fingers, and confirmed—this was unmistakably Dabao.
Jiang He couldn’t possibly deny it, could she?
“This is the new one. Dabao-scented.”
“...You think I’m an idiot?”
“...”
“So you bought a huge bag of Dabao for a few bucks, refilled this bottle, and now it’s magically not Dabao anymore?”
“How did you know?” Jiang He gasped, caught red-handed.
“What other explanation could there be?”
Expressionless, Xu Qing rubbed the lotion into his hands, placed the bottle aside, and pulled out his phone.
For the sake of saving a few bucks, she actually did this...
“I ordered you a real one. It’ll arrive in a few days.”
“That’s expensive.” Jiang He looked pained.
“It lasts months, so it’s cheap in the long run.” Xu Qing wasn’t sure what made it better than Dabao, but Jiang He’s hands had become noticeably softer.
As usual, breakfast was porridge with pickled vegetables. After finishing, Xu Qing didn’t start training. Instead, he told Jiang He to focus on her studies while he moved his things from the storeroom into the master bedroom closet, hanging his clothes beside hers.
Jiang He sat on the couch, pen tapping against her forehead, watching him go back and forth.
“So we’re officially living together now?”
“Yup.”
“...”
Jiang He lowered her head, muttering under her breath.
“What are you mumbling about?”
“...If you ever do something to betray me, I will stab you through the heart.”
“Wait, were you not serious before?”
“No room for negotiation.”
“I stopped leaving room for negotiation a long time ago.”