Cheng Luyun bent down and placed Huang Chengcheng on the bed, then turned to the wardrobe and took out some clothes. She handed them to Huang Wei, who took them reflexively.
Honestly, the clothes Cheng Luyun had prepared for her were… quite complete. Pajama top, bottoms, underwear—everything—just no bra.
Well, when you showered and went straight to bed, why would you wear a bra anyway?
Huang Wei used both hands to take the clothes, then stood there somewhat dazed. Cheng Luyun closed the wardrobe door and looked at her. “What is it, Brother Wei? Go take a bath. Do you want to soak? I can heat some water for you.”
“No, no need. A quick shower is fine.”
The thought of soaking was appealing. After walking all day, a bath would definitely ease the fatigue. But she had to consider where she was. A bath? That was boiling herself alive.
With clear reasoning, Huang Wei knew she shouldn’t linger in the master bedroom any longer. Clutching the clothes, she left the room, found the bathroom from earlier, and went inside.
Rural houses were large, and so were the bathrooms. The apartment Huang Wei rented had a tiny bathroom—just a flush toilet and a small square shower stall. This bathroom was truly spacious, with a sink, toilet, and a large shower area. There was even a big wooden tub in the shower zone.
Huang Wei glanced at it—the tub even had a stool inside, probably for soaking. She’d seen this kind of tub online and thought, “That wastes at least a square foot of space.” But seeing it in person, she had to admit: in a country home, it was really nice.
She set the clothes down, turned on the water, and undressed, stepping into the hot water. Her bangs stuck to her face from the wetness, so she had to part them to the sides, revealing a pretty face. In terms of looks alone, Huang Wei was no less beautiful than Cheng Luyun. But she never liked showing her face.
When she was young, because she was prettier than her adoptive parents’ own child, neighbors—even some of her adoptive parents’ relatives—liked her more. This made that child furious, and they’d always gang up with other kids to bully her.
Over time, Huang Wei learned she couldn’t be more eye-catching than that child. That was why she grew her hair long, covered half her face, and kept her head down.
Warm water sprayed over her face and body. Huang Wei closed her eyes, letting go of her taut nerves.
What had happened today was truly beyond anything she could have expected. She didn’t like days like this, constantly on edge, not knowing when she might be killed. But for now, all she could do was tread carefully and struggle to survive.
She reached up and wiped the water from her face, lowered her head, and opened her eyes, watching the water slowly drain away.
Oh well. Since she was here, she’d make the best of it. Her old life was already terrible; now it was just a little worse—no huge difference really. And… Cheng Luyun was such a gentle ghost, and so pretty too.
She squeezed out shampoo and lathered it through her hair. She was a slow bather, taking a long time to clean herself. Afterward, she grabbed a bath towel and hand towel from the rack, dried herself off, and changed into the clean pajamas.
The clothes fit perfectly. She and Cheng Luyun were similar in build, but there were still tiny differences. The fit was so precise that as soon as she put them on, she knew they weren’t a standard size. When she wore standard sizes, they always felt a bit tight. But these clothes were just right everywhere.
They must have been specially prepared for her…
These small touches also tugged at Huang Wei’s heart.
After changing, she wrapped her hair in a towel and pinned it up. She rummaged through the cabinets under and above the sink but couldn’t find a hairdryer. She had no choice but to open the door and head back to the master bedroom. Cheng Luyun had already changed herself and Huang Chengcheng into nightclothes. Now they were in bed, with Cheng Luyun gently patting Huang Chengcheng’s belly as she lay under a small blanket.
Seeing Huang Wei, she propped herself up. “Brother Wei, why haven’t you dried your hair?”
She would like to… Huang Wei answered, “I don’t know where the hairdryer is.”
Cheng Luyun smiled. “Silly me. You haven’t been home for so long, of course you don’t remember.” She opened the nightstand drawer and took out a hairdryer. Huang Wei reached to take it, but Cheng Luyun didn’t hand it over. She said, “It’s been so long since I’ve seen you. Tonight, let me dry your hair.”
That was really too much.
This time Huang Wei genuinely wanted to refuse. In her entire life, no one but a stylist had ever dried her hair. As a child, after washing her hair, she just waited for it to air-dry. She seldom washed it in winter. Her adoptive parents would never help her, and when she was young, washing herself was very troublesome—so she never developed a liking for blow-drying her own hair. When she grew up, only at the salon did someone else blow-dry it.
Now, having Cheng Luyun suddenly offer to dry her hair made Huang Wei quite nervous.
But thinking about it, logically there should be no problem. Cheng Luyun wasn’t likely to deal her a fatal blow with a hairdryer. Weighing her life against the awkwardness of someone else blow-drying her hair, Huang Wei had to choose both.
“Th… then I’ll trouble you.”
Huang Wei still didn’t know what to call Cheng Luyun. Using her full name felt too formal and might annoy her, but using “Luyun” was too intimate and she couldn’t bring herself to say it. So she had yet to address her at all.
Cheng Luyun brought the hairdryer to the vanity, patted the chair, and told Huang Wei to sit.
Huang Wei could only obediently sit on the chair while Cheng Luyun plugged in the hairdryer, then sat on the edge of the bed and began drying her hair.
Warm—even hot—air blew from the hairdryer, sweeping away the moisture from Huang Wei’s hair. Having someone else dry your hair felt completely different from doing it yourself. Even though Huang Wei clearly knew Cheng Luyun was a ghost, when her fingers threaded through the strands of her hair, Huang Wei couldn’t help but close her eyes.
Good heavens, it was really comfortable.
Soon, Huang Wei’s hair was dried. She lowered her head and murmured thanks. Cheng Luyun responded with an “Mm,” put the hairdryer away, and returned to the bed. Seeing Huang Wei still sitting there motionless, she spoke. “Brother Wei, why are you still sitting there? Come lie down. I’m turning off the light.”
Cheng Luyun’s tone was a statement, not a request. Her voice was gentle, her lilt light—as if there were still room for negotiation. But Huang Wei knew she was absolutely not consulting her. She could only slowly shift off the chair, dragging herself to the other side of Huang Chengcheng.
Honestly, having Huang Chengcheng as a buffer in the middle made her feel much better.
Although both were ghosts, compared to Cheng Luyun, Huang Chengcheng put far less pressure on her. The girl looked just like any ordinary little girl, except her strength was a bit greater—but there was nothing really special about her. Cheng Luyun, however, was different. Every move she made set Huang Wei’s nerves on edge, terrified she’d unwittingly offend her and lose her head.
There was another reason: Huang Wei was truly afraid of falling for her.
No one had ever been this good to her—wiping her sweat, cooking her meals, worrying if she was hungry, even serving her food. And now, she had just dried her hair. Cheng Luyun’s fingers were slender and soft, her movements gentle as they played with her hair. Under that touch, Huang Wei was on the verge of falling asleep. If not for her heart still tightly clenched, she really would have sunk into that tenderness.
No one could resist such gentleness—at least, Huang Wei couldn’t. She was someone starved of love. In the past, if someone was just a little kind to her, she’d already feel her heart stir. Let alone someone who treated her this well. Before sleep, she warned herself, just like she’d told herself countless times before: it was impossible. People didn’t fall for her.
Huang Wei considered herself a boring person with a meek personality. She was sure that being around her would only annoy others.
She had thought falling asleep would be difficult, sleeping next to two ghosts, one of them the final big boss. Under such circumstances, how could she sleep? But in reality, after lying down and her head hitting the pillow, it was only a short while before she drifted off. She slept soundly, too. After all, the bed was so soft, and a pleasant scent curled into her nostrils.
Having walked so much that day, she was truly worn out. So Huang Wei quickly entered deep sleep.
She didn’t even dream a single dream that night.
The next morning, Huang Wei was woken by a clamor of noise. She slowly opened her eyes and saw the ceiling. She realized both her arms felt heavy—numb, actually. She couldn’t lift them at all.
Her heart tightened. Could it be that while she was asleep, those two ghosts had eaten her arms?
She instinctively looked down, only to see Cheng Luyun and Huang Chengcheng sleeping in the crook of each arm.
From her angle, she could only see the swirl on top of Cheng Luyun’s head and Huang Chengcheng sprawled out every which way. Perhaps her movement woke them—Huang Chengcheng let out a huge yawn and rolled over in her arm, then went back to sleep.
On the other side, Cheng Luyun lifted her head. Huang Wei watched that hair spiral rise, then Cheng Luyun propped herself up and peered over at her.
“Brother Wei, you’re awake?”
It wasn’t a matter of whether she was awake. Seeing this scene first thing in the morning was… a bit too stimulating.
“Mm…”
Huang Wei answered softly. Cheng Luyun yawned, smoothed her hair, and smiled. “Brother Wei, sleep a bit more. I’ll go make breakfast.”
It was too much to make her get up early in the morning to cook. Huang Wei wanted to say she’d do it herself, but her arms were still numb and she truly felt helpless.
Cheng Luyun told Huang Wei to stay and rest with Huang Chengcheng for a while longer. She laid out the clothes for their “father-daughter” pair on a nearby chair, grabbed a set for herself, and left the room, leaving Huang Wei staring at the still-drooling Huang Chengcheng.
When Cheng Luyun left, she even pulled the door shut behind her. Huang Wei let out a deep sigh. What on earth is this?
