Snuggling for Survival: A Quick Transmigration Tale - Chapter 3

“Of course I can.” Li Yuan nodded, her expression growing even more tender. “Wait here. I will go make something for you.”

“Wait!” Yu Yu grabbed her hand even tighter, terrified that this person might leave her side. She locked her fingers with Li Yuan’s and looked at her expectantly. “Can’t you let someone else do it?”

In a courtyard this large, was there really not a single person available to do the chores?

“I don’t want to be apart from you. I just want to stay with you.” Yu Yu added piteously.

Li Yuan: “…”

Thinking of those few outside who crawled on the ground every day or peered through door cracks, Li Yuan found them filthy. Moreover, they had not eaten for heaven knows how long; how could they possibly know how to cook?

Even she herself did not know how.

However, since the little liar did not want to be apart from her at all, Li Yuan felt a bit troubled. If she let the person starve to death right here, there would be no game to play later. She told herself she was not doing this out of concern, but rather to prepare for the upcoming game.

Li Yuan led her to the door, opened a small crack, and said to the people outside, “Order some takeout.”

When she was in the bridal sedan, Yu Yu thought this place was extremely remote and unlikely to be somewhere that could receive delivery, but she had changed her mind now. She listened obediently as Li Yuan spoke to the people outside. She did not even have the interest to poke her head out and see who those silent people were; she just stared at her hand linked with Li Yuan’s, fearing that a single moment of carelessness would result in them letting go.

As soon as the door closed, the little ghosts crouching outside frowned.

“Why order takeout? We still have flour and rice left over from hundreds of years ago in the warehouse. Wouldn’t it be fine just to whip something up for her?”

“Girls really are delicate. Those men from before never thought about eating outside food! The air outside is so disgusting; I feel uncomfortable every time I go out. It is still the yin energy in our courtyard that feels best.”

“Do whatever the Eldest Miss tells you to do.” The housekeeper knocked each little ghost on the head. “I am the one who has to go pick up the bride every time and I have not complained, so what is wrong with asking you to go grab some takeout?”

“I’ll go, I’ll go!” A little boy ghost raised his hand excitedly. “After the game is over, I want to marry that girl!”

Hearing what the little ghost said outside, Li Yuan’s gaze swept over Yu Yu’s small frame without concealment. This little liar had actually even managed to deceive the little ghosts in the courtyard.

Feeling a chill from the stare, Yu Yu’s footsteps became unsteady. She nearly tripped while walking toward the bed.

“Careful.” Their hands were still joined, and Li Yuan’s free hand swept around her to catch her. She did not let her fall, instead holding her up steadily.

As they pressed closer together, Yu Yu felt a surge of energy values. She hesitated for a moment but did not pull away. Instead, her cheeks flushed as she whispered a word of thanks. Then, she simply snuggled into the other woman’s embrace without moving. She even went further, standing on her tiptoes to rest her head directly on Li Yuan’s shoulder.

This was incredibly bold! Looking at the little liar in her arms with disbelief, Li Yuan felt her hand being guided by Yu Yu to wrap around the girl’s waist.

Yu Yu had realized that the larger the contact area, the more energy values she obtained. Even without looking her in the eye, Yu Yu could feel the intense gaze of the Li family’s eldest daughter. Her face heated up, and Yu Yu pressed closer to Li Yuan with a mix of caution and greed. “Lady, hug me.”

Li Yuan’s brow furrowed at Yu Yu’s words. She wanted to struggle. As a ghost who had lived for hundreds of years, she could throw this ordinary person out without effort if she wished. Yet, the waist was soft, the body was soft, and even the two arms circling her felt as fragile as tofu. If word got out that she could not break free from a human’s arms, she would be a laughingstock.

Li Yuan’s eyes darkened, and the scent of the little liar filled her nose. As if to prove something, Li Yuan’s heart put up a brief internal struggle before she finally ended up lifting the girl and moving her to sit by the bedside. I’m not lacking strength; I just disdain bullying a little girl and don’t want to stop the game from proceeding, Li Yuan thought to herself.

In the moment she was lifted, Yu Yu’s breathing quickened. The setting that the Eldest Miss of the Li family was a “sickly invalid” flashed through her mind for only a second, but she was smart enough not to ask.

There was a knock at the door. By the time Yu Yu was placed on the bed, she finally snapped back to her senses. Fortunately, Li Yuan only went to the door to grab the food and returned immediately. Yu Yu scrambled down at once, eagerly reaching for her hand again.

When her palm touched Li Yuan’s icy hand, the unease in Yu Yu’s heart finally settled. The sigh of relief she let out caused Li Yuan’s chest to tighten again. We were only apart for a few seconds; is she really that unwilling to let go? This feeling of being excessively cared for was strange, yet it uncontrollably made the corners of her mouth turn up.

The takeout consisted of steaming hot soup dumplings. While marvelling at how quickly the delivery had arrived, Yu Yu’s fingers were already at work. The rich broth burst in her mouth, making the meal extremely satisfying.

“Does it taste good?”

Yu Yu’s eyelashes fluttered as she nodded. “It is delicious.”

Outside the room:

“What exactly is going on in there?” The little ghost who bought the soup dumplings was clinging to the window, ear pressed against the glass, trying to hear what was happening. He knew that without the Eldest Miss’s permission, they could not see the scene inside, but his curiosity was piqued.

“Why hasn’t the Eldest Miss come out yet? She wouldn’t really be sleeping in there with that girl, would she?” The housekeeper also thought it was strange.

The discussion did not last long before the tightly shut door opened again. Li Yuan’s cold, pale face caused the little ghosts squatting at the door to immediately shut their mouths.

Get back to your positions and do your work. Do not crowd around here, and do not let me hear your voices again.

Her gaze lingered for a moment on the little ghost who had been shouting about making Yu Yu his wife. Li Yuan let out a cold snort.

Little Ghost: “????”

“What is it?” Yu Yu’s voice came from behind her. Knowing the other was about to cling to her again, Li Yuan shut the door and made her voice gentle. “Nothing. I was just looking outside; the sky seems to have turned dark quite quickly.”

Having received their orders, the little ghosts outside dared not stay. Within a few seconds, they scattered. The air became blissfully quiet.

Turning around, Li Yuan met Yu Yu’s round eyes. The girl had been watching her the whole time and then reached out her hand. On their first night of marriage, they had already had a lot of contact. Holding hands and hugging; even knowing the little liar was a girl, Li Yuan, who had never been this close to anyone, felt a bit shy.

This was truly an emotion that had never appeared before. Regardless of what the girl’s goal was, since she was on her territory, Li Yuan decided she would play along with her for a while.

“Let’s sleep.” Yu Yu said with a giggle. “It is dark out, so it must be time for bed. Let’s go back to the bed.”

Li Yuan was momentarily speechless. The little liar seemed not to care at all whether her identity as a girl had been exposed, or perhaps she thought Li Yuan had not noticed at all.

The melon seeds, red dates, and peanuts on the quilt had long been cleared away. The little liar took off her outer robe, lifted the quilt, and lay directly inside, leaving the outer spot for her.

Despite having been “married” so many times, Li Yuan had never spent a single night in a bridal chamber. This little liar is likely casting a spell on me, Li Yuan thought as she lay down.

The surroundings were dim. She could hear the sound of the little liar’s breathing. After lying in the covers, the girl leaned toward her until her warm arm pressed against Li Yuan’s.

Yu Yu was far too excited to sleep. Li Yuan beside her was like a giant power bank. She pressed her arm against her, greedily absorbing the energy values transferring from the other’s body. Yu Yu did not dare to be too greedy; she had already been quite forward today and feared that hugging her directly would make the Eldest Miss uncomfortable.

Perhaps because she was exhausted from the day’s events, Yu Yu fell asleep shortly after her period of excitement.

As the breathing beside her grew steady, Li Yuan still could not understand. She had just fallen asleep like that. She had been sold here, yet she had not asked a single question, and she had not said a word about all the strange things that happened today.

This was the first time Li Yuan had encountered someone like this; she was nothing like the men from before. For a moment, Li Yuan did not know what to do. Killing her… it wasn’t time yet. And somehow, there was a tiny bit of reluctance. Perhaps she just thought the girl was interesting today; maybe tomorrow, she would be willing to do it.

Time passed minute by minute. Li Yuan lay there perfectly still. The person beside her was quite well-behaved when she first fell asleep, but obtaining energy values had seemingly become an instinct. Yu Yu subconsciously pressed closer to the source of energy.

Just as Li Yuan felt the person beside her crowding over and turned on her side to push her back in, the girl rolled directly into her arms. Seeking the source of energy, Yu Yu buried herself completely in Li Yuan’s embrace. The coldness of the embrace made her curl into a ball, and after shifting around for a bit, she seemed to find a comfortable position to nuzzle in.

Looking at Yu Yu, who had no sense of resistance and was desperately trying to get close to her, a flash of excitement crossed Li Yuan’s eyes. After hesitating for a long time, she finally wrapped her arm around the girl, pressing the warm little person closer to her chest.

She admitted it. This little liar indeed had some methods for making her happy! In that case, she did not mind being a bit nicer to her over these few days.

Li Yuan’s face was pale and sickly, but the face that was usually tense now bore a smile that was rarely seen. She worked hard to mimic a human, closing her eyes just like Yu Yu, even though she did not need to rest.