The emotional connection between the two couldn’t continue, as Xigu had already pushed aside the animal hide partition and walked in. Seeing this, Xi Yi also stood up, retrieved her previously discarded dirty clothes, and swiftly left their resting area.
Spotting Xigu, Sha Yi deftly tidied the area around the bathtub that Xi Yi had messed up, gesturing for Xigu to sit. The latter didn’t hesitate and plopped down unceremoniously.
Her considerable weight, combined with her rough and abrupt movements, nearly tipped the bathtub over. The wobbling intensified the dull ache in Sha Yi’s lower abdomen, making her wince inwardly. Though the pain wasn’t unbearable, she still found it uncomfortable.
Xigu, oblivious to her discomfort, leaned in and stared at her unblinkingly, asking with a lewd grin, “So, you and Xi Yi really didn’t…?”
Sha Yi was speechless. Just as she was about to respond, Xigu continued on her own, “No way, I don’t believe it. How could Xi Yi possibly hold back? I’ve seen how handsy he usually is, always picking fights with Saina for no reason. Though I’d love for him to get the upper hand, I just can’t buy that nothing happened between you two. If it’s true…”
She paused, furrowing her brows and rubbing her chin before finally blurting out, “Did Xi Yi get hit *there* during his fight with Saina?”
Sha Yi was dumbfounded.
Was Xigu genuinely concerned about Xi Yi, or was she just mocking him?
Why did she feel like her entire worldview had just crumbled?
“Hey, why aren’t you saying anything?” Xigu nudged her when she remained silent. “I’m asking you! I made soup—answer me, and I’ll give you some.”
Rolling her eyes helplessly, Sha Yi thought that having a sister like Xigu must be a mixed blessing for Xi Yi. While she could be fiercely supportive at times, most of the time, she was just plain exasperating—like right now.
After a moment’s thought, Sha Yi countered, “So, do you want Xi Yi to have a child or not? And do you want it to happen during the rainy season?”
Caught off guard by the retort, Xigu froze before hurriedly waving her hands. “Of course I want you and Xi Yi to have a child soon! But it’s the rainy season now—I don’t want anything to happen between you two that might lead to you losing the baby like that other woman did before. Otherwise, why would I keep stopping him from getting too close to you? I was just asking… Ugh…”
Xigu’s bluntness left Sha Yi torn between laughter and exasperation. Despite her often inappropriate remarks that left everyone red-faced and speechless, her intentions were genuine.
Having grown accustomed to the indirect, calculated interactions of modern life, Sha Yi found Xigu’s unfiltered honesty oddly refreshing. Occasionally adopting their straightforward ways might even be a mood booster.
With that thought, her inner turmoil dissipated, and she felt much lighter. Smiling, she took Xigu’s hand and deftly changed the subject. “Xigu, my stomach hurts a bit. What should I do?”
“Stomachache, huh…” Xigu scratched her head, pondered for a moment, then suddenly jumped up in outrage. “It must be that bastard Xi Yi squishing you in his sleep! Look at you—you’re bleeding, and he’s still pressing down on you! Don’t let him sleep with you tonight. You need to recover properly before having a baby. You’re practically skin and bones!”
To emphasize her point, Xigu pinched Sha Yi’s arm and waist with her thick fingers, clicking her tongue disapprovingly.
Once again, Sha Yi was thunderstruck. If menstrual cramps were caused by being squished, then doctors wouldn’t exist even thousands of years from now. And if stomach pain could be blamed on Xi Yi or body weight, then continuing this conversation with Xigu would be a grave mistake.
At this point, she fully grasped the historical significance of the phrase “lying flat.”
Fortunately, Xigu didn’t seem intent on dragging the topic further. Huffing, she declared, “I’ll go get you some soup. Then I’ll settle things with that bastard Xi Yi!” before stomping out.
Sha Yi exhaled in relief and lay back down, intending to rest a little longer—just as Xi Yi returned with the freshly washed clothes.
He had cleaned all her dirty garments, including the bloodstained ones. The faint, slightly unpleasant scent of soap leaves lingered on the fabric, but the natural plant aroma soothed her nerves. Most of all, the sight of the spotless clothes warmed her heart.
Suddenly, Sha Yi recalled something her mother had once told her long ago: *If you ever meet a man willing to wash clothes stained with menstrual blood, his love for you must be deep and fierce.*
Back then, she had laughed it off. After all, if even she found it unpleasant, how could she expect someone else to be completely unfazed?
But now, against all odds, she had stumbled upon this rare miracle—a man who cherished her as if she were his very life.
Watching him hang her clothes one by one on the thick vines strung overhead, Sha Yi felt that no amount of abdominal pain could distract her from him.
However, when Xi Yi turned around, her mood soured slightly.
He had washed all her clothes, yet his own animal-hide skirt, equally stained with blood, remained untouched.
After hesitating for a while, she pointed at his skirt and asked awkwardly, “Xi Yi, your skirt is covered in… stains too. Why didn’t you wash it? It’s embarrassing to go out like that…”
She expected him to explain, as he usually did—maybe he’d forgotten, or planned to wash his own after finishing hers. But instead, he said nothing, his face flushing suspiciously.
Seeing him like this for the first time, Sha Yi was momentarily stunned. Only when he started fiddling with the bead chain around his waist did she snap out of it and instinctively turn away.
Once the rustling sounds subsided, she glanced back.
Xi Yi had changed into a fresh skirt, but the dirty one was nowhere in sight inside the wooden container he’d brought. Instead, she spotted it at the far end of the bathtub. Sitting up, she reached for it, intending to toss it into the container—but Xi Yi was quicker. He snatched it away, folded it carefully like a treasure, and placed it elsewhere.
*What in the world…?*
Sha Yi’s brain short-circuited.
*Don’t tell me he’s keeping her menstrual blood as some kind of keepsake?*
If that were true, then her worldview would’ve been shattered twice in one morning—first by Xigu, now by Xi Yi. They really were siblings!
The disturbing thought sent shivers down her spine. Sha Yi quickly forced herself to stop dwelling on it and decided to let him handle the bloodstained skirt however he pleased.
Just then, Xigu returned with a bowl of hot soup. Xi Yi took it smoothly, sat back down beside the bathtub, and motioned for Sha Yi to sit up and drink. He even thoughtfully rolled up the heavy animal hide they’d been using as a blanket and placed it as a cushion against the edge of the tub.
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