Wei Xunzhou looked at Di Yao's hand on his, lightly...
Wei Xunzhou had been surprisingly easygoing, and Xibian was allowed to stay. However, Xibian bared its teeth at Wei Xunzhou every time they met, showing great hostility toward him.
The day before, when she went to help at Meng Po's, Di Yao had specifically asked where the water for making the soup came from. Meng Po said there was a well in the backyard of her shop, and only that water was drinkable; the water elsewhere in the Underworld was absolutely undrinkable—for instance, the Wangchuan River water would cause severe stomach and intestinal damage if consumed.
There was also a well in Wrongful Death City, though its water wasn't drinkable either. Unlike the Wangchuan River, it wouldn't corrode flesh and blood, so it was usable for washing. But considering Xibian's claws might carry dirt and germs, Di Yao didn't feel comfortable using that water to clean Wei Xunzhou's neck wound. So she got up early and went to Meng Po's to borrow a bucket of clean drinking water, two bowls, and some breathable gauze for bandaging.
When she came home, Xibian was still sleeping in front of the main hall door, snoring loudly.
Wei Xunzhou had already gotten up and was sitting by the window putting on his shoes.
"Husband, wait a moment. Let me treat your wound first." Di Yao wet a towel, sat down beside Wei Xunzhou, and lowered her head to examine the wound on his neck.
Seeing the wound was slightly red, she asked with concern, "Husband, does it still hurt?"
When Wei Xunzhou raised his hand to touch it, Di Yao slapped his hand away. "Don't touch it yet."
Her tone was stern, carrying a rare note of authority that allowed no argument. Wei Xunzhou had no choice but to place his hands on his knees, his fists lightly clenched.
A cool, tingling sensation spread upward along the wound. With each wipe, the burning pain diminished.
"Where did this water come from?"
The well water in the city was murky; after standing for half a day, a thick layer of sediment would settle at the bottom. This water in the basin was clear and clean, completely different. Wei Xunzhou noticed the difference at once.
"Oh, I borrowed it from Granny Meng. She has drinking water. I got extra and saved some. Whenever you're thirsty, husband, you can just ladle some out."
"Not thirsty. No need."
"Who said you have to be thirsty to drink? Many times, you don't do things because you need to, but because you want to. That's what makes life meaningful, right? At least I don't believe you've already gotten used to this Underworld lifestyle of not eating or drinking all day. Even someone like me, who doesn't... I'm still not used to it."
She almost slipped up, but her quick mind saved her. She still didn't want Wei Xunzhou to know she had drunk Meng Po Soup and lost her memory.
"Besides, we don't know how long we'll be here. We have plenty of free time, and nothing we must do. So why do you spend all day reading books, husband? Is it because you'll turn to dust if you go a day without reading? No—it's because you want to. So, husband, don't be too quick to refuse. If you change your mind later, I'll laugh at you."
Di Yao had a knack for spinning nonsense into reason. Wei Xunzhou had only said a few words, but she flooded him with a whole basket of talk, leaving him speechless.
After a simple cleaning, Di Yao carefully wrapped a conspicuous piece of gauze around Wei Xunzhou's neck. When he looked in the mirror to check, she felt guilty and hid far away.
She was clumsy, and her bandaging skills were awful.
"Husband, promise you won't take it off today, okay?" Di Yao chuckled dryly, pointing at the gauze on his neck.
After getting up, Wei Xunzhou sat in the courtyard reading. Taking advantage of Xibian's deep sleep, Di Yao fetched a pair of scissors and carefully trimmed its claws.
Xibian woke up at the sound, but it was too late. Fortunately, Di Yao quickly hid the scissors so it didn't find them.
It wasn't until that afternoon, when Xibian was digging holes in the yard, that it realized it had lost its precious claws. By then, Di Yao had already gone to the Naihe Bridge to help Meng Po, leaving only Wei Xunzhou in the house.
Naturally, Xibian blamed Wei Xunzhou for the claw disaster. Seizing an opportunity when Wei Xunzhou wasn't paying attention, it slipped into the bedroom.
It had planned to jump on the bed and cause trouble, but remembering Di Yao, it changed course. Noticing a gap in the wardrobe, it clawed it open.
The clothes inside were clearly divided: on one side hung vibrant, colorful dresses; on the other, all black garments. It was obvious which belonged to Wei Xunzhou.
With a light leap, Xibian grabbed the hem of Wei Xunzhou's robe and yanked it down hard. One, two, three...
Soon the floor was a mess, covered with Wei Xunzhou's clothes, some torn with large holes.
Finally, Xibian was very satisfied. After admiring its handiwork, it picked a soft piece of clothing and settled down on it.
But as it lay down, something hard poked its belly.
It got up and pawed the object out from under the pile—a sachet containing something heavy. Xibian sniffed the opening and caught a faint, fragrant scent.
Just as it was about to tear the sachet open, the bedroom door swung open.
Wei Xunzhou walked straight in and stopped in front of Xibian. The dog's eyes instantly glowed red, fierce and vicious, without a trace of guilt. Instead, it bared its teeth defiantly at Wei Xunzhou, emitting low growls.
It was still angry at him, so it felt entirely justified in its actions. In its mind, this was merely a small punishment for Wei Xunzhou. Once its wounds healed... it would make him pay!
It stood up, ears pricked, body tense and leaning forward. Its entire demeanor shifted.
Then, seizing the moment, it lunged at Wei Xunzhou, baring its sharp fangs in midair.
In the nick of time, Wei Xunzhou stepped back and sidestepped, effortlessly dodging Xibian's attack. Feeling insulted, Xibian flew into a rage and attacked again, only to be dodged once more.
Enraged, its face twitched, and the stub of its broken horn began to change. The broken end elongated, as if growing a new horn, with a transparent secretion oozing from the severed surface.
Wei Xunzhou wasn't surprised and paid it no mind. The moment it leaped from a stool, he reached out and grabbed its neck with precision. With a casual wave of his other hand, he lopped off the newly grown horn again.
"Overreaching."
Xibian had provoked him repeatedly, but Wei Xunzhou still found it uninteresting. He didn't show any obvious anger, only a touch of impatience—he didn't have time to play house with a mad dog all day.
Wei Xunzhou picked up the sachet Xibian had pulled out, wiped it on the dog's back, then hooked the drawstring with his finger and carried the dog by the scruff out the door.
Seeing a conveniently dug hole in the middle of the yard, he tied Xibian's front and back legs and tossed it into the pit. Then he kicked some loose dirt over it, burying it up to its neck.
Xibian whimpered and struggled, but for some reason, it couldn't break free. All it could do was glare hatefully at Wei Xunzhou's retreating figure.
"One more time, and I won't keep you anymore." Wei Xunzhou gave Xibian a meaningful look; his tone was heavily threatening.
He was hinting at something more.
Di Yao came home earlier that day, before it was fully dark. She immediately spotted Xibian buried in the yard.
Wei Xunzhou was lying on a recliner with his eyes closed, not reacting to the sound of her return.
"Oh... what happened now? How did you end up buried in the ground?" Di Yao crouched beside the listless Xibian, tapped its forehead, and noticed blood on its head. "You're hurt again?"
Seeing Di Yao home, Xibian immediately played pitiful, whimpering softly from its throat.
Di Yao was about to soften, but she glanced at Wei Xunzhou and thought it over. She withdrew her hand. "I bet you caused trouble again, so my husband punished you. This time, you're on your own. I won't plead for you. Only when my husband agrees will I dig you out."
With that, she clapped her hands, took out the bowl she'd borrowed from Meng Po, ladled some water, and placed it beside Wei Xunzhou. Then she sat down next to him.
Her gaze fell on the bag of wheat grains on the table.
"Husband, why did you take out these wheat grains? Are you craving a snack?"
Di Yao didn't expect her morning persuasion to have worked so quickly. Just as she was about to continue joking, Wei Xunzhou opened his eyes and pointed toward Xibian. "It did that."
Di Yao burst out laughing. "Don't be embarrassed, husband. Since we have drinking water here, how about we pop some popcorn?"
"Popcorn? No." Feeling it might sound ambiguous, he added, "If you're craving it, eat it yourself."
That was all the food left at home. Di Yao felt awkward eating alone, so she shook her head.
"If you won't eat, then I won't either. Besides, this isn't even enough to fill a gap in my teeth. If this popcorn whets my appetite, I'll keep craving it all day. But then I won't be able to have any, and that would be miserable."
Afraid she couldn't resist temptation, Di Yao deliberately looked away. Her eyes fell on Xibian, covered in dirt and grime, and suddenly an idea struck her. She slapped her thigh excitedly.
"Right! Why didn't I think of this before?" Di Yao shook Wei Xunzhou's hand. "Husband, I've figured out how to get food!"
Wei Xunzhou sat up from the recliner, utterly confused. He looked at Di Yao holding his hand and cleared his throat.
Di Yao withdrew her hand, showing no embarrassment—only excitement and delight.
"Since we can't find food here, we can just grow our own! We have all this empty land in the front and back yards. It's wasted anyway, so why not put it to use? And we have these wheat grains—they're seeds! For watering... I can ask Granny Meng. She has no shortage of water."
The more she thought, the clearer her mind became. Good ideas kept popping up, and she planned it all out quite neatly.
"And I'm earning money now—a full tael every day! If what I just said is really feasible, then reincarnation might be within reach! No need to stay here for decades!"