Chapter 37: CH 37

At night, Bai Zhen Zhen and Huo Xiang entered the room that Elder Huo had arranged for them.

Ever since she stepped into this manor, Bai Zhen Zhen discovered new with every step of the way. The garden was full of surprises, and the bedroom was no exception.

The two maids pushed open the bedroom doors. The scene that entered Bai Zhen Zhen’s eyes was a room the size of a basketball court, with at least 300 sqm. Looking from one end to the other could make a person’s neck sore.

Not only was the room large, but the furniture inside was also extremely extravagant. The sofa alone was several meters long, and the cushions were made of high-quality silk. The patterns on the cushions were even sewn with pure gold threads.

The furnishings in the bedroom had a similar luxurious and extravagant style. The furniture were made of mahogany, with exquisite carvings inlaid with rubies.

Bai Zhen Zhen stroked the furniture while sighing: “When I run out of money one day, I’ll come to your house and take a cushion to sell. That money should be enough to last me several months.”

Huo Xiang: “…”

After viewing the extravagant room, Bai Zhen Zhen suddenly realised that this was a bedroom, but she had yet to see the bed.

“Where’s the bed?!” Bai Zhen Zhen asked, “Do we still have to open another door, to reveal a basketball court sized bed?!”

Huo Xiang pointed to a corner: “It’s over there.”

Bai Zhen Zhen looked over to where he was pointing, and her jaw dropped.

Wh-wh-what the heck?! In a bedroom of 300 sqm, there was actually a… 1.2m long bed?! This size of this bed was similar to the one in her previous bedroom — 1.2m!!

If it wasn’t for Huo Xiang specially pointing it out for her, she would have thought it was an unimportant little stool!

At this moment, two able-bodied helpers walked in. They bowed politely to Huo Xiang and Bai Zhen Zhen first, before silently striding over to the big sofa. With each person carrying one side, they moved the sofa out of the bedroom.

Bai Zhen Zhen: ???

Following them, the two maids who opened the door for them earlier also walked in. They smiled ambiguously, walking over to the closet and removing a few silk quilts before shutting the door firmly behind them as they left.

Bai Zhen Zhen looked at Huo Xiang in confusion: “What’s going on?”

Huo Xiang seemed to have known about it earlier on, glumly sighing: “What would occur, still occurred…”

Bai Zhen Zhen: “Huh?!”

Huo Xiang didn’t answer her question, walking alone to the small bed. After evaluating the bed, he said emotionally: “Even if they wanted us to be intimate, they didn’t have to purposefully order such a small bed!”

The remaining half of the sentence “I can’t show off my prowess at all” remained unspoken.

Bai Zhen Zhen followed and saw that there was only a single pillow and a thin blanket on the bed.

“Is this the crib that Grandpa has prepared for your son?” Bai Zhen Zhen probed tentatively.

Huo Xiang retorted: “If this is a crib, then look closely. Are there any other beds in this room?”

Bai Zhen Zhen examined the area. Not to mention a bed, the entire huge room seems to have been emptied in an instant. Besides a few chairs, there was no where else to rest!!

“It can’t be? I’m going to sleep on this small bed tonight?!” Bai Zhen Zhen looked incredulous.

Huo Xiang gave her a wake-up call: “It’s not ‘I’, it’s ‘we’.”

“We?!” Bai Zhen Zhen frowned, gesturing to the bed again, “Such a small bed for two people? Isn’t it too crowded?!”

“There’s no other choice,” Huo Xiang sighed, “Who asked Grandfather to be so eager for a great-grandson.”

Bai Zhen Zhen finally understood what Huo Xiang meant.

It turns out this was all schemed by Elder Huo. He had long replaced the big bed in the bedroom with a small one, and got people to move the sofa out just so that she and Huo Xiang would have no choice but to become more intimate at night.

But… But isn’t this bed too small?! Even if they were real husband and wife, it wasn’t easy… to perform on this bed…

Bai Zhen Zhen had the same “doubts” as Huo Xiang.

“How about this,” Bai Zhen Zhen thought about it for a while, before coming up with an idea, “I’ll sleep on the bed, and you’ll sleep on the floor. The weather is hot these days, you won’t catch a cold anyway.”

Huo Xiang immediately refused: “Why must I sleep on the floor? If you find it hot, why don’t you sleep there instead?!”

“I’m a girl, it’s easier for me to catch a cold. I definitely can’t sleep on the floor!” Bai Zhen Zhen replied righteously, “Men are full of vigor, which will neutralise the cold. I’m helping you think of your health.”

“Hah, you’re sure smooth with your words, speaking as if it’s true! I’m an educated person, do you think I’ll really believe you?” Huo Xiang plopped down on the bed, saying, “I don’t care, I’m the owner of this room so what I say goes.”

Bai Zhen Zhen glared at Huo Xiang: “A man with no grace at all!”

Huo Xiang glared back at Bai Zhen Zhen: “This kind of moral blackmailing won’t work on me!”

The two were at a stalemate when there was a sudden knock on the door. A maid came in with two glasses of milk.

“Young Master, Young Madam, the Old Master said that drinking a glass of milk at night will help you to sleep easier.”

“Help me thank Grandpa.” Bai Zhen Zhen smiled.

After the maid left, Bai Zhen Zhen’s attitude immediately flipped, continuing to scold Huo Xiang: “Look at how caring your grandpa is! As his grandson, why didn’t you learn from him!”

Bai Zhen Zhen stepped up to the coffee table and was about to pick up a glass. Huo Xiang suddenly rushed over and pulled her away, saying with a slightly flustered expression: “Don’t drink it, so that you won’t have to wake up in the middle of the night to use the washroom.”

Bai Zhen Zhen glanced at him suspiciously, replying: “There’s a toilet in the room, it’s not troublesome!”

“Even so, you don’t have to drink it!” Huo Xiang stopped her again, “You’ve already eaten so much tonight. If you drink it on top of everything, you’ll gain weight!”

Bai Zhen Zhen was speechless. But when she looked away, she suddenly realised that the “territory” that Huo Xiang had occupied earlier was empty now. She immediately came up with an idea.

She pretended to reach out for the milk again. Just as Huo Xiang reached out to stop her, she suddenly dodged, and rushed to the bed.

“Hahahaha — You didn’t expect it, did you! This bed is mine now!” Bai Zhen Zhen exclaimed excitedly.

Huo Xiang rolled his eyes.

With a passing glance, Bai Zhen Zhen suddenly found a booklet on the bed. Huo Xiang seemed to have dropped it when he was sitting on the bed earlier.

“What is this?” Bai Zhen Zhen picked up the booklet.

Huo Xiang was shocked, and immediately rushed forward to grab it. However, Bai Zhen Zhen’s reaction was faster, and quickly dodged him before flipping open the booklet.

“Is it something shameful that can’t be seen by others…” Bai Zhen Zhen’s words came to a halt as the images before her entered her eyes.

She vehemently threw the booklet back at Huo Xiang in shock. The booklet hit Huo Xiang on his chest, causing him to shout in pain.

“Huo Xiang! What’s wrong with you! You’re sick! You actually casually carry this with you!!” Bai Zhen Zhen cursed.

Huo Xiang endured the pain as he picked up the booklet, and shouted back: “What else am I supposed to do?! This isn’t even mine!”

“How could it not be yours?! You were the one sitting on the bed just now! If it’s not yours, then did it fall from the sky?!”

“Grandfather gave it to me!” Huo Xiang explained, “When you went to the washroom earlier, Grandfather shoved this booklet to me, even telling me to do every position in the booklet at least once…”

Bai Zhen Zhen blushed furiously.

“How could Grandpa…”

“What’s wrong with Grandfather? In his eyes, we are legally husband and wife. Isn’t it normal to do this kind of things? This is our Huo family’s treasure, used in every generation with no issues!” Huo Xiang said bluntly.

Bai Zhen Zhen gave a fake “haha”, and didn’t express any opinion.

“Besides, Grandfather said that if I didn’t do as he asked, he would disown me as his grandson.” Huo Xiang added on.

Bai Zhen Zhen was taken aback: “What do you mean?”

“What else could it mean?” Huo Xiang replied angrily, “From a certain perspective, this item is a manual that every member of the Huo family must practice. If not, a male heir won’t be born, which goes against our ancestral teachings. Before we arrived, Grandfather judged that it was the best time tonight to use the manual, thus Grandfather instructed and nagged at me non-stop that I must definitely do it tonight.”

Bai Zhen Zhen listened to Huo Xiang discussing “the matters between man and woman” in such a serious tone, and couldn’t help but feel shy and embarrassed. She quickly interrupted him: “Alright, I understand. You don’t have to go into details! Isn’t it just letting Grandpa know that we’ve done it? Can’t you just tell him tomorrow morning that it’s done? It’s not like he would install cameras in the room to monitor us…”

Bai Zhen Zhen was frightened by her own thoughts. She subconsciously looked up and started to inspect the ceiling.

“Stop looking, Grandfather isn’t so despicable!” Huo Xiang rolled his eyes at her.

Bai Zhen Zhen breathed a sigh of relief: “Then isn’t it easy! Simply tell a white lie tomorrow and everything will be OK.”

“No.” Huo Xiang replied, “When you went to the washroom earlier, Grandfather gave me the booklet and made me swear on the Huo family ancestors that if I lied to him about it, he will not live to see his next birthday!”

Bai Zhen Zhen choked: “You actually bet on your grandfather’s life?”

“Isn’t it because Grandfather asked for it!” Huo Xiang sighed, “So either I do it or I don’t, but I cannot lie to Grandfather. If I don’t do it, I will come clean to Grandfather. According to our agreement, I will give up my identity as his grandson.”

“But your grandfather only has you as a grandson. If you give it up, who would be his heir?!” Bai Zhen Zhen was confused.

“Grandfather said that if I betray the ancestral teachings, he would donate all of his wealth and not leave a single cent to me. You know elderly people, they take ancestral teachings very seriously…”

Huo Xiang was almost convinced by his own bullshit.

But he knew that no matter how he phrased it, Bai Zhen Zhen would never agree to “do it” with him.

“Alright, I’ve confessed everything. Now it’s time for you to make a decision.” Huo Xiang said.

Bai Zhen Zhen blinked: “Me?”

“Yes,” Huo Xiang gulped, “If you’re… willing…”

“Pei pei pei!” Bai Zhen Zhen spat out, “We are in a fake marriage, how could we do such things! Besides, I, I’m still a…”

Bai Zhen Zhen’s voice gradually became softer, and at last she couldn’t continue her words.

Huo Xiang sighed: “Sigh, I knew it would turn out this way!”

“If not, what do you want to do?” Bai Zhen Zhen frowned.

She suddenly recalled the ambiguous expression of the maid who had brought in the two glasses of milk earlier.

“Don’t tell me… You didn’t let me drink the milk is because there’s something in it?!” Bai Zhen Zhen pointed to the milk on the table and asked.

Huo Xiang nodded: “It’s written in the booklet that you need to drink a little something to help excite both parties. This is also a family secret recipe…”

He paused, before adding on: “Zhen Zhen, don’t blame Grandfather. In his eyes, we’ve already done that a long time ago, so…”

“I don’t blame Grandpa. On the other hand, I feel sorry to him.” Bai Zhen Zhen calmed down and thought through the whole incident.

She asked Huo Xiang: “Since you’ve already used your family wealth to bet, why didn’t you go with the flow and just let me drink it? Even if I woke up after, the deed has been done. There would be nothing I could do about it.”

“Bai Zhen Zhen, what do you take me for?!” Huo Xiang was agitated, “Am I that sort of person who would lose my bottom line in the face of money?! Even if we weren’t friends, I wouldn’t do such things to a stranger!”

Bai Zhen Zhen suddenly burst out in laughter.

“Alright, I was just joking with you!” She pursed her lips, “Thank you for respecting me. However, don’t worry. You’re Grandpa’s only grandson, how could he bear to leave you penniless..”

“Haha.” Huo Xiang sneered.

His grandfather couldn’t bear to do so, but the system could! Heartless thing!

“Since we’ve cleared the air, then let’s go to bed.” Bai Zhen Zhen said, “Due to your moral and conscience, I will sleep on the chairs tonight and you can sleep on the bed.”

The moment she spoke, a whirring sound suddenly entered their ears.

“It’s the air conditioner.” Huo Xiang immediately located the source of the sound, “Grandfather probably ordered someone to increase the wind speed…”

“What?!” Bai Zhen Zhen was stunned again, “Is it also that booklet…”

“Yes… The colder it is, the hotter the… passion…”

Bai Zhen Zhen: “…”

Huo Xiang searched every cupboard in the room, but his grandfather was serious, not even leaving an extra blanket for them. As for the blanket on the bed, it was way too thin to resist the cold air.

“Why don’t we squeeze together tonight?” Huo Xiang sat beside Bai Zhen Zhen and said, “Don’t worry, I won’t do anything to you!”

Bai Zhen Zhen suddenly came up with an alternative, suggesting: “Why don’t we tell Grandpa the truth? Tell him that we are in a fake marriage? Grandpa is a nice person, I’m sure he will understand our difficulties and not force us against our wills.”

It sounded like a solution, but after Huo Xiang heard her words, his mood turned sour.

“I won’t,” He raised his nose in the air, “Even if I can’t perform tonight, Grandfather might still give me another chance. But if he knew that I’ve gone so far as to lie about my marriage to him, he would probably instantly cut off all relations with me.”

“Is it really that serious…” Bai Zhen Zhen frowned.

“Hmph.” Huo Xiang suddenly huffed.

“Why are you going ‘hmph’ for?” Bai Zhen Zhen was utterly at a loss.

“So this is how much you refuse to be with me! It really chills my heart!” Huo Xiang pouted angrily.

Bai Zhen Zhen’s face twitched, but she remained silent.

Seeing her silence, Huo Xiang suddenly felt listless. Thus, he stood up and pretended to be indifferent as he remarked: “Alright, I understand. Isn’t it just enduring a night’s worth of cold air? I’m full of vigor and can bear with it!”

Huo Xiang turned sharply on his heels and headed towards the chair.

Bai Zhen Zhen thought that he was really furious this time, and hurriedly got up: “That’s not what I meant…”

However, Huo Xiang’s movement was too quick. He didn’t notice the short bedpost beside him, and his knee slammed in to the corner of the bed. Hissing in pain, he subconsciously hopped aside.

At this moment, Bai Zhen Zhen had just stood up. The two of them bumped into each other and lost their balance, falling on the bed together.

Huo Xiang pressed down on Bai Zhen Zhen, his lips coincidentally touching Bai Zhen Zhen’s lips.

Everything happened too quickly and coincidentally, leading up to this moment.

“…”

Bai Zhen Zhen finally reacted, pushing Huo Xiang away and quickly getting back on her feet.

Huo Xiang was still frozen in shock.

He laid on the bed for a few seconds, before standing up. He smacked his lips lightly, before gazing innocently at Bai Zhen Zhen.

Internally, he was dying of nervousness.

— Huo Xiang: “It’s over; I’m so dead. I accidentally took advantage of her. Zhen Zhen’s happiness points will definitely plummet!!”

— System: “Ding~ Female lead happiness points +5.”

— Huo Xiang: “Nani?!”

At this moment, Bai Zhen Zhen was blushing furiously. After taking a deep breath, she furiously hit Huo Xiang’s shoulder: “Bastard! You actually took the opportunity to take advantage of me!”

Huo Xiang looked at Bai Zhen Zhen in disbelief.

Not because Bai Zhen Zhen hit him, but because the system had just told him — The female lead’s happiness points… +5?!

We’ve already agreed not to interfere with each other’s lives and to prohibit any intimate contact. You- You’ve breached the contract!!” Bai Zhen Zhen raged.

Huo Xiang came back to his senses, and hurriedly explained: “It was an accident! I didn’t mean it! I didn’t expect that I would slip and fall, coincidentally kissing you…”

Indeed, it was only through coincidences that a story could form!!

“You- You’re still mentioning it!” Hearing Huo Xiang’s words, Bai Zhen Zhen’s face turned even redder.

Looking at Bai Zhen Zhen’s appearance, Huo Xiang’s mind was enlightened, suddenly unravelling the mystery.

Didn’t he already know that women were two-faced creatures? The system also determined that Bai Zhen Zhen’s happiness points had increased. This meant that no matter how much Bai Zhen Zhen was complaining on the surface, deep down within her, she was actually extremely happy!

So — Bai Zhen Zhen — likes him!!

Realising this, Huo Xiang felt as if he was floating. He suddenly clapped his hands, laughing like a fool.

Bai Zhen Zhen was initially still puffed up with anger, but looking at his appearance, she was shocked: “You- Did you become a fool after falling?!”

“Hahahaha — Zhen Zhen, I’m so happy!!” Huo Xiang began to dance clumsily.

Bai Zhen Zhen’s right eye twitched.

“Go to sleep!”

While Huo Xiang was still acting like a fool, Bai Zhen Zhen hopped into the bed and spread herself out completely to occupy the entire bed.

“What’s the meaning of this? Didn’t you say you would sleep on the chair? How did it become the bed?!” Huo Xiang recovered from his happy state, and immediately became unhappy.

“I gave you the opportunity to sleep on the bed just how because of your moral compass, not forcing me against my will. But you just took advantage of me, so letting me sleep on the bed is to make it up to me!” Bai Zhen Zhen said righteously.

“Bai Zhen Zhen, don’t you have even a sliver of conscience? This is my home!”

Bai Zhen Zhen pretended to fall asleep, completely ignoring him.

A moment later, Huo Xiang silently walked to the bed side and poked Bai Zhen Zhen’s arm. Not getting a response, he reached out again and started poking Bai Zhen Zhen’s armpit.

The ticklish Bai Zhen Zhen couldn’t stand it. She instantly curled up into a ball and rolled over to the other side of the bed.

In that instant, Huo Xiang wormed his way into the bed and grabbed the blanket tightly.

This 1.2m bed was just nice for two people to lie down beside each other.

Bai Zhen Zhen glared at Huo Xiang after being squeezed to one side of the bed.

Huo Xiang pretended not to notice, happily exclaiming: “As expected, it’s warm in here! Especially with a beautiful woman beside me; it’s so pleasant…”

“…”

After that, the two of them began to fight for the blanket, not budging a single inch. After fighting for a while, Huo Xiang and Bai Zhen Zhen were closer than ever.

“I advise you to obediently go to sleep, if not I cannot guarantee that I won’t do anything.” Huo Xiang threatened.

Bai Zhen Zhen sneered: “You’ve really grown some courage, even using the standard lines of an overbearing CEO.”

Huo Xiang squinted: “My current status is comparable to that of a CEO. If you want me to be overbearing, I’m more than happy to accede.”

“….haha, you won’t be after tonight.”

“Haha, then I’d better enjoy tonight.”

Bai Zhen Zhen saw that she couldn’t win the argument, and couldn’t be bothered to continue arguing with him.

She found a comfortable position to sleep, before emphasizing again: “I’ll repeat it again. Getting along together in harmony, without interfering with each other. Since you’re going to sleep, then sleep properly. If you dare to make a move, I will –“

“You’ll give yourself to me.” Huo Xiang interrupted Bai Zhen Zhen with sincere sparkling eyes, helping her to complete her sentence.

Bai Zhen Zhen gritted her teeth and shut her eyes, deciding to follow the saying “see no evil”.

Huo Xiang looked at her face and felt that the corners of her mouth were rising slightly, revealing her inner joy.

— System: “Knight, are you really prepared to give up on Elder Huo’s third request?!”

— Huo Xiang: “Yes.”

— System: “But if you haven’t completed the fifth side mission by tomorrow morning, according to the rules, you will lose your identity as the heir to the world’s richest man.”

— Huo Xiang: “Then so be it. After all, I’ve just realised that I already have something much more valuable than the identity of the heir to the world’s richest man.”

—————————

[Small scene]

Huo Xiang (holding a megaphone): Hello everybody, can you all hear me?! It turns out that Zhen Zhen likes me too! She! Likes! Me! Too! Huo huo huo huo huo huo~ Happy!!!