nded to poke me. I dodged it with a smile."Xiao Luo, did you find the man wearing a mask that you were looking for" My sister asked in a low voice as she blew on her soup."Huh Found him, that guy even...My brother's words were directed straight at Jiang Qiyun, his anger palpable and his tone not the slightest bit polite.

“I don't care what gods or ghosts you are! Jiang Qiyun, can you be nicer to my sister What nonsense is this about jealousy I don't care how many women you have, but if my little Qiao is unhappy, you better kick all of them out! Who is your wife Who is carrying your child Can you tell the difference”

"It's bad enough that Xiao Qiao is in this predicament, a young woman has given her heart to you, and now she's pregnant! And you want to have the child killed! What has she done wrong!"

"Alright, these things don't seem like big issues to you. For the sake of peace in this world, we ordinary people also have a responsibility to protect our homes and country, right"

"Miscarriage doesn't matter, just consider it bad luck with the man. A lot of people have miscarriages these days, it's not a big deal; a marriage without a real husband also doesn't matter. Even if she never has a true marriage in her lifetime, or finds a reliable husband, that's okay too. My dad and I can support her!"

But—who the hell dares to make my sister angry again, I'll immediately take my sister and have a child! Go to your goddamn formation! Go to your goddamn mortals of the Yang realm! Let's all play together! Who's afraid of who!”

My brother exploded with anger, but I could only cry and laugh at the same time.

When he said "defending our home and country", I almost laughed out loud. My brother just has that kind of ability, he can make me laugh even when I'm crying.

I rubbed my eyes and crawled out from under the covers. Jiang Qiyun immediately turned to look at me, his expression dimmed. The golden pupils in his eyes repeatedly gave me a feeling of being moth to a flame.

But at this moment, I could only manage a smile: "It's nothing, Your Majesty has worked so hard to sow and sacrificed his own blood to benefit the common people. As an ordinary person, I should also contribute, shedding some blood is nothing, after all, ever since I met you, blood and tears have been flowing non-stop."

He stared at me with a deep, sorrowful gaze.

It's pitiful, really. For him, watching me, an insignificant ant, be so consumed by love and weep for a child yet to be born, must seem utterly ridiculous.

Two years ago, he should have done this, but looking back at my situation then, I probably couldn't have handled it. So, in my ear, he let out a sigh — that was his pity.

At that time, I was almost tortured to death by fear and pain. After that, I fell seriously ill because of the evil spirits entering my body. If I had to accomplish this at that time, I would have lost my life.

I jumped off the bed and said to my brother, "Brother, let's go home."

"Huh" My brother didn't react, "What are we going home to do—"

"Just get things done, go to the hospital to see Dad, or go back to school. You think everyone's got nothing better to do than hang out with you" I tried to sound casual and relaxed.

Jiang Qi's clear voice came from behind me: "Mu Xiaoqiao, what do you want to do"

I turned back, gave a faint smile, and shook my head. "Nothing. Just like before, doing what I have to do."

I took my brother's hand and walked out. Before leaving, I said, "If you're worried about the fetus, you can have someone watch me. I don't mind...Goodbye, husband."

His eyes shimmered with a deep golden light, his brows furrowed as he stared at me, his gaze seeming to warn me, to tell me not to play any tricks.

We dashed out of the Tiance Pavilion. My brother rubbed his arms and whispered, "What are you doing Why call him 'husband' out of the blue It's so sticky, it gave me goosebumps."

"I want to try calling him like that in front of others. I'm afraid... what if there's no chance later" I smiled faintly.

My brother looked at me with strange eyes. He said in a warning tone, "Mu Xia Qiao, I warn you too, don't even think about running away from home or cutting your wrists or any of those melodramatic tricks... If the child is going to be aborted, just consider it bad luck. I'll buy you some black-bone chicken to make up for it. Anyway, your own father doesn't care, he's going to use the child as a talisman. We don't care!"

"Alright, alright... I'm not as weak as you think... No need to wait until July next year to get pregnant, I'm happy enough!"

My brother didn't quite believe it, and I didn't either.

We walked out of the mountain gate and into the parking lot. Situ Lin caught up and grabbed my hand, saying, "Miss Qiao, don't take those vicious words to heart... To maintain this formation, many families have paid the price of their lives. One by one, they are exhausted. I will try my best to find a way, see if there is any alternative method that can keep the formation going—"

I smiled and shook my head. "Young Master Situ, thank you for your kindness... Even if we maintain it for a while, what's the point We'll still have to sacrifice this child to be the eye of the formation... It's pain either way, I... I don't mind."

Perhaps my smile was too stiff, causing Situ Lin's brows to furrow even tighter.

My brother patted Si Tu Lin's arm: "Alright, thanks for the offer. Come play at our place when you have time. Xiao Qiao cooks really well, haha."

On the way back, I complained to my brother: Our family car is too shabby, it's not comfortable at all to sit in.

My brother answered straightforwardly, "Swap."

I was laughing, nestled in the passenger seat, mentally planning how to make some extra money.

Perhaps I'll die young. I want to earn as much money as possible so that my father can wake up and my older brother can happily play games his whole life, being a businessman.

》》》

On the very first night after returning from Qingyu Taoist Temple, Jiang Qiyun appeared in my room.

I really wanted to casually chat with him, but the atmosphere between us was heavier than a tomb. It took immense courage to speak up, but once I did, we found ourselves with nothing to say.

During the day, I fled to school and to the hospital. At night, I went to bed early, facing the wall and turning my back on him. Holding my phone, I searched for all sorts of materials about exorcism, but these things circulated in secret, how could I possibly find them on the internet

I can't stay awake for long, drowsiness will soon lull me to sleep.

I could feel him gently take my phone from my hand, tuck the blanket around me, and then silently lie down behind me.

I really want to tell him: you don't need to watch over me, I won't do anything rash. My brother has already given me a good talking to, and towards you, I'll be obedient. You don't need to worry.

But I couldn't speak. The moment I opened my mouth, my nose and eyes would start to sting. He also kept a good distance—we were close enough to touch, yet there was no physical contact between us.

On the surface, life hasn't changed much, yet I feel an indescribable sense of strangeness and heaviness.

That day after school, as I just got off the bus, a brightly colored sports car screeched to a halt beside me. Hou Shaowen rolled down his window and smiled at me, "Little Qiao, what a coincidence! I was just about to head to your shop, and then I saw your beautiful back. Hop in"

I shook my head and said, "I'm not comfortable sitting in your kind of car..."

"At that moment, in the shop, I brought you a gift!"

What is he going to do againces. Each main teaching building has several such large offices.I snuck into an office to peek around, and the teacher inside asked me, "Who are you looking for" I said, "Teacher Ou," and the teachers...