404: Chapter 404 The Morning After the Wedding

King Feiyun did not press the matter; she turned and walked out.

Ziyi followed half a step behind her, her pace neither rushed nor slow.

The two passed through the long corridor, walked across the courtyard, and stopped at the fork in the road leading to the side gate.

King Feiyun turned her head to glance at Ziyi: "Go back and rest well."

"Your Highness as well." Ziyi replied.

The two turned, each walking in a different direction.

But whether it was King Feiyun in front or Ziyi lagging behind, neither of their paces was as fast as usual.

King Feiyun returned to her residence and closed the door.

She stood at the entryway, not immediately walking inside.

Morning light filtered in from behind the window screen, casting a soft halo of light at her feet.

She looked down at the back of her hand.

There was nothing there.

It was clean, like a piece of jade that had been wiped repeatedly.

Yet she still felt a trace of an extremely faint, almost imperceptible, cool sensation there.

Like a drop of dew falling on skin, soaking in before it had time to evaporate.

King Feiyun frowned slightly, flipped her hand over, looked at her palm for a few breaths, then flipped it back.

She shook her head, suppressed that inexplicable feeling of strangeness, and stepped toward the inner chamber.

Entering the bedroom, she sat on the edge of the bed, her back straight.

She tried to enter meditation, attempting to clear her thoughts.

But those images would always appear uncontrollably.

The expression on Fei Xue's face when she leaned into Lin Yun's embrace, the arc of Feiying's neck when she lifted her head.

The contour of Lin Yun's profile when he bowed his head, the place where his fingers rested on Fei Xue's shoulder blade.

King Feiyun took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

It was useless.

She had lived for a very, very long time, so long that she herself could not remember the specific years.

She thought she had long since taken these things lightly, thinking her Heart-Nature was stable enough not to be moved by any image.

But tonight was different.

She couldn't say what was different, but she indeed felt it.

There was an extremely tiny corner of her heart that seemed to have been lightly touched by something.

That touch was very light, so light that if she hadn't deliberately tried to perceive it, she wouldn't have noticed it at all.

But once noticed, it could never be ignored.

She opened her eyes and looked at the landscape painting hanging on the opposite wall for a while.

Then she closed her eyes again, and only this time did she truly enter meditation.

When Ziyi returned home, the sky was already completely bright.

She pushed open the courtyard gate, not alerting anyone, walked straight across the courtyard, and pushed open her bedroom door.

The door closed behind her with a soft sound.

She stood against the door panel for a long while, then raised her hand and pressed it to her heart.

Her heartbeat was a little faster than usual.

Just a little.

She lowered her eyelids and remained silent for a long time.

Then she let go, walked to the window, and opened it.

The morning breeze rushed in, carrying the fragrance of flowers and plants in the courtyard and the moisture of dew.

Ziyi stood at the window, closed her eyes, and let the wind blow on her face.

She thought about a lot.

About what happened last night, about King Xuanyin, about King Feiyun, and about the images she had seen.

And... about Lin Yun.

When that last name appeared in her mind, her brow twitched slightly.

Then she opened her eyes, looked at the leaves outside the window dyed light gold by the morning light, and exhaled a very light, very shallow breath of Qi.

She looked down at the back of her hand.

There was also a trace of an almost imperceptible cool sensation there, exactly the same as what King Feiyun had described.

She didn't know what it was, but she had a vague guess in her heart.

Ziyi remained silent for a long time, finally suppressed that thought, and turned toward the inner chamber.

She needed to rest.

She needed to think some things through properly.

But she knew, those images, that name, and that wisp of cool sensation that was almost non-existent.

In the short term, it probably wouldn't dissipate easily.

The Lin family's bridal chamber.

The sun had already risen high.

Fei Xue woke up first.

Opening her eyes, her line of sight fell upon a sturdy arm and a warm chest close at hand.

She was stunned for a moment; the memories of last night came rushing back like a tide.

Her face turned red instantly.

She didn't even dare to move.

She carefully turned her head and took a look at Feiying beside her.

Feiying was still sleeping, the corners of her mouth slightly curled up, as if she were having a good dream.

Only her breathing still carried a faint nasal sound, a bit heavier than usual.

Fei Xue looked at Lin Yun again.

He had his eyes closed, his breathing steady; one hand was around her, the other resting on Feiying's waist.

He looked like he was sleeping soundly.

Fei Xue took a light breath, wanting to move Lin Yun's hand that was resting on her shoulder away.

As a result, just as she moved, the hand on her shoulder tightened slightly.

"Awake?"

A low voice came from above, carrying the laziness and hoarseness peculiar to waking up in the morning.

Fei Xue stiffened all over.

She stiffened her neck and slowly looked up, meeting Lin Yun's smiling eyes.

"You... when did you wake up?"

"Just woke up."

Lin Yun lowered his head and touched her forehead, his voice gentle: "What? Want to sneak away?"

"I didn't want to run away..."

Fei Xue's voice grew smaller and smaller, the last few words almost inaudible.

She shrank her whole body into the quilt.

Only revealing a pair of eyes outside, blinking as she looked at Lin Yun.

That appearance was a far cry from the cold and icy Fei Xue of usual.

Lin Yun couldn't help but laugh, reaching out to pull her out from under the quilt.

Fei Xue was fished into his embrace, her whole body stiffened, her cheek pressed against his chest, and she could hear his steady, powerful heartbeat.

"Don't hide anymore."

Lin Yun lowered his head, resting his chin on the top of her head, his voice carrying warm breath.

"I saw everything last night."

Fei Xue let out a muffled, indistinct whimpering sound in his arms.

She felt that she had never been so ashamed in her entire life.

Feiying beside them was awakened by the commotion, rolled over groggily, opened one eye to look, and then...

"Sister! You're hugging too tightly!"

She rolled over and sat up, pointing at Fei Xue who was curled up in Lin Yun's arms.

"I was working hard last night too! Why do you get to hog him all to yourself!"

Fei Xue poked half her face out of Lin Yun's arms, blushing as she glared at her: "Shut up!"

"I won't!"

Feiying leaned over righteously and squeezed into the crook of Lin Yun's other arm.

"Husband is mine too! You can't hog him all to yourself!"

Lin Yun was sandwiched between the two, one curled up in shame, the other drilling into his arms righteously.

He couldn't help but laugh, raising his arms to circle both of them.

"Alright, alright, he's both of yours, neither of you can run away."

Feiying hummed with satisfaction, burying her face in his chest.

Fei Xue buried her face even deeper, her ears turning bright red.

The three of them squeezed together in the messy quilt, neither in a hurry to get up.

The sunlight crept in inch by inch, shining on the three figures snuggled together, feeling warm.