How can someone travel through time and space and become a beggar?

Feeling the heat source next to him, Xia Chu rubbed to the side.

Zhao Huazhang stiffened as his neck was brushed by smooth skin. A burning sensation spread from his neck to his heart. He closed his eyes and asked, "Are you awake?"

The hoarse, deep voice was like an electric current, and Xia Chu woke up almost instantly. Realizing what she had just done, she struggled and said with a red face, "Put me down."

"Yeah." Zhao Huazhang gently put her down, turned around, and couldn't help but reach out and stroke her face. The soft and elastic skin seemed to have an unknown stickiness that made him reluctant to remove his hand. "Let's walk for a while. You just woke up and it's not good for you to ride in the wind."

"Yeah." The place on her face that was touched felt like it was carrying a tiny electric current, and Xia Chu shrank her neck.

Her well-behaved and docile appearance pleased Zhao Huazhang, and he couldn't help but hug her in his arms.

Being surrounded by a spacious and warm embrace was a very comfortable feeling, making people not want to resist. Xia Chu hesitated and reached out to hug the other person's waist.

Is this what it feels like to be dependent on your mother?

She couldn't help but think: It was as if all the storms in the world were isolated from the outside. As long as she was in this embrace, she would be the safest. It made people indulge and not want to move.

It was a perfect fit, and Zhao Huazhang simply wanted to embed her into himself.

It is said that everyone has a different body smell, and the first feeling to judge whether you can accept the other person is whether you can get used to the other person's smell.

Xia Chu thought Zhao Huazhang smelled pleasant, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. It was a clean, woody scent, neither strong nor weak, just right. She had no idea what she smelled like, but she figured Zhao Huazhang wouldn't mind it either.

otherwise...

Why don’t you let go?

She moved and said, "Let's go back. It's getting late." It was a bit of a downer, but she saw that it was getting dark.

"I really want to take you home and hide you." Zhao Huazhang kissed her hair lightly and let go of her hand with satisfaction.

The two men got on their horses, and although they didn't say anything along the way, they both had smiles on their faces.

This smile...if a single person saw it, they would probably find it a bit disgusting.

After sending her to the Wang family's door, Zhao Huazhang felt a little reluctant to leave. Perhaps the physical contact just now had made him bolder, and he always wanted to touch Xia Chu. He reached out and held the hand that was a circle smaller than his in his palm. "I'll come to see you again tomorrow."

"Okay." Xia Chu smiled and scratched his palm, then pulled his hand out. "See you tomorrow."

He watched her go in, and the door closed in front of him. Zhao Huazhang finally returned home with his horse, feeling lost. Qingsong was waiting at the door, and when he saw him, he said the old lady was looking for him.

"Zhang'er is back." Old Madam Zhao looked at his expression. Why did he look unhappy? "Did you have a bad time today?"

"No." Zhao Huazhang shook his head and looked at his grandmother. He suddenly felt the urge to confide in her. "Grandma, I feel like she's about to agree."

"You haven't agreed yet?" Madam Zhao frowned, a little confused. "You two went in and out together, and many people saw you. Even your father got wind of it. If you don't settle it quickly, I'm afraid people will gossip about it."

"My dad knows?" Zhao Huazhang said, and then he felt it was common sense. He and Xia Chu hadn't tried to hide it, and Xia Chu hadn't tried to avoid suspicion. It was only a matter of time before someone saw them. Xia Chu's Yin Ge Garden was quite famous, and most people had seen her. His face was also recognized by everyone. He just didn't know if the Wang family had heard any rumors. The thought of someone gossiping behind his back, or saying something unpleasant to Xia Chu's face, made his face darken.

"If you truly like it, Grandma won't interfere. It's better to make the decision as soon as possible. If these rumors spread, I'm afraid it won't be a good thing and will also damage Miss Wang's reputation." Seeing his unwavering expression, Old Lady Zhao continued, "Miss Wang opened that garden for profit or for her own enjoyment. If her reputation is damaged, others will be concerned about their own reputations, and I'm afraid no one will dare to go there again."

"I understand." The Zhao family held some influence in Lin'an, but they couldn't stop the gossip. He didn't want to force Xia Chu, but he was afraid the marriage should be arranged sooner rather than later. A hint of smug joy bubbled up in the dark corner of his heart, but he quickly suppressed it, feeling somewhat despicable.

Dong Xiaohuan had indeed heard some rumors, from customers in the shop. They said they had seen her daughter with a man, and wondered if a wedding was imminent. She had smiled and tried to cover it up at the time, but when Xia Chu returned, she brought it up again. "Xia Chu, I'm not trying to rush you, but you and Hua Zhang have been together for a while now. Many people have seen you together. Has his family said anything about the marriage?"

Xia Chu was stunned for a moment, "Someone gossiped?"

"Yes, there are some. You two are both unmarried, so you didn't say anything too unpleasant. But it's not a good thing to keep dragging it on like this." Dong Xiaohuan said, poking Wang Yong who was eating in silence.

Wang Yong looked up from his bowl. Dong Xiaohuan had recently told him about Xiaochu and Zhao Huazhang, so he wasn't surprised. He asked, "Xiaochu, what do you think? Or does the Zhao family disagree?"

Wang Qiuyu pricked up her gossipy ears, "What happened between Sister and Brother Huazhang? What kind of marriage is this?"

Guan Xu also put down the bowl and looked at Xia Chu.

"No," Xia Chu was stared at by the whole family and couldn't eat anymore, "I'll ask tomorrow."

She felt like she had just experienced the sweetness of love, and now she was being urged to get married. But when she thought about living with Zhao Huazhang in the future, she didn't seem to be very reluctant. She even felt a little bit of anticipation. However, when she thought about the other people in the Zhao family, she felt a little repulsive.

It would be nice if they were the only two of them living together, a small home just for her and Zhao Huazhang. Every day, she would go to work and come home at night. She would cook while Zhao Huazhang washed the dishes after dinner, and they would talk about the fun things they had encountered during the day, just like their father and mother.

Such a picture gives a feeling of peaceful and quiet time.

At night, she lay in bed, her thoughts shifting from their married life together to their daytime mountain climbing. She thought of that fleeting kiss, Zhao Huazhang's broad back, his warm embrace, the scent of wood...

I must be smiling very obscenely now... She pulled up the quilt to cover half of her face, then turned over and buried her face in the pillow.

Hey! Don’t think about it!

Isn't it just a hug, a kiss, a kiss...

My eldest brother, second brother, and third brother, which one of them hasn’t carried me on his back?

But it’s different?

What's the difference? They're not all men!

I can’t really put my finger on what’s different. I felt safe and relaxed when my brother carried me on his back, but there was something different.