If he had known what would happen between him and Lin ngjie, or the extent of their entanglents, Zhuge Feng certainly would not have used closed-door cultivation as an excuse to leave Hidden World Village. Then, perhaps, none of what followed would have happened, and Lin ngjie wouldn’t have fallen into a deep sleep that lasted sixteen years.
Ever since the day Lin ngjie had looked down on him, Zhuge Feng would show up at the Shangguan Family’s residence every night. The n of the Shangguan Family left early and returned late each day, sotis not coming ho for over ten days at a ti. Zhuge Feng even made a special effort to learn about their family’s circumstances.
Shangguan Hao perford exceptionally well in the military and was frequently assigned missions. Although he had just married Lin ngjie, they spent very little ti together. Shangguan Yu had recently been promoted and was also extrely busy. Consequently, the people most often at ho in the large Shangguan household were Lin ngjie, Liu Ruoling, and Old Mada Shangguan.
Liu Ruoling went to work during the day. Shangguan Qing was already in kindergarten, with a dedicated car service for her daily pick-up and drop-off. This ant that during the day, only Lin ngjie and Old Mada Shangguan were usually at ho. Hiding in the shadows, Zhuge Feng watched Old Mada Shangguan relentlessly find fault with Lin ngjie over every little thing. Lin ngjie would simply smile, quickly enduring it. Zhang Ma was also part of the Shangguan household then, working as a maid.
Zhang Ma took care of Lin ngjie’s daily needs. Although Lin ngjie had married into the Shangguan Family, there was virtually no interaction between the Lin and Shangguan families. Despite this, Lin ngjie frequently visited her own family.
Every day at ho, Lin ngjie bore the brunt of Old Mada Shangguan’s ill temper. Whenever Lin ngjie got angry, she would take her sports car out for a furious drive, returning with it full of items—each a high-end product—with sothing for everyone. Upon seeing these things, Old Mada Shangguan’s expression would turn even fouler, despite receiving her share, and her comnts would beco increasingly harsh.
Old Mada Shangguan would accuse Lin ngjie of only knowing how to spend money, not earn it, and of wasting her son’s hard-earned cash. Her criticism was relentless nitpicking, constantly deriding Lin ngjie. Towards Liu Ruoling, Old Mada Shangguan’s attitude was equally cold.
Filled with fury, Lin ngjie returned to her room and shouted in the direction where Zhuge Feng was hiding, "Get out here!"
Zhuge Feng rubbed his nose, inwardly pleased by her predicant, and erged into the room quite boldly.
Looking at the large wedding photograph in the room, Zhuge Feng felt an inexplicable pang, but he quickly pushed the thought to the back of his mind.
"What do you want?" Lin ngjie asked, her face still holding a sweet smile, though it now seed sowhat terrifying. She actually detected ! Zhuge Feng thought with so surprise.
"Not much, just looking for the Five Spirit Pearls," Zhuge Feng replied, making no effort to hide his purpose. He knew it would be useless to try and deceive soone who could detect his presence. Besides, his instincts told him he didn’t want to lie to Lin ngjie.
"There are no Five Spirit Pearls here. You can leave now."
Zhuge Feng elegantly seated himself on the sofa. "How do you know there aren’t any?" he asked, watching her face flush red then pale with anger, a sight that amused him greatly. "Did you marry Shangguan Hao and endure that old hag, all for the sake of the Five Spirit Pearls?"
"Shut your mouth!" Lin ngjie retorted, her temper flaring for the first ti, her usual gentle deanor gone. "What are these Five Spirit Pearls anyway? Do you think everyone is as shaless as you?"
"Why should I shut up? I haven’t said anything wrong," Zhuge Feng said, waving his hands in a gesture of innocence. "Besides, that old hag is deliberately making things difficult for you. Can you really stand it?"
The term "old hag" seed to slowly quell the anger in Lin ngjie’s heart. "You’re right," she murmured, more to herself than to him. "’Old hag’ fits her quite well. If Hao hadn’t repeatedly told not to clash with her, I wouldn’t be here enduring all this." At the ntion of Shangguan Hao’s na, her expression softened, her voice tinged with the tenderness reserved for a beloved.
"What’s your na?" Lin ngjie asked.
"Ouyang Xuan," Zhuge Feng replied, offering the alias he always used when traveling. Since she asked, he naturally gave the false na.
"Hmph! All that glitters is not gold," Lin ngjie sneered sarcastically, suppressing her annoyance. "You have the nerve to use a na like that? It must be fake." Despite her anger, she seed more vibrant and expressive than when she faced Old Mada Shangguan.
So, her days in the Shangguan Family aren’t easy because of that old hag, Zhuge Feng mused, finding the situation peculiar.
"Thank you for the complint," Zhuge Feng replied, unabashedly taking her sarcastic remark as praise.
In the days that followed, Zhuge Feng ca by almost every day to trade barbs with Lin ngjie. He ticulously searched the entire Shangguan residence, from top to bottom, not missing a single corner. He knew sothing so important would be hidden extrely well. Each ti he searched, Lin ngjie would surprisingly help by turning on lights, even pointing out spots he had overlooked.
More often than not, however, Lin ngjie would sprinkle a bit of itching powder on things she had handled, making Zhuge Feng uncomfortable. He fell for her tricks every ti. This went on for more than ten days.
When Shangguan Hao finally returned, Lin ngjie was ecstatic, utterly blissful. She no longer had ti to bicker with Zhuge Feng; if she even spotted him, she treated him as if he were invisible, paying him no mind. She was always with Shangguan Hao, watching sunrises and sunsets together, and going on outings with him.
From his hiding spot, Zhuge Feng watched her face, radiant with happiness and contentnt. Seeing Shangguan Hao’s tender affection for her, an inexplicable sourness welled up in his heart. He was intensely jealous of Shangguan Hao.
At night, hearing the intimate, heart-pounding sounds coming from their room, Zhuge Feng was consud by an even stronger urge to kill Shangguan Hao. One day passed, then two. After three days, Zhuge Feng could bear it no longer. He left in a fit of pique and went into closed-door cultivation for three months.
He had only interacted with Lin ngjie for a little over ten days, yet the mory of their ti together constantly replayed in his mind, impossible to shake off. After three months, he could no longer resist and reappeared at the Shangguan Family’s villa, secretly watching her.
When he saw her slightly protruding belly, Zhuge Feng felt as if a bucket of icy water had been dumped over him, chilling him to the bone. Watching Lin ngjie sit happily on the sofa, nestled in Shangguan Hao’s embrace, his heart turned to ice. Three months... and she was pregnant?
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