Lihua was sweating and shaking. Her breaths were ragged, and she found it hard to calm down.

  "Lihua?" Wei said in a soft and gentle voice so as to not panic her further. His hand warmly caressed her head.

  A few minutes before, Wei heard some soft noises from Lihua's room. Alert, he immediately got up and rushed towards her room. But she didn't open the door even after repeatedly knocking on it. He stepped inside himself and paled, seeing Lihua shivering in her sleep.

  "Lihua!"

  He gently shook her, but he could only hear her mumbling.

  "……No…cannot die…"

  "Where are you…taking me?"

  "Who are you……Want to……go back to Wei…"

  Wei had no clue what she was talking about. He thought she was sick, but she didn't have a fever.

  "Lihua? Lihua? Please wake up," he anxiously urged her. He was stunned even more to see her crying in her sleep.

  Wei patted her head. "Lihua?"

  He poured her some water. "Here. Drink some water first."

  Lihua could hardly gather her thoughts. Everything still felt dizzy to her. She tried to hold it, but water was spilling out. Wei patiently held the glass near her lips and made her drink it.

  Lihua looked left and right and seemed to realize that it wasn't a dream anymore. She stared at Wei. "You……you were…"

  She felt a headache coming. Flashes of his dead body came to her mind, and she shuddered. She frantically pulled his shirt and patted her palm on his chest.

  Wei blinked his eyes and watched her, puzzled.

  "No blood…"

  "What's wrong?" Wei still spoke in a quiet tone. His heart ached seeing her tremblingly clutch his shirt with all her might. He slowly put his hand on hers and smiled. "I am here."

  Tears streamed down as she refused to tear her gaze away from him. "Y-you were…… you were dead…" she choked.

  He blinked. "Dead?"

  "There was blood……on your chest. And then a man…taking me away. You were not breathing," she glared at him tearfully, "D-Don't give me bad dreams!"

  "???"

  "You don't know how scary it was! You were just lying u-unmoving. There was so much blood…" she cried. "And then suddenly, someone dragged me away."

  His gaze darkened.

  Who dared to touch my Lihua?

  She breathed uneasily. "It felt so real……I-I thought if it was some foreboding?"

  Wei quickly cupped her face and furiously shook his head. "It's not. It was just a bad dream. Look, I am right before you. I am not bleeding. And nobody will dare to take you away from me."

  The tears refused to stop flowing. "You……why do you trouble me so much!? First, you killed my sister, then you took away my memories, and now you are giving me bad dreams too!"

  "……"

  The last part had nothing to do with his previous crimes, but he kept his mouth shut because he recalled Mingshen's warning.

  'Don't bother defending yourself against a pregnant woman.'

  Wei nodded. "I am in the wrong."

  Lihua felt a little better seeing him admit his mistakes.

  "……You cannot die, okay?" She softly said. "No matter w-what you did, I don't want to see you dead."

  Wei's heart fluttered in an inexplicable happiness. His gaze softened. "I will be careful."

  Jiang Shan was a dangerous and unpredictable man. He wasn't some measly bug that Wei could squash him so easily. There were years of resentment and hatred. Wei had to be alert and careful.

  Wei wiped her cheeks and smiled. "I won't let you worry, I promise."

  He hesitated a bit. But then he slowly leaned and pecked her forehead. Lihua felt the warmth of his lips. She never wished to see such a horrible dream again. That dream made her realize that hating him for her entire life and suffering their separation was much better than never being able to see him again.

  As long as he was alive…


  Her breath stopped in her throat as she clutched his shirt. Wei couldn't help himself and leaned to peck the tip of her nose too. He pulled her closer to him, which she couldn't resist. Their chests touched, making them shiver.

  With his gaze fixed at her, Wei lifted her chin and pressed his lips on hers. They laid on the bed, kissing each other that grew wilder, messier and fiercer. A tear slipped from her eye seeing his chest not stained with blood. His fingers caressed her body as he kissed her neck and chin. Heat rushed in his body, and he wished to devour her. He wanted to enter her. He wanted to make love to her.

  But he knew he couldn't. He rested his forehead on her neck and took a few deep breaths to calm himself. He couldn't lose himself. Even if Lihua seemed weak and vulnerable, be it because of pregnancy or the nightmare or both, he didn't want to take advantage of her. Maybe Lihua would agree to go further in the rush of emotions, but he didn't want to. Not when he knew she resented him for his sins.

  To her, he was now only Song Jia's murderer who she cannot forgive. It hurt him. It tore him apart, but it was the truth.

  It was enough for him that she agreed for this night for them to stay together. He didn't want to be greedy and ruin this precious time.

  Wei got up and covered her with the blanket. "You should rest now."

  Lihua snapped out of her daze and stared at him, shocked and embarrassed. She wanted to say something, but she couldn't.

  He smiled. "You don't need to explain anything. Just have a good sleep now."

  She saw his slightly sweaty forehead, his chest heaving in breathlessness and his clenched fists. He was stopping himself for her. It filled her heart with incredible sadness and helplessness.

  As he was about to quickly leave, she said, "Sleep on the bed. The couch will be uncomfortable for you."

  Wei shot his head back in surprise. "No, I…"

  She turned to the other side, hiding her face, "Don't overthink. Just sleep here."

  She said with finality. Wei couldn't oppose, and he was happy not to. He beamed and laid beside her, covering himself with the blanket. "Okay."

  Then he asked, "Can you turn to this side?"

  "……Why?"

  "So that I can spend my night gazing at you."

  "……"

  How will I be able to sleep with you watching me so intently?

  "You…… Don't talk anymore and just sleep!" Her face flushed inside the blanket.

  Wei pursed his lips. "Okay."

  Five minutes later, Lihua turned to the other side anyway. Wei brightened. "You-"

  "I am asleep."

  "……"

  He chuckled and rested his head on his palm. She had her eyes shut, but he knew she was awake…… "Goodnight," he whispered.