Sharing Dreams with My Bestie's Cousin

"What Buddha Beads?"

Shang Hexing’s tone held some confusion and surprise.

Wen Zhi explained to him, "The Buddha Beads with the ghost face pattern were left to me by my mother. There are two strands in total, and the other was accidentally taken by Chong Wanyin."

After she had put the Buddha Beads on Chong Wanyin, she hadn’t been able to enter her dream, and up to now, she still couldn’t figure out what had gone wrong.

Was it the fault of the Buddha Beads?

Or was it because she had been too tense at the time, and hadn’t been able to fully enter the dream?

"Could you describe what the Buddha Beads look like?" Shang Hexing suddenly asked.

"Wait for a moment, I’ll get the other strand for you," Wen Zhi said as she turned to go inside.

Shang Hexing watched Wen Zhi hurry to get the Buddha Beads, a hint of shadowy color fleeting across the depths of his eyes, dark and indecipherable.

Soon, Wen Zhi came out with a strand of Buddha Beads.

She had always worn this strand on her wrist, and had not taken it off even at the hospital when her wounds were treated. Later, when she awoke, she felt it was uncomfortable and had taken it off and placed it under her pillow.

She felt that Shang Hexing should have seen it today, only that he hadn’t paid much attention.

"Look, the Buddha Beads look like this," said Wen Zhi as she sat down next to the sofa and handed over the strand of Buddha Beads to Shang Hexing.

Some bloodstains were on the beads, though they had already dried.

When Shang Hexing reached out to take them, Wen Zhi drew her hand back, "I should wash them first; I just realized there’s blood on the beads."

Shang Hexing didn’t mind; he took the Buddha Beads from Wen Zhi’s hands, fingertips picking over them.

The hospital room was brightly lit, and under the illumination, the beads’ color and luster were conspicuously beautiful.

"The color and quality are excellent; they’re priceless," he appraised.

Wen Zhi was pleased to hear him say that, "My mother said that these are inherited treasures, and they’re only passed down to daughters, not sons."

Shang Hexing’s fingertips rubbed against the beads, and some of the dry blood smeared onto his fingertip. He casually asked, "What is the purpose of the Buddha Beads?"

As he finished speaking,

Wen Zhi looked at Shang Hexing with an incredulous expression.

Shang Hexing smiled slightly, "What’s the matter?"

Wen Zhi pursed her lips slightly, "Why would you ask that?"

No wonder Wen Zhi was so surprised; she had never told Shang Hexing the secret of the Buddha Beads. Although Meng Fan also knew, Meng Fan was even less likely to tell anyone.

When Shang Hexing suddenly asked about the use of the Buddha Beads, Wen Zhi’s heart had skipped a beat.

Could he know something?

"I just asked casually; these Buddha Beads appear to be..." Shang Hexing kept scratching at the bead with his finger, muttering in a quiet voice, "quite spiritual."

So that was the reason; she had had a start.

Wen Zhi took back the Buddha Beads, "My mother also said that these Buddha Beads are very spiritual."

Seeing Wen Zhi hurriedly retrieve the Buddha Beads, Shang Hexing couldn’t help but tease, "Afraid I’ve taken a fancy to them, and will ask for them?"

"It’s not that..." Wen Zhi held the beads tightly, her voice somewhat unnatural: "The beads have blood on them, and it smeared on your hand."

Shang Hexing suddenly asked, "If I were to ask you for these Buddha Beads, would you give them to me?"

Wen Zhi was caught off guard by his question.

She bit her lower lip and fumbled for an excuse, "...Buddha Beads that have touched blood cannot be given to others."

Shang Hexing asked, "What kind of reasoning is that?"

Wen Zhi blurted out, "Blood is inauspicious and can bring about calamities."

As her words fell, the atmosphere suddenly turned quiet.

Outside the window, the evening had already fallen, and the streets below were already ablaze with a dazzling array of colors.

The lights outside reflected in Wen Zhi’s eyes.

In a daze, she heard Shang Hexing’s voice, low and deep with an inexplicable enticement, "Wen Zhi."

Wen Zhi’s heart tingled, and she confessed honestly, "...Actually, these Buddha Beads have a secret, but I can’t tell you right now."

Shang Hexing’s smile grew even broader, his hand stretching to the back of Wen Zhi’s neck, "Then when do you plan to tell me this secret?"

At this moment, their breaths were too close, and Wen Zhi dared not look at him directly.

Even though they had already done much more intimate things, she always felt shy and uncomfortable in his presence.

Just like now, not only was her heart numb, but so was she.

"Wait, wait for me, ..." she stuttered.

"Alright, tell me when you’re ready to tell me," Shang Hexing propped himself up and turned to the side, "Let’s talk about another matter."

Wen Zhi shifted back a little and immediately asked, "What matter?"

Shang Hexing used a little force in his arm and pressed her back, "After returning to Bai City, live with me in Qionglou."

Wen Zhi was slightly stunned.

Her previous stay at Qionglou was only temporary.

But this time, Shang Hexing’s intention was not temporary, but permanent.

To put it plainly, it meant cohabitation.

However, this time Wen Zhi deliberately pretended not to understand, "Are you worried I have nowhere to go?"

"Yes," he replied, following her lead, looking at her with deep eyes, his intention more obvious than ever.

Wen Zhi was troubled, "But I do have a place to go."

He guessed it, his expression calm, "Planning to go back to the Wen family’s home?"

Wen Zhi hesitated for a few seconds, then nodded, "Yes, back to the Wen family’s home."

Shang Hexing didn’t insist, "Okay, I’ll arrange a personal assistant to stay by your side."

"No need." Wen Zhi refused without even thinking.

Shang Hexing frowned unhappily, "If you don’t want an assistant, what will you do if Wen Yiwan bullies you?"

Wen Zhi said directly, "I will fight back."

Hearing this, Shang Hexing’s meaningful gaze fell on Wen Zhi’s hand wrapped in bandages.

Normally, Wen Zhi’s words would not be a problem.

But coincidentally, Wen Zhi’s hand was injured at the moment.

If Wen Yiwan really bullied her, she probably would not have the ability to fight back.

Wen Zhi still wanted to show some strength, when suddenly she heard Shang Hexing let out a sigh with a hint of laughter, "Your hand is injured, how can I rest assured letting you go back to the Wen family’s home alone?"

Wen Zhi muttered softly, "You can’t possibly come with me to the Wen family’s home."

"It’s not impossible," he said.

Wen Zhi was stunned for a moment, then looked at Shang Hexing’s expression, which did not seem to be a casual remark.

"That... wouldn’t be good," she shook her head.

Shang Hexing asked her, "Why wouldn’t it be good? Are you afraid that people will think, I’m like your uncle, planning to marry into the Wen family?"

Wen Zhi’s cheeks flushed slightly, "It would harm your reputation."

The hand Shang Hexing had on the back of Wen Zhi’s neck naturally fell, resting across her back, "I’m moving into my fiancée’s home, what’s wrong with that."

"Fiancée?" she asked in surprise.

Shang Hexing was calm, "After Old Mr. Zhou’s birthday banquet, that’s what everyone else thinks."

"Forget it, I won’t talk about it anymore," Wen Zhi feared that if the conversation continued, Shang Hexing might truly decide to stay at the Wen family’s home for a while.

She hurriedly got up to go to sleep.

Shang Hexing’s gaze was tinged with a smile as he retracted it and took out his phone, noticing several calls he had missed in silent mode.

He opened it and saw the missed calls were all from Shang Jizhou.

He didn’t return Shang Jizhou’s calls but sent a message to Chen Jinhai about the Buddha Beads, then put his phone on the sofa and got up to go inside."

The VIP hospital room’s bed was one meter eighty wide, plenty enough for two people, but considering Wen Zhi’s injured hand and not wanting to crowd her, Shang Hexing chose to sleep on the innermost bed instead.

The corner floor lamp was not turned off, but it did not affect sleep.

Wen Zhi had already slept all afternoon, so she wasn’t very sleepy at night. Shang Hexing didn’t speak, and neither did she; the atmosphere was quiet as if they weren’t in the same room.

She didn’t know how much time had passed when just as she closed her eyes for a few seconds, she suddenly heard Shang Hexing’s voice.

"Are you still angry about the matter that day?"

Wen Zhi opened her eyes and asked, "What happened that day?"

The atmosphere once again fell into silence.

Although Wen Zhi was usually slow to catch on, thinking carefully about what Shang Hexing had just mentioned in conjunction with the recent events, what else could it be?

It was probably about that time at the old house when he almost hurt her.