My wife is a witch princess.

Song Che instinctively reached out and gripped her hand back.

Xia Li immediately reacted as if burned, her fingers struggled for a moment, and then she pressed his hand against the inside of her pocket with force.

This won't do.

Being led by the hand by a girl like this always feels like being a puppy on a walk...

Song Che's stubborn, masculine spirit kicked in, and he subtly tightened his grip, trying to turn the tide. But Xia Li, who usually seemed quiet, was incredibly stubborn once she got serious.

Song Che is stubborn, and Xia Li is stubborn to the extreme.

In the end, Song Che "gave in" and let her loosely hold his hand as they slowly walked forward.

My pockets gradually warmed up.

Xia Li seemed to feel that one hand had warmed up enough, so she naturally pulled it out and put her other hand in to continue warming it.

She acted so openly, as if she really was just trying to keep warm, unlike Song Che, who was half focused on feeling the slender softness of her fingers and the delicate coolness of her skin.

Xia Li understood perfectly.

But she still didn't understand what was so interesting about "touching" hands.

However, even if there's nothing interesting to touch, she would never let just anyone touch her. Physical contact always makes her feel awkward, except for Song Che... she seems to be able to tolerate it.

Suddenly, she stopped and took out her free hand, lightly tapping Song Che's head with a "thud".

"Don't touch my stomach." Her voice was flat.

"I bumped into it by accident," Song Che said without changing his expression.

"You're lying. You've 'accidentally' bumped into me several times already." Xia Li pulled her hand completely out of his pocket. "I'm not letting you warm it up anymore."

“If you’re not warm, I will be.” Song Che reacted even faster, immediately taking the initiative and grabbing her hand that was trying to retreat, putting it back in his pocket and holding it tightly.

Xia Li was pulled closer by him, and after a few token struggles that failed, she gave up resisting. "It's fine to put it in your pocket... that's fine too."

She turned her face away.

But this "peace" didn't last more than a few minutes.

thump.

Another light tap on the head.

"I don't want to warm it up anymore." Xia Li said sternly, trying to pull her hand away. "You keep touching it...it's strange."

"What's so strange about that?" Song Che gripped her hand tightly to prevent her from escaping, speaking with righteous indignation, "Boyfriends are allowed to touch their girlfriends' hands. If you feel you're at a disadvantage, then touch her hand back."

"You're lying." Xia Li glared at him, spitting out a single word, "Pervert, we're just pretending to be boyfriend and girlfriend, we're supposed to be decent people."

Song Che: "...?"

How do you even know this word?

"The magic mirror told me." Xia Li looked away, not telling him that the last time she wasn't wearing pants in the bedroom, it was actually partly to test whether Song Che was a "decent person".

When she searched for related questions, the webpage popped up with a lot of inappropriate words and descriptions, and she "accidentally" read them all.

Strangely, some links, when clicked, only displayed a "[404]" icon, and clicking them repeatedly didn't help. There were some things she ultimately didn't get to see.

Song Che paused for a moment, then decided to correct her misconception: "This isn't called 'perverted,' it's called 'liking.'"

"The magic mirror says that if a man wants to touch a woman, he's indecent, and if he keeps wanting to touch her, he's a pervert," Xia Li repeated earnestly. "That's not what liking someone is. Liking someone is..."

What does "liking" mean?

"I...I don't know!" Xia Li's voice unconsciously rose a little, carrying a hint of annoyance at being stumped.

"If you don't know, you don't know. Don't be so self-righteous." Song Che suppressed a laugh and continued his twisted logic, "It's normal for a man to have some 'improper' thoughts about a woman he likes. There's nothing to hide or be ashamed of—unless he's not a normal man or he's gay."

What is gay?

"...It's better if you don't know this."

“…Oh.” Xia Li was silent for a while, then suddenly looked up and asked very seriously, “Then am I…not a normal woman? I always feel this feeling…is very strange.”

“That’s not quite it.” Song Che softened his voice. “It’s a bit contradictory to explain. But many people would feel ashamed at first, or find it hard to accept having such thoughts. For example, I used to look at pretty girls, like them, but I would deny it. Now I don’t feel that way anymore. Now I have eyes that can ‘appreciate beauty’.”

"So you like looking at beautiful women."

"Hmm. But don't misunderstand, 'liking' here just means finding them pretty, like appreciating a painting or a flower. But my 'liking' for you is different." Song Che was now spouting nonsense without batting an eye, certain that Xia Li wouldn't be able to discern the subtle difference. "Of course, I'm telling you this because I like you. You...would you mind if I looked at other beautiful women?"

He suddenly felt like teasing her and lowered his voice: "Or... touch their hands?"

“I…” Xia Li was stumped by the question, her brows furrowing slightly. “I don’t know. But I feel… you shouldn’t touch them.”

"Hahaha..." Song Che was amused by her straightforward yet possessive answer. "Actually, I haven't seen many of them. None of them are as pretty as you."

"...Me?"

"Yes, Your Highness is exceptionally beautiful." Song Che looked at her cheeks, slightly flushed from the cold wind, and her clear blue eyes, and said sincerely, "If you were to become a social media influencer, you would definitely be a hit."

"Can you make money?"

"It's possible... but it's better not to do it."

"Because I'm an 'illegal resident'?"

"Smart." Song Che nodded, pondering to himself. After the college entrance exam, he planned to go to the orphanage to see what could be done. With Tao Yao's somewhat unstable illusion abilities, resolving Xia Li's identity issue shouldn't be impossible.

He'd figure out a way to verify her identity first, then get the documents replaced... The process would definitely be troublesome, but he could wait. He'd wait for Tao Yao's monthly, unreliable illusion to cool down.

The welfare home uses it once, a possible subsequent investigation uses it once, and it uses it again when reissuing an ID card... Theoretically, it's feasible.

If everything goes smoothly, Xia Li might still be able to... legally go to school.

Xia Li didn't show any happiness on her face after hearing this. She just lowered her head again, and it's unknown what was going on in her little mind at that moment.

The two held hands like that.

Despite Xia Li's occasional attempts to pull away and Song Che's constant touching, the whole way was filled with noise and chatter. Song Che kept spouting nonsense without batting an eye, and Xia Li would occasionally flick him on the forehead in retaliation before slowly walking home.

……

By the time he reached his doorstep, it was already afternoon. Song Che glanced at his phone—it had taken him almost an hour and a half to walk there.

"So tired." He let out a long sigh and deliberately glanced at Xia Li beside him.

He simply couldn't believe that this girl wasn't tired at all.

Xia Li was breathing slightly heavily, her chest rising and falling gently. Her nose and cheeks were red from the cold, as if she had applied too much blush. Her hair was slightly disheveled by the wind, with a few strands clinging to her sweaty forehead.

"Aren't you tired?" Song Che raised an eyebrow.

"...I'm not tired." Xia Li looked away, her voice a little weak. "I'm hungry."

"Okay, it's good that you're hungry. I'll cook for you."

As they opened the door, a warm breeze wafted out. Bruce wagged his tail and greeted them, while Momoka nestled on the sofa, gazing at them expectantly—she was clearly hungry too.

Tao Yao went out to play, and when she was done playing, she came back and let Tao Xiang eat. She really had a good plan!

Song Che changed his shoes and went straight into the kitchen. Xia Li followed him in as usual, standing beside him, ready to help.

Seeing her eager expression, Song Che suddenly had a whim and took the apron off the hook.

"Here, Your Highness, would you like to try being the head chef today?" He unfolded his apron, gesturing for Xia Li to turn around.

Xia Li was stunned for a moment, then obediently turned around and faced away from him.

Song Che put the apron over her head and tied the straps around her waist with both hands. His fingertips brushed against her waist, and he could feel the slender waistline beneath the fabric.

He paused for a moment before neatly tying a knot.

"Alright." He stepped back, looking at Xia Li, who was wearing an apron and had slightly disheveled silver hair, and found her inexplicably cute. "You're the head chef today, and I'll assist you. What do you want to cook?"

Xia Li turned around, looked down at the apron she was wearing, then looked up at the stove, her expression serious as if she were facing a battle.

"...Stir-fried greens."

She remembered that Song Che often did this; it seemed to be the simplest thing to do.

"Okay. The vegetables have been washed, and the garlic has been chopped." Song Che pushed the colander containing the vegetables and a small dish of minced garlic in front of her. "Do you remember the procedure? Heat the pan first, then add the oil."

"I remember." Xia Li nodded and turned on the gas stove with a confident air.

Blue flames suddenly shot up.

She stared at the pot, waited a few seconds, and then... picked up the oil bottle and poured the oil into the pot, which wasn't very hot yet, without hesitation.

"Wait a minute—" Song Che didn't have time to stop them, and saw that half of the oil in the pot had already been poured in.

"Is there too much oil...?"

Song Che looked at the pool of oil and his lips twitched.

This is enough to stir-fry three plates of vegetables.

"Is this a lot?" Xia Li looked at the pot with suspicion. "I saw you poured more last time."

"I was frying something! You don't need this much oil for stir-frying vegetables!" Song Che sighed, "Oh well, a little more is fine. More oil won't spoil the vegetables... I guess."

As the pan gradually heated up, fine ripples began to appear on the surface of the oil.

Xia Li stared intently at the oil.

Then, she picked up the dish of minced garlic, held it at least twenty centimeters above the oil, and flicked her wrist—

"Splash!"

The minced garlic fell into the oil like a shower of flowers, instantly creating a burst of intense crackling and popping sounds!

Fortunately, the oil wasn't very hot.

"Ouch!" Xia Li exclaimed softly, jumping back in a flustered manner, almost bumping into Song Che behind her.

Song Che reacted quickly, pulling her behind him while grabbing the pot lid with his other hand and holding it up like a shield.

"Your Highness! Throw the bomb?! Lower it, slide it down the edge of the pot!"

A few drops of oil splashed onto the back of his hand, and he still hissed in pain.

Xia Li peeked out from behind him, looked at the fragrant minced garlic in the pan, and pursed her lips. "...Okay."

"The garlic is a little burnt, but it's okay, it's fine if it's burnt and fragrant." Song Che handed her the spatula. "Now it's time to add the greens. Be careful, don't get too close."

Xia Li took the spatula, as if facing a formidable enemy.