My wife is a witch princess.

But since it was a dream, there's nothing strange about it.

He circled the living room but didn't see Bruce's furry figure. Finally, he decided to check Xia Li's room. They say dreams have everything, but this dream was far too lonely—except for himself, there was no one else there.

The entire world was bathed in a somber, dusky yellow hue, as if everything was shrouded in an unsettling halo.

He walked slowly, able to clearly hear the echo of his own breath. The omnipresent twilight exuded the regret and weariness of a drama about to end.

He pushed open the door to Xia Li's bedroom.

Then, he froze on the spot.

……

The next morning.

"You scared me to death!" Tao Yao sprang up from her cat bed, her fur standing on end. "What kind of nightmare was he having! How could I, the Fox King, die in such a... so undignified way!"

"What did you see, sister?" Tao Xiang asked timidly in her heart.

"The four of us died in Xia Li's room!"

"Sister Xia Li...will she kill us?"

“Idiot, there were four people. She died too! Me, Bruce, her… all lying on the bed. He came in and died too.”

"His dream...it was terrifying." Momoka asked in confusion, "Wasn't that a dream you created with your illusion magic, sister?"

“I did induce the dream, but I didn’t make him have this kind of dream. I can’t control it.” Tao Yao scratched the floor. “If an ordinary person is killed in a dream, it’s probably because they feel unsafe during the day, or they always feel that someone is plotting against them.”

"He's out." Tao Xiang paused, cut off the conversation, and looked up. "Good morning, Brother Song Che."

"Good morning, Tao... Tao Xiang?" Song Che responded, his gaze lingering on her face for a couple more seconds. This girl had died a terrible death yesterday, and she was giving him the sidelong glance, which made him uneasy.

Then he turned to Bruce, who was still snoring on the sofa, and glanced at Xia Li's closed door before turning and going into the bathroom. It wasn't until Song Che and Xia Li went out to attend the final rehearsal that Tao Yao spoke again, her tone unusually serious: "Sister, my sixth sense tells me—we have to run."

"Oh, just because we died once in his dream?"

"No! It's my sixth sense! After careful observation and analysis, that wicked woman definitely knows Song Che! But for some reason, she can't meet him directly, so she's using us as messengers and punching bags! This means we'll continue to be manipulated by her from the shadows... No, we need to be free!"

"But last time we used illusion magic to give Song Che a little fright, that wicked woman knocked bumps on both of our heads..."

"What are you afraid of? This time we'll run far away! We'll make sure she can't find us!"

"Then what will we do about eating and sleeping...?"

"Self-reliance!" Tao Yao puffed out her furry chest, her voice filled with tragic determination. "If there's really no food, I'd rather starve to death outside!"

"Am I...am I going to starve to death too?" Momoka's voice was trembling with tears.

"Yes, you must have backbone!"

Tao Xiang fell silent, curling up pitifully in a ball. She didn't want to starve. Song Che's cooking smelled so good; wouldn't it be better to eat a few more meals? That wicked woman… she only made them "bless" the gold coins. Was her sister overreacting?

However, cats are naturally quite prone to stress.

My older sister doesn't eat it, but she does.

Tao Xiang secretly made up her mind.

……

Generally, people forget their dreams quickly after they've had them, at most remembering some fragmented pieces. But Song Che clearly remembered every detail of this dream—from the strange sense of wakefulness when he opened his eyes, to the empty streets, to the suffocating twilight hues that enveloped everything, and finally, the scene he saw after pushing open that door.

This was a complete nightmare for him.

In the rehearsal room, Song Che sat alone on a chair in the corner. The final rehearsal was almost over; they were just waiting for the official performance next weekend. Xia Li wasn't beside him; she was learning makeup from Jiang Xiaoxiao. The others had already left after their rehearsals.

Song Che's thoughts uncontrollably returned to that dream. That bloodstained kitchen knife—it was the very one Xia Li had placed on her bedside table, saying it was for "self-defense."

...Damn it, the first thing I did when I got home was throw that knife away.

He forced himself to stop thinking, raised his head, and looked at Xia Li not far away.

She studied diligently, meticulously following Jiang Xiaoxiao's instructions in front of the mirror. Foundation, blush, eyeshadow... the colors gradually spread across her face, magically transforming her aura. The exaggerated stage makeup from last time only seemed comical, but this everyday makeup added a touch of refinement and... aloofness to her already striking features.

"Xiaoxiao." Xia Li suddenly stopped what she was doing and looked at Jiang Xiaoxiao through the mirror. "Could you let Jiang Shuo come and play with Song Che?"

"Huh?" Jiang Xiaoxiao was taken aback. "Sure, my brother's always just playing games at home on weekends anyway. What's up?"

“Song Che hasn’t been talking much these past two days.” Xia Li’s tone was calm, but her furrowed brows betrayed her confusion. “He doesn’t talk to me, and his mind is always in turmoil.”

She had been wondering what was wrong with Song Che.

He didn't speak to her, yet he didn't seem to dislike her. She didn't know how to ask, perhaps... it would be better to let Jiang Shuo, who was close to him, ask?

"You two..." Jiang Xiaoxiao probed, "Are you having a fight?"

“I don’t know,” Xia Li shook her head. “He doesn’t want to tell me.”

“Okay, I’ll take care of it.” Jiang Xiaoxiao readily agreed. “When my brother arrives, he’ll interrogate me thoroughly and I’ll tell you what’s going on.”

"Mm." Xia Li paused, then added, "Thank you."

"Why are you being so polite with me?" Jiang Xiaoxiao shoved a lipstick into her hand, then tilted her head to examine it. "But Sister Xia Li, did you practice before? The way you put on a serious face just now, you had such a strong presence, it didn't seem like you were faking it... I was a little intimidated."

“I…” Xia Li’s expression relaxed, then returned to her usual bewildered look, “I just… don’t smile very often.”

She didn't say anything more, took the lipstick, traced the shape of her lips in the mirror, and then gently pursed her lips together.

The makeup is now complete.

The person in the mirror, with their eyebrows and eyes subtly adorned with color, appeared even clearer and more striking. That innate aloofness and nobility was magnified into an invisible wall, gleaming so brightly that one dared not look at them for too long.

She stood up, walked up to Song Che, and looked down at him slightly: "Song Che... will Auntie like it if I go like this?"

"You'll like it." Song Che looked up and gave an affirmative answer, but his eyes were somewhat unfocused.

"Your mind... is still in turmoil," Xia Li said softly.

"Hmm." Song Che took a breath, trying to calm himself down. "I'll try to adjust."

However, the impact of last night's nightmare and yesterday morning's conversation has been deeply etched into my heart, and cannot be erased by a few deep breaths.

"Do you want to warm your hands?" Xia Li reached out and took his hand without saying a word.

This time, Song Che didn't take the opportunity to lewdly caress the back of her hand with his fingers as he usually did. He simply withdrew his hand somewhat awkwardly.

"My hands are cold... I don't want them to get cold."

"You seem... very unhappy." Xia Li looked at her empty hands, then looked up at him.

"Um...it's okay." Song Che stood up, avoiding her gaze. "Let's go home."

"Mmm." Xia Li put her hands back into her coat pockets, her fingertips clenching together.

She knew very well that Song Che was unhappy.

She had almost never seen him truly unhappy; usually, she would throw a tantrum, and then Song Che would try to coax her. But she didn't know how to coax people like Song Che did. She only remembered that Song Che liked to hold her hand, which made him seem happier.

But now it seems that giving him my hand won't help.

Why is Song Cheol unhappy?

He wouldn't say, only repeatedly saying "It's nothing."

Xia Li suddenly got a little angry and wanted to give him a flick on the head, just like she always did, and question him: Didn't you teach her before that she should talk about what she was unhappy about and ask questions about what she didn't understand? But when it came to him, he didn't say a word or ask a single question.

Song Che is such an idiot. He doesn't keep his own promises and just keeps telling her to do this and that.

However, when she raised her hand and saw Song Che's face, which hadn't shown a smile for two days, she slowly lowered her hand again.

If I knock on him now, he'll probably... be even more unhappy.

Xia Li felt a sense of confusion.

Before she could learn all of human emotions and ways of dealing with things, this "teacher" who had always guided her had already fallen into a predicament she could not understand.

"Song Che," she spoke again, her voice even softer than before, "Do you want... to warm your hands?"

"No."

There was a few seconds of silence.

"Song Che." She looked at him, her eyes filled with a stubborn yet clumsy insistence, "I want to warm my hands."

Chapter 82 The problem remains unsolved (3k)

Bruce greeted them at the door, but Tao Yao was nowhere to be seen.

After noon, the sky inexplicably darkened, with leaden clouds hanging low.

Song Che looked out the window, his heart skipped a beat.

The dim light of day bears a striking resemblance to the suffocating twilight of my dream last night.

He hurriedly went into the kitchen, grabbed the cleaver, and swiftly went downstairs to throw it into the trash can.

"Song Che," Xia Li followed him out, "How are we going to cook without a kitchen knife?"

"I'll buy food these next few days." He went upstairs and closed the door.

Only after he finished doing it did he belatedly realize that he was an idiot.

Because of a dream, I actually threw away the knife I use to cut vegetables at home.

The phrases "restless and anxious" and "worrying about things that are about to fall" seem to mock him.

So what about after that? Will you buy a new one?

Or should we pick it up?

He shook his head, trying to distract himself.

My parents sent me a gift, but I haven't opened it yet.

He started opening the box to see what was inside.

Inside was a cardboard box. Judging from its shape and markings, it contained a laptop computer with good specifications; it was the latest version.

...That's great, Xia Li can work on the computer now, instead of always having to think about going out.

He was somewhat pleased.

But that joy was suppressed before it could even take shape.

Xia Li understood perfectly well, but Song Che was also wearing a cold expression, and she felt that if she spoke, Song Che would get annoyed.