Chapter 20: Overslept and Confused

When a ray of morning sunlight filtered through the window, Lin Lingshu rubbed her eyes and forcibly dragged herself out of her drowsiness.

Still half-asleep, she stretched lazily on the warm jade bed, utterly unaware of how alluring the scene looked.

“Mmm… smells so good~”

Still in a daze, Lin Lingshu caught a whiff of roasted meat and instinctively got out of bed, following the scent step by step.

The closer she got, the stronger it became.

Pushing aside a small patch of bushes that blocked her view, she saw Wang Shuheng grilling meat.

He’s eating breakfast without me?!

Lin Lingshu marched straight toward him, ready to snatch the skewer from his hands.

Wang Shuheng heard the rustling behind him and looked over—only for his expression to freeze in shock.

Lin Lingshu didn’t pay attention to his startled look.

Instead, she casually sat down beside him and fixed her eyes on the sizzling meat skewered on his long blade.

But Wang Shuheng stopped turning the meat entirely, staring motionlessly at Lin Lingshu.

Because of that, one side of the roast began to burn.

“Junior Brother, don’t get distracted—the meat’s going to burn!” she scolded.

“Senior Sister, you…”

“What? If you’ve got something to say, say it! But don’t zone out—turn the meat!”

Still, his hands didn’t move.

Lin Lingshu grew anxious—don’t waste good food!

She lunged forward, grabbing the blade to take control of the skewer herself.

“Let go!” Lin Lingshu glared at him, annoyed.

They were sitting so close their shoulders nearly touched.

But Wang Shuheng didn’t release his grip.

He looked at her, clearly struggling to find the right words.

After a long pause, he finally muttered,

“Senior Sister… you’re not wearing your robe.”

“What?”

Her irritation turned to confusion.

She glanced down instinctively—only to see the thin, snow-white undergarment covering her body.

“Close your eyes!!”

Lin Lingshu’s face burned as she shouted, then bolted back toward her room without another glance.

She pushed the door open, slammed it shut, and pressed her back against it, staring at the outer robe lying on her bed.

Then she squatted down, burying her face in her hands.

I’ve been bouncing around in front of him like this… wearing only my underclothes. My reputation’s in ashes.

The plain white undergarment was practically no better than wearing nothing at all.

In this world, such inner layers were normally thick and modest, but when Lin Lingshu had arrived here, she’d scoffed at their lack of practicality.

You people have spiritual energy to keep warm and cool—why wear something so suffocating?

So she’d swapped out the original’s thick innerwear for something light and breathable—essentially a thin piece of silk, barely thicker than paper.

Her reasons were simple: cool and comfortable.

The warm jade bed radiated heat through the night like an electric blanket; sleeping in thick clothes was unbearable.

Wearing just this airy garment felt perfect.

It was true that the white silk wasn’t exactly transparent, but it only half concealed what it covered—rather like the “lingerie” of her previous world.

Still, since it was comfortable, Lin Lingshu hadn’t cared.

Once her outer robe was on, no one could tell anyway.

Except now… I just stood in front of him wearing that!

The thought made her cheeks burn hotter.

“So embarrassing! How am I supposed to face him again?” She pressed her head into her hands, mortified.

Yesterday I lectured him about keeping a respectful distance between men and women… and today I pull a stunt like this?!

The more she thought about it, the redder she became, until even her ears were flushed.

Knock, knock, knock.

Someone rapped on the door behind her.

“Senior Sister, the meat’s ready. Would you like some?”

Lin Lingshu didn’t answer.

“Senior Sister, about earlier, I…” Wang Shuheng trailed off.

What am I supposed to say? Pretend I didn’t see anything? That would sound fake even to me.

“I’m not hungry. Eat it yourself,” Lin Lingshu said weakly, still sitting against the door with her knees drawn up, trying to calm herself down.

“Senior Sister, I’ve left the roast outside the door,” Wang Shuheng said gently.

Ignoring her refusal, he wrapped several pieces of meat in white cloth and placed them outside before walking away.

Lin Lingshu listened carefully as his footsteps faded into the distance.

When the silence finally settled, she quietly cracked open the door and peeked out.

Seeing that he was gone for real, she opened it wider and reached out to grab the bundle.

She unwrapped the cloth, took a piece of meat, and bit into it viciously.

If I don’t at least eat this, wouldn’t that mean he saw me for nothing?!

Soon, she’d finished all the meat.

Wiping her mouth with a wisp of spiritual energy, her shame had mostly faded—devoured along with the roast.

She put her robe back on, sat cross-legged on the warm jade bed, and began to cultivate.

Several hours later, Lin Lingshu ended her meditation and crept out of her room, careful not to make a sound. Just as she turned around to quietly close the door—

“Senior Sister.”

She froze and turned her head.
It was Wang Shuheng.

Her tone was flat. “Junior Brother, what is it?”

She still hadn’t decided what kind of expression to wear in front of him; the morning’s incident had been way too mortifying.

“Senior Sister, about this morning—”

“Shut up!!”

Before he could finish, Lin Lingshu cut him off.
Her face reddened rapidly, color rising from her neck to her ears.

“You didn’t see anything, understand?!”

Her voice trembled slightly, and there was a faint shimmer of tears in her eyes.

Wang Shuheng quickly nodded, alarmed.

Lin Lingshu didn’t know what was wrong with her.

She’d never felt this humiliated in her entire life.

The instant he brought up what happened that morning, the shame overwhelmed her like a wave.

She’d meant to sound stern, but the words came out with a choked sob instead—and she hadn’t even realized her eyes had grown wet.

The more she thought about it, the worse it got.
Her embarrassment only deepened, and she could feel her body trembling, tears threatening to spill.

“Senior Sister, I really didn’t see anything,” Wang Shuheng said hurriedly, watching his usually cool and composed senior sister on the verge of tears.

Something stirred in his heart—an emotion he couldn’t quite name.

“Really?” Lin Lingshu’s tears paused, though she wasn’t sure how things had spiraled this way.

“Really. I was focused on the roasting—I didn’t see a thing.” Wang Shuheng’s tone was serious, though both of them knew perfectly well he was just giving her a way to save face.

Lin Lingshu wiped her eyes with spiritual energy, glaring at him fiercely.
“Not a word of this to anyone. Understand?”

Wang Shuheng looked at her flushed face, her attempt to act stern despite her embarrassment, and couldn’t help but smile faintly.

He nodded. “Understood.”

“To apologize,” he added lightly, “I’ll make a roast chicken. Senior Sister, would you like some?”

Lin Lingshu exhaled softly, then straightened up.

“Let’s go.”