Resplendent – Chapter 531

Chapter 531: So Embarrassing!

Ling Juechen touched his cheek, sighing helplessly as he watched the little girl giggle triumphantly. “Feeling any better now?”

“Just a tiny bit… If you offer your left cheek for me to bite again, I think I’d feel even better.” Gu Ye imagined him stepping out tomorrow with two bite marks on his cheek, laughing so hard she nearly choked.

“You’re such a tease!” Ling Juechen pinched her little bottom, his face full of exasperation.

Suddenly, Gu Ye’s smile vanished, replaced by an awkward, peculiar expression. Ling Juechen’s heart tightened. “What’s wrong? Did I pinch you too hard? Are you hurt somewhere…”

Then he felt a warm, damp spot slowly spreading across his arm where he held her. Before he could react, the girl flushed crimson and struggled to get down.

Ling Juechen knew the little girl loved seeing him in white robes. Today, he wore a moon-white, plain-woven embroidered straight robe. Now, a vivid crimson stain stood out starkly on the white sleeve.

Gu Ye clutched her bottom, her face flushed like a piece of red cloth. She too saw her ‘handiwork’ on his sleeve and exclaimed in embarrassed anger, “Quick, take off your clothes! I’ll wash them for you later!” With that, she bolted out of the study with head down and dashed straight into the washroom.

So embarrassing! Who would’ve thought her first period would come today? No wonder she’d been in such a mood these past few days! Worst of all, her… thing had stained Brother Chen’s sleeve. She couldn’t face anyone!

Gu Ye knew that women here used stitched cotton pads during their periods. Though this body was thirteen, her health had suffered as a child, delaying her menstruation. She hadn’t prepared anything. Fortunately, she found a pack of sanitary pads in her space.

After changing into fresh clothes, she dawdled her way back to the study, only to find Brother Chen had already changed into a black outer robe. It looked familiar… Wasn’t that the outfit of one of the shadow guards?

Yin Kui who was clad only in his undershirt and concealed in the shadows felt his expressionless face crack. His unscrupulous master had snatched his outer robe! 

Not far away, Yin Mei watched with an amused expression. Thankfully, he had been assigned to their female master; otherwise, the half-naked one would have been him instead. His physique was even closer to his master’s.

Gu Ye lowered her gaze to the moon-white outer robe draped over the chair back, its sleeves stained with a dark crimson patch. Her face instantly flushed as if on fire. She practically snatched the robe from the chair, clutching it tightly as she whispered, “Wait a moment… I’ll go wash it for you!”

With that, she slipped behind the study screen into the small resting space. Ling Juechen followed closely behind. The instant Gu Ye stepped into the space, he seized her wrist, successfully pulling himself inside.

Outside, the two shadow guards pricked up their ears like rabbits, yet caught not a whisper. Huh? Where were their masters? Could they be… engaging in some intimate ‘activity’? It was better not to pry. Both guards simultaneously suppressed their gossipy curiosity, focusing instead on monitoring the surroundings.

Inside the space, Ling Juechen gently pulled the garment back from Gu Ye’s grasp. “Is anything bothering you? Shall I brew some brown sugar water? You shouldn’t touch cold water now. Let me wash it for you.”

Gu Ye touched her slightly chilled lower abdomen. Aside from a dull ache in her lower back, she felt no significant menstrual cramps. Slumped listlessly beneath the apple tree, she murmured softly through her diamond-shaped cherry lips, “How embarrassing! I’m mortified!”

Ling Juechen dipped his soiled sleeve into the pond water, lathered it with soap, and gently rubbed it by hand. Turning his head, he saw Gu Ye’s flushed face, avoiding his gaze. He smiled softly and said, “What’s there to be shy about in front of me? Xiao Ye’er has grown up and will soon be ready for marriage. You should be happy about it.”

Gu Ye snorted softly. “What’s so happy about getting married?”

“I am wrong. The one who should be happy is me…” After speaking, Ling Juechen gave Gu Ye a meaningful look.

Gu Ye’s initial shyness faded, and she shot him a playful eyeroll. “Dream on! My father and mother would never let me marry so young! Just wait and see!”

“It doesn’t matter. Between both lifetimes, I’ve already waited over thirty years. What’s another three or five years? Compared to an endless, hopeless wait, what are these few years?” Ling Juechen washed his clothes clean and hung them on a clothes hanger over the apple tree trunk. The sun shone brightly in the space, and they would dry quickly.

He then sat beside her. Seeing her clutching her stomach in a daze, he gently pulled her into his embrace and asked softly, “What’s wrong? Does your stomach hurt? Let me warm it for you.”

His warm, large palm pressed against her abdomen, its heat seeping through her thin autumn robe to warm the chill in her belly.

Comfortably nestled in his embrace, Gu Ye murmured softly, “That feels so good. Your hands are like a hot water bottle. My back feels a little stiff. Could you rub it for me?”

This little girl sure knows how to boss people around without a shred of mercy. Still, it was a rare treat to see her not throwing her usual tantrums and causing trouble, so Ling Juechen gladly complied.

His hands applied just the right amount of pressure, hitting the acupoints with precision. She moaned softly in pure bliss. Before long, she had drifted off to sleep, nestled in his embrace. 

Ling Juechen wrapped his arms around her slender frame, his palms pressed firmly against her abdomen. His full lips descended upon the crown of her head for a gentle kiss—Sleep well, my little one. May you have sweet dreams.

Gu Ye hadn’t slept long before she was forced to rise, rushing into the bathroom to change her sanitary pad. Everyone said a girl’s first period was just a few drops, yet hers looked like a crime scene—blood everywhere… Has she taken too many of her supplements lately?

She rummaged through the storage space again, finding only two packs of pads. Would they be enough? Even if they were for now, what about next time? She’d have to ask her gentle mother later how to sew period pads in ancient times. Hmm, would her shoddy needlework even cut it?

Once the clothes were dry, Gu Ye tossed Ling Juechen out of the space, giving him the boot.

Ling Juechen shook his head helplessly—This ungrateful little thing. Still, considering her discomfort, he had no choice but to leave. Before departing, he kept nagging: Don’t touch cold water, don’t eat raw or chilled fruits, don’t…

Gu Ye was utterly exasperated. She wasn’t some naive young girl experiencing her first period, clueless about everything. When she died in her previous life, she was nearly thirty. Did she really not know how to manage her own menstrual cycle?

Ling Juechen had met the girl at the dawn of the chaotic era, when she was barely sixteen. They had relied on each other for nearly fifteen years, and he knew every detail of her life.

The earliest days were the hardest. Conditions were harsh, and as a man, he knew nothing about taking care of anyone. The girl was too thin-skinned and proud to ask for help, and it left her with lingering health issues. Only after she became an alchemist did she invest immense resources and effort to fully recover.

This time around, he only wished her to be well, free from the torment of her period…