Transmigrated into a Scummy Alpha Playboy in Ancient Times (GL) - Chapter 12
Shen Xingyue’s heart was pounding wildly in her chest—thump, thump, thump. She instinctively straightened up and reached out to stop Su Muyu’s hand, which had already begun undoing her sash. Keeping her voice as calm as she could, she asked gently,
“Yu’er… Didn’t you say you wanted to rest? It’s probably not appropriate for you to be untying my clothes, is it?”
Su Muyu’s frustration was reaching a boiling point. She had already taken the initiative, thrown herself into Shen Xingyue’s arms—and yet this woman still pretended not to understand. Gritting her teeth and thinking of her mother and sister back home, Su Muyu finally said bluntly,
“Aren’t we supposed to consummate the marriage?”
“Huh? I didn’t mean that,” Shen Xingyue said quickly, caught off guard. “And your health still isn’t fully recovered. Zhou Miao said your condition is weak—you need proper rest and nourishment. We’re not in a rush. Let’s talk about that after you’re better. For now, let’s just sleep.”
She gently patted Su Muyu’s lower back in an attempt to soothe her. Su Muyu’s face was tucked against her shoulder, so she couldn’t see her expression. But as Su Muyu remained silent, Shen Xingyue quietly took her hand away from the undone sash and guided her into a lying position for sleep.
Only then did Shen Xingyue exhale, her heart still racing. That was too close—she had nearly been slept with by a girl. Thank goodness she’d reacted quickly and come up with the “you need to recover” excuse.
Meanwhile, Su Muyu’s cheek was still pressed against Shen Xingyue’s collarbone. Good thing the room was dim—if the candles had been any brighter, not only her face but even her neck would’ve been visibly red. This was the most humiliating thing she had ever done. And now… she wasn’t sure she could muster the courage to try again.
Deep down, she didn’t even like Shen Xingyue. She didn’t want to be touched by her. But she also knew she had no real say in this relationship, and if she couldn’t gain Shen Xingyue’s favor, she’d never be able to help her mother and sister.
She hadn’t minded it so much when she and Cui Zhu were suffering in Tinglan Pavilion—but now, having tasted warmth, comfort, and abundance, she could no longer ignore how much her family lacked. While she sat wrapped in warmth, her family had no charcoal, no protection from the cold.
But her position was precarious. She didn’t believe Shen Xingyue’s kindness would last, and she didn’t dare ask for anything too directly. Maybe if they consummated the marriage, things would change. Maybe, while Shen Xingyue was in a good mood, she could be persuaded to send charcoal and silver to the Su family.
But now… it seemed that wasn’t going to happen.
Clearly, Shen Xingyue had no interest in her.
Su Muyu felt a mix of resentment and helplessness—but then quickly shook her head. It was better this way. She wasn’t some official’s daughter trying to climb the social ladder. She had never wanted Shen Xingyue’s affection. What she wanted was power—a way to protect her family.
On the other side of the bed, Shen Xingyue was having a completely different conversation—inside her head.
“I thought the affection score was negative two hundred! Why is the heroine trying to take advantage of me?” she mentally shouted at the system.
The system responded with its signature smug metallic tone:
“Darling, you should’ve gone with it. Your life is tied to hers. If the heroine sleeps with you, maybe you’ll finally gain some affection points!”
“Absolutely not! Do I look like someone who’d grovel for a favor like that? Besides, she doesn’t even like me. Even if we slept together, it wouldn’t make her happy. Ugh. You just don’t get it.”
She clicked the system off in annoyance, though part of her thought, If Su Muyu’s affection ever rose to 100, maybe then… But she refused to say that part out loud—even in her own mind.
For now, Shen Xingyue decided to tread carefully. She still hadn’t figured out the whole situation. Best to keep Su Muyu stable for now and find ways to slowly build trust.
And since she had just been kissed earlier, Shen Xingyue wisely chose not to bring up the “sleeping with wet hair causes illness” argument again. She obediently shut her eyes and pretended to sleep.
The next morning, when Shen Xingyue opened her eyes, Su Muyu was already awake.
She looked up and immediately met Su Muyu’s gaze. Smiling habitually, she reached out to gently stroke Su Muyu’s waist and back.
“Morning.”
“Morning,” Su Muyu replied, her eyes fixed on Shen Xingyue, though her legs had gone completely soft.
The spot where Shen Xingyue’s hand touched was far too sensitive. Just a light brush made her legs weak. She was convinced Shen Xingyue was doing it on purpose. They weren’t going to consummate—so why did she keep touching her like that?
“I’ve asked the maids to prepare breakfast,” Shen Xingyue said. “You’re almost recovered from the cold, so we’ll have Zhou Miao come take a look. If you don’t need the medicine anymore, we’ll stop it. After all, medicine can be harsh—it’s better to rely on food for nourishment.”
She mentally went over the morning’s tasks as she pulled the cord by the bed, summoning the attendants to bring washing water.
Then, she sat up with Su Muyu still in her arms, preparing to get out of bed. Just as she was about to move away, Su Muyu grabbed her wrist.
“What is it?” Shen Xingyue asked, softly rubbing her hand along Su Muyu’s waist again in a soothing motion.
That single motion caused Su Muyu to completely melt into her arms.
Her delicate features and the tips of her ears flushed with a reddish hue, and her brows furrowed. She was furious at her own body’s weakness—just being held like this by Shen Xingyue made her feel like jelly. Her eyes grew glassy, tears threatening to spill over at any second.
“It’s nothing. My legs just feel weak. Let me lean on you for a bit,” she said, trying hard to steady her voice. She didn’t want to cry—not now. She wanted to scold Shen Xingyue, to call her out for all this teasing, but… she still had too many things left undone. She couldn’t afford to break things off just yet.
“Okay,” Shen Xingyue agreed obediently, letting her lean in quietly.
She was feeling quite pleased with herself—surely, after all this, Su Muyu’s affection score had gone up a little. Eagerly, she had the system reveal the score above Su Muyu’s head.
And then her vision blurred—
Right there, floating over Su Muyu’s head, in bold, mocking red text:
–250.
Shen Xingyue felt like crying. After all the running around, caring, and kindness—how had the affection score dropped even more?
Her heart was completely crushed. She had the system shut the affection meter off. What was the point anymore? The score was already deep in the negatives—what, was it going to hit -300 next? Might as well let it all go and embrace the chaos.
Sensing her despair, the system quickly tried to comfort her:
“Darling, you’re doing great already! But raising the heroine’s affection takes time. I believe in you—if you just keep trying, her feelings will definitely start to change!”
“Yeah, right.” Shen Xingyue gave a lifeless snort in her mind and ignored the system entirely. Other than showing her that horrible affection meter, what else could it even do?
By now, Su Muyu had recovered a bit and sat up, no longer leaning on Shen Xingyue. She looked over and said,
“I’m fine now. You can let go.”
“Oh—okay.” Shen Xingyue snapped out of her mental argument with the system and gently released her hold, getting out of bed to put on her outer clothes.
The clothing styles in Beichuan weren’t much different from the historical dramas she’d seen in her last life. After watching the maids demonstrate once, Shen Xingyue had insisted on dressing herself—having others help just felt too awkward.
She brushed her teeth with coarse salt, washed her face in a copper basin, and let Yiliu fix her hair into a simple yet elegant bun. Yiliu added a golden hairpin with delicate dangling ornaments, but Shen Xingyue refused anything more. Too many accessories on her head just felt impractical.
On the other side of the room, Su Muyu was also finishing her morning routine with Cui Zhu’s help. Soon after, the maids brought in an array of beautifully arranged breakfast dishes.
Not wanting to eat under the gaze of others, Shen Xingyue waved the servants away. Once the room had quieted down, she and Su Muyu sat down together to eat.
“Eat more,” Shen Xingyue said as she offered her a small bun. “You’re too thin. You need to build some strength. Your waist is so slender—I’m afraid if I hug you too tightly, I might hurt you.”
She meant it sincerely. Su Muyu was far too frail.
But to Su Muyu, those words had a very different implication. She was certain Shen Xingyue was teasing her—and doing so with a completely straight face no less. It left her utterly speechless.
“I’ll make sure to take better care of my health,” she responded quietly.
“That’s good. The bruises on your knees haven’t completely faded either. I’ll help you apply more medicine later. Just focus on resting these few days,” Shen Xingyue said while chewing on a shrimp dumpling.
“If you’re busy today, there’s no need to trouble yourself. I’ll have Cui Zhu help me.” Su Muyu replied, her tone more distant than before. She’d already used up most of her courage last night, only to be rejected. Since Shen Xingyue had made it clear she wasn’t interested, she had no intention of forcing anything further.
“No need. I’m not going out today anyway,” Shen Xingyue replied casually. “I just peeked outside—snow’s coming down hard. Yiliu and the others will be clearing it soon, but there’s already a thick layer around the ankles in the courtyard.”
Upon hearing this, Su Muyu couldn’t stay seated. She swallowed the rest of her dumpling, got up, and walked to the window. Opening half of it, she was immediately greeted by a gust of cold wind and swirling flakes of heavy snow.
Shen Xingyue quickly pulled her back and shut the window.
“Be careful! The snow’s intense, and you’ve only just started recovering. Don’t risk falling ill again.”
She gently brushed the snowflakes from Su Muyu’s face using her sleeve, murmuring as she fussed. Su Muyu said nothing—but her hands, hanging at her sides, clenched tightly into fists.
Winters were always long in Beichuan, lasting nine months of the year—but snowfall like this, heavy and persistent, was rare.
Back home, her mother and sister had only a few thin blankets for warmth, and their cotton-padded coats were so worn from washing that they no longer retained heat. Could they really survive this kind of cold?
Su Muyu felt her heart twist with worry.
She could suffer anything herself—but she didn’t want her mother and sister to suffer too.
She couldn’t help but feel guilty over what had happened last night. If only she had pushed a little harder, maybe today she’d be in a position to ask Shen Xingyue for help. But perhaps later, when Shen Xingyue came to apply medicine to her knees, that would be her opportunity.