Mengmeng was still hopping back and forth between the Spatial pouch and Mr. Dragon, but Mu Wanwan was already somewhat dazed.
She subconsciously touched the finger that had been wet last night. The warm sensation from her dream seemed to linger upon it.
She had not thought much of it before, but now she glanced at the large dragon lying beside her.
If Mr. Dragon had really been awake, then…
Mu Wanwan suddenly felt as though her finger had been scalded. She scrambled out of bed as though fleeing.
She had not boiled any hot water yet, so she splashed her face several times with slightly cold water. Only then did she gradually calm down, although her heart continued to pound violently—
If Mr. Dragon was awake, and if the Spatial pouch had truly been a gift from him…
Why had he not spoken to her?
Mu Wanwan looked at the green-jade bracelet on her wrist. Water droplets clung to its surface, making it appear even more translucent and beautiful.
Her emotions were complicated.
She could not say that she was particularly happy. After the initial shock and embarrassment passed, a trace of confusion and fear gradually spread through her—
In the original story, he was not supposed to awaken until three years later.
Even though the spiritual plants she cultivated seemed capable of dispelling the curse, and she had been working hard to nurse the dragon back to health every day, less than two months had passed.
Wasn’t this far too soon for him to awaken?
Moreover, she could not guarantee what sort of dragon Mr. Dragon truly was.
The novel described him as cruel, while the people outside said he had a terrible temper. Even though she had witnessed his miserable condition and seen what he experienced as a child, it could not entirely erase the faint fear of him hidden in her heart.
A cold breeze brushed over her damp skin, and Mu Wanwan shivered violently.
She was nominally his wife now, but she did not know whether Mr. Dragon had been aware of their marriage while he was unconscious.
Suppose he did not know. If he disliked people approaching him and then suspected that she had been sent by Ao Qin, wouldn’t she be finished?
Even if he did know, what if—what if he wanted to fulfil their marital obligations?
Or what if his temper was so awful that he became violent with her?
She would still be finished! (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻
It would be best—best if he did not wake up yet.
She had no idea how to face an awakened Mr. Dragon. Wouldn’t it be terribly awkward when their eyes met?
Although Mu Wanwan thought this, she seemed to have forgotten that her goal all along had been for Mr. Dragon to awaken as soon as possible, so that she could regain her freedom and live her own peaceful life.
She patted her cheeks and began thinking about what she should do if the dragon truly had awakened.
If Mr. Dragon was awake, then he had probably been responsible for what happened to Fuliu last time, and these items were likely gifts from him as well.
As for why he had not spoken to her, either he could only awaken for short periods and had not had the opportunity, or she was simply insignificant to him and there was no need to tell her.
Perhaps he had given her these things merely because it had been convenient.
Deep down, Mu Wanwan understood that both reasons were probably true.
She still could not confirm whether Mr. Dragon was genuinely awake. Considering the two strange incidents that had occurred at night, if he could awaken, then it was probably only after dark.
A dull ache formed in her heart.
She did not know whether it was because he had awakened without telling her or because of the possibility that Mr. Dragon did not care about her at all.
Mu Wanwan became somewhat angry. She even wanted to fetch an entire bucket of cold water and pour it over the dragon from head to tail to wake him up.
However, she ultimately did not scrub the dragon down with cold water.
Instead, she went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast and boil some hot water. Then she returned to the room to help Mr. Dragon wash.
He looked no different from the unconscious vegetable dragon in her memories.
His lips were no longer as dry and cracked as when she first saw him, and some of their bruised colouring had faded. His broken horn remained fierce and hideous, while his handsome face was pale.
Mengmeng had exhausted itself from jumping around. It lay beside Mr. Dragon’s furry ear and chirped in greeting when it saw her enter.
Mu Wanwan held a wrung-out cloth and wiped Mr. Dragon’s face as usual.
Her fingers touched his soft cheek through the cloth, while the green-jade bracelet around her wrist shone so brightly that it was impossible to ignore.
She suddenly froze.
Lowering the cloth, Mu Wanwan stared at Mr. Dragon’s strangely enchanting face and clearly realised something for the first time—
The dragon lying on this bed was her husband in name.
And the bracelet around her wrist had been given to her by that husband.
A strange, indescribable feeling abruptly rose inside her.
Mu Wanwan wanted to say something, but the words remained stuck in her throat for a long time.
She felt disappointed, upset, hopeful, and frightened all at once. She could hardly bear to remain inside the room for even another second.
Mengmeng noticed that something was wrong with her. As though helping her vent her anger, it pecked fiercely at Mr. Dragon’s furry ear and bit it several times before finally pulling out a few strands of fur.
“That’s enough, Mengmeng.”
Mu Wanwan did not know whether to laugh or cry. Only after speaking did she realise that her voice sounded slightly hoarse.
Feeling somewhat flustered, she picked up the fluffy chirper and her seeds. After glancing at the occasional sunlight outside, she decided that she would work outdoors today, even if it was cold.
…
Mu Wanwan stared blankly at the pill formula for a while before finally forcing Mr. Dragon out of her thoughts.
After considering it, she decided to try refining a Snow Condensation Pill first. After all, Snow Condensation Pills were slightly more valuable than Spirit-Recovery Pills.
She wanted to see whether she could successfully refine one.
If she succeeded, she would spend her time producing Snow Condensation Pills first. If she failed, she would try refining Spirit-Recovery Pills instead.
Bell-Lantern Grass and Purifying Flowers were essential, followed by the second-rank spiritual plant, Snow Condensation.
Bell-Lantern Grass was a pale-purple plant shaped like a small bell. Although it was not large, cultivating it was not particularly easy. The spiritual energy required was roughly equivalent to fully cultivating a first-rank Blue Star Grass until maturity.
However, refining a single Snow Condensation Pill required at least three Bell-Lantern Grass plants.
Purifying Flowers were approximately as difficult to cultivate as Bell-Lantern Grass.
Although it was somewhat challenging, Mu Wanwan spent around two hours cultivating the three Bell-Lantern Grass plants and five Purifying Flowers required for a single Snow Condensation Pill.
The second-rank Snow Condensation plant was the most important ingredient and the most difficult to cultivate.
Its seed was an unusual, pure-white object resembling a crystal.
Mu Wanwan made several attempts and ruined three or four Snow Condensation seeds before finally managing to cultivate a single seedling successfully.
From its roots to its flower bud, the entire plant was a pure, semi-translucent white.
It was not large, yet it had already drained almost half of her spiritual energy.
Feeling tired, Mu Wanwan planted the hard-earned Snow Condensation seedling in a newly purchased flowerpot filled with spiritual soil.
She remained busy for the entire day. Cultivating seeds, washing clothes, cooking, bathing, and taking care of everyone—she neglected nothing and continued working until very late.
Mr. Dragon showed no unusual behaviour during the daytime. Mu Wanwan forced herself to feed and clean him as usual.
After she had dealt with everything, she went outside again and added several warming stones to the spirit-chicken chicks’ enclosure.
Only then did Mu Wanwan stare at the illuminated room and take a deep breath.
If she slept beside an unconscious Mr. Dragon, she could be certain that he would not harm her.
However, if she slept beside an awakened Mr. Dragon, Mu Wanwan could no longer be sure.
Still…
She stroked the green-jade bracelet on her wrist, and her gaze flickered—
Mr. Dragon was extremely powerful. Even while afflicted by the curse, he would still be formidable after waking.
If he truly hated her, he could probably have killed her last night.
Since he had not attacked her, he should not despise her that much.
To say that she felt absolutely nothing for Mr. Dragon would be nothing more than self-deception.
She decided not to sleep tonight.
She wanted to determine whether he truly awakened at night and what he might do to her.
Mu Wanwan was actually extremely nervous. Aside from within the dream, she had never seen Mr. Dragon awake.
Moreover, the adult Mr. Dragon was surely very different from Little Mr. Dragon…
She was somewhat afraid, but she still comforted the fluffy chirper as normally as possible. Then she extinguished the lamp and slowly moved towards the bed.
Perhaps one’s surroundings truly changed according to one’s state of mind.
Previously, she had thought nothing of climbing into bed to sleep. Wasn’t it simply an ordinary daily activity?
Now, however, she even found it difficult to remove her outer clothing.
Mu Wanwan gradually lowered herself beneath the quilt. Her voice trembled as she softly said, “G-Good night, Mr. Dragon. Good night, Mengmeng.”
Mengmeng had no idea how much trouble its act of informing on the dragon had caused Mu Wanwan.
It merely released an enthusiastic yet sleepy “chirp~,” indicating that the fluffy chirper was going to sleep.
The room gradually became silent.
Mu Wanwan tried to relax her body and forced her breathing to become calm—
She waited.
She did not know how much time had passed.
Just as Mu Wanwan was about to fall asleep, she felt a faint cold breeze brush against her exposed face. She was so frightened that she instantly became alert—
Had the d-d-d-dragon awakened?
The side of her body closest to Mr. Dragon remained rigidly still, while her other hand nervously clutched the bedsheet.
Her breathing became uneven for two seconds before she forced herself to calm down again.
More time passed.
Just when Mu Wanwan began to believe that the cold breeze had been her imagination, she heard the sound of clothing brushing against the quilt.
It was faint and slow.
Then, a slightly warm hand followed the edge of her carefully wrapped quilt and gradually slipped inside, carrying a wave of heat with it.
Mu Wanwan: “…”
He really was awake!
Her emotions instantly became extremely complicated, mixing fear with disappointment.
Mu Wanwan did not dare move. She was afraid that if she suddenly revealed that she was awake, the dragon—whose intentions she did not understand—might become angry.
She felt him gradually take hold of her hand and force her palm open.
Then he used the pad of his finger to wipe away the sweat in her palm.
When he touched the green-jade bracelet around her wrist, a low, indistinct chuckle sounded.
It exploded directly beside Mu Wanwan’s ear.
Immediately afterwards, Mu Wanwan felt Mr. Dragon repeatedly kneading her palm.
He did not use much force. In fact, his movements could even be described as extremely gentle.
However, the repeated squeezing made her hand tingle and left her frightened.
Could it be that he had awakened ravenously hungry and wanted to eat meat?
Was he squeezing her hand to judge the quality of her flesh?
Mu Wanwan was already dizzy with anxiety. She no longer knew what nonsense she was imagining.
Her heart pounded fiercely, and she could not tell whether it was from fear or excitement.
She waited nervously for a while and felt him gradually pull her hand towards himself.
Her entire hand began trembling slightly…
Then she realised that Mr. Dragon had intertwined his fingers with hers.
Mu Wanwan: “…”
She was somewhat stunned.
She continued waiting for a long time, but the dragon showed no intention of releasing her. Nor did he bite her.
He merely held her hand as his breathing gradually became heavier.
Mu Wanwan: “???”
The hand that had been forced to interlock with his was now completely damp with both their sweat.
It was astonishingly hot.
With the darkness encouraging the ambiguous atmosphere, Mu Wanwan began letting her imagination run wild.
She did not even realise how red her face had become.
She could only think helplessly: What was wrong with this dragon? What exactly was he doing?
Their burning palms remained pressed together for a very long time before Mr. Dragon finally seemed satisfied and released her hand.
By then, Mu Wanwan had already imagined countless reasons why Mr. Dragon might have awakened without telling her.
She had even invented many excuses for him, such as—
She had witnessed him in such a miserable condition. Since he was a prideful dragon, he might be trying to preserve his image as a domineering tyrant. Little Mr. Dragon’s fastidious personality certainly supported this possibility.
Or perhaps he had not fully recovered and feared that if he awakened, she might treat him badly or abuse him.
That remained to be verified.
Or perhaps he suspected that she had been sent by Ao Qin. He did not dare awaken because he was afraid that his recovery would be discovered and he would be killed.
That possibility seemed somewhat reasonable.
Or perhaps he…
He felt something towards her…
Mu Wanwan was so nervous that the moment this explanation appeared, she immediately refuted it countless times inside her heart.
He was only her husband in name, and he was supposedly a cruel, domineering dragon.
According to how others described him, he was extremely likely to be a scumbag dragon who indulged himself and did whatever he pleased.
If he truly had those sorts of intentions towards her, why wouldn’t he simply awaken and force her?
Mu Wanwan’s imagination ran wildly for a long time.
When she finally returned to her senses, she realised that Mr. Dragon had somehow moved extremely close to her.
Was he—was he about to eat her?
Or was he planning to do something else?
If he truly intended to harm her, she—although she was extremely weak—would still resist!
A sudden weight settled upon her shoulder.
Mu Wanwan was nearly unable to stop herself from opening her eyes when a low, hoarse voice sounded beside her ear.
“Wife…”
“Hold me.”
**Author’s Note:**
Mr. Dragon secretly waking up has officially been confirmed. Eek!
Who knows what other shameless deeds and embarrassing pieces of personal history he will create while Wanwan is too embarrassed to expose him?
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