She was so frightened that she closed her eyes, but the pain she expected never came.

When Lin Zhixia opened her eyes, one large hand was supporting her under the arms while the other steadied her belly, holding her body up.

Because he had reacted in such a hurry, Xie Jingheng had practically dropped to his knees beneath her, with a thin layer of sweat covering his forehead.

“You’re so clumsy! How could you—” Xie Jingheng scolded.

Before he could finish, his entire body froze.

Because…

The now-relaxed Lin Zhixia wrapped her arms around his neck. Half-kneeling, she leaned her whole body against his chest.

Her soft body, her fragrant hair…

A healthy young man like Xie Jingheng could not withstand even the slightest temptation or stimulation.

“Xie Jingheng, thank you.”

Only heaven knew how frightened Lin Zhixia had been just now.

That feeling of losing control of her balance was truly terrifying.

For a moment, she thought she had lost the baby in her womb.

Xie Jingheng did not dare move at all. He was afraid of accidentally hurting her stomach, and even more afraid that she would notice the changes in his body.

The more flustered he became, the louder his heartbeat sounded, like the pounding of a drum.

He was supposed to hate her, yet his body was far too uncooperative.

Taking a deep breath, he said hoarsely through gritted teeth, feeling somewhat embarrassed,

“How long are you planning to stay lying on me?”

After he spoke, the woman gave no response at all.

Sensing something was wrong, Xie Jingheng carefully lifted himself slightly.

Only then did he realize that Lin Zhixia had fallen asleep at some point. Her breathing was steady and even, clearly showing she was sleeping soundly.

A trace of annoyance crossed his face, but he also felt relieved.

Letting out a soft sigh, he murmured,

“Lin Zhixia, what exactly are you trying to do?”

Having finally resolved the thing she had been worrying about the most, Lin Zhixia slept exceptionally well.

Aside from feeling a little uncomfortable at first because she was curled up, everything was fine. The surface beneath her was hard as a rock.

Soon, however, someone placed her onto a soft bed and covered her with a quilt that smelled of sunshine.

Comfortably, Lin Zhixia spread herself out like a starfish and wrapped the blanket tightly around herself.

After taking a cold shower, Xie Jingheng returned to the room, preparing to sleep.

Looking at the bed, he saw that the woman had occupied two-thirds of it. The remaining third wasn’t even enough for him to stretch out properly.

She had also left him absolutely none of the blanket.

After sighing heavily, he resigned himself to his fate and lay sideways near the edge of the bed.

Just as he finally adapted to the cramped position and drifted off to sleep, a warm body suddenly pressed against him.

A fair, soft arm wrapped around him from behind. Her hands and legs were draped over him, clinging to him like an octopus.

Moreover…

Lin Zhixia’s lips were almost touching his neck.

Xie Jingheng instantly lost all traces of sleepiness.

Suppressing the irritation of being woken up, he carefully turned around, intending to remove her arms and legs from his body.

Instead, he accidentally caught sight of a patch of fair skin that had been unintentionally exposed.

Immediately, he pulled the blanket up and covered Lin Zhixia completely, not even leaving her fingers visible.

But that single glance was enough.

With his excellent memory, Xie Jingheng could recall the image clearly in his mind.

Combined with the vigor of youth, all the effort he had spent cooling himself down with a cold shower was instantly undone.

That entire night, Lin Zhixia tossed and turned so much that Xie Jingheng barely slept at all.

He endured until dawn with his eyes closed. The moment morning arrived, he got out of bed and began his usual physical training routine.

Lin Zhixia was awakened by a commotion of shouting and arguing.

Still sleepy, she covered her ears irritably.

But the noise grew closer and closer until she could no longer endure it and sat up.

Bang!

The bedroom door was suddenly thrown open.

Xie Qingshu rushed in with tears streaming down her face and shouted hatefully,

“Lin Zhixia, what did our Xie family ever do to you? Why would you do something so vicious?”

Lin Zhixia was completely confused.

She had only just woken up and hadn’t even gotten out of bed. What could she possibly have done?

Yet seeing Xie Qingshu’s grief-stricken appearance filled her with a sense of foreboding.

Anxiously, she asked,

“Qingshu, what happened?”

“Don’t call my name! It disgusts me!”

“Stop pretending!”

“Wasn’t it you who helped Chen Xingyu bring those pastries containing banned books into our house?”

“What? You dare do it but won’t admit it?”

Lin Zhixia’s expression immediately darkened.

This incident had never happened in the original story.

A vague thought suddenly flashed through her mind:

Perhaps the important events of the original plot could not be changed.

Right now, the most important thing was clearing up the misunderstanding.

Even if she had done such a thing, she could never admit it—let alone when she hadn’t done it at all.

Thinking this, she quickly explained,

“I didn’t help him. I didn’t know there was—”

Xie Qingshu was too furious to listen. She cut her off loudly:

“Lin Zhixia, stop acting innocent!

Aren’t you just counting on us being sent to the countryside so that you and Chen Xingyu can finally be together and live happily ever after?

Let me tell you, don’t even dream about it!

You caused Dad to lose his chance at promotion. He was dismissed from his position.

You caused our family to be kicked out of the compound and sent down to the countryside.

Even if I have to throw my life away, I won’t let you two get away with it!”

Seeing that Xie Qingshu was unwilling to listen, Lin Zhixia felt a headache coming on.

She threw off the blanket and got out of bed, intending to explain properly.

But before she could reach her, the enraged Xie Qingshu shoved her hard.

Caught completely off guard, Lin Zhixia lost her balance and fell backward.

“Zhixia!”

Xie’s mother, who had rushed over anxiously, cried out in alarm.

Seeing Lin Zhixia being pushed over by her daughter made her vision darken.

Xie Qingshu froze for a second.

Realizing what she had done, she quickly reached for Lin Zhixia’s arm.

But it was already too late.

Fortunately, Lin Zhixia was close to the bed. At the critical moment, she used her elbow to brace herself and stop the fall.

Xie’s mother’s hands and feet felt weak with fear.

She hurried over to help Lin Zhixia up and asked concernedly,

“Zhixia, are you alright? Did you hit anything? Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere?”

Lin Zhixia shook her head.

Only then did Xie’s mother relax.

Turning around, she sternly scolded,

“Xie Qingshu! Don’t you know your sister-in-law is pregnant?”

“You completely lost control of your temper and nearly caused a disaster! Do you understand that?”

“Apologize to your sister-in-law right now!”

In disbelief, Xie Qingshu replied,

“Mom, after all the horrible things she’s done, you’re still protecting her?”

“What right does she have to be my sister-in-law? She—”

“The matter hasn’t been properly investigated yet. Stop making wild accusations,” Xie’s mother interrupted, preventing her daughter from saying anything harsher.

“What is there left to investigate?” Xie Qingshu shouted angrily, her eyes wide.

Pointing at Lin Zhixia, she continued,

“She brought the pastries home!

Banned books were found hidden inside them!

Anyone can see that she and Chen Xingyu must have planned this together!

Maybe…”