Gu Jianli thought she was dreaming. She instinctively pinched her own face, the pain causing her to cry out. However, the sound she made was completely unfamiliar to her, causing her to panic and retreat, crashing into a yellow pearwood clothes rack.
The rack fell heavily to the ground with a dull thud.
“What’s that noise…”
Gu Jianli heard her own lazy voice, but it wasn’t coming from her mouth. She looked up towards the bed, almost on the verge of tears.
Ji Wujing, lying on the bed, opened his eyes and stared expressionlessly at the ceiling before frowning.
“What…what’s going on…” Gu Jianli’s voice trembled. No, it was Ji Wujing’s voice.
Ji Wujing abruptly sat up, his feet touching the ground, giving him a slight sense of reality. He looked down at his slender legs and small hands. He raised his hands in front of his eyes, examining them carefully. He was too familiar with these hands he had held and played with countless times.
“Uncle…” Gu Jianli’s eyes turned red.
Ji Wujing’s hands trembled when he heard Gu Jianli calling him softly with his body and voice. He quickly looked up at Gu Jianli and angrily said, “Stop it! Don’t use my body to cry!”
Gu Jianli could imagine what expression Ji Wujing would have if he used his own body. But using Gu Jianli’s face, his fierceness wasn’t intimidating at all. In fact, with his eyes slightly narrowed, there was an indescribable allure.
Gu Jianli felt extremely awkward seeing her own face with an expression that didn’t belong to her.
She lifted her foot to walk towards the bed but paused, freezing in place. Slowly, she looked down at her long legs.
Half-asleep earlier, she didn’t know how she walked to the clothes rack. Now fully awake, she couldn’t walk properly.
Helplessly, she looked at Ji Wujing and awkwardly waddled towards him. She didn’t know why she felt the need to walk over, but in her confusion, she wanted to be close to Ji Wujing.
Ji Wujing watched her waddle with her legs spread wide, a distressed look on her face. He felt that his face was being completely ruined by Gu Jianli.
He turned his head, unable to bear watching anymore.
“What should we do…” Gu Jianli finally reached Ji Wujing and sat down beside the bed, grabbing his hand.
Her hand was cold and trembling.
What should they do?
Ji Wujing also began to ponder this question.
“Mom! Mom!” Xiao Xiao rushed out of her room, running over and standing outside the door, pounding on it with her small fists while shouting.
Gu Jianli and Ji Wujing exchanged a glance, both momentarily stunned when they saw their own face.
—It still felt strange.
“It will scare Nan Nan.” Gu Jianli panicked.
“Mom, are you awake?” Xiao Xiao’s small fists continued to pound on the door.
Gu Jianli forced herself to calm down and said, “No matter what, we can’t scare Nan Nan. Let’s just pretend for now, okay?”
Gu Jianli thought it should be simple enough—they knew each other so well, pretending to be each other shouldn’t be too difficult, right?
Gu Jianli stood up, wanting to bring Nan Nan inside. But as soon as she stood, she remembered the awkwardness of walking and pushed Ji Wujing. “You go get her. I usually go and cuddle her in the morning.”
Ji Wujing got off the bed and walked to the door. His strides were long, and he wasn’t used to these short legs. He frowned, looking down at his legs; missing something between them made him feel like he had been neutered.
He unlatched the door and looked down at little Xiao Xiao.
Xiao Xiao reached out her arms, asking for a hug.
Ji Wujing bent down and picked her up. Xiao Xiao immediately wrapped her arms around his neck. Ji Wujing frowned; he rarely held Xiao Xiao, and she seldom cuddled him like this. So this is what it feels like to be cuddled by a little daughter.
“Mom, why are you unhappy?” Xiao Xiao tilted her head, studying Ji Wujing’s face.
“I’m not.”
Xiao Xiao furrowed her brows and made a curious sound, reaching out to touch Ji Wujing’s face. She slowly said, “Mom is unhappy, you’re not smiling.”
Gu Jianli, sitting on the bed, gave a light cough.
Ji Wujing looked at Gu Jianli and exchanged glances with her.
Smile?
Ji Wujing awkwardly forced a smile.
“Mom, why are you mimicking Dad’s cold smile? Did Dad bully you?” She reached out with both hands, using her index fingers to pull Ji Wujing’s lips to the sides.
“Don’t mimic Dad.”
Ji Wujing looked down at his little daughter, his gaze darkening. “Why are you talking so much this morning?”
He walked to the bed and put Xiao Xiao on it.
Xiao Xiao sat on the bed, looking up at Gu Jianli and then at Ji Wujing, her small brows knitting together, her narrow eyes filled with confusion.
Ji Wujing and Gu Jianli sat on either side of Xiao Xiao, both motionless and silent.
Gu Jianli calmed herself, suppressing the tremor in her voice, and tried to speak in Ji Wujing’s usual lazy tone, “Gu Jianli, why aren’t you changing your clothes yet? Waking up so late, Father won’t be happy.”
Yesterday was Xiao Xiao’s birthday, and Gu Jingyuan stayed overnight in the residence.
Ji Wujing gave Gu Jianli a strange look and rubbed his ear. Is this how he sounded, sarcastic and cold? But…hearing his voice with different ears, it did sound nice.
Ji Wujing stood up, paused for a moment, and, remembering Gu Jianli’s usual mannerisms, patted Xiao Xiao’s head. He tried taking small steps, moving behind the screen. His gaze fell on his shadow on the screen.
Why do women take such small steps?
With such a slender waist, a slight twist makes their hips sway.
Once he reached the other side of the screen, Ji Wujing relaxed, stopped pretending, and spread his legs, lazily sitting on the stool. He untied the sash of his nightclothes, looking down with a slightly concentrated gaze.
After last night’s various positions, they had just pulled on whatever clothes were nearby. The loosely fitting nightclothes had no undergarments underneath.
Ji Wujing stared for a while, then reached out, but stopped when he saw his own slender, delicate hand. He frowned, his expression showing a bit of dissatisfied languor. He opened the wardrobe door, his fingers sliding over a neatly stacked pile of undergarments.
As his fingertips slid over the warm, colorful undergarments, they seemed to carry a fragrance. He pulled out a pale pink one from the middle and put it on, along with a pink dress.
On the bed, Xiao Xiao waited for Ji Wujing to come around the screen. As soon as he did, she immediately climbed up, stepping on Gu Jianli’s legs and standing on them.
Gu Jianli, worried she might fall, hurriedly placed her hands behind her to support her.
Xiao Xiao reached out to touch Gu Jianli’s face, pinching it.
Gu Jianli was stunned. She thought Xiao Xiao was usually not very close to Ji Wujing and was even a bit afraid of him. Why was she so bold today?
Wait, according to Ji Wujing’s personality, wouldn’t he scold her?
How would he scold her? How would Ji Wujing scold her?
Gu Jianli’s eyes flickered as she quickly pondered.
When Xiao Xiao’s little hands began to push at Gu Jianli’s nose, she immediately slapped her hand away, glaring at her.
Wait, no, Ji Wujing doesn’t glare.
Gu Jianli remembered Ji Wujing’s mannerisms and narrowed her eyes, trying to mimic his lazy displeasure.
Xiao Xiao was stunned, tilting her head curiously at Gu Jianli, slowly muttering, “Dad, didn’t you say as long as I don’t tell Mom, I can play however I want?”
What was going on?
Gu Jianli was a bit confused.
What other things were this father and daughter hiding from her?
Ji Wujing had already come out from behind the screen, dressed in pink.
Gu Jianli couldn’t help but be stunned.
What was it like to sit there and watch her own body walk towards her?
Ji Wujing walked to the side of the bed, reaching out to grab Xiao Xiao by the back of her collar. His fingers barely touched her clothes before his gaze lingered on his own pale, slender fingers. He changed his action, bending down to pick Xiao Xiao up and then placing her on the ground, saying, “Your dad needs to change clothes now. Go check if your grandfather is awake. If he isn’t, wake him up for breakfast.”
Xiao Xiao looked at Ji Wujing and nodded, slowly walked out, turned back and took another look when she reached the door.
She still felt that her mother and father were acting strange today. Could they have quarreled? Like Changsheng and Jixia quarreling? But her mother and father had never argued before…
She left, and the two people in the room breathed a sigh of relief at the same time.
After a while, Gu Jianli hesitated and said, “It should be fine… they haven’t revealed anything, right?”
Ji Wujing sat down next to Gu Jianli and casually said, “If we can’t even fool a three-year-old child, they might as well commit suicide.”
Gu Jianli turned her head to look at Ji Wujing’s casual posture, she moved closer and pushed Ji Wujing’s legs together, which he had casually spread apart. Although there were no outsiders present, seeing Ji Wujing sit in that posture made Gu Jianli blush with embarrassment.
“Why did you choose to wear such a pink dress…”
Ji Wujing casually brushed his dress and said, “Gu Jianli, don’t you know that you look particularly appetizing in pink? It’s so tempting.”
Gu Jianli glanced at Ji Wujing and stayed silent.
She liked this kind of pink color, or else she wouldn’t have this color dress in her wardrobe. It’s just that she stopped wearing so much pink after she was thirteen or fourteen, not to mention now that she is a mother and a wife.
After a while, Gu Jianli sighed softly and said helplessly, “What should we do?”
“What should we do?” Ji Wujing licked his lips, leisurely feeling his tongue pass over the soft lips.
Gu Jianli was stunned and said, “Don’t mess around with my body!”
Ji Wujing looked at her in surprise and asked, “What did I do?”
Gu Jianli leaned over, reached out to lift Ji Wujing’s eyelids, and said seriously, “Don’t lick your lips with half-closed eyes, that expression is too… too…”
She didn’t finish her sentence.
“What’s too much?” Ji Wujing stood up, walked to the dressing table, sat down, squinted at himself in the bronze mirror, slightly lifted his chin, and slowly licked his pink lips with his tongue.
He made a sound and said, “So it’s too… sensual.”
“Tsk, Gu Jianli, you’re wasting your face.” He leaned closer to the bronze mirror and made different expressions.
“Don’t mess around!” Gu Jianli asked Ji Wujing again, asking herself as well, “What should we do?”
“What should we do? It’s so much fun.” Ji Wujing stood up, stretched out his arms, turned around slowly, “You are me, I am you, so what if we switch bodies.”
Gu Jianli despaired. She had originally wanted to discuss with Ji Wujing whether to go to the temple to pray or invite a Taoist priest to perform a ritual. Now, she realized she was the only one panicking, while Ji Wujing seemed to find it amusing.
Ji Wujing smiled, “Gu Jianli, if you don’t change your clothes soon, Good Dad will think I’m bullying you again.”
“Oh!” Gu Jianli suddenly remembered that her father was still at home. She hurriedly got up, took a step, then looked down at her legs again.
Ji Wujing chuckled, finding it amusing. He said, “Walk confidently, you won’t pinch anything. If you’re still worried, you can hold it while you walk.”
“It… it got bigger!” Gu Jianli exclaimed, her eyes wide with fear.
Ji Wujing laughed, “Gu Jianli, what’s going through your mind?”
“I’m not thinking about anything! Just wondering what to do!” Gu Jianli’s eyes widened even more, “Really!”
Ji Wujing found it amusing to see his own face with such a wide-eyed expression. He smiled playfully, “Alright, alright, you’re not thinking about anything. Don’t worry, don’t worry, and definitely don’t cry. It’ll go away on its own, trust me.”
“Really?”
Ji Wujing nodded, crossing his legs and grabbing some sunflower seeds from the fruit bowl on the vanity.
Gu Jianli stood there, not moving forward. She took a deep breath, feeling her body gradually change. Her eyes reddened, and she felt helpless, wanting to cry, but it seemed her eyes couldn’t produce tears.
Ji Wujing put down the seeds and walked over to her. He wanted to pat her head to comfort her, but the height difference due to the body switch made it awkward. Instead, he clumsily patted her face.
“Alright, don’t worry. Maybe it’s just a prank by some passing immortal. After a good night’s sleep, everything will be back to normal tomorrow. Now, let’s change clothes and go out so your father doesn’t notice anything.”
Gu Jianli nodded and went behind the screen to get clothes from the wardrobe. She instinctively reached for her own dresses, feeling the soft fabric in her hands before realizing she had picked the wrong ones. She put the dress back and grabbed one of Ji Wujing’s loose robes instead.
Ji Wujing walked in and leaned lazily against the screen, watching Gu Jianli change. He frowned and asked, “Gu Jianli, why aren’t you curious or interested in my body at all?”
Gu Jianli looked at him with innocent eyes and said, “It’s not like I haven’t seen it before.”
Being so intimate, they understood each other’s bodies better than their own. What was there to be curious about?
As she paused while tying the sash, she turned and asked warily, “What did you do to my body?”
Ji Wujing hadn’t done anything, but hearing her question, a mischievous glint appeared in his eyes. He started to undress in front of her.
Gu Jianli’s eyes grew wider and wider.
So Ji Wujing’s narrow fox-like eyes could get this wide too.
“What are you doing?” Gu Jianli ran over and grabbed Ji Wujing’s hands tightly.
“I’ll do whatever I want.” Ji Wujing smiled lazily, trying to shake her off.
In the next moment, his smile faded slightly.
—He couldn’t break free.
After a moment of silence, he said, “Gu Jianli, let go.”
“No!” Gu Jianli stared at him defensively.
Ji Wujing was silent for a while before saying, “Gu Jianli, you’re squeezing your own wrist so hard you’re about to break it.”
Startled, Gu Jianli quickly let go, seeing that Ji Wujing’s wrist was indeed red. She raised her hands and looked curiously at Ji Wujing’s hands, saying, “When you held my wrist before, it never left marks…”
Ji Wujing was speechless, “Gu Jianli, why would I use force when holding you?”
He shook his wrist, the pain still evident. He began to suspect that if Gu Jianli had applied a bit more pressure, his hands might have broken.
“Are you really that strong?” Gu Jianli asked in surprise.
Such a foolish question was not worth Ji Wujing’s response.
He then realized that with the body swap, he was now delicate and soft, having lost all his inner strength, truly becoming a frail woman.
Gu Jianli suddenly recalled how Ji Wujing had bent iron bars with his bare hands in the imperial tomb’s secret room. She looked around, then walked over to a brass floor lamp. She gripped the lamp tightly, and with a twist, the sturdy lamp bent, and the candle on top fell off.
Gu Jianli looked at her hands again and couldn’t help but smile.
She turned to Ji Wujing, hesitated, then reached out to pat his head, smiling with a raised eyebrow, “Be good, Ji Zhao, you have to listen to me now, or I’ll have to punish you.”
Ji Wujing lifted his eyelids, slightly raised his chin, and looked up at his own face. He had never realized how punchable his own face could be.
He sneered, “I hope your father doesn’t see through you.”
Gu Jianli was stunned, her mood shifting to worry. Her father was not like three-year-old Xiao Xiao. She forced herself to say, “Father will leave today, we just have to keep it up for a bit…”
As if to bolster her own courage, she added, “It’s not difficult, it’s not difficult…”
Once they were washed and dressed, stepping out of the bedroom, Gu Jianli felt a sense of tragic bravery.
In the courtyard, Gu Jingyuan was teaching Xiao Xiao how to ride a horse. Xiao Xiao sat straight-backed on the horse, swinging a small whip with vigor.
Gu Jingyuan held the reins, watching his granddaughter with a broad smile.
Gu Chuan sat on a stone bench nearby, looking displeased.
Gu Jianli was startled and quickly said, “Father, Nan Nan is still too young!”
Gu Jingyuan looked at her in surprise and asked, “Ji Zhao, what did you call me? Are you still half asleep?”
Gu Jianli froze and bit her tongue lightly, regretting how she had almost given herself away.
Ji Wujing cleared his throat, recalling how Gu Jianli usually spoke, “Father, Wujing is right. Nan Nan is still too young. We can teach her to ride later. Besides, this horse is a Chitu. If she really wants to learn, she can ride a wooden horse first.”
Hearing about the wooden horse, Gu Chuan’s eyes lit up, and he eagerly agreed, “Yes, yes! Let her ride the wooden horse first!”
Gu Jianli was shocked at how well Ji Wujing was acting. Just moments ago in the room, he seemed so casual and playful, but now, facing others, he was performing much better than she was.
Gu Jianli swallowed, recalling Ji Wujing’s usual expressions. She narrowed her eyes slightly and smiled, leaning her elbow on Gu Jingyuan’s shoulder, speaking slowly, “Good father, if you want to teach Nan Nan, you can teach her in a couple of years.”
Gu Jingyuan glanced at Gu Jianli.
Meeting her father’s gaze, Gu Jianli felt a wave of panic but mustered all her courage to maintain her composure.
“You’ll let me teach her? You won’t interfere?” Gu Jingyuan asked skeptically.
Just as Gu Jianli was about to agree, Ji Wujing cleared his throat lightly.
Gu Jianli quickly caught on and said nonchalantly, “We’ll see.”
Keeping her face calm, her heart was in turmoil as she finally removed her elbow from her father’s shoulder and went to pick up her daughter from the horse.
Gu Jingyuan sneered inwardly, thinking he couldn’t trust this sly Ji dog.
Ji Wujing licked his lips and sneered internally.
—This Gu tiger is obsessed with teaching people how to ride horses, isn’t he? Not satisfied with teaching Gu Jianli, now he wants to teach Xiao Xiao too? Dream on.
As he was thinking this, Gu Jingyuan looked at him with concern and asked, “Jianli, is your throat uncomfortable today? You’ve been coughing several times.”
Ji Wujing lowered his eyes and replied meekly, “Thank you for your concern, father. I’m fine.”
Gu Jingyuan gave Ji Wujing another look.
“Really can’t ride a horse?” Xiao Xiao pouted.
Gu Jianli sternly said, “You’re still too young.”
Xiao Xiao huffed and muttered, “I don’t want you to hold me; I want mommy!”
Gu Jianli had no choice but to put her down, and Xiao Xiao immediately ran towards Ji Wujing with open arms, calling for her mother.
Ji Wujing felt a sudden warmth in his heart. He had long dreamed of this moment when his little girl would run towards him with open arms for a hug. Unfortunately, she thought he was her mother.
Ignoring the unwanted detail, Ji Wujing smiled happily, squatting down to hug his daughter.
Xiao Xiao tugged at his clothes unhappily and said, “If I can’t ride a horse, then I want to go out and play.”
Before Gu Jianli could say anything to stop it, Ji Wujing had already agreed in her voice, “Alright.”
Gu Jianli’s eyes widened in shock. Going out to play? Isn’t this chaotic enough already?
She tried to object, “Today’s weather…”
Gu Jingyuan interrupted, “Yes, today’s weather is wonderful. It’s a good day to go out and play!”
Gu Jianli was choked up, then tried to change her words, “But it’s rare for father to visit; it might be better to stay home.”
She realized only after speaking that she had again used the wrong term of address; it should have been “Good Father” instead of “Father.” She silently reminded herself to get it right next time.
“It’s fine. I’ll go out with Xiao Xiao and play too, hahaha,” Gu Jingyuan laughed heartily.
“I want to go with Xiao Xiao too!” Gu Chuan added.
Gu Jianli felt a wave of despair wash over her.
Ji Wujing put Xiao Xiao down and patted her head, “Go call your sister.”
“Okay.” Xiao Xiao responded cheerfully and ran towards the backyard.
Gu Jianli felt even more desperate. Why wasn’t Ji Wujing trying to stop this?
“Let’s eat first,” she suggested.
“No, let’s eat out!” Gu Jingyuan declared.
He then called Gu Chuan to go change clothes in their room.
Gu Jianli’s face fell instantly. She complained to Ji Wujing, “Why didn’t you stop them!”
Ji Wujing sneered and said, “Stop what? I’m Gu Jianli, and you’re Ji Wujing. It’s your job to stop them.”
Gu Jianli looked at him blankly, “How do I stop them?”
Ji Wujing, struggling a bit, reached out to pat her head and smiled, “Ji Wujing doesn’t need a reason. You just say, ‘I’m not going, and nobody else is either,’ and that’s it.”