Chapter 58:
Do you feel disrespected?
After all, although she was not young, this was indeed her first marriage.
Thinking this way, Xie Wanning felt somewhat guilty. She spoke up to explain, “I just want to marry you as soon as possible, so that no mishaps occur midway.”
I just want to marry you as soon as possible……
He knew full well that this was not the meaning she intended, yet Pei Yuqing’s heart still burned scorchingly hot.
His eyelashes trembled slightly, and his words came out fast and urgent: “As long as you don’t go back on it, no mishaps will occur.”
That’s not certain.
Once Lu Ziyan returned, how could he possibly sit idly by and watch her marry someone else without causing trouble?
Xie Wanning fell silent for a moment, then reached out to tug at his sleeve and said softly, “Let’s talk for a bit.”
Pei Yuqing hummed in acknowledgment, gripped her hand in return, led her to sit on a rock, squatted down himself to look her in the eye, and smiled lightly: “Go ahead.”
“……You sit too,” Xie Wanning patted the empty spot beside her: “Sit down, right next to me.”
Aside from the occasional chirps of summer insects, the lakeside was extremely quiet under the night sky.
The rock was not large, so the two sat very close. Seeing his upright and proper posture, Xie Wanning smiled faintly, her gaze falling on the sachet at his waist. Tilting her head curiously, she asked, “What about the one I gave you? Have you ever worn it?”
Pei Yuqing’s voice was very soft: “No.”
As for why he had not worn it, he did not say, and Xie Wanning did not press further.
She looked at his slender palm resting on his knee, her eyebrows arching slightly as she teased with a smile, “We’ve now pledged ourselves to each other for life, so do we really need to be so formal when sitting together?”
“……Mm.” Pei Yuqing felt somewhat embarrassed by her teasing but still reached out to hold her hand, carefully closing his fingers around hers.
Xie Wanning was not so obedient as to let him hold her hand just like that. She did enjoy teasing him; the more bashful he became, the more she could not resist.
The moment their hands clasped, her fingers slipped into the gaps between his, interlocking with his ten fingers.
Their palms pressed palm to palm. This was her first time being so intimate with anyone—not even with her close boudoir friends had she been this close—but at this moment, she felt not the slightest discomfort.
She thought that she must like him too, at least she was willing to be intimate with him and particularly enjoyed seeing his embarrassed, speechless state when cornered with no way to retreat.
Thinking this way, Xie Wanning tightened her fingers slightly and asked softly, “Before me, have you ever held another young lady’s hand like this?”
Pei Yuqing paused for a moment and said, “No.”
“Really not?” Xie Wanning’s lips curved, and she leaned in closer with a smile, staring at his handsome face. “You’re so good-looking—surely none of the maidservants attending you have had any ideas?”
Pei Yuqing was very perceptive and immediately understood what she really wanted to ask.
He tilted his head slightly, glanced at her sidelong, a smile rising in his eyes: “No maidservants, and no one has had any ideas about me.”
The instant their gazes met, they could clearly see the color of each other’s eyes under the bright moonlight.
Xie Wanning’s heart stirred, and she secretly marveled that a beauty looked even more enchanting under the moonlight—even his straight browbones were exceptionally attractive.
Thinking that they had already kissed anyway, and she had even taken the initiative several times to urge him to marry her, any semblance of restraint was long gone. She simply lifted her free left hand and affectionately traced his straight nose bridge……
“Wanwan,” Pei Yuqing pulled her hand down, his voice hoarse: “You and I meeting at night is already improper……”
At this point in his words, his voice abruptly stopped. His downcast eyes contracted slightly, and he stared at her with an inscrutable expression.
Xie Wanning had already sat up straight. She pursed her lips and said with a beaming smile, “Why are you looking at me like that? I kissed you so slowly—if you didn’t want it, you could have dodged.”
Truly saying one thing but meaning another, putting on an act.
Pei Yuqing felt a bit annoyed at having his thoughts seen through, but more than that, he was embarrassed.
Xie Wanning had no intention of stopping. She continued, “Don’t lecture me about rules and etiquette. If I cared about that, I wouldn’t have insisted on breaking off the engagement with Lu Ziyan right before the wedding date, or gone alone to Yuxuan Teahouse to meet you, and I certainly wouldn’t be sitting here by the lake now, asking if you want to marry me.”
“……Besides,” she paused, nudging him with her elbow, her smile deepening: “You clearly like it too.”
Her eyes were full of amusement, looking quite willful. Pei Yuqing had never been teased like this before; he stared at her in a daze for a long time before finally turning his face away.
Xie Wanning already had some understanding of his temperament—this man was truly completely different from Lu Ziyan.
Lu Ziyan was stern and unruly, domineering and autocratic. Everything had to follow his feelings and decisions. He was the cold and heartless one, the one who snuck into her boudoir at night, the one who abducted her to the rockery to kiss her. He never cared about her feelings or thoughts.
Whereas Pei Yuqing was gentle and harmless. His temper was exceedingly good; you could tease and bully him as you pleased. When pushed too far, he would only fix you with a heavy gaze. Even a rabbit would bite when cornered, yet he seemed not even capable of that right now.
Thinking this way, she felt even less able to hold back and pressed him, staring intently: “Do you like it?”
Pei Yuqing: “……”
Xie Wanning chuckled softly: “Don’t be shy. It’s like asking you to say a sweet nothing is asking for your life.”
“……Sit properly.” Pei Yuqing tightened his grip on her hand. Once she was no longer leaning so close, he said softly, “What do you want to hear?”
Xie Wanning was first taken aback by the question, then could not help but laugh. It was the first time since dreaming of her future fate that she laughed so freely.
Indeed, this man was upright and self-possessed, elegant and courteous. At his age, he had never even held a young lady’s hand—how could one expect him to say sweet words to coax someone?
Smiling, she said, “I’m not making things hard for you. Just don’t say one thing and mean another.”
Before he could react, she asked again: “Do you like it when I kiss you?”
“……Wanwan,” Pei Yuqing’s expression was a mix of embarrassment and helplessness. Xie Wanning did not urge him but waited patiently.
She waited a good long while before hearing his voice.
His voice trembled slightly as he said, “I like it.”
Xie Wanning kept watching him. Seeing his conflicted, wordless expression—like a virtuous young man being forced—she could not help but find it amusing and almost felt reluctant to tease him further.
But she still said, “Then in the future, will you stop harping on rules and etiquette to rebuke me?”
Pei Yuqing raised his eyes, his expression turning slightly serious: “If you don’t like hearing it, then I won’t say it.”
“That’s more like it,” Xie Wanning was very satisfied with his perceptiveness and smiled as she tightened their clasped hands. “Elder Brother nags me every day, which is headache enough. If you started constantly going on about rules and etiquette too, what would be the point of marrying you?”
Marrying a man just like her Elder Brother……
Xie Wanning shivered and said solemnly, “I’m most afraid of my Elder Brother. You wouldn’t want to see me that scared, would you?”
“I won’t say it. You can do whatever you want,” Pei Yuqing looked at her somewhat helplessly: “But Wanwan, you mustn’t be too willful.”
Their betrothal was not yet formalized, and meeting at night was already improper, yet she had kissed him again and again……
Thinking this way, his gaze slowly drifted downward to her lips.
They were so close that when not speaking, they could hear each other’s breathing sounds. The young lady, now without makeup, had no glossy lipstick on her lips as she did during the day, yet under the moonlight, they remained alluring and vibrant.
Like a rose in the spring flower field, gorgeous and dazzling.
His adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed, and he hastily looked away.
Seeing this, Xie Wanning arched her brow lightly: “What are you thinking about?”
Looking all ashamed to be seen.
Pei Yuqing ignored her, relieved that it was nighttime and she could not see his flushed face.
Xie Wanning’s lips curved slightly upward, a trace of sweetness rising in her heart.
She increasingly felt that marrying him was a good choice.
After all, being with him really made her feel so carefree and at ease.
“Elder Brother Changqing, do you want to kiss me back?” Her tone was gentle and slow: “You can. I permit you to kiss me back.”
