Chapter 53

 Pei Yuan pinched her hair tip, gently brushing her eyelid. Bao Ning blinked, feeling ticklish and backed away, leaning against the wall behind her.

"What are you saying? I don't understand." Bao Ning's voice was muffled under the blanket.

"Playing dumb?" Pei Yuan leaned in closer. His face was still a bit pale, but he had some color now, raising his eyebrows and smiling. "Now you're scared, but just a moment ago, you were brave enough to press your foot against my face?"

"You remember wrong," Bao Ning argued. She turned over to face the wall, pretending to yawn. "I'm still sleepy, don't bother me."

"Acting like a bear." Pei Yuan tugged at her blanket. "Don't always cover your face. You smell all sweaty, aren't you stuffy?"

He draped his long arm below Bao Ning's chest, his chin resting on the crown of her head, making her uncomfortable. She wriggled a bit.

"Stay still." Pei Yuan lightly bit her earlobe, closing his eyes. "Be good, let me hold you."

Bao Ning stopped moving. She curled her legs up like a baby, her back against Pei Yuan's chest. The light rain outside made everything seem even quieter.

"Does it hurt?" Bao Ning asked softly.

"I can bear it," Pei Yuan lowered his head to find her small ear, gently nibbling with his teeth. "See, I don't mind that you're dirty. You haven't bathed in days, and I still kiss you."

Bao Ning elbowed him in annoyance. "Am I forcing you?"

"I want to." Pei Yuan laughed softly. "I'm just a shameless guy who loves sticking to you."

"Stop talking!" Bao Ning scratched his arm with her nails, blushing. "How did I not know you were like this before, so oily and slick?"

Pei Yuan asked, "What was I like in your heart before?"

"Arrogant, conceited, unreasonable..." Bao Ning leaned back against him, slowly listing, "Very annoying."

"Not a single good word?" Pei Yuan frowned. He turned Bao Ning to face him and playfully bit her nose. "You don't like me?"

"What's with this 'like' or 'not like'..." Bao Ning blushed even more, pushing Pei Yuan's face away and wiping off the saliva. "Why do you always like to bite people?"

"Only you." Pei Yuan's voice was low. He had recovered a lot of energy and was back to his old self, his eyes bright.

Bao Ning didn't argue with him anymore. She wanted to take a shower but felt too tired. The bed was warm, and she was reluctant to get up. Pei Yuan was still half-naked. He lay back, his arm around Bao Ning's neck, his other hand tapping her belly gently.

Rare quiet and warmth. Bao Ning closed her eyes for a nap, smiled, and poked Pei Yuan's waist. "Listen, is Ah Huang snoring?"

Pei Yuan listened and indeed heard it, laughing. "It's sleeping soundly."

Bao Ning sat up. "I'll go wake it up."

Pei Yuan clicked his tongue and grabbed her wrist. "Why be so annoying?"

Bao Ning stuck out her tongue.

"Then I'll take a shower." She gathered her hair from her neck, reached over Pei Yuan for a hairpin on the small table, and quickly put her hair in a bun. "It's so sticky."

"I'll go with you," Pei Yuan sat up as well.

He had a wound left by a leech on his leg, a small hole the size of half a fingernail, which Bao Ning had treated with medicine. When he moved, the remaining powder fell off, revealing the wound, which had already formed a light scab.

"What nonsense," Bao Ning glanced at him reproachfully. "You just sit there. I'll get you some hot water to wash up in a bit." She put on her shoes and lit a lamp, the small flame illuminating the whole room.

The rain outside had stopped. The lamb and Ah Huang were sleeping under the window. Bao Ning shooed them away and tiptoed to open the window. The cool evening breeze blew into the room, sweeping away the sticky heat on her body. Bao Ning stretched lazily, looking at the dark silhouette of the pomegranate tree outside.

Pei Yuan leaned against the wall, watching her. She wore light pink underwear, revealing a slender white ankle. He couldn't help but reach out to measure it, finding it no thicker than his wrist.

Ah Huang, its sleeping spot disturbed, nudged Bao Ning's calf with its butt and scampered onto the bed, trying to jump onto Pei Yuan.

With one stern glance from him, it chickened out and curled up with the lamb at the foot of the bed, heads touching, continuing to sleep.

The atmosphere was pleasant, like a cozy little home, and Bao Ning's mood brightened. It had been a day of emotional highs and lows.

"These next few days, if there's nothing else, just rest at home," Bao Ning said, looking back at Pei Yuan.

She bit her lip, pondering, then subtly expressed her thoughts: "Every time General Qiu returns to the capital, he only stays for a few months. We're outsiders, and it's not good to stay in someone else's house for too long. Maybe we should consider getting a place of our own."

"If money is an issue," Bao Ning observed Pei Yuan's expression, "I have some on hand. A large house might be a bit much, but a small shop would be no problem. If possible, we could go somewhere else, where no one knows us, and do some small business..."

Bao Ning knew Pei Yuan had his reasons for staying at the general's mansion, but she really didn't like it there. It was nice, but it didn't feel like home to her.

She suddenly felt her words were inadequate and stopped talking, turning back to look at the trees in the courtyard. She couldn't see anything, just a mass of black shadows.

"Wei Meng will be coming in a few days," Pei Yuan suddenly spoke.

Bao Ning was puzzled. "Who is Wei Meng?"

"He is my most trusted deputy general and a brother," Pei Yuan said. "Some of my business affairs are also managed by him. When he arrives, I'll hand over the property deeds to you."

He added, "I don't lack money."

Bao Ning mumbled softly, "Men and their pride, this isn't what I was talking about at all."

Pei Yuan, thinking she was unwilling, straightened up and said, "Ning Ning, you need to learn these things. Household matters shouldn't always be left to outsiders. You are the mistress of the house. I've been negligent in the past, forgetting about this. Now that I've remembered, it's only right to give these responsibilities to you. My money should be yours to manage."

Hearing him talk like this, Bao Ning felt a strange emotion she couldn't quite place, not sure if she was happy or not.

Their situation was too unusual. Pei Yuan had a noble status, but when Bao Ning married him, the circumstances were what they were. He didn't have any servants by his side. The two of them had been living together for so long that Bao Ning had subconsciously felt their little home was just the two of them.

But just now, Pei Yuan mentioned household matters and the role of the mistress, implying that their little home was now part of a larger household.

Bao Ning admitted she was being petty and awkward. Who doesn't love money? If Pei Yuan had money, she would naturally be happy. But if the price was Pei Yuan turning into someone like her father, Duke Rong, with a large mansion and countless wives and concubines, then despite her elevated status, she wouldn't be managing just a sheep and a dog but a whole household of people. That thought didn't bring her any joy.

"You..." Bao Ning's heart tightened as she thought of the topic she had been avoiding: would Pei Yuan take concubines?

She mustered the courage to ask, but just as she was about to speak, heavy footsteps were heard outside the window. Pei Yuan's attention shifted, and Bao Ning's resolve faltered.

She turned to look outside and, unsurprisingly, saw Qiu Mingshan.

Qiu Mingshan saw Bao Ning standing by the window and smiled kindly, stopping far from her. "Bao Ning, is Yuan'er here?"

"He is," Bao Ning forced a smile and gave him a half-curtsy. She glanced at Pei Yuan, who was already strapping on his leg brace.

Pei Yuan moved quickly, casually putting on a robe and heading for the door.

As he passed Bao Ning, he brushed her forehead with his hand. "Don't overthink it. I'll just say a few words and be back soon. Don't worry. If it's late, bathe and sleep early."

"Okay." Bao Ning hesitated, then nodded, watching Pei Yuan leave.

He always acted mysteriously, doing things that didn't fit into her life, yet refused to explain them to her.

Bao Ning closed the window, took some clean clothes from the cabinet, and went to bathe, following her usual routine.

She was absent-minded, taking a long time to choose underwear. Realizing her thoughts were all about Pei Yuan, she felt a mix of worry and concern. Her life now revolved entirely around him, with no other distractions.

Bao Ning was suddenly startled, feeling her current situation was terrifying.

Her emotions were entirely dictated by Pei Yuan. She cried because of him, laughed because of him. Right now, he treated her well, and everything seemed perfect. But what if he didn't in the future? How reliable could men really be?

Bao Ning recalled a story from her childhood, about Cao Pi and Zhen Mi from the Three Kingdoms. Zhen Mi was so pitiful—beautiful and delicate, but after Cao Pi stopped loving her, her life became miserable.

Ah Huang, having slept enough, stood up and yawned widely.

Bao Ning's gaze wandered, finally landing on Ah Huang's pink tongue. She thought she really should find something for herself, something she enjoyed. Even if she and Pei Yuan reached an irreparable point in the future, she could still live happily.

...

Outside, Qiu Mingshan solemnly shook a small packet from his sleeve, revealing a white powder inside.

He looked at Pei Yuan and frowned. "I suspect that Zhou Jiangcheng's madness at that time was due to poisoning."

"This powder was scraped from the tea leaves he often drank. The tea was hand-picked and fried by Luyun, so who exactly is this Luyun?"

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