Chapter 10 "I wish I could carry you with me and walk..."

Upon returning to the yamen, Cui Xintang went on an official business trip, leaving the capital for a few days. Meng Yuanxiao, on the other hand, stayed at the mansion learning household management from Granny Cao.

Granny Cao was a trusted elder of Madam Wu, who had assisted Madam Wu in managing the household for a long time. Entrusted by Madam Wu, she was very strict with Meng Yuanxiao.

Meng Yuanxiao disliked reading and was even less skilled in business. He was constantly confined by Granny Cao and complained endlessly.

Finally, Cui Xintang returned to the capital. However, for several days in a row, after returning home from his official duties, he was busy in his study until late at night, and even stayed in his study all night.

Meng Yuanxiao was extremely depressed.

That evening, while she was taking a bath, Hongshao pulled out a brand-new nightgown from the wardrobe and excitedly handed it to her.

"This servant noticed that the young master returned home a little early today. He should be going to his room to sleep tonight. Miss, would you like to wear this tonight?"

Meng Yuanxiao was soaking in the bathtub when, through the hazy steam, she caught sight of the nightgown in Hong Shao's hand, and her face flushed instantly.

This nightgown is as thin as a cicada's wing. It was a gift that Mingyue picked out for her when she went shopping with Mingyue before her marriage.

When she returned, she secretly put the nightgown and the storybook her sister-in-law had given her at the bottom of her trunk, only to find them again on her wedding night.

She had been so busy these past few days that if Hongshao hadn't found it, she would have completely forgotten about the nightgown.

After blushing and fidgeting for a moment, until the water in the bathtub was almost cold, Meng Yuanxiao whispered, "Then wear this one."

She changed into this nightgown and waited and waited on the bed, but Cui Xintang never came back.

Meng Yuanxiao couldn't help but get annoyed.

In the first few nights after Cui Xintang returned to the capital, she actually sent someone to call him from his study. But although he answered, he never came back, whether because he was too busy or for some other reason.

Meng Yuanxiao, concerned about his reputation, refused to go to the study to call him again.

She had been somewhat unhappy these past few days, and today she had suffered a bit of grievance at Granny Cao's place, so she couldn't help but miss him.

In the vast Cui mansion, the only person she knew was him, and the only person she could rely on was him.

She had originally thought that once her brother Tang returned and comforted her, she would let it go.

The affairs of the government office are important; she won't be a burden to him.

However, even though Brother Tang left the yamen early and returned home, he still refused to go back to his room.

Meng Yuanxiao felt increasingly aggrieved as she thought about it, tossing and turning in bed until her eyes welled up with tears.

Suddenly, she didn't want to wait any longer, so she angrily changed out of her nightgown and threw it back into the closet.

But when she got back to bed, she couldn't help but cry from anger.

In the study, Cui Xintang was busy at his desk until late at night.

When the maid came in to pour tea, she accidentally spilled the tea on him, whether because she was sleepy or something else.

The tea wasn't scalding hot, but it was still warm. The maid was startled and hurriedly took out a handkerchief to wipe the tea off him.

Cui Xintang frowned, intending to say it was nothing, but noticing the maid's hand trembling slightly on him, he paused, unable to resist looking up at her.

He hadn't noticed her before, but now he realized that the maid looked unfamiliar.

The maid's cheeks flushed slightly. When she saw Cui Xintang looking at her, her eyes flickered, as if she had just realized something. She quickly withdrew her hand in surprise, "Young Master, please calm down..."

Cui Xintang nodded, his expression unchanged, and asked her, "In which room did you serve her?"

The maid lowered her eyes and replied softly, "Young Master, I serve in the study."

Cui Xintang didn't pay much attention to the affairs of the inner quarters, but most of the servants in his study were young men.

He was unaware that a maid had been added to his side.

However, he rarely made things difficult for his servants, so he simply said, "It's getting late, there's no need to serve you here, go and rest."

The maid hesitated for a moment, then replied, "Yes, young master."

The maidservant withdrew as instructed, leaving Cui Xintang alone in the study.

He had almost finished his work for the day, so he rubbed his aching temples, closed his eyes to rest for a moment, and then stood up.

In the past, at this time, he would simply stay in the study and not go back to disturb Meng Yuanxiao's rest.

Although he had already taken a bath today, his clothes were soaked with tea and stuck to his body uncomfortably.

After thinking it over, I decided to return to the backyard under the cover of night.

The maid on night duty was dozing off when she saw him coming. She snapped awake and quickly stood up straight, saying, "Young Master."

Cui Xintang nodded. It was late at night, and he didn't let anyone come in to serve him. He went into the room himself and went to the wardrobe to find his nightgown.

Opening the wardrobe, the first thing you see is a crumpled-up light gauze nightgown, haphazardly tossed inside.

It's obvious whose it is.

Cui Xintang was taken aback.

Meng Yuanxiao had fair skin, and although she looked somewhat youthful, she was perfectly proportioned in all the right places. Her nightgown was as thin as a cicada's wing; if she wore it…

Just thinking about it makes the image appear uncontrollably in my mind.

Cui Xintang's Adam's apple bobbed, and despite his exhaustion, he couldn't help but feel a surge of heat.

He stood in front of the wardrobe for a moment, and only when the heat gradually subsided did he hurriedly grab a nightgown and change into it.

Now that we're back in our room, there's no need to go back to the study.

Cui Xintang walked lightly to the bedside, lifted the bed curtains, and saw the person on the bed curled up in a ball, fast asleep.

Perhaps because she had just cried, she was still feeling aggrieved in her sleep, occasionally sobbing softly.

Cui Xintang paused, and suddenly the image of the light gauze nightgown in the wardrobe flashed through her mind, followed by the image of the maid in the study.

Meng Yuanxiao was young, but he was very bold, as he had witnessed on his wedding night.

He naturally had no objections and was happy to cooperate.

The nightgown was crumpled up, suggesting that someone had worn it earlier but then took it off in a huff.

As for the maid in the study just now...

He disliked being disturbed when handling official business, a fact known to everyone around him. As for when and why that maid was assigned to his side, he couldn't be bothered to investigate.

But his decision not to pursue the matter doesn't mean he knows nothing.

He saw through the maid's thoughts at a glance.

It seems that he has been staying in the study these past few days and rarely returned to his room, so someone in the mansion has developed other ideas.

These past few days, he's been overwhelmed with work at the government office, and with his superiors deliberately targeting him, he's been too busy to pay any attention to Meng Yuanxiao.

Admittedly, he also showed some slight indifference towards her.

The idea of ​​marrying Meng Yuanxiao came to him suddenly, even surprising him.

That impulse only cooled down the day before the wedding when he saw Cui Zhen suddenly appear in the mansion.

He felt he should be different from that person and not indulge in romantic love.

Half of the troubles of men and women in this world come from love. If one does not indulge in love, one will have fewer troubles and will save a lot of problems in the future.

Therefore, after a few days of absurdity in the early days of their marriage, he began to intentionally or unintentionally distance himself from Meng Yuanxiao.

I'm so busy with work that I rarely have time to think about her.

However, she overlooked the fact that he hadn't returned to his room for days, leaving her alone, which would make her feel anxious and fearful.

Those in the household would feel that he looked down on her, which led others to harbor inappropriate thoughts.

Thinking of this, Cui Xintang couldn't help but frown. He stood silently by the bed, looked at Meng Yuanxiao for a moment by the dim candlelight, and then turned off the light and got into bed.

The person on the bed seemed to sense something, and just like the first few nights after their wedding, quickly rolled into his arms.

She remained aggrieved, nestled in his arms, and unconsciously let out a soft sob.

Cui Xintang froze for a moment.

He felt a little uncomfortable with her using one arm as a pillow. He wanted to pull it away, but then thought of something and decided against it.

He then turned to the side and carefully pulled her into his arms, gently patting her back. Only after she had fallen asleep in his arms did he close his eyes.

The next morning, Meng Yuanxiao didn't wake up until the sun was high in the sky. When he woke up, he found Cui Xintang's nightgown in his arms.

Although the outside of the bed was cold, there were obvious signs that someone had slept there.

Meng Yuanxiao was stunned. Did Brother Tang actually come back last night?

However, he went too far, and even if he came back, she wasn't prepared to forgive him.

As Meng Yuanxiao pursed his lips and thought this angrily, he turned his head and saw that the sky outside the tent was already bright, and he was greatly surprised.

"Red peony!"

Hearing the noise, Hongshao pushed open the door and came in. "Miss, you're awake?"

Meng Yuanxiao quickly got out of bed. "Has Granny Cao arrived? Hurry and help me change. Why didn't you wake me up sooner?"

Hongshao hung up the bed curtains and said with a smile, "Miss, don't worry. Before the young master left today, he told me not to disturb you. He also said that you should rest today and that he would talk to the madam."

Meng Yuanxiao was stunned. "Brother Tang really said that?"

“Yes,” Hongshao said as she helped her change, “the young master has always doted on you, how could you not know that?”

Meng Yuanxiao pursed her lips and remained silent.

Having finally gotten a day off, she certainly wouldn't stay cooped up at home. She sent someone to inform her mother-in-law and also sent an invitation to Mingyue, asking her to go out and have some fun.

After taking a bath that evening, Meng Yuanxiao, after much restraint, finally took out the light gauze undergarment and quietly changed into it.

So when Cui Xintang returned to his room, he lifted the bed curtains and the quilt, and saw Meng Yuanxiao with slightly flushed cheeks, wearing a thin nightgown that barely covered her face, and a pair of watery almond-shaped eyes looking at him timidly yet expectantly.

The light red bra was clearly visible under the thin, sheer nightgown, and the exposed skin was dazzlingly white, exactly like the scene he had imagined last night.

The shock of this scene was far greater than that of their wedding night. Cui Xintang's eyes darkened, and she felt a burning sensation all over her body.

The person on the side bed showed no fear whatsoever, and even added fuel to the fire, saying pitifully, "Brother Tang, I missed you."

Cui Xintang was not a gentleman who could remain unmoved by temptation; even with the strongest willpower, he could not resist long ago.

He quickly tore off his coat, pressed the man onto the bed, and bit Meng Yuanxiao's earlobe.

"This morning, when I got up early to go to the government office, Yuanyuan clung to me and wouldn't let go. I had no choice but to take off my clothes and let you hold me."

His voice was low and somewhat hoarse, inexplicably making people blush.

Meng Yuanxiao wrapped her arms around his neck, but he pried open her teeth and then forced his way inside.

Cui Xintang sighed comfortably and chuckled in her ear, "You've kept me thinking about you all day long. I wish I could carry you with me wherever I go."

Both of them were taken aback when he finished speaking.

Cui Xintang wasn't lying to her.

The way she depended on him last night, and the guilt he felt towards her, made him absent-minded all day, something he had never done before.

Even when his parents were at their worst, he was mostly numb and even escapist, rarely caring about anything.

Therefore, his mother scolded him countless times, saying that he was just like his cold-blooded father.

A note from the author:

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