Chapter 2.2 Pei Duo: Sister-in-law, do you have something to say to me?

Jiang Ninghui wanted to go back not just because she was embarrassed and avoided the situation after Pei Duo had inadvertently seen her body.

There is another important reason.

In order to raise money for her younger brother's wedding, his parents bribed a fortune teller to deceive his parents-in-law, saying that her birth chart would bring good fortune to her husband and help him pass the imperial examinations with flying colors.

But all of these are fake.

Jiang Ninghui felt guilty and scared. If she failed the provincial examination next year, the Zhao family would definitely blame her for everything. She didn't even dare to imagine how miserable her situation would be then.

If she goes back now, avoiding spending every day with her husband, she can offer some explanation if he fails the provincial examination next year.

The last rays of the setting sun shone on the door. Jiang Ninghui glanced at the sky; her husband would be back soon.

She put aside these thoughts and went to the kitchen to prepare dinner for her husband.

She stepped out of the house and subconsciously glanced at the tightly closed door to the north.

Thinking about what had just happened, Jiang Ninghui's face flushed again.

The kitchen was on the west side, next to the pear tree. The young man had been in town for some time, but looking at the deserted kitchen, it seemed that the two of them had never cooked.

Jiang Ninghui went to the well in the yard to fetch a bucket of water and cleaned the kitchen. The sounds of footsteps coming and going outside and splashing water came into the house through the half-open window.

A long table was placed under the window, with books, writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones on it.

Pei Duo stood in front of the long table, flipping through several books in his hands, his handsome brows slightly furrowed, as if searching for something.

A moment later, the young man found a thin sheet of paper among the books at the bottom. Before he could open it, there was a knock on the closed door, and a woman's soft voice came through the door: "Young Master Pei, I left my bundle in your room. Could you please pass it to me?"

Pei Duo lifted his eyes and glanced at the shadows stretching to the ground outside through the half-open window.

The woman was slender and frail, and even her shadow cast on the ground looked thin and fragile.

Pei Duo tucked the envelope under the books and glanced at the bed on the other side.

The bedding on the bed was neatly folded, showing no trace of the previous erotic and chaotic scene. Only the faint scent of a woman's fragrance in the room told the story of what had happened here.

The young man's expression turned cold again, his sharply defined jawline taut. He glanced at the dark blue bundle that his owner had discarded in the corner at the foot of the bed, picked it up, walked to the door, pulled out the latch, and opened the door.

Jiang Ninghui unexpectedly bumped into Pei Duo, who was standing in front of the door after it opened.

The young man was extremely tall, with his long, slender left hand resting lightly on the door. His handsome face was so cold that it seemed devoid of any human warmth. He extended his right hand, holding a dark blue bundle on his clean knuckles.

"Is this it?"

Jiang Ninghui was too ashamed to face Pei Duo.

She quickly lowered her head and replied softly, "Yes, thank you, Young Master Pei."

Jiang Ninghui was already married. Her long black hair was tied up with a simple wooden hairpin. The two were only a step apart. Pei Duo lowered his eyes slightly and saw a protruding bone under the back of Jiang Ninghui's neck. The woman's neck was slender and snow-white, just like her raised wrist, thin and fragile.

Like the wild geese he hunted in the mountains last year, whose necks snapped easily with a gentle bend.

Jiang Ninghui carefully avoided Pei Duo's hands and took the heavy burden from him with both hands.

The bundle was large and contained many things, including her change of clothes and shoes. More heavy were the freshly picked vegetables and pickled vegetables that her mother-in-law had prepared for her husband, as well as half a bag of refined flour, corn and sweet potato flour, and a piece of cured meat that her mother-in-law had cured.

The half-day walk from Xiping Village to the town wasn't tiring for Jiang Ninghui, who lives in the impoverished Hongshan Village; what was tiring was carrying these heavy loads.

Jiang Ninghui turned and walked towards the kitchen, carrying the heavy bundle.

After taking a few steps, she suddenly remembered something and turned to look at Pei Duo, who was about to close the door.

Through the narrow crack in the door, the young man slightly raised his eyelids and glanced at her coldly: "Is there anything else, sister-in-law?"

Jiang Ninghui forced herself to ask, "I'm going to make dinner. Would Young Master Pei like some?"

After all, he and his lover lived under the same roof, and she and her lover had been in Young Master Pei's room that afternoon...

Jiang Ninghui dared not think any further; the heat on her face had not yet subsided when it rose again.

Pei Duo nodded: "Then I'll have to trouble you, sister-in-law."

Jiang Ninghui shook her head: "No...no trouble at all."

She hurried into the kitchen, and before the last rays of sunlight were completely swallowed by the eaves, she poured water and kneaded dough by the light. It was a bit late today, so she could only eat some soup noodles for now. She thought her husband should be back soon, but he didn't return until the dishes were cooked and the soup in the pot was boiling.

As dusk approached, a kerosene lamp was lit in the kitchen.

The stove glowed with an orange-red light, and crackling sounds occasionally echoed in the quiet kitchen.

Zhao Zhixue had a book bag slung over his shoulder, wore a gray cross-collar robe, and had his long hair tied up with a gray ribbon. He looked like a handsome young scholar.

He stepped into the courtyard and immediately saw Jiang Ninghui busy in the kitchen. He glanced at the small house to the south, where a light was on. It seemed that Pei Di had returned before him.

Zhao Zhixue walked into the kitchen and saw Jiang Ninghui standing in front of the stove pulling noodles. He walked over quietly and hugged her from behind. Jiang Ninghui was startled and her face turned pale. She even dropped a long noodle into the boiling pot.

Zhao Zhixue smiled and said, "Sui Sui, I'm back."

Jiang Ninghui tried to squeeze out of Zhao Zhixue's arms. Although she was already a married woman, she really couldn't be too intimate with her husband with the door wide open. Besides, there were more than just the two of them in the courtyard; Young Master Pei was also there.

The thought of her husband taking her to do such things in Young Master Pei's room today made Jiang Ninghui feel both absurd and angry.

Just as she was about to ask her husband, a clear and deep voice suddenly came from outside the kitchen.

"Brother Zhao, come to my room. I have something to tell you."

Jiang Ninghui turned her head and saw Pei Duo standing outside. The young man glanced at them with extremely cold eyes before turning back into his room. Seeing this, Jiang Ninghui quickly stepped out of Zhao Zhixue's arms.

She had a vague feeling.

What Pei Duo said to the young master must be related to what happened this afternoon.

Jiang Ninghui felt a deep sense of worry. Although Young Master Pei had promised not to tell her husband about what happened that afternoon, she was still a little scared, since she and Young Master Pei were not very familiar with each other.

Zhao Zhixue: "Suisui, I'm going over there, I'll come find you later."

Jiang Ninghui absentmindedly hummed in agreement.

She pulled the remaining noodles into the pot. Once the noodles boiled, the two people who had been talking inside came out one after the other. Jiang Ninghui glanced at Zhao Zhixue's face and saw that he looked normal. She then cautiously glanced at Pei Duo, who was walking beside Zhao Zhixue.

Unexpectedly, the young man suddenly lifted his eyelids, and Jiang Ninghui was caught off guard, meeting his dark pupils.

She hurriedly looked away, focusing her gaze on the boiling pot, and stirred the noodle soup with a spoon.

Zhao Zhixue came in and walked to her side. He glanced at the pot of rich and fragrant noodle soup, which instantly aroused his cravings: "Sui Sui, you don't know how bland the food is at our school. If you go late, you can't buy any good food. I haven't had a hot meal much these days."

Jiang Ninghui never expected the food at the town's school to be so bad.

She suddenly realized that her husband probably wouldn't agree to her returning to the village.

On one hand, she was worried about whether Young Master Pei would tell her husband about what happened that afternoon, and on the other hand, she was afraid that if her husband failed the provincial examination next year, she would suffer the consequences. Jiang Ninghui served rice absentmindedly. Zhao Zhixue had been complaining about the school since he stepped into the kitchen, and did not notice Jiang Ninghui's strange behavior.

Zhao Zhixue took the large bowl of noodle soup that Jiang Ninghui handed him and said with a smile, "I'll serve it. You can sit down and eat first."

Jiang Ninghui gently shook her head: "I'm fine, you eat first."

Zhao Zhixue then took it without any hesitation.

Jiang Ninghui filled another large bowl and was about to bring it to Pei Duo's table when a fair and slender hand reached out and took the bowl from her. The young man's fingers carefully avoided her fingers pressing on the rim of the bowl, and his voice was clear and melodious: "Thank you, sister-in-law."

Jiang Ninghui didn't dare to raise her head: "It's nothing."

A square table was placed by the window. Zhao Zhixue sat in the middle, and Jiang Ninghui sat opposite Pei Duo. She ate quietly with her head down, listening attentively as her husband and Pei Gongzi talked about what happened at the school that day. Most of the talking was done by her husband, with Pei Gongzi occasionally responding.

After a moment, Zhao Zhixue asked, "Brother Pei, what do you think of the food your sister-in-law makes?"

Pei Duo succinctly replied, "That's right."

Zhao Zhixue: "Since that's the case, how about this: you give the kitchen your share of food every month, and your sister-in-law will cook it along with your share, how about that?"

Jiang Ninghui's eyelashes fluttered, and she gently bit her noodle without saying a word.

She heard Young Master Pei's voice from the other end: "Then I'll have to trouble you from now on, sister-in-law."

Jiang Ninghui didn't look up, and said the same three words: "No trouble at all."

It seems she had nothing else to say besides those three words.

After finishing her meal, Jiang Ninghui cleaned up the kitchen. Feeling upset, she wanted to talk to her husband about what happened that afternoon. She quickly finished the last bit of work in the kitchen and was about to go out with the kerosene lamp when she saw a tall, slender black shadow looming over her.

Jiang Ninghui was almost entirely shrouded in Pei Duo's shadow.

The young man carried a white porcelain water jug ​​in his hand, his cold and indifferent gaze fixed on her.

He nodded and said calmly, "Sister-in-law."

Jiang Ninghui's scalp tightened, and she nodded haphazardly, asking, "Are you going to fill it with hot water?"

Pei Duo: "Hmm."

Jiang Ninghui pointed to the stove: "There's hot water in the pot."

Pei Duo: "Thank you."

Jiang Ninghui gave a vague reply, hesitated for a small step, and then heard Young Master Pei's question from beside her: "Sister-in-law, do you have something to say to me?"

Jiang Ninghui looked up in surprise, unexpectedly finding Pei Duo had once again guessed what she was thinking.

The tall, handsome young man stood opposite her, bathed in the soft, cool light of the moon. The dark blue sleeves of his robe fluttered in the night breeze, gently brushing against the belt at his waist.

Beneath the belt was the young man's slender waist, from which hung a piece of fine white jade, with a snow-blue silk pendant dangling below.

Jiang Ninghui lowered her head, bit her lower lip, and swallowed back the question that was about to come out of her mouth when she saw Pei Duo's handsome and indifferent face.

She paused for a while before saying, "It's okay, I'll go back to my room first."

After taking a few steps with the kerosene lamp, he heard Pei Duo's deliberately lowered, clear voice behind him: "Sister-in-law, there is no need to worry. Since I made a promise to you, I will not go back on my word."

A note from the author:

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There's a red envelope in this chapter! Updates daily at noon.

Pei Duo: Sister-in-law, whether I go back on my word in the future is another matter.

Jiang Ninghui: ...