Oops

Tai Shi Zheng carried Cuo Cuo out of the bathroom and trotted back to the main house.

Once inside and closed the door, she slid down the door panel and sat on the floor. Seeing her panicked expression after sitting down, her cheeks flushed red. She immediately buried her shy face in the shaggy handkerchief, then unconsciously groaned in shame.

Cuo Cuo seemed to be awakened by her, and heard a man and a dog humming in the main house.

Aunt Wu returned from a stroll outside the courtyard and spotted the food box on the porch. Curious, she went forward to investigate. However, the closer she got to the main house, the more unusual noises she could hear. She glanced at the light in the bathroom, figuring the couple were probably not together.

She then knocked on the door of the main house with the food box in hand.

Unexpectedly, Tai Shi Zheng was completely immersed in the ambiguous fantasy with Cui Zhijun, and did not hear the sound behind her at all.

Seeing no one answering, Aunt Wu took it upon herself to push open the door to the main room. It wouldn't have been a big deal if she hadn't pushed, but the push sent Taishi Zheng, who was sitting in front of the door, falling over.

"Ouch——" Zheng cried out while holding Cuo Cuo.

Aunt Wu raised her eyes and looked at the young lady kneeling on the ground with her butt sticking out, and she gasped.

She thought, "Oh my god, oh my god, how could I have pushed someone down?" Aunt Wu rushed forward, raising her hand to help Taishi Zheng up. "Oh, my lady, my lady, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do that. What are you doing sitting by the door so late at night?"

Zheng felt relieved. She glanced back at Aunt Wu and said with a smile, "It's okay. I'm just sitting here."

Aunt Wu shook her head, then lowered her brows to see the puppy in Taishi Zheng's arms. She exclaimed in surprise, "Eh? Madam, where did this puppy come from? It's so well-behaved."

Zheng and Aunt Wu stood up and walked to the stove, looking proud. "You might not know, but this is a gift from my husband. We named it Cuocuo, and from now on, it will be part of our family. Cuocuo, look, this is Granny Wu. Tomorrow, we'll have to trouble Granny Wu to prepare a comfortable nest for Cuocuo."

Mother-in-law?

How did I end up like this?

Aunt Wu was a little puzzled, but she said nothing. She simply reached out and squeezed Cuo Cuo's paw, then continued, "It's no trouble at all. Leave it to me. But it's really unusual that Er Langjun would give me a puppy. You may not know, but our Er Langjun is actually very afraid of dogs. When he was little, he would always avoid them. Maybe he's less so now, but I never expected him to give you one."

Aunt Wu smiled with relief after saying this. Zheng looked at her in surprise, opened her mouth but said nothing.

Aunt Wu withdrew her hand from the dog's paw and turned to warm the stove for Tai Shi Zheng. "Oh, by the way, my lady, is this food box yours? I saw it outside and wanted to ask what's in it."

"Oh, I had forgotten about it. This contains the deer steaks we brought back from Prince Bei's palace."

Zheng said this as she placed the puppy on her lap and wiped its head near the fire.

This warmed up the shivering puppy a little bit.

"Deer steak! That's really good stuff. I'll ask the kitchen to make it for us tomorrow."

Aunt Wu curiously opened the food box, only to find a book next to the fresh deer steak. She unknowingly pulled the book out and held it before Taishi Zheng. "Madam, did you also bring this back from Prince Bei's Palace?"

Fortunately, Qi Jiami had wrapped up the "Su Nu Jing" in colored paper, instead of just placing it naked in front of Aunt Wu.

Tai Shi Zheng must have lost face.

Zheng inadvertently looked up and saw the book in Aunt Wu's hand. Her eyes widened from a relaxed state.

She hurriedly snatched it away, stammering as she spoke, "Ahem, it's... I brought it back from Prince Bei's Palace. Aunt Wu, please take the venison out. I, I'll dry Cuo Cuo off and go to bed. Oh, and my husband asked you to bring him a change of clothes to the bathroom..."

Aunt Wu was baffled by her reaction. How could she have fallen asleep when she was fine just now? Wasn't Erlang still in the bathroom? But the master had spoken, what else could she say?

Aunt Wu tactfully put away her lunch box and said goodbye to Zheng: "Okay, I understand. You should go to bed early. I'll take my leave."

Zheng nodded, clutched the book tightly, and dared not look into Aunt Wu's eyes again.

Only when the door closed again did Tai Shi Zheng breathe a sigh of relief.

I saw her holding the puppy in one hand and a book in the other, and she suddenly stood up and paced around the house like an ant on a hot pan.

Zheng went to the dressing table first. She leaned over the mirror and looked around, but couldn't find anything to hide. She turned and went to the camphorwood boxes in the room where she kept some miscellaneous items. She opened them and carefully placed the book inside.

But when she closed the box, she felt something was wrong and took out the book.

After searching back and forth for a while, Tai Shi Zheng finally settled in front of the stove. She thought, why not burn it? Burning it would completely destroy it! But what if it came in handy in the future? Actually, she was quite curious to see it...

Taishi Zheng was undecided.

Unexpectedly, Cui Zhijun came out of the bathroom and was about to push the door open.

Tai Shi Zheng was in a panic and had no choice but to throw the book under the bed. The door gradually opened, and Cui Zhijun stood outside, wiping his wet hair. His half-open chest stirred Tai Shi Zheng's restless heart.

The sound of heartbeats rising and falling resonates in the chest.

The young couple turned their backs to each other, neither daring to look into the other's eyes.

Tai Shi Zheng held Cuo Cuo and continued to dry it by the stove. She was thinking that the book would not be discovered for the time being, and she would wait until the right time to move it. Otherwise, Cui Zhijun would definitely think she was a complete lecher.

As for Cui Zhijun, he felt his way into the house backwards, following the door frame.

This is a very ambiguous atmosphere.

It leaves two people with different thoughts speechless.

Taishi Zheng gritted her teeth and stood up, silently handing the Cuocao to Cui Zhijun. Cui Zhijun looked up at her tilted head in confusion, then reached out to take the Cuocao. Zheng then said sullenly, "I'm going to take a shower, can you take care of it for me for a while..."

Cui Zhijun looked at Taishi Zheng's gloomy back, feeling a little strange...

He was fine before leaving the bathroom, how could he be like this in the blink of an eye? Did he offend her? But wasn't she the one who approached him first? When Cui Zhijun recalled his dissolute behavior just now, his face instantly turned pale and he sat there.

He is panicking.

Panic, I don't know what kind of shameless person I have become in Taishi Zheng's heart...

-

Then at night, he blew out the lights and slept peacefully at the feet of the two of them.

The puppy's purring rose and fell softly. This was perhaps the most peaceful sleep it had ever had. But the other two people sleeping on the bed, their backs to each other in the silent night, each contemplating life.

Cui Zhijun tried to curl up his body as much as possible, for fear that he would touch the person behind him and make him feel uncomfortable.

Taishi Zheng bit her finger gently, pondering the warmth of her palm against Cui Zhijun's chest. Her entire body felt limp as if it had been electrified. She wondered if, given the current situation, she and Cui Zhijun would do what she had discussed with Qi Jiami and the others earlier that day. Wouldn't that happen naturally in the near future?

Originally, Zheng avoided this matter whenever possible.

For some reason, now that she has been with Cui Zhijun for a long time, she actually feels a little bit of anticipation!

But thinking of this, Zheng unconsciously reached out and patted her head. She was afraid of her own evil thoughts and tried to calm herself down. Cui Zhijun heard the movement behind him and opened his eyes. He looked into the deep night and said to the person behind him, "I'm sorry about what happened today."

"I shouldn't have done that to you without your consent..."

Upon hearing this, Taishi Zheng put her palm back in front of her mouth, afraid that she would laugh out loud. She said: This idiot is really an idiot, actually apologizing for such a thing! I kind of like it~

Cui Zhijun turned around in astonishment, "Are you crying?! I really didn't mean to—"

"?"

Tai Shi Zheng's smile disappeared instantly.

Why do you ask that? Could it be that her laughter is uglier than crying?

Zheng slowly turned around. In the darkness, they couldn't see each other's eyes clearly. She quickly replied, "No, I didn't cry. You don't need to worry about what happened today. After all, we are husband and wife."

The sound of the zither is soft and gentle, with a hint of playfulness.

Cui Zhijun breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this.

"Then... shall we go to bed?"

Taishi Zheng asked, and Cui Zhijun politely replied, "Madam, please come in."

"Can I get closer to you? I feel a little cold..." Zheng got a response and moved a little closer to Cui Zhijun. But she didn't lie, she really was a little cold.

Cui Zhijun was obedient and moved towards her silently.

This was the perfect distance, not too far nor too close. The two of them finally settled down and gradually fell asleep.

-

After a long dream, Cui Zhijun opened his heavy eyes in a hazy state, feeling a pair of gentle hands caressing him from head to toe. Like the soft wings of a crane, they captivated him. The charming voice of Erlang lingered around him, finally enveloping him in the clouds.

Beneath the blur, there was Taishi Zheng’s face climbing upwards.

Cui Zhijun suddenly woke up at this moment, just as dawn was approaching the window. The dream was like a spring rain, wetting Cui Zhijun's brow. He stared at the top of the curtains, not daring to turn his head to look at the person sleeping soundly beside him.

Cui Zhijun rubbed the sweat from his palms, feeling a burning sensation on his body. He dared to lift the covering blanket, and panic set in again.

Fortunately, his robe was covering him, so Cui Zhijun got up from the bed calmly.

He instinctively glanced back at Taishi Zheng, who was thankfully sound asleep. Unexpectedly, Cuo Cuo poked her head out after hearing the noise, and Cui Zhijun quickly raised his hand to silence her. Cuo Cuo then drooped her head again, resting it on the soles of Taishi Zheng's feet.

Then, pushing the door open, Cui Zhijun just wanted to go to the west room to read a few chapters of "Tao Te Ching" to calm his mind.

This main house... is really stuffy.

-

Chen Zheng.

Tai Shi Zheng's good sleep is truly enviable.

The maid in charge of cleaning continued to do her usual work, even as she slept soundly. The maids all followed Taishi Zheng's instructions, who had said that on cleaning days, regardless of whether she was up or not, they could all come in and clean after asking Aunt Wu, so as not to delay everyone else's work.

As expected, the maids lifted the table and banged it, but they failed to wake Zheng up at all.

She simply turned over and tucked the quilt under her.

Seeing this, the maids tactfully drew down the curtains for her, allowing her to sleep more peacefully. But who could escape the puppy's adorable eyes? Cuocuo, on the other hand, wasn't shy. Seeing the visitor, it simply tilted its head to observe carefully, without barking a single time.

The maids were extremely happy. They reached out their hands and sucked twice before slowly lowering the curtain.

The house was swept and cleaned in an orderly manner, the maids trying to be as gentle as possible. The tabletops, the floorboards, and the dressing table were all wiped spotlessly clean. Even the bottom of the bed was not spared...

Oh, right, under the bed!

But the new girl, happily mopping the floor under the bed, pouts when she sees the book wrapped in colored paper. After a long struggle, she finally pulls the book out. Turning back, she asks the elders, "Sister Honghua, what is this? Is this the book the master dropped?"

Poor Tai Shi Zheng, she was sleeping soundly at the moment and had no idea that her "Su Nu Jing" had been discovered.

If she knew, she would never want to wake up again.

Honghua and a few maids came over. Curious, they opened the book's title page. However, the words written in brush on the top looked like a caterpillar to them. Honghua asked, "What's that? I can't read. Can you read?"

The maids shook their heads upon hearing this.

We all come from humble backgrounds. If we had been educated, we wouldn't have fallen to the point of being lowly maids, doing these menial tasks...

This was a blessing in disguise, as Zheng's reputation was preserved.

But what to do with this book becomes a problem.

After searching the room for a while but finding no bookshelf, Honghua dusted off the books and said, "This must be Erlang's. He might have dropped it while reading in bed. He's a scholar, so he probably needs it urgently. I'll go to his study and take it to him. You guys get to work, get to work—we have to go to the next store after we're done, so be quick."

"yes."

The maids all responded, and Honghua went out and headed west.

Arriving at the west room, Honghua straightened her clothes and boldly knocked on the door.

Cui Zhijun's mood finally calmed down, and the anger in his body completely dissipated.

He calmly invited people in.

He still looked like an upright gentleman, and there was a bright light in the red eyes of Cui Jia Erlang.

She held the Su Nu Jing with a shy look on her face, but Cui Zhijun didn't even look at her. "Is there something wrong?" The cold voice fell into her ears. Honghua stepped forward timidly. "Erlang Jun, I found your book in the bedroom and came to return it to its owner."

"You found my book in the bedroom?" Cui Zhijun hesitated, but still responded politely, "Then please put it down and leave."

Seeing Cui Zhijun's cold attitude, Honghua pursed her lips and carefully placed the book on the table in front of Cui Zhijun. Not daring to stay for a moment, she turned and trotted away. Cui Zhijun only raised his head after everyone had completely left.

He casually picked up a book from the corner of the table and flipped open a page when he was so frightened by the words on it that he slammed his head against the table. Cui Zhijun's Adam's apple moved slightly, and the anger that had been suppressed with great difficulty ignited again.

What is this?!

Cui Zhijun was shocked. He didn't know where the maid got the book from, and why she sent it to his desk.

He just felt his mind was in chaos.

When Cui Zhiyun opened the first page of the book again for some unknown reason.

All the mysteries were answered in the line of words left by Qi Jiami. But look under the three words "Su Nu Jing" it says: Zheng Bao, once you get this book, I wish you and your husband Cui will be in perfect harmony and inseparable. So that you can become a pair of mandarin ducks embracing each other.

“…”

Originally this item belonged to Taishi Zheng.

Could it be that she—

Cui Zhijun was stunned. He couldn't figure out who would give this book to Taishi Zheng? Even more so, he couldn't figure out why Taishi Zheng would bring it back. But after his wild thoughts, he quietly placed his beloved wife's book neatly on the table.

Following waves of tightness in his throat, Cui Zhijun hurriedly found a cold teapot and poured three cups of tea.

However, the fire in my heart was unbearable, and even the cold tea made my lower abdomen feel burning hot.

Fearing discovery, Cui Zhijun searched the house for this hot potato, just like Taishi Zheng had the day before, suspiciously trying to find a safe hiding place. However, after searching for a long time, he finally set his sights on the top of the antique display case...

-

In the main house, Tai Shi Zheng finally had a good sleep and stretched out on the bed.

Cuo Cuo also crawled from the foot of the bed to the edge of the bed.

Zheng smiled and touched its little tail, then said, "Cuocuo, good morning~"

At this time, the maids had finished cleaning and were about to leave. Zheng seemed to realize something and sat up from the bed with a start. She hurriedly opened the curtains and looked under the bed with her head down. But seeing nothing under the bed, Zheng shouted, "Wait, wait--"

The little girl was the last one to go out. When she heard the master calling, she quickly stopped and answered, "What do you want, my lady?"

Zheng didn't care about anything else and pointed under the bed, "Did you see what's under the bed?"

"Under the bed?" The little girl thought for a moment. "Ah! Is it that colorful book?"

Zheng nodded repeatedly.

The little girl opened the door and looked back at the west room, then answered honestly, "Oh, that. Sister Honghua said it was my husband's thing, so she sent it to the west room. If you need it, I can go get it for you."

"What—" Taishi Zheng was horrified.

Cuo Cuo listened to her tone and barked angrily. Before the little girl could react, Tai Shi Zheng rushed out of the house, not even having time to put on her shoes. Cuo Cuo followed her out and chased her all the way to the west room.

Tai Shi Zheng suddenly pushed the door open, which scared Cui Zhijun. He looked at the person in front of him and didn't dare to move.

However, Zheng carefully closed the door after Cuo Cuo entered.

At this moment, both of them were harboring different concerns. Taishi Zheng stood barefoot in front of the door, feigning a casual glance. Cui Zhijun swallowed subconsciously and took the initiative, "Madam, is this... something wrong?"

"No, it's okay, I just came to take a look. My dear, don't you have to be on duty today?" Tai Shi Zheng walked forward with a fake smile, having gained nothing.

Cui Zhijun, wary of the visitor, replied, "I forgot to tell my wife that I'm taking a day off today."

"Oh? My dear, why are you here so early?" Taishi Zheng said as she suddenly pulled out the book that Cui Zhijun had placed upside down on the table. She found it was the Tao Te Ching and her face turned green. She thought she had hidden the Su Nu Jing and Cui Zhijun was actually reading the Tao Te Ching.

People really can't be compared.

"The study is naturally for reading." Cui Zhijun was ultimately calmer than Taishi Zheng.

"Hahaha, reading is good, reading is good. My dear, you really work hard." Zheng put down Cui Zhijun's book and nodded casually, but then she suddenly leaned over in front of him to check under the table, but there was nothing there. She suddenly raised her head and looked towards the beam...

Cui Zhijun knew why she came, but when he followed Taishi Zheng and lowered his eyes, he accidentally saw Zheng standing barefoot, so he put everything behind his mind.

"Madam, why are you not wearing shoes?" Cui Zhijun stood up.

No shoes?

Zheng lowered her eyes, she didn't even notice it herself.

Fortunately, there was a furry little creature wandering around her feet, so she didn't feel too cold. She smiled optimistically and said, "Maybe I was so anxious when I got up and didn't see you that I even forgot to put on my shoes. It's okay, I still have Cuocuo to cover myself. I'll go back and put them on."

But before Tai Shi Zheng could turn around, Cui Zhijun pushed her onto the chair that he had just stood up to vacate.

Cui Zhijun said, "Please sit down. I'll get you your shoes."

"Don't bother—"

He didn't even listen to Taishi Zheng finish her words, and hurried out of the house. Taishi Zheng smiled knowingly, picked up Cuo Cuo, and waited obediently for Cui Zhijun to return.

-

When Cui Zhiyun appeared again, the couple did not communicate much.

Cui Zhijun just leaned over silently and grasped Taishi Zheng's white and tender ankle. Zheng subconsciously shrank back, "Erlang, I can do it myself..."

A touching call of Erlang brought back the uneasy dream.

Cui Zhijun's gaze lingered on Taishi Zheng's ankle, his hands trembling slightly. But Cui Zhijun forced himself to remain calm as he helped Taishi Zheng put her shoes on. Once they were completely on, he stood up without a word and fled out of the house.

"Erlang, where are you going?" Tai Shi Zheng asked in confusion.

Cui Zhijun was shocked by this sound again. He froze in front of the door and said in a hoarse voice: "Take a shower."

"No, why are you taking a bath so early in the morning..." Tai Shi Zheng's voice was isolated inside the door by Cui Zhijun, and Zheng's thank you, which had not yet been said, was also blocked.

Cui Zhijun walked all the way to the bathroom door and met Aunt Wu coming towards him.

Aunt Wu asked him when she saw him, "Second Young Master, you really love cleanliness. Do you want to take a bath early in the morning? Do you want me to boil some hot water for you?"

Cui Zhijun shook his head and pushed the bathroom door open. He said, "Don't bother. I'll just take a cold shower."

After the words fell, Cui Zhijun didn't give Aunt Wu a chance to ask more questions, and slammed the door shut. Only Aunt Wu was left standing outside the door, looking stunned, and she was amazed: Taking a cold shower in the middle of winter, this guy is really full of blood...

-

Sitting in the west room, Taishi Zheng stared down at the ankle Cui Zhijun had touched, a smile on her face. It wasn't until she came to her senses that she scanned every corner of the room again, her gaze settling on the wooden box on the antique shelf.

The hesitant hands were ready to move, and Zheng was a little hesitant.

She thought Cui Zhiyun's silence was perhaps to give both of them some room to retreat. So, Taishi Zheng let go and stepped back, not until he looked out the door. Only then did Zheng smile. "Let's leave this book with him."

At that time, in the bathroom separated by a door.

Cui Zhijun immersed his hot body in cold water, and all distracting thoughts were frozen with the chill.

But as he gradually relaxed, his thoughts returned to Taishi Zheng. Cui Zhijun opened his eyes, and the wooden box that held so many of his memories gradually emerged before his eyes. He suddenly imagined Taishi Zheng opening the box, and he kept imagining how speechless he would be.

Cui Zhijun was terrified. Even though he was taking a cold shower, cold sweat broke out on his forehead...

It's so bad.

Wouldn't his secret be discovered by her?