Chapter 16 Thin lips approached the bright red, round earlobe…

The atmosphere was tense.

Their almond-shaped eyes met their phoenix-shaped eyes, and the air seemed to be thick with the pungent smell of gunpowder.

Perhaps it was the first time Chen Shuangshuang had witnessed a confrontation between the couple, and she was at a loss. She looked at Cui Ying and then at Xiao Qiyu, not knowing which one to persuade. She even had the urge to run outside and call for help.

Just then, the tense atmosphere suddenly broke—Cui Ying laughed.

She curved her eyebrows, her almond-shaped eyes sparkling with a mischievous glint. There was no trace of guilt or unease after being caught. Her tone was incredibly gentle, yet incredibly self-righteous, as she said to Xiao Qiyu, "Since you've heard everything, then I won't pretend anymore."

"The truth is always rather unpleasant to hear."

Their eyes met, and Xiao Qiyu's gaze was indifferent and calm.

He didn't speak, but bent down and reached out his hand to Cui Ying.

Cui Ying thought Xiao Qiyu was going to fight him, so he instinctively dodged and closed his eyes.

As a result, the hand fell and gave her a solid, loud flick on the forehead.

The boy's cold voice rang in her ears, carrying a hint of nonchalant malice: "Getting beaten up is always quite painful."

A dull pain shot through Cui Ying's forehead, causing her to hiss in pain. She opened her eyes and glared fiercely at Xiao Qiyu, rubbing the burning redness on her forehead as she said, "You...you just wait!"

Xiao Qiyu raised an eyebrow, looking unconcerned, and turned to walk towards the door, her ponytail swaying lightly behind her waist, clearly in a good mood.

“The guests are all here,” he said in a deep voice. “Your mother asked me to come and ask you to offer a toast. I’ve delivered the message. Whether you go or not is up to you.”

Cui Ying: "Get out!"

She shouted with great force, her voice even becoming a little distorted, making the two originally fierce words sound like "quack!" when put together.

"Don't get excited, or the frog in your throat will jump out." Xiao Qiyu strode out from behind the beaded curtain, the clinking of the agate beads producing a crisp, jade-like sound that drowned out his faint laughter.

Cui Ying rubbed her forehead hard, cursing, "What a vicious guy! He used so much force, was he trying to flick my forehead through?"

Chen Shuangshuang smiled broadly, unable to suppress her delight: "So you two had such an interesting argument! This is much more interesting than being at home. I wish I had come earlier."

Cui Ying: "It's easy for you to talk when you're not the one suffering!"

Chen Shuangshuang: "I was sitting, not standing."

"Even you're making me angry," Cui Ying complained, savoring the milky aroma of the sweet cheese on her tongue. She then instructed her maid, "The sweet cheese was quite delicious just now. Pour me some more so I can calm down."

The maid said, "Miss, the sweet cheese just now seems to have been brought by the young master himself."

Cui Ying asked suspiciously, "Did you bring it yourself?"

Chen Shuangshuang said "Oh~" meaningfully, "He probably remembered that you like sweets and brought them to you when he saw them at the banquet. I didn't expect that someone as cold as ice would care about you so much. Third Sister, you should be content. Where else can you find such a good husband?"

While Chen Shuangshuang was lost in her own world, Cui Ying had already picked up the porcelain bowl containing the sweet cheese, smelled it from the left and looked at it from the right, and even used her fingertip to dip a bit of the cheese residue at the bottom of the bowl and carefully smelled it under her nose.

Cui Ying frowned and said seriously, "Do you think he might have put laxatives in it?"

...

As dusk settled and the sky was ablaze with color, the evening glow spread across the horizon.

As the homecoming banquet draws to a close, as is customary, the host escorts the guests to the ceremonial gate and bids them farewell with pleasantries.

Cui Ying spent the whole day toasting this "aunt" and that "auntie," her lips never stopping. She didn't eat much. When she finally had a moment of free time, she secretly cracked some melon seeds and followed behind Madam Kong and her two aunts, watching them talk to the women while she took a break.

Upon reaching the ceremonial gate, the female and male relatives met, with Xiao Qiyu and Cui Yan accompanying them.

With so many people around, everyone's eyes fell on the newlywed couple.

The young boys and girls, their faces still showing clear innocence, were as tender as scallions, so delicate that they seemed to be able to squeeze water out of them. Just standing together, they were a delight to behold.

The melon seeds were roasted with longan pulp, and they had a very sweet and refreshing taste. Cui Ying was cracking open the melon seeds, unaware of the stares around her.

Bathed in the dazzling afterglow, Xiao Qiyu walked to Cui Ying's side and extended his hand to her, amidst envious and jealous glances from all sides.

Cui Ying paused in her eating of melon seeds, looked at the clean, large palm in front of her, glanced at Xiao Qiyu, blinked, and was a little confused about what he wanted to do.

Xiao Qiyu looked at her, his hand just outstretched.

As if by some strange twist of fate, Cui Ying placed the remaining sunflower seed shells in his palm.

Xiao Qiyu: "..."

As expected, there was absolutely no understanding between them.

Xiao Qiyu flicked the melon seed shells onto the ground, then grabbed Cui Ying's hand, slipping his fingers between hers to envelop her entire small hand in his palm.

The boy's warm, dry palms, calloused from the friction against the girl's delicate hand, created a slight, ticklish sensation.

Cui Ying tried to break free, but when she caught a glimpse of pairs of eyes staring at them, she realized what Xiao Qiyu was doing.

They had agreed to pretend to be affectionate, but Xiao Qiyu remembered it, while she forgot about the important matter.

For a rare moment, Cui Ying felt grateful to Xiao Qiyu in her heart. She grasped Xiao Qiyu's hand in return, looked up at him, and smiled. Her smile was as beautiful as pear blossoms in March, showing an extremely intimate and trusting demeanor.

Privately, Cui Ying whispered, "I didn't realize you had such good eyesight."

Xiao Qiyu scoffed, his tone disdainful: "Do you really think everyone is as brainless as you?"

Cui Ying's heart, which had just warmed up a little, immediately sank. She forced a smile and said, "Yes, yes, who are you? You're the smartest one."

After saying that, she stretched out her other hand, her five fingers slender and delicate, and silently landed on Xiao Qiyu's narrow lower back.

Xiao Qiyu's body tensed instantly, and his breathing became much more strained.

"Put your hand down," Xiao Qiyu said urgently, his breathing disordered, his voice low and ruthless, "Cui Ying, don't force me to teach you a lesson in public."

His lower back was sensitive and itchy when touched. This secret was known to no one except Cui Ying, who had tickled him and played pranks on him since childhood.

Cui Ying narrowed her almond-shaped eyes, a mischievous glint in her eyes: "Treat me? How?"

She stretched out her finger, and her delicate, white fingertip pressed precisely on the hollow of Xiao Qiyu's lower back: "Like this?"

Xiao Qiyu's breathing stopped, and his eyes turned red.

Just then, Cui Yan turned to him and said, "Lord Li is about to leave, Qi Lang, come and see him off."

Xiao Qiyu suppressed all discomfort, lowered his eyes and nodded: "I understand."

Cui Ying smiled brightly: "I am willing to accompany you." Her fingers, which were resting on Xiao Qiyu's waist, did not loosen their grip at all.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Xiao Qiyu remained calm, his phoenix eyes flushed, and spoke normally as he saw the guests off, without any sign of losing his composure. Only the veins on the back of his hand were throbbing with suppressed emotion.

Cui Ying saw it all and knew that Xiao Qiyu must have wanted to kill her, but in front of so many people, he couldn't do anything about it.

That's why Cui Ying was secretly pleased. She had only intended to give Xiao Qiyu a little punishment, but now she couldn't stop herself and was reluctant to let go.

The momentary pleasure was short-lived. Just then, a hot breath sprayed behind Cui Ying's ear, sending shivers down her spine. Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, she instinctively tried to jump away.

But a long arm wrapped around her waist, rendering her unable to move and rooted to the spot.

Cui Ying looked up and realized that Xiao Qiyu had lowered his head at some point, his face close to hers, his long, narrow phoenix eyes coldly staring at her, his high nose bridge buried in her ear, his breath and words hitting her earlobe directly.

Cui Ying has had sensitive earlobes since childhood. When exposed to heat, she trembles all over, and a tingling, itchy sensation spreads throughout her body, making her almost collapse on the spot, completely powerless to resist.

"Get the hell out of my way!"

Cui Ying's pronunciation was weak and feeble, lacking any strength, but the ruthlessness in his words was unprecedented.

"Didn't you want to know how I'll deal with you?" Xiao Qiyu laughed, his thin lips approaching the red, rounded earlobe, letting his breath freely invade that delicate area. "This is how I'll deal with you."

Cui Ying's tears were almost forced out by the burning, itchy sensation, so she could only bite her lip to endure it, while whispering harsh words under her breath.

The guests assumed that the young couple were whispering to each other, and one of the women laughed and said, "What is the third son-in-law saying to our third wife? Why don't you say it so that everyone can hear it?"

As soon as he said that, it immediately caused a stir among the crowd.

Xiao Qiyu ignored him, his eyes fixed only on the tender red earlobe so close to his.

Fearing he would be exposed, Cui Ying suppressed his anger and smiled, saying, "It's nothing. He told me he'd been standing for too long and was feeling a bit weak, so he wanted to rest."

Upon hearing the word "empty," Xiao Qiyu's face darkened.

He received physical training of the same difficulty as young men in the army camp when he was nine years old. While he was practicing boxing every morning, Cui Ying was still dreaming in bed. He could stand for three days and three nights without feeling tired or weak, let alone standing for a day. Did she think he was a good-for-nothing?

Looking at those bright red and delicate earlobes, Xiao Qiyu's breathing became heavier, and he wished he could bite them directly to vent his anger.

"Mmm..." Feeling the increasingly hot breath, Cui Ying let out a soft moan as she felt itchy.

Knowing that force wouldn't work, she softened her tone and said with a hint of pleading, "Okay, I won't mess with you anymore. I won't touch your lower back, and you shouldn't come near my ear anymore. Let's not bother each other anymore, okay?"

Xiao Qiyu snorted, his voice low and cold: "Let go first."

Cui Ying: "No way, how do I know you won't scheme against me? If anyone's going to let go, it'll be you letting go first."

Xiao Qiyu: "Then how do I know if you're going to scheme against me?"

The trust between the two of them was like looking for fleas on a bald head—something that doesn't exist.

Cui Ying thought for a moment and made up her mind: "Since neither of us is willing to let go first, then I'll count to three, and we'll let go together."

Seeing that Xiao Qiyu remained silent, Cui Ying assumed he was agreeing and whispered, "One, two..."

"three."

The words fell.

Neither of them let go.

A note from the author:

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