Chapter 42 Absurdity: One Kiss, Two Kiss, Three Kiss, Four Kiss, Five Kiss

"Hmph, bragging!" Qingduo turned pale with fright, not believing him at all. What fun could this be, that it could take all night? Painting is interesting enough, but she couldn't possibly paint all night without sleep. Could this be more interesting than painting? Qingqing must be fooling her!

"You don't believe me? Then let's try?"

His breath brushed against her ear, tickling her. Qingduo couldn't help but shrink back, but she retorted defiantly, "Go ahead and try! That's why I came here! What, you're scared?"

When his warm lips touched her earlobe, Qingduo trembled violently, her jaw clenched but couldn't close, the teeth clashing together and making a "clucking" sound.

"Relax."

Qingduo cursed inwardly, "If I were on top of you and kissed you, I don't believe you could 'relax'!" She mumbled aloud, "I'm relaxed, I—"

She suddenly stopped because she felt Zeng Zhengqing's hand move down her side until it lifted her skirt.

Qingduo finally couldn't hold back any longer. She screamed and struggled, "No, no, no—" and subconsciously raised her right leg to kick.

In the blink of an eye, Zeng Zhengqing grabbed her calf. He raised his head slightly, his voice unchanging: "Madam, are you using the same old trick again?" He pressed his legs down on hers and held her tightly in his arms, no matter how she struggled, there was no gap to loosen.

Light kisses rained down on her ears and neck. Qingduo dared not be stubborn anymore. She gradually lost her strength and cried out in desperation, "Waaah, Qingqing, I was wrong. I shouldn't have increased your dosage to make you suffer. Waaah, I won't do it again. Please let me go. I don't want to have sex with you anymore. I'm scared. I'm so scared!"

"I... I shouldn't have agreed to marry you for your money!" she cried bitterly. "I remember all the good things you've done for me. I thought that a husband and wife should have children, so I sought medical treatment for you, hoping... hoping to truly become husband and wife with you. But now I'm so scared! I don't want to be! Waaah—"

Zeng Zhengqing looked up at her in surprise, but Qingduo was oblivious, her face streaked with tears. She continued to sob, "Didn't you say you'd wait for me? You, you have to keep your word, waaaah, later, later, okay? I'm scared, waaaah..."

As she cried, she suddenly heard a soft chuckle beside her. She abruptly stopped and looked down, finding the person on top of her trembling uncontrollably.

Tears streamed down her bitter face. She sobbed and asked pitifully, "What are you laughing at?"

“Oh, what I’m laughing at is,” Zeng Zhengqing flicked her nose, “that my wife is silly.”

"I didn't," Qingduo protested. She was already aggrieved, but being called "stupid" made her even more aggrieved, and tears fell one after another.

"Then tell me, what makes you think I have a problem that's hard to talk about?"

“This…” Qingduo avoided Zeng Zhengqing’s gaze, glancing to the right, and stammered, “It’s… what I saw…”

"The night I married into the family, after I kicked you and injured you—no, I saw you, you were down there..."

Upon hearing her words, Zeng Zhengqing was both amused and exasperated. "My dear wife, this, this..." He looked into Qingduo's clear eyes, unsure how to explain to this naive girl, yet he couldn't leave it unsaid. He sighed and whispered, "I was so frightened at the time, how could I possibly..."

Qingduo was stunned. She replied blankly, "So you were too scared to get up because of me..."

“But back then,” Zeng Zhengqing interrupted her.

"It's just temporarily scared of me, it will be able to stretch and contract freely again soon!" Qingduo said, raising her index finger and her eyes lit up.

Why does this sound so strange? Zeng Zhengqing silently pressed down on Qingduo's index finger, wanting to add something but not knowing what to say. His mind was a mess. He sat up straight, watching Qingduo smile through her tears, and shook his head helplessly.

"That's great! So Qingqing wasn't sick after all!" Qingduo sat up as well, took the handkerchief Zeng Zhengqing offered to wipe her tears, and, remembering something, said guiltily, "I was the one who ran to say I wanted to be with you... wanted to be with you... but at the last minute, I changed my mind..."

"Do you think I don't know you're unwilling?"

Qingduo was stunned: "You? When did you find out?"

"From the moment I saw you wearing this dress."

Following his gaze, Qingduo looked down at her nearly transparent gauze dress and immediately felt her face burning. She pulled the blanket over herself and asked in confusion, "How did you know?"

Isn't she alluring enough in this dress?

Zeng Zhengqing chuckled and said jokingly, "Where is there any longing for me in your eyes, Madam? There is more of a resolute determination to 'not return until Loulan is conquered'."

Qingduo blushed, and was about to explain that she was a "new recruit—first time," and that she would "become more skilled with practice" in the future. But then she heard him say, "So I decided to play along and give Madam a little 'punishment'."

"What?!" Qingduo exclaimed angrily, her eyes wide. "So you were just trying to scare me! That's too much!"

"What? You're allowed to add something to the medicine, but not your husband to tease you?" Zeng Zhengqing lifted her chin and teased, "Is there anything more absurd than suspecting your husband of being 'impotent'?"

Qingduo's face flushed, and she could only mutter, "Fine, let's call it even."

"No," he persisted, lecturing, "Does Madam know that the medicine you brewed keeps me awake at night and makes me weak during the day? I've been forcing myself to stay awake these past few days, how can you easily settle things?"

"This..." Qingduo didn't know what to do, and explained softly, "I didn't mean to!"

Zeng Zhengqing turned his back with feigned seriousness, patting his chest exaggeratedly: "Alas! So it turns out that Madam married me for money. All my deep affection was for nothing, yet Madam has no feelings for me at all!"

"No!" Qingduo exclaimed anxiously, "That was true at first, but after spending time with you, I truly like you!"

Zeng Zhengqing's lips curled up involuntarily. He said slowly, "Your heart is inside your belly; no one can see it. What you say is true, is true; what you say is false, is false, unless—"

"Unless what?"

“Unless you can prove it,” he said slowly.

Qingduo asked with difficulty, "How can you prove that?"

“I have a plan,” Zeng Zhengqing turned around, concealing the cunning glint in his eyes, and said “sincerely”, “I have heard that when men and women are in love, they cannot help but touch each other’s skin. If you would allow me to kiss you, I would know whether what you just said is true or false.”

A blush crept onto Qingduo's cheeks. She lowered her head, hesitant. It wasn't that she hadn't kissed him before, but each time it was while she was asleep, a secret kiss. They had never openly met lips while she was awake. Being secretly kissed already made her incredibly shy, let alone when she was awake!

Seeing that she remained silent, Zeng Zhengqing feigned a sigh and said, "Alas, I understand now. It turns out that Madam was just trying to comfort me. Alas! How pitiful that I was so delusional!"

"No!" Seeing him wallowing in self-pity, Qingduo blurted out impulsively, "I do!" She met Zeng Zhengqing's meaningful gaze and blushed deeply. She gripped the blanket tightly and said weakly, "Then... then kiss me!" She then closed her eyes tightly.

Zeng Zhengqing slowly leaned in to kiss her, but suddenly Qingduo opened her eyes and stuck a finger on his lips.

"Wait! I need to make this clear!" she emphasized. "It's 'one kiss,' not 'two or three kisses,' and definitely not 'four or five kisses.' It can only be one kiss, not endless kisses!" As she spoke, she extended new fingers as the number increased, until finally all five fingers were spread open and covered his mouth.

Seeing her earnestly setting rules for him, Zeng Zhengqing chuckled inwardly. He nodded and replied, "Yes, only 'one,' no two, three, four, or five."

Seeing his solemn expression, Qingduo guessed that he couldn't be lying, so she let go of his hand and closed her eyes again. To make it easier for him to kiss her, she pouted her lips, like the pleats on the top of a steaming bun, making one's mouth water.

Upon seeing this, Zeng Zhengqing almost burst out laughing. He looked at her with a smile; it was the purest and most flawless face in the world.

Qingduo waited for a while, but the familiar touch didn't come. She couldn't help but open her eyes and saw Zeng Zhengqing right in front of her, smiling like a spring breeze. She asked in surprise, "Why aren't you here yet..."

Before he could finish speaking, he sealed her lips with his.

Qingduo's eyes widened suddenly. They were so close that she could clearly see her own surprise reflected in his eyes. She was like a deer caught by a hunter, panicked and bewildered.

No, he is not a hunter.

Qingduo once felt that his eyes were like a deep pool, unfathomable, but at this moment, everything became clear.

That deep, soft gaze made her forget her shyness and forget to close her eyes.

She was no longer herself; her body limp like a feather, drifting down from the sky, floating aimlessly. She had no direction in which she fell; everything was in the hands of the wind, guided wherever it blew, east or west.

The candlelight struggled and flickered a few times before finally fading away. In the pitch-black room, the howling wind masked the pounding of my heart.

Qingduo had never experienced such a passionate kiss, so intense, like an undissolved crimson. She was dazed and confused, and following Zeng Zhengqing's lead, slowly lay back down on the bed. She felt as if she were floating on clouds, utterly powerless. Even if he wanted to continue, she could only let him do as he pleased.

Zeng Zhengqing stopped at this moment. He rolled over and lay down beside her, holding her tightly in his arms.

Rapid breathing surrounded her ears, and Qingduo herself was also breathing unsteadily, but she asked anxiously, "Have you confirmed it?"

A few low laughs came from above. He stroked his head and said gently, "What you say is true, Madam."

"Hmph! I told you but you didn't believe me. I already told you I've liked you for a long time!" Qingduo said in a low voice, feigning reproach.

Qingqing even said she was stupid, but he was clearly stupid too! As for Sister Lu Nong, although she was always fighting with Zhu Yi, she knew that she liked him just by looking at Zhu Yi's dull mind. Otherwise, why would he always hang out with her?

Zeng Zhengqing gently kissed her forehead and whispered, "So this is really a good method, isn't it? We can... do it more often in the future..."

Why is he kissing me again? Oh well, if it's not a kiss on the lips, it doesn't count as a "second kiss"! Does that mean he hasn't kissed me enough? That won't do; if he does it a few more times, I'll eventually give in!

Qingduo didn't answer. Luckily, the lights were off, so her blushing face couldn't be seen. She cleared her throat and changed the subject, saying, "By the way, how did you find out that my medicine was for you, for your kind of illness?"

"Do you remember when I asked about this prescription? As soon as I left your room, I had someone take the dregs to the pharmacy and ask." He sighed, "Only then did I understand why my body was like this before... well, it was all because of the medicine."

"You've given me so many 'surprises'!"

Qingduo felt a little embarrassed and remained silent, trying to figure out how to smooth things over, when suddenly she remembered something: "Wait! Why didn't you just tell me that you stopped taking your medicine that day?"

Zeng Zhengqing paused for a moment. He had already connected the dots to the sheer dress in the closet, but he didn't want to say it out loud because he was afraid of interrupting her plans and not seeing how she looked in it. So he stammered, "I...I want to see what you're up to."

Qingduo sat up abruptly and exclaimed, "You, Zeng Qingqing! You found out a long time ago but didn't tell me! Do you know how hard it is to brew this medicine?"

"No, no! This is not even! You have to compensate me!"

"Alright!" Zeng Zhengqing said generously, resting his head on his hands. "As compensation, I'll reluctantly let Madam give me a kiss!"

He suddenly chuckled, then added, "Only one kiss is allowed; two, three, four, or five kisses won't do!"

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Author's Note: Qingduo: Hmph, I'm not easily fooled! Just wait and see how I collect my debt!

Every like and comment is a source of strength for me, thank you everyone [shy]