Chapter 62 Realizing that drawing erotic pictures is a perfectly respectable thing to do! ...

Zeng Zhengqing's laughter grew even louder.

Qingduo was both ashamed and angry. She swung her fist and punched his chest a few times. Zeng Zhengqing knew she was angry with him, so he didn't hit her hard. He didn't dodge either, just cried out, "Ouch, ouch." When Qingduo had vented her anger, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her sharply. Caught off guard, Qingduo fell into his arms.

She quickly placed her hand against his chest to stop him from getting closer, and asked warily, "What are you trying to do?"

Seeing her nervous expression, Zeng Zhengqing chuckled twice and teased, "Don't worry, Madam Zeng, your husband won't do anything."

"Just let me hold you for a little while," he said softly.

Hearing his assurance, Qingduo relaxed her tense body and let him hold her.

Zeng Zhengqing gently stroked her hair and sighed softly, "You're usually so reckless and bold in your actions, so why are you so easily embarrassed when it comes to matters of the heart? Hmm?"

"Ah Zhao, what is the reason?"

"Why..." Qingduo asked, troubled, "I always feel that this is too unreserved."

“But we are husband and wife! Touching, hugging, and kissing are the most natural things between ordinary couples.”

“Every time I touch your skin, I feel happy, relaxed, and extremely satisfied. No matter how tired I am today, the moment I hold you tight, all my fatigue disappears, and I am the happiest person in the world.”

“Ah Zhao,” he whispered, nuzzling Qing Duo’s head, “Don’t you feel the same way I do? Don’t you like being close to me?”

Qingduo fell silent. After a while, she whispered, "I like it."

"If that's the case, why hide your feelings? They're like the red thread of fate, binding us together and making us closer every day. In the end, it's just the most straightforward expression of love at its deepest."

Qingduo said thoughtfully, "You're right."

Is that so?

What is the most direct expression of love when it reaches its deepest point?

That's right! Just like when lovers are deeply in love, they write poems to each other. She had previously found poems that her parents wrote to each other, which were much better than the ones Zeng Zhengqing had given her last time.

Ah! Qingduo suddenly understood. Kissing and hugging are just forms of expressing emotions. Since they are all forms, there is no distinction between noble and lowly.

The idea suddenly came to mind: then her erotic paintings based on Qingqing are also a kind of "the most direct expression when love is deepest".

It even makes money.

Qingduo's world suddenly opened up.

Yeah! What's there for her to be shy about? Just be open and honest about it... and express yourself!

Qingduo had already made up her mind, and casually said, "You're right, I should prepare properly."

She needed to observe more and collect and organize materials. Once she figured this out, all sorts of ideas kept flooding into her mind: for example, she could draw a set of "Zhengqing's Twelve Months" by month; she could draw a set of "Zhengqing's Twenty-Four Solar Terms" by following the seasons; and if it involved strategy, she could even draw a set of "Zhengqing's Thirty-Six Stratagems"...

Zeng Zhengqing, unaware of her thoughts, assumed she needed time to change her mind. He lowered his head, kissed her, and sighed, "Alright! I've already waited half a year, what's a little longer?"

Perhaps those lips possessed some alluring magic, for he couldn't resist kissing them again, even going so far as to take them into his mouth. The light, fleeting kiss took on a different flavor, their warm breaths mingling, even their breathing became disordered.

Qingduo was in a daze. Was there some meaning behind this kiss? At first, she only felt warmth on her lips, then her limbs went weak, as if she had been injected with anesthetic. But as it went on, it was like glue sticking a couplet to a wall. She couldn't tell whether the couplet couldn't leave the wall, or the wall couldn't let go of the couplet.

In short, their lips and tongues were entangled, inseparable.

No! Qingduo's heart skipped a beat; she had almost fallen for the "bad guy's" scheme! This person had just said it was just a hug, but now he wanted to numb her with a kiss in order to take the next step—he was truly insatiable!

Tang Qingduo is not so easily fooled!

She punched Zeng Zhengqing in the chest, and as he cried out in pain and clutched his wound, she rolled over twice and shrank into the bed.

Since their marriage, Zeng Zhengqing had been punched and kicked by her once in this matter. He was in so much pain that he gasped for breath and said intermittently, "Tang, Tang Qingduo, we really have to make a pact, a three-point agreement. You, you can't hit me anymore."

“Especially, especially at times like this. What if one day you really…” He gasped for breath, staring at her without finishing his sentence.

Qingduo also regretted her actions; she had gone too far. Her fists were strong enough to knock down a thief, but she shouldn't have been so reckless. Hearing Zeng Zhengqing hiss, she quickly jumped off the bed, lit a candle, and rushed closer, urgently saying, "Quickly, let me see your injury!"

"No need to look, it's definitely turned green."

Qingduo muttered something she had said before: "I knew it! Our names together are unlucky! As the saying goes, 'When Qingduo and Zhengqing meet, they bring countless bruises!'"

"Nonsense!" Zeng Zhengqing was both amused and annoyed. He insisted, "Our names couldn't be more compatible!"

Qingduo chuckled. Zeng Zhengqing glared at her, clutching his chest with furrowed brows. The warm candlelight bathed him, but it couldn't soften his stubborn insistence on their union.

As their eyes met, Qingduo's heart skipped a beat. A thought immediately popped into her head: this scene looked incredibly familiar.

In ancient times, Xi Shi held her heart in her hands; now, Zheng Qing clutches his stomach.

Yes, you could also draw "Xi Shi and Zheng Qing clutching their stomachs".

*

In a little over ten days, it will be the anniversary of Zeng Zhengqing's father's death, and Qingduo will be going back to his hometown with him to pay her respects. Before setting off, they will first visit Jiyue Nunnery, where her mother-in-law became a nun many years ago, with the Dharma name Mingjing. They want to tell her about their upcoming return to their hometown and also take this opportunity to see her.

The last time she visited Jiyue Nunnery was during her wedding with Qingqing. Qingduo knew perfectly well: although this old woman was a Buddhist nun, she hadn't truly severed her worldly ties. She was essentially living a "fake home." Didn't anyone else notice?

It's said that since her mother-in-law became a nun, the mother and son haven't seen each other. Last time, she didn't want to see Qingqing either, but because of her own marriage, her mother-in-law wanted to tell him to treat her well, and only then did she agree to see him. It seems she won't see him again this time either. So… will she even see me?

Regardless, Qingduo came prepared this time. When she learned she was going to see her mother-in-law, she specially copied a copy of the Diamond Sutra beforehand. However, she was in a rush to leave this morning because she overslept and almost forgot to bring it. Fangqing had to put it in a brocade box and chase after her to give it to her.

On the way, Zeng Zhengqing said, "Why don't you use Buddhist scripture paper to copy it?"

Qingduo glanced at him sideways and asked, "May I ask what you have brought with you?" He then fell silent.

Haha, seeing that his own mother hadn't prepared any special gifts, he still had the nerve to be picky!

As expected, her mother-in-law refused to see Qingqing, but surprisingly, she was still willing to see her.

Qingduo looked at Mingjing expectantly. She was quite confident that her mother-in-law would like the gift. To be precise, anything she gave would likely be well-received by her mother-in-law. After all, her mother-in-law didn't even want to see her own son, yet she was smiling at her now—this was clearly a sign of genuine favoritism.

"It's so kind of you to go out of your way to copy this sutra and give it to me." Mingjing smiled slightly, opened the booklet and glanced at it. A look of surprise flashed in her eyes. She looked up at Qingduo, closed the booklet without making a sound, and said with a smile, "Azhao, I like it very much. Thank you."

Qingduo's eyes lit up; she knew it!

Mingjing asked her how Zeng Zhengqing treated her, and Qingduo nodded and said, "Very good, very good."

Unable to contain herself any longer, she wanted to boast about her recent achievements, so she recounted her victory over Sailinfu with great enthusiasm and vivid detail, until her mouth was dry. She drank several bowls of tea in a row, and only after she finally finished speaking did her stomach begin to rumble.

Storytelling is hard work too!

Qingduo pressed her stomach shyly and asked Mingjing and Mingyuan, who was standing aside taking care of her and secretly laughing, "Grandma... no, Abbess Mingjing, Abbess Mingyuan, it's almost mealtime, why don't we go and have a vegetarian meal together?"

Mingjing shook her head: "Good child, you go first! We'll go later. You should call Zeng Zhengqing to see me first."

"Oh my! Grandma... Abbess, you've agreed to see him!" Qingduo was overjoyed, waving her arms and legs. "Qingqing will be so happy! I'll tell him the good news right away!"

This mother and daughter are really strange; they either never see each other, but once they do, they talk endlessly.

After finishing her vegetarian noodles, Qingduo respectfully bowed to the Bodhisattva. She wandered aimlessly around the courtyard of Jiyue Nunnery several times before finally waiting for Zeng Zhengqing to emerge. Overjoyed, she called out "Qingqing," lifted her skirt, and ran to greet him. Only when she got closer did she notice a strange, inexplicable look in Zeng Zhengqing's eyes.

"What's wrong?" Qingduo suddenly remembered something, covered her mouth and mumbled, "Oh dear! There was chives in the topping for the vegetarian noodles at noon. Did it get stuck in my teeth?"

"It's nothing." He gave her another strange look, then turned and got into the carriage. Qingduo followed him in and couldn't help but ask, "What were you talking about for so long?"

He glanced at her, then looked away and said, "It's nothing." He then instructed the driver to set off.

There must be something!

That wicked man, seeing that she wanted to know, deliberately hid it from her and refused to tell her, just wanting to see her anxious!

Qingduo kept pestering Zeng Zhengqing with questions, but he wouldn't answer. She poked him in annoyance, "Hey! You were able to see your mother all thanks to me. If she hadn't seen me first, why would she have thought of seeing you?"

"Stop keeping me in suspense! We can't treat meritorious officials like this!"

Zeng Zhengqing closed his eyes to rest, and after hearing her words, a smile appeared on his lips, but he still didn't say anything.

Okay! He succeeded.

The less he said, the more curious Qingduo became, her heart itching with anticipation. Unable to coerce, she resorted to enticement. Qingduo moved closer to Zeng Zhengqing, trying to negotiate: "How about this? I'll kiss you, and in exchange, you have to tell me what you two talked about."

Zeng Zhengqing closed his eyes, extended a finger, and tapped his face. Qingduo, afraid he'd change his mind, rushed over, hugged him tightly, and planted a quick kiss on his cheek, urging, "Tell me, tell me!"

Zeng Zhengqing said calmly, "My mother told me to treat you with care."

"Yes!" Qingduo nodded vigorously, her eyes fixed on him. "And then?"

That's all.

"That's all?" Qingduo exclaimed incredulously. "You're lying! You two talked for almost half an hour! It's impossible that you only talked about one thing! You must have something you didn't tell me!"

"I advise you to tell the truth. After all, I paid with a 'kiss,' and since the money and goods are not equal, you have to pay me back!" she said accusingly, hands on her hips.

Zeng Zhengqing smiled and said, "Okay, then I'll give it back to you!" He lowered his head to kiss Qingduo's pouting lips, but Qingduo turned her head away, so he kissed her ear instead.

"I don't want you to return the kiss!" Qingduo rubbed her ears vigorously, as if that were a way of refusing to return the "kiss." "I just want to know what you two talked about!"

"I've told you everything! That's really all."

"Liar!"

"You unscrupulous businessman!" Qingduo pointed at him and angrily cursed.

"You're accusing me of something!" Zeng Zhengqing spread his hands, a half-smile on his face. "After all, 'the wife is like heaven! The husband must respect her and obey her'!"

"How could I dare lie to Madam?"

That sounds so pleasant! And it sounds...so familiar.

Qingduo turned her head and pondered deeply. Her memory was like a greedy fish, leaping up under the lure of the bait, the splash of fear covering her initial confusion.

This...this...isn't this the very first sentence of my own "Admonitions for Men"?

My love...

How do you know?