Night Visit to the Boudoir

If Cheng Yayin were to write a biography of herself one day, the title would definitely be "On How Humans Can Trick Themselves."

Cheng Yayin thought so as she stared at Pei Songsheng through the window.

In the past 19 years of her life, she had never experienced such a strange scene - her husband, who had always been cold-hearted, knocked on her window like a thief at night. His eyes, which had always been filled with knowledge of classics, history, family and national politics, now looked at her with affection, like spring water melting the ice, and the affection in his eyes almost drowned her.

Any other wife, being looked at by her husband as if he were a treasure, would be moved to tears. But Cheng Yayin was not moved at all, and she didn't dare to move. She was afraid that if she moved, Pei Songsheng would just hug her.

She felt pain now, a real headache. All the passionate and affectionate words she had written day and night for the past three years now turned into flying knives, whizzing straight towards her forehead.

Just as she was thinking about how to respond, she suddenly heard footsteps coming from the end of the corridor. Cheng Yayin suddenly remembered that she had asked Lanyue to prepare lily and lotus seed soup. If she wanted to enter the house, she had to pass through this window.

Not knowing what she was feeling guilty about, Cheng Yayin subconsciously pulled Pei Songsheng into the room and closed the window.

Pei Songsheng hadn't expected her to be so direct, and he stumbled as he was pulled. Fortunately, he was tall enough to avoid getting stuck on the window sill. Even so, after entering the room, he had to hold on to the windowsill to steady himself.

Cheng Yayin was holding his hand, and he staggered a step closer to her. When he lowered his head, all he saw was a graceful snow-white figure.

She must have just bathed, her body was fragrant, and her clothes were thin. Two delicate collarbones slightly protruded from under a slender white jade neck, holding a handful of flickering candlelight, shining like the finest mutton-fat jade. Just one glance at her made his blood boil, and he turned away in embarrassment.

Cheng Yayin immediately realized the ambiguity in the situation and quickly let go of his hand and tightened her clothes.

At this moment, there was a knock on the door, and Lan Yue's voice came over: "Miss, the lily and lotus seed soup is ready."

Hearing the sound, she was about to push the door open, but Cheng Yayin quickly said, "Wait."

She glanced at Pei Songsheng, whispered "Don't make a sound", and hurriedly walked around the screen to the outer room.

"Lanyue, I'm sorry, I got sleepy while waiting. You don't need to drink the lily and lotus seed soup. You've worked in vain all night long." Cheng Yayin said to the outside through the door. To make it more realistic, she yawned while speaking.

Lan Yue smiled and said, "It's alright, Miss, please have a rest. I won't disturb you anymore."

Hearing the footsteps outside gradually fading away, Cheng Yayin breathed a sigh of relief, put on a coat and walked behind the screen, and found Pei Songsheng standing in front of her desk, looking up at the poem she had written on the wall.

Hearing the sound, Pei Songsheng turned to look at her. After they looked at each other, they realized that they were alone in the same room, and their faces turned red and they looked away.

It was Cheng Yayin who broke the silence first: "It's so late, I'm really sleepy, how about we do it another day... hm?"

Pei Songsheng quickly handed over something in his hand: "Sister-in-law, don't misunderstand me. I didn't come here to... I came here to give you this."

Cheng Yayin then noticed that he was holding something in his left hand, which he had been holding behind his back. It turned out to be a food box. Seeing the pattern painted on the food box, she exclaimed in surprise, "Wu Ji!"

The food box was opened, and the sweet and sticky aroma immediately permeated the air. Cheng Yayin picked up a flower-shaped pastry and took a light bite. The rich sweet fragrance spread between her lips and teeth. She narrowed her eyes in satisfaction and asked Pei Songsheng with a smile: "How did you know I like to eat the pastries from this restaurant?"

Pei Songsheng looked at her and the corners of his mouth curled up: "My sister-in-law gave me candied fruit before, and the oil paper wrapped around it said Wu Ji."

Cheng Yayin paused as she was about to put the pastry into her mouth and looked at him stiffly.

It was so embarrassing to be exposed on the spot for being perfunctory.

Seeing her embarrassed look, Pei Songsheng couldn't help laughing, "Sister-in-law, come and eat, Wu Ji's dim sum is really good."

Seeing that he really didn't take it to heart, Cheng Yayin continued to stuff cakes into her mouth with a clear conscience, and while eating, she made excuses to herself: "That's right, I don't know how to make candied fruit, so I can only buy it now. Next time I give you something, I will definitely buy the packaging materials first."

She nodded as she spoke, seeming to think her idea was brilliant, which made Pei Songsheng's smile deepen.

Cheng Yayin had dinner early and was a little hungry now. She sat at the table and ate every bite with relish. Pei Songsheng sat behind her desk and casually flipped through the papers on her desk.

Cheng Yayin took a look and saw that it was a collection of poems she had copied, so she let him read it.

The way he sat under the lamp, flipping through the pages of a book, with a look of immersion and alienation like distant mountains between his brows, was exactly the same as before. Cheng Yayin couldn't help but take a few more glances at him.

Feeling her gaze, Pei Songsheng raised his head and looked back, his eyelashes fluttering lightly, and a lingering affection that had never been there before flowed through his eyes. In this situation, Cheng Yayin unexpectedly felt relieved.

Pei Songsheng turned over another page filled with poetry, his fingers carefully sliding over each word she had written, and whispered, "Sister-in-law's handwriting is very good, it's been practiced since she was a child."

"That's right." Cheng Yayin had something to talk about when she mentioned this. "My father was very strict in raising me. When I was a child, I had to practice writing a thousand characters every day. If I wrote less or my handwriting was perfunctory, I would be spanked. It hurt so much. Back then, after writing a thousand characters, my hands often couldn't even hold chopsticks steadily."

"Is this really true?"

"Of course." Cheng Yayin rubbed her palm. She still couldn't forget the pain when the board hit her palm.

"I felt it was hard and tiring when I was little, but now I understand my father's painstaking efforts." She added, "The world is unfair. Many women don't even have the chance to learn to read. Although I suffered the hardship of practicing calligraphy, it also allowed me to learn civilized manners. I am truly fortunate."

Pei Songsheng seemed to have not expected her to say such a thing. After a moment's thought, he looked ashamed and said, "I have never thought deeply about what you said, sister-in-law."

Cheng Yayin nodded: "It's no use just thinking about it. I also plan to open a college."

"Academy?"

"Yes, I want to build an academy that doesn't care about background or tuition. I want the daughters of poor families to be able to read and write, so that they can have more opportunities in the future." Cheng Yayin's eyes brightened as she spoke. "To be honest, I've already found a place and it's under construction. I've been writing for many years and have gained some experience. It wouldn't be a big deal to use it to run a school and help the people..."

She suddenly stopped talking and looked at Pei Songsheng in panic.

She became so proud that she forgot that she is now Yao Wanniang.

But Pei Songsheng seemed to be so engrossed in what she was saying that he didn't notice anything wrong. He looked at her with interest, and when he saw that she stopped talking, he raised his eyebrows in confusion.

Cheng Yayin laughed awkwardly and said, "I'm just thinking about it. I don't actually have the money to run an academy. Just treat me as a dream."

Unexpectedly, Pei Songsheng said to her seriously, "Sister-in-law is very tolerant and generous. Whatever you wish for will surely come true. If you have any difficulties, I am willing to do my best to help."

Cheng Yayin was stunned. She had never imagined she would one day discuss this with Pei Songsheng. The academy was her ambition, but also her escape route. She had never believed her marriage to Pei Songsheng would last, and so she had already decided: if she were ever divorced or even abandoned, she wouldn't want to return to her boudoir. She would leave home and strike out on her own, becoming a teacher. This would not only live up to her lifelong learning, but also allow her to help more women in need.

She had never told these words to anyone, but she didn't expect that she almost told Pei Songsheng the whole thing under such circumstances. After she came to her senses, she decided to get the plot back on track.

"I don't have any ambition, it's just a fool's dream." She lowered her head, looking mournful. "My life is destined to be wasted in this deep mansion until I die."

He reached out his hand to stop Pei Songsheng who was about to speak: "Stop, I don't mean to go back home. It's a waste of time anywhere anyway. I'd rather be with you."

She now spoke these sweet words more naturally, which made Pei Songsheng blush immediately and remain silent for a long time.

After eating a box of cakes, Cheng Yayin felt very satisfied, but actually felt a little sleepy.

She squinted her eyes and yawned. Before she could ask him to leave, Pei Songsheng stood up on his own, cleaned up the leftovers on the table, and went back the same way he came with an empty lunch box.

Everyone was asleep at night. When Cheng Yayin was about to open the door for him, he had already opened the window and climbed out.

He was quite self-aware of his affair and knew not to go through the main entrance. Cheng Yayin watched him climb through the window, feeling both amused and helpless.

Then I thought, this fool, his understanding of cheating is to bring her food in the middle of the night,

If it is Yang Zhilan's character, it is not wrong, but Cheng Yayin inexplicably feels that Pei Songsheng is also someone who would do such a thing.

***

Cheng Yayin went to the Salesian Home the next day.

The orphanage in Shengjing was built in the previous dynasty and is located in the most remote West Quarter of the city. As the carriage passed through several streets, the sounds of vendors hawking their wares gradually faded. Cheng Yayin parted the curtain and looked, only to see rows of neat but slightly shabby houses, with several common women washing clothes and chatting in front of the houses.

When Cheng Yayin was a child, she followed her mother to the orphanage and gave winter clothes to the orphans there. When she came here again after many years, she found that the place was even more deserted than before.

Cheng Yayin came here not only to look for things, but also brought a lot of rice, grain, cloth, and other toys that children like, such as rattles and bamboo dragonflies, as well as some books for children's enlightenment.

I explained my purpose to the doorman, and after being informed, the dean came to greet me in person.

The director was a kind-looking woman in her fifties. Such generous donations were rare to the Salesian Home these days, and she thanked him repeatedly, her eyes red with emotion.

Her behavior made Cheng Yayin feel guilty. She only cared about living her own life behind closed doors. If it weren't for the unexpected incident, she probably wouldn't have remembered that there was such a poor and miserable place in the prosperous and splendid Shengjing City. She secretly made up her mind to visit it often in the future.

Cheng Yayin instructed Lanyue to help the nannies at the orphanage count and store the items they had brought, and to explain her purpose to the director. The director thought for a moment and said, "It's been so many years, and there's no guarantee the items will be found. I can only ask someone to do their best to find them. If anything is lost, I hope Madam won't blame me."

Cheng Yayin had already thought of this. She didn't have much hope when she came here today, but just wanted to try her luck.

While the servants were sorting and looking for things in the storeroom, the director took Cheng Yayin for a walk around the courtyard. They saw many children along the way, mostly girls. They shyly hid behind doors when they saw strangers, curiously poking their heads out to look around.

The dean waved to them, asking them to come over and greet him. Several little girls came over and stood in front of Cheng Yayin, saying in a thin voice, "Hello, Madam."

Cheng Yayin touched each of their little faces, and perhaps sensing her kindness, the children smiled. The director waved and let them go back to their own play.

Although these children are dressed simply, each of them is well-groomed and well-mannered. It can be seen that although their lives are hard, the director and the nannies are very dedicated in taking care of them.

Cheng Yayin said sincerely, "The dean is kind-hearted and helps the poor. Although these children have poor backgrounds, they are fortunate to have met a kind person like you."

Upon hearing this, the director sighed, "I am not up to the task and truly cannot bear your praise, Madam. To be honest, Madam, the imperial court has not allocated funds to the Salesian Home for many years. Even if I could lead the nannies in the home to do needlework and embroidery to earn money, it would be difficult to supplement the operating needs of the Salesian Home. I sincerely hope to make the children's lives more comfortable, but I simply cannot do it."

"I just saw that there were quite a few books among the gifts Madam gave me. You have good intentions, but unfortunately, most of the nannies in our orphanage are old and illiterate, and we can't afford the monthly stipend, so we can't hire any literate young women to take care of these children. We old folks can live in hardship, but I pity these children. They have no relatives to rely on, and no skills to rely on. I'm afraid they will be lonely for the rest of their lives."

Cheng Yayin felt very uncomfortable after listening to this. She was about to speak about her plan to run the academy when a person suddenly rushed out from the corner, laughing and rushing towards her in a disorderly manner.

The person who came was a young woman with disheveled hair. Although her face was pretty, her expression was strangely ferocious. Cheng Yayin was caught off guard by her and was grabbed by the collar before she could even stand firmly.

The man laughed and tugged at her clothes, shouting, "This dress has a beautiful color. Make it into a wedding dress for me! I want a wedding dress!"