Chapter 218 Zhan Xing and Zhuo Xuetian wait for Qing Ling under the eaves

"Remember what?" The moment Qing Ling turned her head, Lin Shiyuan also turned around.

In that instant, their noses touched, and below that, their lips.

Their warm breaths were so close to each other's lips, stimulating every sense of the other person.

Qingling's heart was pounding. She instinctively held her breath, too nervous to move.

Lin Shiyuan's heart was also racing. At such close range, with his keen senses, he could even feel Yao Qingling's heartbeat.

He opened his mouth, his voice hoarse: "Don't you remember... you kissed me?"

Qingling's eyes widened suddenly.

That wasn't a dream?

Just as she was shyly trying to hide, the man grabbed her and pressed his lips to hers.

After a fleeting, light kiss, he released her and his voice, even deeper and hoarseer, said, "You kissed me like that."

Qingling's lips were slightly parted, her entire mind seemed to have been emptied, or as if a lot of things had been stuffed into it, making her feel chaotic.

The feeling that I didn't have in my dream is now clear.

It was piping hot, moist, and soft...

Lin Shiyuan stared intently at her: "Qingling..."

His voice was incredibly hoarse, as if he was trying his best to suppress something, or as if he was calling out for something through that voice.

Yao Qingling swallowed, then suddenly raised her hand to hug his neck and kissed him.

Lin Shiyuan got his wish, hugged her tightly, and kissed her passionately.

Suddenly, a soft click sounded.

It was Lin Shiyuan who pulled the rope in his hand, and the sieve outside fell down.

However, no one cared whether there were sparrows underneath; they just glanced at them and then kissed again.

...

It wasn't until late afternoon that Lin Qiao and her group returned, preparing to go back into the city.

She noticed the sieve covered outside: "Brother, will you teach Miss how to catch sparrows?"

She lifted the sieve and saw that there was nothing underneath except wheat.

She assumed it was a trap that Yao Qingling had failed to set, so she said nothing.

Seeing that both of their faces were flushed, he asked curiously, "Is it that hot in the room?"

Only Nie Yun noticed something; she glanced at the broken sieve.

They didn't catch a sparrow, but they caught a phoenix.

...

After Zhou Zhining told Zhan Xingzhuo about sending the reward to the Marquis's residence, Zhan Xingzhuo praised her for being generous, virtuous, and thoughtful.

"That's my son after all. I've given him so many good things, how could she not let me see him?"

After thinking it over, Zhan Xingzhuo went to the Marquis's residence, only to be told by the gatekeeper that Yao Qingling had taken the child out.

"Going out in this weather?"

Zhan Xingzhuo held the umbrella in his hand and looked up at the sky.

Snowflakes fell heavily all day long.

He frowned. Yao Qingling was weak. Even in her condition, she still couldn't let go of her business. She was really obsessed with money.

"The child is so young, how could she bear to take him out?"

The man was very displeased. He originally wanted to go back to the mansion first and come back later, but when he thought about how Yao Qingling had tormented his son, he felt that he should scold her and tell her not to be so reckless.

Just as he was about to tell Minglu to drive the carriage to Huibafang, Minglu's eyes lit up and he pointed ahead: "Second Master, that's the young mistress's carriage!"

Zhan Xingzhuo narrowed his eyes, and as the carriage became clearer, his expression darkened further.

He stood under the eaves with his umbrella, watching the carriage get closer and closer until it stopped.

Taoye's carriage was used to house the little white wolf; apart from Lin Shiyuan, no one dared to be with the wolf.

Lin Shiyuan rode in her carriage and took the white wolf back to his mansion.

Tao Ye rode in Yao Qingling's carriage, and she squeezed in with Nie Yun to sit together on the outside plank.

She spotted Zhan Xingzhuo and Minglu from afar.

It also reminded her of a rainy spring night when she and her mistress stood under the eaves, right where they were standing now. The torrential rain soaked their clothes, and they waited in the cold for the Second Master to return home, ready to tell him the good news.

What they saw was that Master Zhan snatched the young lady's umbrella, used it to help another woman get off the carriage, and entered the mansion without even glancing at them, while she and the young lady were left beside the carriage, their clothes completely soaked.

Tao Ye's face darkened, and she got up and went into the carriage: "Miss, Second Master Zhan is outside the Marquis's residence."

Yao Qingling was holding the child and humming a nursery rhyme to comfort Zhao'er when she heard this. She only frowned slightly and didn't even lift the curtain to take a look.

The carriage soon stopped at the entrance of the Marquis's residence. The heavy cotton curtain of the carriage was lifted, and Tao Ye first opened her umbrella. After the coachman placed the saddlebags, she got off the carriage and stood below to receive Yao Qingling.

Zhan Xingzhuo took the umbrella and walked over. He raised his hand, intending to help Yao Qingling get off the car.

Yao Qingling, holding the child, didn't even glance at him. Instead, she placed her hand on Tao Ye's arm and slowly but steadily got off the carriage.

Zhan Xingzhuo's hand missed its target; only a few snowflakes landed on his palm, chilling him to the bone.

He withdrew his hand behind his back, defusing the awkwardness, and said coldly, "Yao Qingling, how could you take a child out in such heavy snow?"

Qingling held the child in her arms, with Taoye and Nie Yun holding umbrellas on either side to prevent a single snowflake from falling on her.

Qing Ling glanced at him indifferently: "What's it to you?"

She walked past him and headed straight for the Marquis's residence.

Yao Qingling's disregard provoked Zhan Xingzhuo. He was furious and turned around, shouting at her back, "Yao Qingling, you have a child, but do you act like a mother?"

“Zhou Zhining never takes Xiao’er out in bad weather, for fear that he will get sick from the rain and snow.”

He quickly caught up with Yao Qingling and blocked her way when she reached the eaves: "You're willing to risk your life to go to your shop, but you can leave the child at home and have the wet nurse take care of him."

"What's this all about? Are you afraid someone will take the child away while you're not around?"

"Or are you trying to show off that this child doesn't have a father?"

Zhan Xingzhuo was furious and unleashed a torrent of words.

Yao Qingling looked at him coldly: "Zhou Zhining is Zhou Zhining, and I am me. You don't actually think that just because you sent a servant to deliver two boxes of things, I'll watch you go crazy here?"

Tao Ye thought back to the past and then looked at Zhan Xingzhuo's unreasonable behavior now. Even now, he is still biased towards Zhou Zhining.

Haha, everything about her is good.

I don't know who it is, but they always play the victim and act pitiful in front of men, ignoring their children and letting them fall and hurt their heads, then blaming it on someone else.

Taoye said, "Miss, you're doing just fine without you. And the young master doesn't need to worry about being favored by someone else's child."

She deliberately emphasized the phrase "other people's children" to mock Zhan Xingzhuo's favoritism.

She added, "The young master is the flesh and blood of the young lady. She cherishes him like the apple of her eye, unlike some people who only care about immediate gains."

The peach leaf has sharp teeth and a keen mouth, and the cicada is no less so.

She has made a lot of progress these days, but the thought of being forced to kneel as punishment still makes her knees ache.

She came up from behind, mocking as she went: "Second Master, you should go back to your manor and keep a close eye on that child. It's snowing, and the roads are slippery. Don't let him fall and get hurt again. Otherwise, you'll make a whole room of maids and servants kneel as punishment."

Zhan Xingzhuo snorted angrily, "This is outrageous! These two maids are even more arrogant than their masters!"

"Yao Qingling, is this how you train your servants? How dare you speak to me like that!"

"Minglu, teach them a lesson and make them remember it!"

Minglu stepped forward, sleeves rolled up, intending to slap them.