Chapter 12 Chapter 12 I sleep on the couch, you sleep on the bed

The fire avoidance map was placed carelessly on his knees, with two fingerprints on the edge of the page. Nan Xu bit her lip, gestured with her eyes, and wiped off the pastry crumbs on her lips in a panic.

I guess there were oil stains on my fingers because I had handled the pastries.

I was in a hurry to restore things to their original state and didn't have time to pay attention to these details.

Now, I've been exposed on the spot, which is completely humiliating.

"I remember now. Before I got married, the maids in the palace gave it to me. I asked them what it was, but they just told me to wait until Master comes back to his room before we can look at it together." Nan Xu pretended to be calm. "I wonder if Master can explain this to me."

Since there is no way to avoid it, I might as well push the topic to him.

The woman looked over timidly, her eyes clear and bright, reflecting the slightly upturned corners of his lips.

He was not Liuxia Hui, so he naturally would not refuse his newlywed wife's invitation.

Leaning over, he lifted the tassels hanging from Nan Xu's crown, moved closer, and at the moment when Nan Xu dodged in panic, he pulled out the fire-avoiding map that she had hidden under her sleeve.

"If Madam wants to know, I will be at your service." As he spoke, he pinched the book with his fingers and pretended to turn it over and read it together.

Nan Xu stared at the handsome face so close to him in horror, his heart racing. Why was it different from what he had imagined?

At this time, shouldn't you just refuse lightly, give a few words of advice, and then leave gracefully?

It was hard to say what would happen next when a man and a woman read such an explicit book together. Nan Xu was not so naive as not to notice the fleeting surprise and desire in the eyes of the person in front of her when the veil was lifted.

She has always been very self-aware of her appearance.

"Uncle!" She called out to him, holding the album tightly. "It's too late. Let's do it another day!"

"No need, this book is for reading now." He easily lifted Nan Xu's wrist. Maybe it was because he drank alcohol or because the room was filled with red lights, but a warmth appeared on his indifferent and cold face.

Nan Xu's stubbornness was aroused, and he picked her up and insisted on holding her down. The good scroll of pictures was deformed by the two of them.

Her crown was loose, her bun was disheveled, and the bright red lip balm had faded a lot from the constant biting of her lips. Nan Xu turned her head to look at her disheveled self in the dressing mirror, and the depression buried deep in her heart surged up into her throat.

That’s enough!

"Duan Wenpei, enough is enough!"

She pulled off her crumbling crown and called him by his full name, as if she was ready to fight him to the death. However, her momentum was insufficient and her anger was even more intense.

Because she was too excited, she was tripped by the wedding gown hanging on the ground, fell forward, and fell down right in front of Duan Wenpei.

The incident happened suddenly and neither of them was prepared.

Duan Wenpei looked up at her, his deep eyes moved slightly. Just as he was about to reach out his hand, something pressed against his chest. It was the horn crossbow that could be hidden in the sleeve.

"I don't like you." Nan Xu looked at him steadily with serious eyes.

Duan Wenpei didn't stop moving. Seeing Nan Xu's alert expression, he pulled off the pearl hairpin next to her ear that was about to dig into her flesh due to the excessive movement. "Me too."

Then you also need to look at the fire avoidance map together!

Nan Xu fluttered her eyelashes, wondering if she had overreacted.

Subconsciously, she stretched out her hands to try to find a less awkward excuse, but her touch was filled with warmth. It turned out that the collar of the man beneath her had been ripped open, revealing his muscular body. Nan Xu closed her eyes belatedly, silently muttering to herself, "Don't look at anything inappropriate." Suddenly, she bit her lip, and with a trembling voice, she said, "Uncle, let's talk."

Talk about the present and the future.

Pointing her arrow at him was both a threat and a sign of her determination.

Duan Wenpei glanced at the delicate hand resting on his chest, and the arrow wound on his shoulder blade began to ache slightly.

He raised his eyes and saw the bright red wedding gown wrapped around the fair neck of the woman, with faint traces of light pink visible. He remembered that the medicine from the Imperial Hospital was very effective, so it would not have taken so long for the scar to not heal, unless she did not use the medicine he sent her.

Really not willing to give in at all...

Something in his heart was deeply touched. Duan Wenpei suppressed his playful look, lowered his eyes indifferently, wrapped his fingers around Nan Xu's small hand, and aimed the tip of the arrow at his throat.

Nan Xu heard him say, "Madam, you have to aim well when you kill someone."

There was no fight back, no fear, and a bewitching whisper in the hoarse voice.

Nan Xu was puzzled and stared at him in a daze.

She doesn't want to kill anyone!

She just wanted to make things clear with him!

Perhaps dissatisfied with her doubt, his slightly calloused hands pinched her slender waist and rolled over it repeatedly, as if responding to her pointing the arrow at him.

Her waist was extremely sensitive, and a tingling sensation spread. Nan Xu was furious, almost crying, and said, "Can you please let go first? I'm ticklish."

Duan Wenpei looked at her slender figure that was about to fall without support, and did not respond for a long time.

"You have to get up first before I can let go."

*

The red candles illuminated the two immortals of harmony and unity on the wall, as well as the couple sitting opposite each other.

Nan Xu twisted her fingers and stopped beating around the bush with Duan Wenpei. "I'm not used to being called Madam. Uncle, you can call me Ah Xu."

After all, they are husband and wife, and they are also a family, so everyone in the family calls her that.

Duan Wenpei poured her a cup of tea and handed it to her, nodding his head in agreement. "I understand. Huaizhou is my courtesy name, so you can call me whatever you want."

Nan Xu lowered her head and drank tea without responding. She had no feelings for him and it was fine to call him Uncle.

"Uncle, I didn't mean it just now. I thought you meant that." Nan Xu didn't know how to get to the point, so she had to explain her previous behavior.

Looking at the horn crossbow that had been untied and placed on the table, Duan Wenpei asked calmly, "What does that mean?"

Nan Xu was speechless. This man was truly unpredictable. Sometimes he was so cold and indifferent, and sometimes he acted dumb and did whatever he wanted. She didn't intend to indulge him in this habit. "Uncle, you were just looking at the fire avoidance map with me, and you were so close to me. Isn't he trying to have sex with me?"

She is thin-skinned and doesn't quite explain the four words "matters between husband and wife" clearly.

Duan Wenpei understood everything, but he just raised an eyebrow and looked at the flickering candlelight and said slowly, "So, you admit that it's yours, and you know what it is."

Of course she knew. Not only did she know, she couldn't help but read a few pages in the sedan chair.

But what does this have to do with him? Why should he keep holding on to himself?

"Yes or no, what do you think, sir? Since we are married, is it a sin to look at the fire avoidance map?"

The woman was just shy, and Nan Xu felt that he was a little unkind.

Duan Wenpei looked at her and took in her slightly angry expression.

"It's not a sin. I just want to hear your own explanation."

Nanxu: ...

What kind of habit is this? She hasn't heard any such rumors about him outside.

"Uncle..."

"Nan Xu," Duan Wenpei interrupted her, his indifferent face showing a bit of compelling seriousness, "You and I can't be close, nor can we be real husband and wife. Instead of testing me and beating around the bush, why not speak directly?"

"If you don't speak frankly to me about something, I won't delve into it. If you've been wronged, or if someone's taking advantage of you to sow discord, you won't be happy, and that's a potential threat to me."

"I don't like trouble, nor do I like troublesome people. Do you understand?"

This is laid out and told to her!

On the surface, she was talking about the fire avoidance map, but in fact, she was also talking about how she should get along with him in this uncle's mansion in the future.

Nan Xu's eyes lit up and she nodded hurriedly.

"I understand what Uncle means... being a fake couple..."

She couldn't hide her excitement in her tone, as if this was a great thing.

Duan Wenpei didn't know for a moment whether he should be happy or not. He always had the illusion that he was being disliked.

Nan Xu also realized that she had lost her composure. She quickly sat up straight, cleared her throat, and agreed in a sweet voice, "Don't worry, Uncle. If there is anything in the future, I will tell you directly and clearly. I won't hide anything."

Duan Wenpei nodded lightly.

The sound of time came from outside. It was the end of the hour of Hai and it was time to go to bed.

The two looked at each other, feeling quite embarrassed.

"Uncle, how are you going to sleep tonight?"

The bridal chamber was very spacious, but Duan Wenpei was the host after all, so she couldn't let him sleep in the side rooms. If they didn't sleep in the same room on the wedding night, even though there were no elders in the Bo's house, the servants would inevitably look down on her as the hostess, and it would be easy for her to be gossiped about.

"I'll sleep on the couch and you on the bed."

Following his gaze, I saw a sandalwood couch lying by the window. It was almost midsummer, so I wouldn't catch a cold.

Nan Xu turned around, pulled over a quilt, and spread it on the couch herself. She glanced at the indifferent man with a slightly apologetic look, then used her hands and feet to crawl into the bed curtain.

After a tiring day, I can finally have a good sleep!

Duan Wenpei on the other end did not move for a long time. Nan Xu yawned and was about to turn sideways to face the bed when suddenly a large dark shadow fell in front of the bed.

What is this for? Are you going to go back on your word?

Nan Xu lost all sleepiness in an instant, hugged her arms tightly against her chest, and regretted not bringing the horn crossbow with her. If he dared to do anything wrong, she would, she would, bite him like last time!

"Keep this."

A piece of paper, so strong it could be seen through, was handed to Nan Xu. She hesitated to take it, but Duan Wenpei had already put it down and left the bedside. "It's the divorce agreement I wrote."

"When you can no longer stay in this mansion, you can leave on your own."

Nan Xu's pupils shrank slightly, and she hurriedly lifted a corner of the bed curtain and brought the document close to the candlelight to take a closer look.

It was indeed a divorce agreement, but it had not been signed or sealed yet.

"Uncle..." Nan Xu's lips moved, not knowing what to say. A myriad of emotions couldn't express the complex emotions she felt at the moment. "Thank you."

In the end, it was just a quiet thank you.

She looked at the bright red tent ceiling, her eyes slightly warm. At least, she was still free.

In terms of feelings, no one would force her, not even her nominal husband.

She listened to her mother's words, but as stubborn as she was, she couldn't quickly accept and cater to someone she didn't like.

Such feelings are too heavy and too tasteless.

She carefully put away the divorce letter, and after several pep talks to herself, she leaned out of the bed and said to the man lying on the couch with his back to her, "Uncle, is the arrow wound on your shoulder feeling any better?"

She felt that she should care about this future 'husband' who would live under the same roof with her.

She was answered by a long silence.

Could it be that he fell asleep?

Nan Xu refused to give up, "Uncle, I don't have any medicine for the wound, if..."

"Noisy!"

What, sleep?

Nan Xu said "oh" listlessly and lay back on the bed.

Just sleep, why are you yelling so fiercely?

It was late at night. Yu Ming and Liu Hui heard that there was no movement in the bridal chamber, and then they smiled at each other with satisfaction.

After laughing, the few people who were not familiar with each other felt that it was really confusing.

Liu Hui and Yu Rong went back to their own yard.

Yu Ming and Yu Xiang were left discussing in a low voice with excitement. The moon was hanging in the sky, dotted with stars. It was sure to be a sunny day tomorrow.

*

It was not until noon that Nan Xu rubbed his sleepy eyes and got ready to get up.

The dragon and phoenix wedding candles had burned down to only the candlesticks. The maids carefully cleaned up the place, while Yuming and Yuxiang ordered people to prepare the toiletries.

"What time is it?"

Nan Xu looked at the messy quilt and guessed that she was too excited last night and her sleeping posture might not be very good. She wondered if anyone had seen it.

Yu Ming wetted the wipes and handed them to Nan Xu, smiling as she replied, "It's already early Si hour."

Nan Xu was surprised, "Why didn't you wake me up earlier?"

She was a person who cared about her reputation. Duan Wenpei had shown so much sincerity, so she naturally had to show it. At least, when others mentioned Lady Wei Yangbo, they would be full of praise.

Yu Ming helped her sit down and explained, "It's not that we don't want to shout, but Master Bo specifically instructed that Madam should get some more sleep since she was tired last night."