Chapter 82 If my husband is concerned about what's going on outside, why doesn't he speak more quietly...?

March is the perfect time for spring outings and enjoying nature.

The emperor was poisoned by Consort Qiong and her son, and after experiencing a palace coup, he died less than half a month later.

That day, the emperor sent someone to bring Consort Qiong to the palace, but the doors and windows were tightly closed, and the palace servants could not hear clearly, but there seemed to be arguing and the sound of a woman sobbing.

The night Consort Qiong left the Emperor's bedchamber, the Emperor breathed his last.

Before his death, the emperor summoned a group of high-ranking officials and passed the throne to the third prince. On his deathbed, his words were incoherent, and he repeatedly instructed that Consort Qiong be spared, without even mentioning saving Xiao Zheng's life.

Although the officials were surprised, it was understandable that the emperor would give such an order. After all, the emperor truly cherished Consort Qiong like the apple of his eye, so much so that even when she poisoned him, he couldn't bear to kill her, and he couldn't even bear to remove her from her position as a consort.

After years of biding his time, the Third Prince ascended the throne and began a sweeping reform of the court. He spared Consort Qiong's life as promised, but immediately ordered Xiao Zheng's execution. Xiao Zheng was not malicious by nature and was merely placed under house arrest.

The day after Xiao Zheng's death, the palace servants who were looking after Consort Qiong reported that Consort Qiong had committed suicide by poison the previous night.

With the tide turning against them, Consort Qiong, who always held herself in high esteem, could not accept spending the rest of her life under house arrest in the palace. Xiao Zheng's death meant that she could never turn her life around again. Rather than spend the rest of her life without dignity, she would rather die.

When the news reached the Jiang residence, Cui Yiluo was instructing her servants to pack her bags to return to Ningzhou. Upon hearing the news, she remained silent for a long time, loosely holding a handkerchief in her hand, seemingly without any emotional fluctuation, standing there like an ice statue.

Jiang Yunjin stood beside her, simply pulling her into his arms and gently stroking her back in a comforting manner.

"I just ran into my aunt and asked if you wanted to go to her yard to burn some paper money tonight."

Consort Qiong was the daughter of the Chu family, and Lan Hui was not her biological sister on the surface. Only the Chu family and the royal family were qualified to handle the funeral arrangements. However, because the Chu family helped Xiao Zheng seize the throne, they were purged along with Xiao Zheng after the new emperor ascended the throne. The once most powerful family fell from grace and was too busy to care for itself. How could they have the mind to handle the funeral arrangements for Consort Qiong, who was not even of Chu blood? The new emperor only ordered the funeral arrangements to be carried out according to the consort's orders.

Lan Hui was heartbroken, but she could only secretly mourn in the courtyard, not daring to let Old Madam Jiang know. After all, funerals were inauspicious, and Consort Qiong had helped her son murder the emperor and usurp the throne, making her a traitor.

Although Cui Yiluo and Lan Hui hadn't explicitly stated their identities, Lan Hui had already guessed that Cui Yiluo knew the truth when Consort Qiong summoned her to the palace that day. Consort Qiong's ability to see the Emperor was entirely due to Lan Hui and Jiang Wen, and Lan Hui was naturally ashamed to face Cui Yiluo, having avoided her for many days. However, Consort Qiong was, after all, Cui Yiluo's birth mother, and upon encountering Jiang Yunjin, she still held onto the hope that Cui Yiluo would pay her respects at the ancestral temple, which is why she spoke up.

Jiang Yunjin respected her the most and would not make decisions for her on his own, so he relayed Lan Hui's words to her.

Cui Yiluo buried her face in Jiang Yunjin's shoulder. His back was straight, full of strength, radiating a sense of security. She asked, "How is Aunt?"

Her silence was the most obvious answer.

Jiang Yunjin answered truthfully, "Not very good."

Lan Hui had been relieved to learn that the late emperor had spared Consort Qiong's life, but upon hearing the news of Consort Qiong's suicide, she was almost breathless and overwhelmed with grief.

Cui Yiluo hugged his slender waist and abdomen even tighter, as if she wanted to embed her body into him.

"I'll go see my aunt again tomorrow."

She could not possibly offer a sacrifice for Consort Qiong. She refused Lan Hui's offer tonight, and given Lan Hui's personality, she would naturally never mention Consort Qiong in front of her again.

"good."

The new emperor was decisive and unconventional. After his ascension, Jiang Yunjin remained as the Grand Secretary. The new emperor seemed unconcerned that Jiang Yunjin had once served Xiao Jing, valuing only his abilities. Therefore, after the new emperor's ascension and the court's situation stabilized somewhat, when Jiang Yunjin requested leave to return to Ningzhou, the new emperor granted his request without hesitation, even asking if he needed a carriage.

Jiang Yunjin naturally refused. Although the carriages in the Jiang residence were simple and unadorned on the outside, they were fully equipped and spacious inside.

The carriage bearing the Jiang character token departed from Shengjing. After passing through the pass, Cui Yiluo looked at the road outside the carriage window. She had only traveled this road once before when she entered the capital. At that time, she was burdened with the marriage agreement with Cheng Feng and did not know whether she could successfully get rid of the marriage on her own. She felt somewhat lost.

Looking at it now, it inevitably feels like a different world.

Cui Yiluo closed the window and glanced at Jiang Yunjin, who was sitting on the other side reading a book.

Sunlight streamed through the window paper, outlining his handsome profile. His nose was high and straight, and he wore a snow-white brocade robe, making him look like an immortal. Even when he was sitting and reading, his back was straight, and his posture holding the book was extremely upright. In terms of demeanor, there was probably no other scion of a noble family in Shengjing who could compare with him.

Cui Yiluo suddenly began to think about why she chose Jiang Yunjin the first time she met him.

Of course, his power and status were the most important factors. However, his appearance also had an influence to some extent.

That day, he also seemed to be wearing a snow-white brocade robe. Jiang Zhaoyue was showing her around the manor when they happened to run into him returning from outside. He had a cool and aloof demeanor. Under the scorching early summer sun, he walked through the winding stone paths over the lake in the manor and bumped into them.

Jiang Zhaoyue quickly introduced her, saying that this was her older cousin.

Even without Jiang Zhaoyue's introduction, Cui Yiluo would have recognized him. After all, she had heard of Jiang Yunjin's reputation back in Ningzhou. When she saw him approaching from afar, walking through the willow-lined courtyard, she immediately recognized him.

But she still pretended to be gentle and kind, and spoke softly to him as if he were her cousin.

Jiang Yunjin also greeted her, but his eyes were cold and devoid of any emotion. He merely followed etiquette and said, "Greetings, cousin."

Finally, he left without saying a word to them.

Fearing Cui Yiluo might misunderstand, Jiang Zhaoyue quickly explained that Jiang Yunjin was just like that, treating everyone the same way. But Jiang Zhaoyue didn't know that while Cui Yiluo smiled gently in agreement, she was actually already plotting how to win over this cousin.

At the time, Cui Yiluo was unaware of this and thought that her cousin was a noble, aloof, and ascetic man, not the man who had pressed her down on the bed the night before, whose cold eyes were filled with an unyielding desire, like a blob of thick ink, who had forcefully made her climb to the peak again and again, ignoring her cries and pleas.

Right now, he was intently focused on his book. The long, slender fingers that had brushed against his soft skin last night were now tracing the pages. His desire had faded, and his expression was one of unparalleled concentration. He seemed completely unaware that Cui Yiluo had been glancing at him for quite some time.

Jiang Yunjin is very focused on everything she does.

Cui Yiluo frowned slightly, then suddenly stood up and walked to him. Jiang Yunjin was still looking down at his book, his long eyelashes clearly defined, his dark eyes slowly moving up and down along the lines of text, so focused that he didn't even notice the parts of the light being blocked.

Cui Yilu grabbed the book he was holding so tightly and tried to pull it away, but it wouldn't budge.

She froze for a moment, not yet reacting, when her vision spun around her and Jiang Yunjin, holding the book, pulled her, who was holding the other end of the book, into his arms.

Suddenly she found herself in a warm, broad embrace, with strong, slender legs beneath her buttocks and her body pressed against his hard chest. In an instant, his iron arms tightened around her waist, holding her firmly in his arms.

Only then did Cui Yilu realize that he had noticed all along. Otherwise, who would grip a book so tightly when engrossed in reading?!

When she looked up again, she met the man's narrow eyes, which were filled with a smile, which confirmed her suspicions.

At first, he treated her no differently than anyone else; he was always serious, his eyes expressionless, his tone indifferent, and he seemed more mature than anyone else at the age of twenty-one. Even after they got married, she rarely saw him smile.

But lately, he has been laughing more and more often, like a tree that has been dry and dead for many years suddenly coming back to life, like a withered tree coming back to life, with all things reviving and its branches and leaves spreading.

Before Cui Yiluo could speak, he preemptively asked, "What are you doing?"

His deep voice resonated at the tip of her hair, and his warm breath flowed into her ear, sending a tingling sensation through the half of her body leaning against him.

Cui Yiluo chuckled, her tone sarcastic: "How come I never knew my husband was so cunning?"

Jiang Yunjin let out a low laugh, but his tone was righteous and stern: "Wasn't it you who didn't want me to read just now?"

Cui Yiluo didn't expect him to turn the tables on her without batting an eye, thus solidifying his reputation as a villain. She grabbed his shoulder and straddled him with her legs spread apart.

The movements were fluid and seamless, as if the two were perfectly in sync.

Throughout the process, Jiang Yunjin neither resisted nor stopped her, but the corners of his lips curled up slightly, with a hint of satisfaction in them. His hand loosely encircled her waist, moving downwards as she sat down, and as soon as she sat down, his slender fingers pinched her delicate waist.

Cui Yiluo moved closer to him; softness and hardness, which are usually opposites, blended together perfectly at this moment.

She parted her red lips slightly, almost touching his thin lips, their warm breaths flowing between them. "I really don't want my husband to read. Didn't you deliberately not act like a gentleman in the carriage before? Why are you being so polite today? It's really not my habit."

After all, he wasn't like that last night.

She deliberately feigned surprise: "Or is it that my husband is now better at pretending than before?"

As she spoke, she deliberately nudged him lightly, and then a smile appeared on her face, revealing a hint of satisfaction.

She was patted on the waist by a large hand. The sound, neither too loud nor too soft, echoed inside the carriage. The carriage walls were thick, and with the windows closed, it was impossible for the sound to travel outside. However, the sound was more noticeable inside the carriage, as if it were right next to Cui Yiluo's ear.

The part he had previously refused to touch was now being handled with such composure, and he even casually placed it there. Cui Yiluo almost suspected that he had been possessed.

As the mountain peak rose higher, Jiang Yunjin's eyes also turned deep and dark, but considering that they were still on the official road and other carriages were frequently passing by, he calmed his somewhat hurried breathing and said in a serious tone, "Alright, we're still on the road, let's get off first."

Hearing this, Cui Yiluo became even more energized, hooking her arms around his neck and refusing to let go, her cheek pressed against his, and gently breathing into his ear as she spoke: "What's wrong with sitting like this? Isn't my husband the most self-controlled? Are you afraid you won't be able to resist?"

The man's body suddenly stiffened even more.

Cui Yilu smiled. She knew that these days when he was with her, he completely disregarded those rules and even had more tricks up his sleeve than she did. It almost made her suspect that he had not only looked at the box of things Yang Jingling had given him, but also looked at other things. Otherwise, how could he have been so varied in his ways of tormenting her?

But in public, he was much more restrained, and apart from holding hands, he wouldn't do anything more than that.

They probably won't reach the next town tonight and will have to spend the night in the carriage. He will certainly restrain himself and respectfully hold her as they sleep; otherwise, he wouldn't have tossed and turned her over last night.

Knowing he wouldn't do anything, Cui Yiluo became even more aggressive, grabbing his hand and blinking, saying, "Don't you want to, my husband?"

She was hit again in the waist, this time with significantly more force than before, as if being punished. She felt a little pain, but she could also sense that he was deliberately suppressing his desires.

Cui Yiluo kissed his chin tenderly, her eyes, brimming with spring water, captivating his soul.

"If you're worried about what's going on outside, why don't you keep your voice down?"

Jiang Yunjin's hand tightened on her waist, his dark eyes looking down at her without saying a word, but the pressure in his hand made Cui Yiluo feel a little pain.

Cui Yiluo was very satisfied with his reaction, feeling that she had finally made him suffer and avenged the previous night. So she was about to get up and push him away so that she could look down on him and admire his pathetic appearance of being obsessed with desire.

She had just straightened her back when she was grabbed back and engulfed in flames.

Author's note: Woman, you put out the fire you started. [Sunglasses]

Thank you so much for the nutrient solution, my darlings! Mwah! [kiss]