After Pei Yuan left, the room suddenly became quiet.

The candles on the table were dimmed, Xiaoyang lay quietly under the bed, and Ah Huang leaned on Baoning's neck, breathing lightly. The thrilling experience not long ago was like a dream.

Baoning stretched out her hand to spread the curtains, and the cherry-pink gauze curtains let in light, which fell on her eyelids, very softly. Baoning

sighed softly, and her emotions finally stabilized. She stopped thinking about what happened in the plum forest in the prince's mansion, closed her eyes, and fell asleep in a daze.

…

As Pei Yuan was about to leave the house, he was stopped by Wei Meng. Before the door was closed, Wei Meng leaned over to peek inside and asked in a low voice, “Is the young lady asleep?”

“Rest.” Pei Yuan rolled up his sleeves, still in his black suit, but his belt was a little loose from the previous movement, and his clothes were wrinkled.

Wei Meng smelled a faint feminine scent on him, and seeing his disheveled appearance, he grinned and smiled ambiguously.

"I'm in a hurry to cook. What do you want?" Pei Yuan frowned and looked at him, "Hurry up and tell me."

Wei Meng said seriously, "I'm here to apologize to you and to the young lady. I shouldn't look down on her and say that women make mistakes."

Wei Meng paused, "If it weren't for the young lady, Gongsun Zhu would have really run away, and my mission would have failed. I am a fair and impartial person, and I am clear about rewards and punishments. I have to meet her and thank her." After that, Wei Meng stepped forward and was about to go into the house. Pei Yuan hissed, grabbed his collar and threw him away.

"You've been in the military for so long, what's wrong with your brain?" Pei Yuan yelled, "You can enter the concubine's room whenever you want? Don't you have legs like that? I tell you, don't step into this yard without my permission, you stink and disturb the peace!"

Wei Meng was stunned by his scolding.

Pei Yuan remembered that Bao Ning was still asleep in the room, so he lowered his voice and said lightly, "She was scared, don't mention this matter in front of her in the future."

Wei Meng said "Oh", Pei Yuan started to walk out, and Wei Meng followed. He had prepared a lot of things to say just now, but was interrupted by Pei Yuan, and now he couldn't remember them.

He said casually: "Whenever there is a chance in the future, call my wife and we'll have a meal together."

"Are you crazy?" Pei Yuan frowned and looked at him. He felt that he had nothing to say to this bandit leader who had barely read a few days of books, so he shut up and quickened his pace towards the kitchen.

Wei Meng finally remembered what he wanted to report to Pei Yuan, and stopped him and said, "I know, I'm here to tell you about Pei Xiao."

Pei Yuan paused, but didn't stop. He listened to Wei Meng continue, "I sneaked into Pei Xiao's study and saw a topographic map and a secret letter on his desk. The dog days are coming soon. According to custom, the emperor will go to the palace to escape the summer heat next month. The topographic map is the only way to get to the palace. It is in Lihu, leaning against the mountains, easy to attack but difficult to defend. I have a suspicion that he might do something big there."

Wei Meng walked backwards, facing Pei Yuan, "I was afraid that Pei Xiao would get suspicious, so I didn't dare to steal the map, but I have remembered it. I will copy it for you tonight and we will discuss it later."

"I don't have time tonight." Pei Yuan said, "I don't have time these days. I have to accompany her."

"Young general, you are being sentimental again!" Wei Meng pulled his sleeve, "How can you do big things like this?"

"I don't know how to do it. I only know that if she is not here tonight, you are nothing." Pei Yuan narrowed his eyes, "I have repeatedly told you to leave someone to watch over her and keep her safe. Look at what you are doing. You actually followed her to the plum forest. If she was not alert and safe, I would have skinned you alive!"

Wei Meng was speechless and stammered: "How could I know that Gongsun Zhu was hiding there, and the young lady would also run there..."

Pei Yuan shook him off and strode forward: "Anyway, don't bother me these days!"

The dumplings were ready in the kitchen and placed on the bowl cabinet. Pei Yuan learned to cook some time ago, and his skills were not good, but steaming dumplings was not a problem.

Late at night, no one was in the kitchen, Pei Yuan did it himself, lighting a fire and boiling water, putting the dumplings in the steamer, taking the opportunity to smash a cucumber, steam a bowl of eggs, and prepare the garlic sauce.

Wei Meng leaned against the door and was stunned, saying that Pei Yuan had changed. After not seeing her for half a year, she suddenly became a good wife and mother.

Pei Yuan was busy with work and didn't bother to pay attention to him. After the dumplings came out of the pot, she rewarded him with two eggs and told him to shut up and roll the eggs, and hurried to the yard with the food box.

...

Baoning was sleeping soundly, and Ah Huang curled up in her arms, staring with big eyes, not daring to move.

Seeing Pei Yuan coming, it made a low sound in its throat, probably because it was shackled for a long time and felt uncomfortable.

Pei Yuan made a silent gesture to it, and Ah Huang quieted down.

Pei Yuan put the food box on the table beside him, sat down next to Bao Ning, gently scratched her eyebrows, and said softly: "Get up, lazy piglet, get up and eat something."

Bao Ning whimpered, Pei Yuan patted her cheeks twice to give her time to calm down, then lifted the quilt, dug her out from inside, and put her on his thighs.

"Did you eat in the banquet hall tonight?"

Bao Ning was still not conscious, closed her eyes and said: "No, the dishes were not served when I went out."

"The dumplings are steamed for you." Pei Yuan kissed her eyelids, "I feed you?"

What happened today had nothing to do with Bao Ning. Seeing such a cruel scene, Baoning was not injured physically, but her heart was inevitably hurt. Pei Yuan felt guilty and remorseful. He was inconsiderate and did not protect her well.

Perhaps for this reason, coupled with pity and pride for her brave behavior, Pei Yuan was particularly gentle and tolerant today. Baoning had never seen him so considerate before, and his movements were cautious, as if he was coaxing a child.

Ah Huang climbed onto the lamb again. The lamb grew faster and faster. The two of them stacked together and stretched their heads to smell the dumplings in the food box.

Pei Yuan waved his hand to drive them away.

Baoning said, "Your clothes smell, it's not good."

Pei Yuan lowered his head and smelled it, but didn't feel anything. But looking at Baoning's expression, he immediately understood that Baoning was talking about the smell of blood.

There was no blood on his hands today, so the smell was minimal. He was used to that kind of scene, so he would not notice it. But Baoning was extremely sensitive and felt uncomfortable.

Pei Yuan took off his clothes with one hand and threw them aside, revealing his naked and strong chest.

"Is it okay now?"

Baoning threw herself into his arms and whispered, "It's okay."

She took the initiative to throw herself into his arms, which was the first time. Pei Yuan smiled and pinched her nose: "You have learned your lesson. You have made progress."

Bao Ning giggled, her eyes still closed, her arm hanging around Pei Yuan's neck. In the past, such contact made her feel embarrassed and awkward, but today was different. Pei Yuan's smell made her feel particularly at ease.

Pei Yuan held her waist with one hand to prevent her from falling, and took the food box with the other hand and opened the lid. The fragrance inside filled her nose.

Bao Ning opened her eyelids to take a look, and was surprised that Pei Yuan had stewed egg custard, which was golden yellow and sprinkled with green onions.

Pei Yuan took out a small bowl, scooped a spoonful of egg custard for her, and raised his chin to her in a way that was somewhat commendable: "Is it delicious?"

Bao Ning nodded: "Delicious."

"Yeah." Pei Yuan curled his lips, "I said that I still have some talent, but you always discourage me. Now look, isn't the talent revealed? If you delay me for half a year or a year, I will definitely be better than those chefs in the kitchen, and I will make you eat out every day."

Bao Ning responded to him, sitting on Pei Yuan's thighs with her buttocks, swinging her calves, Ah Huang jumped off the lamb's back and chased her toes to nibble. It bit gently, it didn't hurt at all, but it was a little itchy. Bao Ning teased it for a while, and simply stepped on Ah Huang's back to feel its soft hair.

"Don't always think about playing while eating." Pei Yuan scooped a steamed dumpling and cut it in half with a spoon, revealing the fragrant filling inside. He then dipped it in a little vinegar and minced garlic and brought it to Baoning's lips.

Baoning tilted his head and refused: "It's too big, I don't want to eat it."

"Big ones have more meat, and more meat smells better." Pei Yuan coaxed her like a storyteller. He stretched the spoon to an arm's length away and muttered to himself, "Look, my spoon is a carriage. It's coming over from the other end. It's filled with grain and supplies, and it's about to enter the pass."

Pei Yuan put the spoon close to Baoning's lips again: "General, please open the city gate and let them pass!"

Baoning laughed. Pei Yuan looked at her with her moon-like eyes, and his heart finally settled down: "Very good, but you're really hard to amuse. I've coaxed you for so long, and now I'm really happy." Baoning snorted

, rubbed off him and sat on the edge of the bed: "I'll eat it myself."

Pei Yuan looked at her and smiled. There were twelve dumplings in the bowl. Baoning ate six, gave two to Ah Huang, and poured the rest into Pei Yuan's mouth.

She was full and felt refreshed, so she went to take a shower.

Pei Yuan had already prepared water and clothes, and followed Bao Ning to the back of the screen and made a fuss for a while, saying that he wanted to take a shower with her. Bao Ning's neck turned red with embarrassment, so Pei Yuan had to give up and go back by himself. There

was the sound of water splashing behind the screen. Ah Huang was a clingy person, following Bao Ning everywhere. When she took a shower, he would squat beside her and watch. Ah Mian was more stable, so he would lie down at the foot of the bed, either to eat or to sleep. When he wanted to relieve himself, he would use his butt to push out the door. He was smart and could pull the latch and open the door by himself.

Pei Yuan took off his boots, lay on the bed with his legs apart, and put his hands behind his head.

He was in a good mood now. Today was a good day. Both in terms of the mission and in terms of his relationship with Bao Ning, it was a success. Especially when he thought of Bao Ning's subconscious closeness to him at that time, Pei Yuan's mouth curled up even more.

Ah Mian had just eaten some grass, and when he was full, he went out to relieve himself. When he stood up, he bumped into the cabinet beside the bed, and something fell down with a snap.

Pei Yuan sat up and saw that it was the hairpin that fell. He didn't care, bent down to pick it up, and was about to put it on the table when his fingers touched the middle part of the hairpin and found that there seemed to be a crack. Pei Yuan frowned and took a closer look at the hairpin. Only then did he realize that it was detachable. He grabbed the two ends and pulled hard, and the hairpin split open. It was indeed hollow inside, and there was a piece of paper.

Pei Yuan's heart skipped a beat. He raised his eyes and glanced behind the screen. Bao Ning was unaware and was still taking a shower.

Pei Yuan twisted the short note with his fingers, thought about it again and again, and decided to open it and take a look.

Seeing the words inside, the last trace of smile fell from Pei Yuan's face.

"I'm giving you a box, do you like it? I haven't seen you for a long time, and I miss you so much. I'll see you at the south corner gate of the General's Mansion in two days."

The signature was Meng Fan.

Pei Yuan's eyes grew colder and he stared at the hairpin. He clenched his fists and really wanted to smash it immediately.

The sound of water behind the screen stopped, and Baoning began to wipe off his clothes. Pei Yuan closed his eyes and exhaled a sigh of relief. He patiently put back the hairpin and the note inside.