Chapter 1.1 She was seen by Pei Duo...
In late September, a cool breeze was blowing.
The last rays of the setting sun pierced through the half-open window and spilled onto the navy blue bedsheets. Beneath the thin blankets, a slender and delicate figure was revealed. A thin, snow-white forearm rested on the edge of the bed, and neatly manicured nails with a hint of pink. The slender fingers were naturally curled up.
A thin blanket barely covered the woman's smooth, soft skin; she was only wearing a light purple undergarment.
The thin straps of the small garment wrapped around the back of her slender, white neck, pressing a very faint mark onto her skin.
The golden-red light of the setting sun shone on her eyebrows and eyes, and Jiang Ninghui uncomfortably raised her hand to cover them.
After a moment, she moved her hand away and slightly raised her chin to look at the half-open window.
It's probably around 3:45 PM.
The confused mind cleared up in an instant.
She almost forgot that she was in a small courtyard rented by her husband in Qingping Town, not in her husband's family home in Xiping Village. Her husband would be back from school in about half an hour, and she had to get up to prepare dinner for him.
Jiang Ninghui propped herself up on the bed, her long black hair cascading down her thin shoulders and onto her chest.
She sniffed and smelled a faint scent of cedar on her husband's bedding.
—It smells a lot like Pei Duo, the son of the Pei family next door to the Zhao family.
She remembered that her husband didn't like this scent, so why was he using cedarwood now?
Before Jiang Ninghui could think further, the sound of a door creaking open came from outside the window, followed by footsteps approaching step by step.
Jiang Ninghui didn't expect her husband to return ahead of schedule.
She was still on the bed, wearing only her undergarments and panties, and had not yet cleaned up the mess the two of them had made earlier.
Actually, she came to town at her mother-in-law's request.
Firstly, her mother-in-law asked her to come to town to take care of her husband, cook and do laundry for him, and relieve his fatigue. Secondly, her mother-in-law was afraid that if she and her husband were too far apart, she wouldn't be able to bring him good fortune. Therefore, she asked her to stay by her husband's side every day from now on.
It's ridiculous.
In late May of this year, Mr. and Mrs. Zhao suddenly came to propose marriage on behalf of Zhao Zhixue.
The Zhao family was considered wealthy in Xiping Village. Logically, it shouldn't have been the turn of the poor Jiang family in Hongshan Village to arrange a marriage for Zhao Zhixue. However, the Zhao family was determined to marry her and even agreed to the exorbitant dowry of five taels of silver that her parents demanded.
It wasn't until the day of her wedding that her mother secretly told her that they had bribed a fortune teller in town to tell the Zhao couple that her birth chart was auspicious for Zhao Zhixue, and that it would help Zhao Zhixue, who had failed the imperial examination once before, pass it smoothly this August.
That's why the Zhao couple didn't hesitate to spend a high price to marry her.
Her parents, for the sake of money, pushed her into an abyss of no return.
After Jiang Ninghui married him, she lived in constant fear, praying to heaven every night that her husband would pass the imperial examination in August.
If her husband fails to be chosen again, her life in the Zhao family will likely be miserable.
Perhaps Heaven appreciated her sincere prayers, because in August of this year, Zhao Zhixue passed the examination and became one of the two scholars in Xiping Village.
Another scholar was Pei Duo, the son of the Pei family who lived next door to the Zhao family.
He just turned seventeen on the tenth day of June this year.
She was also present at Pei Duo's birthday banquet in June. The Pei family hosted a banquet for many families in Xiping Village at a small restaurant in town. It was quite a lively event. That day at the restaurant, everyone said that Pei's son was exceptionally talented and had a brilliant appearance. He had won first place in the provincial examination at a young age.
She had been married into the Zhao family for three months and had only met Pei Duo twice.
The first time was on the day she and Zhao Zhixue got married. The young man, dressed in a light blue cross-collar robe, stood tall and elegant outside the house. His usually indifferent and calm eyes glanced at them indifferently.
The second time was at Pei Duo's birthday banquet. The young man, dressed in a dark blue robe, stood in the crowd and gave a slight nod to those who congratulated him.
Jiang Ninghui composed herself, threw off the covers and got up. Her fingers had just touched the dress hanging by the bedside when footsteps approached the door. Before she could call out to her husband, the closed door was suddenly pushed open from the outside.
Immediately, a tall and slender shadow stretched in from the ground.
Jiang Ninghui looked up, about to call for her husband, when she saw that the person who entered was none other than Pei Duo, the son of the Pei family.
She was only wearing a small top and underpants, and she was kneeling naked on the couch, clutching the dress she had just picked up. Except for her private parts, which were pitifully covered, everything else was visible to Pei Duo.
Jiang Ninghui's face, from the tips of her ears to her cheeks, then to the sides of her neck and her whole body, was covered in a thick, vibrant red, as if she had been rolled in fire.
She screamed and frantically grabbed her clothes and blankets to wrap herself up tightly.
Pei Duo, who had been lost in thought all the way back from school, was brought back to his senses by Jiang Ninghui's scream. The young man lifted his eyelids and saw Bai Shengsheng quickly crawl into the quilt that he was the only one who had ever covered himself with.
The young man's brows furrowed suddenly, and his usually indifferent and cold eyes were now covered with a deep chill.
The room, which was originally filled with the scent of cedar, now has a unique fragrance emanating from the woman.
Pei Duo glanced at the woman who had suddenly appeared in the room—it was Zhao's new wife.
He knew at a glance what had happened in the room.
The young man lowered his eyelids coldly, avoiding the woman who was wrapped up tightly on the bed, his clear and magnetic voice tense with a hint of unease.
"Sister-in-law...I'm sorry."
Pei Duo paused for a moment: "I didn't know you were in the house."
After saying that, the young man turned and left the house, closing the door behind him.
Jiang Ninghui was stunned for a long time before she came to her senses. She looked out through the half-open window and could only see the corner of the young man's robe being blown by the wind by turning her head. Recalling that Pei Duo had seen her body by accidentally barging into the room, Jiang Ninghui felt ashamed and wanted to bang her head against the wall.
Since she grew up, the only man who has seen her body is her husband.
But now, unexpectedly, another man has seen her body.
Jiang Ninghui blushed deeply, feeling both ashamed and embarrassed. Without much hesitation, she quickly put on her clothes, her mind a jumbled mess.
What exactly happened?
How could Pei Duo be in the young master's courtyard?
Why didn't you tell her that Pei Duo would be coming?
It takes most of the day to walk from Xiping Village to the town. Jiang Ninghui had walked for most of the day and her legs were tired and exhausted. As soon as she entered the house, her husband pulled her into the house. He couldn't even wait until night to have sex with her. Afterwards, he rushed to the school so that she could rest well. He didn't return until 1:15 pm.
Jiang Ninghui was exhausted after a long day and fell into a deep sleep. When she woke up, she ran into Pei Duo.
Jiang Ninghui put on her clothes and folded the messy bedding neatly. She looked down and checked her clothes again and again to make sure they were clean and in good condition. She took a few deep breaths, walked to the door and opened it. She immediately saw Pei Duo standing tall and elegant under the pear tree in the courtyard.
The young man had his back to her; he was tall and upright, and he was wearing clothes that matched the color of his birthday.
He wore a dark blue robe with ink-wash landscape patterns on the sleeves and hem. A black ebony hairpin adorned the top of his head, while the rest of his dark hair hung down his back.
As soon as Jiang Ninghui saw him, she was reminded of what had just happened that made her extremely ashamed.
Her face flushed red with embarrassment, and she twisted her hands tightly together. Gazing at Pei Duo's retreating figure, she pursed her dry lips before asking, "Young Master Pei, are you here to see my husband?"
Pei Duo turned around, his cold and indifferent gaze falling on Jiang Ninghui.
The young man's voice, like his personality, was extremely cold: "Brother Zhao didn't tell your wife that I live here?"
Jiang Ninghui's face froze, staring blankly at the young man.
He said...he lives here?
Then... Jiang Ninghui suddenly opened her eyes wide, turned around and looked at the door that she had closed, the faint scent of cedar still lingering at the tip of her nose.
So, Pei Duo went back to his own room?
So, she and her husband did that kind of thing in Pei Duo's room?!
Jiang Ninghui's face turned from red to white, then from white to green, until her beautiful face turned a deep purplish-red. Her palms were also marked with five finger marks from her fingernails. She was so ashamed that she wished she could disappear into a crack in the ground.
How could my lord... how could he take her to do that kind of thing in Young Master Pei's room!
Without Jiang Ninghui needing to explain further, Pei Duo already knew the answer from her expression.
Pei Duo had little impression of Zhao's new wife, who had been married into the family for three months, only having heard a few words about her from Zhao Zhixue.
—Illiterate, pedantic and dull, but virtuous and kind-hearted.
Pei Duo carefully shifted his gaze away: "Brother Zhao's room is the one on the south side."
Jiang Ninghui turned her head following his gaze. There was a room next door with its door open, separated from the room behind her by only one wall. When she came in the morning, before she could properly see the layout of the courtyard, her husband dragged her into this room behind her, which led to the embarrassing situation she was in now.
She bit her lower lip, forcing back her embarrassment: "Young Master Pei, I... I'll help you clean the house."
"No need."
Pei Duo walked towards her: "I need to go inside and read for a while, sister-in-law, you can go about your business."
The young man walked past her and pushed open the door.
Jiang Ninghui turned to look at Pei Duo, who was about to close the door, with a narrow crack between them.
Although the young man was only seventeen, he was extremely tall, half a head taller than the young master. Jiang Ninghui was a year older than him, but she was not even as tall as his shoulder. She looked at Pei Duo with an embarrassed expression, wanting to say something but stopping herself.
Pei Duo glanced at her, knowing she had something to say and what she wanted to say.
He said, "I won't tell Brother Zhao a single word about what just happened, so please don't worry, sister-in-law."
Jiang Ninghui was surprised that Pei Duo could see through her thoughts.
Her face flushed red, and before she could thank him, the young man closed the door, seemingly not wanting to say another word to her.
Jiang Ninghui went to the south room, which was simply furnished.
A bed, a wardrobe with two doors, and a table next to the window with books, writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstone on it. The quilt on the bed is neatly folded. The room is not big, but it is clean and tidy, just like the furnishings in Pei Duo's room.
Jiang Ninghui felt resentful towards her husband.
His house was clearly fine, so why did he take her to Pei Duo's house?
Pei Duo lived in the same courtyard as her, so why didn't he tell her beforehand, leaving her in such an embarrassing situation today?
The thought of having to live under the same roof as Pei Duo for almost a year made Jiang Ninghui feel extremely tormented.
The young master's room was only separated from his by a wall. How could a wall conceal the affairs between husband and wife? Besides, she had been seen by Pei Duo today. Although Pei Duo did not mean it, she would see him every day from now on. Jiang Ninghui found it hard to convince herself to stay any longer.
She wanted to go back.
A note from the author:
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There's a red envelope in this chapter!
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