Chapter 76! I passed! I passed the exam!!
The night was deep, and the cool moonlight shone on the window, adding a touch of brightness to the room.
Jiang Ninghui was unaware of when she fell asleep.
In her drowsy state, she vaguely felt an arm pull her into an embrace. Her head rested on the other person's broad, firm chest, and she could feel the heartbeat emanating from their chest. The five fingers gripping her shoulders tightened, holding her even closer.
The feeling of being completely embraced made Jiang Ninghui's heart, which was filled with pain and suffering, feel much better.
In a daze, she reached out and placed her hand on the other person's waist, her slender arms encircling the other person's waist.
“My lord…”
"I am here."
His voice was clear and deep, and as he spoke, she felt his chest vibrate slightly.
This sound is wrong!
Not my husband!
Jiang Ninghui suddenly opened her eyes and smelled the scent of cedarwood.
She stiffly raised her head and saw Pei Duo's handsome face.
Jiang Ninghui fled from Pei Duo's arms in a panic. After looking around, she realized that she was in Pei Duo's room.
"you--"
Jiang Ninghui looked at Pei Duo, who had sat up, and moved back a little: "How did I end up here with you?"
She should be sleeping in the same bed as her husband.
When did she arrive?
Jiang Ninghui realized that she couldn't remember anything at all.
She hurriedly asked, "Where is my husband?"
Pei Duo reached out and pulled the woman, who was trying to avoid him, into his arms.
Jiang Ninghui was forced to sit on the young man's lap and was pulled into his arms.
He moved closer to her, bit her earlobe, put it in his mouth, and gently rubbed it with the tip of his teeth.
Jiang Ninghui hunched her shoulders and shrugged, trying to push against his chest with both hands, but she couldn't get away no matter what she did.
She heard him say, "That good-for-nothing treats his sister-in-law like that, why should she care about him?"
"I didn't kill him with my own hands; I was already showing kindness out of consideration for my sister-in-law."
Jiang Ninghui couldn't bear his bites.
She couldn't help but turn her head away, but the next moment his hand cupped her cheek, rendering her unable to move and forcing her to endure his tongue probing into her ear.
The scorching heat poured in like boiling water.
The tip of a wet tongue gently touched my earlobe.
Jiang Ninghui then heard him say, "Am I not also your husband?"
The young man cupped her cheeks, looking at her as if she were a heartless woman who had abandoned her husband: "Sister-in-law, you were just holding me and calling me your husband, how come you turn your back on me as soon as you open your eyes?"
Jiang Ninghui blushed and said, "You, you're talking nonsense!"
She thought the person holding her was her husband, so she called him "my husband".
Who would have thought... it was Pei Duo.
"sister in law."
The young man stared intently at her with his dark eyes: "I heard everything you said to that good-for-nothing."
Jiang Ninghui looked at him, puzzled.
She spoke several words to her husband, but she didn't know what he meant.
Pei Duo's hand slid from Jiang Ninghui's cheek to her neck, past her slender shoulders, and finally opened his palm, covering her lower abdomen perfectly. The young man's dark eyes remained fixed on her, and the moment his hand touched her, Jiang Ninghui couldn't help but shudder.
"My sister-in-law wants a child, how about I give her one?"
“Since you just called me ‘my husband,’ we are now husband and wife.”
"I will take good care of you, sister-in-law, and make you enjoy being served by me. Sister-in-law, let's have a baby."
As Jiang Ninghui looked on in horror, the young man pressed down on her and covered her lips with his.
His kiss was very gentle.
However, it is extremely predatory.
His hand untied the ties of her inner garment and slipped inside along the hem of her undergarment.
The shape of a palm instantly rose from Jiang Ninghui's light purple dress.
The sensation of being wrapped instantly brought her back to consciousness.
She tried to push Pei Duo away, but her strength was like an ant trying to shake a tree to him.
"don't want--"
"Pei Duo, let me go!"
The young man's lingering voice echoed against her neck: "Sister-in-law, am I too heavy?"
"Then I'll be gentler?"
He was busy doing evil things to her, and he would deliberately misinterpret her words.
The white undergarment peeled off.
The thin straps of the small garment hanging around her neck were swaying precariously.
In the end, it pitifully fell down.
Jiang Ninghui bit down hard on Pei Duo's shoulder, and she tasted blood instantly between her lips and teeth. But even so, he remained unmoved and shamelessly let her continue biting.
He placed Jiang Ninghui on the couch.
She slapped and hit him, and in her panic, she slapped him several times in succession, the crisp sound of the slaps echoing in the quiet room.
The woman's sobs were intermittent.
They were both pitiful and helpless.
The manic, morbid madness in the young man's dark eyes subsided somewhat after Jiang Ninghui slapped him a few times.
He watched as the woman burst into tears.
She had never cried like this before.
She never looked at him with such hatred.
He doesn't understand.
Why would she rather have a child with that good-for-nothing than with him?
In what way is he inferior to that good-for-nothing?!
The clamor of anger and jealousy eroded the young man's reason, prompting him to want to kill that good-for-nothing immediately!
But he knew it wasn't the right time yet.
If that good-for-nothing dies now, my sister-in-law will probably hate him because of him.
"Smack—"
Another loud slap.
After Jiang Ninghui finished hitting him, she bit her lip and glared at him.
If Pei Duo forces himself on her today and she truly becomes pregnant with his child, she fears that one day she will be condemned by the world, drowned in their spittle, and her child will be like a rat in the street for the rest of their life, forever being pointed at and gossiped about.
"If you push me any further..."
Jiang Ninghui's voice trembled violently: "I will die on your bed today!"
For Pei Duo, the word 'death' was commonplace.
But when these words came out of Jiang Ninghui's mouth, they inexplicably filled Pei Duo with panic.
He knew that if he dared to go in, she would bite her tongue and commit suicide in front of him.
He hated hearing that word come out of his sister-in-law's mouth.
I hate it.
Pei Duo picked her up, his handsome face bearing several clear handprints.
He carefully dressed her, took her wrist, and pressed her burning palm to his lips.
He asked, "Does your hand hurt?"
Jiang Ninghui escaped a disaster, and her anger and fear gradually subsided.
She saw the clearly visible handprint on Pei Duo's face, and the two rows of bloody teeth marks on his shoulder.
Even though she wasn't the one who did anything wrong, she felt incredibly guilty looking at Pei Duo's miserable state.
Jiang Ninghui quickly withdrew her still slightly hot and numb hand, moved away from Pei Duo, squeezed her feet into her shoes, and ran out of Pei Duo's room without even having time to hook them back up.
The young man stared at the woman's hurried retreating figure.
I watched her figure run past the window.
He lowered his eyes and glanced at the two rows of bloody teeth marks on his shoulder.
The young man smiled.
That smile made his clear, dark eyes appear even more alluring and bewitching.
My sister-in-law has pretty good teeth.
Just like last year, I nestled in his arms and bit through his clothes, drawing blood from his shoulder and neck.
However, it still lacked power.
Jiang Ninghui hurriedly ran back into the house, quickly closing the door, afraid that Pei Duo would chase after her.
She leaned against the door, took a breath, and by the soft moonlight, saw her beloved lying safely beside the bed.
Jiang Ninghui walked over, tentatively nudged her husband, and whispered, "My lord, my lord."
There was no response.
Jiang Ninghui knew that it was Pei Duo's doing again.
She was sleeping so soundly that she didn't even realize when Pei Duo had taken her in his arms.
Jiang Ninghui tiptoed onto the bed and pulled the quilt over herself.
The night was quiet. She seemed to hear the sound of the door opening next door. Her body tensed up instantly, her fingertips gripping the corner of the blanket tightly. She looked up warily at the bolted door.
The outside returned to silence, without a sound.
Jiang Ninghui finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Only then did she realize that her palms were covered in a sticky, thin layer of sweat.
Perhaps because she had slapped Pei Duo several times, and quite hard, her palms were still a little numb and hot.
I don't even know Pei Duo's face...
Jiang Ninghui bit her lip, trying hard not to think about Pei Duo.
Even so, she couldn't help but worry: Was his face alright? Was the injury on his shoulder alright?
Jiang Ninghui tossed and turned for a long time before finally falling asleep. She slept until the sun was high in the sky before getting up. When she woke up, her husband was already gone. She thought that he must have gone to the residence of the Minister of Rites again.
She stopped thinking about her husband and instead focused on Pei Duo's injuries.
Jiang Ninghui finished dressing and opened the door, only to see someone standing there.
It was Pei Duo.
The young man's dark eyes stared intently at her, his gaze lingering on her face.
Jiang Ninghui was startled by him and couldn't help but step back, still looking at him warily.
Pei Duo lowered his eyes and glanced at the two backward-stepping feet under the woman's skirt.
His sister-in-law's feet were very small to him.
Only his hands were that long.
Those small, delicate feet pressed against his stomach last night, kicking him desperately.
But now, they avoid him like the plague.
He didn't go inside, but stood outside with great deference, looking at her gently: "Sister-in-law, it's time to eat."
Jiang Ninghui's gaze wandered, not daring to look at Pei Duo: "You...you eat first."
Pei Duo: "I'm waiting for my sister-in-law."
Jiang Ninghui: "Then move aside, I need to go wash up."
The young man was very easy to talk to: "Okay."
He stepped aside to make way for Jiang Ninghui.
Jiang Ninghui hurriedly ran out, washed up, and sat down with Pei Duo in the kitchen to eat.
Neither of them mentioned what happened last night, as if it had never happened as long as they didn't bring it up.
While Jiang Ninghui was drinking her soup, she secretly glanced at Pei Duo. Seeing that the slap mark on his face had faded, she felt relieved. However, before she could look away, she saw Pei Duo suddenly drop his chopsticks. He clutched his right shoulder and bent down to pick up the chopsticks that had fallen to the ground.
Jiang Ninghui remembered that she had bitten Pei Duo's right shoulder last night.
The two rows of teeth marks were bloody, and even now, thinking about them is still horrifying.
She put down the porcelain bowl, unable to bring herself to do it, her beautiful eyes showing worry: "Have you applied medicine to your wound?"
Pei Duo switched to a pair of wooden chopsticks: "Not at all."
Jiang Ninghui's worry intensified: "Why don't you apply the medicine?"
The young man looked up at her and said, "I scared you last night, so I should bear this pain."
Mentioning last night's events, Jiang Ninghui couldn't help but recall Pei Duo's erratic behavior last night.
It's quite frightening.
If she hadn't bitten and hit him last night, she probably would have been completely bullied by him.
Jiang Ninghui wanted to say he deserved it, but she couldn't bear it. Because of his injury, her heart was inexplicably clenched. She lowered her head and whispered, "If you're injured, you should see a doctor. It's not good to bear it like this. What if the injury gets serious?"
The young man seized the opportunity: "After we eat, could you accompany me to the clinic, sister-in-law?"
Jiang Ninghui was unwilling, but then she heard him say, "If sister-in-law is unwilling, it means she has not forgiven me. In that case, I should continue to suffer this injury."
Jiang Ninghui finally agreed.
Pei Duo stared at the woman opposite him, whose head was almost buried in the bowl, a triumphant smile creeping into his dark eyes.
Look.
His sister-in-law still felt sorry for him.
Even though she looked at him with those eyes and hit him last night, she still feels sorry for him today.
He must not pressure his sister-in-law anymore, otherwise she might avoid him in the future.
After dinner, Jiang Ninghui accompanied Pei Duo to the nearest clinic in the alley. The doctor lifted Pei Duo's collar and was quite surprised to see two deep rows of teeth marks on his shoulder. He then solemnly rebuked Jiang Ninghui: "How could you treat your husband so badly? Do you know that if this injury were on his neck, it could be fatal!"
Jiang Ninghui looked somewhat embarrassed by the doctor's words, and couldn't help but feel a little scared.
She glanced at Pei Duo's shoulder injury and realized that it was even more serious than it had been the night before.
No wonder he couldn't hold the chopsticks properly and needed to support his shoulders to bend down and pick them up.
She had long forgotten what Pei Duo had done to her last night, and was only glad that she had bitten his shoulder instead of his neck.
After treating Pei Duo's injuries, the doctor gave Jiang Ninghui some advice on what foods to avoid. Before leaving, he said to her, "No matter what conflicts you two have, you must not bite people. Look how badly you've bitten him. If something really happens to your husband, you'll regret it."
Jiang Ninghui listened to the doctor with her head down, without telling him that Pei Duo was not her husband.
Otherwise, it wouldn't be a good thing for either her or Pei Duo.
As the two left the clinic, Jiang Ninghui was still worried: "Is it still in a lot of pain?"
Pei Duo raised his hand to support his right shoulder and lowered his eyelids: "I'm alright." He added, "It's my fault that my sister-in-law was scolded by the doctor."
Jiang Ninghui shook her head slightly: "It's alright."
She glanced at Pei Duo again and saw that his sharply defined profile was slightly tense and his face was a little pale. In that instant, she felt even more guilty.
But who told him to force her to do that kind of thing last night... last night he forced her to do that kind of thing.
Serves them right.
As he said, he deserved it.
Jiang Ninghui thought this to herself, but when she returned to the courtyard, she still didn't dare let Pei Duo use his right arm too much, and let him rest properly. Who knew that later that evening, Pei Duo said that his right arm was in severe pain, and he couldn't hold chopsticks. Even if he could, his hand was shaking, and he couldn't eat at all.
Left with no other choice, Jiang Ninghui personally fed him dinner.
Not only for dinner, but for the next three days, she accompanied Pei Duo to change his dressings every day and personally fed him every meal.
It wasn't until the fifth day that he said his shoulder didn't hurt as much.
For five days in a row, the young man was nowhere to be seen.
For the past five days, Jiang Ninghui has been constantly occupied by Pei Duo, leaving her no time to think about her lover.
In the next ten days, Zhao Zhixue returned twice, but after sleeping for one night, he left again in a hurry the next day. On both occasions, Jiang Ninghui spoke to him no more than five sentences. She wanted to ask her husband, but she didn't know how to ask. She could only hide under the covers and wipe away her tears alone.
She knew that her husband had another woman in his heart, who must be that young lady named Li Fu.
Perhaps, that was the daughter of the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review that Pei Duo mentioned.
She didn't know what to do.
There was no other way but to cry.
The results of the provincial examinations were released at the end of March.
Early that morning, the entire alley was filled with candidates from all over the country, all heading towards the entrance of the examination hall to see if they had passed the exam.
Zhao Zhixue, who returned to the courtyard yesterday, got up early this morning and rushed to see the place without even having breakfast.
Jiang Ninghui followed behind him and asked softly, "My lord, may I go with you?"
Zhao Zhixue didn't even turn his head: "You can't read, so you won't understand anything if you go. Just stay at home."
After saying that, he closed the courtyard gate and left.
Jiang Ninghui stood alone in the courtyard, her almond-shaped eyes filled with tears as she gazed at the gate. She lowered her head, tears welling up in her eyes and leaving two tear tracks on her cheeks.
She tried to raise her hand to wipe away her tears, but a slender, jade-like finger gently wiped away the tears on her cheek first. Jiang Ninghui's eyelashes trembled uncontrollably, and two more tears rolled down her cheeks.
“I told my sister-in-law long ago that that good-for-nothing doesn’t deserve your kindness.”
“He doesn’t cherish you, doesn’t love you, and is so cold and heartless towards you. Why should you still be so infatuated with him, sister-in-law?”
The young man leaned closer to her, pressing his shoulders down, and gently wiped away the tears on the woman's cheeks with his lips.
Jiang Ninghui hastily took a step back, but Pei Duo pressed her shoulder down.
His hand slid down Jiang Ninghui's slender forearm, precisely grasping her hand and pulling it up: "Today is the auspicious day for the results to be released. Sister-in-law, come with me and help me see if I'm on the list of successful candidates."
Jiang Ninghui made a gesture as if to pull her hand back.
My husband also went there.
If she goes out with Pei Duo, and her husband sees them, it will be difficult to explain.
She gently shook her head: "I'm not going."
Pei Duo: "Is your sister-in-law unwilling to go with me, or are you afraid of being seen by your husband?"
Jiang Ninghui's eyelashes trembled, and she pursed her lips without saying a word.
Then he said, "I think it must be the second one. How could my sister-in-law bear to refuse me?"
Jiang Ninghui was truly ashamed by his shameless words and actions.
In the end, Pei Duo led her out of the courtyard. Once they entered the alley, Jiang Ninghui refused to let Pei Duo hold her hand. She clasped her hands tightly in front of her, not letting him find an opportunity.
As Jiang Ninghui had predicted, Kyoto was packed with people today.
And the closer you get to the examination hall, the more crowded it becomes.
Jiang Ninghui couldn't squeeze in and could only watch from afar.
"I won! I won!"
Cheers erupted from the crowd, but so did cries of disappointment and anguish.
Those who failed the exam either broke down in tears, fainted, or scrambled out of the crowd, wandering the streets like zombies.
Jiang Ninghui glanced at the candidates with blank expressions and felt a pang of pity.
In fact, she didn't need to look at the list of results to know that Pei Duo must have passed.
She had little confidence in whether her husband would pass the imperial examination.
Jiang Ninghui gazed into the distance and suddenly saw her husband squeeze out of the crowd. His face was filled with joy, and his steps were light. Jiang Ninghui suddenly realized how long it had been since she had seen her husband smile like that.
It's been a long time, hasn't it?
It seemed that after arriving in Kyoto, her lover had never smiled at her like that again.
Jiang Ninghui snapped out of her daze and suddenly realized that her husband was walking towards her.
He looked up and his gaze fell on her.
At the same time, Pei Duo grasped her hand, which was hanging by her side.
Jiang Ninghui's almond-shaped eyes widened in horror—
But then, by sheer coincidence, the young man whispered in her ear, "Sister-in-law, there are fewer people in the southeast direction. Why don't you come with me to see the list of successful candidates?"
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Author's note: Update before 8 PM tomorrow night~
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