Chapter 222 Mutual Affection
Before Gu Jingxi replied, Meng Jinyao was still very uneasy, and once again doubted that she had misunderstood before, but she had been presumptuous and sent a sachet embroidered with mandarin ducks.
Recently, their relationship had been very close, even ambiguous, but neither of them dared to break the ice. She thought about it for a long time before she mustered up the courage to take the initiative.
Actually, she made two sachets. One was embroidered with red beans, but she was afraid that the red beans were not obvious enough. So she hesitated and then made another sachet embroidered with mandarin ducks.
If Gu Jingxi couldn't understand the sight of a pair of mandarin ducks snuggling together, he was either a fool or pretending not to understand.
Hearing Gu Jingxi's reply, she finally felt relieved and had an unprecedented sense of peace.
She glanced down at the mandarin ducks that had been returned to her hand, then looked up at the gentle, smiling man before her, blushing as she softly replied, "Okay."
After saying that, she personally tied the sachet around Gu Jingxi's waist. She was actually a skillful girl, but her movements at this moment were clumsy.
Her hand trembled uncontrollably as it touched Gu Jingxi's clothes, her heart pounding wildly as if she were holding a restless rabbit in her arms.
It's not that I'm cowardly, it's that I'm nervous.
She personally put the sachet embroidered with mandarin ducks on the man's head, giving him a feeling of personally branding him and declaring her own uniqueness. It took her a while to put the sachet on properly.
Gu Jingxi saw the little girl looking at him shyly and timidly. Her bright eyes were like spring water, and her face was flushed. She had a unique charm. On a whim, he reached out and pulled her into his arms, holding her petite body.
A gentle autumn breeze blows, and the surrounding noise never stops; soft, warm, and fragrant flesh fills my arms.
Gu Jingxi's mind was gradually taken over by the girl in his arms. His gentle, smiling voice carried a hint of dominance: "Madam, you provoked this yourself. It's too late to regret it now."
Meng Jinyao was puzzled after hearing this, not understanding what he meant, and what she had done to provoke him? Wasn't it him who took the initiative to hug her first?
She stammered, "It was clearly my husband who made the first move."
Gu Jingxi assumed the young girl was just shy. After all, it takes courage to give a man such a sachet, so he smiled and said, "Alright, it was your husband who took the initiative first."
Meng Jinyao raised her head, her bright eyes filled with shyness, but her gaze did not waver in the slightest. She looked at him intently and asked in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz, "Husband, are we now considered to be mutually in love?"
Gu Jingxi paused for a moment, then asked in return, "Why doesn't that count?"
The girl liked him, and he did so not unintentionally.
After being jilted, he never considered getting married again, because given his health condition, marrying a girl would only bring her harm.
But one day, the usually obedient son suddenly turned into a rebellious son, eloping with someone on his wedding day and giving himself to his future daughter-in-law as the groom.
Now, he has truly lost everything.
Meng Jinyao looked into his eyes, those eyes were gentle and affectionate, reflecting her own image. He hadn't said a single word of liking her, yet it was as if he had said everything.
A sweet feeling welled up inside me, a surge of joy that I couldn't quite describe.
So this is what it feels like to be in love with someone.
A moment later, Meng Jinyao buried her face in his chest again, hearing his strong and powerful heartbeat in her ears. The sound seemed to have a bewitching magic, making her heartbeat beat out of rhythm again, and she involuntarily reached out to hug his lean waist.
Gu Jingxi noticed her movement and hugged her tighter, the corners of his mouth curving into a deeper smile as he asked her gently, "Madam, are you hungry?"
Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyao realized she was indeed a little hungry. They hadn't eaten dinner that night, and she had only been busy playing, so she just grabbed some street food to tide her over.
She nodded in response, "I'm hungry."
Gu Jingxi released her and said gently, "Then let's have dinner first."
After saying this, he took the little girl's hand and led her back to sit down. He then instructed the waiters on the pleasure boat to serve food. Pleasure boats usually prepare food, wine, fruit, and snacks according to the guests' needs.
After dinner, it was getting late, so Gu Jingxi asked the boatman to dock and the couple headed home.
They didn't bring any maids with them when they went out today, only a coachman. This was something Meng Jinyao deliberately didn't bring; she didn't want to be watched by maids when she was with Gu Jingxi, and she felt more comfortable with just the two of them.
On the carriage.
Gu Jingxi felt that the little girl's gaze had hardly left him, her eyes burning as she stared straight at him. He turned his head and met her bright eyes, chuckling as he asked, "Why is Madam staring at me like that?"
Meng Jinyao gently shook her head: "It's nothing, it's just that I feel strange. For a moment, I don't seem to know how to get along with my husband."
She was telling the truth. Before the truth was revealed, she felt that their relationship was quite natural and ambiguous. But when she took the initiative to reveal the truth, she felt that they didn't know how to get along. She didn't know why, but she was sure that she liked Gu Jingxi.
Gu Jingxi was stunned, his gaze fixed on her, and asked, "Does Madam regret it?"
Meng Jinyao countered, "Regret what?"
"Do you regret having feelings for your husband?" Gu Jingxi said more bluntly. Seeing her stunned, he continued before she could answer, "I told you not long ago that it's no use regretting it now."
Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyao hurriedly shook her head: "I have no regrets, please don't misunderstand, my husband." As she spoke, she glanced at him and lowered her voice slightly, "I just feel like I suddenly don't know how to get along with you anymore."
Gu Jingxi seemed to understand something and quickly realized what was going on. In such matters, it should be the man who takes the initiative first, but the girl took the initiative to make it clear between them. He accepted it naturally, but the girl was shy and was the one who took the initiative. If he didn't take the initiative in the future, the girl would appear reserved in this relationship and even be in a vulnerable position without him realizing it.
Thinking of this, Gu Jingxi reached out and held her small hand, saying gently, "My lady, there's no need to worry. It's my problem. But before I met you, I had no experience interacting with young ladies. Perhaps you'll need to give me some time to figure it out."
Meng Jinyao glanced at him with a bewildered expression, as if she understood what he said, but also as if she didn't. How did this become his problem again?
However, the next moment Meng Jinyao seized on a key point and asked him for confirmation: "Husband, you didn't have any contact with your ex-fiancée?"
Gu Jingxi answered honestly: "No."
Fearing the young girl might overthink things, he added, "Madam, please don't overthink it. Although we were once engaged, we have never spent time alone together. Even when we meet, there are always other people present."
Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyao was quite surprised.
Actually, the social customs in our country are quite open. It's normal for engaged couples to go boating on the lake, admiring flowers, or even going out together. She thought that Gu Jingxi and his ex-fiancée were like that. Now that he suddenly tells her that nothing like that ever happened, the shock is no less than if she found a thousand taels of gold on the street.
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