Chapter 5 Consummating the Wedding Night "I will teach you."
The newlywed groom, like a bird taking a medicinal bath, was wrapped tightly in a long, rolled-up brocade quilt, with only his head sticking out. His unmade-up face was full of panic and helplessness, and he could not hide anything.
Yuan Mingjin leaned down and pressed down on the slightly trembling body, removed the brocade quilt, and the jade body lay horizontally, making the leather cage appear even more jarring.
She stared at the lock cage for a moment.
After a man marries and consummates his marriage, he can remove the lock cage. However, if his wife is going on a long trip, she must still wear the lock cage.
Su Xiaotang smelled the faint fragrance of bamboo on her, which was very subtle but refreshing.
Their presence becomes increasingly strong.
“Su…” Yuan Mingjin began, about to call his name, but then frowned and stopped. Su Xiaotang quickly prompted, “Xiaotang, Su Xiaotang, Xiao as in small and big, Tang as in honey.”
"Su Xiaotang." Yuan Mingjin readily complied, grabbing his chin and looking down at him, staring straight into his eyes. "Are you afraid of me?"
Su Xiaotang nervously pursed her lips, her eyes widened slightly, and she mustered her courage not to lose under her scrutinizing gaze. "No, I'm not afraid."
"Then why are you shaking so badly?" Yuan Mingjin's gaze shifted from his wide-open, bright black eyes, sliding down to his slightly protruding, high nose bridge, as if he were thinking about something.
"I...I'm nervous..." Su Xiaotang said truthfully.
How could he not know that on their wedding night he would have to remove the shackles and offer his virginity, which he had guarded for eighteen years, to his wife? Contrary to the rumors, Prince Rui was not a fierce and menacing figure; on the contrary, he was dashing and radiant, like a celestial maiden reborn. He was naturally willing.
But... he didn't know what to do.
Before a man gets married, his father will give him a fire-avoidance diagram so that he can study it and win the favor of his wife. However, Su Xiaotang has no father and was knocked unconscious and stuffed into the sedan chair, so she naturally has no way of coming into contact with the fire-avoidance diagram, let alone studying it.
"It's alright." Faced with such beauty, Yuan Mingjin had no suspicion. He casually parted the petal-like cherry lips with his fingertips, stirred the little red tongue hidden inside, making the man almost unable to hold back his saliva, his eyes filled with tears. "I will teach you."
She was always extremely patient with men who were inexperienced in sexual relations.
The key was inserted into the lock, and with a very slight click, the lock cage was removed.
Although there were ventilation holes, wearing it and not wearing it still made a difference. Su Xiaotang felt a coolness there, and unease crept into her heart. She subconsciously reached out to cover herself.
Seeing this, Yuan Mingjin couldn't help but chuckle: "Afraid of being shy?"
Su Xiaotang was covering her face with the edge of the blanket. Upon hearing this, she shook her head vigorously, but refused to come out. Only her pair of dark, grape-like, watery eyes were visible as she looked at her furtively.
She looked both ashamed and afraid, yet she never looked away.
They are quite cute.
As long as her germaphobia wasn't violated, Yuan Mingjin was surprisingly easy to talk to. She took off her clothes, took long strides, walked up to Su Xiaotang, pulled away the bright red quilt he used to cover his face, and stretched out her palm to gently stroke his smooth and tender face after he had wrung out his noodles.
Almost subconsciously, Su Xiaotang, like a little animal, comfortably squinted her eyes, followed the source of warmth, and obediently rubbed against her rough palm.
However, the next moment, ignoring Su Xiaotang's bewildered disappointment, Yuan Mingjin withdrew his hand and sat down.
Just like every time she led troops into battle, she rode on horseback and issued orders in an unquestionable tone, and every soldier was convinced and obeyed her orders with utmost care.
Completely different from the bamboo scent on her body, the sudden, suffocating feeling of impending death instantly burned away his reason.
He instinctively stuck out the tip of his tongue and held it in his mouth, tilting his head back and letting her use the protrusion on the bridge of her nose to her heart's content, clumsily and earnestly trying to hear more praise overflowing from her lips.
Before his mistress, Su Xiaotang knew he was merely a docile servant, and he willingly prostrated himself at her feet, offering his loyalty, becoming a warhorse at her beck and call.
"Your Highness... Your Highness..."
Su Xiaotang couldn't help but whisper in her ear, her voice low and hoarse, her snow-white neck arched in a pitiful, sacrificial curve, like a swan offering its neck for slaughter.
Yuan Mingjin watched with envy, then leaned closer, his sharp teeth protruding, and bit down hard, leaving a deep, purplish oval tooth mark on the side of the neck, with beads of bright red blood seeping from the edges.
His wife...
Untimely, Su Yiyi's tear-streaked face suddenly flashed before my eyes.
Su Xiaotang silently savored these four words, her heart overflowing with sweetness, yet she couldn't help feeling uneasy. So she reached out and hugged her wife, who belonged only to her.
...
With the red candles burning warmly and their lovemaking concluded, His Highness Prince Rui summoned hot water for a bath.
Su Xiaotang had been hungry for a long time, and her stomach was rumbling. She couldn't help but rub her belly in embarrassment.
Yuan Mingjin was leaning against another bathtub with his eyes closed, his arms, sparsely covered with faint red scars, spread out. Hearing the sound, he opened his eyes and laughed again: "Doesn't the Minister's Mansion feed you?"
It's that phrase again—but this time, my feelings are quite different from when I first heard it.
Su Xiaotang pleaded in a soft voice, "My lady, I'm so hungry."
"Then order someone to serve the meal." Upon seeing Su Xiaotang's physique, Yuan Mingjin knew that he was different from those weak men who could not even eat half a bowl of rice in a meal, and his trust in the rumors decreased even more.
However, she had long been tired of those frail men, and this was the first time she had met someone like Su Xiaotang.
Yuan Mingjin was still very enthusiastic about him, so she indulged him greatly.
However, this indulgence came to an abrupt end when a servant brought out a bowl of unidentified substance.
The broth in the porcelain bowl was clear, with yellow-green pickled cowpeas and bright red chili flakes, making it very appetizing. However, there were some dark, lumpy things soaking in it. Although the cut surfaces were snow-white, they still made Yuan Mingjin frown.
Her keen nose caught a faint, foul odor, like that of swill.
"What is this? Is the kitchen deserted? How dare they serve me such a thing?!"
Her voice was as cold as ice, and the servant was so frightened that he immediately knelt down. Yuan Mingjin pressed the throbbing vein on his forehead and was about to sweep the servant to the ground with his sleeve when suddenly a deliberately softened body rushed into his arms and hugged him tightly.
"Your Highness, please calm down!" Su Xiaotang hurriedly stopped her.
Unexpectedly, he moved too quickly and pounced into her arms. His flat, slightly bulging chest brushed against her softness, and memories of how the two of them had just intertwined their necks rushed back to her. Su Xiaotang immediately froze.
Yuan Mingjin did not notice his abnormality. He only relaxed his brows slightly, but still kept his eyes down. He said impatiently, "You're really asking for trouble. How dare you question my orders?"
Su Xiaotang was able to grow up safely in the Su family until she was eighteen, all because of his exceptional skill in reading people's expressions. How could he not see through her feigned anger? He held her close, growing more and more fond of her. Mustering his courage, he lowered his head and planted a loud kiss on her cheek. Seeing Yuan Mingjin's icy demeanor slowly melt away, he winked playfully at her, "Stinky tofu! I specially taught the cook how to make it. I made the brine myself. Your Highness, please try it, it's delicious!"
Don't be fooled by the smelly brine; it's actually not dirty at all. With plenty of salt sprinkled in, nothing can survive. The reason it's pitch black isn't because it's mixed with unclean things, but because a kind of black mushroom is used, which gives it that color.
In addition to salt and mushrooms, the brine also contains bamboo shoots, fermented black beans, amaranth stems, as well as spices such as Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, ginger, and licorice to enhance the aroma and prevent spoilage. Therefore, although the smell is a bit unpleasant, it must taste extremely delicious.
"..." Although Yuan Mingjin did not speak, his resistance was evident.
Seeing that she didn't move, Su Xiaotang became a little anxious and said, "Your Highness, don't be afraid, I'll eat it for you."
He picked up a piece of stinky tofu with his chopsticks, about to put it in his mouth, when Yuan Mingjin slapped it to the ground with his hand, saying with disgust, "If you dare to put this thing in your mouth, you can go back to the Su residence right now."
She can tolerate Su Xiaotang's unruliness for now, but since it involves her mysophobia, she can't give in even a little bit.
Upon hearing this, Su Xiaotang was immediately heartbroken. He sullenly ordered the stinky tofu to be removed, then lay down on his side on the bed in a huff, refusing to even glance at the table full of delicacies that were later served. Even when Yuan Mingjin came to coax him, he only hummed twice and didn't budge an inch.
The servants came in and opened the doors and windows one by one, pouring incense into the incense burner. Wisps of smoke slowly rose from the gilded dragon incense burner, and the lingering mist gradually dissipated the odor that made Yuan Mingjin feel extremely uncomfortable.
After finishing her meal and rinsing her mouth, she noticed that Su Xiaotang was still stubbornly facing away from the bed. She initially wanted to rest in the western courtyard, but then she remembered that it was her wedding night and there were spies from all sides lurking in the Prince's mansion. If she left, outsiders might not know how they would view Su Xiaotang, or they might spread rumors and exaggerate the situation, worsening the relationship between the Prince's mansion and the Minister's mansion. So she turned off the lights, got into bed, and lay down on the inner side.
This is how it is in married families: the wife stays inside while the husband stays outside, so he can attend to her when she's thirsty or gets up at night. Su Xiaotang knew this too. Noticing that Yuan Mingjin had silently moved to the inside, he turned over so his back was still to her. "Hmph."
“Lord Su certainly spoils you,” Yuan Mingjin said with his eyes closed.
Because of her marriage, she was granted three days of leave. Although she didn't have to attend court the next morning, she had only recently returned to the capital and hadn't yet had a banquet with her friends. She was exhausted after a long day and was about to drift off to sleep when she suddenly heard Su Xiaotang, who hadn't spoken in a while, whisper in the darkness:
"She didn't spoil me at all."
...
Although she was feeling down before going to bed, Su Xiaotang still slept soundly. When she woke up, the sun was already high in the sky.
There was no one beside me, and when I touched the blankets, they were cold, so they must have been gone for a long time.
Su Xiaotang felt even more down.
Once the king had awoke, the servants filed in to wash his face and change his clothes. Leading the way was a simply dressed old woman who was methodically directing the servants to serve the meal when she suddenly felt her sleeve being tugged twice.
She looked down and saw Su Xiaotang sitting in front of the dressing table. She quickly asked, "What are your orders, Your Majesty?"
"Granny, where did His Highness go?" Su Xiaotang asked, looking at her expectantly.
"Your Highness has not seen his friends for a long time and will probably not return until the hour of You (5-7 PM)." Zhang Mama smiled kindly. "I am Your Highness's wet nurse. My surname is Zhang. Your Highness can call me Zhang Mama."
At Chenshi (7-9 AM), she came in to help His Highness change his clothes. She saw Su Xiaotang tightly wrapped around His Highness with her arms and legs, trapping him in her arms like a dodder vine. His Highness clearly looked helpless, but he did not wake her up. Instead, he gradually broke free on his own. She knew that His Highness must be happy with this royal consort.
Wang Fu didn't seem like a scheming person at all. She was much more innocent than those little maids in the West Courtyard who were always vying for attention and causing trouble. She felt comfortable looking at this kind of child.
A wet nurse? That's wonderful! Just when you're feeling sleepy, someone brings you a pillow. Su Xiaotang's eyes lit up, and she hurriedly asked about Prince Rui's preferences.
Lying beside her last night, he longed to hold her tightly, but was held back by his anger towards her. After much reflection, Su Xiaotang realized that she had indeed done wrong.
Although Wanqianlou's stinky tofu is famous, some diners can't stand it and flee in panic. I suppose Your Highness is one of those people who can't stand the smell.
If that's the case, wouldn't it be better if he just stopped making those strange-smelling foods?
I heard from Granny Zhang that His Highness has a great fondness for sweets, so perhaps...
Su Xiaotang enjoyed a hearty meal after a long time, devouring all the delicacies on the table. Zhang Mama, watching with delight, beamed with joy. Satisfied, he took the opportunity to digest his food and personally toured the kitchen, but found nothing of value.
Just as she was at a loss, Su Xiaotang's eyes lit up and her gaze was suddenly drawn to a pile of inconspicuous brownish-black powder. She asked curiously, "What is that?"
"Your Majesty, those were bestowed upon us from the palace a few days ago. We heard they were tribute from the Western Regions for making desserts, but we don't yet know how to use them," the cook replied.
Su Xiaotang dipped her fingertip in the water, about to put it in her mouth, when she suddenly realized that everything around her was silent—
Turning his head, he saw that everyone in the kitchen was staring wide-eyed in horror.
He then realized what was happening, washed his hands, took a silver spoon, scooped up a small amount, and tasted it.
It's sweet, leaves a lingering fragrance on your lips and teeth, and is incredibly rich. It tastes somewhat familiar... Ah, that's it!
Su Xiaotang suddenly remembered—wasn't this the cocoa powder that his teacher's wife had bought from a caravan in the Western Regions a few days ago?!
It's truly heaven's help!
A note from the author:
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I've lost count of how many versions I've gone through. I'm at my wit's end. How am I going to repay the debt you owe me, reviewers? [I'm speechless]
When can I finally go to sleep...? [The Joker]
————The following is the author's note before it underwent rigorous review and revisions————
Thank you everyone for your comments! I really enjoyed reading them, haha [rabbit head with ears up]. I update slowly because I write slowly, only one or two thousand words a day [smiling face]. I'm currently recovering from low energy, but I'll try my best to keep writing every day [lucky lotus].
Also, this story is really short (just letting everyone know). The exact length depends on whether I can write 70,000 words. If I can, it will be a paid post; if not, it will be a monthly subscription. [heart emoji]
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