Husband and Wife Alliance
When Pei Songsheng heard those three words, he felt a buzzing in his head. The sunlight outside the house seemed to be brighter, stinging his eyes and causing them to hurt.
He lowered his eyes and said calmly, "Wait a while, and I'll personally deliver it to the Cheng residence when I'm done."
"That won't work. Without a divorce agreement, how can I, a married woman, stay in my parents' home forever?" Cheng Yayin said firmly, "Since you want to separate, let's get a divorce as soon as possible. Don't delay me from finding the next one."
Pei Songsheng's hands suddenly clenched, and the wound on his hand hurt. He turned around to hide the bitterness in his eyes and forced a calm voice: "Do you have a candidate?"
"Not really, but I've already decided what kind of person I want to find."
Pei Songsheng clenched his jaw and forced himself to listen to her conversation behind him.
"My next husband must be different from you. He doesn't have to be from a high-class family, he doesn't have to be well-educated, and he doesn't have to be good-looking. But the only thing he has to do is listen to me. He must consult me about everything, and he won't push me away to face danger alone."
At the end, he was actually a little angry.
Pei Songsheng was like a drowning man suddenly emerging from the water, fresh air rushing into his lungs, and his heart began to beat again in his chest. He turned around unexpectedly and said with joy: "You..."
Cheng Yayin stared at him with burning eyes.
Pei Songsheng's eyelashes trembled, and the slight relief in his eyes was quickly replaced by deep worry. "Since you know the reason why I did this, and you have personally witnessed the cruelty of the murderer, you should not come back. His identity is not simple. The Pei Mansion is full of loopholes because of him. Even I fell for his poisonous scheme. Sooner or later, you will also be harmed by it here."
It is true!
Cheng Yayin was furious. She kept saying, "Last night, in such a critical situation, you didn't abandon me, and now you want me to abandon you? After all, we've lived together under the same roof for three years. Even if we don't have the love between husband and wife, we should still have the loyalty between friends. We are now on the same battlefield, and you want to be the hero and make me a deserter?"
Seeing her furious, Pei Songsheng quickly said, "That's not what I meant."
Cheng Yayin interrupted his explanation: "I know you're thinking about my safety, but think about it, if I leave, doesn't it mean you're afraid and restrained? If that person finds out, wouldn't it damage our morale? Although I can't help much by staying in Pei Mansion, at least I can let him know that we're not afraid of him.
"Besides, your poison hasn't been cured yet. If it breaks out again, who else but me can comfort you? So now we are not only husband and wife, but also each other's most steadfast allies. Until this matter is resolved, neither of us is allowed to abandon the other."
Cheng Yayin's eyes were clear, without any hesitation or fear, only the determination to move forward.
Pei Songsheng looked at her for a long time, then suddenly revealed a relieved smile. "You are right. I was foolish enough to underestimate Madam's bravery. Allow me to apologize."
He bowed deeply with his hands clasped together, and Cheng Yayin felt embarrassed. She held his arm, touched her ear, and said, "I can't call it heroic, but I just can't stand seeing villains succeed. Anyway, solving the case is the top priority right now, and we can deal with other things later."
Pei Songsheng looked at her with a faint smile on his face: "Okay, I'll do as you say."
So Lan Yue and Yi Xing moved the luggage that they had moved to Cheng's house back. Seeing the daily necessities put back to their original places in the room one by one, Cheng Yayin couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
In the past, she only thought of Pei Mansion as a temporary place to stay, but now she suddenly realized that she had unknowingly started to feel at home here.
Returning to Pei Mansion, Cheng Yayin was still thinking about the assassination last night, and asked Pei Songsheng if there was any news from the Dali Temple.
Pei Songsheng said that the bodies of the killers had been checked one by one, and there was nothing on them that could prove their identity, so it would take some time to track them down.
Cheng Yayin wasn't surprised by this outcome. They had already witnessed the killer's meticulousness before, and they didn't expect to find any clues through this assassination. However, as long as there was action, there would be flaws. They just waited for the killer to deploy more plans and reveal more flaws.
The heartbreak herb was sent to Doctor Wang to be made into medicine. Along with it, there was also a handwritten letter from Cheng Yayin, saying that the situation was urgent and hoping that the antidote could be made as soon as possible. But then she changed the subject and asked in a roundabout way about her mother and Doctor Hu.
Doctor Wang's reply came quickly, but the letter only said that the properties of the herb were complex and he would need to conduct many experiments to extract the essence. There was no mention of Doctor Hu.
This was all Cheng Yayin had anticipated. She didn't know why Doctor Wang knew about her mother's past with Doctor Hu, and why he kept it a secret. She could only wait for her mother to come home and ask her in person.
At a time when everything was still unresolved, Cheng Yayin briefly gained some leisure time.
The days in Pei's house were just like every day in the previous three years. She read books and wrote storybooks, while Pei Songsheng was busy with his official duties.
But there are still some differences.
Compared to the polite distance they had maintained for the previous three years, they now talked more often. Besides discussing the progress of the case, they also chatted about other things, such as their daily experiences and reading experiences. Pei Songsheng would ask about the progress of her storybook, and she would also remind him not to overwork himself.
There are also some more subtle changes that only they can detect.
There were several times when Pei Songsheng, after finishing his work at night and showering, would instinctively push the door open and enter the room across from him, only to meet Cheng Yayin's gaze as she was about to undress for bed. They stared at each other for a long moment before he reacted, hurriedly retreating with a red face, apologies pouring out from outside the door. Cheng Yayin, waking up at night, would also feel a moment of daze, unaware of the lack of a warm embrace beside her.
These subtle changes in the depths of consciousness are never revealed to others, but like an undercurrent surging beneath the surface of the water, they push the two people closer to each other.
Cheng Yayin had some free time and began to continue writing her own storybook.
The manuscript of "The Story of the Red Tassel" was not submitted for the previous ten days. At that time, Xia Changhuan understood her busy schedule and did not push her. Cheng Yayin went to Zhijin Bookstore but did not see her. Xia Changan said she was out of town for business.
Cheng Yayin thought thankfully that she was not there, otherwise she would have been urged to finish her manuscript for so long.
To prevent Xia Changhuan from demanding the manuscript back from her when he returned to Shengjing, Cheng Yayin decided to be diligent this time and make up for the one that was not delivered on time last time.
During the time when she was writing tirelessly, Shengjing welcomed the most beautiful May.
This is also the most beautiful time of the year in Pei Mansion. The hydrangeas, azaleas, and roses planted in the yard are in full bloom. Among them, a crabapple tree is in full bloom. The lush and intertwined fragrance drifts over the courtyard wall to every corner of the mansion, and the servants who come and go have more smiles on their faces.
After Cheng Yayin finished writing the last stroke, she stood up with a sense of relief and stretched her stiff shoulders and neck. Seeing the warm sun shining through the trees and the fragrance coming from the breeze outside the window, she took a deep breath of the fragrant aroma lingering around her nose and felt relaxed both physically and mentally.
In such a situation, it would be a waste to stay in the room all the time.
Cheng Yayin called Lanyue and Yixing to move a bamboo couch to under the crabapple tree. She picked a book and lay on it to read comfortably.
Lan Yue brought over a small table, and Yi Xing brewed a pot of tea and placed it on it, saying, "Yesterday, the young lady said she wanted to eat bayberries, and the master asked Jian Zhu to buy them early this morning. Would you like to try some now?"
Cheng Yayin's eyes lit up: "I want to eat the frozen one."
"It's only May, and you're already craving the cool air, young lady?" Lan Yue joked. Seeing Cheng Yayin looking at her eagerly, she said helplessly, "Okay, I'll go prepare some, but don't eat too much."
Lan Yue took Yi Xing out to pickle bayberries. Cheng Ya Yin leaned back on the bamboo couch with a book in her hands. It felt like she hadn't had such a leisurely day for a long time.
Perhaps it was because she stayed up too late last night to finish writing the storybook, and the breeze with the fragrance of flowers was too comfortable, so Cheng Yayin fell asleep with her head tilted before she had turned a few pages of the book.
This was the scene Pei Songsheng saw when he came back.
His wife was lying in the fragrance of flowers and the shadow of trees. Her thick eyelashes cast a shadow like a butterfly's wing under her eyelids. Her fair and smooth skin was almost transparent under the sunlight. She was shrouded in a faint halo, as if an elf among the flowers lived in this courtyard. It was so beautiful that people couldn't bear to disturb her.
He tiptoed to the bamboo couch, half squatted down and stared at her sleeping face carefully, even breathing lightly for fear of disturbing her sweet dream.
Perhaps because she had been in the sun for too long and felt a little hot, a thin layer of sweat appeared on her forehead while she slept. She frowned slightly, tilted her head, and hid her face in the shadow of the tree.
So Pei Songsheng moved his position and used his body to block the sun for her. Seeing a round fan on a small table beside him, he picked it up and gently waved it to let the air flow for her.
Cheng Yayin slept much more soundly, and her frown relaxed.
Pei Songsheng looked at her peaceful sleeping face, and a great sense of satisfaction welled up in his heart. His hands did not stop moving for a moment, and a faint smile unconsciously curled up at the corner of his mouth.
Jian Zhu, who was outside the yard, looked at the scene curiously and couldn't help turning his head and covering his mouth with his hands to laugh.
Before he could close his mouth, he heard voices approaching from afar. It was Lan Yue and Yi Xing, holding a cup of iced bayberries, walking towards him, talking and laughing.
Jian Zhu quickly ran over and blocked the way for the two of them. "Ladies, please stay. It's not convenient to go in and disturb you now."
"Jian Zhu?" Lan Yue asked in confusion, "Why are you back so soon? Is the master in there?"
Jian Zhu nodded, and Yi Xing said casually, "As long as the master is here, he will be there. Our young lady is waiting to eat the iced bayberries, so please get out of the way."
As she was about to walk around Jian Zhu, Jian Zhu stopped her with a cry, clasping her hands together and pleading, "Sisters, please be kind. My master has suffered greatly from the poisoning and madness, and only now has Madam taken pity on him and been able to speak to him more recently. My dear sisters, please don't go in and disturb him, as he feels sorry for him."
"What are you talking about? We are just sending bayberries to the young lady. What do you mean by this?"
Yixing was completely confused, but Lanyue glanced thoughtfully into the yard and gently tugged at Yixing's sleeve. "The bayberries aren't pickled well yet. Let's go back and prepare them. Come back later."
Then he pulled her away without saying anything. Yixing muttered in confusion, "It's okay, isn't it? I think it's fine."
Although the voices of the few people were not loud, the tiny sounds still passed through the courtyard wall and woke Cheng Yayin from her light sleep.
When she woke up, her vision was still unclear and her mind was hazy. In her hazy state, she only saw Pei Songsheng looking at her seriously, his face very close.
In a trance, she returned to the time when he was still Lu Xingyuan. He was so clingy. No matter she took a nap during the day or slept soundly at night, he would always be so close to her when she woke up. When he saw her open her eyes, he had to ask for a kiss, as if she had left him alone during the time she was asleep, and would be upset if she didn't kiss him.
"What a trouble." Cheng Yayin muttered and closed her eyes again, but a pair of arms hooked Pei Songsheng's neck and pulled him down, while tilting her head back, and a kiss landed squarely on his lips.
She lay back on the couch, waiting for him to kiss her, but the man she was hugging didn't move, and the neck between her arms felt strangely hot.
Cheng Yayin opened her eyes doubtfully. When she saw Pei Songsheng's dull expression, the fog in her mind instantly dissipated. Her drifting thoughts returned to this moment and this place. There was only one thing before her -
She kissed Pei Songsheng.
She kissed Pei Songsheng who was awake.
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