Yin Zheng spoke, feeling equally embarrassed herself. In truth, she wasn’t shy, but speaking of such matters with Lu Tong always felt odd. However, she was the only one at his side who could talk to him about this.
"I don’t need to look," Lu Tong said, "I know what to do."
Yin Zheng’s throat suddenly became tight with words as she stared in astonishment: "Ah?"
"I am a Doctor," Lu Tong looked at her strangely, as if her reaction was the abnormal one, "Naturally, I understand these things."
Yin Zheng was momentarily stunned: "Really?"
"Yes, so there’s no need to show me. I am quite familiar with the human body."
Yin Zheng felt a sense of absurdity wash over her.
Even though she knew that Lu Tong never took things to heart, wasn’t this calmness a bit too much? The phrase "the human body" seemed to trivialize the night—rather than a romantic wedding night, it sounded more like dealing with a piece of dead pork in the yard.
His calmness was infuriating.
As they spoke, footsteps sounded from outside. The two exchanged glances, and Yin Zheng said, "Little Lord Pei is back, hurry!"
Lu Tong sat back in front of the bed, and Yin Zheng helped to re-cover the Golden Bridal Veil as Pei Yunmeng walked in.
Behind him followed Duan Xiaoyan and Xiao Zhufeng. Xiao Zhufeng was alright; he left after delivering the person. But Duan Xiaoyan was relentless, "Can I take another look? At least let me see her face after lifting the veil before I go."
Pei Yunmeng replied to him with an impatient "Scram."
"So no wedding pranks either?"
The young man gave him a cold glance, and Duan Xiaoyan grudgingly turned to leave, saying, "Fine, I won’t look, I’ll go," dragging Xiao Zhufeng with him.
Yin Zheng stood up, saluted Pei Yunmeng, and whispered, "I’ll be leaving too. Lord Pei, take good care of the lady." With that, she hurried out the door like an escapee and slammed the door shut with a "bang."
The room fell silent in an instant.
Lu Tong: "..."
She hadn’t felt it with others around, but now that it was just the two of them in the quiet night, she inexplicably felt uneasy. She looked down to see a pair of black boots stop in front of her.
Lu Tong clenched the bedding in her hand.
A joyful scale gently stretched out, lifting the veil on her head. Lu Tong looked up, only to be met with a pair of deep, dark eyes.
Pei Yunmeng was standing before her.
It wasn’t until this moment, after the whole day’s events, that she truly saw him. He was dressed in a Big Red Robe. Lu Tong was used to seeing him in his Official Uniform, and the vibrant color made him seem bright and graceful, different from his usual demeanor.
He smiled as he looked at Lu Tong, yet his gaze was like the scorching summer sun, heating her cheeks with its intensity.
"You seem quite nervous, Doctor Lu," spotting her momentary embarrassment, Pei Yunmeng’s lips curved into a smile, "Do you need a drink to bolster your courage?"
A drink... to bolster courage?
Bolster courage for what?
His words seemed to carry a hint of threat, yet the threat was laced with a provocative allure, fueling an array of wild thoughts.
All sorts of appropriate and inappropriate ideas flooded her mind, and Lu Tong never knew she could entertain such lascivious thoughts.
She tried her best to maintain a calm facade, as if showing even a hint of fear meant defeat, and simply said, "There’s nothing that requires bolstering courage, there’s nothing to fear... wait," Lu Tong suddenly looked up, suspiciously eyeing Pei Yunmeng: "You’re not drunk?"
Lin Danqing said that on the wedding day, it was inevitable for the groom to be fed lots of alcohol. A drunk person naturally couldn’t do much, and Lu Tong had been prepared for this since Pei Yunmeng was known for not holding his liquor well. But now, his eyes clear and sober, he didn’t show the slightest hint of drunkenness—quite the opposite; he was as lucid as could be.
"Why should I be drunk?"
"Isn’t your tolerance for alcohol poor?"
Pei Yunmeng replied with amusement: "I don’t recall ever saying I had a poor tolerance."
Lu Tong was taken aback.
Previously, at the Benevolent Heart Medical Hall anniversary, Pei Yunmeng hadn’t drunk much before he started to show signs of being tipsy. At that time, Lu Tong even thought his alcohol tolerance was worse than her own. However, recalling that during the New Year’s night in Su Nan, Chang Jin and some colleagues from the Medical Officer Institute also forced alcohol on him, and he seemed to have no reaction at all.
So this person has a rather good tolerance for alcohol?
As she thought about it, she didn’t notice Pei Yunmeng had already walked over and sat down beside her. When she came back to her senses, the crisp "nightlight chill" from his body mingled with a faint scent of alcohol, enveloping her slowly like a gentle mist of clouds.
"Lu Tong," Pei Yunmeng gazed at her with inscrutable eyes in his, "the night is short and the right companion hard to find. You’re not planning to spend tonight discussing alcohol tolerance with me, are you?"
The phrase "the right companion" made Lu Tong’s face redden slightly, her gaze hesitantly falling upon the celebratory candles on the table, where the burning red candles wept tears like blossoms, accompanying the flickering flames of the copper lamp beside them.
"The wick is too long," Lu Tong found an excuse, "Trim it for me."
He followed Lu Tong’s gaze to the candles, silent for a moment, and eventually, without saying anything, he leaned over, picked up the Silver Scissors, and trimmed the wick before adding more oil to the lamp.
Lu Tong inwardly sighed with relief and looked in his direction.
The young man, dressed in red, was seriously tending to the wick, the flickering candlelight casting a warm, yellow glow. Golden Millet Beads hung down, highlighting his lashes which fluttered like butterfly shadows, adding an extra touch of gentleness to his demeanor.
For some reason, Lu Tong suddenly remembered the lamp they had once lit together in the dilapidated temple at Su Nan.
Back then, he said to her, "The Lantern Smile brings joy to all things; our future luck won’t be bad."
Yet that night in Su Nan saw harsh cold and heavy snow, she had just returned from collecting corpses at the execution grounds, and he himself was gravely wounded and still being pursued—it was the worst of times for both of them. They thought his words were nothing more than casual comfort, never daring to hope for too much, yet fate took its twists and turns. Although belated, the auspicious news that the Lantern Smile predicted had come to pass.
Pei Yunmeng looked up and saw her staring intently at him, not saying a word for a long while. He raised his eyebrows and asked, "Do I look good?"
Lu Tong’s gaze was fixed on his face, his beautiful and profound eyes, thin lips holding a smile... As if enchanted, she couldn’t help but blurt out, "You look good."
This man was never too serious; even when wearing his Official Uniform, he managed to suppress it a bit. But now, clothed in this red robe and with a suggestive smile, he seemed to be deliberately seducing her.
She couldn’t possibly deny his good looks with a clear conscience.
Pei Yunmeng paused for a moment, the teasing smile in his eyes growing stronger: "I was asking about the lamp."
Realizing she had been played, Lu Tong gave a light cough and, trying to cover up, added, "I was answering about the lamp, too."
He stared at her for a moment and finally couldn’t hold back a chuckle.
Lu Tong turned her head away in annoyance, thought for a moment, poured herself a cup of honey wine from the jug into the cup and downed it—she had never hated her good alcohol tolerance so much.
Seeing her actions, Pei Yunmeng pushed the copper lamp to the corner of the table, got up, sat down beside Lu Tong, and took the silver cup from her hands: "Looking to gather courage?"
"I am not afraid."
He nodded and said lazily, "I know, you’re a Doctor after all, naturally aware of these things."
"You..."
He curved his lips, dimples showing particularly bewitching in the light of the lamp, purposely speaking slowly, "You are very familiar with the human body, naturally knowing what to do."
"Pei Yunmeng!"
Lu Tong was furious. These were the words she had just discussed with Yin Zheng, and this man had clearly heard it all and was deliberately teasing her.
He stared at Lu Tong, a playful smile in his eyes: "Unfortunately, I am not a Healer, I don’t know anything, tonight I can only rely on Doctor Lu’s help."
Lu Tong, unable to bear it any longer, pushed her palm toward him, but Pei Yunmeng caught her wrist.
She was still wearing the Green Jade Bracelet that Pei Yunmeng had given her. The Jade Bracelet was ice-cold, but her wrist burned hot in his grasp.
The young man looked down at her, those deep black eyes focusing on her face. As his gaze met hers, his eyes deepened, gradually leaning over.
She reached out and wrapped her arms around Pei Yunmeng’s neck.
The crisp fragrance blended with the sweet wine from the lips drawing closer. Lu Tong couldn’t distinguish whether it was the honey wine she had just drunk or something else, but she instinctively clung to him, as he pulled down the curtains tied with colorful knots.
The night deepened, the celebratory candles on the table burned shorter, and amidst the red flickering shadows, the night remained long.
...
The moonlight, like water, frames the fragrant pavilion; golden rings clatter as the door gently closes. Cold shadows fall from the high eaves, hanging a curtain on one side.
Blue smoke drifts lazily, lanterns with red battles smile. This here is like a dream of Gao Tang, behind the screen an autumn dream lingers long.
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