Chapter 103
Chapter 103
Now that Qiao Ying knew where she had come from, she decided to take Shen Qingyu home for a visit. The sky was growing dark, however, so they would have to spend another night at the inn before setting out.
When she pushed open the window, the bustle of the street poured into the room.
“Handkerchiefs for sale! Handkerchiefs for sale! This was worn against Lady Saintess’s own skin in Yunling City. It wards off evil and calamity and will keep you free of illness and misfortune!”
A young boy wove through the street holding up a handkerchief and shouting at the top of his lungs. His claims drew the interest of many passersby, who gathered around him.
“Don’t make such wild boasts, boy. Lady Saintess stands far above us and remains untouched by the mortal world. How could you possibly have something that belonged to her personally?”
The boy raised his head and declared loudly, “When I slipped into Yunling City, I nearly froze to death. Lady Saintess happened to be passing through the streets to bestow blessings. She took pity on me and only held my hand, but all my sickness and pain vanished and I came back to life. This is the handkerchief Lady Saintess left behind!”
His story immediately filled the others with longing.
Everyone knew the people of Yunling City lived free from illness and calamity because Lady Saintess guarded the Golden Tree and prayed for them each day. The Golden Tree was sacred, so naturally Lady Saintess was sacred as well. If anyone obtained something that had touched her body, they ought to hang it high in their home and worship it every day.
Qiao Ying rested both hands on the windowsill and propped her chin upon them, turning her face into the breeze as she curiously watched the lively scene below. She had spent several days in Yunling Prefecture by now and had naturally heard many tales about Yunling City.
The young man’s slender fingers brushed the ends of her black hair as the wind carried them his way. He also touched the green ribbon woven through it. Following that softness, he slowly wound her hair around his fingers and pressed his chest against her back. His tall body seemed to trap her completely as he rested his chin on the crown of her head and chuckled.
Qiao Ying felt hemmed in by him. She tried to struggle, but his arms only tightened until she could not move at all.
She gave up and gazed helplessly at the ceiling. “Shen Qingyu, you’re a dependable grown man now. Stop clinging to me so much.”
He asked softly, “Am I not allowed to cling to you?”
“You’re taking it too far.”
He asked again, “Is that not allowed?”
Qiao Ying tilted her head back and saw the beautiful line of his jaw. Somehow, the words “not allowed” lodged in her throat. She said awkwardly, “It’s not that it isn’t allowed.”
Shen Qingyu laughed with bright delight, as if he had won a battle. He knew he had secured yet another victory over Qiao Ying.
It could not be helped. She liked him so very much that she simply could not resist him.
Qiao Ying glanced at the crowd below, still haggling over the handkerchiefs, and could not help asking, “Is there really someone in this world who can keep people free from sickness and trouble and grant them perfect happiness?”
Shen Qingyu lowered his face to hers, his lips grazing the hair at her temple. “Perhaps there is.”
Qiao Ying tightened her grip on his wrist.
She still remembered that this young man had tried several times to feed her his own flesh and blood to “cure” her.
“All I know is that everything in existence follows its own rules. If someone breaks those rules by force, then a price unknown to outsiders must be paid.”
Shen Qingyu raised her chin with one hand and dropped a light kiss at the corner of her lips. The smiling “Mm” he gave her sounded at once like a simple acknowledgment and agreement.
Qiao Ying thought he truly was unbearably clingy.
She pushed his face back a little and said helplessly, “Shen Qingyu, I’m talking to you. Can’t you be serious for once?”
Shen Qingyu pressed his lips together and murmured, “Oh.” Then he released her, turned away on his own, and sat by the bed. He said nothing, merely lowered his head, took a lock of his hair, and played with its white ends.
Qiao Ying sensed something was wrong and cautiously walked over. “Are you tired from traveling? Do you want to turn in early?”
Shen Qingyu’s lips curved again. He lifted his face and nodded. “Yes.”
The sun was only beginning to set, and the street outside was still noisy. Qiao Ying closed the window. By the time she turned around, Shen Qingyu was already stretched comfortably across the bed.
Both hands rested over his lower belly, and his fingers continually twined the ends of his hair. The curve of his lips had not faded, and an air of sheer delight surrounded him.
When he sensed Qiao Ying climb onto the bed, his smile deepened. He eagerly turned his face toward her as if to “look” at her, only to have a blanket thrown over him and tucked snugly around his body.
Qiao Ying said, “It’s the middle of winter. Aren’t you cold sleeping without a blanket?”
Shen Qingyu was silent.
Qiao Ying was still tucking in the corners when he abruptly rolled over to face the wall, leaving her with nothing but his back.
Confusion filled her eyes, but she was tired after walking so far. She slowly lay down and closed her eyes.
Not long afterward, something soft brushed her cheek and tickled.
Qiao Ying was forced to open her eyes. The young man had leaned over and was propped up close beside her.
She asked, “What are you doing?”
Shen Qingyu cupped his chin in both hands and smiled sweetly. “Nothing.”
Qiao Ying gave a perfunctory hum and closed her eyes again.
The tickling returned the next instant. When she opened her eyes, she caught Shen Qingyu withdrawing the hand that held the white strands he had used to tease her.
Shen Qingyu smiled, pure and innocent, without a trace of guile.
This time, Qiao Ying closed her eyes and immediately opened them again. Sure enough, Shen Qingyu was about to brush his hair across the tip of her nose. He had not expected her feint, and his hand froze in midair.
Qiao Ying stared at him without expression.
Shen Qingyu slowly lay back down. He hugged his beautiful long white hair and lapsed into silence, a resentful air spreading from head to toe once more.
Silence filled the room for quite some time.
Without warning, the girl flung off the blanket and pounced. She straddled him and tore open the front of his robe.
The young man was caught entirely off guard. Even after his snowy chest lay exposed and began to feel the cold, he still wore that baffled expression.
Qiao Ying, who had stubbornly refused to take the bait before, now looked like a brazen bandit queen ravishing an innocent man.
“Shen Qingyu, even if you beg me to stop today, I won’t!”
Shen Qingyu came back to himself. His chest trembled lightly as laughter spilled from his lips. He did not resist. Instead, he raised a hand and pulled his robe open a little farther. The fabric slipped down and bared one smooth, pale shoulder to the air.
Several strands of white hair spilled across his chest, and beneath them, two dusky rosebuds peeked in and out of view, their color exceptionally lovely.
“If my lady desires them, she is welcome to pluck as many as she likes.”
A vein throbbed on Qiao Ying’s forehead. “You seducer!”
She lowered her head and kissed him hard. But this seducer was full of schemes. His lips had already parted in anticipation, waiting for the moment her kiss came down so their lips and tongues could meet with ease. At the same time, his large hand slipped beneath her skirt.