Chapter 112
Chapter 112
Shen Qingyu nodded.
Qiao Ying was instantly overcome by intense shame. Judging by those names, she must have spent plenty of time acting spoiled while drunk. She lowered her head, too embarrassed to face anyone, but quickly raised it again.
“Is this really the time to fuss over that? I’m asking whether you’re a fool. With snow falling this heavily, why didn’t you go inside?”
She climbed out of his embrace, draped his blue outer robe back over him, and wrapped it tightly around his body. Then she pulled him to his feet, dragged him into the warm room, and quickly shut the door.
Shen Qingyu said resentfully, “You insisted on holding me and refused to go inside.”
Ordinarily, when people felt cold, instinct drove them toward warmth.
But Qiao Ying had been wonderfully warm. She only wanted to remain forever in his arms, living the useless life of never moving again. Whenever Shen Qingyu tried to pick her up, she clung to the furry tail and whimpered. Her brows knitted tightly, her lips pressed into a line, and her entire face crumpled.
Shen Qingyu’s fingers gently stroked between her brows, then her cheek, then her tightly pressed lips. He thought she looked terribly ugly when she slept drunk.
This ugly, crumpled girl was his wife.
For some reason, joy filled his heart. He really had foolishly held her like that and sat with her in the wind and snow for more than four hours.
He did not know why.
Shen Qingyu had always thought the wind sounded the same every day. The same went for rain and falling snow. He had listened to those sounds for many years inside the “little room.” After coming out, he still found none of them charming enough to make him stop and listen.
But with her in his arms, the wind and snow suddenly seemed a little novel.
Qiao Ying wanted to lecture him properly, but when she looked up and saw the young man’s obedient expression, the harsh words would not come.
Forget it. There had always been something wrong with his mind.
Qiao Ying pulled him into a seat, poured a cup of warm tea, and placed it in his hands to warm him. Then she found a dry towel, stood behind him, and gathered a lock of his long white hair.
Shen Qingyu instinctively turned to follow her. Qiao Ying patted the crown of his head. “Don’t move.”
He had no choice but to sit still.
Qiao Ying carefully wiped the snowflakes and mist from his hair. Dampness only made the white color even more beautiful. No matter how many times her fingers touched its softness, she could never resist lingering over it.
Shen Qingyu laughed.
Qiao Ying shifted uncomfortably at having her little scheme exposed. “Drink your tea. No laughing.”
Shen Qingyu obediently raised the warm tea to his lips and drank in small sips.
Now and then, his white hair started to slip over his shoulder, and Qiao Ying quickly caught it. Even so, wisps slid along the beautiful line of his profile and joined the corner of his lips in lightly kissing the rim of the cup.
She did not know why.
Qiao Ying suddenly felt as though she were watching a fluffy white animal lap at water, and her heart inexplicably melted.
Unable to resist, she quickly kissed his cheek while he drank with his head lowered.
Shen Qingyu did not pause, but his smile deepened.
Trying to ease the awkwardness of her weak will, Qiao Ying cleared her throat. “I had a dream.”
Shen Qingyu asked, “Did you dream of me?”
Qiao Ying said, “I dreamed about myself as a child and about Qiao Mianmian when she was young. She really is my cousin. My father and her father had a very good relationship. Then…”
“Then you dreamed of me?”
Qiao Ying ignored him and continued, “Then my Second Uncle, Qiao Mianmian’s father, adopted a boy named Luo Xuan. He became a younger brother to Qiao Mianmian and me. After that…”
“After that, did you dream of me?”
Qiao Ying said, “After that, I woke up.”
Shen Qingyu silently drank his tea. He no longer wanted to speak.
Amused, Qiao Ying picked up another damp lock of white hair and slowly dried it. “It’s wonderful, Shen Qingyu. You’re the person before my eyes, so I don’t have to meet you in dreams. When I want to see you, I only need to open my eyes. When I want to hold you, I only need to reach out. And when I want to kiss you, I only need to lower my head like this.”
She truly lowered her head, and with perfect understanding, he raised his face. Qiao Ying’s lips met his.
She smiled. “Just like that, I can kiss you. It’s truly wonderful.”
Shen Qingyu’s gloom vanished. His fingers twined around the edge of her skirt and rubbed it gently. His lips curved as he softly echoed her words.
“Truly wonderful.”
At times like this, his innocence resembled that of a babbling child. Whatever Qiao Ying said, he repeated. Whatever she did, he imitated.
It was as if he had never before possessed anyone from whom he could learn. Struggling alone, he had developed a twisted set of rules for survival. Now, the life he shared with Qiao Ying felt fresh and fascinating.
Qiao Ying said, “Shen Qingyu.”
“Mm?”
“I think if I ever sold you, you’d probably still help me count the money.”
Shen Qingyu turned his face and smiled. His flawless pale skin looked purer than the snow falling outside. He knew his own beauty and knew exactly which expressions Qiao Ying liked best.
“Yingying, are you going to sell me?”
Qiao Ying fell silent for a moment. “Never mind. I couldn’t bear to.”
Shen Qingyu won another battle. Delighted laughter spilled from his lips. Since he was in a good mood, he did not mind granting his wife a little more of a reward.
He turned to face her and gently leaned closer. His arms encircled her waist, and he rested his cheek against her chest. Like a snow-white fox, he pressed lazily against her, exceptionally docile.
Qiao Ying swallowed nervously. Her hand rose beyond her control to the crown of his head, stroking his snow-white hair again and again.
A faint vibration stirred in the young man’s throat once more. A soft purr sounded intermittently, so contented and comfortable that, without her to lean against, he might have melted into a puddle on the floor.
Qiao Ying’s curiosity rose to extraordinary heights. She reached out again and tentatively scratched beneath his chin.
His purr suddenly softened into an even more comfortable note. When her fingers scratched him, he actively nuzzled forward.
Qiao Ying was speechless.
It had to be her imagination.
Outside the window, the maids suddenly began screaming.
“The Saintess is missing!”
Qiao Ying immediately looked up, and her hand stopped. The purring vanished at once.
She looked back at him, paused, then raised her fingers and scratched his chin again.
The young man’s lips curved, and a faint purr returned.
Qiao Ying stopped.
The purr vanished.
Qiao Ying scratched again.
The purr returned.
Qiao Ying was speechless.
Why did her young husband keep making noises?