Chapter 89

Chapter 89

Wrapped in soft warmth, Qiao Ying slept comfortably.

At first, she had been uneasy about the rough-and-ready way she and Shen Qingyu had married. But as the days passed, she gradually began to feel that there was nothing wrong with continuing like this.

At the very least, she could sleep warmly in the depths of winter without worrying about cold feet beneath the covers.

Better yet, when Qiao Ying opened her eyes, the young man’s beautiful face filled her vision, a sight exceedingly kind to her eyes.

Shen Qingyu looked different in sleep. His loose white hair resembled flowing frost and fallen snow, half pillowed within the crook of his arm and half strewn in disorder across the bed.

The lines of his profile were astonishingly gentle. His white silk blindfold made his skin appear even more pale and flawless. His nose was high and straight, and his lips, a faint pink, were now lightly pressed together. Without the bewitching curve they wore when he was awake, he looked innocent as a child.

He looked so sweet and docile that her heart softened.

Unable to help herself, Qiao Ying carefully inched closer and stared at his face from close range. Gradually, she became lost in the sight.

Only when the young man’s lips moved and a soft chuckle emerged did she come back to herself.

“You’re awake.”

The young man’s voice was lazy. “I am.”

Qiao Ying knew he had caught her secretly watching him, but she was not embarrassed. They already shared a bed. What was wrong with looking at each other a little longer?

She shifted onto her back and told him their plans for the day. “First, we need to visit Daoist Master Yan at the clinic. Then we have to find He Fei and Ding Fufu. Once we resolve their affairs and discover where I came from, we can settle down and live our own lives in peace.”

His lovely laughter sounded beside her ear once more, accompanied by warm breath that made it itch.

“Our own lives? Just Yingying and me?”

Qiao Ying looked up.

White hair drifted above her. The young man had already raised himself halfway over her. His hair, his breath, even his shadow seemed to form a cage around her, imprisoning her within it.

No matter how many times she saw hints of beguiling allure emerge from beneath his sweet, docile exterior, her heart would always seem to miss half a beat.

Silently reciting that form was emptiness and emptiness was form, Qiao Ying finally managed to answer in a normal voice, “Yes. Just you and me.”

Shen Qingyu laughed again. Slowly, he lowered himself until he lay atop her.

Qiao Ying immediately felt cramped, as though she had been wrapped up from head to toe. But experience had taught her not to struggle. Any resistance would only make him hold her tighter.

Still, she frowned, somewhat exasperated by his clinginess.

Shen Qingyu rubbed his cheek against hers. “Yingying, are you cursing me in your heart?”

“No.”

“Then what are you thinking?”

“I was just thinking that the saying ‘a boy who smiles often will never have bad luck’ does make some sense.”

Shen Qingyu could tell she was humoring him, but that did not matter. What mattered was that although she clearly did not wish to indulge him, she still said pleasant things to make him happy. She obviously loved him beyond measure.

Suddenly, Qiao Ying’s eyes widened.

Something soft and furry beneath the covers was gently stroking her ankle, as if testing her response or teasing her. Before long, the furry touch crept upward from her ankle, winding around her calf and brushing her thigh.

For some inexplicable reason, a thought sprang into Qiao Ying’s mind:
It was like a little animal in a nature documentary extending an invitation to mate.

As that furry touch ventured farther, Qiao Ying quickly drew both legs up. Her entire body tensed in unmistakable rejection.

Shen Qingyu raised his face toward her and cradled her cheeks in his hands. “Yingying, may I not?”

She knew what he wanted.

But now was not the time.

Qiao Ying made her face as stern as possible and said solemnly, “Shen Qingyu, your body still needs time to recover.”

He had expended far too much energy on their wedding night. If this continued, she genuinely worried he would exhaust himself to death.

Shen Qingyu pursed his lips and obediently settled back down on top of her. His muffled voice asked, “Then when may I?”

Qiao Ying stroked his hair, her tone grave. “We can discuss it once your hair is glossy again.”

Shen Qingyu was silent for a long time. “Yingying.”

“Mm?”

“I want two fried eggs today.”

“…All right,” Qiao Ying said.

Shen Qingyu was true to his word. When they ate breakfast at a noodle stall that morning, he really did order two extra fried eggs.

“I heard the young lady of the Ding family has disappeared. Her family is searching everywhere.”

“You mean Ding Fufu, the First Beauty of Yunling Prefecture?”

“That’s right. She is doted on by everyone. Now that she has vanished, even the Li family is frantically looking for her.”

The patrons discussed Miss Ding’s disappearance, but no one mentioned that Ding Manor had been stormed or that Master Ding had been tortured. Presumably, Master Ding did not want rumors about the Ding family’s true and false daughters to spread.

When the proprietress brought over the fried eggs, she heard Ding Fufu’s name and could not help looking toward the speakers with a strange expression.

Qiao Ying asked curiously, “Do you know Miss Ding too?”

Coming back to herself, the proprietress shook her head and laughed. “I’m only a commoner. How could I know an immortal beauty like Miss Ding?”

Eating fried eggs alone left Shen Qingyu’s mouth dry, so Qiao Ying poured a cup of tea and placed it in his hand. He raised it to his lips and obediently drank more than half.

The proprietress stole several more glances at the striking Shen Qingyu, then at the lovely Qiao Ying, and could not help muttering to herself.

Qiao Ying said, “When those people mentioned Ding Fufu just now, you seemed especially interested.”

The proprietress explained, “Ten years ago, a mother and daughter lived across from my house. Coincidentally, that girl’s name was also Fufu. It’s rare to encounter two people with the same name, so whenever I hear someone mention Miss Ding over the years, I cannot help paying attention.”

“Sadly, though their names were the same, their fates could not have been more different. Miss Ding is the moon in the heavens, while my neighbor’s daughter was nothing but a reed by the roadside. She lost her father as a child and had only her mother. Then her mother died of illness, leaving the poor girl all alone at six years old.”

“We neighbors helped whenever we could, but that unfortunate child still passed away in the end. She died quietly one night without anyone knowing.”

“What happened afterward?” Qiao Ying asked.

The proprietress said, “Several of us neighbors pooled our money to buy the little girl a simple coffin and bury her. That was when a kindhearted man appeared.”

Qiao Ying looked puzzled. “A kindhearted man?”

“Yes, the manager of that inn.” The proprietress pointed in one direction. “He paid the expenses, hired some men, and took the little girl’s body away for a proper burial.”