Chapter 63
Chapter 63
“Brother Jing, I want to go out tomorrow.
“If you are worried, you can have Gao Li accompany me.”
Seeing that Pei Xianjing was in a good mood, Xing Shuwei seized the opportunity to ask.
Pei Xianjing did not care for the request.
He truly did not want her to go out. He only wanted her to remain in Qiansheng Pavilion and wait for him every day.
He did not know what he was worried about.
It was as though the moment she walked out of the Duke’s estate, she would never return.
After hesitating, however, he still chose to agree. “Gao Li is so busy managing Qiansheng Pavilion every day that she can barely keep up. How would she have time to accompany you on a leisurely outing?
“Go if you wish.
“I never intended to restrict your freedom. Just remember to come home early.”
At the slightly deliberate smile on his face, an odd sensation passed through Xing Shuwei’s heart.
It felt like a bee sting-a lingering pain she could endure.
Seeing her hesitate, Pei Xianjing thought she would at least tell him why she wanted to go out.
Instead, after a moment, she answered with only one word. “All right.”
Pei Xianjing paused but did not question her further. He pulled her down beside the desk while he stood nearby grinding ink.
“I’m tired today. Write my memorials for me. I will dictate, and you will put brush to paper,” he said.
Xing Shuwei looked up at him, her bright eyes blinking. “How can I do that? The Emperor will notice.”
“I taught you to write. You learned well enough that no one will notice.” He selected a wolf-hair brush and handed it to her.
“No.” Xing Shuwei raised both hands in refusal.
“Weiwei, if I am not afraid, what are you afraid of?” Pei Xianjing coaxed softly.
“I fear imperial authority,” she answered honestly.
“I merely want to show you that imperial authority is nothing to fear.” He pressed the brush into her hand.
Pei Xianjing guided her hand, dipped the brush tip in ink, and laid stroke after stroke on the blank memorial.
Xing Shuwei did not want to do such a thing.
But she had no choice.
Between her and Pei Xianjing lay not only differences of birth and status, but also his domineering nature.
After one memorial was finished, he wanted to continue. Xing Shuwei tipped her head back to look at him behind her. “I can’t write anymore. My fingers hurt.”
“Why are you so delicate?” Pei Xianjing clicked his tongue softly but did not force her to continue.
“Your hand hurts after writing so few words.”
As he spoke, he took the brush and laid it on the inkstone.
His eyes seemed to smile as the pad of his thumb brushed lightly across her lips. “When I ask you to use your mouth, you complain your tongue hurts.
“When I ask you to use your hand, you say your fingers hurt.
“You are even worse in bed. Whenever I ask you to move, you say your waist hurts.”
Xing Shuwei was speechless.
Were those words he could simply say aloud?
Pei Xianjing was becoming more shameless by the day.
What remained of the upright gentleman everyone believed him to be?
He was nothing less than a thoroughly dissolute rake!
Xing Shuwei’s face flushed, and she did not dare look directly at him.
The sight of her reddened ears immediately lifted his mood.
“Tell me, which part of what I said was untrue?”
“Fine, fine, everything you said was true. Can you stop saying it now?” Afraid he would continue, Xing Shuwei hurried to answer.
His lips curved smugly as he pulled Xing Shuwei onto the daybed.
He lay down and insisted on holding her with him.
Unable to push him away, Xing Shuwei let him.
Curled in his arms, she said, “Dowager Lady Pei asked me to whisper in your ear and persuade you to obtain an official post for the Fourth Master.
“She even tried to buy me with silver, saying that if the matter was accomplished, she would give me a dowry.”
“The reason I am leaving the estate tomorrow is to see whether these banknotes are enough to start a small business in the capital.”
She took his hand and slipped it inside the neckline of her clothes.
Pei Xianjing had not expected such a bold move from her. His Adam’s apple moved, and desire colored the gaze he lowered to her.
Only when his fingers caught several banknotes inside her clothes did he understand.
So the banknotes she mentioned were hidden inside her clothes.
He glanced at the banknotes between his fingers without unfolding them, then tucked them back into her bosom. “There is no need to start a small business. I will never let you suffer hardship in the future.”
“But I must plan for Yan’er too,” she said.
Pei Xianjing refused to withdraw the hand he had slipped inside.
Beneath his caresses, Xing Shuwei’s breathing gradually grew unsteady.
“No.”
The doors and windows stood wide open, and she could clearly see the servants bustling outside.
Pei Xianjing did not stop. “I won’t do anything. Just this.”
“You…”
One arm encircled her waist while his other hand roamed over her body like a snake.
His palm was warm.
Just as a sound was about to escape her, Pei Xianjing bent down and sealed her crimson lips.
She exhaled sharply, and Pei Xianjing swallowed every unvoiced sound.
After roughly eight minutes, Xing Shuwei collapsed weakly in his arms and pleaded softly, “Please, I’ve had enough.”
Pei Xianjing bit her lip and asked, “Have you had enough, or can you simply take no more?”
Xing Shuwei was speechless.
What was the difference?
In the end, Pei Xianjing carried her back to the bedchamber and tormented her for a full two hours before releasing her.
* * *
At nine the next morning, Xing Shuwei appeared at Spring Breeze Restaurant.
“Miss, a private room has been reserved for you upstairs.” A waiter approached her respectfully.
Xing Shuwei recognized him as the waiter who had led her to Zhang Mingan last time.
She said to Qiutong, “Wait for me here.”
Qiutong nodded. After watching her go upstairs, she found a seat by the window and ordered a pot of tea.
The waiter led Xing Shuwei to the door of a secluded private room in the corner, then turned and left.
At the sight of the tightly closed door, memories of their previous meeting flooded her mind.
Xing Shuwei hesitated.
Should she open this door or not?
Creak. The door opened from within.
It was Zhang Mingan.
After several days apart, stubble covered his once-clean face, and faint shadows darkened the skin beneath his eyes.
“Are you well?” Zhang Mingan did not urge her inside and merely asked with concern.
Xing Shuwei nodded. “Nothing serious.”
Zhang Mingan gestured invitingly. “Can you come in and sit for a while without fear?”
After considering for several breaths, Xing Shuwei stepped inside.
She had come out today partly to try her luck and see whether he was here.
Now that she had truly found him, unease rose in her instead.
She and Zhang Mingan were not close, yet every time, he accurately guessed what she was thinking and what she intended to do.
“Pei Xianjing personally investigated the case of the refugees with the epidemic and discovered that Princess Jin’an was behind it.
“But the Emperor put pressure on him, so he could only let the case end without resolution.
“Although the Second Grand Secretary promptly suppressed what happened to you at the inn outside the city, the Emperor still felt it damaged his reputation.
“To preserve your life, I had no choice but to take a dangerous path and petition the Empress Dowager for an edict.
“I simply never expected the edict would send you to Princess Jin’an’s residence.
“My intention was to ask the Empress Dowager to bestow you upon me in marriage.”