Chapter 3
Pei Jin.
The easiest person in the world to coax.
No contest.
All I had to do was say his name, and he could imagine an entire drama in which I loved him beyond all reason.
Sure enough.
One instant, he was threatening to drag me down to hell with him.
The next, his voice had already softened.
“Xiaoxiao, I knew I was the one you loved.”
“I wasn’t being mean. I just missed you.”
“You missed me too, didn’t you? Say you missed me. Please…”
He nestled his head pitifully against my neck, watching me intently.
His mouth never stopped.
Neither did his hands.
Like a puppy begging for a meaty bone.
I wasn’t going to say it.
If I indulged him this time, wouldn’t he demand the heavens next time?
So I only called, again and again, “Pei Jin, Pei Jin…”
Nothing else.
Clearly, even his name was enough to please him.
His eyes grew increasingly dazed, his breathing increasingly hurried.
But I’d had my fill.
“Pei Jin.”
I steadied my breathing and deliberately laid my hand against his face.
He turned his head slightly and noticed my injured hand.
“You’re hurt?”
“Damn him! How dare that little bastard Chu Yan hurt you!”
“Xiaoxiao, does it hurt?”
He came to his senses at once.
Frowning at the burn, his gaze turned very dark.
As his face drew closer and closer, I quickly withdrew my hand.
For no other reason
than that I was afraid he would reward himself by seizing the chance to lick me.
“Mother has already had a physician put pain-relieving medicine on it. It’s much better.”
I reddened my eyes and squeezed out a couple of tears.
Just as I was about to coax some valuable salve out of him,
Chu Yan’s voice suddenly came from outside the door.
He was asking the maid at the courtyard entrance, “Where is my wife?”
“Has she gone to bed?”
My ears rang.
The words lodged in my throat.
Chu Yan?
Hadn’t he gone to the other house?
Why was he back?
Pei Jin was still in my bed!
My heart raced as I frantically urged Pei Jin,
“Quick, out the back window.”
But I’d forgotten that Pei Jin was ill.
Truly ill.
An affliction of the head.
It made his moods unpredictable, his thoughts shifting from one instant to the next.
One moment, he would be cheerful and obliging.
The next, the clouds rolled in, and he went mad for no apparent reason.
Now, he went mad.
“Leave? I’m not leaving.”
As though he’d discovered a delightful game,
he eagerly pulled the bed curtains shut, lay down inside, and wrapped himself in the quilt.
Only his dark eyes remained visible as he smiled at me. “Xiaoxiao, do you think Chu Yan will notice?”
“If my aunt finds out about us, will she make a scandal of it and divorce you from Chu Yan? Or will she bring Shen Chenbi into the household to cover up the disgrace?”
That one word, “aunt,” had me by the throat again.
I fell silent for an instant.
In that instant, Chu Yan pushed open the door and came in.
I couldn’t make out his expression through the bed curtains.
I could only see him approaching, step by light, steady step.
“Wen Xiaoxiao, I acted rashly today.”
“This is the best burn salve in the capital. Put some on.”
His voice was cold,
but much gentler than when he’d slammed the door and left.
I couldn’t work out why he’d suddenly come back.
Or why he’d brought me medicine.
I froze.
Under the quilt, Pei Jin took offense. His eyes darkened, and his hands began wandering where they shouldn’t.
Caught off guard, I let out a muffled sound.
Hearing it, Chu Yan instinctively reached for the bed curtains.
“Wen Xiaoxiao, are you awake?”