Chapter 4

Chapter 4

For an entire month, Yurong took me to Eldest Master Shen’s bed every night.

She reminded me over and over that I must never let him see my face.

Yurong said, “The Eldest Master isn’t right in the head. If he sees your round little face at night and gets confused, what if he mistakes you for a steamed bun and eats you?”

I always felt like that was something you would say to coax a three-year-old.

But I knew Yurong would never hurt me, so I kept her warning firmly in mind.

So tonight, when Eldest Master Shen knelt before the window and tried to look at me by the moonlight, I quickly dodged away.

I covered his eyes with a strip of cloth and swung my feet, kicking him in the chest.

He lowered his head and kissed my ankle, his cool lips moving upward bit by bit.

I heard Eldest Master Shen murmur in a dazed voice, “When I was ill before, I only felt shadows everywhere, voices all around me. And now, every night, I have such lovely dreams.”

Then he said, “The strange thing is, I don’t usually care for snacks. Yet every day when I wake, there are always half-bitten fruits and pastries in my hands.”

I did not dare let him keep thinking about it. After all, Yurong had said that Eldest Master Shen was not right in the head.

What if he got stuck on it and drove himself even madder?

I hooked my arms around his waist and nestled into his embrace.

His breathing grew heavy, and he had no attention left for thinking.

Afterward, Eldest Master Shen kept at it without stopping. Before I knew it, the sky outside was nearly bright.

Yurong imitated birdsong outside to hurry me along.

In my panic, I slapped Eldest Master Shen unconscious before I finally got away.

The next day, my monthly bleeding came. Yurong was a little disappointed, but she was considerate and told me to rest.

I clung to her and asked if I could go home for a visit.

Yurong said she would go ask Madam for permission.

But I waited and waited, and Yurong never came back.

When I went out, I heard some servants whispering.

They said Yurong had made a mistake and Madam had slapped her hard across the face.

At this hour, Yurong had not had a single drop of water and was still kneeling in the front hall.

My heart lurched, and I immediately went to look for her.

The Shen Family estate was far too large. After turning this way and that, I got lost and ended up by a lake.

Two men stood by the lakeside, feeding the fish.

Anyone who could be in the inner residence had to be a member of the Shen Family.

I heard the cold-looking man say lazily, “You defied your mother and married Lin Congning, saving her from exile. But from what I can see, she doesn’t appreciate it at all. She even bought you a concubine.”

Eldest Master Shen was indeed just as Auntie had described him, with clear, open features and a handsome, dignified bearing.

He suddenly smiled and said, “Speaking of that concubine of mine, one day I went to see her and heard her and Yurong…”

Worried about Yurong, I rushed out and interrupted them.

I tugged on Eldest Master Shen’s sleeve and said urgently, “Eldest Master! Where is the front hall? Can you take me there?”

This was the first time the two of us had met in broad daylight.

I remembered Yurong saying that Eldest Master Shen was not right in the head, so I absolutely could not bring up what happened at night on my own, in case it triggered his illness.

Eldest Master Shen treated me very gently. He took my hand and asked me what had happened as he led me away.