Luo Cuiwei bit her lip in a daze. "Really?"
“Initially, I rejected your invitation, but you came to my door in person. After that, you tried every means to send me money under various absurd pretexts,” Yun Lie said with a slight smile. “If I still couldn’t detect anything strange after all that, I would be out of my mind. I just didn’t expect that what you were planning would be so audacious.”
"If you sensed something was wrong from the beginning, why didn't you just turn me away?"
Yun Lie was very honest: "Because of the five carts of grain that were stolen from you back then. I had Xiong Xiaoyi investigate for a long time, but we still couldn't determine whether those five carts of grain belonged to your family or the Huang family. I was afraid of offending the creditors, so I had no choice but to let you in first."
The two exchanged a knowing glance: thank you for those five cartloads of grain back then.
"Do you know why I went to the Xu family to pick you up earlier?" Yun Lie asked with a smile.
Yesterday, the two of them had agreed that he should wait for her to return to the mansion today, and that he didn't need to go with her or pick her up.
Luo Cuiwei shook her head, her eyes filled with confusion.
“When I passed by the courtyard of the central hall early this morning, someone secretly told me that you specially chose the best crabapple blossoms to plant in the mansion, but I came back late and wasted your good intentions and missed the flowering season you wanted me to see.”
He sighed with some regret and gently pecked her lips several times.
The kisses were light yet continuous, like bees and butterflies in the warm spring, tirelessly absorbing the sweet nectar from the red lips.
"I just wanted to tell you that, thankfully, I didn't miss you."
There are too many unavoidable missed opportunities in life, and perhaps there will be many more in the future.
Fortunately, I missed the blooming season, but I didn't miss you.
How fortunate we are!
Luo Cuiwei smiled, her expression softening, her eyes darting around as she couldn't help but act mischievous again.
"If I hadn't realized my mistake back then and had instead said those words, what would you have done?"
"I'll throw you out." Yun Lie glared at her angrily, snorted, released his hand from her chin, and turned his head away.
The blush that appeared on the tips of his ears was enough to show that he was being hypocritical and bluffing.
A sweet, smug look appeared in Luo Cuiwei's eyes as she rested her chin on his shoulder again. "Oh, you were already lusting after him at first sight, so you couldn't bear to part with him."
"What? What?" Yun Lie turned his head, narrowing his eyes dangerously at her. "Did I get lustful first? Think carefully before you speak."
He really cares about this; he insists she admits she started it, otherwise it will be difficult to resolve the matter.
“Alright, I’ll let you have your way,” Luo Cuiwei looked up at the top of the bed curtains, pouted, and chuckled softly, “Just pretend I made the first move.”
Yun Lie secretly breathed a sigh of relief, pursed his lips and withdrew his gaze, not daring to look directly at her again.
The fact that she's willing to go along with his self-deception means she cares about him, right? That's good.
There are some things he doesn't know how to bring up right now... but she will find out eventually.
"It's almost late afternoon," Yun Lie suddenly realized something more important and immediately turned pale with alarm. "I still have to hurry and pay my respects to my father-in-law!"
This matter was far more serious to him than "how Luo Cuiwei had ill intentions in approaching him in the first place"!
Luo Cuiwei rolled her eyes at the ceiling and said lazily, "Some people suddenly lose their temper for no reason. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to appease them in time, so I asked Uncle Chen to send someone to tell my father that I won't be going today."
Hearing that she had already made proper arrangements, Yun Lie felt relieved.
However, he kept his furrowed brows and serious expression, and then accused me first, saying, "You're going to make my father-in-law unhappy with me, so you have to compensate me."
This unreasonable statement left Luo Cuiwei speechless with frustration. She spoke in a coquettish voice, both amused and exasperated, in his ear, "You..."
He choked on his words as soon as they left his mouth, unsure of what to say to him.
So, as if possessed, she opened her mouth and lightly bit his earlobe before continuing, "...you bastard."
It was as if a wildfire had been ignited at Yun Lie's ears, and a torrent of heat surged unstoppably into his limbs and bones in an instant.
He stiffened, cleared his throat with difficulty, then turned to meet her gaze, accusing her harshly, "You're the bastard! You've made a huge mistake, you know that?"
Luo Cuiwei seemed puzzled by her own actions, blushing and looking at him blankly, "I... I didn't... how could I..."
Yun Lie suddenly turned around and tackled her onto the bed, causing her to gasp in surprise.
Seemingly wary of touching his wound that had just been treated, Luo Cuiwei did not struggle, but simply looked up at him with a flushed face.
"What... a terrible mistake?" Her throat tightened.
Yun Lie placed his hands on either side of her, his tall body hovering above her. His handsome, light bronze face had a dark ochre hue, revealing a kind of suppressed ambition.
“Just now,” he chuckled hoarsely, slowly lowering his face, “you kissed the wrong place.”
On a sweltering summer afternoon, with an unexpected half-day of leisure, the best pastime is probably to cuddle with your beloved in the tent and indulge in carefree bliss.
Since they were currently inside the sleeping quarters, according to their agreement, their rations wouldn't be withheld.
Don't miss this opportunity, eat as much as you can!
****
The next morning, following local customs, the two went to the Luo family in western Beijing to formally pay their respects to Luo Huai and Zhuo Yu. Afterwards, they went to the Luo family ancestral hall to pay their respects to Luo Cuiwei's birth mother.
The Luo family of Jingxi were originally merchants and commoners, and their customs and etiquette were nothing more than those commonly seen in the countryside, not particularly complicated. Yun Lie, after all, was a prince, and he was more than capable of handling such a situation.
Next, the two were to enter the inner city to pay their respects to the Emperor and Empress with the rites of royalty, and then to meet Yun Lie's birth mother—
This seems to be difficult for Luo Cuiwei to handle with ease.