Liu Qingdai glanced at Fu Jiuxin and said softly to Dou Akou, "Akou, how about we wait a few more days? Although Ninth Brother has been busy with many things these past few days, he has never forgotten about you. However, it will take some time to sort things out. Don't be impatient. The spies we sent to Ziwei Qingdu have sent back a message saying that Master Dou and the others are alright for the time being."
Upon hearing this, Dou Akou suddenly realized that her request to leave was somewhat unreasonable, and stammered, "Oh. Then I'll stay a little longer."
As soon as she spoke, Fu Jiuxin slowly released his curled, slender fingers. Dou Akou didn't notice, but Liu Qingdai stared at him thoughtfully for a long time.
Dou Akou put down her teacup and went outside. In the courtyard, Su Luoyang and the boys were playing wrestling, shirtless. Seeing Dou Akou, he ran up to her breathlessly: "Tangyuanzi! I'm leaving tomorrow. You heard that the young master sent me to investigate. You need to be more quick-witted on your own, don't be so silly."
He had just finished wrestling with someone, his bare upper body covered in beads of sweat and tiny scratches from the sand on the ground, standing steaming in front of Dou Akou.
Dou Akou covered her eyes: "You, you should put your clothes on first."
Not strong at all. The gentleman's body is much better looking than his, Dou Akou thought involuntarily.
But the thought of her husband made her heart sink even lower.
Su Luoyang chuckled and put on the clothes hanging at his waist: "Alright. Open your eyes now."
He looked around a few times, then pulled Dou Akou into a quiet corner and said, "Tangyuanzi, listen carefully."
"You like the young master, right?"
A faint blush rose to Dou Akou's face as she whispered, "I didn't know that before, but I've only recently discovered it..."
"If you like him, that's fine." Su Luoyang interrupted her. "In my opinion, the young master may not be indifferent to you, but given his personality, it's difficult for him to say it out loud. I think it would be better if you took the initiative to break the ice first?"
"Me?" Dou Akou was very surprised, her face turning as red as if it were about to bleed. She first realized her feelings for Mr. Bai Cao Jing. When she left the Ding family of Bai Cao Jing to return to Ziwei Qingdu to find Mr. Bai Cao Jing, she was filled with thoughts of confiding in him. Even after being imprisoned and traveling thousands of miles to find Mr. Bai Cao Jing, she never wavered in her feelings.
But during her days at the palace, she finally understood that reality always breaks people. She dared not tell him about her feelings for him anymore.
She waved her hands repeatedly. She already felt guilty for having such thoughts about her husband, let alone taking the initiative to bring it up.
"Useless!" Su Luoyang was utterly exasperated. "Think about it, if you don't take the initiative, the young master will be snatched away by someone else! A man as outstanding as him, there are girls in Dragon Phoenix Town crying and clamoring to marry him, their line could stretch to the ends of the earth. Besides, once he becomes the ruler of Siyou Kingdom, his value will be even higher!"
Dou Akou thought that she loved the gentleman, regardless of whether he was the Dou family's accountant or the young master of Siyou Kingdom; she only loved that person.
But the thought that her husband might really belong to someone else made her feel very sad.
"Then... will this really work?" she asked Su Luoyang cautiously.
"Hey. Do you think you'll work this way? Give it a try, it won't hurt. It can't get any worse than you are now."
Dou Akou blankly uttered an "Oh," and made up her mind that she would find an opportunity to talk things out with A Xin.
Deep wound
Dou Akou decides to confess her feelings to Fu Jiuxin.
But she couldn't find Fu Jiuxin anywhere.
Uncle Chen asked her, "Miss Dou, what business do you have with the young master?"
Dou Akou was not good at lying, and stammered, "I want to talk to you about saving my father."
"I'm really sorry," Uncle Chen smiled. "Young Master went out to discuss some matters today, and it's uncertain whether he'll return. Even if he does, it will be evening."
“Oh…” Dou Akou’s disappointment was evident.
Uncle Chen closely observed Dou Akou's expression and slowly said, "Miss Dou, the young master is a man destined for great things. But he doesn't seem to care much about these great things. As his subordinates, all we can do is remove all obstacles that hinder or hold him back, whether they are things or people. The young master is soft-hearted, but I, Uncle Chen, am not. Do you know Qingdai, Miss Dou? When she first recognized the young master, I thought she was the one who had captured his heart, and I secretly tried to take her, but failed. Later, I discovered that the young master had no romantic feelings for her, and she was not his weakness, so I let her go. The young master's future and great cause cannot afford any mishaps, nor can it tolerate any uncontrollable factors. Do you understand?"
Dou Akou didn't understand. She didn't know why Uncle Chen had suddenly said these things to her. She nodded hurriedly, "I understand," and then ran away.
Chen Bo watched the direction Dou Akou had gone, then tucked the thin dagger between his fingers back into his sleeve.
Dou Akou was very depressed. Lately, everything had gone wrong for her. She had finally made up her mind, but she couldn't find the person she wanted to confess her feelings to.
"Akou!" Qingdai was just coming out of Zhilan Pavilion when she saw her from afar and waved enthusiastically.
Because of Fu Jiuxin, Dou Akou could never bring herself to like her; she always felt that Qingdai had stolen her teacher away.
"Miss Qingdai." Despite her dislike, Dou Akou still stood still and greeted her respectfully.
"Where are you going?" Liu Qingdai looked at Dou Akou curiously, noticing that Dou Akou seemed to have dressed up specially today. Her clothes were usually plain and simple, and her hair ornaments consisted of only a bone hairpin, but today she was wearing a pink dress and had a freshly picked peach blossom in her hair.
Her attire, in the eyes of those girls who paid attention to makeup, probably couldn't even be considered overdressed. Qingdai thought that even if she didn't wear any rouge, standing next to Dou Akou, she would still be far more stunning than her. But for some reason, whenever she looked into Dou Akou's eyes, she felt... that this filthy world was actually full of goodness.
"I looked for the gentleman, but he wasn't there."
Liu Qingdai recalled for a moment: "That's right, Ninth Brother said he was going out on business today, so you missed him."
Dou Akou remained silent. It turned out that the master told Qingdai everything.
“Alright then. Go wait for Ninth Brother in his room. He’ll be back eventually, I reckon around dinner time.” Liu Qingdai clenched her fist and tapped it.
Dou Akou's eyes widened: "Can I go?"
“Sure,” Liu Qingdai said matter-of-factly. “Look. Ninth Brother’s Danhua Tower is over there. I can take you there.”
Dou Akou hesitated for a moment. She thought that she was just going there to wait for her husband, so it probably wouldn't matter.
Liu Qingdai took Dou Akou's hand and walked ahead. She entered Danhua Tower as if it were her own Zhilan Pavilion, and she knew the place very well. Dou Akou saw this and felt sad again.
Liu Qingdai didn't stay with Dou Akou for very long; she chatted with Dou Akou for a while and then left.
Since entering Danhua Tower, Dou Akou dared not look around carelessly. Only after Liu Qingdai left did she dare to stand up and wander around at will.
Like Fu Jiuxin's house in the Dou Mansion, Danhua Tower was quiet and plain. Apart from the necessary furniture and books, there was no other decoration. Only a peach blossom was placed in a white porcelain vase in the corner.
Dou Akou thought to herself, "This is indeed the gentleman's taste."
She walked a few more steps inside, past a screen, into the inner room. There was a bed and a low table, and the bed was covered with a blue satin quilt.
Dou Akou sat down on the bed in a daze and reached out to touch the quilt.
As a child, she was afraid of the dark, the cold, and being alone. Although her wet nurse slept in the outer room, her snoring and coughing sounded even more terrifying in the dead of night. So she would secretly get out of bed, wrap herself in a bright red brocade quilt, and stumble past her sleeping wet nurse, making her way through the dark garden to Fu Jiuxin's room. When the master opened the door, she would climb onto the bed without a word, roll to the inner side of the bed, and hug the master's pillow, refusing to get off. At first, the master would put on a stern face and say a lot about the difference between men and women, and that it was inappropriate to touch her, and that her reputation should not be ruined. Often, while he was still speaking, Dou Akou would have already fallen asleep with her cheek pressed against his quilt.
On several later occasions, the gentleman went with her, and even ordered people to light lamps in the courtyard at night to illuminate the way for Dou Akou who had sneaked over—this was Dou Akou's sweetest memory, such a secret joy.
By the time Dou Akou came to her senses, she was already lying on her husband's bed, hugging his blanket, just like before. Dou Akou happily rolled around in the bedding, her nose filled with her husband's scent and aroma, feeling as at ease as if she were back home.
She initially told herself she would only lie down for a while and get up soon, after which she would fold the blankets for her husband. However, these past few days, she had been worried about her family and heartbroken by Fu Jiuxin's indifference, and hadn't had a good night's sleep. Now, surrounded by her husband's presence, just like when she slept beside him as a child, she unknowingly fell asleep.
She slept soundly, and time flew by in her sleep. When Dou Akou groggily woke up, it was already dark.
She rubbed her sleepy eyes childishly, opened them, and saw that standing by the bed was none other than the man she had been longing for.
Dou Akou blinked hard, thinking she was dreaming, but the tall figure by the bed didn't disappear. She cheered and jumped out of bed: "Axin!"
Then she saw Fu Jiuxin's expression. He seemed to have just rushed back from outside, his clothes and hair covered with dew and frost from the chilly spring weather, and his expression was as cold as frost.
Dou Akou's heart skipped a beat, and her momentum gradually weakened.
"Why are you here?" Fu Jiuxin asked after a long silence, her voice devoid of emotion.
“I…” Dou Akou stammered, thinking that she couldn’t miss this opportunity again, so she mustered her courage, clenched her fist, raised her head sharply, closed her eyes and shouted in one breath: “Axin, I like you!”
Her face was flushed a deep red, as beautiful as a vibrant sunset.
She waited with her eyes closed for a long time, but what she got in return was the unexpected rage of the man who had pampered her since childhood and given her the most wonderful things in the world.
"Get off me!" Dou Akou was dragged off the bed, wrapped in the quilt, and slammed to the ground.
Her jaw struck the hard corner of the bed, and a metallic taste of blood immediately filled her mouth.
Before she could react, she still treated Ah Xin as her husband, and called out to him sweetly, "Ah Xin, it hurts."
Fu Jiuxin ignored him, exerted force, and pulled hard, causing Dou Akou to fall heavily to the ground.
A deep blue color spread from beneath her, contrasting with her rapidly fading pale face. She could no longer hold back and vomited a mouthful of blood, which splattered onto the blue blankets.
Dou Akou's eyes widened in disbelief, as if she were asking Fu Jiuxin, or perhaps herself, "What?"
"Uncle Chen!" Fu Jiuxin called out.
"Yes, sir." Uncle Chen entered in response, looking at the disheveled Dou Akou on the ground. "Miss Dou, please leave."
Dou Akou suddenly woke up and frantically shouted at Fu Jiuxin, "Axin! Axin! It's me!"
Don't you recognize me? How could Ah Xin treat her like this!
Uncle Chen, growing impatient, grabbed her disheveled long hair and dragged her outside. Dou Akou, her fingers gripping the ground, lay prone on the floor, raising her head and crying out, "Axin! It hurts! It hurts!"
The neck, raised amidst despair and hopelessness, bent into a dignified arc.
Amidst the shattered chaos, she wondered if her affection had desecrated him? Perhaps it was because their relationship—that of siblings and teacher-student—disgusted him?
Tears streamed down her face as she cried out, "Sir! I won't do it again! I won't call you Ah Xin anymore, and I won't dare to like you anymore! Sir! Sir! I'll never do it again!"
She no longer asks for anything; all she needs is her old husband!
The threshold was extremely high, and Dou Akou was dragged out, her supple waist slamming heavily against the cold, hard ground. She was so pained she lost her voice, tears welling in her throat, and she coughed incessantly.
Dou Akou's ears were ringing. She coughed with all her might, thinking desperately, "I might as well cough up my heart and liver!"
The man inside the room had been watching silently until he finally spoke, saying, "Miss Dou, have some self-respect. Can't you shake this habit of climbing into men's beds since you were little? Do you think this is still the Dou residence?"
Ah...yes!
This is no longer the Dou residence.
Dou Akou is no longer the pampered young lady of the Dou family.
The gentleman is no longer the boy he picked up.
He is the young master of the Siyou Kingdom.
And what is she?
She's so despicable.
Outside, people who had heard the commotion were already peeking out to watch the spectacle. When Qiu Ke and his thirteen companions saw Dou Akou being dragged out, they immediately knew something was wrong. They wanted to help, but Uncle Chen kept watching them and sent them back. Su Luoyang, the most capable of helping, had been sent outside, leaving them helpless and anxious.
Dou Akou's eyes were blurred with tears. She had never known she had so many tears, as if she wanted to drown her whole heart in them.
Uncle Chen struck with extreme force. Dou Akou's eyes were half-open as she touched her waist with both hands, where the knife Xu Liren had given her was.
She exerted all her strength and moved with incredible speed. The knife was drawn from its sheath, tracing a full moon arc. Amidst a gasp, her long hair, which Chen Bo had been holding, was cleanly severed and fell to the ground, fluttering in the wind.
In the instant Chen Bo was stunned, Dou Akou had already stood up unsteadily.
Seeing the knife in her hand, Uncle Chen instantly exuded murderous intent and struck out with a palm, leaving Dou Akou no time to dodge.
"Akou, watch out!" Qiu Ke, quick-witted, flicked a pebble, striking Dou Akou's pressure point. Dou Akou swayed, barely dodging Uncle Chen's palm strike. Uncle Chen's sharp palm wind flew past her ear, and Dou Akou felt a sharp pain in her right ear. She vaguely thought that her only remaining earring had probably been torn away.
She fell to the ground, her blood-stained earring lying in front of her. She tried to pick it up, but someone kicked her away.