Li Jiao was awakened by discomfort.
Just as Song Li Sheng lacked experience, last night he had helped Li Jiao remove her shoes and covered her with a blanket, but he had no concept of helping her remove her makeup.
By morning, Li Jiao’s face felt terribly dry.
She rubbed her face roughly with her eyes still closed.
So sticky.
Who on earth had the audacity to mess with her face while she was away from her body?
“A Mo, attend to your Daughter of Duke for face washing.”
Li Jiao called out, then lay peacefully in bed waiting for her personal maid to enter and serve her.
Yet one minute, two minutes, three minutes passed, and the room remained utterly silent, with no sound of anyone entering.
As a maid, A Mo had excellent professional discipline and always responded within a minute of being called.
Li Jiao sensed something was wrong.
She sprang up from the bed like a carp leaping.
Dark green wallpaper came into view, with white wainscoting below—clearly a French retro style.
Though Li Jiao couldn’t distinguish between Chinese, American, or French styles, it was obvious this was a modern house, not her ancient bedroom.
“Damn it…” She hadn’t returned after waking up drunk? This was completely different from what she’d expected!
The thought of not knowing how long she’d have to stay in this world, possibly for the rest of her life, made Li Jiao feel…
Well, it wasn’t entirely unacceptable.
Thinking of all the things on that mobile phone, there were still many novelties in this world waiting for her to explore.
After all, since her father’s passing, there was nothing in ancient times she truly cared about anymore.
Her mother had more daughters than could be counted on one hand, and while she showed some concern for Li Jiao as the eldest legitimate daughter, it wasn’t much.
If you asked Li Jiao, her chancellor mother cared most about her cousin the Empress and their Great Zhou Empire.
Li Jiao continued comforting herself.
Aside from this being a society governed by law without the concept of servants, requiring her to do everything herself, it was still acceptable.
As for status issues… well, where there’s a will, there’s a way.
It was all manageable.
Besides, yesterday she had even gained a stunningly beautiful Male Consort without spending anything—definitely not a loss.
With her top-notch adaptability, Li Jiao quickly regained her composure, threw off the covers, and decided to first wash away the greasy substance on her face herself.
But…
“Ah… why won’t it wash off with water…”
Li Jiao smoothed her wet hair in the mirror, looking at her nearly rubbed-red face that had only lost a tiny bit of color, and couldn’t help but frown.
“How exactly are you supposed to wash this stuff off!”
She angrily turned off the faucet, placed both hands on the edges of the sink, and closed her eyes, trying to recall how to remove it from memory.
“Makeup remover…”
She retrieved knowledge about makeup removal from her mind.
But clearly, Song Li Sheng’s home didn’t have any.
Li Jiao put down the last bottle of skincare product placed in the cabinet and sighed.
Doing things yourself was truly difficult.
She could only squeeze more facial cleanser onto her face and rub until, through the mirror, her appearance became barely presentable, then wiped away the water droplets with a towel.
Tilting her head, she stretched her neck and wiped away the water trail that had flowed down her jaw into her collar.
After tidying her hair, Li Jiao walked out of the bedroom.
Song Li Sheng had barely slept all night.
After placing Li Jiao on the bedroom bed last night, he didn’t hesitate further and went straight back to the study. He opened his computer and began carefully reading the agreement the lawyer had sent to his email.
He had been extremely busy these past few days and was mentally exhausted, yet despite having just consumed alcohol, he forced himself to drink hot black coffee while massaging his temples, stubbornly revising the contract with the lawyer.
Long nights invite bad dreams – only by having Li Jiao sign the agreement as early as possible could he truly rest easy.
Song Li Sheng wasn’t in the habit of sleeping in. Although he hadn’t closed his eyes until nearly 3 AM, he still got up promptly at 7 o’clock.
The agreement lay waiting on the first-floor dining table along with him, anticipating Li Jiao’s awakening.
Just as he finished his third cup of hot Americano, the sound of a door opening finally came from upstairs.
Then came the noise of slippers sliding across solid wood flooring, growing gradually louder as it approached Song Li Sheng’s ears.
The dark residue at the bottom of his cup reflected his expressionless face.
But by the time Song Li Sheng looked up, his face had already assumed that consistently hypocritical smile.
“Morning.”
As their eyes met, Li Jiao naturally curved her lips and greeted him.
“Are you feeling alright? I was worried after you drank too much yesterday.”
Song Li Sheng stood up and walked toward her, his expression appropriately conveying concern.
“It’s nothing, just a few drinks. I was just a bit tired yesterday.”
Li Jiao would never admit that she got drunk after just one glass.
When Song Li Sheng approached, she openly examined his attire.
Dressed in beige loungewear, with his hair obediently tucked behind his ears perfectly concealing the sharp angles of his face, he appeared completely non-threatening at this moment.
Although she didn’t like that his hair was too short, remembering this was a rather strange world, Li Jiao quite satisfiedly withdrew her gaze.
She had always believed that if she were to take a husband, he must be gentle, handsome, and considerate.
And this new husband of hers, Song Li Sheng, could be considered passable.
Now that they were married, the two of them shouldn’t remain so distant.
Thinking this, Li Jiao glanced down at Song Li Sheng’s hand hanging at his side.
Then, tentatively, she took hold of it.
Song Li Sheng hadn’t missed the flash of satisfaction that had crossed Li Jiao’s face earlier, though he didn’t understand its meaning.
Thus, in his confusion, his mind wandered.
As his sensitive fingertips were held in her hand, he suddenly felt an electric current flow up his arm into his heart.
By the time he regained his composure, Li Jiao had already pulled him to the dining table.
Before Song Li Sheng could withdraw his hand, Li Jiao had released her grip and, pressing her lips together, sat down in the main seat he had previously occupied.
She was controlling her expression to appear as natural as possible.
Ah, her little husband was too shy and passive, not even daring to look at her when she held his hand.
If she laughed now, wouldn’t that make her little husband too embarrassed to breathe?
Song-the-shy-and-passive-Li Sheng looked down at his palm, then glanced sideways at the radiant Li Jiao.
He could only helplessly pull out a chair and sit down.
He was finding this woman’s words and actions increasingly incomprehensible.
She was completely different from before.
But he didn’t like things that escaped his control.
If it were the previous Li Jiao, he probably wouldn’t be in such a hurry to sign this agreement.
“Miss Li, please take a look at this.”
Song Li Sheng didn’t want to waste any more time, so he directly pushed the agreement on the table toward Li Jiao.
“I know you don’t want to marry me, and I don’t want to force you either. So… if this is what you want, I’m willing to divorce you at a time that’s appropriate for both the Song and Li families. During this period, I’ll do my best not to interfere with your life.”