Did he bite her?
No.
He was kissing her.
“Ah Li, I didn’t bite you. I was kissing you!”
Ruan Qingli touched her lips. It seemed Han Sheng’s warmth still lingered on them.
She suddenly wanted to try it again.
So she asked,
“Han Sheng, can you do that again? I think… I kind of liked it.”
Such a request…
Han Sheng immediately granted her wish. This time, he didn’t stop after a brief kiss. Instead, he gently parted her lips with his tongue, slowly drawing her deeper into the kiss.
Ruan Qingli had no idea what she was doing, but she followed her instincts, wrapping her arms around Han Sheng’s neck and clumsily returning his kiss.
When they finally parted, both of them were breathing heavily.
Ruan Qingli felt something pressing lightly against her lower abdomen, so she reached out to touch it. Startled, Han Sheng quickly stepped back.
“What’s that?”
Seeing nothing but innocent curiosity in her eyes, Han Sheng looked equally puzzled.
“You really don’t know?”
Ruan Qingli shook her head. She genuinely had no idea.
Her expression didn’t look fake at all, leaving Han Sheng confused.
By all rights, Ruan Qingli had been married before, yet she didn’t even know how to kiss.
Could it be that she and Fang Shubai had never…
Han Sheng immediately dismissed the thought.
How could that be? If nothing had happened between them, why would the Fang family insist that Ah Li was unable to bear children?
After that little interruption, Ruan Qingli cleaned up the dishes while Han Sheng, instead of helping as usual, left the house.
There were some things he needed to arrange in advance.
The next morning, Han Sheng opened his eyes to find Ruan Qingli waiting beside his bed.
The soft morning light illuminated her face, making her bright eyes sparkle.
She startled him.
“Ah Li, why are you up so early?”
Ruan Qingli fidgeted with her fingers and asked timidly,
“Han Sheng, I wanted to ask… do you still mean what you said yesterday?”
Her question made Han Sheng’s heart ache.
How many times had she been deceived to feel this insecure?
“Ah Li, whenever I make you a promise, I always keep it.”
After thinking for a moment, Ruan Qingli suddenly leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.
The simple kiss sent Han Sheng’s heart racing.
“That doesn’t count as a real kiss, Ah Li. I taught you yesterday. Like this.”
He placed a hand behind her neck and gently pulled her closer.
The moment their lips met, his kiss was passionate and overwhelming. Ruan Qingli could hardly keep up and instinctively rested her hands against his chest.
Han Sheng was in excellent shape. His firm chest muscles felt incredibly solid beneath her fingertips, and she found herself reluctant to stop touching him.
Besides, he was only wearing his inner shirt, making the sensation even more distinct.
With the way she was unconsciously teasing him, Han Sheng’s self-control was quickly slipping away.
If she kept touching him like this, he feared a kiss alone would no longer satisfy him.
So he lowered his head, caught her wandering hand, and teased,
“How about… I take it off?”
Ruan Qingli immediately withdrew her hand, blushing furiously.
“Han Sheng, hurry up and get dressed. We’re not eating breakfast at home today. I’m taking you to have some freshly fried youguozi. How does that sound?”
“Sounds good! Let me get dressed and wash up first, then I’ll go with you.”
Fang Shubai had spent the entire night stewing in anger.
He had planned to wait until Han Sheng left before talking to Ruan Qingli, but instead he saw the two of them walking out together.
Bathed in the morning sunlight, the handsome man and beautiful woman made an eye-catching pair.
“Ah Li, let’s talk.”
Seeing Fang Shubai again, Ruan Qingli instinctively stepped closer to Han Sheng.
That small gesture infuriated Fang Shubai.
“Ah Li, come here.”
Han Sheng took Ruan Qingli’s hand in front of him and sneered.
“Why should she?”
“Because she’s my wife.”
Han Sheng corrected him.
“Your ex-wife.”
Then he turned to Ruan Qingli.
“Come on, Ah Li. If we wait any longer, the youguozi will get cold. Didn’t you say you wanted to buy some fabric to make me new clothes? Let’s not waste our time on someone who doesn’t matter.”
“Okay.”
Watching their interaction made Fang Shubai’s hands tremble with rage.
It felt like someone had stolen a melon he had grown himself, then deliberately taken a bite right in front of him while saying, So sweet.
If no one else wanted Ruan Qingli, he might not have cared so much.
But now that another man treasured her, he simply couldn’t accept it.
He stepped in front of Han Sheng and held up one finger.
“One hundred taels. I’ll give you one hundred taels. That’s enough to cover four or five years of your salary. Give Ah Li back to me.”
Han Sheng felt the urge to punch him.
“Fang Shubai, you call yourself a scholar, but do you even know what respect is? What do you think Ah Li is? Some object to be bought and sold? Keep your filthy money. Nobody wants it.”
He took Ruan Qingli’s hand and started to leave, but Fang Shubai called after them again.
“I’ll add another fifty taels. That should be enough, right? Han Sheng, with that much silver, you could marry three women if you wanted. Ruan Qingli shared my bed for three years, and she still can’t bear children. What do you want with a woman like that? Or do you have some strange obsession with taking another man’s used woman?”
Han Sheng finally reached the end of his patience.
He stopped and turned.
Ruan Qingli quickly grabbed his arm.
“Ah Sheng, don’t be impulsive. He’s only trying to provoke you into hitting him.”
Han Sheng understood the trick perfectly well.
But insulting him was one thing.
Insulting Ruan Qingli was another.
Still, she refused to let go.
“Han Sheng, don’t make me worry.”
Those words immediately calmed him.
He smiled gently at her, took her hand once more, and said,
“Come on. Let’s go eat.”
Fang Shubai was completely ignored.
Watching them walk away together, he silently clenched his fists.
The streets were bustling.
By the time Ruan Qingli and Han Sheng entered the breakfast shop, the first batch of youguozi had just come out of the fryer.
The oil in the wok bubbled vigorously as the freshly fried pastries glistened with a warm sheen. Their golden surfaces were covered in tiny blisters, making them look as though they had been coated in a crisp sugary shell.
Ruan Qingli asked Han Sheng to find a seat while she went to order.
“Aunt Tang, ten youguozi, two bowls of savory tofu pudding, and a small plate of pickled vegetables, please.”
As Aunt Tang turned the pastries in the oil, she asked,
“Qingli, can you really finish that much by yourself?”
Looking a little embarrassed, Ruan Qingli replied,
“It’s not just me. Han Sheng came with me.”
That simple sentence carried quite a bit of meaning.
Following Ruan Qingli’s gaze, Aunt Tang spotted Han Sheng sitting inside.
She winked at Ruan Qingli and whispered,
“Ah Li… what’s going on between you and Constable Han?”
Ruan Qingli nodded happily.
“We’re getting married. You have to come to our wedding feast.”
Aunt Tang beamed.
“Well now! Qingli, that’s wonderful news! Congratulations! I’ll definitely be there for your wedding banquet.”
Whether the congratulations were entirely sincere or not, Ruan Qingli still thanked her warmly and said she would be most welcome.
Aunt Tang’s youguozi were delicious—crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The crust shattered with every bite, while the center remained light and pleasantly chewy.
They were just a bit small.
Han Sheng finished one in barely three bites.
Seeing a few crispy crumbs stuck to the corner of his mouth, Ruan Qingli reached out to wipe them away.
But the moment she looked up, she saw Su Mingyuan entering the shop with a young woman beside him.