Pei Zhiyu rode swiftly back to the residence, only gradually slowing his pace as he approached Qiwu Court, where the two of them shared quarters.
The maidservant Chenbi greeted him, handing him a bundle of daylilies and magnolia flowers before following half a step behind him in a low voice:
“My lord, the madam had a private conversation with Shiyue this morning. Afterwards, she had some osmanthus rice cakes and several refills of the newly arrived Phoenix Dancong tea. She also exchanged a letter with Fourth Miss Xiao of the Xiao household…”
She reported the minutiae of Jiang Sui’s morning in exhaustive detail.
Pei Zhiyu listened, and upon confirming that no strangers had appeared among them, instructed: “If she likes it, keep more in stock.”
Chenbi knew he meant the tea leaves, and withdrew with an acknowledgment.
Standing outside the courtyard, Pei Zhiyu lowered his gaze and deliberately ruffled the bouquet in his arms, letting it fall into slight disarray before entering.
At the maidservant’s announcement, the chamber door slid open, and a petite figure wrapped in faint fragrance came out to greet him. The spilling sunlight made her face glow white as jade, the hairpins in her coiffure gleaming brightly—yet they paled before the radiance in her eyes.
Pei Zhiyu’s jaw tightened slightly. Suppressing the urge to pull her into his arms, he restrainedly offered the bouquet, his voice gentle:
“On my way back, I noticed several clusters blooming in the garden. I thought you might like them, so I picked some for you.”
The flower branches lay between them, and Jiang Sui barely managed to stop herself from stumbling forward into him—a small pang of regret in her heart.
She could have stolen a hug otherwise…
Still, she took the bouquet with delighted surprise, burying her nose briefly among the blossoms to inhale their scent, then looked up at him with crescent-shaped eyes:
“How did my husband know I was just wanting these flowers?”
The girl stood holding the flowers, her smile seeming to carry the sweet fragrance of flower nectar.
Pei Zhiyu stepped forward almost imperceptibly, close enough to catch the scent wafting from her hair.
A shadow flickered across his clear, handsome features as he answered in a warm voice: “Perhaps our hearts are connected.”
Of course—Chenbi had mentioned yesterday that she’d said something about it… He would naturally seek them out for her.
Jiang Sui smiled brightly, a hint of shyness coloring her cheeks. As she lowered her gaze to smell the flowers again, her eyes swept over the two sachets hanging side by side at his waist.
One she had sent this morning, one from before.
He hadn’t taken either off… How wonderful.
Joyful at heart, Jiang Sui carried her armful of flowers and walked briskly into the chamber. Pei Zhiyu stared at her retreating figure, his gaze deepening by the moment, before following at a slower pace.
In the flower hall, maids were busily setting out the meal. Jiang Sui slipped into the bedchamber, arranging the flowers at varying heights in a long-necked porcelain vase before emerging again.
“My husband must be tired. I had the small kitchen prepare some light dishes today—won’t you try them?”
As she spoke, she sat across from him, and when she served him food, the back of her hand happened to brush against his fingertips as he reached for his teacup.
The slick, cool touch vanished in an instant. Pei Zhiyu’s jaw suddenly tightened. He raised the teacup to his lips, masking the unnatural curve of his mouth:
“…Thank you, madam.”
Jiang Sui’s smile was soft and light as she sat back properly, but the small patch of skin on her hand that he had touched seemed to retain a lingering warmth that refused to fade.
Her fingers tightened around her chopsticks. She bit her lip lightly and stole a glance at the man across from her.
The famed young heir of the Pei household, renowned throughout the capital—every gesture he made carried an air of noble grace, and even his unhurried manner of dining was a pleasure to behold.
Yet gazing at such a jade-like handsome gentleman… Jiang Sui’s lashes trembled as she looked away, secretly annoyed at how strictly he adhered to propriety.
And yet—and yet, after all these years, only his touch made her feel most at ease…
Pei Zhiyu lifted his gaze as if by chance, his line of sight sweeping over his young wife across the table.
Her drooping, curled lashes made her look all the more docile. Her snow-white cheeks puffed and deflated gently as she chewed, like a little kitten focused on its meal.
He watched for a while, then slowly closed his eyes, pausing for several breaths before opening them again.
His Suisui…
“Madam, there are some matters at the Imperial City Agency that need attending. Don’t wait for me at dinner.”
Jiang Sui’s chewing paused. She looked up at him, seeming startled by the sudden announcement, and gave a dazed acknowledgment.
Pei Zhiyu’s gaze then fell on a tiny crumb that had inadvertently stuck to her lip. His knuckles trembled involuntarily.
He wanted… wanted to lick it off.
But in the end, he only handed her a snow-white handkerchief with a composed expression, though his voice was lower and rougher than usual:
“Madam, you’ve got something on your face.”
Jiang Sui quickly took it and wiped. Pei Zhiyu watched her movements, his thumb unconsciously rubbing back and forth over the spot where her fingers had touched when she received the handkerchief.
That medicine… that medicine…
Let’s try it tonight.
During the day, he had restrained himself with great effort—not only out of fear that she would be disgusted, but more so because he worried he might lose control and frighten her.
But this mere tasting at the surface… was about to drive him… mad.
On the other side, Xiao Heng returned to his residence to search for that new medicine for Pei Zhiyu.
Seeing the noticeably reduced number of porcelain bottles in the medicine drawer, a vein bulged at his temple. He stormed out of the room and bellowed:
“Xiao Lanxi! Get your ass over here!!”
Fourth Miss Xiao, Xiao Lanxi, appeared with a cheeky grin, nimbly sidestepping her brother’s furious swat while rattling off:
“Third brother, third brother… let me explain!”
“Explain what! How many times have I told you—don’t touch the things in my medicine room!”
Xiao Lanxi dodged and fled, covering her head, while shouting back: “That formula was my idea in the first place! Brother, you’re being ungrateful!”
Upon hearing this, Xiao Heng grew even angrier: “You have the nerve to say that! That shoddy prescription of yours—can it even be given to a person?!”
The two of them fled and chased in a chaotic commotion until Xiao Heng’s anger had run its course. He stopped, bracing his waist as he caught his breath, then raised a hand, his fingertip trembling as he pointed at her—whether from exhaustion or fury, it was hard to tell:
“I… I’m asking you… who… who did you give the medicine to…?”
Xiao Lanxi blinked and said in a small voice:
“I gave it to Third Aunt…”
There were countless “Third Aunts” throughout the capital, but the one Xiao Lanxi referred to could only be one person.
The youngest daughter of Grand Tutor Jiang, now the wife of Young Master Pei—Jiang Sui.
Since it was someone familiar, Xiao Heng let out a slight sigh of relief. He lowered his hand, and in his memory flashed that gentle, pure face. Looking at his mischievous little sister before him, he was momentarily at a loss for words:
“What did you give it to her for?”
“Third Aunt came to visit a few days ago and said she hadn’t been sleeping well. I thought that since Third Aunt is frail and couldn’t just take any medicine casually, I… I remembered this new prescription of yours, Brother.”
Hearing this, Xiao Heng narrowed his eyes and muttered instinctively: “So she can’t sleep well either?”
Xiao Lanxi looked confused: “Either? Who else?”
Xiao Heng paused, remembering that Pei Zhiyu had said Jiang Sui must not know about this matter.
His little sister was close to Jiang Sui and had a loose tongue—she might very well let it slip…
He sneered, and seeing that Xiao Lanxi had let her guard down, completely failing to flee as he approached, he reached out with his long arm and grabbed her ear.
“Xiao Si Niang, worry about yourself.”
“Get back and clean the medicine hut!”
Xiao Lanxi let out a series of “ow, ow” cries as she was dragged away by her elder brother.
In the afternoon, Jiang Sui once again saw Pei Zhiyu off, then returned to her room to retrieve the ledger she hadn’t finished sorting through that morning.
The handwriting in the ledger was delicate and elegant, but the contents recorded were what Pei Zhiyu had eaten that day, what he had worn… naturally including the morning meal she had sent over.
Yet she wrote with focused concentration, utterly serious, the content of her writing lending her harmless face an almost eerie quality.
Shiyue, standing nearby, silently averted her gaze.
Having served at her young lady’s side since childhood, she had witnessed countless scenes like this, but every time she saw it, she still felt a slight unease.
“Shiyue.” Jiang Sui said without looking up, “This dish—my husband didn’t eat much of it. No need to serve it in the future.”
“And that belt today—I haven’t seen it before. Tonight, have Chenbi bring over my husband’s attire for tomorrow first, so I can review it.”
Shiyue glanced at what she was pointing at and softly acknowledged.
Her young lady was being overly attentive again… She could only hope the Young Master would never discover it.