Seeing his skepticism, Madam Pei continued, “To say nothing of the capital, even the owner of the Xiangyun Pavilion right here in our Luozi City is a man who favors the company of men. He is already twenty-five but has never taken a wife because he keeps a lover at home. The townspeople speculated endlessly, thinking he had hidden away some great beauty and was simply unwilling to let them be seen in public. No one expected to run into the shopkeeper being intimate with him; only then did everyone learn of their affair.”
Madam Pei smoothed his clothes and softened her voice. “In this world, ‘Southern Winds’ are quite prevalent. Loving a woman is no different from loving a man, and marrying a woman is just like marrying a man. You may find it unacceptable now, but that might not be the case in the future. You must treat Zheng’er well, do you understand?”
What does she mean, ‘might not be the case in the future’?
Pei Qingyu curled his lip. Yu Tingzheng was just a little stutterer thin, small, and not even good-looking. How could he possibly take an interest in him?
He turned his head to glance at Yu Tingzheng, who was standing quietly under the corridor. The moment their eyes met, a strange feeling washed over him, and Pei Qingyu quickly looked away.
His expression remained sour. He pursed his lips, let out a huff, and called out, “What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and help me to the latrine.”
Yu Tingzheng stared blankly for a moment before walking over to support him. The second he made contact, Pei Qingyu trembled; his jaw tightened as he shot the boy a sideways glance. He wanted to say something, but he held back.
Yu Tingzheng had heard everything he and Madam Pei had said, though he didn’t quite understand it all. He had never heard of things like “favoring Longyang” or “broken sleeves” before; he only knew that the Pei family had bought him to be Pei Qingyu’s wife.
Seeing Pei Qingyu’s reaction, Yu Tingzheng realized that the sudden change in status had made the other boy uncomfortable. He slowly loosened his grip on his arm, supporting him only lightly.
The tension at the corners of Pei Qingyu’s mouth relaxed, and he gave him a chilling look.
Yu Tingzheng: “…”
While Pei Qingyu was inside, Yu Tingzheng sat on a stone outside and waited. He felt a bit dazed, unsure of how he had suddenly become someone else’s wife.
He was clearly a male. Pei Qingyu was also a male.
But, Yu Tingzheng thought, Pei Qingyu is even prettier than most girls. Being a man shouldn’t matter too much, right?
Lost in these thoughts, a faint joy bubbled up in his heart. When he turned his head, he was startled by the figure who had appeared behind him at some unknown point.
“Yu… Yu’er?” Yu Tingzheng leaped away, looking at the youth in shock. “How come… you walk without… making a sound?”
“How could there be no sound? You’re just deaf.” Pei Qingyu’s tone was becoming increasingly blunt.
Yu Tingzheng let out a soft “oh” and offered a silly, wide grin. He stepped forward eagerly to support him, then, remembering something, changed his mind and merely pinched a corner of his sleeve instead.
“Yu’er… isn’t well yet. You must go back and keep lying down.”
Pei Qingyu looked at him.
Yu Tingzheng asked, “What is it, Yu’er?”
Pei Qingyu thought to himself: This person is already starting to fulfill the duties of a wife.
After a moment of silence, he raised his hand with an air of dignity. “Support me.”
He reasoned that Yu Tingzheng was his wife, after all, so why be distant? It was just a touch for now, but in the future, they might even have to.
As a certain thought crossed his mind, Pei Qingyu’s beautiful face suddenly flushed a deep red.
When they returned, Madam Pei saw them and cast a suspicious gaze back and forth between the two.
What did they do to make his face turn that red?
After only a single glance at her, Pei Qingyu quietly looked away. He gave Yu Tingzheng a nudge, signaling him to help him into the room.
Yu Tingzheng was completely oblivious to his strange behavior. Once they were inside and he had helped the other boy lie down, drowsiness overcame him. He looked longingly at the bed.
He really wanted to sleep.
Because he had to care for Pei Qingyu over the last two days, Yu Tingzheng hadn’t slept much. Tonight, he hadn’t closed his eyes at all; dark circles had formed under his eyes, and they were shot through with bloodshot streaks.
“What are you looking at? Hurry up and get in.” Pei Qingyu had already climbed into the inner side of the bed. Seeing the other boy hesitate to join him, he lost his patience.
Hearing this, Yu Tingzheng’s eyes widened sluggishly. “I… I’m sleeping… too?”
“You’re not sleeping?” Pei Qingyu looked up at him, his expression a bit awkward.
Yu Tingzheng hurriedly replied, “No no, I want to sleep.”
Pei Qingyu gave a light huff. “Then hurry up and get in.”
Yu Tingzheng scrambled onto the bed, realizing halfway through that he hadn’t taken off his shoes. He rolled over and sat on the edge of the bed to pull them off.
He didn’t notice that the gaze Pei Qingyu was fixing on him had slowly slid from his shoulders down to his narrow waist. After watching for a moment, Pei Qingyu looked away, feigning indifference as soon as Yu Tingzheng turned back.
“Oh!” Yu Tingzheng cried out in alarm. “Yu’er, your face is so red. Are you having a high fever again?”
Just as he reached out to check his temperature, Pei Qingyu jerked backward, dodging his hand. Yu Tingzheng’s hand froze in mid-air as he blinked.
“Yu’er…”
He had only just opened his mouth when something soft and warm pressed into his palm.
Pei Qingyu had pressed his own forehead against Yu Tingzheng’s palm for a brief second before immediately pulling away. He sat cross-legged on the inner side of the bed, clutching the quilt and staring intently at the person before him. He thought to himself that he didn’t want the little stutterer to be sad over such a small matter.
After staring for a while, however, he couldn’t see a hint of sadness on the other’s face.
He then figured it was because he had taken the initiative to let him check his temperature that the boy wasn’t so sad anymore.
“The fever, has gone down.” Yu Tingzheng lay down on the bed and pushed the quilt toward Pei Qingyu. “Sleep one more day and you should be better.”
Pei Qingyu curled his lip and pulled the quilt away, the flush on his face still lingering. “You’re not covering up?”
Yu Tingzheng grinned foolishly. “I’m not cold.”
“I’m burning up,” Pei Qingyu muttered, attempting to toss the quilt aside so he could sleep uncovered just like him.
Yu Tingzheng let out a yawn, but seeing this, he grew anxious. He pulled the quilt back and covered him properly. “Yu’er is sick, you must cover up.”
A pair of eyes shimmering with a watery light looked at him, making Pei Qingyu’s heart skip a beat. For some reason, he hurriedly averted his gaze and curled his lip. “It’s none of your business.”
This little stutterer started acting like my wife so quickly; he is simply shameless.
Undeterred by his words, Yu Tingzheng continued to nag with the air of an elder: “Yu’er is sick, how can I… not care? If it were me… who was sick, Yu’er… would surely… take care of me too.”
Pei Qingyu was left speechless by those words for a long while before he turned his head away awkwardly, his face turning red. “Why should I take care of you? Don’t be so full of yourself.”
Yu Tingzheng didn’t argue. After thinking about it, he felt it made sense. He nodded in agreement. “Yu’er is… a young master from… a wealthy family. Naturally… you shouldn’t have to… take care of me.”
Pei Qingyu was once again stifled by his words.
After a long silence, the more he thought about it, the more he felt Yu Tingzheng’s words were unpleasant to hear though he couldn’t quite put his finger on why. Feeling irritable, he lay down and turned his back to the other boy, sulking by himself.
He didn’t even know what he was angry about.
Yu Tingzheng didn’t realize he was angry. Seeing the quilt sliding off him, he moved closer to tuck him in again. Unexpectedly, Pei Qingyu suddenly flipped over. Their noses brushed against each other, and their eyes met.
Pei Qingyu’s eyes widened, looking at him in utter disbelief. This person is so impatient to get close to me.
Yu Tingzheng had never been this close to anyone before. He felt a bit uncomfortable, but unaware of what the other was thinking, he said seriously, “Yu’er, cover up properly.”
In the next instant, Pei Qingyu raised his hand and pushed his face away, his voice carrying a warning: “You are not allowed to touch me.”
He looked quite fierce.
Yu Tingzheng lay back in his spot dejectedly. After a while, he tossed and turned, still feeling uneasy. He lay on his side facing Pei Qingyu, his lips trembling slightly before he finally called out to him.
Pei Qingyu, who had been lying stiff and awake the whole time, immediately snapped, “What?”
Yu Tingzheng asked, “Does Yu’er… dislike it… when I touch you?”
“I dislike it,” Pei Qingyu said without a second thought. After a moment, he added, “I dislike anyone touching me. I don’t even like it when my parents do.”
“Oh.” So that was it.
Yu Tingzheng took note of this, deciding he would not touch him again.
After a while, however, he realized something wasn’t right. Just now, he had clearly only pulled the quilt; he hadn’t even touched the person yet.
It seemed that in the future, he couldn’t even help Yu’er with the quilt.