It was late when Tuan Yun returned to the Earl’s residence.
Whatever methods Cui Jianying had used, the stewardess did not ask a single question, nor mention a single word and even took the initiative to find excuses when reporting the day’s affairs.
No one guided Tuan Yun yet his own guilty conscience made him suspect his clothes were disheveled, his hair different from how it had been when he left.
The first thing he thought of upon returning to his courtyard was to boil water, to bathe, to wash away all evidence.
He searched everywhere for Zhu’er and did not find her. Uneasy, he quietly asked around and only after some effort did he locate her in the maids’ quarters.
Clear slap marks marred Zhu’er’s face, layered one over another. Her eyes were bloodshot from crying. When she saw Tuan Yun, she even tried to hide, unwilling to let him see.
“What happened?” Tuan Yun asked, alarmed and distressed. “Who hit you?”
Zhu’er hesitated, then finally explained. Yesterday, she had spoken up on Tuan Yun’s behalf, grumbling about their masters and the lady of the house had ordered punishment.
When Ji Zhiwei left that day, only Tuan Yun and Zhu’er had been present in the room. Just half a sentence spoken about Ji Zhiwei had traveled to the old madam’s ears and earned this result.
The words “walls have ears”, which Tuan Yun had only ever seen in books, slammed into his mind.
His heart ached for Zhu’er and fear washed over him in a cold sweat.
The aftershock came violently.
An earl’s household, how could it be a place fit for living? It looked prosperous and enviable but in truth, it was a forest of beasts.
He had truly done something that tore open the sky.
After settling Zhu’er to rest, Tuan Yun remained restless well into the night.
The water in the bathing tub cooled completely before he finally rose to dry himself, making a decision in his heart: this matter would end here.
There could only be one time. Never a second.
Even if this attempt yielded nothing, he could not risk it again, he could not drag others down with him.
Besides, upon careful thought, he was no longer the same as before.
He now had a way out.
That way out lay in the hundred taels of gold Cui Jianying had given him. Where once he had nothing, now he had a great sum. With it, he could take Zhu’er and formally request divorce, no longer fearing how a country-born young man would survive after leaving the Earl’s residence.
Thinking this far, Tuan Yun’s heart finally eased a little.
He bent to wipe his legs when, suddenly, a muscle twitched violently and he nearly collapsed.
His legs were weak.
Deeper still, there was soreness.
That man had not been wrong, he was badly swollen. Even walking felt strange.
For no reason at all, Tuan Yun suddenly developed a strange confidence.
Though it had been only once, though nothing had come of the many times before with Ji Zhiwei, he had a vague certainty,
What he sought had already been achieved.
That man gave him that feeling.
The lamp was blown out.
Tuan Yun slowly drifted into sleep.
The young man had made many calculations yet from beginning to end, he never truly took Cui Jianying’s “seven day appointment” to heart.
Promises made in bed were worth nothing, let alone those whispered amid kisses and teasing when clothes were already cast aside.
The Commander in Chief of the Tianshu Guard, a princely noble, between them lay a gulf wider even than the one between him and Ji Zhiwei.
Moreover, Tuan Yun could tell that Cui Jianying was a seasoned master of romance, one who understood desire, who sought only momentary pleasure and never entanglement.
His consciousness drifted farther and farther away.
Half-asleep, Tuan Yun found himself thinking less of Cui Jianying and more of Ji Zhiwei.
He thought: if by chance there truly is a child, I must first prepare a proper name for it.
How could he place the child upon Ji Zhiwei?
Getting Ji Zhiwei to sleep with him was too difficult.
If it were possible, why would he have sought Cui Jianying?
The only way was to ensure Ji Zhiwei himself could not prove the child was not his, best if he lost consciousness entirely.
But Ji Zhiwei rarely returned home and when he did, he did not enter Tuan Yun’s room. Even arranging this would be hard.
Everything had simply happened too quickly.
Tuan Yun had acted out of desperation. Cui Jianying was swift and decisive. Before Tuan Yun could form a complete plan, Cui Jianying had already set a fatal countdown in motion.
Time felt unbearably tight.
From the next day onward, Tuan Yun began quietly inquiring about Ji Zhiwei’s whereabouts, paying close attention to news of him.
He even returned to the kitchen after two years, relearning Ji Zhiwei’s favored dishes, creating chances to deliver meals.
Rumors spread through the household.
“That ‘village man’ really hasn’t given up on the Second Young Master. He pulled this stunt when he first entered the house. We thought he’d settled down after two years, turns out one outing stirred his thoughts again.”
“The Second Young Master will never like him. All this effort just makes him a joke.”
“How can he be so unsatisfied? Isn’t the Earl’s residence good enough for him? Is he really that shamelessly desperate for a man?”
Tuan Yun ignored it all.
Shut in his room, he studied dosages in a timid, miserable way. Ji Zhiwei was a strong man but still not the same as a wild boar.
This medicine had been in his possession for over two years now. He didn’t know how much potency remained. Every detail demanded care.
Just as he was exhausting himself with worry, fortune unexpectedly came knocking.
That evening, as Tuan Yun was considering dishes, someone arrived saying the Second Young Master had summoned him.
“The Second Young Master called for me?” Tuan Yun confirmed.
The servant answered indirectly. “There were guests today. The Second Young Master drank quite a lot.”
Wine, at this moment, was an especially good word.
Tuan Yun had Zhu’er put away the recipe book. He did not even change clothes, wearing only a plain white gauze robe and a green jade peach-blossom hairpin and hurried over.
Upon entering, he froze.
The room was lined with rows of lanterns, the dining table brilliantly lit.
Ji Zhiwei was there, slumped over the table, fast asleep.
Beside him, Cui Jianying held a small white porcelain cup, gently swirling the clear liquor inside. He took a sip, then raised the cup toward Tuan Yun with a light smile.
“Pardon the disturbance.”
“…”
The door was closed by the servant behind him.
Tuan Yun’s mind seemed to flood with blood.
His body moved forward slowly, while his thoughts raced chaotically.
It was only a few steps. No matter how panicked, he still reached them.
Tuan Yun looked at Ji Zhiwei and called softly, “Husband?”
No response.
Ji Zhiwei’s handsome face was tightly furrowed, consciousness entirely gone. The smell of alcohol on him was heavy, so heavy. Ji Zhiwei was not a wastrel, nor fond of drink. This was rare.
As Tuan Yun was thinking, an iron arm suddenly wrapped around his waist.
Cui Jianying embraced him from behind. Though it was an embrace, the force drove him forward. Tuan Yun’s hands hit the table’s edge, plates and bowls clattering. He almost cried out but forcibly swallowed the sound.
“My lord,” Tuan Yun whispered, both voice and body trembling.
Cui Jianying’s breath brushed his ear.
“We’re relatives. My cousin merely accompanied me at dinner. Why do you look as though you’re heading for execution?”
“My lady,” he asked softly, “my cousin dislikes me, do you also dislike me?”
This was the Earl’s residence. He was the Earl’s son’s wife. Ji Zhiwei, his husband, lay right before them.
And yet this man dared act so boldly, entering openly, doing such things in his own home.
Tuan Yun had never encountered such a reckless libertine. Terrified, he stammered, “You, you, ”
His eyes darted anxiously to Ji Zhiwei, afraid he would open them.
“There’s no need to be afraid.”
Cui Jianying kept smiling. With a pull, he turned Tuan Yun around, leaving him nowhere to hide, nowhere to retreat and positioned him squarely before Ji Zhiwei’s eyes, determined to steal another man’s wife with full “uprightness.”
“Don’t worry. Even if the wine was drugged, he won’t retain a shred of awareness. Even if he were awake right now, even if I took you and humiliated you and he heard everything clearly, he wouldn’t dare open his eyes and spoil my pleasure.”
“There’s no need to even think about dealing with you. In their hearts they look down on me yet they dare not offend me. When they can’t see me, every sentence is a curse; when they meet me face to face, they pile on smiles like obedient dogs wagging their tails. That is the unchanging family tradition passed down generation after generation in the Earl’s household.”
“And this cousin Ji Zhiwei is, among them all, a true standout.”
“He is the most hypocritical of them, more than anyone else, the one whose inside and outside are utterly different.”
“…”
Tuan Yun’s heart was already a tangled knot. He did not dare lift his head. Cui Jianying was tall and as he pressed forward, Tuan Yun had no choice, if he did not want to fall among the bowls and dishes, he would have to reach out and cling to Cui Jianying’s shoulder or wrap his arms around his waist.
But in such a situation, how could he dare?
Tuan Yun was so anxious he was on the verge of tears. His calves were starting to cramp.
When Cui Jianying saw that those amber eyes were truly filling with tears, glossy and wet, a thin sheen of water rising over them, he finally stepped back a little. His tone shifted along with the movement.
It was impossible to tell whether there was pleasure or anger in it.
“Madam,” he said, “we agreed to meet. Why did you break the appointment?”
✦ ✧ ✦
Fleurveil
[Translator]
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ChaptersChapter 1 · How can you, so crude and vulgar, be a match for me?Chapter 2 · Children don’t just appear out of thin air if you want themChapter 3 · I also grew up reading the classicsChapter 4 · I am willing to dress up as the Goddess of MercyChapter 5 · If Cousin Ji doesn’t like me, do you not like me either?Chapter 6 · He actually summoned such a YamaChapter 7 · Am I not worthy of your attention, Madam?Chapter 8 · I think Lord Cui likes you very muchChapter 9 · Dragon and phoenix twinsChapter 10 · I will never allow anyone to belittle or despise you againChapter 11 · If that’s true, then marry your wife to meChapter 12 · Well, it really is true that one thing can subdue anotherChapter 13 · Extra 1Chapter 14 · Extra 2Chapter 15 · Extra 3Chapter 16 · Extra 4