Meng Aoshuang would never fault her own son, especially when he was in his current state of mental impairment. Expecting a simpleton to take the initiative was nothing short of a fantasy.
This was clearly a case of Xu Chengyi not being willing to go all the way.
She was a young, pretty girl, and Song Wenzhou was a virile, red-blooded man. As long as she was willing to put herself out there, no matter how reluctant Song Wenzhou might be, he would eventually succumb.
So, she coldly issued her final order: “I don’t care about the process, only the result. There’s no such thing as a newlywed couple who’s been married this long still sleeping fully clothed.”
Xu Chengyi’s fists clenched slightly. Gritting her teeth, she said, “Then is it possible that Song Wenzhou is still thinking about my second sister and doesn’t want to touch me?”
Meng Aoshuang couldn’t be bothered to argue with her any further. She rose gracefully, looking down at her from her height, and said, “You’re husband and wife now. This is your problem to solve.”
With that, she elegantly walked away.
Xu Chengyi watched her retreating figure and pouted in frustration. She gave Song Wenzhou the cold shoulder for the rest of the day.
But what needed to be done couldn’t be put off forever. Being hounded about it constantly was getting on her nerves too.
That evening, Song Wenzhou was applying medicine to the bruises on her leg.
Summoning her courage, she lifted her foot and, with what she thought was a seductive expression, gently pressed it against his stomach. “Honey, tonight the moonlight is—”
Song Wenzhou frowned and grabbed her ankle. “Why are you kicking me?”
Xu Chengyi forced an awkward smile. “Nothing. I just had a moment of possession.”
It was like casting pearls before swine.
She refused to give up. Leaning over, she took his hand and placed his palm over her heart, gazing at him with a lovesick look. “Honey, feel my heart. Is it racing?”
Just as she was about to guide his hand lower, Song Wenzhou immediately pulled it away. “There’s medicinal oil on my hands. It’s dirty.”
“If your heart’s feeling unwell, I’ll have Aunt Wu call the family doctor.”
Xu Chengyi froze for three seconds, then laughed in exasperation. She had the strange feeling that even if she stood naked before him, he’d only ask if she was cold.
Song Wenzhou calmly stood up. “I’m going to wash up.”
The bathroom door closed behind him. He stood there, his palm stiff, staring into space for a long while.
Xu Chengyi pulled at the neckline of her nightgown. “Is it too small?”
It really wasn’t. It was proportionate to her figure—well-balanced.
She pouted and lay down on the bed with her phone.
After scrolling for who knows how long, the man returned in his pajamas. His gaze swept over her for a brief second before he turned off the lights and got into bed.
Xu Chengyi let out a long yawn, put down her phone, and lay flat on her back.
After a long pause, she asked, “Song Wenzhou, are you asleep?”
“No.”
“Oh.”
“Song Wenzhou, do you have abs?”
Song Wenzhou: “…”
“Can I… feel them?”
Song Wenzhou didn’t answer. He turned over, facing away from her.
Xu Chengyi said, “I let you touch me, and you saw everything on our wedding day…”
Song Wenzhou cut her off: “Xu Chengyi, I want to sleep.”
Xu Chengyi pouted. “Stingy.”
That night, they slept back-to-back once again.
After three days of rest, the bruises on Xu Chengyi’s legs had faded considerably, and she could walk normally again.
During those three days at home, all she did was eat and sleep, or sit on the garden swing, playing on her phone while watching Song Wenzhou prune and tend to the flowers.
It was springtime, and the garden was in full, vibrant bloom—especially the camellia tree whose trunk was thicker than her calf. Red double-petaled flowers covered the entire tree in a dazzling, romantic display.
Camellias had a poetic nickname: the “beheaded flower.” At the peak of their bloom, the entire flower falls from the tree all at once.
Those who lose me are lost forever.
Xu Chengyi felt her room needed a splash of color, so she grabbed a pair of scissors, cut a few branches of camellias, and hurried inside with them, looking for a vase.
The servants in the main hall froze when they saw the flowers in her hands, as if turned to stone. For a long moment, no one could say a word.
Xu Chengyi frowned in confusion. “What’s wrong with you all? Hurry up and pick out a vase for me…”
Aunt Wu asked in a daze, “Second Young Madam, where did you get these camellias?”
Xu Chengyi pointed back at the courtyard outside. “From the garden in the yard, of course.”
Instantly, everyone in the hall fell silent.
Seeing their grave, secretive expressions, Xu Chengyi asked, “What’s the matter? Are these flowers not allowed to be picked?”
It wasn’t just that they couldn’t be picked—even approaching the camellia tree, people feared their breath might contaminate the flower’s photosynthesis. The Old Master treasured that tree dearly and had even hired a professional horticulturist at a high salary to care for it.
Aunt Wu had been with the Song family the longest. She still remembered one winter solstice when the camellias had just begun to bloom. The youngest son of the third Song brother, not knowing any better, plucked one flower—and was punished by the Old Master to kneel for an entire day and night.
In the dead of winter, the eight-year-old boy knelt until he developed a high fever and was hospitalized, yet the Old Master didn’t spare him a single glance.
No one knew what that camellia tree meant to the Old Master, but his level of devotion to it surpassed even familial bonds.
Since then, everyone in the Song household had learned their lesson and automatically kept their distance from that camellia tree.
Footsteps and the thudding of a cane echoed from the staircase, and all the servants couldn’t help but break out in a cold sweat for Xu Chengyi.
Xu Chengyi looked at their expressions, still utterly confused, but inexplicably felt a chill rise from the soles of her feet and spread through her entire body.
Song Wenzhou finished watering the flowers and entered the house, immediately catching sight of the vibrant bouquet of camellias in Xu Chengyi’s arms, as well as his grandfather slowly descending the stairs with his cane.
He froze for a second, his heartbeat unconsciously quickening.
Xu Chengyi felt a gaze on her back, turned abruptly, and stared blankly at Elder Song.
Elder Song paused mid-step on the stairs, his eyes fixed on the flowers in her arms, then on her face, remaining silent for a long while.
After a long moment, he asked, “Where did you pick these flowers?”
Xu Chengyi instinctively opened her mouth to answer, but Song Wenzhou strode over quickly and said, “Grandfather…”
Elder Song gestured at him, signaling him to stay quiet.
He asked Xu Chengyi again, “Where did you pick these flowers?”
Hearing the tone of the Old Master’s voice, Xu Chengyi seemed to realize the gravity of the situation, but under his overwhelming presence, she dared not lie. She lowered her head and mumbled:
“I… I picked them in the garden. I didn’t know these flowers couldn’t be picked…”
The other servants stole a glance at the Old Master’s expression, thinking that the gardeners in the garden were probably about to lose their jobs…
The Old Master shifted his gaze from her to Song Wenzhou. “What were you about to say to me earlier?”
Song Wenzhou snapped back to reality, looked at him for a long moment, and said, “I don’t remember.”
The Old Master’s gaze fell once again on the bouquet of camellias, and for another long while, the tension was so thick that no one present dared to breathe deeply.
But he said nothing more, and instead went out the door with his cane.
All the servants exchanged glances, their eyes filled with confusion.
The Old Master hadn’t punished Xu Chengyi after all, or perhaps he simply didn’t want to make things difficult for a young girl, especially since she’d said she didn’t know the flowers couldn’t be picked.
But back then, his own grandson hadn’t known either that these flowers couldn’t be picked…
Aunt Wu found a vase. “Second Young Madam, these flowers hold deep significance for the Old Master. This time, he’s let it go, but I hope you’ll remember this lesson in the future.”
Xu Chengyi was still shaken. Though she hadn’t been scolded, the Old Master’s gaze had been truly terrifying, and she had indeed learned her lesson—a lingering fear that she would never dare touch any camellia again.
This time, she obediently acknowledged, “Mm, I understand.”
She arranged the flower branches in the vase, intending to carry it back to her room, but Aunt Wu stopped her.
“These flowers should stay in the main hall.”
She had no complaints. “Alright.”