Yun Qing’s obedient appearance completely defeated Zhao Si.
“Mmm. This is actually a bit difficult to explain. However, I can draw it for you on the wall.”
Zhao Si sat back down at the edge of the couch, pulled Yun Qing’s delicate hand, and curved her finger to draw a circle on Yun Qing’s palm.
“For example, this is a person!”
“Mmm-mm.” Yun Qing quietly rested her head on Zhao Si’s lap.
“For another example, this is also a person.”
Zhao Si drew another circle on Yun Qing’s hand.
“Mmm-mm.” Yun Qing was a very supportive audience.
“These two circles pressed together.” Zhao Si grasped Yun Qing’s wrist and gently shook it, imitating two people pressing together from the erotic book.
After shaking it, Zhao Si felt she had recreated the scene wonderfully, so she lowered her gaze to look at Yun Qing.
“Yun Qing, do you understand?”
Yun Qing looked confused.
“Understand what?”
“Never mind. Go to sleep. I’ll explain the details to you another day. We’ve had a tiring day anyway.” Zhao Si shook her head, pulled Yun Qing into her arms, and tumbled into the wedding quilt together with her.
“Doesn’t Husband need to change clothes?” Yun Qing tugged at the cord on Zhao Si’s wedding robe, as if in the next instant she was going to peel Zhao Si right out of her garments.
“No, no. It feels solid sleeping in them. Besides… wrapping up in that chest binder is pretty tiring too. Wife, you’ve had a tiring day, so go to sleep early. Whatever it is, we’ll, we’ll talk about it tomorrow.” Zhao Si extended an arm and snuffed out the nearby candle flame.
The moment that candle went out, as if under some sort of spell, all the other candles in the room extinguished together in unison.
With the candlelight gone, Zhao Si rested her chin on the crown of Yun Qing’s head, replaying every single thing that had happened during the day in her mind like a running carriage.
What incredible good fortune.
With her eyes wide open, Zhao Si gazed at the gold-embroidered sachets hanging from the four corners of Yun Qing’s bed, unable to help tightening her grip around Yun Qing.
That’s right, even though she, Zhao Si, had lost all her past memories, she still knew that for a poor person to possess a beautiful wife was no different than a small child carrying gold through a bustling marketplace. With the Prince of Duan’s path blocked and impassable, what must she do to protect her wife?
Zhao Si’s brain ached from thinking, and the buzzing sound of “Fourth Brother” echoed in her ears again. Could it be that she still had three older brothers at home? Zhao Si thought to herself that once tomorrow dawned, she should return to the village, ask the village chief, and track down her clan brothers so perhaps she could find some protection.
Unexpectedly, the person in her arms moved.
“Husband, the cup-merging wine. We haven’t drunk the cup-merging wine yet.”
“Don’t move, where is the wine?”
“On the cabinet in the third compartment to the right outside the bed.”
“Alright. Just wait, I’ll go get it.” Zhao Si got up in the dark, and as her feet touched the floor, she was startled to find that she could use the moonlight to clearly see the wedding boots beside the bed.
Her eyesight was actually this good!
Delighted, Zhao Si got up and brought over the tribute tray holding the cup-merging wine, only to find two human figures standing right beside the tray.
Zhao Si wanted to cry out.
The two figures froze for a moment, then one after another called out “Groom” to Zhao Si.
Only then did Zhao Si see that the two dark silhouettes were none other than Ying’er and Yan’er. The two of them had been keeping vigil for Yun Qing.
“Mmm.” Recalling everything she had just done, Zhao Si was so embarrassed she wished she could drill straight into a crack in the ground.
Ying’er and Yan’er seemed to sense it, and with one sentence each, they nailed Zhao Si firmly to the pillar of embarrassing shame.
Ying’er, being sharp, said, “Groom really knows how to fool a child.”
Yan’er, being cold, said, “Truly fierce and bold.”
“Heh. You flatter me.” Feigning composure, Zhao Si carried the cup-merging wine and felt her way back to Yun Qing’s side in the dark.
Yun Qing sat up, and Zhao Si picked up the wine pitcher, filled two golden cups with wine, and shared one with Yun Qing.
Yun Qing accepted the wine cup, raised her pair of beautiful eyes, and gazed up at Zhao Si in the pitch-black room.
“Thank you, Husband. Yun Qing is drinking the cup-merging wine for the very first time.”
Zhao Si knew Yun Qing might not know that she possessed night vision, but at this moment there was too much in Yun Qing’s eyes that Zhao Si couldn’t understand.
Why would Yun Qing look at her with such a mix of gratitude and tenderness?
Could it be that Yun Qing had a special fondness for cup-merging wine?
Zhao Si slowly shifted her gaze from Yun Qing’s eyes to her face. With this shift, Zhao Si finally saw just how lavish, breathtaking, and heart-palpitating Yun Qing looked dressed in her wedding robes.
Was she truly worthy of Yun Qing?
Thinking that perhaps one day Yun Qing might abandon her and leave, Zhao Si’s fingertips trembled slightly, nearly spilling the wedding wine from the golden goblet.
As Zhao Si was lost in these thoughts, Yun Qing suddenly pulled Zhao Si down to sit.
Facing one another, Yun Qing reached out to hook her arm through Zhao Si’s elbow, lowered her gaze, and drank down the contents of her cup.
Zhao Si drank hers as well, and another jumble of chaotic memories flashed through her mind.
In the memory was a rainy night. Zhao Si clearly saw a jade tribute tray holding two golden goblets filled to the brim with wine, exactly identical to this night.
How truly wondrous!
Zhao Si shook her head, wrapped her arms around Yun Qing once more, and lay back down into the quilt. A tiny bit more imagery added itself to her mind—those golden goblets were placed upon a sandalwood desk. Beside the goblets was a brass paperweight, beside the paperweight an un-dried inkstone, and beside the inkstone, a jade brush moved rapidly, leaving behind strokes as vigorous as iron trees and silver hooks wherever the tip passed.
Zhao Si thought to herself: Interesting. But having tossed and turned all day, she was completely exhausted and no longer had the strength to appreciate any calligraphy.
Thinking that there would be plenty of time in the future, Zhao Si drifted into a deep sleep. When she opened her eyes again, it was already time for Ying’er to kneel and invite her to change clothes and partake in breakfast.
“Get up.” Zhao Si was not a cruel person. Greeting Ying’er and telling her to rise, Zhao Si cast a glance and immediately caught sight of more than a dozen maidservants standing behind Ying’er.
Fearing she might cause Yun Qing to lose face in front of the servants, Zhao Si lowered her voice and asked Ying’er, “Why are there so many people?”
Ying’er beamed with joy: “Replying to Groom, Miss said the wedding was rushed and there was no time to tailor and sew new clothes for Groom. Therefore, this morning she could only procure these thirty-odd ready-made garments for Groom to make do with.”
“Thirty-odd?” Zhao Si counted on her fingers and discovered that the outfits Yun Qing had gathered for her were actually more numerous than her fingers, causing a warm current to rise in the bottom of her heart.
“How do I choose? Should I try them on one by one?” Zhao Si sat up from the wedding bed.
“Aigoo! Groom didn’t even take off your hair crown last night. Yan’er’s carelessness is truly too much.” Ying’er scolded Yan’er a few times in succession, then quickly pulled a scroll from her sleeve and unfurled it before Zhao Si, saying, “This is the clothing pattern Miss specially ordered someone to draw. Groom can choose from it first.”
“Alright. What should I pick?” Zhao Si took the scroll and unfurled it; it was neither short nor long, matching her arm span precisely.
Knowing this must be the result of Yun Qing’s ingenious thoughtfulness, Zhao Si felt even happier inside.
Seeing that Zhao Si was pleased, Ying’er immediately said in a clear voice, “Normally, one chooses by color and style.”
“Mmm.” Zhao Si nodded, though she wasn’t in a hurry to look at the scroll. Instead, she said to Ying’er, “Red or black. The wide sleeves like the ones I’m wearing right now no. Calculated this way, how many pieces are left to choose from?”
“This… Groom will really have to pick and choose carefully. The ready-made garments Miss prepared for Groom are either black or red, and there are no large, billowing sleeves at all; they are all arrow sleeves or bracers.”
“Your young lady really understands me!” Zhao Si was overjoyed. Hastily gathering her focus to inspect every single garment depicted on the scroll one by one, Zhao Si applauded in admiration.
She had truly married an extraordinary woman. They had only known each other for a single day, yet Yun Qing could adjust her everyday attire so that every single piece suited her aesthetic and matched her preferences.
“Let’s start wearing the one on the far right first.” Zhao Si abandoned thought and chose to place her complete trust in her wife.
Receiving her orders, Ying’er kept the maidservant standing on the far right holding the tribute tray, summoned Yan’er forward, and with the three of them joining forces, stood and served Zhao Si in changing out of her wedding robe and putting on a cross-collar, arrow-sleeved, black outer robe.
As soon as the black outer robe was on, Zhao Si couldn’t help but look down at her own sleeves. She saw that the fabric of the outer robe was entirely jacquard-woven gold satin with hidden patterns, and the lapels and sleeve cuffs were edged with yellow satin truly wealthy, luxurious, and fascinatingly dazzling to the eye.