The night was hazy.
In the main room of the south courtyard of the Song Mansion, a royal merchant, the maids and servants on night duty were leaning against the corridor, half asleep.
Suddenly hearing a noise in the room, the old woman woke up and shook the maid next to her.
“Go and tell the kitchen to boil water.”
The maidservant, not daring to delay, yawned softly and went to the kitchen.
Inside the room at this moment.
Inside the soft, gauze-draped curtains, the woman gripped the bedding tightly with her fingers. Despite the winter weather, she was drenched in sweat and felt intensely hot.
She turned her face away, not daring to look at the person in front of her. The blush on her fair face and the lips she bit tightly, refusing to make a sound, showed how unbearable she was at that moment.
After a long time, the man still showed no sign of stopping. Unable to bear it any longer, she realized she shouldn’t have been so patient.
Otherwise, wouldn’t you just live a miserable life like in your previous life?
Thus, for the first time in a year since their marriage, Song Wenjing heard his wife’s soft moans of unbearable longing.
The sound was soothing and tingling that it surprised him, yet he couldn’t help but continue.
Rong Shu’s eyes were already brimming with tears, and she couldn’t help but curse herself inwardly for being courting death.
The first time I took the initiative to flirt with him, it was simply because I wanted a child.
But why is this person holding her down like this?
It used to be like clockwork, finishing in an hour at most.
She couldn’t figure it out, and her mind gradually became confused.
With her last shred of clarity, she clung to his body and weakly cried out, “Third Master, I can’t go on…”
She finally felt something wet pressed against her ear and lingered there for a long time.
She doesn’t even know how she finally fell asleep.
The next morning.
Song Wenjing, dressed neatly, lifted the bed curtains and looked at his wife, who was fast asleep, clutching the blankets. A faint smile appeared on his lips.
Rong Shu really surprised him last night.
His wife, who was always polite, reserved, and quiet, actually took the initiative to be with him…
He still thought she didn’t like it before.
Although somewhat surprised, he particularly liked her appearance.
So he lowered his head and lightly touched her lips before leaving.
……
Rong Shu slept soundly, exhausted.
She had another dream, a dream about her past life.
In the height of autumn, she rode in a carriage to the capital, her heart and eyes filled with thoughts of her husband, Song Wenjing, whom she had not seen for two years.
Lost in her thoughts of seeing that person, she didn’t notice that the carriage had already veered off the main road.
It wasn’t until the carriage stopped that she realized the other carriages carrying luggage had disappeared, leaving only the one she was in.
The original driver had been replaced; the new man had a thick beard and a hideous scar on his face.
Seeing her and her maid Mei Yun trembling, the burly man grinned maliciously and reached out to grab her.
In the struggle, the horse became frightened and lost control, causing the burly man to fall off the carriage.
But she and Mei Yun couldn’t escape and were pulled off the cliff…
The feeling of weightlessness in her dream jolted Rong Shu awake.
She sat up, clutching the blanket, and only then did she realize the soreness in her body.
Memories return to last night…
Embarrassed, she buried herself under the quilt again.
Not long after, Mei Yun’s voice rang out from outside the bed curtains.
“Madam, are you getting up?”
Rong Shu, hiding under the covers, mumbled a reply: “Mmm.”
She then touched the spot beside her and found it was already ice-cold, realizing something was wrong.
“What time is it?”
Mei Yun replied, “It was successful at Chen Shi (7-9 AM).”
Chen Shi (7-9 AM)
Rong Shu quickly lifted the covers, got up, and pulled back the bed curtains to put on her shoes.
“Why didn’t you wake me up sooner?”
Since marrying into the Song family in both her previous lives, she has always gone to the main courtyard to pay her respects at 3:45 AM, without ever slacking off, even in wind and rain.
Today we’re a whole hour late!
Seeing her in such a hurry, Mei Yun quickly said, “Don’t worry, someone from the main courtyard came early this morning. They said that the old lady instructed you not to go to pay your respects this morning, but to go over for lunch at noon.”
Rong Shu then stopped putting on her shoes.
For the past three years in my previous life, and for the past half month since I was reborn, getting up early every day to go to the main courtyard has become an ingrained habit.
Suddenly not having to go made her feel a little uneasy.
She sat on the edge of the bed, silently encouraging herself, “This is change.”
In this life, she wants to live well, not only to live, but to live a better life.
At least I can’t be as pathetic as I was in my previous life.
She recalled the images that appeared before her eyes after her death.
It turns out that the world they live in is a book.
The male and female protagonists are the heir of the Prince of Qin’s mansion and the legitimate daughter of the Minister of Personnel.
After overcoming numerous hardships and setbacks, they finally tied the knot, resulting in a happy ending.
And their hardships and setbacks…
Most of them came from her husband, Song Wenjing.
The story begins after her death, when Song Wenjing, for reasons unknown, went mad and began to target the Prince of Qin.
After learning that the Crown Prince of Qin was with the eldest daughter of the Minister of Personnel, she became even more brazen.
Later, Rong Shu learned from the reader’s “comments” at the end that Song Wenjing was in love with this legitimate daughter of the Minister’s family.
He was willing to become an enemy of the Prince of Qin for her sake, and lived a lonely life.
After her death, Song Wenjing did not remarry.
Rong Shu didn’t think this meant that Song Wenjing still couldn’t forget her.
Aside from the two years Song Wenjing went to the capital, he had always been indifferent to her since they got married.
It’s no different from how it’s done to anyone else.
After learning the reason for being neglected, Rong Shu felt sad.
She had secretly rejoiced at how outstanding and handsome her husband was, and had even secretly admired his divinely sculpted features at night.
But all of this was answered with her death.
Song Wenjing didn’t love her. To him, she was just someone who shamelessly came to his door with a token of their love to ask for his hand in marriage.
Now that she’s alive again, she’s figured out something.
Although Song Wenjing constantly caused trouble for the male and female protagonists in the book, he still lived a good life in the end.
Not only did he receive no punishment, but he also gained high rank and power, eventually rising to the position of Grand Secretary.
Therefore, Rong Shu understood that as long as she lived well and did not die young like in her previous life, she could enjoy a peaceful and happy life.
She couldn’t possibly have managed his household affairs for three years, only to be buried in the mountains without ever enjoying any happiness, could she?
After having this thought, she felt it didn’t matter whether Song Wenjing was cold to her or not.
Compared to that, she felt that having a child first would be better. Even if Song Wenjing went to the capital and fell in love with the female lead like in the novels, she wouldn’t care.
The Song family are imperial merchants. As long as she secures her position as Song Wenjing’s wife, she will be guaranteed wealth and honor.
Thinking of this, she went to the main courtyard before noon.
The Song residence was very large; it took almost a quarter of an hour to walk from Songtao Garden, where they now lived, to the main courtyard.
But Rong Shu had walked this road for three years and was already used to it.
She thought her mother-in-law meant that lunch would be in the main courtyard and that all the families would be together, but when she arrived, she found out that she was the only one who had come.
Rong Shu couldn’t help but feel uneasy, fearing that her mother-in-law would scold her severely again.
She entered the room and saw her mother-in-law sitting cross-legged on the daybed, holding a handful of silk thread in her hand.
Rong Shu bowed and said, “Mother, are you well?”
Madam Xie raised her eyes, glanced at Rong Shu who looked more radiant than usual, hummed in agreement, and pointed to the other side of the daybed with one finger.
Rong Shu got up, walked over and sat down, took the silk thread from Xie’s hand and helped her split the thread.
She was so focused that she didn’t notice Xie’s gaze sweeping over her from head to toe.
It wasn’t until her mother-in-law said something that she almost fell off the daybed.
How many times last night?