Si Ruohan stayed in the study for a while before returning to the bedroom.
He remembered very clearly—tonight was their wedding night. Even if it was only a registered marriage, it was still a marriage. How could he let the bride keep the bridal chamber all to herself?
After half an hour, the bathroom door finally opened, and a soft fragrance drifted out with the steam.
Leaning against the headboard, Si Ruohan looked up at the sound—and saw a fairy in a red dress walking toward him.
Her hair was still wet.
Without hesitation, he stood, guided Pei Xi to the vanity, and pressed her gently into the chair.
“Sit. I’ll blow-dry your hair.”
It was the first time someone had taken care of her like this. Pei Xi felt awkward and wanted to do it herself.
He raised the hairdryer slightly out of her reach. “No, let me. Didn’t we agree? After getting married, we’d live like a normal couple. A husband drying his wife’s hair—that’s only natural, isn’t it?”
Since he put it that way, she let him. After all, she was the one benefiting.
Her hair was long, effectively covering the exposed skin beneath the red nightdress. But once she sat down and he stood behind her, looking down, some “scenery” inevitably came into view.
Droplets of water slid down her strands of hair, trailing lower… disappearing into the soft curve of her collarbone and beyond.
The red fabric made her skin look even fairer.
His throat tightened. He swallowed.
Even the hairdryer felt unsteady in his hand.
No, he needed to distract himself.
“Xiaoxi, there must have been a lot of guys who liked you at school, right?”
Pei Xi met his gaze through the mirror before calmly returning to her skincare routine.
“No. I wasn’t noticeable at school. People hardly paid attention to me.”
“How is that possible?”
Were the students blind? With a beauty like her, how could she not stand out? Was there someone even prettier than Pei Xi in that school?
Impossible.
“I’m not lying,” she pouted lightly. “I looked ugly at school. If you don’t believe me, I’ll show you my graduation photo. No one there has ever seen my real face.”
He raised a brow, understanding dawning.
“You mean… you deliberately made yourself look unattractive?”
She nodded. “You know I’m an orphan. If people knew what I really looked like, it would only bring trouble. So to graduate peacefully, I had to disguise myself. That way, I could protect myself.”
He smiled, genuinely impressed.
“You’re smart. You knew how to protect yourself. The fact that no one saw through it means you did a great job. But now you have me. From now on, you can be yourself without worry.”
She smiled at that. “So you’re saying you’ll be my backing from now on?”
His hands never stopped moving as he nodded firmly at her reflection.
“Of course. With me around, no one will bully you.”
Her heartbeat quickened. She lowered her head, not replying. He couldn’t see her expression and didn’t know whether she believed him—but she did.
Soon, her hair was dry.
He helped her up, hands resting lightly on her shoulders, meeting her eyes.
“What? You don’t believe me?”
He leaned closer. The distance between them vanished, their posture undeniably intimate.
Her face flushed. “No, no—I believe you. Of course I do.”
He broke into a dazzling smile, and she found herself staring.
Seeing her dazed expression only deepened his grin. He lowered his head and kissed her.
Her eyes widened in shock. She struggled instinctively, but he held her firmly.
Remembering their earlier agreement, she slowly closed her eyes.
Feeling her acceptance, he carried her to the bed, allowing himself to savor her sweetness.
After a long while, he finally stopped.
She lay in his arms, breathing hard. His bathrobe had long since disappeared; her dress had fallen to her waist.
She pushed at his chest.
“We can’t… not today. There’s still the baby.”
He buried his face in her hair, fingers tracing the smoothness of her skin, voice hoarse.
“I know. I just wanted to collect a little interest first.”
Of course he knew. He knew she was pregnant. He knew they couldn’t go too far.
She shifted slightly, and wherever she accidentally brushed, he let out a muffled groan.
He pulled her closer, breathing heavily. “Don’t move, Xiaoxi. Let me calm down.”
He felt like he might explode. The soft warmth pressed against his chest only made it worse.
And yet, he couldn’t bear to let her go.
Knowing he was enduring it for her sake softened her heart.
“You really brought this on yourself,” she muttered. “You knew we couldn’t, and you still provoked me.”
He had made her suffer too.
…
Morning sunlight streamed onto the windowsill.
Pei Xi stirred in bed and bumped into the warm body beside her.
Si Ruohan pulled her into his arms again and closed his eyes. “It’s the weekend. No need to get up so early. Sleep more.”
“But I’m hungry~” she said playfully, taking his hand and placing it on her flat stomach. “The baby says it wants food.”
He stroked her belly, fully awake now.
“Alright. If the baby’s hungry, then this father has to get up.”
He pulled the blanket higher up to her neck to shield himself from further temptation before climbing out of bed.
She rolled her eyes at him.
He had claimed he would “calm down” last night. Who knew that after taking a cold shower, he had only lain beside her for a minute before hugging and kissing her all over again—until she had to help him.
Her hand still felt sore.
He, however, looked quite satisfied this morning.
“I’ll go check if Aunt Liu has prepared breakfast. If not, I’ll go buy some.”
After a quick shower and getting dressed, he headed downstairs.
Pei Xi happily went back to sleep, feeling a little spoiled.
Aunt Liu had already prepared breakfast—multigrain soy milk she made herself, along with buns, small wontons, and sandwiches from a breakfast shop they often visited.
She used to buy from that place whenever she came over. The variety was rich, and the taste was excellent.
Sometimes she made dumplings or buns in advance and stored them in the freezer for convenience. But she had arrived in a rush yesterday and hadn’t had time to prepare everything.
Seeing him come downstairs, she greeted him warmly.
“Fourth Young Master, you’re up! What about Fourth Young Madam?”
“She’s still sleeping. I’ll bring her something first.”
He arranged a plate with a bit of everything, worried that the baby in her belly might “rebel” if she didn’t eat soon.
Aunt Liu quickly added a cup of soy milk and a bowl of wontons to the tray.
“Hurry and take it up! Girls can’t skip meals. What if her blood sugar drops? Let her eat first, then she can sleep more.”
Unaware of Aunt Liu’s wild imagination about their “exhausting” night, he carried the tray upstairs.
Pei Xi was still asleep when he entered.
He sat by the bed and gently woke her.
“Xiaoxi, wake up. Time to eat.”
She had just fallen asleep when she felt someone calling her.
“You said the baby was hungry, remember?”
She opened her eyes and saw his smiling face, then the breakfast laid out beside her.
“You bought all that so quickly?”
As she sat up, the blanket slipped down, revealing skin dotted with faint marks.
His gaze froze.
Those were all his handiwork.
Following his line of sight, she looked down—and instantly exploded.
“Si Ruohan! Look at what you did! How am I supposed to go out like this?”
Pulling her clothes aside to check, she found even more marks. She hadn’t even looked at her neck yet, but remembering last night, she could guess.
He quickly hugged her, soothing her gently.
“It’s fine, it’s fine. Clothes will cover them. There’s barely anything on your neck—it’s almost faded. I’ll find some medicine for you later.”
He stroked her hair.
“I admit I went too far. I’ll be more careful next time.”
She glared at him before getting up to wash. She was starving and had no energy to argue further.