"Еvеn sо, аrе уou unwilling to trу, tо givе уоurself a chаnсe?" Chеng Chi askеd sоftlу.
Zhоu Shаоjin lowerеd her eyelids, silently rеjеcting his рroроsаl.
Сheng Сhi lеt оut а lоng sigh and stоod up: "I understаnd."
Нe рreparеd to takе his leavе.
Zhоu Shаоjin аnхiоusly grabbеd Сheng Сhi's slееve.
Whеn Unclе Сhi said he undеrstоod, it nеver meant аgreement—it mеаnt hе had аlready fоrmеd his оwn oрiniоn.
"I... I dоn’t wаnt tо mаrry," shе lоokеd at him, hеr eyеs plеаding. "Yоu prоmisеd tо lеt me becоme a lay prаctitioner аt home. I’ll bе obеdiеnt. If I cаn’t continue the practice, I’ll stop being a lay practitioner."
Before becoming a nun, one must spend several years as a lay practitioner at home, strictly observing monastic precepts like a nun. Only when one has no regrets can one shave their head and take full vows.
Once that happens, there’s no turning back.
She understood Uncle Chi’s meaning.
He was afraid she didn’t know the hardships of monastic life and wouldn’t be able to endure it.
How could Cheng Chi bear to let her truly become a nun!
Looking at her soft, glossy black hair, he hesitated for a moment, then gently patted her head and said softly, "I understand. You can first become a lay practitioner at home."
Zhou Shaojin smiled.
Like the sun emerging after dark clouds disperse, her smile was bright and radiant, as if lighting up the entire room.
Cheng Chi’s heart also filled with joy.
Forget it, forget it.
It wasn’t as if he couldn’t support her.
If she wanted to be a lay practitioner at home, so be it—as long as she was happy.
When the day came that she wanted to marry, it wouldn’t be too late to arrange a good match for her.
Although young top scholars were rare, young jinshi were not unheard of.
At worst, she could marry a juren. He would supervise and guide him to study diligently for a few years, and he could still pass the jinshi examination.
Cheng Chi sighed lightly, shaking his head with a smile. "Don’t take the medicine anymore. And don’t pretend to be sick—you’ve frightened your stepmother. From now on, you mustn’t treat yourself so carelessly, understand?"
Zhou Shaojin nodded with a beaming smile.
She felt as if the storm had passed and the skies had cleared—everything was fine again.
It seemed such matters really had to be brought to Uncle Chi!
She happily escorted Cheng Chi to the door.
But Cheng Chi stopped at the doorway and smiled. "No need to see me out. Mama Li, your stepmother’s attendant, is still waiting in the courtyard to brew your medicine!"
Zhou Shaojin’s face flushed.
Cheng Chi chuckled and walked briskly out of the hall.
The evening glow filled the sky, casting a red hue over the small courtyard. The air carried the fresh scent of grass and trees, along with the cheerful blooming of canna flowers, suddenly giving him a sense of peace and tranquility.
Cheng Chi couldn’t help but look back.
Zhou Shaojin was standing at the doorway, watching him leave.
Leaning against the doorframe, she gazed at him with teary eyes, her expression filled with despair and sorrow. Like a dying plain-heart orchid, delicate and mournful, yet the moment she saw him, she immediately straightened up and revealed a bright smile, as if telling him: I’m fine, you can go, don’t worry...
Cheng Chi’s heart tightened instantly.
He remembered her fear and unease when he first saw her at Three Branches Pavilion, the caution with which she set down her brush when he saw her again. He recalled her shy smile by the ship’s railing, her joyful, bird-like figure on the Qiantang River beach, and her boldness when she regretted a move in chess... It was as if he had watched a flower quietly bloom in his palm, only to wither away silently.
Was this the outcome he wanted?
Was this the protection he had given her?
Cheng Chi turned around and strode purposefully toward Zhou Shaojin.
The wind brushed past his ears. His blood pulsed like pounding drums."Shao Jin!" He grabbed the soft, compliant girl and pressed her against the door.
The setting sun filtered through the hexagonal lattice of the Korean paper-covered window, glinting off the gold hairpins in her hair.
He suddenly captured her lips, his hands roaming over her still-youthful yet delicately curved body.
Zhou Shaojin was stunned.
How had Uncle Chi become like this?
How could he treat her this way?
Like Cheng Xu...
Tears fell like broken strings.
But it was still different from Cheng Xu.
With Cheng Xu, she had struggled desperately, kicking and hitting wildly.
With Uncle Chi holding her, she dared not move at all.
Even when he pried open her lips, she didn’t dare bite him... and his hands, almost slipping into her clothes... his palms were scorching, as if on fire, she could feel it even through her clothes... making her so ashamed she wished she could faint...
How could Uncle Chi treat her like this?
She began to sob softly.
Her pink lips, delicate and fragrant as flower petals, soft and tender; her slender body, undulating like rolling hills.
What had started as a mere test had ensnared Cheng Chi, making him unable to pull away, craving more.
The mingling of lips and teeth, the softness of her skin—his blood surged like molten lava, boiling... until he heard Zhou Shaojin’s faint, whimpering sobs, like those of a young animal, and he finally snapped back to reality.
He had truly fallen into it!
Cheng Chi smiled bitterly and slowly released Zhou Shaojin.
Her tear-washed dark eyes were as lustrous as obsidian, her kissed lips slightly swollen, like blooming flowers.
His body clamored again.
Cheng Chi gave a self-mocking smile and asked her gently, "Are you afraid?"
Zhou Shaojin nodded hurriedly.
She didn’t want Uncle Chi to be like this. She wanted him to be as he was before—seemingly impatient yet tolerant, teasing her, appearing angry yet restrained, mocking her, listening to her talk, joking with her... She didn’t want things to be like this between her and Uncle Chi.
"But what if I like it?" Cheng Chi asked softly, his gaze burning like the summer sun as he looked at her.
What should she do?
She certainly couldn’t treat him the way she treated Cheng Xu.
But she didn’t want him to treat her like this either.
What should she do?
Zhou Shaojin wrestled with her thoughts, her hands nervously twisting together.
"What a silly girl," Cheng Chi chuckled, cupping her face and leaning in to capture her lips again.
Zhou Shaojin’s eyes widened.
Hadn’t she already said she was afraid? Why was Uncle Chi still treating her this way?
Tears fell from Zhou Shaojin’s eyes again.
"Don’t cry!" Cheng Chi’s voice was gentle yet carried an unyielding firmness.
Zhou Shaojin, frightened, quickly stopped crying.
She was afraid of angering Cheng Chi—at least now he was only holding her face. If he got angry and recklessly slipped his hands into her clothes again, like before... she would die of shame!
Cheng Chi sighed deeply.
This silly girl—shouldn’t she be kicking or hitting him fiercely at a time like this? He told her not to cry, and she actually held back her tears!
Helplessly, Cheng Chi pressed his forehead against hers and asked softly, "Am I really that good?"
So good that she gave Song Mu no chance at all!
So good that she neither liked her childhood friend Cheng Yi nor the talented young man Song Mu!
So good that she would rather endure his advances than push him away!
"What?" Zhou Shaojin murmured, not understanding his words.A slow smile curved Cheng Chi's lips as he gathered Zhou Shaojin into his arms, holding her tightly, so very tightly, as if he wished to press her into his very being. He whispered by her ear, "Am I really that good?"
※
Dusk gradually deepened.
Cheng Chi sat in the hall speaking with Zhou Chujin: "...Guan Ge's hundredth day should be on the twenty-second of the fifth month, right? When will Madam Liao arrive in the capital? Once she's here, the Liao relatives are sure to come pay their respects. At that time, it might be somewhat inconvenient for Madam Li and Shaojin to stay here. I think it would be better to have them move over to my place. I also have a residence near Chaoyang Gate; I'll move there. When the Liao family arrives, it will look more proper. If Madam Li needs to care for you, she can simply take a sedan chair back and forth each day. You are a married woman now; you must uphold your family's dignity both in your natal home and in your marital home!"
The implication was clear: the Zhou family was no humble, impoverished household. Even if Madam Li and her younger sister came to care for her, they would stay in their own residence and eat their own food, not taking the slightest advantage of the Liao family.
These words struck a chord in Zhou Chujin's heart.
Madam Li and Zhou Shaojin had traveled all this way to care for her during her confinement. In any other family, this would be met with boundless gratitude; it was only right for Madam Li and Zhou Shaojin to stay at Yushu Lane. But in the Liao family, there would surely be those who would mock the Zhou family for lacking deep roots, saying that while they came to the capital to care for her during confinement, they were eating the Liao family's food, living in the Liao family's home, and ordering servants about—essentially just opening their mouths without contributing.
Her face flushed with embarrassment as she said sheepishly, "Uncle Chi, I'm afraid I've made a fool of myself."
Cheng Chi's expression remained calm. "Your marriage was arranged by my elder brother. If anyone has been made a fool of, it is his fault. Let's not speak of such things. I think you should pick a day within the next few days for Madam Li and Shaojin to move. I suspect Madam Liao will rush to the capital to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival. Since we've decided to move, it's best to avoid running into Madam Liao."
Zhou Chujin also believed her mother-in-law would arrive in the capital before the Dragon Boat Festival. She had been considering clearing out the west wing room, which was being used as a storeroom, for her mother-in-law to stay in.
"Then I'll trouble you, Uncle Chi!" She was a decisive woman, and once she decided, she acted immediately. She called a young maid to fetch the almanac and selected the eighth day of the fourth month for the move.
But Cheng Chi said, "The eighth day of the fourth month is Buddha Bathing Day. Shaojin will most likely go to offer incense to the Bodhisattva. Let's choose a day a bit earlier."
Zhou Chujin couldn't help but laugh. "No wonder Shaojin likes Uncle Chi the most!"
Even someone as seasoned as Cheng Chi couldn't help but feel his ears grow warm at such words.
The two settled on the sixth day of the fourth month for the move.
Madam Li came from outside wishing to see Cheng Chi.
Truly, perfect timing.
The two invited Madam Li into the hall to speak.
Madam Li still held the prescription written by Imperial Physician Cao in her hand, her face full of worry. "Why is it said that the medicine no longer needs to be brewed? Has something changed? Should we send word to the master?"
Both Zhou Chujin and Cheng Chi reacted with unease—one standing up anxiously, the other clearing his throat softly. And Zhou Chujin, without hesitation, shifted the matter onto Cheng Chi, saying, "It was Uncle Chi's idea. He wants you to move over in the next few days..."
She explained Cheng Chi's intentions to Madam Li.Although Madam Li felt it would be somewhat inconvenient to travel by sedan chair every day, she was quite pleased to live separately from her in-law, Madam Liao, and agreed with a smile.
Cheng Chi, however, was still concerned about the prescription in Madam Li’s possession. He said, “I forgot to mention earlier that Dr. Cao believes Shaojin’s condition is simply due to excessive liver fire and nothing serious. But I think all medicine carries some degree of toxicity, so it’s best to avoid taking it if possible. I discussed with Eldest Miss that we should stop Shaojin’s medication for a few days and see how things go.”
Madam Li thought that since Cheng Chi, a scholar who had passed both imperial examinations, said so, and Zhou Chujin had also agreed, it must be correct. She said nothing more, only instructing Mama Li to keep the prescription safe to avoid losing it when needed. She then began discussing with Zhou Chujin the details of moving to Yuqian Lane.
※
Dear readers, here’s yesterday’s update!
O(∩_∩)O~
PS: I have a meeting today, so the timing is uncertain. The extra update will be postponed until around 10 p.m.
※ (To be continued ~^~)
OpenNovel