Yan Ningshuang, however, didn't hear a word, her eyes fixed on the porcelain bottle in her hand. Her fingers and lips were trembling.
“Ningshuang?” Zhao Yingqiu called out softly.
As if suddenly startled awake, Yan Ningshuang shuddered violently. She looked up at Zhao Yingqiu, then gritted her teeth and hid the porcelain bottle in her sleeve.
“Thank you, Yingqiu,” Yan Ningshuang said softly. “If you ever need anything in the future, just tell me, and I will help you too.”
Zhao Yingqiu forced a smile and wanted to persuade her further, but Yan Ningshuang shook her head, cutting her off. “Say no more. I know what I’m doing. Don’t worry, no matter what happens, I won’t implicate you. You should get back to your business. I have things to do, so I’ll be heading back now.”
Zhao Yingqiu sighed and didn't try to keep her. She only said, “Alright. If you need my help with anything, come find me. Neither of us has any family in Yanbei; we should look out for each other.”
Yan Ningshuang nodded distractedly, then took her leave from the courtyard.
Yan Ningshuang rarely ate at the same table as Xiao Jingyue. He often came back very late, so she would usually eat early and go to bed first.
On this day, however, Yan Ningshuang uncharacteristically ate an hour later than usual. Just as the dishes were being set on the table, Xiao Jingyue returned.
Seeing the table full of food and wine, Xiao Jingyue couldn't help but glance at Yan Ningshuang and tease, “Could it be that you were waiting for me to eat together? Did the sun rise from the west today?”
As usual, Yan Ningshuang wore a cold expression. “I was at Yingqiu’s place and came back late.”
Xiao Jingyue’s face was full of regret. “You got my hopes up for nothing. I really thought my dear wife had a change of heart and decided to live a good life with me! Alas, since that’s the case, I won’t be a nuisance here. You eat slowly. I’ll go have dinner at Mother’s.”
With that, Xiao Jingyue turned to leave.
Yan Ningshuang’s heart clenched. Though she was very reluctant, she still called out to stop him, “Wait! It’s so late, why bother Mother? Let’s just eat together.”
Xiao Jingyue turned back, looking at Yan Ningshuang with some surprise. His gaze swept over the dishes on the table, his expression inscrutable.
Although Yan Ningshuang appeared calm, her tightly clenched fists were slick with cold sweat. Seeing Xiao Jingyue look at the dishes, she couldn't help but feel uneasy, afraid he would notice something was wrong.
Unexpectedly, Xiao Jingyue suddenly smiled. He strode over to Yan Ningshuang and said with a grin, “Still say you weren’t waiting for me? These dishes on the table are clearly all my favorites. My dear wife, you really do say one thing and mean another.”
Yan Ningshuang looked at his face, now so close to hers, her heart filled with disgust, but she didn't refute him.
Xiao Jingyue chuckled softly, then stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her, about to kiss her on the lips. Yan Ningshuang quickly turned her head to avoid him, and his lips landed on her cheek instead.
Yan Ningshuang pushed his head away, forcing herself to endure it. “Let’s eat first.”
Xiao Jingyue sneered, caressing her cheek. “We’re already husband and wife, yet you’re still so shy. Didn’t you put on this whole show today because you missed me? Fine, let’s eat first. After we eat, your husband will dote on you properly.”
Xiao Jingyue stood up, pulling Yan Ningshuang up with him.
“Hm? Why are your hands so sweaty? Are you this nervous waiting for your husband to eat?” Xiao Jingyue teased.
Yan Ningshuang pulled her hand away and, ignoring his words, sat down at the table first.
Xiao Jingyue smiled and sat down beside her.
“There’s wine too? My dear wife is truly enthusiastic today.”
Xiao Jingyue dismissed all the maids, picked up the wine pot himself, and poured two cups. He took one for himself and placed the other in front of Yan Ningshuang, smiling at her. “How about having a drink with me?”
Yan Ningshuang pushed the cup away and said flatly, “I don’t drink.”
Xiao Jingyue clicked his tongue, disappointed, and put his own cup down as well. “Since my wife isn’t drinking, then I won’t either. Drinking alone is just drinking away one’s sorrows. What’s the point?”
Yan Ningshuang’s chopsticks, which were about to pick up some food, paused. She glanced at the wine cup in front of her and hesitated for a long while before finally putting down her chopsticks and picking up the cup Xiao Jingyue had placed before her.
Seeing this, Xiao Jingyue’s face lit up with a smile. Without another word, he leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. “My dear wife, you’re so obedient today.”
A flash of disgust crossed Yan Ningshuang’s eyes. She wiped the spot Xiao Jingyue had kissed and suppressed her anger. “Are you going to drink or not?”
Xiao Jingyue looked at her and smiled. “Of course, I’ll drink! Why wouldn’t I? Let alone wine, even if my beauty asked me to drink poison, I’d down it in one gulp without a second thought.”
Yan Ningshuang’s heart skipped a beat. She glanced at Xiao Jingyue. He looked back at her, raising the cup to his lips. Her heart pounded faster and faster as she stared intently at the cup in his hand.
But then, Xiao Jingyue suddenly moved the cup away again. He looked at Yan Ningshuang and smiled. “My dear wife, you’re not drinking?”
Yan Ningshuang bit her lip, raised her own cup to her mouth, and merely touched her lips to it.
Watching her, Xiao Jingyue heartily drank the entire cup of wine.
Yan Ningshuang finally let out a breath of relief and almost simultaneously put her cup down. “It’s too strong. I’m not used to it.”
Xiao Jingyue chuckled softly and didn't press her further.
After that, neither of them spoke. Yan Ningshuang ate without tasting the food, watching as Xiao Jingyue drank the entire small pot of wine, cup by cup. Her anxious heart miraculously began to calm.
Xiao Jingyue downed the last cup of wine, then suddenly sneered and looked at Yan Ningshuang. “My dear wife, what is it about him that you like?”
Yan Ningshuang froze, then her expression turned cold. “You’ve had too much to drink.”
But Xiao Jingyue continued on his own, smiling. “Do you like his good looks? His brilliant talent? His high status and power? Or do you like how he ignores you?”
Yan Ningshuang shot to her feet, looking down at Xiao Jingyue. “You’re drunk. I’ll have someone come in and help you to the guest room to rest.”
Xiao Jingyue’s lips curled. “This is my room. Why should I sleep in the guest room? Why don’t you dare to answer me? How is he better than me, that you can’t forget him?”
Yan Ningshuang was silent for a moment, then suddenly looked at Xiao Jingyue and sneered, “You’re right, why wouldn’t I dare to admit it? I do love him! You ask how he’s better than you? Why don’t you ask yourself how you could possibly compare to him! No, to even compare the two of you is an insult to him in my eyes!”
The smile vanished from Xiao Jingyue’s face. His eyes, fixed on Yan Ningshuang, were filled with an inscrutable expression. It was the first time Yan Ningshuang had ever seen a Xiao Jingyue who wasn't joking around, and she couldn't help but take a fearful step back.
Xiao Jingyue stood up and advanced on her step by step. A fathomless storm brewed in his dark eyes. Yan Ningshuang retreated warily until he grabbed her arm, locking her in his embrace so she couldn't move.
Yan Ningshuang struggled ceaselessly, punching and kicking in his arms, trying to break free from his hold. Xiao Jingyue paid her struggles no mind, lowering his head to her ear and whispering, word by word, “You’re right. There’s no way I can compare to him, so I’m the loser. But how are you any better than me? Didn’t you offer yourself to him on a platter, only for him to refuse you? So we’re both losers, a perfect match.”
After struggling for a long time without success, Yan Ningshuang cried out, “Who’s a match for you? Are you even worthy?”
Hearing this, Xiao Jingyue laughed instead of getting angry. “How are we not a match? The one who presses you down every night and fucks you half to death is me, Xiao Jingyue, not the Xiao Jingxi you pine for!”
As if triggered, Yan Ningshuang suddenly went berserk, screaming, “Shut up! Shut up! Just shut your mouth! You bastard! Why don’t you just die! Why aren’t you dead yet!”
Where Yan Ningshuang couldn't see, the corners of Xiao Jingyue’s mouth curved into a cold smile.
“I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint you. As the saying goes, the good die young, but scoundrels live for a thousand years. I probably won’t die so easily, so you’re destined to be fucked by me until you’re half-dead, driven to ecstasy!”
After saying this, Xiao Jingyue dragged Yan Ningshuang into the inner chamber as if grabbing a chick, threw her onto the bed, and then unhurriedly began to undo his clothes.
Yan Ningshuang’s face paled. She scrambled to get up and escape, but Xiao Jingyue slapped her hard across the face, sending her tumbling back onto the bed. Then, without another word, he pressed down on top of her.
The slap stunned Yan Ningshuang, and for a moment, she forgot to resist.
Although Xiao Jingyue usually liked to tease her with his flippant and improper jokes, he had never slapped her before. Even during their lovemaking, when Yan Ningshuang was always uncooperative, Xiao Jingyue would use various methods to make her give up her resistance on her own, humiliating her mentally, but he rarely resorted to direct violence.
Today’s Xiao Jingyue was very strange. Yan Ningshuang even began to suspect if he had discovered something. But he had clearly drunk that entire pot of wine just now.
That night, Yan Ningshuang was tormented by Xiao Jingyue for the entire night. When she woke up the next day, she could barely crawl out of bed. From her neck to her calves, not a single patch of her skin was unscathed; it was all covered in ghastly blue and purple bruises.
Yan Ningshuang was about to suspect that there was something wrong with the medicine Zhao Yingqiu had given her, until she woke up the next day and found that Xiao Jingyue, who had tormented her all night, had not yet risen.
Xiao Jingyue lay completely naked beside her, his face an unnatural shade of red, his breathing somewhat ragged. Yan Ningshuang tentatively gave him a gentle push, but Xiao Jingyue didn't react at all.
Taking a deep breath, Yan Ningshuang reached out to feel his forehead. The searing heat startled her. At some point, Xiao Jingyue had developed a high fever.
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