Chapter 3: Chirp Chirp Chirp Chirp

“I’ll go wash up too.”

Li Ruantang casually draped her outer robe on the bamboo rack in front of the bathtub, creating a makeshift screen that separated the bathtub from the square table.

“But…”

Meng Jun abruptly turned around, yet couldn’t help stealing glances behind him. The young gentleman’s ears were burning red, partly because he had misunderstood Li Ruantang, and partly because—

His voice lowered a few notches, like a gentle breeze softly brushing past the woman standing by the bathtub, “That’s the water I used to wash.”

Li Ruantang was fond of cleanliness, which he had known since childhood. However, in the Great Jin, women were revered, and it was simply impossible for a woman to use a gentleman’s bathwater.

Moreover, if Li Ruantang used the water he had used, wouldn’t that be indirectly bathing together with him?

Meng Jun felt stifled in his chest, his face flushing even redder in a fluster.

Splash—, the clear sound of water could be heard from behind the bamboo rack. The young gentleman could still see the uncovered half of her fair and smooth shoulder with a slight tilt of his eyes.

Just like the mutton-fat jade she placed beside her pillow, it was more like a dazzling light.

The young gentleman had never seen such a sight before. His sidelong glance lingered, forgetting to retract until he heard her whisper,

“It’s alright, you’re not an outsider.”

“Huh?” Meng Jun was slightly stunned and fell silent.

Since his father passed away, no one in the family had said such words to him for a long time.

Mother was busy with court affairs and had little leisure time. Although there was a housekeeper named Han Fushi at home, he was always cautious and meticulous by nature and wouldn’t be casual or intimate with Meng Jun, remaining polite yet distant.

In his small courtyard, aside from a few servants who grew up with him, only the sparrows he raised under the corridor would exchange a few more words with him.

Speaking of which, his small courtyard was only separated from Li Ruantang’s bedroom by a courtyard wall.

The two families were neighbors.

When they were young, Li Ruantang often ordered someone to set up a ladder on the wall and climb up to chat with him to relieve boredom.

During that time, she also patted her chest and said she would be his family in the future and accompany him forever.

But what about later?

The young gentleman pursed his lips, suppressing the sense of loss in his heart. Childish promises were taken seriously only by him.

In this world, companionship was the most difficult.

Moreover, the word “forever” could mean from black hair to white hair in the long run, but in the short term, it was no more than a sunrise and a sunset.

A feeling of sorrow suddenly surged in Meng Jun’s heart.

“Silly Chirp Chirp, you are my husband.”

Li Ruantang’s cheeks were slightly flushed. She glanced at the stunned young gentleman behind her, the corners of her lips curling up slightly. Her voice lowered a few more notches, “The fried eggs will get cold if left out any longer. Eat quickly.”

Her voice was like a warm sun on a winter day, gently melting the thin snow on the grass. The young gentleman sniffled, thinking it was a pity that this wife-master and husband relationship was fake to him, but she didn’t know.

The water droplets hanging from her hair mischievously fell, as if someone had fiercely bitten Meng Jun’s heart. He couldn’t describe the feeling, only hurriedly turning around and sitting at the table in a fluster.

“Chirp Chirp.”

“Hmm?” The young gentleman absentmindedly bit into the fried egg.

Li Ruantang looked back at him and smiled softly, “I asked Sanniang for some medicine for injuries. I’ll have to trouble you to take a look at my back later.”

Before bathing, she didn’t feel her back was too uncomfortable, but now sitting in the water, it ached wave after wave.

Since they were husband and wife-master, this request shouldn’t be considered inappropriate.

“…Me?”

Meng Jun choked, the white he had accidentally glimpsed earlier inexplicably flashing before his eyes. The young gentleman’s face suddenly flushed red, and the strings in his mind tightened even more. His eyes were so flustered that he didn’t know where to look. If he were to examine her injuries and apply medicine, wouldn’t he have to see Li Ruantang completely naked?

As soon as this thought arose, it was like a spark setting a prairie ablaze. Inadvertently, it burned him until he coughed continuously.

The sound of water splashed behind the bamboo rack. Li Ruantang hurriedly put on her robe and got up, hastily walking over.

“What’s wrong?”

Her voice suddenly rang out beside his ear. Meng Jun subconsciously raised his head and saw her loosely tied collar and the water droplets continuously dripping down her disheveled hair, leaping into the snowy ravine and disappearing without a trace, yet seeming to splash onto his heart and forehead.

“…”

“Why is your face so red?”

***

When Scheming Men Desperately Battle for Her Favor in the Male Harem (Female-dominant)

This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Synopsis:

“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”

Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.

Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.

While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the  Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…

Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.

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