Chapter 80

And so, Shen Yao Xing spent the night on the imperial concubine’s couch. Actually, it didn’t matter where she slept – she had slept on trees and on the ground before when she was outside. What made her uncomfortable was the feeling of heat all over her body.

Even drinking water couldn’t cool it down.

Fortunately, the fragrance faded a bit in the latter half of the night, and she finally fell into a hazy sleep.

She thought that after a night, Jiang Ming Yue would at least stop caring about it. After all, no matter how you look at it, it was just a small matter. Who would have thought that after waking up the next day, he still wouldn’t even look at her.

Shen Yao Xing was a bit angry, “I just came back late, and I obediently accepted the ‘punishment’ last night. Do you have to hold onto it till now?”

In the past, even Mother Shen had never managed her like this. Now, after getting married, she was about to lose even her basic freedom.

Jiang Ming Yue was having breakfast. Hearing this, he raised his eyes and glanced at her coldly, “Punishment? When did I punish you? You’re the young lady of the Shen family, how dare I punish you.”

His words carried a hint of sarcasm, sounding odd and unpleasant.

Shen Yao Xing’s temples throbbed with pain. She buried her head in her porridge bowl, planning to talk after finishing eating to avoid losing her appetite while talking.

After breakfast, Shen Yao Xing closely followed the man, going wherever he went, muttering all the way. She hadn’t even realized that her thoughts and attention had begun to revolve around the man.

Compared to before, she cared more and more about his thoughts.

“Hey, don’t be angry anymore. I’ve already said I won’t come back so late in the future. How can a grown man be so petty?” As she went on, Shen Yao Xing forgot where she was.

Jiang Ming Yue, who was reading, sneered: “As a man, I’m naturally not as magnanimous as you. Since that’s the case, why don’t you go find your magnanimous friend and continue to hang out? Don’t come back, that would be better.”

Seeing that neither soft nor hard approaches worked, Shen Yao Xing also deflated, sprawling on the desk, not wanting to speak anymore.

At this moment, Qing Shu suddenly walked in excitedly, with an eager look on her face as if wanting to share good news. Her big strides froze when she saw the man sitting next to the young lady.

Her head immediately lowered.

She had come in such a hurry that she forgot Ming Yue Gongzi was also here. Qing Shu was so annoyed that she wanted to go out and come in again.

Shen Yao Xing raised her head and glanced at her, “What’s the matter?”

Qing Shu cautiously looked at the man who was reading, hesitated for a moment, but still couldn’t help saying: “Young Lady, this servant heard from those servants that Zhou Shi Ren… is pregnant.”

The previously listless Shen Yao Xing immediately perked up upon hearing this, her eyes widening, “You mean, Uncle Yu Die is pregnant?!”

The young lady’s incredulous words revealed a hint of uncontrollable joy. People who didn’t know might think the child was hers.

Jiang Ming Yue’s fingers holding the book suddenly tightened, his brows slightly furrowed, his slightly pursed lips tightened, representing his extreme displeasure.

At this moment, Shen Yao Xing’s attention was completely drawn to this topic. She didn’t notice his expression at all. She suddenly stood up and quickly walked to Qing Shu, “Where did you hear this from? It’s not false, is it? How come I didn’t hear any news at all?”

“This servant also just overheard it by chance when passing by the garden, from the servants attending to Zhou Shi Ren. They said he’s already almost three months pregnant. This servant also heard them say that the master has instructed not to let you know, Young Lady, fearing you might be upset.”

Upset?

How could she possibly be upset? This joyous event that she had dreamed of made her want to laugh out loud to the heavens, and then set off firecrackers to celebrate!

Heaven knows how many times Shen Yao Xing had urged Mother Shen to have another child, but each time she was casually brushed off. She didn’t know the reason, only thinking that Mother Shen hadn’t gotten over Father Shen yet.

The delighted Shen Yao Xing told Qing Shu to buy some supplements to send over, then sat back in her original position, grinning happily.

Jiang Ming Yue glanced at her coldly, “You’re very happy?”

“Mm, quite happy indeed.”

Jiang Ming Yue’s eyes grew colder, his voice dropping a few degrees, “What does his pregnancy have to do with you?”

Shen Yao Xing was about to tell him the reason, but suddenly stopped. Her clear black and white eyes looked at him and blinked, changing the subject, “I won’t tell you.”

Jiang Ming Yue pressed his lips together, his pitch-black eyes staring at her for a long while, then turned away, leaving her with a perfect profile as if sculpted, his slightly lowered eyes filled with unspoken coldness.

Shen Yao Xing propped her elbow on the desk, curiously observing him, “You’re not jealous, are you?”

The suffocating chill around the man suddenly increased, his tense fingers almost crushing the book.

Shen Yao Xing wasn’t afraid at all. Instead, she smiled and sprawled her whole body on the desk, her forehead resting on the table as she peered at him, repeating in a teasing tone: “You’re really jealous, aren’t you?”

Then she laughed again: “Why be jealous over this? I consider Uncle Yu Die as half a father. Of course I’m happy he’s pregnant. Moreover, after my mother has a child, her attention won’t be all on me, so of course I’m even happier.”

The young lady’s explanation, punctuated with laughter, finally made Jiang Ming Yue turn his gaze to her face. His deep black eyes reflected her image, his thin lips slightly moving: “Is that really all?”

“Mm!”

To think he actually cared about this matter. Thinking about it felt absurd. Let alone how old Uncle Yu Die was, just based on the fact that he was Mother Shen’s minor attendant, was she, Shen Yao Xing, such a beast? He was thinking too much.

Shen Yao Xing suddenly realized that this person’s thinking couldn’t be understood by normal standards.

Thinking this, Shen Yao Xing couldn’t help but reach out and pinch his jade-like white face in frustration.

Jiang Ming Yue no longer rejected her intimacy, staring at her for a long while, “You want me to let go of yesterday’s matter?”

The young lady nodded vigorously.

He curved his lips, “Alright, but you have to promise me one thing.”

Shen Yao Xing hesitated for only a second before nodding again: “As long as it’s not too much.”

“Don’t associate with that woman anymore.”

That woman referred to Chu Yi. Shen Yao Xing frowned, but before she could speak, the man’s hand gently caressed her face, his slightly cool lips repeatedly pecking at the corner of her mouth, his gentle voice whispering sweet nothings between lovers.

“If you want to go out, I’ll accompany you. Wherever you go, I’ll go. Whatever you want to play, I’ll play with you. Isn’t being with me better than being with those outsiders?”

As the man whispered enticingly, his lips lingered near hers, the faint cool fragrance emanating from his body intoxicating.

Shen Yao Xing felt his words made sense, yet also felt something was not quite right. She suddenly couldn’t think straight.

The man was still softly asking for her promise: “Zhao Zhao… promise me, okay?”

Shen Yao Xing’s slightly dazed eyes fixed on his beautiful face, nodding as if possessed, “Okay…”

After agreeing, Shen Yao Xing suddenly pressed her hands on his shoulders, pushing him down onto the carpet in front of the desk. Looking down at him from above, she said: “Are you happy now?”

Jiang Ming Yue’s eyes were misty with desire, his ears flushed red, his lips slightly parted. Even if he tried to maintain his composure, he couldn’t hide the extreme longing for her from his heart to his body.

He hadn’t slept at all last night either.

Although his body was excited, his reason still remained. He raised his hand to press against the hand misbehaving at his waist, breathing slightly heavily, “Let’s go to the couch…”

“No.” Shen Yao Xing threw off his hand, continuing to tug at the constraints around his waist, stubbornly stating: “I want to do it right here.”

Those mischievous hands would inadvertently touch several sensitive spots, and Jiang Ming Yue suppressed his desire, his eyes slightly red as he looked at her weakly, “Zhao Zhao… close the door first…”

Although there was no one outside, it wasn’t good to do such things with the door open.

Shen Yao Xing stumbled up from his body, quickly went to close the door, then came back and stripped off his clothes in a few moves, joining him in the act of intimacy.

He seemed to have been longing for it too, his body already like a ripe fruit, just waiting for her to pick.

This was the first time they did such things outside of the bed, and the feeling of pleasure was doubled.

From then on, Shen Yao Xing truly listened to his words. She refused even when Chu Yi came to find her. She had never been this obedient before, even when she was with Mother Shen.

Life seemed to go on as before. She thought he would be satisfied now that she had done as he wished. Later, Shen Yao Xing discovered that his possessiveness was endless, not diminishing but developing in an increasingly pathological direction.

Before, she could still play and chat with Hei Sha and Bai Sha, but now they wouldn’t even step into the courtyard. Shen Yao Xing would occasionally take the initiative to find them, but every time they hadn’t played for long before she felt the surveillance from the shadows.

She could be sure that her every move was under Jiang Ming Yue’s control.

A person so perfect in appearance, yet he seemed to have no confidence in himself at all, always afraid she would have a change of heart, even if the other person was a woman, or even not human.

He seemed unable to bear her showing any affection for people or things other than him. He was cold, even if he was unhappy in his heart, he wouldn’t say it out loud.

He would silently build a wall between her and those people or things, cutting off their connections.

That prison-like oppression made Shen Yao Xing become irritable and quick-tempered. Although she wouldn’t take it out on him, every time she practiced sword, she would chop the wooden stake used for practice into pieces.

At these times, Jiang Ming Yue would always quietly watch from the side, his eyes filled with deep, unresolvable infatuation.

Where there is oppression, there will inevitably be an outburst. Shen Yao Xing’s outburst came from a certain day.

That day, having just finished sword practice, Shen Yao Xing was so bored that she took a dagger and carved words on the trunk of the velvet flower tree. She didn’t think too much about it, subconsciously just lightly carved her own name.

“You like this tree very much?”

The man’s pleasant voice, like melting ice and snow, came from not far away.

Shen Yao Xing didn’t even turn her head, just casually responded: “Yeah, this tree was planted for me by Mother a long time ago. It’s very beautiful when it blooms.”

“Is that so…” Jiang Ming Yue’s long eyes narrowed slightly, looking at the tree trunk with an indecipherable meaning.

If Shen Yao Xing had known what consequences her casual response would bring to this tree, she would have unhesitatingly said the opposite.

That night, before it was completely dark, Jiang Ming Yue was already clinging to her, seducing her. This made Shen Yao Xing feel a bit strange. Although they did it every day, she had never seen him so passionate before.

Shen Yao Xing entangled with him for half the night before falling into a deep sleep.

The next morning, when Shen Yao Xing opened the door and saw the bare courtyard, her half-yawn froze. She rubbed her eyes repeatedly, and when she confirmed it wasn’t an illusion, her gaze turned cold.

Almost in the next second after confirming, she guessed the culprit.

Shen Yao Xing laughed with anger. Well, well, such a big tree uprooted overnight, and she didn’t notice at all.

Should she praise his great ability or his deep scheming?

Shen Yao Xing forcefully slapped away the hand reaching out to caress her face, smiled at him and pointed to the bare spot, “You did this?”

Jiang Ming Yue calmly withdrew his hand, glanced outside, and casually changed the subject, “Mother asked us to have breakfast with her today. We should go quickly, or she’ll be unhappy.”

Shen Yao Xing, with a gloomy face, suddenly turned back to the room, quickly packed two pieces of clothing and was about to leave.

Jiang Ming Yue behind her raised his hand and tightly grasped her arm, “Where are you going?”

Shen Yao Xing pried his hand off, stared into his eyes and said word by word: “Jiang Ming Yue, you’re a psychopath. I’m telling you, if you don’t replant that tree, don’t expect me to come back and see you.”

With that, she left the courtyard without looking back. From behind came the man’s ice-cold voice.

“You insist on being angry with me over such a meaningless thing?”

Shen Yao Xing suddenly realized how terrifying it was to be with someone whose values were completely different from her own.

Unfortunately, there were no psychologists in this world, otherwise she would definitely take him to see one.

After leaving the Shen mansion, Shen Yao Xing temporarily stayed at an inn in the capital, and was determined not to soften her heart again, otherwise things would eventually fall apart between them.

This was no longer just about a tree, it was about whether the two of them could last in the future…

Author’s Note: I’ve always felt that the male lead has some psychological illness, the kind that can be soothed but not cured _(:_」∠)_