The human body has memory—it can remember every palpitation caused by a gentle touch, every tremor brought by pleasure, every mark left by one’s beloved.
When Xiao Du pressed his lips tightly against hers, beginning with gentle comfort that then turned into a tempestuous demand, in that moment all memories climbed onto their skin, flowing into every corner of their bodies, awakening unbearable restlessness and desire. Their bodies were waiting for each other, allowing almost no gap between them.
When that familiar scent penetrated her mouth and instantly occupied all her senses, Yuanxi began to feel dizzy. The desire surging within her heart transformed into heated currents, urgently wanting to pour forth. Unable to bear it, she hummed softly like a kitten, and this sound made the already aroused Xiao Du completely abandon reason. He impatiently reached out to untie her sash, supporting her head as he laid her down on the bed board. When Yuanxi came to her senses, she found her upper garment was already half-removed, and that man was clearly no longer satisfied with merely lingering at her lips—he had begun using both hands and mouth to travel downward.
She hastily pressed down on his head, whispering, “What are you doing? This is a medical hall!”
Xiao Du could no longer care about anything else. He had been aching all over from missing her, and now that he could finally hold her soft body in his arms, how could he possibly control himself? So he continued his assault without hesitation, mumbling indistinctly, “Who cares? I can’t wait any longer.”
Yuanxi trembled all over from his ministrations, panting heavily, yet bit her lip firmly to keep from making any sound. She knew that thin door panel couldn’t block any noise from inside. If she concentrated slightly, she could hear patients walking around outside, Doctor Li shouting for someone to fetch medicine from the pharmacy—she couldn’t even remember if the door latch was secured. What if someone pushed the door open?
The physical pleasure intertwined with mental fear left Yuanxi feeling as if she were suffering in ice and fire. Though her consciousness was tense and resistant, her body involuntarily sank deeper with him. He was too familiar with her body—with just simple teasing, he could make her use all her willpower just to keep from crying out. This suppressed yet overwhelming pleasure nearly drove Yuanxi mad. Then something even more shameful happened—the cheap wooden bed beneath them could no longer bear the increasingly intense pressure and began making “creaking” sounds with their movements.
Yuanxi flushed with embarrassment all over, while the man on top of her was like a beast in heat, never satisfied. She struggled to pinch hard at his waist, and when she opened her mouth, she found her voice had long become hoarse and broken: “No… the bed is too loud… they’ll hear outside…”
Xiao Du was finally awakened to some reason by the pain at his waist, though he actually didn’t care—after all, being intimate with his own wife violated no law. But seeing Yuanxi was mortified to the point of wanting to flee, his heart filled with tenderness, and he quickly thought of a solution.
He wound her hands around his neck and leaned close to her ear with a wicked smile: “How about we try this way…” Yuanxi had to strain to hear the words that followed, then her face instantly reddened as she thought how shameless this person was. But before she could voice her protest, Xiao Du had already lifted her from the bed, standing on the ground while firmly supporting her body with his palms and gently pressing her back against the wall.
Seeing her entire weight resting on his hands, Yuanxi immediately felt extremely insecure and instinctively wrapped her legs tightly around his waist. Xiao Du smiled wickedly and secretly lifted her body a bit higher, just about to drive straight in when suddenly heavy knocking came from outside. A servant shouted loudly, “Little Xi, Little Xi, how is your patient? Doctor Li went out and told you to come out and see patients for him.”
This voice was like a bucket of cold water instantly extinguishing the heat in the room. Yuanxi was so frightened her heart nearly jumped out, but the man before her still hadn’t stopped. She quickly bit down hard on his shoulder until he hissed and stopped moving, finally breathing a sigh of relief. She struggled to find her voice and called out, “Alright, wait a moment, I’ll be right out.”
The servant outside thought the voice sounded strange but didn’t think much of it, returning to his work. But Xiao Du felt incredibly frustrated—he was already at the point of no return, but now had to be forcibly interrupted. Very unwillingly, he lowered his head to nibble at her neck, nearly making Yuanxi cry out again. Yuanxi quickly pushed him away, frowning as she glared at him fiercely. But Xiao Du persistently pressed close again: “Finish first, then go out!”
Yuanxi was nearly driven to death by anger. She aimed her toes at him to kick, but Xiao Du quickly grabbed her ankle, caressing it in his arms while saying, “Don’t kick—if you break it, it won’t work anymore.” Yuanxi’s cheeks flew red as she spat and cursed, “You’re supposedly the dignified Marquis Xuanyuan, but you’re nothing but a lecher, thinking about such things all day long. This is someone else’s place!” Xiao Du looked at her flushed, indignant appearance and found her increasingly adorable, unable to resist wanting to swallow her whole. So he quickly kissed her cheek and said, “Anyway, in this lifetime, I’m only lecherous toward you alone.”
Yuanxi turned her face away ignoring him, concentrating on arranging her clothes and hair, but her heart felt as if soaked in honey: “Forget it, forget it. If this life is destined to be entangled with him, why waste energy struggling? If I can be with him for one day, that’s one more day of happiness. Even if the future is unbearable, as long as he’s there, it will all shine with warm light.”
Xiao Du had thought that since Yuanxi had already resolved her inner conflict, she would just say a word outside and could return to the mansion with him. Who knew she would so responsibly tend to the patients outside, and once she started, it lasted several hours. He sat beside her with a dark expression, but no matter how he hinted with his actions, Yuanxi never turned to look at him. Xiao Du ground his teeth viciously, calculating that he must properly deal with her when they returned home. This thought only made him more restless, the fire in his belly burning hotter, wishing he could drag her back right now to knead and caress her as he pleased. He couldn’t help but sigh inwardly—he shouldn’t have minded that old man being in the way and deliberately found someone to trick him into leaving. He never expected it would harm himself by being left hanging awkwardly. Now he finally understood what it meant to be caught in one’s own trap!
Seeing him sitting beside her with a black face, occasionally glaring at the patients in front of her until several timid ones couldn’t even describe their symptoms, Yuanxi feared the patients would be scared away. She had to stand up and pull him to a secluded corner, softly coaxing, “Doctor Li has been kind to me. I must properly handle what he entrusted before I can leave.” Seeing he still looked displeased, she checked that no one was watching, then stood on tiptoe to secretly kiss his lips, blushing as she whispered something in his ear before quickly running back to the desk.
Xiao Du touched his lips, smiling like a cat that had stolen cream, all his dissatisfaction flying to the ninth heaven: “She’s my own wife anyway—I’m not afraid to wait however long.”
When Xiao Zhixuan heard that big brother had finally brought sister-in-law back, she was extremely excited and rushed to find her sister-in-law. But she was blocked outside the door by Nanny Li, who wore a meaningful expression, saying only that the marquis and madam needed to rest well. Xiao Zhixuan found this strange—what was there to rest about in broad daylight? Then she understood something and immediately blushed with embarrassment.
So she chatted with Nanny Li and An’he while waiting, but even when the moon reached mid-heaven, neither had emerged from their room. Being young, Xiao Zhixuan began to worry. At this point, Nanny Li wore the expression of someone experienced, calmly fanning herself with her handkerchief: “A brief separation is better than a new marriage. In this servant’s opinion, Third Miss should come back tomorrow.”
So it wasn’t until the next day that Xiao Zhixuan finally saw Yuanxi, whose face was full of rosy color and whose neck was wrapped so tightly not a breath of air could get through. Xiao Zhixuan deliberately looked her up and down with mischievous eyes, clicking her tongue: “Who would have thought—my big brother really is formidable.”
Yuanxi’s face reddened as she made to cover her mouth. Only then did Xiao Zhixuan laugh and take her arm: “I mean, who would have thought big brother was so formidable that he could coax sister-in-law back.”
Yuanxi knew she was deliberately teasing her and was about to respond when suddenly they heard commotion and shouting from outside the courtyard. They quickly ran out with Xiao Zhixuan to see what was happening, only to see a young eunuch holding up an imperial edict and reading: “By the mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: Marquis Xuanyuan Xiao Du has merit in resisting enemies and shall tomorrow accompany Us to offer sacrifices at the Imperial Mausoleum. By imperial decree!” Xiao Du knelt to receive the edict, his gaze slowly sweeping over the yellow silk in his hands, his expression becoming obscure and unclear.