Ji Cheng opened the wardrobe containing Shen Che’s clothes and immediately noticed a robe with a pink background and a dark purple swastika butterfly pattern. It matched perfectly in fabric and design with one of her pink dresses.
She had never seen Shen Che wear pink clothes before, and it was rare to see men in pink robes. She imagined he might look like an actor if he wore it. Deliberately, she took out the pink robe. Given the choice, she would naturally pick what she liked.
Ji Cheng prepared the robe along with the white silk undergarments and trousers. She called for Liuye, “Take these to the washroom for the Young Master.”
Liuye didn’t move.
Whether intentional or by coincidence, since Ji Cheng had entered the household, Shen Che had been bathing and grooming himself without the help of maids.
Now that Ji Cheng suddenly asked Liuye to go to the washroom, she naturally hesitated, unable to avoid overthinking.
Ji Cheng hadn’t thought too deeply about it. She didn’t want to take the clothes to Shen Che herself, fearing she might see something she shouldn’t, but she also worried he might shamelessly walk out naked. That’s why she had called for Liuye.
But when Ji Cheng saw Liuye not moving, she immediately understood.
Liuye fell to her knees before Ji Cheng with a thud, kowtowing as she said, “Miss, this servant would rather serve you unmarried for life.”
Ji Cheng understood completely. She inwardly praised Liuye’s good judgment for not taking a liking to Shen Che. Indeed, she was worthy of being her maid.
“Get up,” Ji Cheng helped Liuye to her feet. “Can’t you speak properly? You’ve only knelt to me once before when we first met.”
Liuye, her face flushed red, stammered, “Miss, I…”
Ji Cheng waved her hand with a smile, “I thought it would be good for us to be together for a long time, but I didn’t want to hinder your chances of marriage and having children. That’s why I had such considerations. But since you don’t have that intention, do you think your mistress would force you?”
Since Liuye was now uncomfortable delivering the clothes, Ji Cheng had to turn her attention to Nishan.
However, Nishan was even more resolute than Liuye, respectfully saying, “Young Madam, the Young Master has never allowed us servants to attend to him in the washroom.”
Ji Cheng felt frustrated, with no outlet for her emotions.
Fearing Ji Cheng wouldn’t believe her, Nishan added, “The Young Master followed the Grand Master to the mountains for training from a young age. Since his return, he’s always taken care of his affairs. At most, we servants only help him change his shoes and socks.”
Ji Cheng lowered her gaze. She should have realized this earlier. After their previous encounters, Shen Che had always cleaned up himself and even cleaned up after her, doing it so skillfully that Ji Cheng had thought he was experienced in helping women clean up.
After Nishan and Liuye left, Ji Cheng, as a wife, had no choice but to carry Shen Che’s clothes to the washroom herself.
The washroom was quiet, and the scene Ji Cheng feared didn’t materialize. Shen Che didn’t shamelessly tease her, nor did he take any actual action.
Shen Che seemed to be asleep, his head resting slightly tilted on the jade pillow at the edge of the pool.
Ji Cheng unconsciously lightened her steps, silently placing Shen Che’s clothes on a nearby stool. Just as she was about to turn and leave, she heard Shen Che call softly, “Cheng’er.”
Ji Cheng turned back, her gaze meeting Shen Che’s eyes. He maintained his sleeping posture, only opening his eyes to look at her.
That gaze inexplicably softened Ji Cheng’s heart. She hastily threw out a sentence, “Get up quickly, we’ll be late,” before quickly walking out.
After leaving, Ji Cheng shook her head, feeling she must have been seeing things. She thought she had seen a pleading look in Shen Che’s eyes.
Soon, there was movement behind her. Shen Che dressed much faster than a woman. “Help me retie my hair,” he said.
Ji Cheng took a deep breath before turning to look at Shen Che. He was wearing that pink robe.
There was no trace of an actor’s powdery scent. Instead, he exuded an indescribable, otherworldly handsomeness, as if he had stepped out of a painting. The pink color made him appear almost celestial. Being born handsome was truly an advantage – no matter what he wore, the only difference was between looking good and looking even better.
Ji Cheng watched as Shen Che sat down at her dressing table. She inwardly pouted, wondering if she should call Nishan in, but then felt pity for Shen Che who hadn’t slept for three days and didn’t want to contradict him.
Ji Cheng walked behind Shen Che, undid the jade crown holding his hair, and used a comb to retie it. His hair was incredibly smooth, soft, and warm like fox fur. Touching this hair, one could hardly imagine he was the kind of person who could be ruthless and domineering.
“Not bad skills. From now on, I’ll trouble my wife to tie my hair,” Shen Che squeezed Ji Cheng’s palm as he stood up. Before Ji Cheng could speak, he concluded, “Let’s go. Didn’t you say we’d be late?”
By dinnertime, Shen Cui had finally stopped crying. Her face was thickly powdered, appearing unnaturally white under the lamplight, concealing all her haggardness and bitterness.
Ji Cheng’s gaze moved from Shen Cui, only to meet Shen Jing’s intense look. His gaze was full of passion, yet tinged with guilt, making Ji Cheng’s heart tighten. She quickly averted her eyes.
Shen Jing was almost mesmerized. Ever since he first saw the grown-up Ji Cheng, he couldn’t help but look at her. Today’s glance had been years in the making. He had fully believed that if he had passed the imperial exams back then, he could have requested to marry Ji Cheng before his mother.
But fate was not kind. Ji Cheng’s mother suddenly passed away, greatly impacting Shen Jing. He thought that if he passed the exams, he would surely marry, but Ji Cheng would still be in mourning. Thus, his motivation significantly decreased, and he ultimately failed the exams.
Afterward, Shen Jing couldn’t withstand the pressure from his mother and hastily got engaged and married. His heart was full of guilt towards Ji Cheng, feeling he had broken his promise. But unexpectedly, she soon became his second sister-in-law. The thought of her living under the same roof, accompanied by his brother, filled Shen Jing’s heart with such bitterness that he couldn’t find peace day or night. Thus, he had no choice but to escape to Dongshan Academy.
Shen Jing’s gaze moved from Ji Cheng to Shen Che. He recalled the night he learned of his second brother’s engagement to Ji Cheng. He had drunk himself into a stupor, yet didn’t dare to question his second brother about why he had to marry the person he loved most.
Shen Che sensed Shen Jing’s stare and smiled at him. What Shen Jing didn’t know was that on that night when he was drunk, he had gone to confront Shen Che. Grabbing his collar, he had demanded to know why Shen Che was marrying Cousin Cheng, when he was so fond of her.
Shen Che shifted his body slightly, blocking Shen Jing’s view of Ji Cheng. This new young madam of his was incredibly capable. Although he had known earlier that Shen Jing’s gaze towards Ji Cheng was somewhat inappropriate, he hadn’t realized the depth of his feelings.
While it might be a matter of pride that his wife was so attractive, proving his good taste, Shen Che didn’t need to find a sense of achievement in such matters.
Especially given Shen Che’s understanding of Ji Cheng, unless necessary, she would never want to become her aunt’s daughter-in-law. Therefore, Shen Jing’s guilty look toward Ji Cheng made Shen Che particularly uncomfortable.
It could only mean that Ji Cheng had never firmly rejected Shen Jing.
This led Shen Che to darkly speculate that Ji Cheng’s ambiguous treatment of Shen Jing was, to some extent, a form of revenge against Ji Lan. If her aunt wouldn’t let her be comfortable, she would extract some interest through Shen Jing.
Shen Che didn’t sympathize with his brother; coveting one’s sister-in-law deserved at least a beating. However, he wondered if Ji Cheng had ever put effort into Shen Jing when he wasn’t looking, which made him feel somewhat jealous.
But seeing Ji Cheng’s troubled face as she avoided Shen Jing’s gaze, afraid of being misunderstood by Li Rui, was quite amusing.
Shen Che’s gaze settled steadily on Li Rui.
Perhaps he stared too intently, causing both Li Rui and Ji Cheng to notice Shen Che’s unusual behavior.
Li Rui’s first reaction was to wonder if there was something wrong with her face. But she quickly dismissed this thought, leaving only one pleasing explanation – that Shen Che had some unspoken feelings for her. One couldn’t blame Li Rui for such wild imagination, mainly because of Shen Che’s reputation with women.
Women often see themselves as more beautiful than others perceive them, so Li Rui found it quite reasonable that she could attract Shen Che.
Li Rui blushed slightly and turned her face away from Shen Che’s gaze. She nervously raised her hand to adjust her hair, unconsciously straightening her not-so-proud chest and tightening her recently plump belly.
Meanwhile, Ji Cheng’s suspicious gaze kept switching between Shen Che and Li Rui, not understanding what was wrong with Li Rui which made Shen Che stare at her so intently.
Fortunately, Shen Che quickly averted his gaze, otherwise, even Ji Cheng would have suspected that her second uncle had taken a liking to his sister-in-law.
“How did that hairpin end up on her head?” Shen Che asked Ji Cheng, turning his head.
Ji Cheng hadn’t expected Shen Che was only looking at a hairpin. “That day she saw me wearing it and liked it. She kept staring at it, so I gave it to her.”
Li Rui indeed loved it very much. After receiving the hairpin, she didn’t see any craftsman’s mark on it. She had her maid take it out to inquire, and all the famous craftsmen marveled at it, saying they couldn’t create a jade hairpin with petals as thin as cicada wings.
Although Li Rui was somewhat disappointed, she at least had one in her possession. Even if it wasn’t unique, it was certainly rare in the world. On a night like this, with all the sisters-in-law gathered and her husband finally home, Li Rui naturally wanted to wear it to enhance her beauty.
“If she liked your husband, would you just hand him over to her too?” Shen Che whispered in Ji Cheng’s ear.
Ji Cheng was a bit stunned. It was just a hairpin, yet it had angered Shen Che. She had already guessed that Shen Che must have gone to some trouble to obtain that hairpin, but now that it had been given away, she didn’t have the face to take it back.
Ji Cheng replied, “So do you want me to give him away or not?”
Shen Che chuckled softly, “You haven’t even tasted it yourself, and you’re thinking of giving it away?”
Ji Cheng quickly retorted, “Huh, how have I not tasted it? I’m already sick of it.” She knew that Shen Che’s talk of waiting for her willingness was all nonsense. He was just biding his time to act mischievously.
“Then shall we try a new position next time?”
In verbal sparring with Shen Che, Ji Cheng rarely won. It wasn’t that she lacked wit, but that she wasn’t as thick-skinned or shameless as he was.
Ji Cheng’s face turned red from Shen Che’s words, but she didn’t dare to shout at him, fearing others might hear. A gentleman uses words, not fists, but as a woman, she reaches out to pinch Shen Che’s waist.
Shen Che laughed pleadingly, “Don’t pinch there. A bit lower would be better, that’s where it hurts.”
Ji Cheng felt she couldn’t go on living like this. As she was struggling between violently beating Shen Che or violently beating Shen Che, she heard a crisp sound accompanied by a cry of surprise.
The camellia hairpin on Li Rui’s head had fallen to the ground and shattered. She looked heartbroken.
Jade hairpins are quite smooth, so there’s a trick in making them. The pin stem has bamboo shoot-like grooves that don’t affect its smoothness when inserted, but prevent it from sliding out easily as the hair catches in these grooves.
Therefore, under normal circumstances, the camellia hairpin wouldn’t fall off unless it was already loose and Li Rui made a particularly large movement.
Ji Cheng suspected Shen Che might have done something, but his face showed no signs of mischief, so she couldn’t accuse him without proof.
Li Rui’s mood today could be described as thoroughly ruined. First, the birthday banquet she had carefully planned was disrupted by Shen Cui. Then, her husband finally came home but ignored her. Now, in the evening, even her hairpin had shattered.
Li Rui looked apologetically towards Ji Cheng, feeling bad for breaking something that had just been given to her, afraid Ji Cheng might think she hadn’t treasured it.
Ji Cheng smiled at her, indicating it wasn’t a big deal.
The blush hadn’t yet faded from Ji Cheng’s face. Li Rui recalled seeing Ji Cheng and Shen Che whispering to each other earlier. If one didn’t know better, one might think this newlywed couple was truly in love.
Li Rui felt that Ji Cheng was probably also in the dark. Did she think she was clever for having dismissed Shen Che’s headmaid, Yuyi, soon after entering the household? Did she know that just moments ago, her husband Shen Che had been staring at Li Rui herself without averting his gaze?
Thinking of this, Li Rui couldn’t help but feel a bit sour, as if she felt Shen Che shouldn’t be so intimate with Ji Cheng. A young woman’s thoughts can indeed be unfathomable at times, but as long as they don’t harm others, indulging in a bit of wild imagination isn’t a big deal.
However, seeing another couple so sweet together inevitably made her think of her troubles, reminding her of that unknown “Sister Chen.”