Chapter 65: The Duke's Urgency

The three of them walked back.

Two of them were utterly dejected.

"Let's go sit in Chenhui Courtyard for a bit," Zhou Yuanshen spoke up from behind.

Zhou Yuanqi: "Not going."

"I wasn't talking to you."

Zhou Yuanqi: "..."

Cheng Zhao then went with Zhou Yuanshen to Chenhui Courtyard, where the servant boy Nanfeng served them tea.

"What were you doing?" he asked.

Cheng Zhao told him the truth.

Zhou Yuanshen had thought Cheng Zhao took Zhou Yuanqi out, never expecting it was their young uncle.

"...Then who upset you two? Also our young uncle?" Zhou Yuanshen asked again.

His young uncle, Fan Xiao, always loved to tease cats and dogs; he was very mischievous.

"No," Cheng Zhao said.

She drank her tea in silence, her emotions having already calmed down.

After finishing a cup of tea, Cheng Zhao saw it was getting late. Needing to return for dinner, she said, "My Lord Duke, I will head back first."

"I'll go over too," Zhou Yuanshen said.

Cheng Zhao glanced at him, hesitating slightly before saying, "My monthly time has come, and I fear it might be unclean. You cannot stay in Nonghua Courtyard tonight."

She wasn't negotiating.

She rejected him concisely and clearly.

Zhou Yuanshen: "I am not afraid of it being unclean."

Cheng Zhao: "..."

These men, every single one of them loved to provoke her. Why were they all so disobedient?

Was it because she was too weak?

Probably.

When could she become an old matriarch, having the final say like the Old Madam? That way, everyone would be respectful when standing before her.

But it would be soon.

Cheng Zhao had already received the imperial mandate of a Duchess. As long as she kept walking down this path, with her power, status, age, and experience slowly increasing, she would gain authority.

The couple returned to Nonghua Courtyard.

After dinner, Cheng Zhao prepared to practice calligraphy to calm her mind.

Zhou Yuanshen still held a book to read.

Cheng Zhao had seen his books; they were all about local customs and old traditions of various places, or about water conservancy, which she found very boring.

They were neither history books nor storybooks.

They remained silent as the night gradually deepened.

Cheng Zhao wrote a few pages of characters.

When Zhou Yuanshen stood up, he looked at her writing and casually remarked, "You don't put enough strength into your writing."

"I am known for being graceful and elegant, so I don't need to exert too much effort," Cheng Zhao said.

Zhou Yuanshen: "I thought you preferred a handsome and spirited style, with vigorous strokes that penetrate the wood."

Cheng Zhao: "Not really. Why would you think so?"

"You are very competitive."

Cheng Zhao: "..."

She argued that she wasn't.

Seizing the opportunity, Zhou Yuanshen grasped her hand and guided it to write two characters: Cheng Zhao.

The calligraphy was elegant and free, with sharp and strong strokes; it was indeed beautiful.

However, he gripped Cheng Zhao's hand so tightly that it hurt.

"These two characters must be kept," Cheng Zhao said, ignoring the slight pain in her hand. She picked it up to admire it carefully, finding it more beautiful the longer she looked.

She then said to him, "When the New Year comes, please write the couplets for Nonghua Courtyard."

"It is still early for the New Year," Zhou Yuanshen said.

He didn't promise anything in advance.

The couple went to rest.

Before Cheng Zhao went to wash up, she drank a bowl of brown sugar ginger tea.

Zhou Yuanshen suddenly leaned over, kissed her lips, and whispered, "A bit sweet and a bit spicy."

Cheng Zhao avoided him.

Unsure if it was because of the ginger tea, a wave of heat inexplicably flushed her cheeks: "Too much ginger juice was added."

Zhou Yuanshen kissed her again.

Cheng Zhao tried to dodge, but he wrapped his arm around her waist.

"My Lord Duke, my monthly time is still here." Cheng Zhao pushed him, her breathing a bit hurried.

Now, not only were her cheeks hot, but she felt her palms were burning too—just how much ginger juice did Nanny Li put in the tea?

Was ginger free this year?

Yet Zhou Yuanshen did not let go.

He held her tightly, pulling her soft waist close to him.

His dark, placid eyes became chaotic. He kissed her lips, then went to kiss her earlobe.

Cheng Zhao wanted to hide even more; she was ticklish.

The tickling made her whole body uncomfortable.

Zhou Yuanshen grasped one of her hands.

Her pale, slender hand, illuminated by the lantern light, looked like transparent white jade without a single flaw. She had such a competitive personality, yet her body was as if made of jade.

Sometimes Zhou Yuanshen was afraid she would bump into things, because she was so perfect that a slight accident would leave a mark on her.

"Cheng Zhao, touch me..." he said.

"No!"

Her collar was pulled loose by him, and he leaned down to kiss her collarbone.

His breath burned her.

Cheng Zhao twisted, trying to escape, but her hand was already being guided by him toward his body.

She was truly anxious this time, fighting with all her might to shove him away.

His arms were like iron hoops; the more Cheng Zhao moved, the closer she pressed against him.

Cheng Zhao's hand touched his chest and was guided all the way down by him...

"Zhou Yuanshen, don't go too far!"

Cheng Zhao bit at him.

As if anticipating this, he took the opportunity to press her onto the bed, gripping her jaw with his hand.

Her lips were slightly parted, her breath like orchids.

Zhou Yuanshen kissed her again.

Just as Cheng Zhao was about to cry, he finally let go.

His breathing was extremely heavy as he strode to the washroom.

Cheng Zhao had struggled until her clothes were in disarray, and she hurriedly straightened them.

After a long while, when Zhou Yuanshen returned from the washroom, Cheng Zhao was already lying down to sleep with her back to him.

She did not look at him.

He looked at her in silence.

"I will go back to Chenhui Courtyard to sleep," he said. "Do you want me to stay?"

"No need!" Cheng Zhao said.

Zhou Yuanshen left.

After he went out, Cheng Zhao kept feeling that her inner trousers were soiled, so she got up to change her clothes again.

Having lost her sleepiness, she washed her hands meticulously, freshened up simply, and sat dazed under the lamp.

She felt that Zhou Yuanshen in that moment just now didn't seem like himself.

He wasn't aloof or rational.

He was like a starving beast that had to devour flesh and blood to satisfy its burning appetite.

It had only been half a month since they last shared a bed. During this half month, had he not visited Lijing Courtyard?

Cheng Zhao took a few deep breaths, suppressed her chaotic thoughts, put away the two characters he wrote, and then finally went to sleep.

Mid-afternoon the next day, Zhou Yuanshen returned, bringing some pastries.

He stood quietly in front of Cheng Zhao, his dark eyes placid: "From the palace. When they were rewarded to us before, Mother said they were quite delicious. Try them and see if you like them."

He added, "I have some matters to attend to tonight, so you don't need to wait for me."

Cheng Zhao said yes.

He came in a hurry and was leaving in a hurry.

He still wore his black robe and a cold expression, showing absolutely no emotion when he spoke.

Cheng Zhao couldn't tell if he felt apologetic either, and accepted the pastries: "Thank you, My Lord Duke."

Zhou Yuanshen gave a slight nod and then left.

The pastries were indeed very delicious. Paired with brown sugar ginger tea, Cheng Zhao found it quite enjoyable.

The slight unpleasantness from last night dissipated.

In the end, nothing really happened; he just grabbed her hand and held it. She was almost angered to tears, and when his breathing became erratic, he let go of her hand.

Cheng Zhao decided to turn the page.

Two days later, her monthly time ended. Cheng Zhao earnestly went to offer incense to Guanyin, praying to conceive early.

In mid-February, the weather grew warmer, and the noble households began preparing for peach blossom banquets.

Eldest Madam Song's grounding was lifted, and she was still the one managing the household.

The first thing she did upon coming out was to organize a banquet. She led Cheng Zhao and Huan Qingtang to the Old Madam to ask for instructions.

Inside Shou'an Courtyard, however, there was a woman with a son and daughter, chatting with the Old Madam.

"Cousin-in-law," Eldest Madam Song greeted.