CH 27

The fragrance worked its magic on Cui Ti, causing her to close her eyes involuntarily. 

Pei Xuan resisted kissing her, then proceeded to take out the small jade bottle and inhale deeply, just as she had done before. 

The refreshing aroma of the medicine washed away her drowsiness, and suddenly, a strong gust of wind blew in through the window, carrying the breath of the night.

On this mild day, the air was neither chilly nor warm. A few stars shone in the sky through the worn-out roof, casting a soft glow on the walls of the humble abode. 

Pei Xuan held her beautiful wife tightly in her arms and gazed at the partially visible starry sky. Cui Ti slept soundly, her ribbon-tied hair askew and her collar slightly open, revealing her graceful collarbone. 

The enchanting moonlight accentuated Cui Ti’s beauty, making her appear like a sleeping beauty.

Shortly after, Pei Xuan planted a gentle kiss on her eyelids and hugged her tighter, yearning for her tender body to be closer to hers. She couldn't help but feel a sense of danger, fearing that she might fall into a mesmerizing trance. 

She sighed, but the sound was soon swallowed by the interweaving of moonlight and evening breeze. Pei Xuan waited anxiously for a long while, until Cui Ti sank into a peaceful slumber, then leaned in close to her ear and whispered cautiously, "Wife?.”

However, there was only silence, leaving her feeling lonely and conflicted, torn between the desire to be honest and the need for secrecy.

Tiredly blinking her eyes, Pei Xuan gently embraced Cui Ti's shoulders and caressed her tender jaw, softly calling out "Wife?".”

But no response came.

The wind, now even more gentle, doubled its tenderness, as anxiety gave way to nervousness. Pei Xuan wrapped her arms around Cui Ti's slender waist, and with the drug still in effect, she was powerless and weak. 

Knowing this, Cui Ti obediently buried herself in the crook of her husband's neck, her shallow breaths stirring an inexplicable itch in Pei Xuan’s heart.

Pei Xuan held the back of her head and pressed her face against her neck, kissing her sensitive larynx with both shame and excitement. As a child taught by gentlemen, she tried to resist her indulgent desires, but her clear pupils turned hot and her heart overflowed with joy, guilt, and longing. 

She sighed repeatedly before falling asleep.

…

At dawn, a rooster raised in captivity from the Northwest Courtyard crowed loudly, as the sun rose from the east.

In the Baishao Courtyard, Cui Dai sat up with the quilt covering her, annoyed by the rooster's crowing. She grumbled, "This is so irritating! Can't anyone get some sleep? Servants, go kill that poultry!.”

Hearing Cui Dai’s numerous complaints, the servants were panicking and fearful: "We can't kill it. Miss, the chicken was prepared for the Young Master.”

"For brother-in-law?,” Cui Dai asked and was stunned for a while, half of her sleepiness went away.

In the southern courtyard's shabby tiled-roof house, Ruo and Shou were busy with the other maids in preparations for Pei Xuan’s and Cui Ti’s departure.

Mr. Xining had prepared unusual gifts, including live pigeons and roosters. He had even tied a red string around the rooster's beak to keep it quiet. 

Despite the commotion, there was a sense of simplicity to the gesture of gifting live animals. Pei Xuan, who was the prime minister's ‘son’ , would have never seen such a lavish gift before, and it was all thanks to Mr. Xining's generosity. 

With two carts full of both dead and living things, everyone was bustling around. 

Meanwhile, Pei Xuan had just woken up from her slumber.

Cui Ti woke up shortly after, needless to say, last night she was intoxicated by the fragrance again, and fell asleep.

She was annoyed that her husband had a lustful heart but lacked the courage to act on it. 

As she heard movement around her, Cui Ti raised her eyebrows and looked over, seeing Pei Xuan waking up with her hair in disarray, her face flushed, and her eyes watery. 

Cui Ti couldn't help but want to laugh at the sight of her adorableness.

If she hadn't been reincarnated, who would have thought that the scholar Pei who was the most prestigious teacher in the country to have such a pure and innocent appearance?.

"Wife~." Pei Xuan raised her hand and yawned after she finished speaking, her spirit was a little bit down, but she cheered up when she realized she could dress Cui Ti.

Opening her arms cooperatively, Cui Ti asked, "Has my husband slept well?.”

"It's okay." Pei Xuan quickly fixed her underwear, not daring to look any further, "Maybe I slept in too late."

Cui Ti simply responded with an "oh" and didn't press the matter further, making Pei Xuan wish she would ask more questions.

After Cui Ti was dressed, Pei Xuan couldn't help but admire her beauty, so she leaned in and kissed her gently between the eyebrows.

Being intimate with the girl she likes was a moment of pure happiness for Pei Xuan. 

After the kiss with Cui Ti, she noticed that her clothes were disheveled, her eyes were downcast, and her slender fingers were nervously fidgeting with her thin coat. 

Cui Ti saw an opportunity and reached out to caress her pretty face, planting a soft kiss on her delicate chin. 

At that moment, Pei Xuan's head jerked up, and she beamed a warm and bright smile. 

Cui Ti blushed and frowned in shyness.

After getting permission, Bai Tang entered the house with a copper basin and helped Cui Ti to wash up.

"My lord, everything is ready,” she announced while presenting the gift list prepared by the Xining family.

Looking at the list in a glance, Pei Xuan asked curiously, "What are these living creatures for?"

"Master heard that Cui Ti likes to keep small animals, so he sent someone to bring them here."

"..."

Looking at Pei Xuan’s silent expression, Bai Tang followed and said: "Master also said that if you get tired of raising it, you can kill it and eat it. They are all nourishing foods raised at home, which are better than those bought outside from a ranch."

Pei Xuan smiled lightly: "Since this is father-in-law’s kindness, I’ll go thank him."

"This...Master sent me here, since he caught a cold by chance. If the Young Master and the Young Madam insist on saying goodbye, they can stand outside the gate of the courtyard to bow and he’ll take it as a farewell."

"Feeling cold by chance? What's the matter?".

She walked up to her and whispered a few words, and to this, Pei Xuan’s expression changed, "So that's how it is."

Last night, Mr. Xining went to the Baishao Court to question his wife. In the end, the husband and wife had a big fight, and their faces were covered with bruises. But, Mr. Xining suffered the most, to the point where he did not want anyone to see him.

Not long after, Mrs. Xining also sent someone to say the same message as Mr. Xining.

Pei Xuan and Cui Ti bowed, then bid farewell at the courtyard's gate, and Cui Dai, the youngest daughter, courteously came to see them off before they left.

Her ulterior motives were obvious to those with a discerning eye. 

As the carriage slowly left Mudan Street, Bai Tang's guarded heart finally relaxed. 

Since she was a child, she never saw Cui Dai as good, and it wouldn’t surprise her if she had the evil intention of robbing Cui Ti’s husband.

Fortunately, Mr. Pei has a dignified character, and won't be seduced by such a woman. 

Meanwhile, Bai Tang rode on the pony's back, feeling genuinely relieved that the mistress married a considerate husband.

Inside the carriage, a fluffy white rabbit staggered and crawled on Cui Ti's lap. Pei Xuan sat next to her, teasing the little furball with her fingers from time to time.

Seeing Pei Xuan’s fair fingertips, Cui Ti had a smile on her lips, she didn't speak, and thought of what Mrs Pei told her in her previous life.

When she didn't speak, she looked as beautiful as a gentle ink painting. Pei Xuan found her silence boring, so she amused herself by teasing the bunny crawling around on Cui Ti's lap. 

The little rabbit kept getting knocked down by Pei Xuan’s finger and getting back up.

"Husband..."

Cui Ti remarked, "Stop playing."

Pei Xuan put the bunny on her lap and replied, "Okay, let's stop playing."

She tilted her head and stared at Cui Ti, and brushed her thigh with her hand, and Cui Ti felt the itchy feeling of being poked around once again.

Cui Ti not only blushed, but also her ears were bright red. Suddenly, Pei Xuan put her chin on her shoulder, and with a curious expression on her face teased, "Wife, you are very ticklish."

The rabbit was put aside by Pei Xuan.

Cui Ti humbly nodded, "I am more ticklish than normal people."

"What about this?"

Pei Xuan then poked her again, causing Cui Ti to let out a short moan followed by a fit of laughter. 

The Pei family's servants, who were accompanying them, acted like they didn't hear anything and silently thought to themselves that Mr. Pei had become more cheerful after getting married.

The carriage driver tried his best to keep the carriage steady as the noise inside grew louder.

Cui Ti hid her face, but then thought of something and fled to the arms of the perpetrator with a flushed expression. She laughed until tears came to her eyes, and begged: "Don't, don't make so much trouble, spare me, please~.”

Pei Xuan's throat gulped slightly as she watched her plea, enjoying the scene: "Why should I spare you?.”

"..."

She clearly wanted to bully her and Cui Ti couldn't think of how to dissuade her. Her lashes were wet with tears, and she gently tugged on the hem of Pei Xuan's clothes with her fingertips. 

Pei Xuan's eyes flickered, and he held her hand, saying, "Give me a reason, and I'll let you go, okay?"

Cui Ti was frustrated with the other woman's stubbornness and blurted out in anger, "Why are you like this?.”

Pei Xuan probed, "Is that all?.”

"..."

She couldn't help but be drawn to Cui Ti the more she looked at her. She said, "If you can give me a good reason, I won't bother you anymore along the way.”

"Because..." Cui Ti wrapped her arms around Pei Xuan's neck, saying, "Because I am your wife, if you don't spare me, who else would you harm?.”

The carriage bumped at the perfect time, Pei Xuan hurriedly held her tightly, and was elated for a moment: "Then I will only harm you."

Cui Ti's heart was racing as she lifted her head boldly, closing her eyes, and shyly asking for a kiss from Pei Xuan.

…

"Young Master, Young madam, we’re here."

Hearing the servants' words, Pei Xuan stopped the kiss.

Cui Ti turned her face away and panted quietly, as the rabbit nestled obediently beside her legs. Soon, the curtain opened, and the skylight came in.

Bai Tang helped Cui Ti get off the carriage, and unexpectedly saw Cui Ti's moist red lips, and couldn't help showing a smile.

Thinking of the advice she gave her mistress, she acknowledged that Pei Xuan wasn’t the type of person to refuse Cui Ti’s advances. 

Pei Xuan got out of the carriage effortlessly, her eyes alight with affection. The commendable tenderness she exuded was like the world's finest spring breeze, melting into her slightly raised lips and filling people's hearts with joy.

Mrs. Pei stepped out to welcome her "son" and "daughter-in-law" back home. Pei Xuan saw her mother and helped Cui Ti step into the gate of the Pei family's mansion.

Cui Ti's lips, swollen and slightly puckered, added a touch of charm rarely seen in her usual days. Mrs. Pei, who could read the situation well, treated her with kindness and warmth.

"Are you tired?,” Mrs. Pei asked.

"Not at all." Cui Ti was respectful and affectionate towards her mother-in-law. Pei Xuan had taken a liking to her at first sight, and it seemed that Mrs. Pei was equally fond of her.

In the end, Pei Xuan's duties were usurped by her mother as she helped Cui Ti move forward.

Behind them, cages filled with rabbits, chickens, pigeons, and all sorts of small animals were being brought into the prime minister's mansion. Knowing that these were the gifts from their daughter-in-law parents, Mrs. Pei praised: “Mr. Xining is really ingenious.”

However, she didn't particularly like the Xining couple who treated their own daughter badly. She just said a few complimentary words, then held Cui Ti's hand and talked intimately.

Pei Xuan had become a complete outsider upon returning home and could only hug the rabbit quietly, waiting for her mother and wife to take pity on her.

Sensing her daughter’s gaze, Mrs. Pei looked at her a few times, and was unable to bear it anymore, saying: "Pei, mother is thirsty, go and make a pot of tea."

Hearing her request, Pei Xuan brought back a cup of tea and knew that her mother wanted to distract her, so she looked at Cui Ti, and then looked at her mother who seemed to have made up her mind, and carried the rabbit to the courtyard with an aggrieved expression.

"Since she's gone, we can talk properly,” Mrs. Pei said.

Cui Ti was amused by her teasing tone, and a smile blossomed on her face like thousands of pear blossoms falling into her charming eyes.

Mrs. Pei had seen too many beauties, and still acknowledged Cui Ti to be a very beautiful and charming girl, but it was a pity that fate was unkind to her.

She sighed, complementing how her daughter-in-law was blind, but it was better than marrying a woman with a shrewd mind and bringing disaster to the whole family. 

After sipping a bit of the tea, she said softly, "Have you and Pei not consummated your marriage yet?.”

Cui Ti’s smile slightly faltered at the question.

"Do you know why she has been refusing to consummate the marriage?," Mrs. Pei continued.

"Why is it?,” Cui Ti asked cautiously.

Mrs. Pei observed Cui Ti's expression intently, but couldn't discern any resentment or annoyance on her face.Instead, her attention was drawn to Cui Ti's slightly swollen lips, leading her to think that Pei Xuan and Cui Ti had been affectionate during their journey home. 

Their relationship seemed to be steadily progressing.

However, Mrs. Pei believed that until their marriage was consummated, both Cui Ti and Pei Xuan would not be able to relax.

Only then can she be considered a member of the Pei family physically and mentally and share the same fate with them.

She apologized to Cui Ti internally from the bottom of her heart, and she opened her mouth to spout foolish words, "It is because Pei contracted a disease in his early years.” 

After she finished speaking, she was worried that Cui Ti would not know the deep meaning of her words, so she simply clarified: "In short, he can not do the act.”