Cheng Xiran hid alone behind the screen. She crouched down and covered her hot cheeks with both hands, which were burning with heat. "Oh! I'm so embarrassed! Cheng Xiran, how could you take the initiative to kiss him? You must have been possessed by a ghost."
A blush spread across her face. In her previous life, she had been fully devoted to her work and never been in a relationship. In these two lifetimes, this was her first kiss.
It took Cheng Xiran a long time to calm down before she came out. Helian Duo was already having a meal, and a maid was waiting on him.
"Xiao'er, you're finally okay. Come and have something to eat," he said gently, trying to give her meaningful looks.
Cheng Xiran's face flushed red again.
Seeing that the prince remained calm, she also forced herself to calm down, and her heart rate slowed.
Since they were acting, they had to make it look real. So Cheng Xiran tried to call him "husband".
The maid beside them couldn't help but tease, "It's obvious that the young master and the young lady have a really good relationship."
Cheng Xiran let out a couple of nervous chuckles and then sat down beside Helian Duo. Normally, she would have left a space between them, but since they were supposed to be husband and wife now, she had to sit right next to him. She imitated what she had read in books, trying to make her tone as affectionate as possible and her movements as gentle as a woman's.
It was okay for her to act like this for a while, but it was a bit too much to keep it up. Fortunately, Helian Duo was understanding. After a hasty meal, he went to take a bath.
Cheng Xiran ate slowly, secretly admiring the local cuisine in Fenzhou. She thought that before leaving, she would bring some local specialties back to the capital for her grandmother and the others to try.
She thought everything was going smoothly until the arrival of the governor's wife. Cheng Xiran stood up and saluted her, then sat obediently to one side without eating.
The wife sipped her tea and smiled at her. "I'm sure you and Young Master He must come from prominent families. Your every gesture is just like that of a noble young lady."
Cheng Xiran gave a faint smile in return. "Madam, you're overpraising me. My father is just a small official. It's just that our family has always had strict family teachings, so I may seem a bit more refined."
The wife put down her teacup, leaned a bit closer to Cheng Xiran, and deliberately lowered her voice. "You've been married for two years. Do you have any children?"
Seeing Cheng Xiran shake her head blankly, the wife gave a somewhat embarrassed smile. "We're the same in this regard, but we've been married even longer."
She was just wondering why the wife would ask her this when the next question left her stunned. The wife actually asked her about her bedroom affairs.
Bedroom affairs... She was a pure and innocent young girl, and she had just lost her first kiss not long ago. How could she respond to such a question from Mrs. Qian? Just thinking about that fleeting kiss still made her heart flutter.
Her cheeks flushed, which caught Mrs. Qian's attention. "You really are a young thing. Even after two years of marriage, you still blush at this topic? We're both women, and there's no one else here. These intimate things aren't something we can't talk about, right?"
They were indeed both women, but they had just met... How could one talk about such private matters with someone they had just met?
Seeing that Cheng Xiran just smiled without saying a word, Mrs. Qian sighed softly. "You don't know. We've been married for over a decade, but we still don't have a single child. We've seen countless doctors and visited countless quacks, but they've all been helpless."
Then Mrs. Qian deliberately lowered her voice and started talking about her and Mr. Qian's sex life... She even described some details in great detail, which made Cheng Xiran blush to the roots of her hair.
She couldn't help but secretly curse in her heart that this Mrs. Qian really had no sense of shame.
To relieve the awkwardness, Cheng Xiran could only lower her head and eat. Anyway, after listening to her, she had lost her appetite. Every word she said would immediately conjure up images in her mind, which made her even more embarrassed.
A strange look flashed in Mrs. Qian's eyes.
Then she changed the subject, picked up a handkerchief, and gently wiped the corners of her eyes. She said sadly to herself, "No matter how hard he tries, he just can't make me pregnant. You don't know. If I had had a child two or three years after we got married, he would be grown up and sensible by now, and would know how to care for his mother..."
For some reason, although Cheng Xiran seemed to feel very sad just listening to her, she actually felt nothing in her heart.
Since she couldn't even pretend to be sad, she simply continued to bury her head.
The more Mrs. Qian talked, the more excited she became. Gradually, she began to sob. "You don't know. Before we came to Fenzhou, we still lived with his parents. Because of this, I endured so many gossips and suffered so much. But what could I do? It wasn't my fault that I couldn't get pregnant."
She cried even more bitterly. Cheng Xiran couldn't just sit back and ignore her anymore, so she had to look up at her.
She saw that Mrs. Qian's eyes were full of tears, and her expression was extremely sad. She looked like a pear blossom in the rain.
Cheng Xiran had no choice but to get up and pour her a cup of hot tea. She comforted her, "Madam, don't be too sad. These things about having children are the most impatient. Moreover, since you're here now, you can have less pressure. If you take good care of your body, there's always a possibility."
Mrs. Qian took the teacup, stared at it for a moment, and then gave a look to the maid beside her. "Go and get the Liuan Guapian tea I prepared for Mrs. He."
Cheng Xiran was about to decline, but the maid had already walked away. Not long after, she came back with a delicate glass teacup in her hand.
Mrs. Qian got up and took it from the maid's hand. Cheng Xiran didn't pay much attention and just secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
When she came to her senses, she met Mrs. Qian's somewhat strange gaze, but it was only for a moment. Maybe she had seen it wrong.
"This Liuan Guapian tea was brought here from our hometown. And this glass teacup is exquisitely made. I'd like to give it to you as a welcome gift. Please accept it and don't disappoint my little kindness."
Cheng Xiran remained silent. Seeing that Mrs. Qian was staring directly at her, she still took it with a smile and took a sip in front of her. "It's very good."
After she said that, she thought these three words were a bit too perfunctory, so she took another big sip and added, "It tastes slightly astringent at first and then sweet. It's really good tea. I'd like to thank Mrs. Qian here."
Mrs. Qian's sadness turned into joy. After chatting with her for a few words about daily life, she left on the pretext of not disturbing her rest.
Cheng Xiran just thought it was a bit strange. After taking a few mouthfuls of food casually, she asked the maid to clean up.
When she got up, she looked up at the sky. It was actually getting late, and it wasn't the time when the sun was at its strongest. But Cheng Xiran didn't know when her body had started to feel hot.
She thought it was because of the tea and that it would go away after a while, so she didn't think much about it.
She opened the door and saw from afar that Helian Duo was sitting by the window, holding The Art of War and reading it intently.
His smooth chest, fair skin, and clearly visible abdominal muscles all stimulated Cheng Xiran's nerves. Even though he was wearing a plain robe at the moment, when she stared at his wrists that were as clear as jade lotus roots, her eyes seemed to have already peeled off his outer clothes, imagining the infinite beauty inside.
His charming, slender eyes became even more gentle under the shining of a few rays of broken light. With coldness mixed with gentleness, Cheng Xiran simply couldn't resist. She wished she could fall into them immediately and experience the extremes of passion with him... Oh, what was she thinking?
She looked around and suddenly thought that the original owner had really good taste. If she could be with such a handsome man, even if it was just to sleep with him for one night, it would be a blessing from her previous life.
But he didn't seem to be interested in her.
Reason overcame the rising desire in her heart, which then dissipated as a trace of disappointment flashed in Cheng Xiran's eyes.
She was just about to lower her eyes when Helian Duo suddenly looked over. Their eyes met, and the fire of desire that was about to dissipate suddenly flared up again, instantly blooming in her heart and becoming impossible to contain.
She saw him put down the book in his hand and walked towards her gracefully.
Her heart was beating so wildly that it seemed about to jump out, but she didn't care. Let it jump out if it wanted to. Her body seemed to be getting hotter, so hot that she felt a bit unbearable. A thin layer of sweat even unconsciously oozed out on her forehead, but she still stood there motionlessly, watching Helian Duo getting closer and closer.
He had already walked up to her. There was a tender smile in his eyes, and Cheng Xiran couldn't help but smile too.
The next second, she was picked up by Helian Duo. Even through a layer of clothes, she still felt Helian Duo's equally hot body temperature. The fire of desire devoured every inch of her skin, and there was also a bit more love in her eyes as she looked at Helian Duo.
Everything was peaceful and beautiful, just waiting for Helian Duo to initiate everything.
As long as he gave her a look, even just a subtle expression, she would do anything.
But what she didn't expect was that what awaited her the next second wasn't Helian Duo's kiss, but a ladle of cold water!
Her originally scattered consciousness immediately gathered, her mind became clear, and her dilated pupils gradually became bright.
Was she... drugged?