Outside the house, the peach blossoms in the Enchanting Grove were in full bloom, presenting a beautiful sight.
Inside the house, beneath the hibiscus canopy, two figures were constantly entangled, gasping for breath, and then entangling again. This went on until dawn. When the first ray of sunlight slowly shone into the room, the two of them finally fell asleep.
When Fairy You passed by the room and heard the thrushes singing loudly outside, she understood. She summoned the clan members and told them not to disturb the third master and the young lady. Everyone got the hint and went about their own business.
In the afternoon, Yan Ruyu woke up. Zhao Shuning was still sound asleep, with her head resting on Yan Ruyu's arm. She was breathing shallowly, with a slightly upturned nose and long eyelashes that fluttered slightly with each breath.
Yan Ruyu just stared at her. If Shuning could always stay by his side, he wouldn't care even if he lost everything.
Feng Jin had originally planned to look for his elder brother. But when he heard from Fairy You that Yan Ruyu had spent the night with Zhao Shuning, he was stunned for a moment and then smiled. Then, he ordered everyone in the Enchanting Grove to start preparing all the things needed for a wedding and to decorate the Pure Heart Palace into a proper hall for the wedding. As a member of the Feng family, Feng Jin could understand what his third elder brother was thinking.
About an hour later, Zhao Shuning's eyelids fluttered slightly. Sensing that she was about to wake up, Yan Ruyu quickly closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep.
When Zhao Shuning woke up, the first thing she saw was Yan Ruyu's peerless face. Thinking that her master, who was so high and unattainable, was now in her grasp, Zhao Shuning couldn't help but let out a soft laugh.
As she laughed, there was a tearing pain below. Thinking about the cause, Zhao Shuning's face turned an unusual shade of red.
Had she been too proactive last night? She wondered if Ruyu would remember what had happened last night when he woke up.
Zhao Shuning tried to move her legs and let out a cry of pain. "Ouch—"
Yan Ruyu quickly opened his eyes and asked anxiously, "What's wrong?"
Zhao Shuning blushed.
"Shuning, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
"No, no, I'm fine."
Yan Ruyu was a bit flustered. "You must be feeling unwell. Let me take a good look." With that, he was about to check if there were any injuries on Zhao Shuning.
"It hurts down there."
"Ah—"
Zhao Shuning pushed Yan Ruyu away with her hand, her face as red as if it were about to bleed.
"Shuning, where does it hurt down there?"
Zhao Shuning gave Yan Ruyu a cross look. With this look, Yan Ruyu understood where she meant. He was as helpless as a child at this moment.
"I'm sorry, sorry, Shuning. Did I go too far last night?"
When Zhao Shuning heard this, she thought that the fact that she had actively crawled under the covers to seduce her master last night must not be discovered. So she immediately pretended to be aggrieved and said, "Yes, you did."
Looking at Zhao Shuning's sudden change in expression, Yan Ruyu was a bit taken aback for a moment. "Shuning, you?"
"Ruyu, you really scared me last night."
Yan Ruyu didn't say a word. He remembered clearly what had happened last night, including every word Zhao Shuning had said. Now, looking at the girl's current mood, he understood what she was up to.
Just as he was in a daze for a moment and Zhao Shuning was about to lose her act, Yan Ruyu picked up the conversation. "What happened? What did I do last night? My head hurts so much. I can't remember clearly."
Zhao Shuning had originally thought that her acting skills were not very good, but when Yan Ruyu said this, she no longer doubted herself. Thinking of her plan, she quickly lowered her head and pretended to be pitiful.
"Ruyu, sigh—never mind. If I tell you, you may think that I'm deliberately acting pitiful. Sigh—"
Seeing the girl's clumsy acting, a beautiful smile appeared on Yan Ruyu's face. He almost couldn't help laughing out loud. But seeing how seriously the girl was acting, he didn't want to expose her on the spot. He had to pretend to be serious and anxious and ask, "What's wrong? Shuning, tell me what's going on. Are you deliberately making me anxious?"
Zhao Shuning pretended to be deep in thought and then let out a long sigh. She raised her head, with tears welling up in her eyes. Obviously, she had been lowering her head just now to force out the tears and make herself look more pitiful.
"Shuning, you?"
"Ruyu, it's my fault."
"Shuning?"
"I really wanted to leave last night, but you grabbed my hand and wouldn't let me go. You also—" After saying this, Zhao Shuning pretended to cover her face. But since there were no clothes on her body to cover her face, she had to turn around and face away from Yan Ruyu.
Zhao Shuning forced herself to cry, but it seemed that she really wasn't cut out for acting. She had tried her best to be emotional, but the tears just wouldn't come out. While pretending to cry, Zhao Shuning took her clothes from the side of the bed and slowly put them on. When she turned around again, she looked pitiful once more.
"Ruyu, let's just forget about what happened last night. Just think of it as a dream. I won't use this to force you to be with me forever, or to marry only me, or to be responsible for me for the rest of your life."
Zhao Shuning sounded so pitiful, but she had no idea how ridiculous she looked at this moment.
Although Yan Ruyu had long known what the girl was up to, he still cooperated with her and said, "What happened between us last night? Shuning, don't worry. I will be responsible for you."
"No, really, there's no need."
Although she said so, Zhao Shuning was overjoyed in her heart.
"Shuning."
"Ruyu, I don't want you to ruin your whole life just because of a momentary mistake. You don't have to worry about me. I'll be fine. You don't have to worry about my feelings. Maybe without you, I'll just be heart - broken, in great pain, unable to control myself, and—" Unable to think of any more idioms to describe her miserable state, Zhao Shuning had to pretend to cover her face again.
"I've said that I will be responsible for you, and I will. Shuning, you can rest assured."
"Really?"
"Yes."
"That's really great."
As Zhao Shuning was putting on her clothes, she said, "Will this be a bit too much for you?"
"No."
"That's good. Otherwise, I would really feel like a sinner."
Zhao Shuning wanted to laugh, to laugh out loud. From now on, Ruyu would be her person. But she still had to maintain her image, which made her feel extremely uncomfortable.