Su Xiaoqi was full of complaints about Shen Yun, but was unexpectedly kissed by him.
Her mind went blank, and all her complaints ceased.
Time seemed to stand still.
Only Shen Yun, transformed into a myriad of tendrils, explored the exquisite beauty that belonged only to him.
"Mmm..." Su Xiaoqi's teeth were pried apart, and soft, fragmented moans escaped, her cheeks flushing with shyness.
Shen Yun unceremoniously took in all of Su Xiaoqi's exquisite beauty.
A fiery passion surged within him; he wanted more, much more.
His hands moved unconsciously, but Su Xiaoqi slapped them away.
Her voice rang out between their lips, "No."
Her bottom line was that he could kiss her however he pleased, but sleeping with her was out of the question.
"Niangzi, we are husband and wife," Shen Yun said, holding her lips and patiently.
"Mmm... Uh, but we're outside." Still in the mule cart.
"Then alright." This meant it was fine to do it at home.
Shen Yun was willing to wait.
He drew in the fragrance and sweetness in her mouth with even greater ardor.
The taste was so profound that he would remember it many years later, but it would remain just a memory.
Su Xiaoqi was fortunate that Meng's Real Estate Agency was not far from Chen Jin's, arriving in less than fifteen minutes.
Zhao Laoshi's call came from outside. Shen Yun sighed with regret, let go of Su Xiaoqi, and helped her out of the cart.
Su Xiaoqi pursed her slightly swollen lips and glared fiercely at Shen Yun.
Needless to say, he was definitely cursing her in his mind again.
Shen Yun knew what she was thinking without even needing to listen.
Meng the estate agent was fiddling with the tea set on a stone stool in front of his shop, brewing and drinking by himself.
Su Xiaoqi glanced at him, sniffed, and detected no fragrance at all.
She figured his tea probably wasn't very good.
Su Xiaoqi turned back to the cart, took out a bag of buckwheat weighing one jin, greeted Meng the estate agent, and gifted it to him.
"Try my tea."
"Oh, the God of Wealth..." Meng the estate agent looked up and, seeing it was her, exclaimed with surprise.
But upon seeing her wink, he realized she was not alone today; she had brought a follower.
"Show me a shop with a front store and a back courtyard," Su Xiaoqi said familiarly.
Meng the estate agent pondered for a moment, about to ask if she hadn't just bought one, and now wanted another?
Su Xiaoqi quickly interjected, "Do you have any available?
Preferably near the county school. If so, I'll take one."
She now had a hundred taels of silver notes.
It was someone else's silver notes, so she felt even less guilt spending them.
"Yes, there are, but the landlord hasn't moved out yet. Please give me some time," Meng the estate agent said, smiling so widely his eyes disappeared.
The woman in front of him stood charmingly below the steps.
Although she was not old, she was tall and slender, with fine features and fair, tender skin.
Standing there, she was a landscape in herself.
Meng the estate agent couldn't help but recall the first time he had seen her.
At that time, he was sitting in front of his shop, drinking tea and daydreaming as he often did.
He saw her walk by his shop and seem to pause.
But perhaps because he was sitting and did not greet her, she did not come in.
Instead, she went to Cao's Real Estate Agency across the way.
However, Cao the estate agent there was someone who judged people by their appearance.
Likely not expecting her to be someone who could actually buy property, he had missed out on such a big customer, and it had benefited him.
Meng the estate agent glanced at Su Xiaoqi, who was still wearing the same fine cotton blue shirt from last time.
Looking at her attire, it was no wonder Cao the estate agent looked down on her; it was truly unexpected.
But since last month, including the shop and the house, she had bought two sets from him consecutively.
She had also settled the twenty-five taels of cloth money from before.
Now, she had spare money to buy a large courtyard.
He was too curious and couldn't help but ask about Su Xiaoqi's moneymaking methods.
Su Xiaoqi pushed Shen Yun forward, "See? This is my husband. He is a Xiucai, and also the top scholar of the local examination.
His calligraphy is excellent, and there are countless people in Mianzhou City who are eager to buy his calligraphy and paintings."
Meng the estate agent chuckled twice.
Scholars selling calligraphy and paintings was a means, but usually for emergencies.
It was impossible to make a living relying solely on this.
He assumed Su Xiaoqi was unwilling to elaborate, so he didn't press further. He smiled and agreed to her request.
He said he would definitely keep an eye out and inform her if there was any news.
Su Xiaoqi had visited many places today and was exhausted.
On the way back, she instructed Shen Yun to pick up Zhao Xiaozhu and Shen Xiaomei, and she dozed off in the mule cart.
When she woke up, it was already dusk.
She flipped over with a somersault and looked around.
The familiar furnishings told her she was back in her room.
She peeked out from under the thin quilt and saw Shen Yun sitting by the window, painting in the last rays of the setting sun.
Shen Xiaomei's deliberately hushed voice came from the doorway, "Big Brother, has Big Sister-in-law woken up?"
Shen Yun turned his head and happened to meet Su Xiaoqi's eyes as she peeked at him.
He got up and walked towards Su Xiaoqi.
He touched her forehead and breathed a sigh of relief, glad she wasn't running a fever.
"I, how could I have slept so deeply," Su Xiaoqi mumbled, her face flushing.
As Shen Yun's large, warm hand reached out, she assumed he was the one who had carried her down from the mule cart.
Although they were husband and wife, they had not yet consummated their marriage. When such intimate gestures occurred, she would always blush with shyness.
Shen Yun knew her thoughts well and was displeased that she kept their relationship so distinct.
He interrupted her, "Perhaps you are tired.
You don't need to work so hard. Your travel expenses for the autumn examination are covered, and we can still get by. What if you wear yourself out?"
Although he had been studying at the county school with Teacher Gu,
his entire heart had been with her.
He was fully aware of her movements.
He knew she liked money, and that she wasn't just delivering fish to restaurants and inns.
She was also opening shops and doing business, and she was even associating with those little beggars...
He knew far more than she wanted him to know.
But what was the use of knowing so much if he couldn't say anything?
Su Xiaoqi suddenly remembered something and jumped up with a jolt.
"Right, where are my pastries?"
She had promised Xiao Xique that she would buy them for them.
But she had fallen asleep from exhaustion; they probably hadn't brought them all back.
Shen Yun tapped her nose, "As soon as you wake up, you only think about eating."
"No, I promised Xiao Xique. I can't break my word again," Su Xiaoqi explained nervously.
As she spoke, she started to walk out.
Shen Yun pulled her back into his arms, stroked her chin, and gently soothed her,
"Don't worry, Xiao Zhu has distributed them. Knowing you were tired and asleep, Xiao Xique even came to the cart to check on you."
Hearing this, Su Xiaoqi finally breathed a sigh of relief.
She exclaimed, "That's good, that's good."
Seeing how much she cared about that little beggar named "Xiao Xique,"
Shen Yun narrowed his eyes. If only she could care about him that much someday.