Chapter 82: At the Desk
This should have been an ambiguous remark, but paired with Yu Yeqing's deep, contemplative gaze and the slight pain on her lips, Song Hemei had no chance to indulge in it.
She looked at him in confusion: "Why are you speaking in such a strange tone? Are you angry? What are you angry about?"
The candlelight flickered in his eyes, but he didn't know where to begin.
Song Hemei blinked her lashes: "Lianzhu isn't my biological child—isn't that a good thing? If it were me hearing this news, I would certainly be happy. Why are you reacting so strangely? Don't tell me you're that eager to be a father, hoping I'll bring you a son?"
Yu Yeqing's Adam's apple bobbed as he looked at her lips, which were still rosy even without lip balm: "That's not what I meant."
He didn't continue, only bent slightly and pressed down, reattaching his lips to hers. First they touched and parted, then gradually deepened.
The person in his arms didn't resist. Though her body leaned back a little, her arms very considerately wound around his neck. As the kiss grew deeper, they drew closer together, until even their stomachs bumped against each other.
His breathing was heavy and coarse. When he pulled back to catch his breath, his high nose bridge pressed against her nose tip, then rubbed against her cheek, and then slid down to her slender, fair neck, where he naturally kissed downward.
"I really am angry at myself."
Back when he first returned to Changzhou, he had happened upon the Song family sending someone off near the city gate. The procession was not small, taking up most of the road.
At that time, he still had no official post, and those in the Capital did not know he had returned to Changzhou, so he had to keep a low profile and avoid letting Song Yunyao discover he was still alive.
But with just one glance, he saw her surrounded by the Song family, her belly prominent, and even heard Madam Song say: "...about to give birth."
Being pregnant and having to travel was already prone to disturbing the fetus. He had ridden away after hearing those words, but his heart remained unsettled for a long time. He was angry at himself for that ridiculous worry, and even more so for feeling utterly pathetic—even after she had made such a resolute decision, he still had no shame in worrying about her safety.
This anger lasted until she "gave birth" to that child, and until he heard that she hadn't properly recuperated after her early labor but had followed Shao Wen'ang on the road to take up his post. He only felt even more laughable.
She could disregard even her own body for Shao Wen'ang, while he was ridiculously and superfluously worried about her.
And now, knowing all this, even hearing her say that the midwife he'd found had nearly ruined her plans, he felt that he had never truly escaped her control—no matter when, everything about her could tug at his heartstrings.
How laughable it was to have set aside old grudges and bowed his head back then; and now, coming close to her and listening to her complaints, it was even more so.
The resentment that had tormented him for three years was ridiculous. Before her, he was utterly and completely pathetic.
"Did you never wonder why a midwife just happened to pass by in the middle of the night back then?"
Song Hemei was distracted by the warm, moist sensation on her neck. After a brief pause, she belatedly answered: "Of course I thought it was strange. Later, I sent people to investigate, but they found out nothing."
She lowered her eyes to look at his firm back, which stretched his robe into a pleasing curve, and found herself swallowing unconsciously.
"But at the time, I guessed it might have been you who sent her. Yet you never showed your face, and the people I left behind to clean your house never said anyone had returned. So the matter had to be dropped."
Yu Yeqing paused at her words, then the kisses on her neck grew heavier. When he pulled away, a red mark had formed.
"No wonder the house, though uninhabited, didn't look neglected."
Song Hemei gave a light hum: "So you can see from this that my character is noble. Even thinking you had left without a word, I still returned good for evil."
As she finished speaking, she felt Yu Yeqing's kisses travel downward. He bit open the frog-button at her collar, as if intending to go deeper.
But she was still sitting on the desk. She couldn't help patting him to stop: "Not here."
Yu Yeqing didn't pause. His kisses fell just below her collarbone, and perhaps because he was lowering his head, his voice sounded somewhat muffled: "What do you mean? That you can't touch here, or that we should go somewhere else?"
Song Hemei felt her neck and cheeks burning red. She couldn't help thinking of the new discovery she'd made that morning in her maiden room in the Song residence… that once the clothes were off, there were other uses for things.
She said softly: "You can touch. I'm very magnanimous; I won't squabble with you over trifles like this."
Yu Yeqing let out a low laugh, his chest vibrating along with it: "Mm, Second Miss is very magnanimous."
He drew out the last syllable, tinged with a rare ambiguity and invitation.
The more proper a person, the more speaking in such a tone adds another flavor entirely.
Song Hemei swallowed. She didn't want to dawdle any longer. She cleared her throat twice: "I mean, not here. It'll get dirty. I spent all afternoon sorting those accounts, and… this desk of mine has a wobbly leg—I've been too lazy to fix it. What if it falls apart?"
Yu Yeqing was momentarily speechless: "…You've certainly thought things through."
She felt a bit embarrassed, but she had to say it—she was worried that he would lose control like last time. Today, Chunhui had led him to her courtyard. If her desk collapsed tomorrow, what would that look like?
Fortunately, Yu Yeqing didn't insist on staying here. He straightened up slightly: "Can you walk by yourself?"
At a time like this, even if she could, there was no reason to walk on her own.
Song Hemei directly wrapped her arms around his neck and deliberately whispered in his ear: "What now? I'll have to trouble Young Master Yu."
Yu Yeqing put one arm around her waist, the other steady under her, and effortlessly lifted her off the desk.
He turned toward the screen: "Is the bed inside?"
Song Hemei gave a low hum, her hands instinctively clutching the fabric on his back. Her heart seemed to thump with each of his steps toward the bed.
Until she saw herself carried past the screen, her body leaning back, her legs resting on the edge of the bed.
She sat on the bed, looking up at the tall figure before her. His stature seemed capable of devouring her, yet he was leisurely undoing his outer robe.
Actually, she didn't quite understand. Though she had only done this with him, she still felt that… at such a time, he should be undressing her first. Why was he wasting effort on himself?
But as it happened, the round-collared robe Yu Yeqing wore today was very elaborate. When she was a little impatient, this elaborateness seemed all the more protracted, even making her hate those bothersome hidden buttons.
She said crossly: "Why don't you go to the clothing shop and ask the shopkeeper who sold you this robe to take it off for you?"
Yu Yeqing paused: "Now?"
"Of course not. But if you keep undoing it like this, the sky will be bright by the time you finish."
Yu Yeqing thought for a moment. For a split second, he considered simply tearing it open, but he suppressed that impulse and went to undo the last hidden button: "I met many people today. It wouldn't be good to get on the bed in my outer clothes. And Third Young Master isn't here—if you have to go fetch me another set of clothes, it might really come to troubling Lord Shao. I'd rather not."
He lifted his gaze to her and said very seriously: "Don't rush."
Those two words stunned Song Hemei. She pursed her lips and turned her head away, not urging him further, so as not to seem like someone overly eager for such things.
But the next moment, she heard the sound of clothes falling to the floor. She turned back, and the man before her directly covered her. His hands cupped her cheeks, forcing her head up, and he directly captured her lips, easily prising apart her teeth and tangling with her tongue.
He kissed fiercely and urgently, so much so that she felt dazed—hadn't he just said "don't rush"?
But now there was no time to ask or think, because her whole body was pressed down onto the bed. His hands roamed restlessly. He was still quite inexperienced in this area, as if he didn't know exactly where to put them, or perhaps he knew but was too shy to go straight for the important spots.
As her clothes were rubbed open, she sank deep into the inner side of the bed, feeling his head lower. He took her, his tongue also restless.
Song Hemei couldn't help but let out a muffled groan. His voice came from below: "Is this right?"
"Probably. Isn't that what you did last time?"
Song Hemei tilted her head back. The familiar canopy overhead seemed blurred at this moment.
She thought she really should find a manual for him to study properly. If there was something he didn't understand, he could learn it himself—why did he have to ask her about every step?
Never having been married was such a hassle. Some lessons really couldn't be skipped over.
But soon she had no mind to think further. The tie at her waist came undone quickly. Song Hemei instinctively grabbed the corner of the blanket. But what came first wasn't that heat, but his long fingertips.
His long fingers pressed against her petals. A shallow probe made her whole body tense, and she instinctively wanted to kick him.
His fingers had never done this before. Song Hemei's voice trembled: "What are you doing?"
Yu Yeqing seemed to be exploring, his brows slightly furrowed, looking absurdly serious.
"Testing whether you're ready now." He looked up at her. "I think it should be fine. What do you think?"
There was even a hint of sincerity in his eyes—though if his fingers weren't restlessly tracing circles, that sincerity wouldn't have made her so angry.
She clenched her teeth, suppressing the sounds that threatened to escape her throat, and said hoarsely: "It's fine. Take your hand away now."
Yu Yeqing nodded, obediently replaced his fingers with something else. As he pressed down and forward, he brought his lips back to hers.
The overwhelming force made her entire body tense, her calves restlessly rubbing against the edge of the bed.
But after just that one thrust, he pulled back slightly and stopped.
Song Hemei found herself in an unsatisfying limbo. She instinctively looked down at him, and heard him say: "Move down a little."
She didn't quite understand: "Move down where?"
Yu Yeqing gripped her waist: "Down."
Song Hemei was instantly both embarrassed and irritated. She felt he was deliberately teasing and provoking her, expecting her to meet him?
It wasn't that she couldn't, but she was very dissatisfied with this coercive method.
But before she could refuse, he said: "Otherwise you'll hit your head."
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