Chapter 14

At night, rain suddenly began to fall from the sky.

It was late autumn, and the weather was already quite chilly; one needed to wear a light fur cloak when going out.

The night rain was cold and fine, clinging to the skin and leaving a sticky discomfort that lingered for a long time.

Lamps were lit in the courtyard, and the ancient stone slab ground was soaked, with scattered moss growing in the cracks.

It was well past the hour of Xu, and everyone else in the residence had returned to their own rooms.

Pei Su was still in the study.

Dressed in a Gauze Garment, I walked silently along the corridor and stopped outside the study door.

The candlelight cast Pei Su’s shadow onto the paper window. I raised my hand and knocked softly twice.

Pei Su quickly opened the door.

He stood at the doorway, gripping the doorframe so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

“Yuniang, why are you here?”

I lifted the hood of my outer robe and walked toward him step by step.

He retreated, step by step.

I gently closed the door behind me, then stopped where I was and, using the method Long Shuang had taught me, looked up at him as pitifully as I could.

Having just come in from the rain, I was drenched all over, even my eyelashes were wet.

I undid my cloak, letting the Gauze Garment show completely before him, then, with the resolve of one facing death and a bold spirit, I spoke.

“Lord Pei, please cherish me!”

Pei Su looked at me, but did not react as I had hoped.

His brows were tightly furrowed, his face pale as paper, and his eyes gradually reddened.

It looked as if he had cried.

The room was deathly silent, only the crackling of the candle flame could be heard.

Under such a gaze, I gradually felt a prickling discomfort, and when the night wind blew, I shivered from the cold.

After a long while, Pei Su silently walked to the wardrobe and took out a dry robe.

He came to my side and draped the robe over my shoulders.

“That one’s wet,” he said hoarsely. “Put this on first, don’t catch a chill.”

I clutched the collar in a daze.

Suddenly, Pei Su asked, “All these years, what kind of life have you really been living?”

His voice was choked with tears, almost hoarse, like paper soaked through by rain.

Was Pei Su… feeling sorry for me?

Why?

I couldn’t figure it out. I only saw Pei Su turn his face away, as if unwilling to let me see him lose composure.

I vaguely felt that he had misunderstood something. I wanted to explain, but didn’t know where to start.

I murmured, “I’ve been doing quite well…”

Pei Su ignored me, turned back, and reached out to touch my face.

“He forced you to do these things, didn’t he?” He stared at me intently, candlelight reflected in his eyes like a sword suspended high above. “He bullied you, didn’t he?”

I instinctively replied, “No.”

But then I realized that this was tantamount to tacitly admitting my identity, so I hurried to correct myself.

“No, no one forced me.”

“You don’t have to speak for him.”

He smiled gently, but the light in his eyes was icy cold.

In the dim candlelight, the documents on the desk were still piled high.

Pei Su lowered his head, pressing his forehead to mine, forcing me to meet his gaze.

“Don’t worry, none of this is your fault.”

As our breaths mingled, he awkwardly kissed the corner of my lips.

“I will take care of it.”