Chapter 288 — Intentions

Ji Shi, who had come in to bring them fruit, was greatly alarmed to hear this. On the pretext of seeing Ji Yong out, she repeatedly urged him: "Some things are best let lie once they are past. If it becomes known to one and all, even relatives will be too embarrassed to face one another. You grew up with Shouyuan, and she is all alone in the world. You are like a brother to her; you ought to protect her, not make trouble for her."

Ji Yong sneered. "Song Yan has already married Shouyuan. If he suspects her because of this, then Shouyuan would be better off divorcing him and coming home for good. If the Dou family dislikes supporting an idle mouth, then since I am like a brother to her, I will keep her myself."

"You..." Ji Shi was so angry she did not know what to say, but Ji Yong said perfunctorily, "Aunt, set your mind at ease. I won't do anything reckless." Then he leaped into the carriage and drove straight for the Shuntian Prefecture.

On the bustling Chang'an Avenue, Ji Yong's carriage passed Gu Yu's going the other way.

Gu Yu hurried to the Yizhi Hall of the Yingguo Estate.

Before the carriage had even come to a stop, he jumped down and asked the gatekeeper, who came forward eagerly to serve him, "Is Brother Tianci at home?"

"He is, he is, he is." The gatekeeper smiled fawningly. "Truly, better to come early than to come at the right time. The heir and the heir's wife have just returned. If you go in now, sir, they should just be finishing their washing up."

Gu Yu was taken aback. "Where did the heir and his wife go?"

"I don't know." The gatekeeper bowed and led Gu Yu in through the side gate. "With maids and serving lads, they must have gone out first thing this morning. I came on duty at the mao hour, and the heir and his wife were already gone by then."

Gu Yu had no patience for the gatekeeper's chatter. He nodded and entered the Yizhi Hall.

Dou Yan was about to change his clothes when Song Yan came in, washed and dressed. Dou Yan reminded him, "I am just about to change."

Song Yan gave an "en" and sat down on the large heated kang by the window.

Dou Yan had no choice but to take his clothes and hide behind the screen at the foot of the bed.

Song Yan followed after him. "When are Chen Sou and the others coming? I may have to go to Cangzhou in the next few days, and with no one to guard you, I am truly uneasy."

He leaned sidelong against the bedpost, his expression somewhat grave.

Dou Yan, half undressed, paused at the sight of Song Yan coming in, but at his words and the look on his face, a measure of shame rose in his heart.

When had his heart grown so narrow that he took Song Yan's arrival as a sign he meant to dally with him?

They were husband and wife who had already known each other's touch; such easiness was only natural, just as he himself would one day attend Song Yan at his dressing and bathing.

Even so, having a man before him as he changed still left Dou Yan somewhat ill at ease.

Dou Yan turned his back and quietly drew a breath, trying to make his voice sound calm and natural. "We agreed on the first of the tenth month. If the heir has need of men now, I can have Duan Bing and the others come first. Only where they are to lodge once they arrive, and how they are to take turns on watch with the guards of the Yizhi Hall, is for the heir to decide..."

In the dim light, Dou Zhiwei's form was delicate and shapely, flawless as white snow, and Song Yan's throat tightened. He hurriedly turned his face away, yet that figure, carved as if from fine jade, seemed branded deep into his heart, leaving him unable to stop turning it over.

Dou Yan, having spoken for some time and received no answer, turned back, only to see Song Yan gazing past the screen, his face faintly and suspiciously flushed.

"Heir!" Dou Yan tried calling him.

"Oh!" Song Yan came back to himself. "You had best call me by my childhood name!" Then he felt such a request was hardly proper. What wife called her husband by his childhood name? "After all, I call you Shouyuan," he hastily added. "Hearing 'heir' and 'heir' this and that makes me feel quite out of place."

Dou Yan laughed despite himself. Remembering old times, she winked at him and said with a grin, "Then shall I go on calling you Young Master Mei?"

That playfulness, so different from her usual crispness and charm, set Song Yan's heart itching. He could not help stepping forward to encircle Dou Zhiwei's waist. Bowing his head, he gazed into her eyes and softly answered, "Yes."

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Sisters, brothers, I beg for pink votes!

o(n_n)o~

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