Flower Stealing Master

Chapter 1074: A Subtle Fragrance in the Deep Night

When Song Qingshu returned to the Daotai Yamen’s villa, it was already late. He specially invited Cheng Yaojia and her husband to dinner.

To his surprise, Lu Guanying, unusually, didn’t make any sarcastic remarks during the meal. He remained silent throughout, and Cheng Yaojia seemed preoccupied, appearing absent-minded all night.

“Young Master Lu, please don’t worry. Focus on recovering here. There’s no safer place in Yangzhou than here,” Song Qingshu said with a smile, setting down his wine cup.

Lu Guanying’s expression changed several times, but he finally bowed and said, “Thank you!”

Song Qingshu raised an eyebrow. The other party’s attitude had changed drastically, which was quite strange. He couldn’t help but glance at Cheng Yaojia, noticing her face flushing and paling intermittently. She was only moving her chopsticks unconsciously, looking preoccupied.

“Strange,” Song Qingshu frowned, but quickly dismissed it. He had too many things to consider right now and naturally didn’t have the energy to ponder the young couple’s thoughts.

After dinner, Song Qingshu arranged for the couple to rest in separate rooms. He then assigned a group of doctors and maids to care for Lu Guanying. 

Cheng Yaojia, her face slightly flushed, proactively went to attend to her husband.

Song Qingshu chuckled, knowing Cheng Yaojia was worried he might take advantage of her. He thought to himself, “Am I that scary? Your husband is still here…”

However, he didn’t stop her. After all, they were husband and wife in name. Although they had a divorce decree, how could they so easily sever their years of marriage?

Back in their room, Song Qingshu pondered the current situation in Yangzhou and the question of Li Kexiu’s fate. Before he knew it, night had fallen.

Suddenly, his ears picked up a sound, and he looked up at the door.

“Young Master Song…may I come in?” A few soft knocks sounded at the door, followed by Cheng Yaojia’s timid voice.

“Please come in!” Song Qingshu keenly noticed a slight tremor in the other woman’s voice and was puzzled. They had known each other for so long, why was she still so afraid of him?

Strictly speaking, Cheng Yaojia was of the same generation as Huang Rong. Fortunately, Song Qingshu was almost thirty, so the age difference between them was only a few years. However, Cheng Yaojia was older, technically his older sister. But her shy and timid nature, coupled with her delicate features, meant that Song Qingshu treated her like a little sister when they were together.

The door was quickly pushed open from the outside, and a dignified and gentle young woman walked in gracefully. A simple white dress made her look exceptionally beautiful.

“Madam, you look beautiful now,” Song Qingshu couldn’t help but admire, his gaze falling on her still-damp hair, clearly she had just bathed.

“Wasn’t I beautiful before?” Cheng Yaojia looked up at him, her eyes sparkling.

Song Qingshu was surprised by her boldness, and noticing that she had casually closed the door, he couldn’t help but chuckle, “Madam didn’t seem to drink at the banquet today. Why does she seem a bit bolder?”

Cheng Yaojia blushed and couldn’t help but stomp her foot, saying, “You’re just teasing me!”

“Alright, alright, it was my fault. I apologize to Madam.” Song Qingshu deliberately bowed, making Cheng Yaojia giggle. “But I wonder what brings Madam here so late?”

“Can’t I come to see you if there’s nothing wrong?” Cheng Yaojia bit her lip, giving him a sidelong glance.

“Of course you can. Whenever Madam wants to come see me, I’ll welcome you with open arms.” Song Qingshu regretted his words as soon as they left his mouth. Using that idiom here was somewhat ambiguous and could easily be misunderstood, but this time he was indeed somewhat wronged; he hadn’t thought of it that way when he spoke.

Cheng Yaojia glanced instinctively towards the bed, her face flushing crimson. Her full breasts heaved slightly as she spoke, “I’d like to have a drink with you. Would you do me the honor, sir?”

Song Qingshu was slightly taken aback, sensing something strange about her today, but still smiled and said, “It would be my honor to drink with you, Madam. However, I have a rather high tolerance for alcohol; what if I make you drunk?”

Cheng Yaojia lowered her eyes, subconsciously biting her lip. Under the lamplight, her lips shimmered with a captivating, moist sheen. “So what if I get drunk?”

Song Qingshu paused, then laughed. “Since you have such an interest, Madam, I’ll gladly oblige.” He then went to the door and called a maid to bring a pot of fine grape wine.

Hearing Song Qingshu instruct the maid to fill the pot with wine, Cheng Yaojia blushed involuntarily.

He was now a distinguished guest of the Daotai’s yamen, and the maid dared not be negligent in the slightest. Soon, the wine was brought over.

“Madam, please sit!” Song Qingshu considerately moved the chair slightly for her, gesturing for her to sit.

Cheng Yaojia, having never encountered the gentlemanly manners popular in later generations, felt a sudden surge of fluster and, blushing, quickly said thank you.

Song Qingshu smiled slightly, sat down opposite her, and poured her a cup of wine: “I’d like to toast you, Madam.”

But Cheng Yaojia shook her head: “Young Master has saved our lives, so I should toast you first.”

Song Qingshu shook the wine pot beside him and laughed: “There’s plenty of wine here, Madam can toast at her leisure.”

Cheng Yaojia pursed her lips, looking at him with a half-smile: “Then what’s the meaning of this toast?”

Song Qingshu carefully examined her; Cheng Yaojia’s cheeks were incredibly beautiful in the candlelight, and he couldn’t help but exclaim: “The first toast is for Madam, whose beauty surpasses even the flowers.”

Despite her inner turmoil, Cheng Yaojia couldn’t help but smile knowingly at his praise: “Alright, I’ll drink the first cup.” She then picked up the cup, about to bring it to her lips.

Unexpectedly, Song Qingshu grabbed her slender wrist and chuckled, “Why the rush, Madam? We haven’t even clinked glasses yet.”

Cheng Yaojia couldn’t help but stick out her tongue. She’d been so absent-minded all evening; no wonder she’d made such a silly mistake.

She raised her glass and clinked it against his before tilting her head back and downing a glass of fine wine in one gulp.

Watching her long, slender, white neck, the way she swallowed, Song Qingshu found her beauty irresistible and promptly finished his own glass.

“Can you let go of my hand now?” After the drink, whether from the alcohol or shyness, Cheng Yaojia’s eyes shone brighter than before.

Following her gaze, Song Qingshu noticed he was still holding her wrist. But he was no longer a naive young man and felt no guilt. He calmly released her, smiling, “I forgot for a moment, Madam, please forgive me.” As he spoke, he refilled their glasses.

“This second cup is for you…”

Cheng Yaojia had just picked up her cup when Song Qingshu interrupted her again, “Madam, I haven’t finished toasting you yet.”

“I’d like to see what excuse you’ll use this time.” Cheng Yaojia’s lips curled slightly upward, the alcohol rising in her chest, and she gradually relaxed.

“This second cup is for your skin, as smooth as jade,” Song Qingshu said with a smile.

“How can you toast like that?” Cheng Yaojia blushed, unable to help but mutter, “Besides, how do you know if my skin is good or not?”

Song Qingshu took her wrist, saying matter-of-factly, “Because I’ve t0uched it.”

Cheng Yaojia’s heart skipped a beat, and she couldn’t help but mutter softly, “Shameless~” However, her tone was full of coquettishness, without any real blame.

Seeing Cheng Yaojia obediently drink, Song Qingshu raised his glass: “This third glass, I toast to Madam… uh…”

Cheng Yaojia burst into laughter: “What, at a loss for words?”

Song Qingshu suddenly recalled her tongue-out expression from earlier and couldn’t help but smile: “The third glass, I toast to Madam’s lovely little t0ngue.”

Cheng Yaojia’s smile froze instantly. She stood up abruptly, her entire body flushed: “You!” Although the two had been somewhat intimate lately, she was, after all, a well-educated and respectable young woman. Besides, her husband was next door; how could she withstand such blatant teasing?

But Song Qingshu grabbed her arm: “Madam, weren’t you going to toast me? Are you just going to leave like this?”

Thinking of her husband’s instructions, Cheng Yaojia sighed softly, sat down, and downed her glass of red wine in one gulp.

Seeing Cheng Yaojia about to toast him, Song Qingshu placed his hand over the wine cup, saying, “Madam, this cup of wine is extremely precious. Before that, let’s resolve some mundane matters so we can better appreciate its subtleties.”

“What mundane matters?” Cheng Yaojia’s heart skipped a beat, and she asked somewhat awkwardly. 

Song Qingshu smiled slightly: “Young Master Lu is in the courtyard right now. Instead of taking care of him, Madam came to my room to drink in the middle of the night. It seems rather strange; something must have happened.”

Cheng Yaojia pursed her lips and turned her head away: “Could it be that I’m promiscuous and trying to seduce you in the middle of the night?”

Song Qingshu shook his head and said softly: “After spending so much time together these past few days, don’t I know Madam’s character well? If a woman as dignified and virtuous as Madam, who is devoted to her husband, is promiscuous, then there are probably no good women in the world.”

For some reason, Song Qingshu’s simple words warmed Cheng Yaojia’s cold heart, especially his deep eyes, which gave her a strange sense of peace.

But the more she felt this way, the more she couldn’t help but think of how her husband had treated her, and tears streamed down her face.

Song Qingshu reached out and wiped away the tears on her cheeks, speaking softly, “Did Young Master Lu send you?”

Cheng Yaojia looked at him in surprise, “You…how did you know?”

Song Qingshu didn’t answer her directly, but instead muttered to himself, “In the eyes of men in this world, women are indeed nothing more than accessories.”

Hearing this, Cheng Yaojia’s tears flowed uncontrollably again.

“Come with me.” Song Qingshu suddenly stood up and pulled her outside.

Cheng Yaojia followed him involuntarily, asking dazedly, “Where are we going?”

“To find your husband, of course.” Song Qingshu’s eyes flickered, revealing a subtle, enigmatic meaning.