Xin Yi pulled Shen Ru Jie away.
Today, she was that heartbroken sister-in-law who pitied the villainous little sickly sweetheart, delivering warmth to him, bravely standing up to shield him from the world’s malice—a gentle, kind, breathtakingly beautiful, discerning, resilient, elegant and wise peerless good sister-in-law!
If she kept going like this, she would almost fall in love with herself.
She paid no more attention to the reactions of the others behind her and pulled the youth’s sleeve as she walked away swiftly.
From the bystanders’ perspective, they could glimpse the obvious anger on that delicate little face, her almond eyes suppressed to the point of reddening.
Though slender as a willow in the breeze, she had fiercely slapped that bullying dandy young master.
A beauty’s anger made one’s heart and liver tremble.
That dissolute playboy had suddenly taken a slap, and he looked furious enough to kill. Yet after lifting his head and seeing that stunningly gorgeous face, he simply froze for a moment.
He had noticed her from the moment the lady of the Wu family took her seat at the banquet.
After sending a maidservant to inquire, he learned she was the sickly wife of Marquis Shen.
That was precisely why he felt particularly irritable. If she were just a nameless bed-warming maid or concubine, he could have found a chance to take her for some fun.
But she was Shen Gui’s properly married wife with full rites. No matter how generous the other man was, he would not hand over his principal wife.
Thus, in a foul mood, the playboy turned his gaze to that unfavored little bastard of the marquis manor, wanting to vent his anger on him as usual.
Who would have thought that, by some twist of fate, he would end up slapped by the beauty instead.
His mood was complicated; the anger had completely dissipated.
He just regretted that this sickly beauty had not slapped him in the right place or at the right time. His manor had plenty of empty rooms and warm beds where she could kick and hit him however she liked—or even bite him if she wanted.
Because one could never get enough of a beauty’s slap.
With that thought, the playboy seemed entranced and reached out to take her hand, wanting to ask if such a delicate, tender little hand hurt from the slap.
Unfortunately, before he could touch her, the woman, with a hint of anger, slapped him hard again.
Xin Yi could tell the man was deranged.
Feeling a chill and nausea, she had no desire to tangle with him further. After putting on the necessary show, she hurriedly pulled Shen Ru Jie away.
She knew that after today, all the noble young masters in the Capital City would have new gossip and views about this sickly wife of the marquis manor.
Most importantly, Shen Gui would too.
Xin Yi did not need Shen Gui’s affection at this stage; what she needed was his interest and attention, even if just a bit of superficial regard.
As for the Melodramatic Transmigration System’s required “chasing wife crematorium,” once she proposed divorce, jealousy and regret would gradually turn that man’s feelings into love.
The sky was clear with faint clouds, sunlight filtering through the willow branches to cast sparse shadows.
This made the bursts of birdsong in the secluded grove even crisper.
The carriage waiting outside had also been commandeered by her.
The reason, of course, was that a married young lady could not be carried in the arms of a marquis manor bastard son down the street, sharing a single ride with him.
This was giving face to Shen Gui.
If he appreciated it, good; if not, there was nothing to be done.
The carriage had already traveled far when water still dripped from Shen Ru Jie’s hair.
Moreover, he seemed unusually obedient today. From the moment she grabbed his sleeve and dragged him away, to being arranged to sit in the same carriage, he showed no resistance at all. He obediently lowered his jet-black lashes and did whatever she said.
Xin Yi even suspected that if she told him to jump out of the carriage right then, Shen Ru Jie would not react at all.
Had he been angered into stupidity? Or was he too heartbroken to speak?
Xin Yi looked at the wine dripping from his hair tips onto his cheeks, then at his damp, handsome face.
For some reason, she truly felt a bit angry inside. She pulled a handkerchief from her sleeve and wiped his face with what she thought was a fierce force.
As she wiped, she muttered complaints, “When others bully you, don’t you know to fight back? Even if you don’t want to fight, can’t you at least run away?”
“Your legs are right there on you, yet you stood there like an idiot, letting him pour wine on your head. You really are…”
But she knew deep down that this was probably not the first time. Perhaps he had tried resisting before, but the marquis manor would not side with him, nor would Shen Gui, and the outcome might have been even worse.
Xin Yi softened a little and could not help sighing, “Forget it. This poetry gathering is no good at all. We won’t attend it again in the future.”
Shen Ru Jie stared dazedly at her profile.
From the moment she pulled out the handkerchief to wipe his face, he had lifted his trembling lashes to look at her.
She seemed very angry, deliberately wiping harder.
Her mouth grumbled unhappily, saying words that seemed like blame but were actually concern. Her brows and eyes carried a hint of patience and annoyance, nothing like her usual gentle and cautious self.
She had stood in front of him.
When she saw others bullying him, she did not tell him to endure it but reddened her eyes and fiercely slapped the offender.
In truth… he did not need Xin Yi to stand up for him; he could have retaliated himself.
No one had ever done this for him before, and Shen Ru Jie had assumed he did not need it. But now, looking at her puffed-up, angry brows and eyes, he actually felt a bit greedy for it.
This seemed to be another side hidden beneath his sister-in-law’s gentle facade. Turns out she was cute when glaring, and cute when scolding him.
Shen Ru Jie felt his heartbeat quicken a little, his throat growing slightly dry.
“Xin…”
He actually wanted to call Xin Yi, but it turned into that respectful term at the tip of his tongue, “Sister-in-law.”
“What’s up?”
“Your handkerchief… is sweet.”
“Pfft—”
Xin Yi seemed amused by him. Her furrowed brows relaxed, and she deliberately spread the handkerchief in front of him for him to see. “Because this is the cloth I just used to wrap pastries. Of course it’s sweet.”
The inside of the carriage was fairly spacious, but because Xin Yi was wiping his soaked hair, she leaned in close.
Especially now, with only half an arm’s length between them, he could clearly see her curved eyes, dainty nose tip, and… the slightly parted red lips revealing her pearly teeth.
Had Shen Gui kissed them?
Had he, in places he could not see, vilely sucked on his sister-in-law’s pitiful lips over and over?
Just thinking about it filled him with murderous intent on the verge of spilling over.
The youth’s eyes gradually darkened. He restrained himself intensely in his heart, chanting once: Sister-in-law.
Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, sister-in-law…
Xin Yi naturally did not notice his abnormality.
She thought about how to improve Shen Ru Jie’s mood after today’s irritating mess.
This was practically group bullying by the Capital City’s playboys, with his elder brother’s silent permission.
Timely psychological counseling was necessary.
After racking her brains, she thought of an eternal golden rule.
Shop!
When unhappy, go shopping; shop until happy.
So she turned to Shen Ru Jie, looked him up and down a few times, then said, “I think the Second Young Master lacks a few outfits. The weather will turn cold soon; he needs some thicker clothes.”
She pondered critically for a moment. “He’s also missing two folding fans, three rings, and four incense pouches.”
The youth pursed his lips after hearing this. He actually wanted to say that things like folding fans and rings were only liked by playboys like the Seventh Prince; he did not need them.
But looking into those glossy almond eyes full of smiles and sparkle, he could say nothing, only uttering from the heart, “Okay, I’ll follow sister-in-law’s arrangements.”
The Capital City had only two best cloth shops.
Xin Yi chose the nearest one. She had also figured it out: since she could not take the silver with her, she would spend it however she liked in this small world.
What to buy, whatever made her happy; whom to buy for, also whatever made her happy.
With a grand wave of her hand, she selected several bolts of fabric for Shen Ru Jie. While the shopkeeper measured him, she walked a short distance away to look at new fabrics.
Because the lady of the Wu family was bedridden year-round with illness and rarely went out, few in the Capital City had seen the true face of this marquis manor wife. The cloth shop owner was no exception and immediately misunderstood their relationship.
As he measured the youth’s sizes, he chuckled and said to him, “Young sir, you’re so lucky. This little lady treats you so well.”
The implications between the lines clearly took them for a young couple.
Shen Ru Jie either did not catch it or saw no need to explain; he simply froze for a moment and tacitly accepted.
A Ying, listening nearby, was terrified, nearly scared out of her wits: It was over! If the marquis found out, how would madam explain!
And what was with the Second Young Master? Why did he not deny the misunderstanding about his relationship with madam!!
By the time she wanted to speak up and clarify, the cloth shop owner had already taken the measurements and left.
This left A Ying alone in place, so frustrated she wanted to stamp her feet.
Xin Yi, on the other hand, was in a great mood.
It turned out that not only was spending on herself satisfying, spending on others was just as satisfying. She had finally experienced the “lavishly spending a fortune for a beauty” from the storybooks!
Of course, the cloth shop owner was the happiest. When leaving, he beamed at Xin Yi. “Little lady, come often. Once these clothes are made, this one will personally deliver them to your residence.”
After leaving the cloth shop, they did not head straight back to the manor but turned a corner to a shop specializing in small trinkets to pick incense pouches.
“Which style does the Second Young Master like?” Xin Yi held a few for comparison, not forgetting to look up and ask his opinion.
Shen Ru Jie’s gaze paused, landing on the incense pouch embroidered with magnolia flowers. His fingers at his side unconsciously clenched.
His dark eyes fixed on her, yet his tone was utterly calm and docile. “I like the one with the magnolia flowers.”
Xin Yi smiled, her eyes curving. “What a coincidence. I think that one’s nice too.”
She picked two more plain and elegant ones and had the owner wrap them all up.
After browsing a bit, she grew a little tired and planned to buy some crystal cakes from the nearby teahouse before leaving.
Unexpectedly, a familiar prompt sounded in her ear. “Ding~ Detected important character Zheng Wu nearby.”
The system reminded her, “Zheng Wu should be not far from the host. If the host decides to buy crystal cakes now, you will likely run into each other.”
Xin Yi, who had already gotten out of the carriage: “…”
Why not say so earlier.
After the “rainy night rescue” goodwill blow, Xin Yi felt lingering fear.
She did not know if a cannon fodder like her could resist the other’s powerful halo. Given this world’s melodramatic plotline, she feared Shen Ru Jie would fall in love at first sight with Zheng Wu, then turn dark and obsessive from unrequited love…
All her efforts lately would go to waste.
“Sister-in-law?”
The youth at her side looked at her puzzled, not understanding why she had suddenly stopped. “Wasn’t sister-in-law going to buy crystal cakes from the teahouse? Why stop?”
Xin Yi dryly chuckled twice. “Buy, buy… of course we’ll buy.”
Then she seemed to take an ordinary step forward, followed by a soft cry of surprise. “Ah!”
Her body looked about to pitch forward.
In the next second, the youth swiftly caught her, steadily holding her in his arms.
Shen Ru Jie looked down at her, his dark pupils misty, ears slightly red. “Sister-in-law, can you fall while just standing?”
Xin Yi nodded. “Yes.”
With her current persona, yes.
The system tsked twice, unable to hold back a jab. “Not to say, host’s method is too clumsy. Tripping your left foot with your right—you can even do that. Sure this can fool Shen…”
The next second, “Shen Ru Jie goodwill +2.”
The system: “…”
Xin Yi was also stunned.
She tentatively let go of the youth’s arm and stood, then accidentally tripped on flat ground again, falling back into his arms.
“Shen Ru Jie goodwill +2.”
Xin Yi: “…”
Don’t stop her; today she would max out this goodwill.