A delicate beauty takes a place in a marriage, while a cold, rough man seduces her every night.

Qingyan straightened her clothes, her eyes sweeping over his bulging trousers, and her face instantly flushed.

She lowered her eyes, pursed her soft lips, stepped forward, stood on tiptoe, and kissed him on the cheek, gently comforting him:

"Don't rush. You must not have been sleeping well these past few days in the city. Get a good night's sleep tonight."

After saying that, he pushed open the door, went inside, and led Duoduo out to the toilet.

A few days ago, Xiao Jingye was in the city on business and bought a few packs of cigarettes. He happened to have one left, so he lit it in the yard, took a long drag, and tried to suppress the burning sensation.

Before Qingyan returned, he stubbed out the cigarette butt and threw it outside the courtyard wall.

He stood in the yard for a while in the cold wind before stepping inside.

A thick, soft cotton quilt was laid on the kang (a heated brick bed). Duoduo slept against the wall on the inner side, while Qingyan slept in the middle. The two of them shared a thin floral quilt.

Xiao Jingye slept alone on the outer side of the kang (a heated brick bed), with a shallow gap between them.

Qingyan turned her back to Xiao Jingye and faced Duoduo. At the little girl's pleading and coaxing, she whispered a bedtime story to her.

Her soft, gentle voice, falling into the quiet, dark night, possessed a healing power that soothed the mind.

Duoduo's eyelids drooped heavily, but she listened with exceptional focus.

Halfway through the story, in the dimly lit bed, a large, warm hand slowly reached into Qingyan's bedding.

Her heart pounded, she frowned, and kicked Xiao Jingye from behind, signaling him to behave.

But the man did not stop or back away. Instead, his rough fingertips gently and slowly caressed the lines of her back, and finally his palm landed on her soft lower abdomen, gently pressing against it without moving.

Dodo was overcome with drowsiness, her head spinning, but she still forced herself to stay awake and asked in her childish voice, "Sister-in-law, did the little lamb get eaten by the big bad wolf in the end?"

"Yes, it was eaten." Qingyan patted her gently and said softly, "But in the end, the hunter cut open its belly and rescued the little girl."

The air was quiet, and the large hand gently kneaded the soft, white flesh of her lower abdomen, thoroughly enjoying himself.

Qingyan raised her hand and gently patted the back of his hand to signal him to move it away, but he didn't move. Afraid of disturbing Duoduo, she could only let him do as he pleased.

A moment later, Duoduo's breathing became long and even, and she fell into a deep sleep.

Qingyan gently rolled over and lay flat on her back, reaching out to pry Xiao Jingye's hand away, and said in a very low voice, "Go to sleep."

To her surprise, the man pulled back the corner of her blanket, scooped her up, and tucked her into his own bed, holding her tightly in his arms: "I can't sleep, I miss you."

His deep, husky voice sent shivers down Qingyan's spine.

Qingyan's heart softened, and she turned around, tilted her head back, and gently kissed his chin before hugging him back.

"Xiao Jingye".

"Um."

"It was you, wasn't it?" Qingyan asked. "You're the one who got someone to reinstate my public school place, right?"

He was taken aback: "So, are you happy?"

"I'm so happy." Qingyan snuggled closer to his neck. "Aren't you curious how I guessed it?"

"At first I thought it was Jiang Runsheng who helped, but when we met today, he didn't mention it at all. Knowing his personality, if he had done his part to get this done, he would have told me frankly."

"In this world, there are only two people who silently support me, think of me wholeheartedly, and never seek credit for their work. One is my brother, and the other is you."

"When I was little, my brother fought for me and beat up a boy in my class who often bullied me. The boy knocked out one of my brother's teeth with a brick, but he never mentioned it to me. I only found out about it later when my aunt told me about it."

"Xiao Jingye, the other day in the city, you weren't busy with business at all; you were running around all over my job, weren't you?"

Mentioning her brother, whom she had never met, Xiao Jingye felt a pang of jealousy, but he didn't show it. He simply tightened his arms around her and kissed her hair, saying, "Mmm."

"You're so kind," Qingyan said.

This matter is very difficult. The hierarchy of public officials is complex, and it's not so simple to overturn the false accusations and restore one's status.

It must have taken a lot of effort and scheming, and she must have had to humbly approach a key leader to get this done and clear her name.

He was usually free-spirited and unrestrained, with a strong backbone, yet he was willing to lower his self-esteem and beg for her.

Qingyan didn't dare ask for details. Since he didn't tell her, he must not want to, afraid that she would look down on him or worry about him.

The more I think about it, the more bitter and upset I feel.

Xiao Jingye felt a warm liquid flow down his neck. He paused for a few seconds, then gently patted her bottom.

"Why are you crying?"

Qingyan's eyes reddened, and she asked softly, her voice choked with sobs, "Why are you so good to me?"

"You're my wife, who else should I treat well if not you?" He held her soft body in his arms, lowered his head and whispered in her ear, "Don't cry, my little darling, my baby, my sweetheart..."

She brought out all the words she had learned from storybooks and from joking around with men her own age.

Hearing his blunt and clumsy words of love, Qingyan went from tears to laughter, and gently punched him a few times with her small fist:

"Glib-tongued, disgusting."

Xiao Jingye grinned wickedly, raised his hand to pull the blankets tighter, covering the two of them, their breaths mingling in the small, enclosed space.

A kiss alone is enough to stir emotions.

Their soft lips and tongues intertwined, unwilling to separate, wishing they could melt into each other's bones and blood.

The kiss made my cheeks flush and my tongue go numb; a bittersweet feeling spread through my heart.

"Do you smoke?" Qingyan asked, her breath uneven. "If you smoke, don't even think about touching me again."

She could smell the faint scent of tobacco on his breath.

"Sorry, this is the last one. I won't be smoking anymore."

He breathed heavily as he held her tightly, kissing her soft hair and her delicate, expressive eyes.

He kissed her alluring, rosy lips repeatedly, then lingered on her snow-white neck, slowly licking it, listening to her soft, suppressed moans.

This is terrible!

Xiao Jinye thought.

-

After the storm subsided, Qingyan resumed her normal work and life, living a peaceful and happy existence.

The young couple snuggled in bed for a while in the morning before he got up to go to town to work on his business, and she went to class.

Then he would rush back in the evening, and the family would sit together in the yard, chatting and eating in the cool evening breeze.

At night, Qingyan would sometimes hum softly, and he would cover her mouth and make love to her again and again.

Sometimes she would cry, and sometimes she would hit him with red eyes, but Xiao Jingye would not comfort her; he would only continue to love her.

After a while, she gradually realized that crying was useless and would only drive him crazier.

Autumn has arrived in the blink of an eye, temperatures have plummeted, and the ground is covered with yellow leaves.

That afternoon, Xiao Jingye rode his motorcycle with Fang Zhijie back to their hometown from the city. When the motorcycle reached a mountain valley, Fang Zhijie suddenly slapped his forehead, remembering an old incident.

"Damn, there's some really juicy gossip I forgot to tell you."

"What?" Xiao Jingye slowed down to listen to him.

Fang Zhijie pointed and said, "A few days ago, Chun Ya and I came back from the city and saw your mother-in-law and that bastard Jia Er hanging out in this place."

"Goodness, this guy is quite old, but he's incredibly lewd. I blushed when I heard it."

Xiao Jingye frowned: "Jia Er?"

"Yeah," Zhijie said, "that guy spends all his time gambling in teahouses, he's squandered all his money, even his house was used to pay off debts, and now he lives alone in a dilapidated house at the entrance of the village."

After arriving home, Xiao Jingye told Qingyan about it.

Qingyan said calmly, "My father already knew, but he didn't care, so why should I interfere?"

Hearing her say that, Xiao Jingye didn't say anything more, treating it as nothing more than a trivial matter.

One day in late October, the autumn sun shone warmly.

After school, Qingyan rode her bicycle home with Duoduo. As the bicycle wheels turned a corner, she saw several familiar figures gathered at the gate of her own yard in the distance.

The moment she saw the person's face clearly, her eyes lit up, and she called out loudly:

"elder brother!"