Let me carefully inspect it for you
When the clothes he had just put on were stripped off again, Su Jingyang couldn’t help feeling the tips of his ears heat up. Since he had already married Rong Ci, he knew this sort of thing was inevitable. Still, with another man’s child in his belly, doing this with Rong Ci made him feel oddly uncomfortable.
“No, no.” Su Jingyang still felt something was off. He pushed the man who was burying his face in the hollow of his neck and nibbling at him, scooted toward the corner of the bed, and started pulling his clothes back on. He rejected him sternly, “Not now. We’ll fight again after the child is born. Don’t worry, I always keep my word. I’m definitely not deliberately stalling…”
Rong Ci didn’t wait for him to finish. He pressed in with unstoppable momentum, snatched the clothes from Su Jingyang’s hands, and flung them decisively out of the bed. His eyes, black as night, fixed on him with dangerous intensity. His voice lifted slightly, sounding absurdly amused, “After you give birth?”
Rong Ci seized both of his hands and coaxed him gently, “Come, Su Jingyang. Use these little fingers of yours and count it out. After you give birth, how long do I still have to endure?”
Their faces were extremely close. Rong Ci’s warm breath brushed against his lips. Su Jingyang only felt hot and itchy. He turned his face away, refusing to look at him, rolled his eyes, and thought for a moment. “Only about half a year. Endure it. It’ll pass quickly.” It was only after getting pregnant that Su Jingyang learned that even though people always say ten months, most pregnancies don’t actually last a full ten.
“Half a year? Quickly?” Rong Ci grabbed his face and forced him to look straight into his eyes. His gaze devouring as he said word by word in an indisputable tone, “Now. It can’t be delayed.”
“No, I’m scared!” Su Jingyang started making excuses. Surrounded by Rong Ci’s presence, he had the illusion of being completely trapped. Panic rose in his heart and he retreated again, only to be pushed down onto the bed by Rong Ci in one smooth motion.
While stripping off his pants, Rong Ci lectured him with complete confidence, “Being scared is useless. You might as well grit your teeth and stomp your foot. Endure it and it’ll be over. Look how old you are. It’s time to learn to be brave.”
Su Jingyang looked at Rong Ci hesitantly. Did this man really not care? If that was the case… then what was he still agonizing over? They were already married anyway.
Lost in thought, Su Jingyang was completely stripped bare, and there was no time left for regret.
After settling him, Rong Ci stripped off his own clothes as well and tossed them aside. Su Jingyang seized the chance to sneak a glance at his lean, powerful waist, and at that thing between his legs… Su Jingyang swallowed hard with difficulty, his eyes going a little blank. F*ck.
“You… slow down a little.”
Since Su Jingyang had decided to go along with it, he stopped struggling and lay there obediently. His hair was scattered messily, his face flushed red, large dark eyes brimming with a moist shine, and his rosy lips slightly parted. The moment Rong Ci saw this enticing, intoxicating sight, his breathing sank sharply. He could no longer restrain himself, lowered his head, and kissed him deeply. His long fingers slid downward…
The next day, when Su Jingyang pried his eyes open with his entire body aching, the sky outside was already bright. Rong Ci was awake, his black hair loose, dressed in snow-white underclothes. He sat by the bed with one knee bent, his brows and eyes carrying some gentle smile as he stared at his face. When he saw him wake, he leaned down and kissed the tip of his nose.
Su Jingyang snorted quietly. Last night, this man had indeed been mindful of his condition, sweating profusely while maintaining restrained movements. Still, it clearly hadn’t been satisfying enough. He had tormented him for a long time, pushing him to the brink before finally letting him go.
Su Jingyang noticed that Rong Ci’s collar was open, exposing his chest and that small patch of vermilion on the right. Something suddenly surfaced in his mind, and his expression froze.
Rong Ci caught his gaze and pulled his clothes open even wider, leaning in so he could see clearly. “You were really ruthless. It’s swollen. See?”
…It really did look a bit swollen.
Ever since getting pregnant, Su Jingyang hadn’t done it. Last night, when Rong Ci entered him, he was extremely unaccustomed to it. The pain made him yelp twice, and he had reached up and twisted that spot on Rong Ci’s chest hard, showing absolutely no mercy. Rong Ci had sucked in a sharp breath at the time. Su Jingyang hadn’t realized he used so much force.
Su Jingyang fell silent for a moment, then retorted stubbornly, “What are you complaining for? I’m swollen too!” After being pounded all night, his ass was still aching.
The moment Rong Ci heard that, his gaze darkened instantly. He hooked his lips into a mischievous smile and slid smoothly under Su Jingyang’s blanket.
“You’re swollen too? There? Let me carefully inspect it for you.”
How could Su Jingyang not know what he was plotting? His fur practically stood on end as he shoved at him desperately. “Get lost, get lost!!! Shameless!!!”
Rong Ci intercepted Su Jingyang’s flailing hands, pulled the quilt over them both, and covered them completely. In the end, Su Jingyang couldn’t overpower him and was pinned down.
The red brocade quilt rustled for a while. The figure on top very obviously began moving back and forth. Su Jingyang’s muffled gasps and moans leaked out, his voice breaking as he cursed intermittently, “You… you bastard…”
After fooling around all morning, Su Jingyang still felt weak in the legs even after breakfast, so he didn’t go see Ling Li. It wasn’t until evening that he went to chat with Ling Li for a bit and then ate dinner together with him and Ah Xuan.
Rong Ci and Rong Hua weren’t there. They had gone up Wuqun Mountain and wouldn’t be back for two days.
Su Jingyang noticed Ling Li’s gaze pause briefly at his neck, and his face immediately grew warm. He knew Rong Ci had left marks there. With the weather warming and his clothes getting thinner, trying to cover it up would only look deliberate. Thankfully, Ling Li quickly averted his eyes as if nothing had happened.
After the meal, the maids cleared the table. Su Jingyang told Ling Li to lie down and rest, but Ling Li said he was tired of lying down and wanted to sit. So the two of them sat by the table chatting, while Ah Xuan quietly played by himself in the room, obedient as ever.
Ling Li reached out and gently touched Su Jingyang’s belly. “It’s bigger than when I was three months along… Oh right, Jingyang.” He looked at him and asked, “Have you thought of names for the children?”
“Names?” Su Jingyang propped his chin on his hand and blinked twice. “No need to think. Let’s call them Su Dafan and Su Xiaofan.” Even though he was already over three months along, Su Jingyang honestly didn’t feel any particularly special attachment to the extra mass in his belly. He hadn’t thought about names at all. Finding them a stepfather was only a matter of responsibility.
Ling Li curved his lips into a faint smile. “You… you’re not serious, are you? If you give them names like that, they’ll be angry at you when they grow up.”
Su Jingyang replied reflexively, “When they grow up, maybe I’ll already—” He abruptly straightened up, lifted his teacup, and took a sip. “Wow, what kind of tea is this? It smells so good.”
A trace of bitterness crept into Ling Li’s smile. He grabbed Su Jingyang’s hand and squeezed it, his voice soft and gentle. “Jingyang, you really don’t have to be so mindful of me, afraid of hurting my feelings. I’ve already accepted the fact that you’ll leave one day. If there’s anything you need help with, I’ll give it everything I have. As long as your wish can be fulfilled, I’ll be happy.”
Su Jingyang fell silent for a long while, then sighed. “Alright, alright, I get it. Let’s not talk about that. Let’s talk about something else. Did the Crown Prince send you a letter today? What did it say? How are things in the palace?”
Su Jingyang really didn’t want Ming Zhan to ascend the throne so soon. That would mean Ling Li would be taken away very quickly.
Ling Li said softly, “The emperor’s condition has stabilized a bit. It should be possible to delay things for a while. There shouldn’t be any major upheavals in the short term. Still, he has to remain in the palace, just in case.”
“Oh.” Su Jingyang nodded. He stared at him for a moment, then lowered his gaze and fell silent again. Ling Li asked gently, “Is there anything else you want to ask? There’s no need to hide it from me.”
Su Jingyang tilted his head awkwardly. “Nothing.”
Ling Li seemed to see through him instantly. “You’re curious about what misunderstandings there were between His Highness and me back then, aren’t you?”
Su Jingyang was screaming yes, yes, yes in his heart, but he quickly denied it out loud. “No, no.” He knew Ling Li didn’t want to talk about it and didn’t want to force him.
Su Jingyang waved his hands hurriedly. “Really, no. I just think you’ve gotten thinner again lately.”
Ling Li’s gaze lingered briefly on Ah Xuan, who had climbed onto the bed to sleep, before turning back to Su Jingyang. He spoke softly, “It’s fine. Actually… there’s nothing that can’t be said.”
Ling Li recounted everything from those years in an even, emotionless tone. Su Jingyang listened with his eyes wide open, shock and uncertainty churning in his heart. He stayed silent for a very long time.
In truth, it had been the night before last, in a half-dreaming haze, that a sudden flash of insight had struck him. He had been searching for the protagonist of this world, thinking of heading to Jin City to look. It had never occurred to him that the protagonist might have been right beside him all along.
For example, Ling Li and Ming Zhan. In countless novels, one of the protagonists was exactly the sort of high-ranking figure Ming Zhan was.
Now that he had heard everything, the suspicion budding in Su Jingyang’s heart only grew stronger. All of it added together, front to back, made Ling Li look like the undeniable main character!! How had he never realized it before?! Was this what they called being blind to what was right under his nose?
Su Jingyang suppressed his excitement, cast Ling Li a casual glance, and felt his heart pounding wildly.
Even if encountering the protagonist meant he had to push them together to go home, from what Ling Li had just described, the Crown Prince truly seemed cold-blooded and ruthless. He had even killed a loyal guard who acted for his sake. Would Ling Li really be happy with him? Would it truly end well? Ling Li also didn’t look eager to return to the palace… Su Jingyang wanted to go home so badly it made him want to vomit, but he didn’t want to force a pairing. Lu Qian and Lin Jia were already his psychological shadow.
What should he do? Did he really have to rely on slowly accumulating energy? If his luck was bad, he might never collect enough in this lifetime.
Su Jingyang fell into a painful dilemma, his heart tormented. That night, with Rong Ci away, he tossed and turned alone in the large bed, his mind a complete mess.
Later, another thought occurred to him. When he had run into Xu Mei and the others back then, he had been absolutely certain they were the protagonists, only for reality to overturn all his assumptions.
Perhaps this time he was wrong too. Maybe Ling Li wasn’t the protagonist after all, and someone else was.
Su Jingyang comforted himself with that thought, drooping his eyelids as he took several deep breaths before finally pressing his cheek to the pillow and falling asleep.
Author’s Note:
Please ignore the last section. It was added just to make up the word count.
IsitRo: This is the last section. Pretty sure the author just copied-pasted some parts of a prev chapter lol:
“The following is filler added due to deletions that caused the word count to fall short, please be sure to disregard it:
Starting the next day, Su Jingyang began preparing to set up the small restaurant. In truth, there wasn’t much he needed to do himself, because the person in charge, Liang Lu, had already helped arrange everything, delivering vegetables, rice, tea, wine, firewood, tableware, and even someone to take care of disposing of the slop. All Su Jingyang needed to do was wait for things to be delivered, without worrying about anything at all.
He and Ling Li spent half a day thoroughly cleaning and washing the place from top to bottom. Ah Xuan also followed behind them with a small rag in hand, enthusiastically helping, though mostly making things worse. After finishing the cleaning, they set up the tables and chairs that had been delivered. Counting the main hall on the first floor and the second floor together, there were eleven tables in total. Su Jingyang figured he should be able to manage when the time came.
Throwing down the rag and the broom, Su Jingyang and Ling Li slumped into their chairs, then, as if by unspoken agreement, turned their heads to look at each other and smiled. Ah Xuan wandered over and helped Su Jingyang massage his legs for a bit.”
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