Font Size:
Listening to the coquettish laughter and flirtatious murmurs coming from the next cabin, Xie Zhuoguang…
“Sir, your meal.”
A young waiter, dressed in short working attire, knocked on the door of Cabin No. 5 (Heaven character suite).
Only after hearing the cold, distant male voice from within did he lift the sweat towel from his shoulder and wipe the sweat from his forehead.
In his opinion, rich people always had strange temperaments. This gentleman had paid ten times the normal price to swap into this cabin, but ever since he entered, he hadn’t made a sound. He didn’t step out to get some air on the deck, nor had anyone seen even his shadow.
Truly, strange things happen every year, but this year seems to have even more.
Muttering under his breath, the waiter took a few steps forward—right past Cabin No. 4. As he passed, his sharp ears caught faint sounds of flirtatious laughter between a man and a woman from inside. Who knew which pair of clandestine lovers was in there?
This was a long journey, lasting ten to twenty days. It wasn’t uncommon for noble young men to bring singers or maids along for amorous entertainment; nothing surprising at all.
In the cold of winter, steaming dishes placed outside would quickly cool when hit by the northern wind. The food this waiter had brought had already been sitting outside for quite some time—first cooling slightly, then becoming completely cold leftovers. Still, not a soul from inside the room emerged to collect it.
Xie Zhuoguang sat sideways on the bed, face like ice, torturing himself. Just one thin wall away were Yu Mingyao and Pei Shang, in Cabin No. 4.
The ship they were aboard belonged to Shen Si, a wealthy merchant from Jiangnan. Lavish and opulent, the ship offered attentive service and, due to Shen’s reputation, even most pirates wouldn’t dare to make trouble—it was considered quite safe.
But after all, a ship is still a ship—not brick walls. Between two cabins, there was only a thin wooden plank separating them. Any sound would be heard loud and clear next door.
Not to mention, Xie Zhuoguang had sharp hearing and was half a martial artist.
Just one wall away, no matter how much he didn’t want to hear, he could clearly catch Yu Mingyao’s startled gasps, and Pei Shang’s shameless sweet-talking.
The fingers hanging beside him twitched; his pinky moved as though he wanted to raise his hand to cover his ears. But his arms, heavy as if filled with lead, refused to budge. He felt no strength to resist.
His chest felt as though it had been hollowed out, filled with malice, jealousy, and bitter resentment.
Pei Shang’s playful, teasing voice rang again, followed by the rustling of clothes. From just a few words, Xie Zhuoguang could imagine vividly: Yu Mingyao lifting her delicate white neck, allowing that scoundrel Pei Shang to nibble and kiss her skin, leaving traces behind.
Especially when Pei Shang coaxed her to call him “husband,” Xie Zhuoguang’s head nearly exploded!
Husband? Was that something just anyone could be called?
His fingertips dug deeply into his palm, nails nearly piercing his flesh. His palm tingled with pain, yet he seemed oblivious.
While his head throbbed intensely, a blurred scene suddenly flashed before his eyes—
She, wearing a phoenix coronet and bridal robes, lowered her eyes shyly. He lifted the bridal veil, his gaze filled with only her.
“Husband… Yao-niang…”
The one who should be called husband was him!
On the verge of breaking down, he kept repeating to himself: It’s fake! It’s all fake!
Yu Mingyao’s heart belonged to Pei Shang, never to him. It was all fake!
“You’re so annoying.”
“Come on, just say it once. Please, my good little sister~”
The flirtatious laughter and rustling sounds came again. Suddenly, a sharp, stabbing pain pierced Xie Zhuoguang’s chest. A metallic taste rose in his throat; he clutched his chest, nearly suffocating.
In the next cabin—
The scene wasn’t quite as indecent as Xie Zhuoguang had imagined.
Compared to when she first entered, Yu Mingyao’s clothes were merely a bit disheveled. Her lower body was pinned firmly by Pei Shang’s legs; her arms were raised above her head, restrained by Pei Shang’s hands.
One lay on the bed, while the other half-suspended over her.
Pei Shang had only murmured a few suggestive words into Yu Mingyao’s ear, making her tremble with both shyness and annoyance. He hadn’t even gotten the kiss he longed for.
“My dear, look at me—are you really this heartless?”
He hadn’t given up on making her call him husband.
His warm breath brushed her earlobe, making Yu Mingyao turn her face away, cheeks flushed crimson.
“Stop it, Brother Shang…”
Seeing her shy and timid demeanor, Pei Shang’s chest rose and fell heavily; his burning gaze locked on her with fervor and depth.
Under his intense stare, Yu Mingyao held her breath.
A few seconds passed. He did not press her further but simply hugged her tightly.
“Alright, I’ll wait for you. Our engagement is set—there’s plenty of time ahead.”
He embraced her and let out a long sigh.
Lovers together would never lack conversation. Yu Mingyao, wrapped in his arms, wanted to move but hesitated. Pei Shang began softly whispering—
He spoke of his first impression of her, his past foolishness, and how he failed to recognize her worth.
Once he started talking, it was hard to stop.
Xie Zhuoguang felt a tingling numbness in his lower limbs. When he regained awareness, who knew how long he had been lost in thought? The sounds next door still hadn’t ceased.
Do they really have so much to talk about?
He had never seen Yu Mingyao so lively and talkative in front of him.
She would stretch her voice sweetly to beg Pei Shang to spare her; she would feign annoyance to scold him; when Pei Shang talked of past sorrows, she would softly and tenderly comfort him.
And him?
Why could she never be like this with him?
Xie Zhuoguang’s head throbbed even more violently—as if countless hands reached into his whirlpool of memories, churning and wrenching him apart. He was in unbearable pain!
And at that moment, the two next door, while chatting, had once again grown restless.
He heard the bed creak, and Yu Mingyao began letting out kitten-like gasps.
Pei Shang’s suddenly heavier breathing seemed to blow right into his ears.
Xie Zhuoguang could endure no more—he grabbed the jade pillow by his side and hurled it against the cabin wall.
Bang!
A loud thud exploded beside their ears. Pei Shang, who had just been pressing over Yu Mingyao to sneak a few kisses, nearly went limp from fright.
The two of them looked toward the source of the noise by the wall. Pei Shang’s face showed grievance—he hadn’t even done much, so why couldn’t the person next door tolerate it?
He shot a pitiful look at Yu Mingyao.
Seeing him, Yu Mingyao burst into even brighter laughter.
Tilting her head to look up at Pei Shang, her voice dripped with coyness:
“Serves you right for bullying me. See? Even the neighbors couldn’t stand it anymore.”
As her words fell, Pei Shang’s face darkened.
“Interrupting a couple’s intimacy—that’s the real scoundrel! Black-hearted bastard! I curse him to be abandoned by his bride on their wedding night and live alone forever!”
“Hmph, can’t stand seeing lovers being affectionate, huh?”
He cursed in his heart but was unwilling to stop completely.
They’d been on the road for over half a month. Every day, he was closely watched by Yu Jinnian, without a single moment alone. Forget talking to Yu Mingyao—just catching a glimpse of her was rare.
Finally, using seasickness as an excuse and getting Li Qing to act clumsily, he’d managed to earn her sympathy and create this precious opportunity.
“Black-hearted bastard!”
He cursed again under his breath.
But with the mood ruined, there was no helping it. Pei Shang reluctantly crawled off Yu Mingyao and lay down beside her.
Though it was a premium cabin, the bed wasn’t large—barely enough for two people. Pei Shang’s pillow, soft and brought from home, was spacious for one but cramped for two.
Pei Shang turned on his side, stubbornly inching his head closer to share the same pillow with Yu Mingyao.
By the time Yu Mingyao realized, she was nearly pushed up against the cabin wall.
Unlike Xie Zhuoguang’s icy coldness, Pei Shang’s body was always warm, exuding vitality and heat. Pressed against him, Yu Mingyao’s gaze fell on his clean, sharp jawline.
Suddenly, an untimely scene from her past life flashed in her mind.
When she and Xie Zhuoguang had just married, Pei Shang and Xie Zhuoguang were still close friends. Back then, Xie Zhuoguang’s temperament wasn’t as volatile as it later became.
They had enjoyed a period of harmonious marital bliss.
Once, after Xie Zhuoguang returned from an assignment, they hadn’t seen each other in two months—and naturally, passion flared between them.
The study, the bedroom, by the window—all bore traces of their indulgence. Midway, she had fainted from exhaustion, but even in her daze, she sensed that Xie Zhuoguang had not yet stopped.
That time had been truly excessive. She’d stayed over at Jizhuxuan, and when she awoke, her body felt weak and sore. It was the peak of summer then, oppressively hot.
Xie Zhuoguang had always disliked having attendants around; there were no servants at Jizhuxuan.
When she woke, she didn’t think much of it—wearing only a thin gauze robe, she stepped out of the bedroom.
When Pei Shang’s startled gaze fell on her exposed arms and the dense red marks on her chest, she finally realized how inappropriate it was.
Embarrassed, she forgot how Pei Shang had excused himself that day.
After that, Pei Shang never again visited the Xie family estate voluntarily, and his friendship with Xie Zhuoguang gradually cooled. Later, after the Pei family’s downfall, Pei Shang’s personality also changed drastically.
Out of sympathy, she’d offered him a few comforting words—only for Xie Zhuoguang to suddenly turn sour and jealous, becoming sarcastic and moody daily.
For some reason, Pei Shang had then started to compete with Xie Zhuoguang, frequently sending interesting trinkets to the Xie estate to please her.
In her past life, the Pei Shang of his early twenties was extraordinarily handsome, broad-shouldered, and brimming with masculine charm.
His lips always curled with a hint of roguishness, exuding the air of a carefree rake. There were enough young noblewomen openly and secretly admiring him to circle half of the capital.
“What are you daydreaming about? Are you mesmerized by me?”
Pei Shang raised his eyebrows and smirked playfully, mischief in his smile.
Annoyed, Yu Mingyao pounded his chest lightly.
Hmph, just a fool who only knows how to joke and can’t even understand a woman’s heart.
The bed creaked as she turned her back to him.
Pei Shang’s gaze fell on her jade-like earlobe—and his eyes almost reddened.
That day by the cold pool, though the drug’s effects were suppressed temporarily, when he returned to his room, he had still… resolved it.
Li Qing, that rotten scoundrel, had somehow found a lewd booklet filled with indecent illustrations.
At first, Pei Shang didn’t understand what it was. After flipping a few pages, his face instantly flushed hot.
“What filthy thing dares come near this young master?”
He threw the booklet at Li Qing, who hastily apologized and retreated—but not before stealing a glance at the booklet on the ground.
That rejected booklet lay abandoned.
Though Pei Shang had only glimpsed a few pages, his memory was sharp. The scenes etched themselves deeply in his mind.
One such scene was exactly like this—
The woman turned her back, and the man lifted her skirts…
Pei Shang hugged Yu Mingyao tighter—but didn’t dare move at all.