Favoring a Hidden Mistress? Engagement Broken-Chapter 79 - 75

Pei Yuqing did not speak, only tightened his arms around her.

The wedding date was already set, and soon they would be married, yet he was still visiting frequently; what kind of impression would that give?

"Not coming?" Xie Wanqing raised her brows slightly: "Could it be that you’re afraid my brother might chase you out?"

That day, Xie YanYu returned to the mansion after his duties, and upon learning his sister’s engagement was hastily set with his friend, he went straight to the farmhouse at night.

With a gloomy face, looking quite displeased, Xie Wanqing didn’t dare to provoke him, and immediately pushed Pei Yuqing out, claiming it was this man who seduced her.

She was just a little girl, inexperienced in the ways of the world, yet enticed by a man much older than herself.

What could Xie YanYu say? He turned around and went next door to find the man who seduced his little sister. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

The two men were calm and composed; what they talked about, Xie Wanqing didn’t know because she didn’t dare ask her brother, and Pei Yuqing wouldn’t say much either.

When pressed, he merely looked at her gently, uttered ’A gentleman’s agreement’, and refused to say more.

Now, being teased by the young girl, his expression remained unchanged, saying, "I’m not afraid of that."

The seriousness of his manner was truly amusing.

Xie Wanqing reached out to touch his face, saying, "Even without a face like this, your demeanor alone is quite charming."

Pei Yuqing smiled at her words, lowered his head, kissed her forehead, and asked, "How charming?"

His smile was gentle, his eyes bright and soft; Xie Wanqing felt a little itch in her heart, as if gently teased by a soft brush, and with her hand still on his face, she raised her head and brought her face closer.

She kissed his chin again.

This time, Pei Yuqing didn’t let her go so easily.

As she retreated, his broad hand steadied the back of her neck, gently holding it, causing Xie Wanqing to feel a darkness before her eyes, followed by a warm sensation on her lips.

Unconsciously, she blinked her eyes, and quickly realized, placing her hands on his face to push him away, she urgently said, "No, you can’t!"

The kiss fell short, Pei Yuqing opened his eyes, pursed his lips, and said, "You were the one who kissed first."

In his usually bright and gentle eyes, there was now a hint of indescribable darkness.

Xie Wanqing huffed, "I only kissed your face, not like you did."

She pointed to her lips, accusingly saying, "Kissing here will make them swell; last time you kissed them swollen, and I forgot to scold you."

That day, after waking from sleep, her lips were swollen; who knew how hard he kissed, though luckily upon returning to the Capital, her parents didn’t notice, otherwise...

Now they were about to return to the Capital, if he kissed her lips swollen again, it might not be so easy to hide.

She was still in his arms, the two were close, the young girl tilted her head, eyes full of reproach, yet Pei Yuqing’s gaze was directly fixed on her lips.

The lips that had just been kissed were rosy and vibrant.

Pei Yuqing stared for a moment, and in a hoarse voice said, "You’re right to remind me; fortunately, they’re not swollen yet."

...they were a bit red.

Xie Wanqing relaxed, then pointed to her face again, saying, "If you want to kiss me, then kiss here."

The carriage was quiet, their breaths clearly audible, Pei Yuqing gently squeezed her neck, lowered his head, and placed a kiss on her nose, soft and tender.

He released the girl from his arms, and sighed softly.

"I will come to see you."

In the end, he still followed his heart.

After all, he couldn’t bear not seeing this girl for ten days.

...

Returning to the mansion, Xie Wanqing became busy, daily learning from her mother. Since the age of ten, she had been learning household management with her mother; no matter how complicated the account books, she could understand and was never deceived by the servants.

The dowry list, which she had become familiar with when preparing to marry Lu Ziyuan, had undergone changes after the broken engagement and remarriage; Xie Shu and Mrs. Zheng were sympathetic to their daughter’s romantic turmoil, and had thickened the dowry layers.

The accompanying servants, important gold and silver items, lands, shops, paintings, and ornaments all needed to be checked and familiarized, to avoid being clueless about her own dowry after marrying.

Being busy left no time for romance; these days, Xie Wanqing hadn’t thought of Pei Yuqing at all, starting her day at Brocade Hall, and falling asleep as soon as she hit the pillow upon returning.

However, Pei Yuqing visited twice; when he came, Mrs. Zheng gave her a half-day leave, letting her take her fiancé around the mansion.

As soon as they were away from the elders, Xie Wanqing led him straight to her Jianxia Courtyard.

Upon entering, she showed her true colors, turning to grasp the man’s hand, and jokingly said: "Why come so frequently? Is it really like one day without seeing is like missing for three autumns?"

Pei Yuqing was left speechless.

Xie Wanqing’s laughter grew, as she wanted to say more, she suddenly noticed the maid standing stiffly outside the door.

It was clear she was trying to suppress her inner anxiety, yet it was still somewhat visible.

As soon as her mistress looked her way, it was like injecting a strong tonic; Er Xia’s eyes reddened, tears streaming down immediately.

Xie Wanqing frowned, released the man’s hand, sat down, and asked, "What’s wrong?"

Upon hearing, Er Xia, with reddened eyes, quickly entered the room, ignoring the future master beside them, dropped to her knees, and started crying: "Miss is abandoning your maid?"

With those words, Xie Wanqing knew the reason, she lowered her eyes, looking at her personal maid crying and pleading, and didn’t speak for a moment.

Noticing her mistress’s indifference, Er Xia kneeled two steps forward, grabbing her leg, crying genuinely: "These days I’ve been in constant fear, truly not knowing what I did to anger you. You know, from childhood I’ve served you, always putting you first; my loyalty is as true as the heavens!"

Originally trusted and favored by her mistress as a personal maid, she was now inexplicably neglected.

During the time when Xie Wanqing experienced a broken engagement and rearranged marriage plans, Er Xia, being her main maid, received news slower than the second-tier maids in the courtyard. Although Xie Wanqing didn’t cut her allowance, she marginalized her.

For personal service, she wasn’t needed; no matters required her opinion, and troubles were no longer shared with her.

Er Xia was constantly worried, and as the wedding day drew closer, she feared more and more that her position would be replaced, trying several times to appeal to her mistress.

But when Xie Wanqing went to the farmhouse, she didn’t bring her, and upon returning, she was busy, having no time to attend to a maid’s feelings.

Until this morning, the steward from the main courtyard came with the list of accompanying servants selected by the lady for the marriage, and Er Xia heard it from start to finish, not hearing her name.

No matter how favored a maid, being abandoned by her mistress was like the sky collapsing.

Clearly, last time when discussing marriage with the Wuyuan Marquis Mansion, Er Xia’s name was listed alongside Erqing’s as one of the two main accompanying maids, but now, she couldn’t find her name.