The Marquis Is Innocent

She came to the government office to send food for him. Her voice was warm. She was thoughtful and delicate. Her body’s fragrance entered his nose when she was near. When he saw she was going to left, all the depression in his heart over the past few days seemed to have finally met a way to release. He suddenly wanted to taste again those feelings she could give him. Sent him to the bliss, forgetting all the rest of the disturbance of the soul, and he couldn’t restrain himself, the beastly…

Wei Shao jumped up from the couch and looked down to see himself naked. He looked around and saw his clothes had been packed up and placed neatly aside by her. He put them on quickly, took a big step away out of the gate of the government office, did not ride a horse, and rushed home.

At this time, it was not yet the fifth period. The half-round moon hangs diagonally in the deep blue sky in the east. The stars are few and shine brightly. The street was empty, the houses on both sides were dark, and there were only one or two distant barking sounds from unknown families.

Wei Shao’s pace hurried as he walked alone through the streets of Yuyang before the fifth period. His steps slowed down when he reached the gate of the Wei Manor. He looked at the two lanterns hanging high in front of the entrance and was distracted for a moment.

In these few days, for the first time, he deeply felt the influence of the Qiao girl on his heart and soul. Her happiness, anger, and sadness seemed to be able to touch his own. To make her happy, he would impulsively say in front of her to allow her to beat him and other crazy words. In the past, this was simply unbelievable.

Wei Yan’s request to go after the incident made Wei Shao even more depressed. During these days, Wei Shao had asked himself. If he had not sought Wei Yan in a fit of rage to reveal the corrupt wounds and even fought with him, did those things would not happen later?

Wei Shao knew his thoughts on her were unfair.

Wei Yan’s background was extraordinary, and he decided to go. Even without her as a trigger, sooner or later, something else would lead to a brotherly rupture.

But a daughter from an enemy family he swore to destroy when he was a teenager had a strong emotional and behavioral impact on him that made him feel uneasy. It was like he had a sense of self-doubt and despised his actions.

When he finally came home today, although he was tired and the nerves in his body tensed but still restrained and did not want to show too much emotion in front of her.

At this moment, Wei Shao was shocked to realize he had hurried back like this. He was afraid she would be upset about last night’s incident and wanted to coax her. As if tripped up by an invisible rope, he slowly stopped.

He stood outside the door, hesitating for a long time, and suddenly saw the door open, revealing half the figure of the gatekeeper. He turned around like a thief and immediately left.

It was almost dawn. As usual, the gatekeeper came out slowly from behind the door, ready to lower the lantern to extinguish the fire with a long hook in his hand. He raised his eyes and saw a figure standing not far from the door. When the figure came out and left, he fixed his eyes and saw the back seemed familiar. But the surrounding area was dark, and before he could see it clearly, it disappeared.

The gatekeeper yawned and withdrew his gaze.

……

Xiao Qiao had something on her mind, fell asleep at dawn, and woke up early. She felt a headache, and her body was not recovered from the soreness left by last night’s intercourse. She sat on the bed with the blanket for a while before getting down and opening the door.

After washing and cleaning up, Chun Niang said breakfast was ready in the kitchen. She had little appetite but drank a bowl of warm rice soup slowly boiled over a small fire. She was going to the north house when a servant woman came and said someone had just come to the gate early in the morning to deliver a letter to the lady. She handed over a sealed bamboo tube.

Xiao Qiao was confused and couldn’t figure out who would send a letter to her at this time. She took the bamboo tube, opened the seal slowly with a knife, took a rolled-up parchment from inside, and unfolded it. She saw the familiar beautiful characters on the parchment. Her eyes immediately opened wide with surprise.

The letter was actually from Da Qiao!

Da Qiao said she and Bi Zhi were married, and the couple was now in Lingbi.

A few months ago, Xue Tai, the ruler of Xuzhou, had been attacked by Yang Xin from behind and had hastily returned to the war. Now the two sides were at odds and attacking each other. Some time ago, Xue Tai’s army came into the mountains to rob the grain. The villagers were willing to let it go, but the army was like a tiger and injured an old man who had helped her and Bi Zhi into the village. In his anger, Bi Zhi killed the army and organized the villagers to set up a barrier at the entrance to the mountain to stop outsiders from entering. The villagers respected him very much and obeyed his words. Many villagers forced by the government army heard the news and came with their families to join him, pleading for shelter. Bi Zhi took them in. To prevent the government army from attacking again, he chose strong men to train them into an army. Last month, Bi Zhi led his men to eliminate a long-running bandit nearby. His reputation spread even more. The village gathered a thousand people, all listening to Bi Zhi’s orders.

Da Qiao said she was afraid and did not want Bi Zhi to fight against the official. However, if they fled to other places, they could not find a place to live as Xue Tai charged them with the crime and posted a bounty on the city wall. She knew Xiao Qiao was in Yuyang and missed her very much, and she wanted to know how she was doing.

She said she had figured it out a long time when Xiao Qiao said she wanted to choose another marriage. It was just an excuse to convince her. She was grateful and ashamed. Bi Zhi was indebted to her for being a substitute for the marriage with Wei Shao. She sent someone to deliver this letter to report her safety and deliver a message that she could ask if there was anything she needed in the future. She and Bi Zhi would help.

Da Qiao’s letter was very long and filled a side of the parchment. Although there were worries between the lines, Xiao Qiao seemed to read her love for her husband, Bi Zhi, everywhere.

In the end, she told Xiao Qiao she had been pregnant last month, and everything was fine. She asked Xiao Qiao not to worry about her and to take care of herself.

……

Xiao Qiao locked herself in the room alone and read Da Qiao’s letter from beginning to end several times. Her eyes glowed, and her heart almost surged.

The sisters separated for so long, and today she finally had news of her!

She and Bi Zhi not only live a good life in such a chaotic world. Bi Zhi, as she knew, could not be eliminated in the crowd. Although today, in the eyes of the government, he was only a leader of thieves and far from reaching the climax, Xiao Qiao knew in his previous life, he had taken the first step to become a ruler. He was bound to be different in the future.

She was most excited about the news of Da Qiao’s pregnancy.

Although she did not give a long and detailed of her feelings, Xiao Qiao could feel the shy and joyful happiness she felt when she wrote these words, and her mood improved.

All the gloom in her heart over the past few days disappeared as if the clouds saw the light.

Since marrying into the Wei family, although with the care of Wei Shao’s grandmother, Xiao Qiao like walking on thin ice. Careful about her words, emotions, and responses. The unequal status of the Wei family and the way she married as a woman determined that for a long time. She did not dare to put herself on the same level as Wei Shao as a husband and wife.

Rather than being Wei Shao’s wife, it was more likely that he was superior to whom she had to suppress her nature. Even when her husband showed affection or had intimate moments in bed, there was always a voice deep inside her that reminded her not to sink.

However, she was a human, and it was difficult for her to set her mind and transcend everything. His grandmother’s virtue was so high that she loved her wholeheartedly. Even though sometimes ignorant, her husband, Wei Shao, treated her with a bit of affection, and it was impossible not to show the slightest caring after spending so much time together. She felt a loss and even self-doubt after the frustration of trying to communicate with him emotionally.

Last night, she knew Wei Shao was hit by a wave of his eldest brother coveting his wife. Then had to face the dilemma of his brother’s separation, and his emotions were inevitably abnormal. Because of the degree of their relationship, he couldn’t reveal everything to her. It happens she went over, coincidentally, which led him to treat her like that. At that time, although her heart did not want, she still tried to cooperate with him.

But afterward, his reaction was not within her expectation. That kind of loss came to her again, and her mood worsened.

But at this moment, this letter from Da Qiao, which seemed to come down from the sky, suddenly lifted Xiao Qiao’s spirits. The self-doubt and the ridiculous self-sorrow of the past few days have all receded.

The feud between Wei and Qiao was still right here. She joined the Wei family less than a year. The situation today, compared to the previous life of Da Qiao, has much better.

She remembered when she got married, she told herself the road ahead would be difficult.

She had this knowledge long ago. Now, when things not going well and she feels sorry for herself, what was that if not a stupid act of cocooning?

It was not the first day she knew Wei Shao’s hatred. The ice mountain was hard, and she was not a furnace. How can she turn it into the water in an instant? Why should this be a problem for her?

Now the priority was to take care of the sick grandmother. She must not let her die as in her previous life. After his grandmother recovered, she would find an excuse to return to East County. If she could meet with Bi Zhi and Da Qiao again, it would be perfect.

As for Wei Shao, this person was too hateful. Let him do as he pleases. She was too lazy to flatter him again.

When Xiao Qiao thought about it, she felt her heart open up, and her depression was relieved. She hid the letter carefully, looked at herself in the mirror, and went out to the north house.

When she woke up early in the morning, Chun Niang saw Xiao Qiao’s haggard face and uncertain thoughts, and she was also worried. Suddenly came a letter, she locked herself in the room and came out glowing as if she was a new person. Chun Niang was relieved. She couldn’t help but ask about the letter.

In front of Chun Niang, Xiao Qiao had nothing to hide. After some thought, she told the news of Da Qiao and Bi Zhi. But only that they were well and Da Qiao was pregnant. She mentioned nothing else.

Xiao Qiao told Chun Niang that Da Qiao had gone with Bi Zhi. When she heard the news, she was overjoyed. She accompanied Xiao Qiao to the north house and said in a low voice: “This servant got a message from the east house yesterday, saying the madam had offended the old madam a few days ago. The old madam was so angry she lifted the table and drove the madam away. The madam was frightened for a few days and did not step out. As for what angered the old madam, not yet inquired.”

There was a decent old maid, Huang Yu, among the people who served Mrs. Zhu in the east house. Because of her discord with Old Jiang, Old Jiang often spoke out in front of Mrs. Zhu, and she gradually became disgusted by Old Huang. Old Huang was angry in her heart, and Chun Niang noticed it and seduced her with favors. Now she was like Chun Niang’s eyes and ears in the east house, and some news will come out from time to time.

With the news from Chun Niang combined with what happened in the past few days, Xiao Qiao guessed that it should have something to do with Wei Yan. It’s just that this matter was too secretive. Even though Wei Yan left, the servants in Wei Manor still don’t know anything about it. Mrs. Zhu only dared to say it in front of her son and didn’t even dare to say a word in front of Old Jiang. As usual, the inside story could not be revealed.

Xiao Qiao did not say anything. When she arrived at the north house, she accelerated her steps and entered.

Mrs. Xu had not yet gotten off the couch in the morning, but she was awake. Xiao Qiao saw her face was still awful, but she looked better than the first two days. Old Zhong served her the medicine. The cat squatted in the corner of the window sill, dozing. The cat heard the sound of Xiao Qiao’s footsteps, opened its eyes, and looked, stretched out, crossed the windowsill, ran to Xiao Qiao’s feet, and rubbed it a few times.

Mrs. Xu took her medicine. Xiao Qiao took the empty bowl from Old Zhong’s hand and put it down when Mrs. Xu asked, “Shao’er came home last evening and visited me. He said he had gone to the government office for something. Did he come back late? Why didn’t he come in the morning?”

Xiao Qiao was about to answer when a footstep came from outside. The servant at the door said, “Master has arrived.”

Xiao Qiao turned around slightly, glanced at the door, and saw a figure shifting in the doorway. Wei Shao arrived.