The man behind her wore a white scholar's robe, exuding a strong scent of ink, occasionally mingled with a faint aroma of medicinal herbs.
This was because he had picked up the scent from helping Su Xiaoqi with herbs daily.
At the same time, she also sensed a strong, sour scent—jealousy.
"Wife, this is your second brother-in-law's kind gesture, you should take it," Shen Yun said as he accepted the items. As they were difficult to carry, he handed some to Su Xiaoqi as well.
His fair and handsome face was always adorned with a smile.
Su Xiaoqi's eyes were dazzled by his smile, and when she came to her senses moments later, she found herself with a whole embrace full of pastries from Shen Yun.
Su Jiamo watched the young couple standing so close before him.
His heart was filled with a complex mix of emotions, especially a deep bitterness.
He didn't know when his mindset had begun to change.
In the past, Su Xiaoqi was merely one of his many dalliances.
It was only when he hadn't tasted her that he began to miss her.
Seeing her marry Shen Yun, he hadn't felt anything; in fact, he had felt even more excited.
But now, seeing the couple standing before him again gave him a sense of having passed through another lifetime.
His heart felt sour and bitter, making him very sad.
He even wished he could punch Shen Yun's smiling face.
While his smile appeared handsome and gentle to others, to Su Jiamo, it was clearly a provocation.
His hand rested on Su Xiaoqi's waist, and his long, slender fingers felt like knives to Su Jiamo, piercing his heart piece by piece.
It forced him to endure the pain of a wounded heart alone.
After making his intentions clear, Shen Yun's smile faded from his face.
His eyes turned cold as he pulled Su Xiaoqi and turned to leave.
"Hey, Little Sister Xiaoqi…" Su Jiamo realized that Su Xiaoqi had already walked away with Shen Yun.
Upon entering the mule cart, Su Xiaoqi felt the coldness emanating from Shen Yun.
She instinctively shrank further inside the cart, feeling uncomfortable.
This smiling tiger.
The more radiant his smile had been just moments ago, the colder his aura was now.
Despite the hot summer, a cold sweat broke out on her body.
Shen Yun slowly boarded the cart, cornering her and quietly waiting for her to say something.
Su Xiaoqi lowered her head, her fingers tugging and gently twirling a lock of her hair.
She was waiting for Shen Yun to ask his question.
At the same time, she was secretly pondering how to handle this situation.
Both husband and wife were waiting, neither speaking first.
Time ticked by.
Zhao Laoshi, who was driving outside, hadn't received any instructions from the two inside for a long time. He couldn't help but ask through the curtain, "Master Shen, where should we head now?"
He remembered clearly.
They had come with five people in total that morning.
Young Mistress Shen had gotten into the cart earliest when he was taking his first passengers at the fifth watch of the morning. The other four of them had come in a later cart.
It was impossible that only the two of them would be returning.
Shen Yun looked at Su Xiaoqi.
"Ah, how about we go to Meng Ji Real Estate Agency," Su Xiaoqi said, suddenly remembering.
There was still a very important matter to attend to today.
Once someone spoke, the subtle atmosphere between them would be broken.
Shen Yun cleared his throat and said, "Go on."
"Ah, say, say what?" Su Xiaoqi feigned ignorance.
Shen Yun wasn't in a hurry. He extended a finger and gently tapped on the pile of pastries.
The sound was muffled and dull, making Su Xiaoqi's ears uncomfortable.
She couldn't bear it and surrendered.
Her fingers quickly twirled her hair, spinning in circles.
"You already know, don't you? This is from my second brother from my maternal family, a token of his affection."
"Second brother from my maternal family, affection?" Shen Yun repeated the words.
Su Xiaoqi felt guilty.
She had shown many clues in the past few days.
However, Shen Yun had never pursued her affairs with the Su family.
She had thought the matter would pass like this.
If he didn't ask, she wouldn't tell.
Then they would both live in peace.
Who would have thought that he was waiting for her right here?
She bit her lip, her mind racing, not knowing what kind of story to concoct to shut Shen Yun up.
Shen Yun looked at her intently.
The sunlight pierced through the gaps in the swaying carriage curtains, illuminating her face.
It made her clear, beautiful, and elegant face shine brilliantly.
At some point, her skin had started to whiten at a visible rate.
Now, she was fair-skinned and beautiful, with a slender waist so delicate it could be grasped with one hand, making it impossible to look away.
Of course, these were just superficial qualities.
Some people were beautiful, but merely ornamental; they were like empty shells.
But she was not.
She was intelligent and resourceful, lively and witty.
Furthermore, she possessed combat skills that surpassed those of men, exquisite medical knowledge, and a mysterious 'space' of unknown origin.
Such a person was truly unlike someone who had spent time among beggars.
Nor was she like the daughter that the Su family, outwardly glorious but inwardly rotten, could have raised.
So, where did she come from?
"Uh, the truth is…" Su Xiaoqi finally thought of a story and intended to tell it.
But she had only just begun.
She saw Shen Yun suddenly embrace her shoulders, pulling her into his arms, and biting her ear, he warned her word by word:
"Stop fabricating. Don't speak of sisterly affection. Your own family didn't even give you dowry when you got married, do you still consider them your family?"
"Wuwuwu… I knew it, I knew it. Husband, you're angry because I didn't bring any dowry when I got married.
Wuwu, I thought you were different from those men who valued the Su family's wealth.
But, but, I was wrong about you, wuwu…"
Su Xiaoqi's thoughts were seen through, so she decided to act shamelessly and pretend to cry.
Her tears were shallow, her acting skills were superb, and she portrayed the grievance of a daughter abandoned by her husband with vivid realism.
If Shen Yun hadn't held her in his arms and heard all her thoughts, he would have been deceived by her.
"Damn Shen Yun, he's quite cunning.
I thought he didn't know about my dealings with those scoundrels from the Su family.
Now it seems he must know.
Hmph, what a sly fox, so good at pretending. If you don't become a powerful minister, who will? If you don't turn dark, who will."
She thought continuously, but her cries continued unabated.
Shen Yun felt a bit helpless. The woman in his arms was too conflicted.
While cursing him in her heart, she was leaning in his arms—lifting his clothes to wipe her tears and snot.
But what could he do? He couldn't bear to hit her!
He couldn't bear to scold her, nor did he dare. Her mouth was sharp enough.
He hadn't provoked her yet, and she had already verbally torn him to shreds.
If he were to provoke her, who knew what he would be called in her mind.
"I don't mind that you don't have a dowry," Shen Yun said helplessly. To appease his dramatic wife, he had to compromise.
If she didn't want to say it, he wouldn't ask.
Although she was acting, seeing her tears made his heart truly ache.
Su Xiaoqi leaned her head on his shoulder, feigning tears, while secretly glancing at Shen Yun's expression.
Seeing his face full of concern, her heart felt a pang.
Uh, I didn't expect this.
"Damn Shen Yun is quite loyal. No, he's compassionate and cherishes beauty.
After all, I am reasonably attractive, fair-skinned, and beautiful. How could a man bear to see me cry."
Su Xiaoqi muttered to herself, making a plan.
If he dared to bring this up again, she would cry for him to see!
Su Xiaoqi pursed her lips, her expression conveying a triumphant smugness of a successful scheme.
Shen Yun found her acting, which was so obvious due to her smugness, both infuriating and amusing.
However, seeing through it, he couldn't expose her, which was truly torturous.
Su Xiaoqi, at the opportune moment, withdrew her act, wiped her tears, and poked Shen Yun's chest with her slender fingers, saying:
"Husband, you really can't dislike me for not having a dowry.
You should look at your own home. I haven't even disliked your family's empty walls and resounding poverty yet."
"My wife speaks wisely. Therefore, my family is poor, and you have no dowry.
We are a match made in heaven, neither of us should dislike the other," Shen Yun said, following Su Xiaoqi's words to make her happy.
"Pfft…" Indeed, Su Xiaoqi couldn't hold back and burst into laughter.
Shen Yun lowered his head, burying it in her radiant, peach-blossom smile, and without hesitation, almost instinctively leaned in and captured her pure lips.