In a moment of impulse, I forcibly kissed my brother's best friend.

Cui Yutang closed his eyes, took a few deep breaths, and barely managed to calm his churning blood. He took off his dark cloak and wrapped it tightly around her from head to toe, then picked her up horizontally.

"Hold me tight," he commanded in a low, husky voice, still carrying the lingering warmth of passion.

Xie Yige did as he asked and hugged his neck tightly. Cui Yutang held her and nimbly avoided the light and noise. With a few leaps, he silently climbed over the wall of the General's Mansion's backyard and landed in a secluded alley.

Her carriage was stopped at the alley entrance. Bichun was anxiously looking around when she saw Cui Yutang carrying a person wrapped up tightly. She was startled at first, but when she saw the faint light blue skirt under the cloak, her eyes widened suddenly—this scene was so similar to that night by Qujiang Pool!

Cui Yutang walked straight to the car, carefully carried Xie Yige into the carriage, and placed her on the soft cushion. Her cloak slipped down slightly, revealing her flushed cheeks and swollen lips.

Bichun gasped and quickly lowered her head, not daring to look any further.

Cui Yutang looked at her lips, his eyes as dark as the deep sea, hiding a barely perceptible heartache. "Go back and put an ice pack on it, otherwise it will hurt tomorrow morning," he instructed in a low, hoarse voice.

Just as he was about to turn around and get out of the car, his sleeve was gently tugged by a trembling hand.

Xie Yige peeked half her face out from under her cloak, her eyes glistening with a captivating light, her cheeks flushed a deep red. She looked at him, her lips moving slightly, her voice soft, tinged with a hint of uncertain timidity:

"What if I...want to see you again in the future?"

Cui Yutang's Adam's apple bobbed violently, her heart feeling as if it had been struck hard by those words. All those deeply ingrained family rules and etiquette had long been crushed and cast to the winds before her.

He leaned down and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear: "I have days off on the 5th and 10th of each month. After school on weekdays, if I have nothing important to do, I usually study at the 'Chaoyi Villa' in the east of the city."

He paused, looking deeply into her eyes, "Have one of your trusted maids go to the 'Ink Treasure Pavilion' in the East Market to find the manager; he will inform me."

He raised his hand, his fingertips lightly and tenderly brushing against her swollen lips, sending a slight shiver down her spine. Then, he lowered his head and placed a soft yet burning kiss on her smooth forehead.

"I will find you." He said in a hoarse voice, then looked at her deeply one last time, as if trying to etch her image into his heart, before turning and getting out of the car.

"You go first, I'll watch over you." He stood by the carriage, his gaze still fixed on her through the window.

Bichun then dared to climb into the carriage and carefully closed the door. She looked at her mistress, who was wrapped in a large, dark cloak, her lips swollen and red, her eyes shimmering, still staring blankly out the window. She opened her mouth, full of questions and worries, but in the end, it turned into a barely audible sigh. She only whispered to the coachman, "Let's go back to the manor. Be careful."

The carriage moved slowly, rolling over the bluestone pavement of Chang'an.

Inside the carriage, Xie Yige buried his face deep in the cloak that still retained his body heat and the cool scent of sandalwood. In the sleeve, the mutton-fat jade pendant clung to his wrist, warm and cool to the touch.

Watching her carriage disappear into the depths of the long street.

Cui Yutang quickly walked in the opposite direction, disappearing into the deepening night. His back was straight, yet he exuded a sense of loneliness.

It was already late at night when I returned to Pear Garden.

Xie Yige lay blankly on the bed, staring unfocusedly at the top of the tent. Bichun wrapped ice cubes in silk cloth and gently applied it to her swollen lips.

"Miss? Miss? Does it hurt?" Bichun asked softly with concern.

"Hmm...it doesn't hurt..." Xie Yige finally snapped out of her daze when she heard the call. Her face flushed again, as if she were thinking of something.

Bichun sighed inwardly. Her young lady seemed bewitched tonight; she'd been listless and dazed the entire way home. No wonder she was in pain. Oh well, don't try to reason with a woman in love.

Bichun repeated the ice application several times, and then gently applied a cooling ointment to Xie Yige.

"Miss, it's late. You should go to sleep now and stop overthinking."

"Mmm," Xie Yige responded, burying herself in the blankets.

The scent of that dark cloak still lingered in the blankets. She closed her eyes, the last touch of his still imprinted on her lips, his burning kiss still on her forehead. His words, "I will find you," echoed repeatedly in her ears, like a seed falling into her heart, quietly taking root and sprouting in the darkness. After tonight, everything would be different.

She rolled over, burying her face in the pillow, a slight smile unconsciously playing on her lips. Then, feeling shy, she pulled the blanket over her head, curling herself into a ball. Her heart was pounding so fast she couldn't sleep.

I don't know how much time passed before I finally drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, Xie Yige was awakened by a series of melodious songs that seemed to haunt the air.

"Today is a good day; all my wishes will come true..."

"Beep beep!" Xie Yige grabbed a pillow and covered her ears. "Shut up! This is some kind of soul-calling ritual so early in the morning!"

"Master, how about I take your surname? From now on, I'll be called Xie Dudu!" Dudu bounced excitedly in her mind. "That's a great name! I'm such a genius!"

Xie Yige remained silent.

"Following my master was the best decision I ever made! I'm getting so much energy!" Dudu continued chattering. "Because of your intense conversation with Cui Langjun yesterday, Dudu has become quite amazing, unlocking new abilities!"

Xie Yige's face flushed red: "What new feature?"

"For example, if you want to know about someone, Dudu can find out for you! Simply put, it's a new gossip-loving feature." It paused, then cautiously added, "Um... except for a few individuals..."

Xie Yige was even more speechless. Could this be what her mother meant by—congenital malnutrition?

She suddenly remembered the disgraceful couple behind the artificial hill yesterday, and her curiosity was piqued: "Can you find out anything about those two people from yesterday? The ones we were eavesdropping on?"

"Master, are you talking about Lin Zhiyin and Li Zhixuan? Want to know how they got together?" Dudu perked up. "Wait, let me check right away... Here it comes! Wow, this is a juicy scoop!"

Dudu's tone turned gossipy: "This Li Zhixuan isn't actually from the General's family; he's his mother's son from an affair! Like mother, like son, they both love this kind of thing, tsk tsk..."

"Lin Zhiyin and Li Zhixuan's relationship is even more exciting—their first time having sex was at Wangjiang Tower. Her fiancé, Li Zhige, was actually in the private room next door! Wow, that was really thrilling!" Dudu excitedly waved her arms and legs.

"One, jealous of her cousin, deliberately assaulted her future sister-in-law, hoping to impregnate her so he could inherit the general's mansion; another, dissatisfied with her fiancé being a military man, intentionally seduced her brother-in-law for thrills... Our Tang Dynasty is indeed far too open!"