Chapter 15 – Beloved

The chirping of insects drifted in through the window as the gentle evening breeze wandered.

In the new bridal chamber, the candles were red, and the bride’s wedding dress was red as well.

The room was filled with an unbreakable atmosphere of joy.

Pei Xuan was at a loss, repeatedly asking questions but receiving no response, her voice gradually lowering to a whisper.

“Niangzi?”

Her voice trembled, fearing to disturb the bright moon before her, her beloved.

Cui Ti suddenly awoke from her daze, her eyes cast down, staring blankly at Pei Xuan’s undeniably feminine form. She couldn’t believe that the story of ‘a husband being a woman’ was happening right in front of her.

She reached out her hand in a daze.

Pei Xuan reacted swiftly, sidestepping her touch. The loose robe she wore fluttered with the movement, revealing more of her snowy skin and jade-like complexion to Cui Ti’s eyes.

It was laughable; having lived through two lifetimes, Cui Ti had never even seen her own body, yet now she had seen the most beautiful gentleman in Xi Jing’s.

The gentleman was not a gentleman, but a woman.

She stood there in a stupor, her face showing an indiscernible mix of emotions.

No matter how clever Pei Xuan was, she couldn’t have anticipated this ‘blind person opening the spiritual eye.’ She asked cautiously, “Niangzi, are you feeling unwell?”

“I…”

Cui Ti dared not look at her, her voice weak, “My knees hurt.”

“Did you bump them? I’ll get you some medicine. Niangzi, stay here and don’t move; I’ll be back soon.”

Her earnest instructions were endearing, and Cui Ti softly agreed.

Pei Xuan turned to get the medicine box.

Once Pei Xuan left, Cui Ti finally dared to gaze at her departing figure.

A gentleman as refined as jade, polished and honed—that described the Pei Family’s child perfectly.

She had always thought Pei Xuan was too meticulous and considerate. Reflecting on her previous lifetime, she often marveled at the existence of such an extraordinary man. Now, the mystery was solved.

Not a man, but a woman.

A woman with a kind heart and lofty ambitions.

In a white inner garment, red wedding robe, with long black hair, and a half-moon arc of glistening water—this was the first time Cui Ti had seen the gentle form of a woman with her own eyes.

“Niangzi, I’m back.”

Pei Xuan opened the medicine box, carefully selecting a bottle for treating bruises. The small white bottle was placed by her side as she turned to fasten her robe.

When Cui Ti saw her again, her slender waist was tightly cinched by the robe, covering her completely, yet making the initial sight even more unforgettable.

“Niangzi…” she said, holding the small bottle of medicine as she knelt down. “Let me help you apply the ointment.”

Cui Ti pointed to her left knee.

She hadn’t had enough of looking at Pei Xuan.

She feared it was all a dream, afraid that Heaven would only allow her one night to see her.

The newlywed Niangzi, with a lazy demeanor, unwilling to lift a finger herself, made Pei Xuan smile as she rolled up her sleeves and leaned in, carefully lifting Cui Ti’s pant leg.

Cui Ti was very slender, her bones delicate, her calves without much flesh. When her pants were rolled up above her knees, her pale skin showed faint bruises.

As the ointment was applied, Cui Ti let out a soft gasp, her face turning red. She clutched at the hem of her robe, not daring to look at Pei Xuan.

“If it hurts, just cry out. Don’t hold it in; I’ll be gentle.”

Her fingertips were slightly warm as she deliberately ignored the lewd comments her friend always whispered in her ear, focusing on applying the medicine carefully.

Cui Ti bit her lip in silence. Even after the ointment was applied, the redness at the tips of her ears hadn’t faded.

“Are your eyes really okay?”

“Yes, they’re fine now.”

Pei Xuan was half-believing, still worried. “We should call a doctor to check you tomorrow.”

“No need!” Cui Ti lowered her head. “No need. It’s incurable; I was born with this, and there’s no medicine for it.”

“…”

Regretting bringing up her sad topic, Pei Xuan guiltily glanced at her. She wanted to draw closer but knew tonight was special and it wasn’t appropriate. She walked around the room and returned with a scroll in her hands. “A Cui, how about I teach you to read and write?”

“Alright.”

“You sit down first.”

Pei Xuan helped her to sit on the edge of the bed, moved closer to the candlelight, and sat beside her. “Learning to read and write requires perseverance. In my view, talent takes a back seat to determination. Once you get familiar with the characters, they will become part of you, living in your mind, keeping you company, making you happy, and no one can take them away.”

Those who could attain the title of Zhuangyuan often had a sharper sense and focus in literature. Seeing the excitement and joy on Pei Xuan’s face, Cui Ti’s brows curved in a smile. “I will study hard.”

Seeing her not disheartened or giving up from the start, Pei Xuan felt even more relieved.

She felt a small sense of accomplishment for finding something to do on their wedding night.

At last, there was something to talk about.

Cui Ti remembered the first character Pei Xuan taught her: love.

Love was a powerful word, something beautiful yet unattainable for Cui Ti.

Pei Xuan took out a wooden board with carved characters that she had prepared earlier and guided Cui Ti’s hand to touch it. “Can you feel it? Let me help you trace it.”

She intentionally paused for a few moments.

Seeing no sign of displeasure on Cui Ti’s face, she immediately took her hand and began to write and draw.

Cui Ti’s mind was still in turmoil, but it didn’t stop her from catching the faint scent of osmanthus on Pei Xuan.

She had already learned how to write love. She also knew that the second character Pei Xuan taught her was Ti.

Ti, which means orange-red. The sun is orange-red, and so are flames. She said that the person who named her initially must have loved her.

If they didn’t love her, they wouldn’t have given her such a colorful name.

Lacking what she needed, Cui Ti was blind. She couldn’t see colors, couldn’t see the world, but her name was beautiful.

The third character she taught her was guang.

The guang in Xingguang.

“Did you learn it?”

“Yes, I did.”

This time, it was Pei Xuan who was stunned, surprised at how quickly her Niangzi learned the characters. She softly said, “Then write it for me to see?”

Cui Ti didn’t want to write on the cold, unfeeling wooden board. After a moment’s thought, she took her Fujun’s hand and wrote in her palm.

The soft pad of her finger traced the lines on Pei Xuan’s palm, tickling her, as if her heart was being gently stirred. Pei Xuan couldn’t take her eyes off her, watching her lowered brows and smiling lips, her serious expression as she wrote.

“Love.”

Cui Ti shyly finished writing the character in the Zhuangyuan’s palm. “I’m done. Did I write it correctly?”

“Yes, perfectly.”

“Is there a reward?”

“A reward?”

“Yes, I learned quickly.”

Bullying the gentleman who knew nothing about her previous lifetime with memories of her own, Cui Ti’s earlobes turned red. “Is there no reward?”

“How could there be none?”

Even if there wasn’t one initially, there had to be one now.

Pei Xuan thought and thought but couldn’t come up with a proper reward. In her desperation, she grabbed Cui Ti’s hand. “I’m going to write now!”

“Go ahead.”

Worried about affecting the Master Editor’s performance, she flattened her palm, ready to feel the renowned left-hand writing of Pei Xuan.

There’s a significant difference between seeing and not seeing.

When you can’t see, you have to experience everything with your heart, afraid of missing any subtle detail. But when you can see, you can only see her. Cui Ti quietly and secretly observed her.

Her gentle gaze fell like a cascade of warm light, making Pei Xuan feel a warmth in her heart. Each stroke of the character she wrote became tender and affectionate.

She also wrote the character love for Cui Ti.

You love me, I love you.

“Can you recognize it?” Pei Xuan asked with a smile, “What did I write?”

Every expression, every movement of Pei Xuan was captured by Cui Ti. She was delighted to see that Pei Xuan still had a mischievous, youthful side. Pretending to be confused, she said, “This…”

“Not this.” Pei Xuan’s raised eyebrows fell. “Can’t you really recognize it?”

“It seems like I do…”

“What is it?”

“Love.”

Cui Ti had been blind for eighteen years. Even though she could see now, Pei Xuan couldn’t see through her act of pretending to be blind.

With a slight tilt of her head, Cui Ti softly and gently pronounced the character. The joy in Pei Xuan’s heart reached its peak.

She truly had married an extraordinary Niangzi.

The night was deep, and though she claimed she wanted to talk with her Niangzi all night, Pei Xuan’s eyelids were already drooping. Watching her with amusement, Cui Ti suggested, “Fujun, it’s time to sleep.”

Pei Xuan nodded.

She hadn’t slept well the previous night, had been busy with the wedding preparations all day, and her emotions had been on a rollercoaster. Unlike a robust general who could stay energetic no matter what, she now showed her scholarly frailty. Cui Ti pretended to yawn.

With her Niangzi’s permission, Editor Pei climbed onto the bed.

Halfway there, she climbed back down, first leading Cui Ti to rest on the wedding bed, and then bashfully going behind the screen.

Cui Ti guessed she was secretly binding her chest.

She smiled, reflecting on how truly blind she had been in her previous lifetime, unable to distinguish whether her pillow mate was male or female.

“Niangzi?”

After making all necessary preparations, Pei Xuan returned to the bedside, removed her outer garments, and carefully climbed into bed.

Seeing her cautious demeanor, Cui Ti couldn’t help but feel amused.

She indeed laughed, raising her hand to remove her outer garment as well.

Pei Xuan was taken aback.

This was not the shy Niangzi she had imagined.

The bride, clad in her undergarments, fumbled her way into the wedding bed. The quilt adorned with mandarin ducks was red, while the girl’s face was pale. Pei Xuan lowered the bed curtains and lay beside her, heart pounding.

“Fujun, weren’t you sleepy?”

Yes.

Pei Xuan stared at the red silk canopy overhead.

Only to be startled awake again.

“Let’s sleep.”

An hour later.

In the bridal chamber, two pairs of wide-open eyes refused to succumb to drowsiness. Pei Xuan sighed softly, “Niangzi, why aren’t you asleep yet?”

“I’m going to sleep now.”

Knowing that her Fujun was a woman, Cui Ti’s actions became slightly bolder. Hiding her unusual feelings, she leaned closer to her bedmate:

“Fujun, can you hold me?”

A newlywed bride, on her wedding night, would feel greatly humiliated if she couldn’t even get a hug.

Pei Xuan’s heart softened, and she gently embraced her.

“Niangzi, I’m holding you. It’s late, let’s sleep.”

Cui Ti closed her eyes.

After a long while, so long that Pei Xuan’s arm, under Cui Ti’s head, grew stiff and numb, Pei Xuan saw that Cui Ti was sound asleep and finally allowed herself to drift into slumber.

Sleep overcame her.

Stars and moon shone brightly.

The Pei Residence was steeped in tranquility.

The girl who should have been deeply asleep fluttered her eyelashes and quietly opened her eyes.

She could still see Pei Xuan.

The Pei Xuan, whose feminine nature couldn’t be hidden even in sleep.

The dream was real.

An immortal had come riding a crane to bestow upon her a spiritual eye, but her spiritual eye could only see one person.

She gazed greedily at the sleeping Pei Xuan in the dim light, recalling how in the past life, this person had cared for her meticulously, protected her, cherished her, and been affectionate with her. Cui Ti’s heart felt full, a mix of slight pain and slight bitterness.

Lies require more lies to cover up.

The upright and honorable Pei Family, trusted by both the Former Emperor and the New Emperor, had deceived the world, and had deceived her.

Deceived her, but for her own good.

Cui Ti nestled in her embrace, both crying and laughing silently. The long night stretched on, and she dared not blink even once more.

It turned out that she truly and deeply cared for Pei Xingguang.