Chapter 132: Extra- Childhood Sweethearts (19)

They arrived at Lianxin Lake in the morning, started their activities at noon, and once finished, Lin Ting slept deeply until the afternoon, completely unwilling to wake up.

As for going out on the deck to release the Lotus Lantern and make wishes, she had already tossed all those thoughts aside.

If not for the fear of not returning home by nightfall and provoking Li Jingqiu’s endless questions, Lin Ting probably would have spent the night on the painting boat and returned the next day.

Before nightfall, Lin Ting finally woke up.

The scarlet quilt slipped off her shoulders, and she was still without clothes.

They had slept naked.

Duan Ling was at the bedside putting on his clothes, his body marked with numerous red bruises left by Lin Ting.

The marks were scattered unevenly across his skin.

His skin bruised easily.

Whenever Lin Ting got agitated, she would uncontrollably pinch him.

Because she often pinched his waist and abdomen out of habit, those areas bore the most marks.

Coincidentally, Duan Ling was most sensitive around his waist and abdomen.

Every time she pinched there, he would tremble slightly and gasp.

Lin Ting half-opened her eyes and looked at his waist and abdomen.

After today, those red pinches would almost certainly turn purple and blue, making him look as if he had been beaten or tortured.

She realized she might have been a bit rough.

But it wasn’t entirely her fault—after all, Duan Ling had first made her lie face down by the windowsill, then soon after lifted her onto the windowsill to approach from the front, making her feel as if she would fall out the window and into the lake if he didn’t hold her tightly.

Lin Ting stretched lazily and continued observing Duan Ling.

He finished putting on his white undergarment and raised his hands to tie the sash around his waist, covering the red marks on his body.

Her gaze was too obvious and unhidden; Duan Ling sensed it and lifted his eyes to look at her.

He seemed puzzled: “What’s wrong?”

A few months ago, he had started applying scar-removal ointment on his wrists, and the unsightly scars had mostly faded by now.

Before this, even though they had been close many times, Duan Ling had never let Lin Ting see his scars.

Lin Ting tilted her head but kept her eyes fixed on him.

“Be honest. Did you secretly take some medicine while I wasn’t paying attention?”

The thought of their several encounters made her scalp tingle.

Duan Ling put on his outerwear and bent down to pick up the discarded slippers on the floor. “No.”

Lin Ting thought carefully.

It was unlikely he had taken any medicine—after all, he didn’t know they would be intimate on the painting boat today; it was her kissing and leaning close to his ear that initiated it.

How could he have prepared medicine in advance?

Perhaps it was the first time doing this kind of thing, so he got too excited and they ended up doing it more times than usual?

That must be it.

Otherwise, there was no other explanation.

Fortunately, as a martial artist, she had more stamina than the average person and could handle the frequency.

Lin Ting didn’t dwell on it anymore and lazily spread her hands.

“Help me get dressed.”

She was still tired after her nap; her legs felt weak and hard to move together, and her arms tingled with soreness.

She just wanted to lie flat on the bed.

Duan Ling picked up Lin Ting’s bright red bellyband and sat back on the bed to help her put it on.

Even in previous borderline intimate moments, he was always the one helping her dress—practice made perfect.

After helping Lin Ting get dressed, Duan Ling tied up her hair and finally helped her put on her shoes.

Lin Ting looked down.

There were a few faint teeth marks on her feet—left by Duan Ling.

Not long after they were done, he had knelt by her feet and licked them.

Lin Ting was used to it and averted her eyes, but her gaze accidentally fell on the inside of Duan Ling’s wrist, where a tiny puncture mark was visible.

She grabbed his hand to look closer and asked, “What’s this?”

Duan Ling said, “Whenever I prick this acupuncture point with a silver needle before we make love, you won’t get pregnant. I’ll keep doing it from now on.”

Lin Ting knew he always carried some hidden weapons; having silver needles on him wasn’t strange.

She pressed around the puncture lightly and asked, “Does it hurt?”

“No.”

She released his hand.

“But how did you find out about this method?”

Duan Ling replied, “From reading books.”

Fully dressed, they didn’t linger long on the painting boat.

Duan Ling carried Lin Ting, who still didn’t want to walk, onto the shore and into the horse-drawn carriage waiting there.

At the end of the You hour, Lin Ting returned to Lin Mansion.

Li Jingqiu, bored out of her mind, came to Tingling garden upon hearing from the servants that Lin Ting was back and asked, “Tao Zhu said Ziyu came looking for you today.”

Lin Ting tried to sit naturally before the mirror, removing her hair accessories while inspecting her neck to see if any marks remained—she didn’t want Li Jingqiu to find out they had been intimate before marriage, as elders in ancient times were very particular about such matters.

She shook the newly removed golden pendulum and replied, “Hmm, he took me out boating on the lake.”

Li Jingqiu hadn’t seen Lin Ting that morning and didn’t know what gown she had worn when leaving, so she didn’t notice the change of dress when Lin Ting returned and sensed nothing unusual.

“Ziyu is thoughtful.”

Lin Ting smiled faintly, “It was alright.”

Li Jingqiu looked out the open window.

Though the rain had stopped, the courtyard was still damp everywhere.

“It’s a pity it rained heavily today; you couldn’t enjoy the lake to the fullest.”

“No problem. We can go another day.”

Lin Ting put the golden pendulum back into the jewelry box and silently rubbed her waist.

She truly didn’t understand why she was so tired when Duan Ling had been the one moving.

Li Jingqiu saw Lin Ting remove all her hair accessories, came up behind her, undone her hairstyle, and took the sandalwood comb from the table to brush her hair.

Suddenly, she said, “Your wedding day is coming soon.”

“Yes, almost here.”

Lin Ting looked into the mirror at Li Jingqiu’s reflection and asked smiling, “Are you reluctant to see me go?”

“Reluctant.” Li Jingqiu replied.

She joked, “That’s easy. I just won’t marry Duan Ling.”

Li Jingqiu pinched Lin Ting’s arm and said, “You can’t say that! My biggest wish for the rest of my life is to see you get married.”

At that moment, Tao Zhu entered carrying a bowl of lotus seed soup.

“Seventh Miss, today I had the kitchen prepare some lotus seed soup for you. Would you like a bowl?”

Li Jingqiu stopped talking.

Lin Ting took the lotus seed soup and sipped it.

Tao Zhu’s gaze fell on Lin Ting’s red dress.

She had just learned that Lin Ting was back and hurried to the kitchen to get the soup, so she hadn’t really noticed the change of gown until now.

“Seventh Miss, your dress…”

Lin Ting anticipated the question and replied, “I got caught in the rain, so I changed into another dress.”

She had entered the boat cabin to bathe and change precisely because she had been drenched, with no hint of guilt.

She fed a spoonful of lotus seed soup to Li Jingqiu.

“Mother, you try some too.”

Li Jingqiu said, “Not bad.”

“Then drink more.” Lin Ting changed the subject, no longer mentioning the boating trip.

***

On the day Lin Ting married Duan Ling, the weather was clear and sunny.

A huge crowd came to collect wedding money, completely filling the road in front of Lin Mansion.

She threw wedding money until her hands ached.

Throwing wedding money was about luck—generosity was key at this moment.

The more commoners who picked up wedding money, the more blessings they would receive.

So she threw as much as possible.

The first step of the wedding was throwing the money; the second was the parade.

The bridal procession had to pass through every street in Jingcheng, walking from morning to dusk before finally reaching Duan Mansion, following Great Yan’s custom of “morning bride fetching, evening wedding ceremony.”

This meant she had to sit in the bridal sedan for a very long time.

Lin Ting felt like her backside was about to bloom.

But the pain wasn’t the real problem; the boredom was.

She was alone in the sedan and couldn’t lift the red veil to peek outside.

Yet as soon as Lin Ting sat inside the sedan, she caught sight through the slit of the red veil—a thick cushion on the seat and a plate of her favorite pastries and a storybook.

With those, she didn’t feel bored but rather found time flying by.

At dusk, the sedan arrived at Duan Mansion.

Lin Ting closed the storybook, wiped the crumbs from the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief, adjusted the slightly crooked red veil, then took Duan Ling’s hand as he reached inside and followed him out of the sedan into Duan Mansion.

At the Xu hour, they held the wedding ceremony in the main hall.

At the Hai hour, Duan Ling lifted Lin Ting’s veil in the bridal chamber.

Lin Ting, exhausted and weary from wearing the heavy phoenix coronet and red bridal robe all day, ate dinner with Duan Ling, then collapsed onto the bed, nearly asleep before remembering she hadn’t bathed.

So she got up again.

Duan Ling saw how tired she was and didn’t plan on making love that night.

Since the boating trip, they had often been intimate—at least a dozen times that month, so skipping their wedding night wasn’t a big deal.

They bathed one after another, did nothing else, blew out the candle, and went to bed.

In the middle of the night, Lin Ting rolled into Duan Ling’s arms, lifted her leg to wrap around his waist, and her wandering hand brushed against the thin skin beneath his clothing.

Unable to resist, she slipped her hand under his robe.

Duan Ling woke the moment she touched him.

Recently, he was becoming more familiar with her body.

When she leaned close, it easily stirred him.

Lin Ting, still awake from her touch, raised her head to look at Duan Ling’s flushed face.

It was obvious—Duan Ling was aroused.

Lin Ting, refreshed from her nap, was ready to celebrate their wedding night properly.

She stroked the thin skin at his waist, slid her hand past his waistband, feeling the warmth and strength belonging to him.

She smiled and whispered some spicy lines she had learned from her storybook into his ear.

Duan Ling sealed her mouth with his lips.

He wasn’t shocked by her words but feared losing control.

Before marriage, he had deliberately restrained himself.

Although they had been intimate many times, it was barely within normal limits.

Lin Ting’s other hand caressed Duan Ling’s Adam’s apple, mischievously tapping it with her finger.

Duan Ling immediately gasped.

Lin Ting admitted she was doing it on purpose.

She loved the sound of his breath—it was beautiful and arousing.

The longer she listened, the more…

She sat up and leaned over to kiss Duan Ling.

Her long hair cascaded over him, brushing his skin and leaving behind a lingering fragrance that sent a shiver through them.

Duan Ling pressed firmly on Lin Ting’s shoulders, not giving her a chance to break the kiss.

Lin Ting didn’t want to stop either.

She parted his lips and kissed him deeply.

Not quite prying them open—he opened willingly.

Their lips and tongues intertwined; their noses brushed.

Duan Ling swallowed and grasped Lin Ting’s hand, interlocking their fingers.

He whispered her name softly.

When the kiss ended, Duan Ling buried his face against her chest.

Lin Ting’s shoulders trembled slightly.

The room was dim.

The canopy around the bed hung gently, swaying in the still air.

She stretched her leg outside the bed but was pulled back by Duan Ling, who held her ankle.

Lin Ting started pinching Duan Ling again.

He still bore bruises from her pinches two days ago, and new ones appeared that night.

But Duan Ling liked it because they were marks she made.

She called him softly, “Duan Ziyu.”

Duan Ling didn’t respond; his lips and tongue were busy.

After some time, Lin Ting felt thirsty.

“I’m thirsty.”

Duan Ling went to get water, then returned to the bed and lifted her bent waist so she could sit up.

Lin Ting sat on Duan Ling’s lap, drinking the water from the cup.

He held her waist tightly, his Adam’s apple moving as he drank, sipping water alongside her.

When Lin Ting finished drinking, so did Duan Ling.

Holding onto the last drops of water, he pulled her into a side-lying position.

They didn’t fall asleep again until dawn.