Shen Yuning woke up groggily. She didn't see Yin Zidu's figure, but there was still a candle burning on the table not far away. Zidu must not have gone to bed yet.
She wrapped herself in a robe, slipped on her shoes, and headed towards the study.
Sure enough, Yin Zidu was sitting upright in the study, his brow furrowed as he looked at the memorial in his hand. From time to time, he would rub his temples.
Half of Shen Yuning's heart melted, and she felt quite regretful. She didn't know what had come over her that day. She had been so矫情. It was just a joke from him, yet it had made her cry like that.
Probably he had been extremely worried these days. When she saw him today, she even noticed the blisters on the corner of his mouth.
He was working so hard. She couldn't be so willful from now on.
Her thoughts wandered far. When Shen Yuning came back to her senses, Yin Zidu had somehow walked over, wrapped her in his cloak, and led her into the study.
Shen Yuning gave an awkward smile. "I took a nap. Seeing no one around, I..."
Yin Zidu stroked her face. "Since you can't bear to be apart from me, how come you slept soundly when you were alone at the Xue family's these days?"
Shen Yuning retorted, dissatisfied. "You weren't there. How do you know whether I slept well or not?"
Yin Zidu raised his eyebrows. "Judging from your carefree look, I can tell that you slept extremely well. You didn't even think about your husband who was left behind in the palace, did you?"
Shen Yuning turned away, ignoring him.
Yin Zidu gently stroked her belly. "It's been five months, right?"
Shen Yuning wasn't really angry with him. She nodded. "It's been over five months. My due date is about the same as elder sister's, but her belly is already very prominent. Why is mine so small?"
Yin Zidu didn't understand these things. He stroked her belly, originally wanting to get closer to the baby in her womb. But as he touched, perhaps because he hadn't held her like this for so many days, he began to feel a little distracted.
Shen Yuning didn't notice. She only saw the open letters and memorials on the table and quickly pushed him away. "You still have work to do."
Yin Zidu let go of her, suppressing his desire and nodding. "You go and rest first. I'll come after I finish this in a while."
Shen Yuning checked the time. It was almost the third watch. Although there would be no court session tomorrow, judging from Zidu's personality, he would enter the palace early in the morning to discuss matters with the emperor and the chief minister.
She didn't want to disturb his work, but she also knew that once he got busy, he would forget about eating and sleeping. She guessed that he probably wouldn't sleep tonight.
She got up and sat on the chair beside him. "I can't fall asleep now. I might as well keep you company. You just go on with your work. I'll just sit here and watch you."
How could Yin Zidu not know her little thoughts? He got up too, pulled her up, and hugged her in his arms, smiling. "If you look at me like this, I'll have to divide my attention. How can I focus on other things whole - heartedly?"
Shen Yuning gently stroked his face. After he became the regent, even during the three days of their wedding, he hadn't been able to rest properly. Now he had lost a lot of weight. His skin didn't feel as good as before, and there were dark circles under his eyes.
However, even so, he was still so good - looking that it made her heart flutter.
On an impulse, Shen Yuning leaned forward and kissed his lips.
Yin Zidu was caught off - guard by her kiss. How could he bear to let go? He just pushed the memorials aside, hugged her tightly, and kissed her back deeply.
The kiss was passionate. All the miscellaneous affairs in the court and the quarrels between the two of them were all forgotten.
In the end, considering Shen Yuning's pregnant state, he didn't dare to go too far. Yin Zidu always felt that he couldn't enjoy himself fully. This kind of teasing made it even more difficult for him.
Letting go of Shen Yuning, Yin Zidu let out a long sigh.
Shen Yuning asked, "Why are you sighing?"
Yin Zidu's eyes were deep. He tightened his grip on her small hand. After thinking for a while, he still let go of her hand and sat back in his original position. "You rest first. After I finish this matter, I'll accompany you to rest."
Shen Yuning nodded obediently and propped her chin on the table, looking at him.
Xuanzhi was really extremely good - looking when he was serious. She couldn't help but want to tease him.
Shen Yuning felt that she was just like the amorous scholar in the storybook. When seeing a beautiful girl, she wanted to flirt. It was a pity that the good - looking young man in front of her was so busy that he didn't even have time to sleep with her.
Sleep with her?
Shen Yuning's face turned red, and her thoughts became even more wild.
Yin Zidu, who was rubbing his temples, happened to see her blushing face. How could he continue working? He just pushed the memorials aside and came over to hug her again.
Shen Yuning was startled and quickly asked, "You're not going to review them anymore? Is it all done?"
Yin Zidu's voice was hoarse. "No more. Let Uncle deal with it tomorrow."
Shen Yuning disagreed and quickly pressed his hand. "No, no. Chief Minister Jiang is old. I heard that he caught a cold a few days ago and still has to handle state affairs. We can't leave everything to him."
Yin Zidu's hand stopped. In the end, he couldn't help but pull Shen Yuning onto his lap and buried his head in the crook of her neck. "Let me... relax for a while, and then I'll..."
Shen Yuning asked in confusion, "Are you not feeling well? I'll massage your shoulders and neck for you, but my technique is not as skillful as yours."
This was referring to the past when he had specially learned massage techniques from a doctor to massage her.
Yin Zidu's eyes became even deeper. He kissed her earlobe, making her tremble.
"It's not that kind of relaxation..."
This made Shen Yuning understand what "relaxation" meant.
When Shen Yuning ran into the bedroom with a blushing face, leaving Yin Zidu laughing, she ran even faster out of shyness.
Yin Zidu got up and went to the bathroom, saying, "Yuning, slow down. Watch your step. You're pregnant now. Don't be so hasty."
Shen Yuning turned back angrily, wanting to glare at him but couldn't see him.
Fortunately, the courtyard of the prince's mansion was well - built. The bedroom was next to the study and the bathroom, so she didn't have to run unsteadily in a hurry.
She buried herself in the quilt on the bed and refused to come out.
After Yin Zidu finished washing, he turned off the light and got into bed, then pulled her into his arms.
Shen Yuning asked, "Aren't you going to work anymore?"
Yin Zidu shook his head. "I'm so tired. I need to rest."
Shen Yuning said angrily, "You said you'd just relax for a while and then continue working. But in the end..."
Yin Zidu laughed. "But in the end what? In the end, I didn't relax enough? Does my wife want to help me relax some more?"
Shen Yuning wanted to turn around and ignore him, but he held her tightly and she couldn't move.
Yin Zidu patted her reassuringly. "Don't move. You're pregnant. I know my limits."
Shen Yuning really wanted to ask, if you know your limits, why were you so naughty just now? But just as she was about to say it, she swallowed the words back. If she said something that made him have other thoughts, it wouldn't be good.
She had heard before that being too intimate was not good for a man's health. He was so busy. It was better to have less of that.
Yin Zidu held Shen Yuning in his arms. She was soft and fragrant. In the past, when he came back to the bedroom after work, she was always asleep. She slept soundly, and he didn't want to disturb her. And because he was also very tired, everything was fine.
But now he was awake and knew that she was awake too. For a moment, he couldn't fall asleep. He just felt the fire in his heart rising again. It was so hard to suppress.
Shen Yuning, on the other hand, slept soundly.
The moonlight came in through the window, dimly shining on her hair. He couldn't see clearly. It just looked like a cloud of mist there, fragrant, beside his pillow.
He reached out his hand wanting to stroke it, but was afraid of disturbing her dream.
Suddenly, he felt a little aggrieved. This heartless girl. Judging from her face, it seemed that she had slept very well during the days she was away from him.
Looking at himself, he missed her day and night. Whenever he had free time, he missed her so much that his heart ached. At night when he returned to the bedroom, he had to sleep alone in the cold bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep at all.
Yin Zidu thought of the cold bed. The bed wasn't really cold. It was just his empty heart that felt cold.
He then remembered the quarrel between them that day. The joking words he had said to her in annoyance had made her cry so much.
His heart softened. If she didn't like him, why would she care if there were other women in his bed?
Maybe she liked him very much too.
Yin Zidu's lips curled up.
Actually, since Yuning got pregnant, the queen had repeatedly wanted to choose a concubine for him. After he refused, she had wanted to arrange some maid - servants for him.
He didn't want anyone. He only wanted Yuning.
Yin Zidu couldn't help but hug the woman beside him and rubbed his lips against hers.
Shen Yuning giggled in her dream. "Dahuang, don't be naughty."
Dahuang was the puppy next door in Xitian Town. Because Huzi liked to tease it, Dahuang came to their house every day. But because Dahuang was very clingy and liked to jump on people and lick them, the clean - loving Yuning didn't like it very much.
Yin Zidu frowned. Did she mistake him for a dog?
His hands became unruly again, wanting to prove that he wasn't a dog but a wolf.
Half - asleep and half - awake, Shen Yuning was tossed around by him again. She felt as if she was in the clouds and couldn't come down for a long time. She pouted dissatisfiedly. He was always like this, teasing her but only caring about himself.
Yin Zidu stopped, kissed her lips, and was about to pick her up to wash.
Shen Yuning opened her eyes and looked at him resentfully. It was so dark that he couldn't see her resentment. She snorted heavily.
Yin Zidu laughed, lowered his head and kissed her hard twice, and rubbed against her ear. "Be good. You're pregnant now. After the baby is born, we..."
Shen Yuning was even more dissatisfied. She didn't want him to carry her. She got up and went to the bathroom by herself, muttering dissatisfiedly. "No wonder married and pregnant women would take concubines or maids for their husbands. It's really so annoying."
Yin Zidu's face froze. He followed her in and asked, "Do you also want to take a concubine for me?"
Shen Yuning keenly caught the word "also" and asked, "Has anyone else wanted to take a concubine for you?"
Yin Zidu hesitated and carefully explained. "The queen mentioned it twice."
Shen Yuning was stunned. The queen? But at the beginning of her pregnancy, the queen had been very considerate. She had also told her that pregnant women tend to be more sensitive, but the prince was a self - disciplined and affectionate man, so she didn't have to worry.
Yes, pregnant women are more sensitive. She whole - heartedly believed in Xuanzhi. But what if Xuanzhi suddenly said he wanted to take a concubine or suddenly had a maid - servant? What would she do?