Wenren Lingmeng's restless heart gradually settled. Perhaps it was nice just to sit quietly like this, without having to face it herself.
If she were awake, she'd probably be curled up at the foot of the bed right now.
Just then, Xiao E's voice suddenly came from beside her ear again.
"Ah, son-in-law, wait a moment."
She stopped him? Wenren Lingmeng breathed a sigh of relief, feeling both glad and a little disappointed.
Still, this was for the best. At least things wouldn't be so awkward. Even if Wenren Lingmeng didn't have to face him, her heart would still be unsettled. She probably wouldn't sleep a wink tonight.
Xiao E was pretty considerate after all. She hadn't shown her all that affection for nothing.
"What is it?" Mu Zibai asked.
Xiao E thought for a moment, then said, "You and miss haven't bathed in several days. I'd like to help miss wash up first. Why don't you join us, son-in-law?"
Wenren Lingmeng: "!!!"
Xiao E! You wretched girl!
"Join you?" Mu Zibai stared at Xiao E with a peculiar expression. Was that "join" what he thought it was?
Wasn't this moving a little too fast? Just a moment ago, he could only touch her hands, or give her a massage at most. Now they could bathe together and sleep together?
Even Mu Zibai was at a loss for words.
Xiao E said with a smile, "You and miss are husband and wife, so of course you should bathe together. I'm a year older than miss. When she was little, she loved sleeping beside madam. I often saw madam and master bathing together, and I was always the one who helped miss wash. Master said that bathing together helps a husband and wife grow closer, so you and miss should grow closer too, son-in-law."
Mu Zibai: "..."
As if he'd stumbled upon some earth-shattering secret, he pinched his chin and pondered.
Xiao E!
Wenren Lingmeng nearly leaped right out of bed in anger. Xiao E was getting more and more unruly. She'd been growing bolder by the day, and now that Wenren Lingmeng couldn't move, she was even more brazen!
How could she make decisions like this on her young mistress's behalf?
She was actually telling her young mistress to bathe with her husband!
Wenren Lingmeng was both mortified and furious. If they bathed together, wouldn't Mu Zibai see her completely naked? But she couldn't see him at all, so she'd be the one getting the raw deal!
Huh? Wait, why would I think that? What's wrong with me?
She wanted to cover her face and burrow into a hole in the ground. Was she really going to let Mu Zibai see her naked? She was mortified to her very core, but she wasn't unwilling.
Mu Zibai would see her naked sooner or later anyway.
All sorts of strange thoughts sprang up in her mind, making an even bigger mess of things than before. If they were going to bathe together and sleep together, wouldn't Mu Zibai have her completely under his thumb?
What am I even thinking? If my husband found out, would he think I wasn't a normal woman?
Wenren Lingmeng tried to cast these thoughts aside, but they were like maggots burrowing into her bones. The harder she tried to shake them off, the deeper she sank into them.
But just then, she felt her clothes being removed, one piece at a time, as if her modesty were being peeled away bit by bit.
Wenren Lingmeng's heart leapt into her throat. She could hardly breathe.
This was all that wretched Xiao E's fault. The first thing she'd do when she woke up was throttle her!
Warmth touched her toes, then her feet were lowered into the warm water. She soaked quietly for a while, then felt as if someone else had climbed in beside her.
Wenren Lingmeng was so tense that she dug a hole in her mind, jumped in, and buried herself.
"Son-in-law, is my miss beautiful?" Xiao E leaned against the tub and asked with a smile.
Mu Zibai asked, "I have to ask, aren't you afraid your miss will punish you when she wakes up?"
Xiao E smiled fearlessly. "No way. My miss and I are very close. She'd never bully me. Besides, miss doesn't know!"
Wenren Lingmeng: No! I know! And who says being close means you can do this? If I don't punish you, who should I punish?
Mu Zibai chuckled and shook his head. At first, Xiao E had seemed just like the ancient servant girls he'd imagined—pretty much all the same.
But lately, Xiao E had changed a lot. Mu Zibai couldn't quite get a read on her anymore. She'd become more mischievous and lively, no longer a stiff, wooden maid.
When had it started, exactly?
Thinking it over, it seemed to have been after he told her the story of Dream of the Red Chamber. Perhaps the book had influenced her. Dream of the Red Chamber certainly didn't follow the rules of propriety, and its world clashed with the restrictions imposed on women today.
Yet its stories sank deep into people's hearts, and had quietly influenced Xiao E.
Xiao E hadn't been deeply shaped by the rules of propriety, so she wasn't so stiff or bound by the old social order. She was a martial artist, too, with a free-spirited nature.
Now Xiao E had a much more vivid personality. Mu Zibai rather liked it. The person standing before him was a lively "person" at last.
"How do you know your miss can't hear you? What if Ling Meng knows?"
Xiao E smiled. "Son-in-law, I'm helping you. How can you say that?"
"Helping me?"
"Of course. You and miss seem more like husband and wife now, just like master and madam. If you and miss are deeply devoted to each other one day, you'll have me to thank." Xiao E smiled as she spoke, making herself sound like the matchmaker who'd brought Mu Zibai and Wenren Lingmeng together.
"Fine, fine. I'll definitely thank you."
Mu Zibai smiled and shook his head. Seeing Xiao E still waiting beside him, he asked, "And you're...?"
"Of course I'm here to help you and miss bathe. I'm miss's personal maid. I'll be looking after you both from now on, too." Xiao E smiled.
"Ahem."
Mu Zibai coughed awkwardly. It felt strange having someone watch him like this.
He felt a little uncomfortable.
Xiao E handed Mu Zibai a washcloth. "Here you are, son-in-law."
Mu Zibai took the cloth and washed Wenren Lingmeng's body.
At that moment, Wenren Lingmeng was tense to the extreme. She could feel Mu Zibai washing her, and embarrassment and fear spread through her, mingling with all her other emotions.
It felt as though he'd touched almost every part of her in no time at all. She'd always left these things to Xiao E before.
Wait, there? You can't! ...Mmm...
It was Mu Zibai's first time bathing someone else. His movements were clumsy, but he got the hang of it quickly. After all, he'd been taking care of her for so long that he was already used to it.
Wenren Lingmeng had a delicate figure. She'd only recently begun to develop; her skin was soft and pale, and her body was soft all over.
As expected, women were made of water.
"Son-in-law, you still haven't answered my question. Is miss beautiful?" Xiao E asked with a smile.
"She's beautiful. The most beautiful woman I've ever seen," Mu Zibai said.
That was the truth. Wenren Lingmeng was unquestionably the most beautiful woman Mu Zibai had ever seen.
Hearing his answer, Xiao E nodded with satisfaction.
The most beautiful woman? Wenren Lingmeng felt a little pleased with herself.
"Son-in-law, do you think miss will forget you after she wakes up?"
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