Married Thrice to Salted Fish

Chapter 129

When it was time to go to bed, Jiang Xing gave Lin Qingyu his room. He explained one by one to Lin Qingyu how to turn on the lights, how to adjust the temperature in the room and that there was water in the small refrigerator if he got thirsty.

Lin Qingyu pointed to a portrait of a dark-skinned man pasted on the wall above the top of the bed. He asked, “Who is this person?”

“A basketball star, I like him very much.” At the mention his idol, Jiang Xing couldn’t help but want to share, “I even have a pair of sneakers signed by him. Should I show you?”

“No need.” Lin Qingyu said indifferently, “You’ve never hung my portrait above the bed.”

Jiang Xing was startled, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. “This is different.”

Jiang Xing watched Lin Qingyu get into bed and covered him with the quilt. He even put both hands under the quilt and said, “Then I’m leaving. I’ll sleep in the guest room, you can find me if you need anything.”

Lin Qingyu gave a faint “en”. Not long ago, he was sharing the same bed with Jiang Xing, doing this and that, getting no sleep. But now he has to sleep in a separate bed. Outrageous!

Jiang Xing turned off the lamp for him. He walked to the door and remembered something. He asked, “By the way, Qingyu, do you prefer white?”

Lin Qingyu was slightly happy. “Did you remember?”

“I just remembered a few scenes, you seem to wear a lot of white and blue.”

Lin Qingyu nodded. “Indeed.” He usually wore white but the Dayu’s uniform for officials was indigo, so he wore these two colors the most.

Jiang Xing asked again, “Which color do you prefer, white or blue?”

Lin Qingyu said, “White.”

Jiang Xing smiled. “Understood, good night.”

Before going to sleep, Jiang Xing tidied up Lin Qingyu’s fancy clothes and took a few photos with his mobile phone. He didn’t know much about Hanfu and modified Hanfu, so he decided to seek help from a professional. He remembered that Pei Zhiqi had joined the Hanfu club when she was in junior high school. So he sent the photo to Pei Zhiqi.

Jiang Xing: [How much do you think this modified Hanfu is worth?]

Pei Zhiqi: [! ! ! Where did you get that photo?!]

Jiang Xing: [Why so excited?]

Pei Zhiqi: [Check the local hot search!]

Jiang Xing opened Weibo, and sure enough, he saw two related trending searches: #Guangdong Hanfu Fair# and #His Highness the Crown Prince at large at the Hanfu Exhibit#.

Under the hot search were pictures of Lin Qingyu in his Chinese robes. He walked around the Hanfu exhibit with a chilly expression on his face, pulling up the attractiveness index of the whole event through his own efforts alone.

What the fuck did they mean His Highness the Crown Prince? This was obviously a beauty looking for his husband. Thinking that he was that husband, Jiang Xing chuckled, raised his hand and slowly covered his eyes.

… This was just too stimulating. Most people simply wouldn’t be able to bear it.

Pei Zhiqi looked at those photos repeatedly and said: [If I were asked to estimate the price, I think it would be worth upwards of a hundred thousand.]

Jiang Xing: [Too low.]

Early the next morning, Lin Qingyu woke up in Jiang Xing’s room. Faced with the unfamiliar surroundings, he was momentarily dazed. A day has passed and Xu Junyuan still hasn’t figured out a way to get them back. When he returns to the Dayu, he will definitely demolish Xu Junyuan’s newly expanded meditation room.

When Lin Qingyu went to the guest room, the boy on the bed was still fast asleep. Jiang Xing was used having the air conditioner quite low, so the quilt wrapped around his body was wrapped tightly. Only half of his side profile was exposed outside the quilt.

Lin Qingyu sat down by the bed, touched the boy’s dashing nose and then, without a shred of mercy, squeezed it.

Jiang Xing frowned. The air pressure around him seemed to have dropped. His eyes opened a slit, showing annoyance and sullenness. Lin Qingyu didn’t seem to care. He said, “It’s me.”

As expected, the boy was momentarily at a loss. When he saw clearly that it was him, the irritability in his eyes instantly disappeared. He smiled dimly at Lin Qingyu, closed his eyes again and in a voice that sounded a little nasal due to tiredness, said, “Let me sleep for a while longer, just a little while longer. Thank you, Baobei…”

For a moment, Lin Qingyu didn’t hear clearly, “What did you call me?”

Jiang Xing fell back asleep as soon as he closed his eyes. Lin Qingyu saw a book called “Five-Year College Entrance Examination, Three-Year Simulation” next to his pillow. The book was so big and thick that it could be used as a pillow.

He remembered that Jiang Xing must still be in his third year of high school. Jiang Xing said that in his hometown, the third year of high school was when people lacked sleep and rest the most. It was a rare vacation; maybe he should let him sleep for a while.

Lin Qingyu looked at the boy off in dreamland. Jiang Xing, who’d lost his memory of the past few years also seemed to be a few years younger. When Jiang Xing was Gu Fuzhou, he could act like a mature man on the outside no matter how he actually felt inside. Later, when Jiang Xing became the ruler of the country, he had cultivated himself to be a man equal to the task. One moment he was a magnanimous and tolerant wise king and the next, he was an emperor who held all completely in his power.

Jiang Xing in his hometown was more like Jiang Xing in Lu Wancheng’s time. If there weren’t so many things that happened later, Jiang Xing might have continued like this forever.

Some indescribable emotion surged in Lin Qingyu’s heart. He lifted up the quilt and got into bed. Finding his usual position in Jiang Xing’s arms, he lay there for a while but he kept feeling a little uncomfortable.

Lin Qingyu realized the source of the discomfort. He took Jiang Xing’s hand, and placed it on his waist.—Now, it felt right.

So, when Jiang Xing woke up sometime near noon, he realized that he’d gained a long-haired beauty in his arms. The beauty was resting on his arm, his shallow breathing ringing in his ears.

Jiang Xing’s body went as stiff as a zombie’s. His arm was already numb and might fall off at any moment. — When did Lin Qingyu get into bed?

He had a vague recollection of what had happened that morning. He was surprised that he showed no ill temper at all despite being woken up so early. Was that really me?

Jiang Xing didn’t dare to move. He carefully reached for his mobile phone on the bedside table. It was just the slightest of movements, but it woke up the light-sleeping beauty in his arms.

Jiang Xing lowered his head to meet Lin Qingyu’s eyes and said calmly, “Good morning?”

“Good morning.” Lin Qingyu said, “Did you remember something?”

Jiang Xing recalled carefully. “There are still only sporadic images in my mind.”

Lin Qingyu smiled inexplicably. It seems there were some thingsthat were already engraved deep in Jiang Xing’s soul. Even with his memories lost, his instincts remained. “Time to get up. It’s almost time for lunch.”

Lin Qingyu got out of bed and went to the bathroom. Yesterday Jiang Xing taught him how to wash using these modern tools. He was very interested in this thing called “electric toothbrush”. It would be amazing if it could be used to clean some difficult-to-clean herbs.

As Lin Qingyu was washing his face, he noticed Jiang Xing staring at him from behind. He raised his eyes and met Jiang Xing’s eyes through the mirror. “What?”

Jiang Xing came over and brushed his long hair behind his ears, “Your hair got wet.”

Lin Qingyu glanced sideways at his long hair that slipped onto his shoulder. “It’s a bit troublesome. Can you hold it for me?”

Do you even have to fucking ask?

Jiang Xing stood behind Lin Qingyu, and when Lin Qingyu leaned over to wash his face, he held Lin Qingyu’s long hair to prevent it from getting wet. Because the white T-shirt Lin Qingyu was wearing was too big, from his towering view, he could vaguely see the other’s fair neck and a pair of attractive butterfly bones.

Thank you, I have just been seduced.

The affairs of life are oh so impermanent. In his memory, at this time yesterday, he was still standing here alone brushing his teeth and washing his face but today he was helping his beautiful wife who fell from the sky by holding his hair.

“Do you have scissors at home?” Lin Qingyu wiped off the drops of water on his face, “I want to cut my long hair.” He had seen Jiang Xing with short hair in the Dayu. He’d wanted to try having short hair at that time but it was a pity that he was the prime minister first and then after, the empress. He had no choice but to be prudent when it came to his demeanor.

Jiang Xing came back to his senses and asked, “You want to cut it yourself?”

“En.”

“What if you give yourself a bad haircut?”

“It’s fine.” Lin Qingyu stated the facts calmly, “A bad haircut won’t make me any less beautiful.”

Jiang Xing stared at the long hair in his hand and said slowly, “I should still take you out to have it cut.”

Lin Qingyu could hear the regret in Jiang Xing’s tone and asked, “You don’t want me to cut it?”

“That’s not it.” Jiang Xing smiled, “It’s your hair and you can decide what you want to do with it.”

Lin Qingyu observed Jiang Xing’s expression and said, “I’ll cut it tomorrow. You can say a proper goodbye to my strands today.”

Jiang Xing fondled Lin Qingyu’s long hair lovingly. “Time is running out. I want to give each of them a name.”

“Do as you wish.”

Neither of them can cook so they could only order takeaway for lunch. “Qingyu, what do you want to eat?” He said boldly, “No need to be polite, order whatever you want.”

Lin Qingyu naturally wouldn’t be polite with his husband and the things he brought with him from the Dayu should be enough to improve Jiang Xing’s poor life. “Three delicacies fish fillet, stuffed crab, crystal dragon and phoenix cake and stir-fried seasonal vegetables — Let’s start with these for now.”

Jiang Xing hesitated. “Excuse me, can you repeat your order, Lord Prime Minister?”

Jiang Xing wanted to prepare lunch and, afraid that Lin Qingyu would be bored by himself, he turned on the TV in the living room so that Lin Qingyu could watch while he waited. In order to make it easier for Lin Qingyu to understand, he even deliberately chose a period drama. Lin Qingyu was immediately attracted by the TV and he learned to change the channel without having to be taught. He was so engrossed in watching that he didn’t even notice the doorbell ring.

Jiang Xing opened the door, accepted the lunch delivery and arranged the dishes on the dining table. “Qingyu, come and eat—Qingyu?”

He called three times in a row before Lin Qingyu responded to him. Seeing the dishes on the table, Lin Qingyu asked, “How did these get here?”

“Of course someone else cooked it. I haven’t learned enough cooking skills yet.” Jiang Xing paused, “Did you want me to cook it?”

“No need. But your family doesn’t have any servants, right?”

“Oh, I asked the steward for help.”

“The steward?” Lin Qingyu looked around, unable to believe it, “Your family needs a steward for this small piece of land?”

Jiang Xing explained weakly, “The steward isn’t mine alone. He’s the steward for all the owners but it is a personalized service. It comes with high-end properties and is part of the 20,000 to 30,000 yuan property management fee…” Seeing that Lin Qingyu was about to say something, Jiang Xing clasped his hands together in apology and said humbly, “Don’t scold me. Please don’t scold me. This child is well aware of his poverty.”

Lin Qingyu swallowed back his words and comforted him, “Things will get better.”

The dishes Lin Qingyu ordered were considered home-cooked dishes among the rich and powerful in the Dayu. But now they were in a foreign country. The taste naturally won’t be the same. It should have been improved. He tasted a few ingredient combinations he had never tried before. The taste was more layered.

Jiang Xing asked him, “Is it delicious?”

Lin Qingyu nodded lightly. “It’s not bad. It has its own distinct style, different from those produced by the Dayu’s Shangshi Bureau. It’s hard to tell which is better.”

Jiang Xing said in a drawn out manner, “It’s the least we can expect from a two-star Michelin restaurant.”

Lin Qingyu wondered. “What is Michelin?”

Jiang Xing earnestly educated his wife. “It’s a kind of tire.”

It is a joy to watch a beauty dine. Jiang Xing too had learned dining etiquette when he was a child but his loose personality and laziness made him want to eat in bed. How could his feigned for-outsiders manners compare to Lin Qingyu’s innate elegance?

When Lin Qingyu lowered his head to eat, his long hair would fall forward was well. He had to push back his hair from his face like a girl with long hair.

So fucking cute. Such an adorable beauty, could he really reign in all the civil and military officials as prime minister?

Jiang Xing was watching him with much enthusiasm when the landline in the living room rang, it was a call from the property manager. “Jiang Tongxue, I got your package and I’ve already sent someone to deliver it to you.”

“Okay, thank you.” Jiang Xing accepted the package then went to the study and rummaged through it. When he returned to the dining room, he had an old mobile phone in hand.

“This is the mobile phone I just got rid of and there’s a SIM card in it.” He said to Lin Qingyu, “It seems that an ID card is required to apply for new SIM cards so you can use this one in the meantime.”

Lin Qingyu said, “Alright, bring it here.”

Jiang Xing didn’t understand. “Bring what over there?”

Lin Qingyu asked suspiciously, “Aren’t you going to give me your old phone?”

“I’m just taking out the card inside.” Jiang Xing looked at him incredulously, “You even want to use my old phone? How dare you!”

Lin Qingyu raised his eyebrows. “What do you mean?”

“How could I possibly let you use my old mobile phone?” Jiang Xing held up the brand new box in his hand, “I’ve already taken you as my wife so, of course, you have to have the latest model.”

Lin Qingyu said helplessly, “There you go again. Aren’t you tired of this game?”

“Huh? Why did you say ‘again’?”

Lin Qingyu said, “Every time you give me something, it’s all very sudden and there’s never any warning.”

Jiang Xing was very satisfied. “As expected of me.” He opened the box and inside was a white mobile phone, “But this time, there was a warning.”

Lin Qingyu was slightly taken aback and then he understood. “This time doesn’t count and I don’t understand these things. If I did, I would definitely have been able to see through it.”

“That’s alright. If you don’t understand, I can teach you.” Jiang Xing inserted the SIM card and activated it, “First, I’ll teach you how to call me.”

“I’ll learn how to use the mobile phone later,” Lin Qingyu said, “I’ll finish watching the TV show first.”

“What show?”

What Lin Qingyu was so engrossed in was a Hong Kong police drama. Jiang Xing cut several kinds of fruits in the kitchen and brought them to the living room. He saw Lin Qingyu sitting on the carpet, staring intently at the TV.

“Qingyu, you shouldn’t sit so close to the TV or your eyes will tire.” Jiang Xing was stunned hearing himself say that and he couldn’t help complaining, “Hold on, I’m starting to sound like an old amah.”

Lin Qingyu raised his head to look at Jiang Xing. He stretched out his hands towards him. “Alright then, please carry me to the soft chair.”

Jiang Xing put down the fruit plate and sounded his agreement as nonchalantly as he could.

Don’t panic, you can do this. You can do this. This is your wife who you’ve been married to for more than four years. You’ve slept together who knows how many times. Right now, he’s just asking you to carry him, that’s all. Why the fuck as you so nervous?

After making the proper mental preparations, Jiang Xing calmly picked up the clingy beauty and placed him on the sofa. He told him, “This soft chair is called a sofa.”

Lin Qingyu said, “I’ll kept that in mind.” Michelin and sofa. He learned two new words today.

Lin Qingyu seemed completely unaware of his subconsciously acting spoiled just now. His attention was still all on the TV. Jiang Xing sat down beside him and watched TV with him. The air conditioner was turned on a little low, Lin Qingyu covered his shoulders with a thin blanket and automatically leaned his head on Jiang Xing’s shoulders.

Lin Qingyu’s movements were so natural. It seemed that they’d done something similar countless times before.

But the problem was, he didn’t remember. Lin Qingyu’s casual words and actions were huge physical and mental stimulus to him.

This really made him look so naive. It’s so unfair.

Jiang Xing was filled with so much grief and indignation that he didn’t even register what was on TV. Until he heard Lin Qingyu ask, “Jiang Xing, what’s that?”

Jiang Xing glanced at the screen, where a gunfight between police and gangsters was playing out. “Those are handguns, firearms. They use gunpowder to fire bullets. One of the most common weapons in modern times.”

“Weapon?” Lin Qingyu looked at the gun in the protagonist’s hand and watched as he knocked down an enemy in the blink of an eye, “It seems to be more powerful than Qingyun Jiuzhou Spear.”

“That’s right. Times have changed, My Lord.”

“And how does that compare to my little poisonous snake?”

“The gun is probably more powerful. I’m guessing your little poisonous snake would still need some time for its poison to take effect.”

Lin Qingyu’s eyes twinkled with excitement. “It’s that powerful? I want it.”

Jiang Xing couldn’t help laughing. “That’s a really tall order. Here, only the police can have guns. This way, it’ll be faster for them to catch and subdue the bad guys.”

“What kind of crime did that man commit for the police to catch him?”

Jiang Xing could only guess the plot based on fragmented details. “It seems he seduced a minor or something.”

Lin Qingyu frowned. “So it’s against the law to seduce minors? And if you do, you’ll be caught by the police with guns?”

“More or less.”

Lin Qingyu fell into deep thought. After a long time, he sat up slowly, moved his head away from Jiang Xing’s shoulder and shifted a bit away. “Jiang Xing, I actually lied to you.”

“Ah?”

When we were in the Dayu, we weren’t husband and wife, but brothers with different surnames, sworn brothers.”

Jiang Xing: “…”

“Truly, we made an oath with blood and swore before heaven and earth.”

What Lin Qingyu said was true. When Jiang Xing was still Lu Wancheng, he’d clamored every day for them to call each other ‘brother’. Later on, he acquiesced and they held a ceremony to be sworn brothers.

Jiang Xing was silent for nearly a minute. Then he suddenly smiled. “Come on, it’s too late for you to say this now.” He leaned back on the sofa, looking lazy. He raised his hand and touched Lin Qingyu’s cheek with his fingertips, “Although I haven’t remembered everything, I can feel it—I’m certain of it. You’re my wife.”