An Sheng kissed her passionately, without the slightest restraint or technique. The desperate way he held her, as if he wanted to swallow A Mei whole, was truly startling.
He pressed A Mei beneath him and caressed her wantonly. Only after she had been thoroughly overwhelmed by his attentions did she place both hands against his chest and push weakly, pouting coquettishly. “Oh, husband, wait. Stop kissing me. A Mei still wants to take a boat on the lake and listen to music.”
An Sheng was kissing and licking his way slowly down her neck. Hearing this, he buried his face even more deeply. When he spoke, his warm breath spilled over the sensitive hollow beneath her neck, his voice coaxing and tender. “I’m only kissing you, not doing anything else. Be good and let me kiss you a little longer.”
A Mei’s body trembled beneath his kisses. Panting, she managed to speak in broken phrases. “Husband, honestly… how can you never get enough of kissing me?”
“Not enough. When it comes to my wife, I can never have enough.”
Their breathing gradually grew quicker, mingling with the murmured words of the young couple as they whispered and clung to each other. It was only after some time that their breaths slowly calmed.
When the two finally rose from the couch, their clothes were already in complete disarray. A Mei’s hairpins were askew, her hair disheveled, and her little face flushed bright red.
She raised her face halfway, her eyes filled with both bashfulness and reproach. As she tidied her hair, she glared at An Sheng. “Husband, just look at what you’ve done. You’ve messed up my hair, and now I have to redo my makeup.”
“And my clothes too. They’re all wrinkled. Hmph, I’m angry with you.”
A Mei continued to grumble as she spoke, then turned to look for a mirror so she could restore her appearance.
The young woman was lively and charming. Even her complaints came wrapped in coquettish sweetness. With her lips pursed adorably and her makeup in disarray, she looked even more alluring and captivating in An Sheng’s eyes. His heart grew hotter by the moment.
A Mei had barely taken two steps when he stretched out his long arm and caught her by the wrist. With a sudden tug, he pulled her into his embrace.
Taken by surprise, A Mei let out a startled cry before her whole body crashed against his chest. As the large hand wrapped around her waist tightened, her eyes widened. She pressed a fist against his chest, her eyes glistening as they flickered mischievously. Her voice was both coquettish and indignant.
“Ah, husband! Are you ever going to stop? It isn’t even night yet. I’ve truly been so tired these past few days. Let’s not wear ourselves out again.”
A feverish, almost frenzied desire churned in An Sheng’s eyes. He held himself back so fiercely that the veins in his arms bulged. He wanted nothing more than to tear away every piece of clothing from A Mei’s body and press her beneath him so he could do whatever he pleased.
But wanting something was one thing. He would never do it—and he could not bear to.
Especially when he looked at the little wife he had spoiled into becoming ever more willful and pampered.
Yes, that was right. He did not dare.
He truly did not dare. For nothing else, if he really angered A Mei, even a single tear from her would be enough to break his heart.
He truly loved her.
She was his wife, after all. Naturally, he had to cherish, indulge, and protect her. Though An Sheng was a eunuch—vicious, ruthless, brutal, and capable of slaughter—he would be the first to despise himself if he ever sought pleasure by tormenting his own woman.
Thinking of this, An Sheng drew a deep breath. When he spoke again, his voice was husky. “Be good, my wife. I won’t tire you out. Just let me hold you a little longer—only for a little while.”
His words filled A Mei’s heart with a sudden, indescribable sweetness. She wriggled coquettishly, pressed her fair cheek against his burning chest, and felt the rapid, excited beat of his heart at such close range. The corners of her lips curved upward as she answered softly, “Mm, all right, then.”
An Sheng added, “Good A Mei, I’ll personally help you fix your hair in a little while.”
“Mm, all right.”
Suddenly, A Mei called softly, “Husband.”
“Mm?”
A Mei lifted her little face, her bright, limpid eyes blinking at him.
An Sheng lowered his gaze and smiled. Looking at her, he was so gentle that it was almost absurd. “What is it?”
A Mei smiled until her brows curved like crescents, radiant and dazzling. “Everything you do for me, all the care and tenderness you show me—I keep it all in my heart. A Mei really, really likes her husband.”
An Sheng lightly touched the tip of her nose. His eyes were filled with affection and love for the woman in his arms, almost overflowing. “You’re my wife. If I didn’t treat you well, whom else would I treat well?”
The corners of A Mei’s mouth rose high. Then, suddenly, her eyes shifted mischievously. She blinked and called out, “Husband, husband.”
“Mm? Is there something else you want to say, my wife?”
A Mei pressed her lips together and glanced at An Sheng with sudden shyness. Hesitation flickered in her eyes, as though she found it embarrassing to speak. But then she thought that there was no need to be shy with her husband, and whispered, “I just thought of something and found it a little confusing. I want to ask you about it, but you can’t laugh at me, husband.”
An Sheng’s brows moved slightly, and he answered gently, “Ask whatever you like, my wife. I’ll tell you everything I know.”
“It’s just…” A Mei giggled. “Come closer, husband…”
She rose onto her toes and spoke with a trace of embarrassment, though her curiosity clearly outweighed her shyness.
An Sheng considerately bent down and turned his ear toward her, allowing her fragrant, warm breath to brush against it.
“It’s a little embarrassing to say out loud, but I’m really curious. Just as A Mei and you are intimate with each other, I imagine you want it too. We’re practically together every night, and it makes me feel happy and fulfilled. But what about those officials who have wives and concubines by the dozens? They have only one husband, yet so many wives and concubines. Can all those women really be satisfied?”
An Sheng: “…”
What a question.
Even An Sheng, who considered himself scheming and experienced in all things, fell into an unsettling silence.
But A Mei was still gazing up at him with eager curiosity, waiting for an answer. A strange, amused look crossed his eyes. The corners of his mouth twitched as he struggled to contain his laughter. After thinking for a moment, he finally spoke slowly.
“A Mei, as for what goes on in other people’s bedrooms, even with all my influence and connections, I couldn’t possibly know. I’m afraid I can’t answer that for you.”
“However, under imperial rule, men have always been considered superior to women. Of the four things—food, drink, pleasure, and amusement—which one is not shaped by power and status? And those who control power and status are all men. How could those in high positions lower themselves to please those beneath them? Do you understand what I mean, A Mei?”
A Mei blinked. Once she grasped the deeper meaning behind his words and generalized it to everything, she could not help but feel moved by the tenderness and protection her husband, as a man of high status, showed her. Her eyes instantly shone like the stars in the heavens.
“I understand.”
“Heehee, it’s so wonderful that I have you, husband. You truly are the best person in the whole world to A Mei. I’m going to cling to you in this life, the next life, and every life after that.”
A Mei’s straightforward sweet talk delighted An Sheng. He laughed softly, his heart full of joy. “You really are something. Who knows what nonsense goes on in that little head of yours all day?”
Only then did A Mei belatedly feel embarrassed and shy. She twisted back and forth in his arms. “Oh, come on. I told you not to laugh at me, husband. I just happened to be curious about it.”
“How could I laugh at you? I only think my wife is utterly adorable.”
A Mei stuck out her tongue playfully. “You’ve said that before.”
An Sheng immediately lowered his head and lightly kissed the tip of her moist, gleaming tongue. The contact lasted only an instant before he pulled away, a doting smile curving his lips.
“That’s something I can say for the rest of our lives.”
