Douzi, who had returned home from the family's outer residence, finally got to meet his brother-in-law to his heart's content.
The whole family was gathered around the table for their evening meal.
Douzi dragged his small bench over to squeeze between An Sheng and A Mei. He turned his head to the right to glance at his older sister, then twisted to the left to look at his brother-in-law, so overjoyed that he was barely holding back from jumping up and down on the spot.
An Sheng looked at his young brother-in-law sitting before him, and the more he looked, the fonder he grew of the boy. He coughed softly, then asked about Douzi's schoolwork with a rare show of warmth.
Douzi immediately told An Sheng all about the lessons his tutor had taught at the Imperial College recently.
After listening, An Sheng nodded, and casually quizzed him on a passage from a classic text.
Douzi started reciting it right away, but a little flustered, he accidentally made two mistakes.
An Sheng listened patiently until Douzi finished, then pointed out the two errors.
"Oh, right, brother-in-law, Douzi gets it now!" Douzi's round eyes were brimming with nothing but pure adoration, and he piped up crisply, "Brother-in-law is so amazing, you know everything!"
Off to the side, A Mei suddenly let out a quiet laugh. She first picked up some food and put it in An Sheng's bowl, then served Douzi a chunk of his favorite braised pork. "Alright, hurry up and eat, or the food will get cold."
At that moment, A Mei's cheeks were flushed, and she was smiling so brightly and charmingly that every little movement she made carried a distinct, alluring softness and ease. That look of utter happiness and calm was so captivating that anyone who saw her could barely tear their eyes away.
To Douzi, his older sister looked unbelievably pretty, and he couldn't help but blurt out, "Huh, A Mei, did you put on rouge today?"
A Mei froze, "Why would you say that?"
Douzi blinked, "I just realized my sister looks so much more beautiful today."
A Mei: ...
Being praised for her looks by her little brother in front of her adoptive father and her own father, who were both still sitting at the table, made A Mei suddenly feel quite flustered. She set down her chopsticks, unconsciously lifting a hand to touch her cheek. Any woman would be happy to be told she looked pretty, and she was holding back glee in her chest even as the corners of her mouth kept tugging upward. "Is that so? But I didn't put on any makeup today."
Just then, An Sheng raised his chopsticks and playfully tapped the top of Douzi's head, speaking in a mock-chiding tone, "Hey kid, what kind of talk is that? Are you looking for a spanking? When is your sister not pretty?"
Douzi let out a little "ah", nodded in confusion, then grinned widely at An Sheng and chuckled, his tone firm, "Brother-in-law is right, my sister is always pretty. But she just looks different today, like even more beautiful. Don't you agree, brother-in-law? Look at her closely, you'll see!"
An Sheng's slender eyes settled on A Mei's face. What met his gaze were her rosy lips and cheeks dusted with a soft pink, and there was a faint, dazed, enticing glow in his eyes. An Sheng knew better than anyone how tender and languid her body was after they had shared their intimacy just earlier. Thinking through all that had happened, he swallowed, his dark eyes glinting, as he looked at A Mei with a far deeper, more intense gaze...
Then he murmured softly, "Yes, she really does look beautiful."
The second those words left his mouth, A Mei's face flushed even brighter red. An Sheng's unashamedly hot, direct stare made her heart flutter so fast she felt both shy and flustered. She snuck a quick glance at her adoptive father and her father first, and saw that they were focused on their own meals and not paying attention to their side, which made her relax a little. Then she threw a reproachful glare at An Sheng, and for good measure, shot him another one.
An Sheng did not hide his feelings at all. A mischievous smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth, and he kept staring straight at A Mei, even deliberately running his tongue over his lower lip. The unspoken implication was so ambiguous, so thick with soft, romantic tension, you could almost feel it hanging in the air...
A Mei: ...
A Mei's ears burned from An Sheng's shamelessness, so she simply turned her head away and refused to look at him any longer.
