Quick Transmigration: Why did you provoke him? He's love-struck!

Chapter 144 Canglan Ferry (14)

It was getting late, and Yan Zhen was feeling sleepy. She called her maids and servants to prepare hot water, and after washing up, she prepared to go to sleep.

Then the two discovered a problem—there was only one bed in the bamboo garden.

Pei Ji stared at her for a while, then said, "I'll go sleep on the daybed in the outer room."

He turned to go to the outer room, but Yan Zhen stopped him: "There are so many maids outside. If they see us sleeping in separate beds, Yan Jinhe will know tomorrow that our relationship is not as close as it seems. You want to expose us so soon after entering the Duke's mansion?"

Pei Ji hesitated and asked, "What should we do then?"

Yan Zhen stepped onto the bed, sat down on the inside, and patted the bed: "What else can I do? I'll just sleep in the same bed as any ordinary husband and concubine."

Pei Ji's ears turned slightly red, as if he were thinking about something.

Yan Zhen ignored his complicated thoughts, lifted the covers and crawled in, quickly falling into a drowsy sleep.

After hesitating for a long time, Pei Ji finally got into bed and lay down next to Yan Zhen.

This was the first time in his life that he had slept in the same bed with a woman other than his mother. Listening to the gradually even breathing of the person beside him, he lay stiffly and awkwardly, unable to fall asleep for a long time.

After an unknown amount of time, Pei Ji finally managed to drift off to sleep when the person beside him suddenly kicked off the blanket, rolled over, and put one leg on top of him.

Pei Ji tensed up, his body stiffened, and he secretly glanced at Yan Zhen.

She wasn't awake; the action was purely subconscious.

Pei Ji felt extremely uncomfortable being pressed down on, so he gritted his teeth and quietly moved Yan Zhen's legs back to their original position before lying down again.

But less than fifteen minutes later, Yan Zhen unconsciously clung to him again, this time using him as a pillow, using his hands and feet, and pressing half of his body against him.

Pei Ji: "..."

Feeling Yan Zhen's warm breath so close to him, he froze on the bed like a piece of wood.

……

Perhaps knowing that Pei Ji was skilled in martial arts, and having such a fellow ally, Yan Zhen lowered his guard and slept soundly.

When Yan Zhen woke up in the morning, Pei Ji was already up and was getting dressed with the help of a maid, his back to Yan Zhen, preparing to go to the Ministry of Justice for his shift.

"Good morning," Yan Zhen greeted, rubbing his eyes.

Pei Ji: "...Good morning."

His voice was muffled, clearly indicating he was unhappy.

Yan Zhen noticed his slight mood, but originally didn't intend to pay attention to it. After all, the two were just business partners, and she had no obligation to help Pei Ji with his emotions.

But when Pei Ji turned around, two obvious dark circles were visible under his eyes. Yan Zhen asked in surprise, "Didn't you sleep well?"

Pei Ji: "..."

She should have kept her question in check, because the moment she asked, Pei Ji glared at her and said, "What do you think?"

Yan Zhen was puzzled by his glare and wondered if she had been snoring at night and disturbing him.

Soon, Yan Zhen lost interest in delving into the issue of whether or not he snored. No sooner had Pei Ji left than several maids and a matron arrived at Zhuyuan, bringing several sets of clothes and jewelry.

The old woman smiled and said, "Miss Jiang, this is a gift from our madam. She said that since you are new here, if there is anything you are not used to in the manor, please feel free to tell her. From now on, we are all family, and the madam will do her best to meet your needs."

Yan Zhen looked at the bright red dress on the tray and recalled how Jiang Li had appeared at the old lady's birthday banquet in bright red in her previous life and was publicly reprimanded and humiliated.

Now that she and Pei Ji have returned to the mansion ahead of schedule, and there is still quite some time before the old lady's birthday banquet, Yan Jinhe still used the same trick to deal with her.

Is this an attempt to make her appear as an "unruly," "rude," and "country bumpkin" person in everyone's eyes as soon as she arrives?

Fine, since the opportunity has come to her, she might as well take the chance to be a little "arrogant".

“Madam is very generous.” Yan Zhen arrogantly raised his chin. “I have accepted the gifts. Go back and tell Madam that the furniture in the Bamboo Garden is too cold and hard. I don’t like it. Tell her to change it. She needs a large wardrobe, a dressing table, and a large bed. The furniture must be made of chicken wing wood. I’m not used to cheap wood.”

The old woman was taken aback.

Anyone with eyes could tell that what she said just now was just polite talk, but this wild girl was not polite at all, asking for this and that right away, and acting so matter-of-factly.

What do you take her wife for?

"This……"

"What, is it not allowed?" Yan Zhen noticed the old woman's predicament and deliberately asked, "Or is it that Madam is just putting on a show to gain a good reputation for treating her concubines well in front of outsiders, but in reality, she can't even meet this small request of mine?"

"No, no, no." With such a huge accusation leveled against her, the nanny quickly said, "I will convey the young lady's request to the madam."

"That's more like it." Yan Zhen rolled his eyes and touched his lower abdomen in a pretentious manner: "I'm carrying the future little prince in my belly. If you dare to fob me off, be careful I'll report you to the prince and make you regret it."

"..."

The old woman left, looking pale and sickly.

After having breakfast, Yan Zhen prepared to change his clothes and go for a stroll in the Duke's mansion garden.

As soon as she showed some hesitation in the face of the several sets of clothes that Yan Jinhe had sent, the maid next to her came up with a fawning smile: "Miss Jiang has fair skin. In my opinion, this red suits you best. The young master will surely be pleased to see you."

Yan Zhen glanced at her.

If she wasn't mistaken, this maid was an informant sent by Yan Jinhe to sow discord and gather intelligence.

I need to find a chance to get rid of her.

Yan Zhen picked up the red dress and held it up against the mirror: "Good taste, it really looks good—what's your name?"

"My name is Mingyu."

"Mingyu, serve him well," Yan Zhen said. "Given the prince's favor towards me, once I give birth to the Duke's great-grandson, who knows who will be in charge of this household in the future? If you follow me, you'll definitely get your share of the benefits."

Mingyu lowered her head, concealing the disdain in her eyes: "Yes."

At Mingyu's suggestion, Yan Zhen changed into a bright red brocade dress with silver threads and a hundred flowers. Her long hair was tied up in a bun, adorned with flowers and a crown. She wore a pair of purple jade and gold tassel earrings on her earlobes, a flower decoration on her forehead, a gold necklace hanging in front of her dress, and a matching shawl over her shoulders. She was as flamboyant as could be.

Wearing this arrogant outfit, Yan Zhen, accompanied by Ming Yu, left the Bamboo Garden and headed to the back garden of the Duke's Mansion to admire the flowers.

There is a lotus pond in the back garden of the Duke's Mansion. In June, the lotus flowers in the pond are in full bloom.

Yan Zhen strolled along the lotus pond, when he soon heard a surprised female voice behind him: "Who's that up ahead?"

Yan Zhen turned around and saw Yan Jinhe and a woman in her thirties coming together, surrounded by servants.

Yan Zhen had seen that woman yesterday when he entered the Duke's mansion; she was Feng, the second wife's aunt.

Last night, Pei Ji explained the background of the Duke's family to her. The second branch was a son born out of wedlock who failed the imperial examination and was unable to enter officialdom. He married a merchant's daughter and is now unemployed at home, with little presence.

However, Madam Feng was an ambitious woman. In her early years, she saw that Madam Xu, the mother of Pei Wangzhou, only knew how to dress herself up and was incompetent in managing the household. Madam Feng once wanted to ask the old lady for some of the management rights.

After being repeatedly rejected, she shifted her focus to pleasing Yan Jinhe, hoping to find a good husband for her daughter through him.

When the two arrived, Madam Feng immediately noticed Yan Zhen's attire. Upon seeing that she did not bow to the elders and the principal wife, she frowned.

"Aren't you the girl the young master brought back? Why don't you bow to the madam and elders?"