Chapter 96: I think my wife is not very satisfied

“You…” Zhong Li stared at him in shock, her tongue tied for a moment.

Xiao Ci rolled over on top of her, pressing her down and moving her hand away from his chest, then continued pulling at the ties of her robe with a calm and steady tone. “I’ve learned some other positions. Wife, want to try and see if you’re satisfied?”

Zhong Li’s pupils trembled slightly. “W-When did you learn that?”

He tugged the ties open, flicked his fingertips, revealing the lotus-colored undergarment beneath. “I also want to ask wife, where did you hear there are so many positions for this?”

“When Aunt Song was still here before, she once showed me a picture book and taught me…”

“If you knew so early, why didn’t you bring it to watch together with me?”

“I thought you weren’t indulgent in such matters, so I assumed you wouldn’t like to see it.”

“You’re wrong, I quite like to watch.” Xiao Ci peeled off the last layer of bindings, pulled a book from the pillow beside them, flipped a few pages, and held it up for her to see. “How about trying this move tonight?”

Zhong Li tilted her head to look, her small face instantly flushing red. “N-No, no, maybe it’s better not to…”

“Not better.” Xiao Ci flipped her over, brushed aside the silk strands covering the side of her face, and kissed her.

“Don’t, Xiao Ci…” Half of Zhong Li’s face was buried in the pillow, the other half pressed against him as he kissed from her ear downward, finally coaxing her to speak honestly. “Actually, it wasn’t because of those things that I left you.”

“I know,” Xiao Ci slightly pulled away, his large hand slowly covering hers, which was tightly clutching the quilt in resistance, gently stroking it. “I know what you truly care about.”

He had long seen through her deep insecurities, knowing she felt unworthy, thinking the two of them were not a good match. He deliberately protected her sensitivity and had never brought it up.

“If the Xiao family really cared about matching status, even the real Xia Zhiyi wouldn’t be suitable to marry me,” he bit her slightly parted lips, stunned by the sudden kiss, and after kissing her passionately, he grabbed her waist and lifted her up. “Don’t think about that anymore. Tonight, feel me carefully…”

There was only a small oil lamp burning in the room originally, but Xiao Ci had intentionally lit an extra candle on the bedside table to follow the book’s instructions.

The warm light from the candle flickered slightly with the sway of the curtains, stubbornly guarding this small patch of brightness.

The bed creaked with a “creak” sound, Xiao Ci froze for a moment: the new bed just changed, how could it creak?
Then he realized the faint sound was not from their bed, but from next door.

They had thought that blocking the door would keep everything quiet, but the wall was not soundproof either. The neighbors must have known the walls were thin and controlled all other noises, but the creaking of the bed was unavoidable.

“Do you often hear sounds like this?” Xiao Ci asked Zhong Li.

Her face reddened until it seemed to bleed. “This is the second time.”

The neighbor Lin Da Ge worked away from home. Sometimes he came back early, sometimes late, so it wasn’t every night.

Zhong Li heard it once shortly after moving here. At first, she didn’t think much of it, but later, when she noticed the rhythmic pattern, she realized what was really happening.

What was frustrating now was that both she and Xiao Ci heard the sounds together. Zhong Li felt that Xiao Ci was about to finish, but after a brief pause, he seemed to have regained his strength.

He loosened one hand from her waist, flipped to the next page of the book on the pillow, marked the key points, then grabbed her shoulder, helped her lie on her side, and lifted one of her legs…

In the end, Zhong Li’s mind spun in confusion. When the sound next door stopped, she thought it was finally over, but then he flipped another page of the book…

When it finally ended, she heard him bite her ear and ask if she was satisfied.

Zhong Li was so exhausted she barely had strength to breathe, only managing a weak hum of “Mm.” He misunderstood her: “Looks like wife is not very satisfied. Husband will continue to improve tomorrow night.”

Improve more?
Tomorrow, Zhong Li would just take that book and burn it under the stove.

The next day, when Zhong Li sneakily did just that, it was Xiao Ci who found out.
She feebly explained, “The firewood was a bit damp and wouldn’t catch fire, so I tried this.”

“No matter.” Although he knew her true thoughts, he still smiled and agreed, “Either way, I’ve already memorized it. Burn it then.”

That night, no unusual sounds came from next door, but the curtains above her head swayed all night long.

This continued for five consecutive nights. Such a good new locust wood bed already showed signs of looseness after only five nights.

Luckily, on the seventh day, the county magistrate came to visit, saying there had been a silver warehouse theft case and asking Xiao Ci to assist with the investigation.

A theft at the treasury was no small matter. Xiao Ci went to the government office to help, returning very late that night.
Perhaps tired from the day’s investigation, he rested early with just one visit.

The treasury theft was not difficult for Xiao Ci to solve; in two days he had found the key evidence and identified the suspect. The county magistrate and deputy magistrate wanted to host a banquet to thank him, but Xiao Ci politely declined and hurried home.

Dusk fell, shadows spread, and the small courtyard had its door wide open. Before he could enter, the old lady’s cries came from inside.

Xiao Ci’s heart tightened and he quickened his steps into the yard, seeing Zhong Li’s grandmother sitting on the doorstep crying, with Sister Lin from the Lin family trying to comfort her.

Looking around, the courtyard was a mess.

Xiao Ci stepped forward.

Sister Lin looked anxious. “It’s no good. This afternoon a group of men came and kidnapped A Li…”

“How long ago?”

“Why not report to the authorities?” He was right at the government office. If they had reported it, he could have received the news sooner.

Sister Lin still trembled with fear. “That group has backing up top. They forbid us from reporting or threatened we’d suffer worse. You are new neighbors here; none of us dared to take that risk…”

“I understand. Please take care of grandmother. I’ll go find A Li.”

“Do you know where to look for her?”

“Yes.” Besides the Xia family, who else?

Xiao Ci had originally planned to go to the Xia family before returning to the capital to annul his marriage contract with Xia Zhiyi and establish a new one with Zhong Li. He hadn’t gone yet, and now the Xia family was already causing trouble for Zhong Li.

When they first married, he had accompanied Zhong Li—then pretending to be Xia Zhiyi—on her homecoming. He had deliberately memorized the Xia family’s address.

On the way, he stopped by the county office. The county magistrate readily lent him ten constables. When he arrived at the Xia family, the moon was high, but the main gate was tightly closed. The gatekeeper asked who he was.

“Lesser Minister of the Ministry of Justice, Xiao Ci.”

From inside came mocking laughter. “Who’s the fraud? Coming here to cheat us in the dead of night?”

Xiao Ci ignored the taunts and had the constables knock on the main door. “Official business, open up quickly!”

The door then opened. The formerly arrogant gatekeeper saw the two rows of constables and panicked, preparing to report inside.

Xiao Ci directly led the men in.

Xia Father and Xia Mother, having heard the news, hurried to the front courtyard to greet him. “Son-in-law, when did you arrive in Jingzhou? Why didn’t you write in advance? So I could have prepared a welcome banquet…”

His usually calm eyes turned cold. Xiao Ci had no patience for nonsense. “Where is A Li?”

“Son-in-law, I’m sure you’re here to settle accounts with Zhong Li…”

The Xia family had only recently learned Zhong Li had run away. They’d finally tracked her down today. Having caused such a huge mess, they naturally wouldn’t let her go easily. After capturing her, they had punished her and locked her up temporarily. Xia Father hadn’t yet figured out how to fix this when Xiao Ci arrived.

Seeing the constables behind him, Xia Father thought he was here to arrest Zhong Li and quickly shifted all the blame onto her.

“Son-in-law, please hear me out. The substitution marriage was never our Xia family’s intention. Our daughter Zhiyi was also deceived by Zhong Li. It was Zhong Li’s maid who instigated Zhiyi to escape the marriage, then had you marry in her place. We only found out after it happened…”

“Oh really? Xia Father, your skill at twisting truth and lies truly reaches new heights.” Coldness radiated from Xiao Ci’s eyes, forcing Xia Father to lower his head. “I’ll ask again—where is A Li?”

Only then did Xia Father realize things were not as simple as he had imagined.

“Son-in-law…”

“Don’t call me that anymore. I never married a daughter of the Xia family. There is no son-in-law or father-in-law here.” Xiao Ci passed through the main hall and walked straight inside. “Take me to find A Li.”

Xia Father was speechless, sweating profusely as unease grew in his heart.

It was too late to lie that Zhong Li wasn’t there now. Xia Father gritted his teeth and had the steward lead the way to the backyard servants’ quarters, where Zhong Li was locked in the farthest west room.

The door was locked from the outside. The steward’s hand trembled as he tried the key, but it slipped from his grasp before reaching the lock and fell to the floor.

Bending down to pick it up, another long and slender hand beat him to it, precisely finding the key and unlocking the door swiftly.

The copper lock and key dropped to the floor as Xiao Ci stepped inside.

The room was unlit, only faint, dull light filtering in from a dim courtyard lantern outside the corridor.

“Who?” The figure curled up in the corner spoke in a fearful voice.

“A Li,” Xiao Ci hurried over, kneeled, and helped her up. “It’s me.”

She was injured. At his touch, she winced and let out a low breath.

Xiao Ci carried her out of the servants’ quarters and, following the courtyard light, roughly checked her injuries.

There were finger marks on her cheeks and other unknown injuries. When he touched her arm, she flinched—it was clear her arm was injured too.

“My right arm is dislocated, and my foot is sprained…” she said weakly.

These were caused by the rough pulling when she was kidnapped.

“Besides these three injuries, any others?”

Zhong Li shook her head.

Though only three injuries, it was enough evidence to arrest those who bullied her and send them to the magistrate’s office.

Xiao Ci first carried her to the carriage to settle her, then returned to the Xia family. With the constables, he arrested Xia Father, the steward, and others on charges of illegal kidnapping, imprisonment, and assault.

This case, he would personally interrogate.

Xia Father, pressed by the constables, lost all dignity. “Sir… Xiao Daqing, I am still an official of the imperial court.”

“An official of the imperial court?” Xiao Ci sneered coldly. “Thanks for reminding me, Xia Father. Officials who knowingly break the law deserve an even heavier punishment.”