T/N: Thank you patrons for sponsoring this chapter.
Title: The Dreamer in the Spring Boudoir
Chapter 243 - I don't like you (2)
It was only natural for Ning Mingje to pay a visit to the marquis's estate with Old Madame being so sickly. After helping Old Madame drink her medicine, Ning Mingjie excused himself. He wanted to walk around the estate.
There were too many women in the estate, so Ji Man went with him to avoid potential accidents.
He had brought along the three case files from the Ministry of Justice. All of these cases had happened in the marquis's estate. One case involved a ghost baby, another case was a baby being replaced with a toddy kitten, and the last one was Gancao's death.
They hadn't been able to find clues for any of these three cases or figure out who was the mastermind behind them. However, for an unknown reason, Ning Mingjie looked as if he was very confident about solving these three cases. With Nie Sangyu accompanying him, it seemed as if these two people were just taking a stroll. From time to time, he would look for a few servants and chat with them as they walked around the estate.
Ji Man didn't find this bothersome at all. If Ning Mingjie really was able to find the mastermind, then perhaps, her child would also be found too. And so, it didn't matter to her how long Ning Mingjie wanted to wander around the estate, or what he wanted to do. As long as she had the free time, she would accompany him.
Instead of leaving after their stroll ended, Ning Mingjie moved back into the southern courtyard by using the excuse that he wanted to stay and show filial care towards Old Madame.
---
In the afternoon, Ji Man called over the rest of the harem and introduced them to Xishi and her baby. As the person that had become familiar with this situation the earliest, Wen Wan's expression didn't show much turmoil. As for the rest of the women, they all had their own different thoughts and feelings as they scrutinized Xishi.
---
When Marquis Moyu returned in the evening, he first went to see Old Madame, then he went to Cailian Courtyard to see Xishi and her baby. After that, he came to Feiwan Courtyard.
Lying next to Nie Sangyu, he quietly said, "Give her a rank. It shouldn't be too low."
Finding his behavior strange, Ji Man asked, "My lord, don't you genuinely care for Miss Wan-er?"
Ning Yuxuan vaguely replied, "En."
"Then, why aren't you worried that Wan-er is going to feel upset that you brought back Xishi? Xishi's baby is already so big too." Ji Man was almost speechless. "It's as if you haven't even considered her feelings at all."
Marquis Moyu cleared his throat and turned his head away as he said, "He's my child. It's only right that I bring him back. Why do I need to consider Wan-er's feelings?"
Ji Man twitched her lips. "My lord, you still haven't learned to genuinely care for someone."
Was there anyone that genuinely cared for him? Marquis Moyu sneered. He pulled her over and firmly bit her neck.
Ji Man yelped out in pain, but his lips pressed down onto hers.
In the past, when Nie Sangyu served him bed, Ning Yuxuan would absolutely never kiss her on the lips. Ji Man stretched her hands out to embrace his neck. She couldn't resist her impulse to ask him, "My lord, right now, do you like Sanggyu a little bit?"
Ning Yuxuan coldly harrumphed. He pinched her waist and asked, "Do you like me?"
Ji Man blinked. "Sangyu has always liked you."
She had the nerve to say that she liked him? Not even the slightest trace of warmth showed in her phoenix eyes as she said those words. She always looked at him as if she was just watching an actor on a stage.
Marquis Moyu's mood plummeted. He stripped her out of her dress without any gentleness.
"Aiya, too cold..." It was winter!
A hot body very quickly covered hers. That person's lips were pressed in a flat line, and he was expressionlessly watched her. But, in the end, he couldn't resist his desires. He lowered his head and gently kissed her lips.
Because his lips were usually pressed together, Ji Man had thought they would feel very stiff. But, once they started kissing, his lips felt quite soft. Feeling somewhat comfortable, Ji Man closed her eyes.
Just as this dried grass was about to burst in flames and become a mosaic of a blazing inferno, Xi-er, who was sleeping the neighboring room, began his punctual nighttime crying. His cries were very loud and quickly swept away the intimate mood.
There was a throbbing vein on Ning Yuxuan's forehead. He gritted his teeth and asked, "Where's the wet nurse?"
Ji Man hurriedly put on her clothes and said, "The wet nurse isn't good at coaxing him. I always have to sing him a lullaby before he'll go back to sleep. I'll help you put on your clothes, then I'll tell the wet nurse to bring Xi-er here."
Rubbing the spot between his eyebrows, for the first time in his life, Ning Yuxuan thought that children were actually rather troublesome.
Although the baby's cries sounded quite pitiful, there weren't actually any tears on his face. After the wet nurse fed the baby, she entered Nie Sangyu's inner room and handed the baby over to her.
Ji Man placed the baby down on an improvised cradle. As she rocked the cradle, she sang, "My dearest treasure, here's a little bit of sweetness so that you can sleep well tonight..."
She had to sing for a while before Xi-er finally fell back to sleep. Ji Man let out a sigh of relief, then she turned her head and saw Ning Yuxuan looking disdainfully at her.
"What kind of song is that? It doesn't rhyme or have any sense of rhythm."
Towards this man from ancient times that didn't know true art, Ji Man wouldn't bother arguing with him. "It's fine as long as it gets Xi-er to fall sleep."
Ning Yuxuan harrumphed.
They went back to bed, and he hugged her again.
"My lord, have you forgotten to answer my question from earlier?"
"I don't like you," he coldly replied. Then, he shifted her head so that it was resting on his chest and said, "Go to sleep."
Ji Man twitched her lips. This was really worrisome. Was Marquis Moyu just too conceited to say it aloud, or did he really not like her?