Chapter Eighty-Eight: The Frightened Chen Miaoyi

Xu Mo thought it over and said, "You are not allowed to lie to me."

Chen Miaoyi sat up and murmured with her back to him, "It has always been my husband who has deceived me. When have I ever deceived him?"

Hearing this, Xu Mo could not help but feel a pang of tenderness. He sat up at once and drew her gently into his arms.

Seeing that he was only holding her and making no improper move, Chen Miaoyi let him be.

At that very moment, voices from the front room suddenly came from outside: Xu Tieshu and Xu Ping'an had returned. Startled, Chen Miaoyi hurried to her feet.

"Husband, let's go out quickly. Uncle and the others are back," she said in a fluster.

Xu Mo stood up at an unhurried pace. "So they've come back. Why are you so nervous? They won't come in."

Chen Miaoyi did not bother arguing. She turned, pulled him up, quickly straightened herself, and went to open the bedroom door.

Fearing that Xu Tieshu would notice how red her face was, Chen Miaoyi kept her head down, hurried through the front room, and slipped into the kitchen.

Xu Hui was already busy in the kitchen. Seeing her sister-in-law come in, she was just about to speak when she noticed the flush on her face.

Xu Hui immediately laughed, then asked in a low voice, "Sister-in-law, it's not even dark yet, and you're already being affectionate with Cousin in the room?"

Chen Miaoyi grew mortified at once. She reached out and pinched Xu Hui's arm, making the girl wince in pain.

"If you keep teasing me, I'll ignore you!" Chen Miaoyi said, half ashamed and half annoyed.

Xu Hui hurried to apologize, then said, "Sister-in-law, I wasn't teasing you. I'm saying you have to strike while the iron is hot and quickly give my cousin a chubby little son."

"Oh, you little girl, why are you so shameless? If anyone's having a baby, it should be you. Why do you keep urging me?" Chen Miaoyi said, unable to meet her eyes.

Xu Hui said, "I'm not even married yet. Who am I supposed to have one with?"

Chen Miaoyi answered at once, "With Wood, of course. I'll speak to Uncle later and have him marry you to Wood. Then wouldn't you be able to have one?"

"Who wants to marry him? That wooden block is so dull!"

Though Xu Hui said that aloud, a ripple of happiness stirred in her heart.

In the front room, after Xu Mo came out, he began chatting with Xu Tieshu and Xu Ping'an.

What Xu Mo cared about most was the soap workshop's production.

Xu Tieshu told him that everything was running smoothly at present. Not only had they gathered a sufficient amount of wood ash, but the villagers they had hired had also become familiar with the production steps and rhythm.

Lately, soap output had been between two thousand and two thousand five hundred bars, while scented soap production was a little lower, at around five hundred bars.

In truth, the workshop's capacity could still be increased somewhat, but Xu Mo had chosen not to do so. They were currently targeting high-spending customers, and more output was not necessarily better.

To put it plainly, Xu Mo wanted the perfect rhythm: soap and scented soap would sell out, be out of stock for two or three days, leave customers a little anxious yet still willing to wait, and then be replenished just in time.

That night, inside the bedroom.

Xu Mo had already stripped naked and lay bare beneath the covers.

Chen Miaoyi was still washing up outside, and Xu Mo could faintly hear her chatting with Xu Hui.

At the thought of spending the night together with Chen Miaoyi, Xu Mo felt an inexplicable surge of excitement and anticipation.

Thus he waited in near-torturous anticipation for a full quarter of an hour, until at last footsteps sounded outside the bedroom door.

He knew that tread well. It could only be Chen Miaoyi.

Very soon, the bedroom door was pushed open, and sure enough, Chen Miaoyi came in.

"Miaoyi, has Uncle gone to sleep?" Xu Mo asked softly.

Chen Miaoyi closed the door gently, slid the bolt into place, and said, "Huihui just went to check. Uncle is already asleep."

Xu Mo was overjoyed to hear this. He could not help sitting up and tapping the bedboard twice in excitement. "Miaoyi, come here quickly."

He was not wearing clothes, and as soon as he sat up, his upper body was laid bare.

Seeing his bare chest, Chen Miaoyi immediately grew shy and flustered. She instinctively turned her face away and dared not approach the bed for the moment.

Only after Xu Mo urged her several more times did Chen Miaoyi slowly make her way to the bedside.

Even in the dim oil lamp light, Xu Mo could still clearly see the rosy flush on her face.

"Wife!"

Xu Mo leaned forward and took her hand, and with that, the way he addressed her changed all at once.

Caught off guard, Chen Miaoyi was tugged into a seated position on the bed, and her heart instantly began pounding furiously.

Xu Mo reached out to unfasten the button at her collar and said, "Wife, let me help you undress..."

Chen Miaoyi gave a start and hurriedly pressed down on his hand. "Husband, don't be so hasty. Huihui only just came in, and she still hasn't fallen asleep."

Xu Mo said, "She's just a child. She'll be asleep soon enough. Let's lie under the covers and whisper for a while first; then the timing will be just right."

Before he had even finished speaking, his hand moved again, and he quickly undid the first button at Chen Miaoyi's collar.

Chen Miaoyi was shocked. This time she grabbed both of Xu Mo's hands directly and said nervously, "Husband, I, I... I'm not quite ready yet..."

Hearing this, Xu Mo immediately frowned. "Wife, you already promised me before. You can't go back on your word!"

Chen Miaoyi shook her head at once. "No, no, I don't mean to go back on it! It's just... I'm a little scared..."

Xu Mo assumed she was afraid their movements would be heard by Uncle and the others, and so he said, "Don't worry, wife. As long as we're quieter later, no one will hear us. Trust me!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Mo undid the second button at her collar.

When the collar opened, Chen Miaoyi's graceful collarbones were revealed, and Xu Mo could not help swallowing hard at the sight.

Chen Miaoyi quickly covered the next button and said in a low voice, "Husband, I heard Fifth Aunt and the others say that when a woman is with a man for the first time, it... it hurts terribly, and there will be blood. I... I'm afraid of that..."

Xu Mo considered it, then gently soothed her. "Wife, you don't need to be so afraid. It is true that a woman's first time hurts a little, but it's not nearly as painful as you imagine."

"As for the blood, it's not nearly as frightening as you think either. Just a little bit of blood, that's all. It's the unavoidable path every woman must walk to become a woman. Once she's married, she'll go through it sooner or later; it's perfectly normal!"

Chen Miaoyi listened very attentively, her eyes blinking softly, charming beyond measure.

Xu Mo went on at once, "And let me tell you, the pain only lasts for a short while. Once it fades, it'll be very comfortable after that! Heh heh..."

As he spoke, he could not help but let out a sly chuckle.

"Comfortable? Comfortable how?" Chen Miaoyi did not understand and looked like an innocent little child driven by curiosity.

Xu Mo had not expected her to ask such a thing and was momentarily stunned. "How should I put it..."

After thinking it over seriously, Xu Mo said, "Probably a feeling of being half in heaven and half in hell, unable to stop, or perhaps like being utterly lost, intoxicated to the point of forgetting the world... In short, something like that!"

"Really?" Chen Miaoyi was half convinced, half doubtful.

Xu Mo nodded firmly. "Really! More real than gold!"

Then Xu Mo moved her hands aside and deftly undid the remaining buttons...

Before long, Chen Miaoyi's proud, lovely body was laid bare before Xu Mo.

By the glow of the oil lamp, Xu Mo admired the masterpiece before him, and only after a long while did he secretly swallow and praise from the bottom of his heart, "Wife, you are so beautiful!"

Chen Miaoyi had actually still lacked a little confidence, but after hearing her husband's praise, her self-assurance rose in an instant.

At that moment, Xu Mo embraced her and tried to draw her into the blankets, but unexpectedly Chen Miaoyi suddenly pushed him away.

"What is it, wife?" Xu Mo asked in confusion.

Chen Miaoyi pointed to the oil lamp on the table. "Husband, the lamp is still lit..."

As she spoke, she was about to blow it out.

Xu Mo pulled her back at once, holding her with a wicked smile. "Why blow out the lamp? Your husband prefers it a little brighter, heh heh..."

Hearing this, Chen Miaoyi instantly became mortified to the extreme, burying her face hard in Xu Mo's chest.