Inside the Study.

Mo Xuemin and Sima Lingyun were about done with their discussion. Mo Xuemin pushed herself out of Sima Lingyun"s embrace and stood up. She turned around worriedly and asked, "Our manor is but a few streets away from yours. The front door would definitely be chaotic then. There will be many who will come and even those from the neighboring manor would come over. If you appear at the front door, someone will definitely stop you and you won"t be able to come to the back courtyard. Or if there are too many people and you can"t leave, just take the back door. I will get the servants to open It for you."

Even though they had pretty much decided on things, Mo Xuemin still felt a little uneasy. She had always been one to consider many things. As such, she repeated her instructions to Sima Lingyun again.

"Relax, I won"t forget. Your back door is closer to the ancestral hall. I will be able to get to the ancestral hall before long. When have I ever forgotten anything you told me?" Sima Lingyun stood up behind her and reached out to hug Mo Xuemin from the back with a smile. He peered over her shoulder and kissed her, speaking lazily.

It was not difficult for them to do this subterfuge. Many would come to help if something like this happened in the Mo Manor. Then, there would be a mess and no one would care about a young lady who was being punished in the ancestral hall. Sima Lingyun had gone through the back door secretly more than once, so he knew the way well.

"Relax? I really can"t. If nothing happened in the day, do I still have to come over tonight?" Mo Xuemin wriggled out of Sima Lingyun"s embrace and said angrily. If not for what happened in the day, she could just stay by the side and watch Mo Xuetong"s disgrace.

"Min"er, how many times do I have to say this to convince you? There"s definitely something wrong with that Fourth Sister of yours. Let"s not talk about how my willpower is usually. When have I ever touched a little girl? Your Fourth Sister isn"t very beautiful, how can she dazzle me so much for me to forget what I had to do? I watched as Mo Xuetong got off the carriage and was entangled with her instead." Sima Lingyun was very angry when he thought about this. Their plan had been going well until Mo Xueqiong appeared.

Mo Xueqiong was the least attractive of the three Mo sisters. He had seen her many times in the Mo Manor. Her eyes always glowed when she saw him and she always pretended to be gentle. This irked him very much, especially when she stood beside Mo Xuetong. How could he just let Mo Xuetong get off the carriage and be with Mo Xueqiong instead? He felt sick just thinking about it.

He truly despised concubines" daughters. An insignificant concubine"s daughter had dared to covet the position as his wife. Of course, he would not say this in front of Mo Xuemin.

"I will investigate what happened with Fourth Sister. Anyway, her reputation would not be too good after this matter. If you don"t marry her but married Mo Xuetong instead, she will hate Mo Xuetong. I hope that she can be stronger and not lose straightaway to Mo Xuetong. I won"t pursue what happened between you two. I have done everything for you and I hope you understand my intentions." Mo Xuemin did not like the arrogance in Sima Lingyun"s words.

He was just from a fallen Duke"s Manor. Only someone as stupid as Mo Xueqiong would like him and treat him as a piece of treasure. However, she could not release Sima Lingyun from her grasp either right now. She naturally would not treat him badly right now. As such, she turned around and said spoke somewhat irritated. Her expression was beautiful and seductive.

"Alright, I know Min"er treats me the best. Rest a.s.sured, I will repay you. When the Duke"s Manor flourishes, I will abandon Mo Xuetong and marry you, alright?"

Mo Xuemin was beautiful under the light. Furthermore, her figure was slender and curvaceous. Sima Lingyun felt heat rush up his head. He could not help but reach out to pull Mo Xuemin into his embrace. He leaned in and kissed her beautiful lips wildly while muttering gentle nothing. His hands seemed to have a mind of their own.

Despite all their interactions, Mo Xuemin had never allowed him to go to this step. It was a rare chance for him to kiss a beautiful woman. Sima Lingyun would naturally not miss out on such an opportunity.

The room door opened with a creak, startling the pa.s.sionate pair. They looked up from their embrace with expressions of shock. Yun Yiqiu, who was standing at the door, was as pale as snow. She trembled, holding herself up with her hand on the door frame. She glared at Mo Xuemin angrily, speechless for the moment.

Mo Xuemin and Sima Lingyun reacted quickly and the moved away from each other immediately. Mo Xuemin did not know who Yun Yiqiu was, but Sima Lingyun did. He looked at Yun Yiqiu"s pale and beautiful face, biting her lips and at how she was shaking with her hand on the doorframe. If the maid had not been holding her, she would have already fallen. The expression on her beautiful and delicate face looked as if she had been dealt with a blow. Sima Lingyun could not help but felt bad for her.

Yun Yiqiu had stayed in the Duke"s Manor for many years and their relations.h.i.+p was different from others. Furthermore, the two of them had already been together. When he saw how angry and sad she was, he knew that she had heard what he said to Mo Xuemin. He moved immediately, wanting to go and comfort her.

He glanced at Mo Xuemin who had turned around calmly to fix her clothing and did not approach Yun Yiqiu in the end. He only said to her lightly, "Cousin, what are you doing here so late in the night? It is dark and cold. You had better go and sleep early. Your health is poor, you have to take care of yourself."

"Cousin…" Yun Yiqiu looked at Mo Xuemin who was fixing her clothes with an expression of disbelief. She wanted to say something, but realized that she did not know what to say. She clutched the doorframe tightly and a rush of heat surged up her chest. She bit her lips and forced down the anger she felt. She glared at Mo Xuemin viciously.

Mo Xuemin was still very calm but could not help but look away at Yun Yiqiu"s venomous glare. She picked up the veil on the table and put it over her head. She was angry at Sima Lingyun for being so useless. He had failed at what he was supposed to do outside the manor and even at home, he was entangled in a relations.h.i.+p with his own cousin. It was obvious that the two of them had already been together!

If Mo Xuemin"s future was safer and she still needed Sima Lingyun, she would have long been done with him!

"Cousin, go back first. I still have something on." Sima Lingyun felt awkward when he saw how Yun Yiqiu was glaring at Mo Xuemin angrily. He coughed and walked up to Yun Yiqiu and tried to gently persuade her to leave so that Mo Xuemin could leave. His meeting Mo Xuemin was a secret and it would be troublesome if a fuss was made.

"Cousin, the matter that you have on is to be together with her. Who is this s.l.u.t? Why is she here in your room in the middle of the night…" Yun Yiqiu"s mind was blank with only Mo Xuemin"s beautiful face in her mind. She did not care about anything else and the anger that she had held back earlier erupted. She pointed at Mo Xuemin and could not stop herself from shouting shrilly.

Her usually gentle face twisted furiously under the light. It scared Sima Lingyun so much that he rushed up to hug her while covering her mouth with his hand.

The sharp voice traveled far in the silent night. Mo Xiu, the carriage bearers and the servants were resting in the yard beside. They heard the voice and all rushed in.

When they entered, they saw Mo Xuemin leaving in a hurry with her veil on. When she saw them approaching, she got onto the carriage. Mo Xiu heaved a sigh of relief when she saw that there was no one else around them. She called for the carriage to leave and the two carriage bearers lifted the carriage with Mo Xuemin in it and hurried out of the estate while Mo Xiu followed beside the carriage with her head down.

The study"s door was half-closed. Sima Lingyun covered Yun Yiqiu"s mouth and coaxed her gently in a soft voice, "Qiu"er, be good. We don"t have a relations.h.i.+p like you think. I really needed her help which was why I did that. Look, if I really liked her, why didn"t I just take her to see mother but have to meet her as if we were having an affair?"

Tears streamed down Yun Yiqiu"s face under Sima Lingyun"s large hand. Her voice was m.u.f.fled because Sima Lingyun covered her mouth. One could only vaguely hear her saying, "Cousin, cousin." Her weak voice coupled with her messy hair on her pale face made one"s heart hurt for her.

Qiu"er, don"t be angry, listen to me alright?" Sima Lingyun wanted to let her go but was afraid that her sharp voice might lead someone to come over and ruin things. He covered her mouth and asked her repeatedly.

Yun Yiqiu almost could not breathe under his large hand. Her health had always been poorly and she had always needed a lot of medication. She felt dizzy and her ears buzzed. The only sensation she felt was herself nodding forcefully. She feared that she would suffocate if Sima Lingyun did not let go.

Sima Lingyun pulled Yun Yiqiu into his embrace the moment he released her. He patted her heaving shoulders as she gasped for air and said gently, "Qiu"er, be good, don"t make a fuss. You aren"t thinking of that, are you? If someone finds out, I have to marry her. I don"t want to marry her. I just want to marry you."

He said this very gently with eyes full of emotion. His gentle voice was like the running waters in spring, calming down Yun Yiqiu quickly. That"s right. If she made a fuss, her cousin would be embarra.s.sed. The woman would have to enter the manor because of this. Even though she did not know who the woman was, Yun Yiqiu knew that this was not the time to make a fuss.

Even though Yun Yiqiu had never seen Mo Xuetong"s face, she knew that the woman earlier was not the one her cousin wanted to marry. Her figure was completely different from Third Miss Mo when she saw her last. Even though Yun Yiqiu was jealous of Third Miss Mo, she did not hate her.

Her cousin had told her several times that she was the only one in his heart. That woman was just an object. She was an object that could help the Duke"s Manor flourish again.

She would naturally be abandoned by her cousin when she is no longer useful!

However, who is the woman she saw earlier? Why did she come into her cousin"s room in the middle of the night? If she had not heard wrongly, her cousin intended to let her be the d.u.c.h.ess. How could this be? Yun Yiqiu"s heart that had just calmed down earlier began to despair.

That position was hers! It could only be hers!

"Cousin, who is she. Tell me who she is." Yun Yiqiu turned around in Sima Lingyun"s embrace and asked him stubbornly, pulling on his sleeve.

"Qiu"er, alright, be good. She is just a working partner of mine. I will only have you in my heart forever. Good cousin, good Qiu"er. Go back first. I still have something on later and cannot keep you company." How could Sima Lingyun tell Yun Yiqiu about his relations.h.i.+p with Mo Xuemin? He thought of how he still had something on later and that it would be troublesome if Yun Yiqiu was around. He glanced at the maid standing by the door and motioned for her to take Yun Yiqiu away.

In order to coordinate with Mo Xuemin"s plan, he had to prepare. Otherwise, it would be a waste of their previous efforts if he had not prepared sufficiently here. There must not be any more mistakes this time.