Chapter 25: Sleeping With My Husband

“All right, let’s sleep now.”
“But you haven’t told me yet.”
“I’ll tell you next year.”
“Oh…” Su Qingli was so naive, so easy to fool! She believed that if he said he’d tell her next year, he surely would. She didn’t even consider how long a year could be.

After all, she had always lived up in the mountains, with no concept of time whatsoever.

As soon as Di Yunshen lay down, he felt a pair of arms wrap tightly around his waist, occasionally giving him a squeeze!

After their first forced night together, Di Yunshen had already figured out her tricks.

So now, even if Su Qingli lay right on top of him, he didn’t find it strange at all.

“Di Yunshen, are you ticklish?”
“No.”
“Then why are you moving?”

Well, now he wasn’t even allowed to move! Di Yunshen simply lay flat… closed his eyes, as unresponsive as a robot.

“Di Yunshen, I want to…”
“You don’t want to. Go to sleep.”
“…”

Suddenly, Su Qingli sat up. “You haven’t listened to me yet, hey! What are you doing? Ah!”

Di Yunshen had already pulled her back down. “Sleep.”

“I don’t want to sleep.”

“I’ll call your senior brother.”

And just like that, Su Qingli fell silent… She had always been afraid of Shen Mo since childhood.

At last, peace settled in.

Just as Di Yunshen was drifting off in a haze of sleep, he discovered that the girl really was lying right on top of him! Holding him tightly, even drooling a little!

It was only then that Di Yunshen entertained his first question: Was she just that greedy for him? Did she even understand?

This little thing—Di Yunshen tossed and turned all night, only finally falling asleep at dawn.

The next morning, Su Qingli rubbed her eyes and sat up; perhaps she hadn’t slept well, so she lay back down, snuggling closer into Di Yunshen’s arms.

“Li’er, are you awake?”

Su Qingli hugged him, burrowing her head into his chest. “Mm~ not really.”

Di Yunshen pulled her into his embrace and continued sleeping.

In the afternoon, the two of them went out in their pajamas. No sooner had they stepped into the courtyard than they heard the Elder’s sarcastic voice.

“Oh my, the sun never sets before you two get up. If you all keep loafing like this, am I supposed to support you all?”

Di Yunshen sat on a little stool, twisting open a bottle of mineral water. “That won’t be necessary. If I keep slacking off every day, my assets are enough to last—how should I say… supporting ten thousand people to old age shouldn’t be a problem.”

The Elder snorted coldly. “Hmph, all that money and you still have to marry my disciple!”

Well… that wasn’t exactly wrong.

“Di Yunshen, I saw online that people talk a lot about bride price. Does everyone who gets married have one? Why don’t we? Master never mentioned it to me.”

The Elder was picking edamame. He paused but said nothing.

Because he knew Su Qingli’s background, he hadn’t planned to ask for a bride price. And if there were to be one, it would be Su’s family’s affair, certainly not his.

Di Yunshen nodded. “Everyone has one. I heard there’s a nice flat piece of land behind us?”

At this, the Elder perked up!

“Absolutely! It’s perfect for growing vegetables, and there are plenty of wild greens. Pity though—I asked around, they won’t sell it.”

Di Yunshen handed over the deed. “I know you like these things, so I bought it. Consider it Li’er’s bride price.”

“This…”

Catching Di Yunshen’s look, the Elder didn’t plan to discuss it in front of Su Qingli, so he changed the subject.

“Impossible! I remember they refused to sell. It took me ages to persuade them, saying they’d only sell it if the mountain came with it.”

“Yes, so I bought the mountain behind us too, and the river beside it. They even gave me a patch of forest. From now on, it’s all yours.”

The Elder opened his mouth, then closed it again… clicking his tongue. “Tsk tsk, truly, money does let you do as you please.”

Su Qingli took a bite of her apple. “Master, you’re rich too! I heard from Senior Brother you got more than a dozen wineries? Where did those come from?”

Now he was flustered!

“Ah! That—that’s… I saved up to buy them, and some were gifts from old friends! Enough, enough, don’t pry!”

The Elder wiped his sweat, muttering under his breath, “That Shen Mo, wait till he comes back—I’ll thrash him.”

“Master? What did you say?”

“Huh? Ah! Nothing, nothing!”

Di Yunshen produced another design drawing. “I had fruit trees sent over, and here’s a cable car. In the future, traveling from this mountain to the next will be easy, going up and down won’t be a hassle.”

The Elder nodded with satisfaction. “Not bad, truly not bad. Di family boy, you haven’t let me down.”

“Master, I’ll go cook. You two chat.”

Su Qingli carried the dishes to the kitchen, and the Elder’s smile grew even more pleased.

“Hey, so what’s the deal with the bride price?”

“You raised her single-handedly. Now that she’s getting married, the bride price should go to you.”

“But what about the Su family…”

“Don’t worry. When Li’er goes back, I’ll give them one as well, so you don’t need to refuse. You’ve taken eighteen wineries, and now these mountains and rivers—why be shy?”

“Well, then I’ll accept. But I heard you visited the Su family last time?”

“Yes.”

“How did it feel?”

“The old man’s health is declining day by day. Li’er brought a gift, though she didn’t know whom to give it to. The Stone of Longevity—hoping he’ll be robust. And that person is indeed skilled, with some tricks up his sleeve. Met him briefly, and encountered the Gu family’s eldest miss as well.”

The Elder scooted closer. “And what’s this business about the peach blossoms on you?”

“…”