Chapter 43

Xiao Changyuan lifted his foot and slowly walked step by step toward Yun Pianpian.
Each step felt as if it were treading on the tip of Yun Pianpian’s heart, causing her heart to shrink into a tight ball.
Xiao Changyuan slowly walked until he stood before Yun Pianpian.
He raised his eyes, looking at her with a dangerous expression.
“Why is this dog here?”
Yun Pianpian’s heart tightened, and she flusteredly explained, “I don’t know either, it ran over on its own. It has nothing to do with me.”
Xiao Changyuan lowered his gaze, staring at the dry rations in her hand, his handsome face terrifyingly gloomy.
“I told you, you are not allowed to keep it.”
His voice was filled with anger, frightening Yun Pianpian so much that she dropped the dry rations in her hand.
It seemed Xiao Changyuan really disliked her keeping a dog.
Yun Pianpian stood up, her face pale, and moved several steps to the side.
As if trying to distance herself from the little dog.
She looked at Xiao Changyuan in a panic, her face pale as she explained, “I wasn’t planning to keep it, I was just, just…”
Xiao Changyuan raised his dark, gloomy eyes and coldly stared at Yun Pianpian.
“Just what?”
Yun Pianpian was flustered.
Not daring at all to look up into Xiao Changyuan’s eyes.
She steeled herself and said, “I was just throwing away trash… yes, I wanted to throw away the unwanted dry rations, and this little dog ran over on its own to pick up the trash I didn’t want. I really didn’t feed it, it came over by itself…”
After saying this, Yun Pianpian ran over and hugged Xiao Changyuan’s arm, lifting her small head and blinking her pitiful eyes.
“Husband, you have to believe me…”
Xiao Changyuan’s dark eyes were cold and penetrating as he mercilessly exposed her.
“Wife is lying.”
Yun Pianpian froze, stammering, “I… I’m not lying.”
She never expected that, ever since transmigrating into the book, she had told countless lies and managed to deceive Xiao Changyuan every time.
But now, because of this little dog, she had been caught.
“If I say you are, then you are.”
Xiao Changyuan expressionlessly scooped Yun Pianpian up into his arms.
Yun Pianpian, frightened and pale, tightly clutched the front of Xiao Changyuan’s robe, her almond, shaped eyes filled with panic.
“Husband, what are you doing?”
“A wife who lies should be…”
Xiao Changyuan carried Yun Pianpian into the room, closed the door, and pressed the petite girl against it with his tall frame. His eyes dark, he looked down at her, his thin lips coldly uttering a few words to finish the sentence. “Punished severely.”
Yun Pianpian froze, suddenly recalling these words she had once whispered to Xiao Changyuan on a night that ended abruptly.
Her cheeks instantly burned hot.
Xiao Changyuan lowered his head, his pale thin lips brushing against Yun Pianpian's ear, his voice low and husky.
“Does my wife remember how you punished me that night?”
Hearing this, Yun Pianpian's pupils contracted sharply.
Of course she remembered that shameful night, the utterly shameless things she had done.
Her heart raced wildly, her breathing grew rapid.
“Husband, I was wrong.”
“Too late.”
Xiao Changyuan seemed to let out a cold chuckle by her ear.
“Wife, your apology comes far too late.”
Yun Pianpian's heart tightened, and she begged fearfully, her voice trembling with tears.
“Husband, I was really wrong, please forgive, mmph.”
Yun Pianpian's eyelashes fluttered.
The tyrant had lowered his head and bitten her ear!
Yun Pianpian, cheeks flushed crimson, was pinned to the bed by Xiao Changyuan and punished for the entire morning.
Her ears were overly sensitive.
Just his biting alone could make her legs go weak and her entire body burn hot.
Yun Pianpian fetched a basin of water to wash her face, using the cold water to cool her burning cheeks.
Xiao Changyuan wasn't faring much better either, his dark, intense eyes remained fixed on Yun Pianpian.
That scorching gaze was like a blazing fire.
Capable of burning someone to ashes in an instant.
Dry wood meeting fierce flames, truly the easiest thing in the world to ignite.
Yun Pianpian didn't dare look up into the tyrant's dark eyes.
“I, I'm going to plant the plum blossoms!”
After washing her face, Yun Pianpian lowered her head and hurried into the courtyard to plant the plum blossoms.
Xiao Changyuan, expressionless, went into the kitchen to light the fire and cook.
Yun Pianpian touched her no, longer, burning cheeks.
She took the plum blossom branches she had broken off yesterday from the bamboo basket and placed them on the ground.
Yun Pianpian found a small pair of scissors from the house and trimmed off the excess leaves from the plum branches.
She cut the lower ends of the branches at a slant, the angled cuts would help improve their survival rate.
Yun Pianpian used a small shovel to loosen the soil in the courtyard, planted the plum branches into the soft earth, smoothed the soil with the shovel, and even used a ladle to scoop half a measure of water, watering each of the plum branches.
After finishing all this, Yun Pianpian stood for a while, gazing at the plum branches and imagining them growing strong and tall.
An unconscious smile of anticipation graced her delicate, lovely face.
Yun Pianpian looked up and noticed that the little dog outside the fence still hadn't left.
It had been lying there outside the fence, watching her.
Its moist black eyes, sparkling and bright, resembled two black gems, gleaming with a crystalline light under the winter sky. It lay there quietly, not making a single sound from start to finish, as if mute, appearing exceptionally serene.
Feeling guilty, Yun Pianpian glanced back toward the kitchen.
Xiao Changyuan hadn't come out.
Yun Pianpian immediately ran to the fence and whispered to the little dog, “I really want to keep you too, but my husband won't allow it. Go find someone else to take you in.”
To avoid being heard by Xiao Changyuan, she spoke in a breathy voice.
The little dog seemed not to understand her words.
It lifted its furry head, its watery eyes gazing at her pitifully.
How could Yun Pianpian withstand such a heart, wrenching look from the little puppy?
She quickly corrected herself, “Then I'll secretly keep you, but you mustn't be discovered by my husband.”
It had snowed yesterday, though not heavily, and by morning, all the snow had melted.
After the snow melted, the weather turned even colder, and when people spoke, their breath formed white puffs of mist in the air.
Worried that the puppy might freeze to death sleeping outside, Yun Pianpian decided to build it a shelter.
There were some discarded pieces of wood in the yard, but Yun Pianpian didn't dare bring the puppy inside. Instead, she used three small planks to construct a simple little shelter outside the fence. She piled a few stones around it to prevent the wind from blowing the puppy's shelter over.
But that alone wasn't enough.
The winter nights were bitterly cold, Yun Pianpian herself was too chilled to venture out after dark, let alone such a small, fragile puppy.
She wanted to give it a blanket to keep it warm through the night.
Yun Pianpian had bought many blankets in the county town, stocking up on several for each season, spring, summer, autumn, and winter.
The puppy's shelter was small, so she could spare one of the lighter blankets meant for spring or autumn.
Sneaking a furtive glance toward the kitchen, Yun Pianpian took advantage of Xiao Changyuan's inattention and slipped quietly into the house.
She grabbed a thin blanket, hurried back outside the fence, and carefully arranged it inside the puppy's shelter.
“Little puppy, go on in and sleep now.”
As if understanding her words, the puppy obediently lifted its paw and nestled into the blanket.
Yun Pianpian immediately felt relieved.
She glanced back toward the kitchen.
Perfect, Xiao Changyuan hadn't noticed her.
Finally, she could secretly keep the dog.
Xiao Changyuan finished preparing the meal and stepped out of the kitchen, his expression unreadable.
“Wife, it's time to eat.”
Yun Pianpian was crouched in the garden plot, pretending to be planting plum blossoms.
Hearing Xiao Changyuan's voice, she straightened up at once.
“Alright, I'll be right there.”
Yun Pianpian rushed to the kitchen to wash her hands with soapberries.
Xiao Changyuan asked casually, as if it were nothing, “Wife, why did it take you so long to plant the plum blossoms?”
Yun Pianpian's heart tightened.
She nearly dropped the soapberry in her hand.
Flustered, she lied, “I, it's my first time planting them, so I'm not very good at it yet.”
Xiao Changyuan's expression remained cool and detached. “Is that true?”
Yun Pianpian hurriedly explained, “It's true, I really am planting plum blossoms for the first time.”
Xiao Changyuan lifted his dark, penetrating eyes and fixed a cold gaze on Yun Pianpian.
“Wife, you must not deceive me.”
Yun Pianpian stared at Xiao Changyuan in terror, nearly convinced he had discovered something.
Fortunately, after uttering these words, Xiao Changyuan fell silent.
After they finished their meal, Yun Pianpian, guilt, ridden like a thief, took the initiative to wash the dishes and tidy the kitchen.
Once she finished her chores in the kitchen, Yun Pianpian returned to the room and found Xiao Changyuan standing by the wardrobe.
Her heart nearly stopped from nervousness.
Xiao Changyuan turned his handsome face slightly and asked indifferently, “Wife, why is there one less quilt in the wardrobe?”
Yun Pianpian had never imagined that Xiao Changyuan would notice how many quilts were in the house. She had bought so many quilts that even she herself had lost count. That was why she had given one to the puppy without a second thought. She never expected Xiao Changyuan to pay attention to such trivial details. Yun Pianpian began to regret giving the quilt to the puppy.
Xiao Changyuan said softly, “Why is my wife not speaking?”
Yun Pianpian mustered her courage and lied, “Husband, you must be mistaken. We only have this many quilts in the house.”
“Is that so?”
Xiao Changyuan's dark, cold gaze fell upon Yun Pianpian's face.
Her heart raced wildly.
She forced herself to remain calm and said, “Of course it's true. I am your wife, how could I deceive you?”
Upon hearing this, the darkness in Xiao Changyuan's eyes deepened and grew more obscure.
This little liar, full of deceit, he would punish her thoroughly.
In truth, Xiao Changyuan had heard her movements from the kitchen the moment Yun Pianpian started speaking to the puppy.
He had restrained himself from acting only because he had something else in mind.
Xiao Changyuan wanted to punish his wife for various reasons.
He had explicitly forbidden her from keeping a dog.
Yet, his wife had disobeyed him, secretly raising one behind his back.
Such a disobedient wife, shouldn't she be severely punished?
Xiao Changyuan's dark eyes fixed on Yun Pianpian's exquisitely beautiful face.
A greedy, dangerous darkness churned in their depths.
“Is that so?”
Xiao Changyuan narrowed his phoenix eyes slightly.
He began to contemplate how he would punish his deceitful wife that night.
Yun Pianpian remained completely unaware of all this, believing she had once again deceived Xiao Changyuan with her skillful lies.
“Of course it's true!”
Worried that Xiao Changyuan might recognize the quilt she had given to the puppy, Yun Pianpian planned to sneak out and discard it that night.
However, Xiao Changyuan kept a close watch on her, leaving her no opportunity to get rid of the quilt.
That night, as Yun Pianpian climbed into bed, her mind was still preoccupied with the matter. But soon, her breath was stolen away.
Xiao Changyuan had lowered his head and bitten her ear.
Yun Pianpian's face flushed instantly, her cheeks burning hot.
“Husband, why are you biting me?”
Xiao Changyuan gripped her slender waist, narrowed his phoenix eyes, and whispered dangerously in her ear.
“What does my wife think the reason is?”
Yun Pianpian grew flustered, her breathing quickening. “I truly don't know.”
Xiao Changyuan paused, his breath scorching against her ear, as if letting out a cold, soft laugh.
“Does my wife truly believe I am unaware of what you did at noon?”
Yun Pianpian froze, on the verge of tears.
“Then why didn't you stop me?”
“Why.”
Xiao Changyuan heard the tearful tremor in her voice, and his pale, thin lips curved almost imperceptibly.
He lowered his head, his lips fiercely capturing Yun Pianpian’s ear.
“Naturally, it’s to have a reason to properly punish my wife…”
And so, from that night onward, Yun Pianpian’s household shifted from a sweet “reward system” to a sweet yet wicked “reward and punishment hybrid system.” After punishing Yun Pianpian, someone still had to repeatedly douse himself with cold water in the chilly wind to quell the raging fire burning within his body.
Yun Pianpian blushed deeply as she thought to herself.
Was it her imagination?
Why did she feel that her once, pure great tyrant seemed to be growing more and more wicked?
No, it must be her imagination.