After I Lost My Memory, I Was Coaxed into Marriage by a Yandere - Chapter 21.1

To be honest, this medicinal bath was not as painful as the previous ones, but it was still difficult to endure.

Regarding Xiao Yanyi’s suggestion of using intimacy to help recover her memory, Chi Wei felt it was a bit reckless.

Returning to the room, she sat on the bed with her hair still damp.

Xiao Yanyi stood with her back to her, undressing outside the gauze curtains. Layer upon layer of white skirts fell to the floor. Watching this scene, Chi Wei felt as if her heart was about to jump out of her chest.

“Wait!”

Xiao Yanyi paused and turned toward Chi Wei. With only a thin inner garment remaining, there was almost nothing left to block Chi Wei’s view.

“Is it not a bit too sudden, A-Yan?” Chi Wei blocked her eyes with one hand, her voice weak.

She knew that repeatedly rejecting such things was a blow to Xiao Yanyi’s self-esteem, but she truly was not ready.

“Sudden? Perhaps a little, but trust me, I will make you very happy.” As Xiao Yanyi spoke, she pulled aside the gauze curtains. With a light push of her fingertips against Chi Wei’s shoulder, she laid her back onto the bedding.

She did not finish undressing. She had overheard private conversations before and knew some people enjoyed a bit of resistance and modesty; perhaps Chi Wei was that type of person.

Chi Wei pressed a hand lightly against Xiao Yanyi’s shoulder and peeked with one eye, while her other hand pointed toward the wide-open window. “It is still broad daylight. It is not quite appropriate, is it?”

Xiao Yanyi did not even look back; she simply waved her arm to the side.

With a loud clang, the two window shutters slammed shut. The room suddenly went dark, leaving only faint glimmers of light filtering through the door cracks and window paper.

“It does not matter if they are closed or not.” Her voice was low and husky, her breath brushing against Chi Wei’s ear. “No one dares to approach this courtyard.”

Chi Wei’s wrists were gently caught and pinned above her head, and her belt was loosened. In her panic, she struggled twice, which only caused her clothes to fall open further. She hurriedly brought her legs together and wrapped them tightly around Xiao Yanyi’s waist, locking the other woman firmly against her so she could not move.

Her voice carried a hint of panic and was soft with exhaustion. “A-Yan, indulging in such things during the day is not good. Closing the windows tight in broad daylight makes it obvious to anyone what is happening inside. It is bad for your reputation.”

“Why would I care about such empty fame?” Xiao Yanyi’s palm lightly stroked the top of Chi Wei’s head, and she placed a soft kiss on her forehead.

“That is not right! You said before, ‘What if the neighbors find out? Their gossip would drown you!'” Chi Wei caught the loophole in her words and questioned her loudly.

But Xiao Yanyi did not give in. She stopped what she was doing and squinted her eyes, asking coldly, “You are stalling. Could it be that you look down on me?”

“How could that be!” Chi Wei knew that while Xiao Yanyi appeared gentle, she actually had a temper that was not to be trifled with, so she quickly changed her tune.

“Then what is the reason? Are you worried I am clumsy? While I might not be able to make you feel absolute bliss, it should not be too bad.” Though Xiao Yanyi lacked confidence, she believed herself to be naturally gifted at everything; with practice, she would surely improve.

“Stop, stop, stop! Do not say such scandalous things!” With her legs wrapped around Xiao Yanyi’s slender waist and her hands pinned above her head, the posture was truly shameful. Chi Wei’s face burned intensely.

“A-Yan, do you not think we should take things slow? After all, I still have amnesia. From my perspective, it feels like we just met, yet we are already married, living together, and entering the bridal chamber in the middle of the day.” She tried to struggle against the restraints on her wrists but failed. “Perhaps we should start with something simpler?”

Xiao Yanyi was puzzled. “But is it not how everyone does it? Some people meet for the first time on their wedding night, and it does not stop them from living in harmony until their hair turns white.”

“Others are others, and I am I!” For some reason, Chi Wei felt her own logic was twisted. To reject such a beautiful wife so many times, she felt she must be out of her mind.

“Forget it. I see that you simply dislike me for being ugly and coarse, and you despise me for being a snake demon with a tail. I am the one forcing you.” Xiao Yanyi released Chi Wei’s hands and slowly sat up.

She had been gentle and considerate enough, yet Chi Wei still treated her like a plague. Did she truly hate snake demons that much? Could she not accept it even with amnesia?

A stinging pain spread through her heart, reminding her of the day Chi Wei abandoned her. Xiao Yanyi propped herself up on the bed, preparing to pull back the curtains and leave.

Suddenly, her wrist was grabbed. The world spun, and she fell back into Chi Wei’s arms.

A smile touched the corners of Chi Wei’s mouth, unable to hide her nervousness. “I meant taking it slow, like going for walks, holding hands, touching, and kissing. Can we not start with the wedding night immediately? My heart is beating so fast, and my hands are shaking with nerves.” As she spoke, she took Xiao Yanyi’s hand and placed it gently over her racing heart.

With her palm against Chi Wei’s chest, Xiao Yanyi could feel the other woman’s trepidation. She saw her swallowing nervously, her gaze both anxious and shy.

Everything indicated that Chi Wei was not unmoved by her.

She said nothing more. She slowly closed her eyes and tilted her chin up, giving Chi Wei a signal.

It was as if she were saying: “Did you not say we should take it slow? If you do not even dare to kiss me, then you are lying to me.”

Chi Wei did not make her wait long. The moment their lips met, Xiao Yanyi gripped the sleeping robe at Chi Wei’s shoulder so tightly she forgot to breathe.

This was the second time Chi Wei had initiated a kiss; how could she not be nervous?

Chi Wei’s lips pressed against Xiao Yanyi’s. The sensation felt as if it reached her very marrow, making her whole body go soft and weak. She slowly laid Xiao Yanyi flat and pressed her body lightly against her.

Their lips parted for a moment. They looked at each other, both swallowing nervously and taking deep breaths before slowly kissing again.

Chi Wei held Xiao Yanyi carefully. Her arms, propped beside the other woman’s ears, shook slightly. She was reluctant to put her full weight on Xiao Yanyi, treating her as if she were a fragile, precious piece of porcelain.

But Xiao Yanyi was not as cautious. Fearing the timid Chi Wei might flee at the last second, she wrapped one arm around Chi Wei’s waist and the other behind her head, pressing her closer. Even at the point where they touched, she was eager to taste more of the softness in Chi Wei’s mouth.

Since pushing Chi Wei away last time, Xiao Yanyi had privately thought many times about how to kiss and how to do even bolder things with her.

Her thumb lightly brushed against the pulsing vein on the side of Chi Wei’s neck. With every stroke, the arms propping Chi Wei up shook more visibly, and her breathing grew more ragged.

She thought that perhaps Chi Wei truly was not ready. Xiao Yanyi laughed silently in her heart, amused that Chi Wei was so cowardly. Her hands, once so steady when drawing a bow or holding a sword, were now trembling just trying to support herself.

Opening her eyes to see Chi Wei’s embarrassed, flushed face, she took that wandering hand and pressed it against her own heart.

The person above her instantly froze.

However, before Xiao Yanyi’s smile could widen, it froze on her lips.

Because Chi Wei suddenly seemed no longer inexperienced.

Her kiss turned from gentle to deep, lingering on Xiao Yanyi’s lower lip as her palm tightened slightly over her heart. Her knee even pressed between Xiao Yanyi’s legs, roaming almost imperceptibly against the area that was gradually awakening.

She felt like a piece of jade being played with in Chi Wei’s hands.

It should not be like this; she should be the one in control.

Her heart itched intensely, yet Chi Wei only made these unconscious movements, lighting a fire she refused to put out.

In the gaps between their lingering kisses, a trembling moan escaped Xiao Yanyi. She cast a seductive, side-long glance at Chi Wei before closing her eyes again, immersing herself in the provocation.

Chi Wei was indulging in the warmth of Xiao Yanyi when the sensation beneath her suddenly changed.

Something cold, hard, and slick slithered up from her ankle, coiling tightly around her waist.

It was not Xiao Yanyi’s soft, warm legs; it was a snake tail.

Cool scales pressed against her skin, moving slowly. Chi Wei instinctively grasped the restless tip of the tail, and it skillfully wound itself around her wrist, like a silent game of chase.

Though it was just the tip, it was thick and powerful. Chi Wei’s palm stroked the cold scales; with every touch, she felt the body beneath her tremble.

Xiao Yanyi’s pinkish-white tail rested on the soft flesh of her waist. The tip brushed past, teasing her sleeping pants as if by accident.

Suddenly, an absurd thought flashed through Chi Wei’s mind.

She stopped moving and snapped back to reality. Propping herself up, she looked at Xiao Yanyi, whose hair was a mess from their play, and said blankly, “I cannot endure using that!”

Xiao Yanyi had been enjoying herself, but she opened her eyes in confusion at the sound. Once she understood what Chi Wei meant, her face turned bright red. Her pinkish-white tail snapped back from Chi Wei’s wrist and waist, and she shoved Chi Wei aside with both hands. She glared at Chi Wei, turned her head away, and whispered, “What on earth are you thinking!”

How could that thing be used for that kind of business?

She did not even dare to imagine it.

Seeing Xiao Yanyi’s reaction, Chi Wei realized she had misunderstood.

She knelt on the bed, her breathing still ragged. “I… I just… you suddenly transformed into a snake tail, I thought…”

Before she could finish her explanation, there was a soft knock at the door.

It was Jiang Yi’s voice, requesting an audience.

“Say no more!” Xiao Yanyi rolled out of bed and quickly straightened her clothes. Walking to the door, she took a deep breath to calm herself. She looked back and glared at Chi Wei once more before pushing the door open.

Chi Wei was left alone sitting on the bed, her hand pressed against her burning cheek, trying to suppress the lingering tremors in her heart.

She had long ago told Jiang Yi not to come for her unless it was important. The moment the door sounded, Xiao Yanyi guessed something had happened.

“Someone from the Xuandu Department is missing!” Jiang Yi said hurriedly.

“The front and back gates are guarded; no one has left. I sent people to search every corner of the courtyard, but the person is gone. Family Head, what should we do?”

A manager from a small place simply had not seen enough of the world; she was terrified by such a small matter. Back in Hushi Valley, such things were handled by Chi Wei, so Xiao Yanyi never had to worry.

“Take me there.”

Regarding the personality of this new Family Head, Jiang Yi was uncertain. She felt as though a lady from a great noble family had come to this impoverished backwater and was secretly keeping a pet canary.

Xiao Yanyi followed Jiang Yi through the corridors and gardens. Jiang Yi felt a gaze lingering on her waist and instinctively straightened her back, but then, fearing this noble lady might take a liking to her, she immediately slouched again.

The gaze from behind felt like needles. Fortunately, the house was not large, and they soon reached the guest rooms. The people from the Xuandu Department were already waiting at the door.

The leader was named Cha Shiyu. Seeing someone like Xiao Yanyi in such a remote place was a surprise, but since a member of the Xuandu Department was missing, she would not give the host a warm welcome just because of her beauty.

Before Cha Shiyu could speak, one of her subordinates rushed to the door. “Hand the person over! Are you tired of living? How dare you touch someone from the Xuandu Department!”

“The Family Head was kind enough to let you eat and stay here for free. You did not watch your own person, and now that they are missing, you come to trouble us? What logic is that? Thank you for the reminder; I will have to inventory the manor’s items again. If anything is missing, I must report it to the authorities immediately.” Unable to stand their arrogance, Jiang Yi stepped forward, shielding Xiao Yanyi and mocking them.

The subordinate would not let it go. “What do you mean? Who would want your small-town junk? The things you treasure, I would not take even if you gave them to me for free. I say we should not have stayed here in the first place. They say poor mountains and bad waters produce unruly people, and it is true.”

Jiang Yi seemed to despise these Xuandu people and gave them no face at all. “Unruly people? And what kind of tiny official are you, barking like this? I bet you are not even an official, just a bootlicking peasant.”

“Enough,” Xiao Yanyi intervened calmly.

“Shut up!” Cha Shiyu also stopped her subordinate. If they continued arguing, there was no telling what else these two would say.

“Since you are not comfortable staying here, it is best that you move out. Jiang Yi, see the guests out.” Xiao Yanyi dropped those words and prepared to turn away.

“Wait! Our person went missing in your manor without cause. Family Head Xiao must give us an explanation!” Cha Shiyu frowned, her hands behind her back.

“Heh, how ridiculous.” Xiao Yanyi turned around slowly. Though she was expressionless, everyone present could feel her extreme impatience. “I took you in out of kindness, charged you nothing, and provided servants to wait on you. Yet you say I hid your person? For what? To feed them for free? I would rather raise a pig; at least I could slaughter it for the New Year.”

“Pfft!”

“The Family Head is right. Raising a pig is useful for New Year’s dinner. Raising these delicate-skinned pretty boys… I am afraid even feeding them to the pigs would be a struggle.”

Cha Shiyu frowned. “Miss Xiao, your words are incorrect.”

Xiao Yanyi interrupted her. “How are they incorrect? Did Jiang Yi not tell you to stay in this courtyard and not wander around?”

Cha Shiyu lowered her gaze. “That… she did say that.”

“Then if the missing person stayed honestly with you, how could they vanish? Humans have brains and two legs; they are not cats or dogs.”

“Your words are far too harsh.” Cha Shiyu clenched her fists, suppressing her anger. As a captain of the Xuandu Department, she was praised wherever she went. She had never met someone who gave her so little face.

“I have always spoken this way. If you find it harsh, please feel free to leave.” Xiao Yanyi raised her arm, pointing toward the gate.

She had no interest in arguing with these people. Stay if you can, leave if you can’t. She was not running an inn; did they expect her to provide detective services too?

Cha Shiyu’s face turned red then white. She could not leave; if she left, finding the missing person would be even harder.

A subordinate, seeing her embarrassment, took out an official token and held it up, shouting, “Do you know that the Xuandu Department belongs to the Emperor? If something goes wrong with this mission, do you have the life to take responsibility?”

It was far too noisy. Xiao Yanyi rotated her wrist, wondering if killing them all would finally bring some peace.

Just as she turned, intending to silence these Xuandu fools and the troublemaking Jiang Yi, Xiao Tan, who was passing by to watch the commotion, squeezed through the crowd.

“Wait! I saw someone swimming in the pond. Maybe that is your missing person.” She walked to Xiao Yanyi’s side and took her hand. “Do not get angry over worthless people on such a fine day.”

Swimming?

Cha Shiyu’s face went pale. She turned to go look, but after stepping over the threshold, she thought of something. She looked back at the bedroom behind the house and waved her hand, ordering the Xuandu people to go search.

Seeing the matter resolved, Xiao Yanyi turned to leave, but her palm felt heavy. Xiao Tan pulled her hand and shook her head slightly. Xiao Yanyi stopped and stayed.

In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the Xuandu people who went to search returned with pale faces. They carried a person lying on a wooden board. Xiao Tan walked over and saw that it was indeed a corpse.

The person had two small holes in their neck, and the skin beneath was dark purple; clearly the sign of being bitten by something venomous.

She sighed, knowing Xiao Yanyi hated trouble. If these people kept chirping, they would likely all end up dead.

Sure enough, as soon as they returned, they pointed at Jiang Yi’s nose and screamed, “Did you not say it had nothing to do with you? If it has nothing to do with you, why did they suddenly die in your pond?”

Now that someone had died, Jiang Yi stopped her bravado. She took two steps back and hid behind Xiao Yanyi. “How should I know? Maybe she drowned herself while swimming.”

Xiao Yanyi closed her eyes, her fingers slowly spreading. She wanted nothing more than to snap the culprit’s neck. But then Chi Wei’s voice sounded outside. Xiao Yanyi sighed and looked helplessly at the newcomer.

“I wonder what important item Captain Cha is escorting on this mission?”

After waiting and waiting for Xiao Yanyi to return, Chi Wei had followed her and watched the commotion from outside. Seeing the scene turn increasingly ugly and nearly out of control, and noting the impatience on Xiao Yanyi’s face, she stepped in.

For some reason, whenever Xiao Yanyi was about to lose her temper, Chi Wei felt an inexplicable panic, fearing that something irreversible would happen.

“To answer the Inspector.” The moment Cha Shiyu saw Chi Wei, she instinctively stood straight and cupped her hands in a respectful salute. Only after standing still and looking clearly did she slowly lower her hands in surprise and add, “It is a rabbit demon.”

Her sudden salute was strange, but before anyone could question it, Chi Wei cut in to redirect the conversation. “Someone died suddenly; perhaps this demon is the cause.”

She raised an eyebrow at Cha Shiyu and strode into the bedroom. Strangely, not a single person from the Xuandu Department tried to stop her. They let her barge in under everyone’s gaze, and only then did they snap out of it and follow her.

Chi Wei walked into the room, lifted the black cloth covering the wooden fence, and smiled at the crowd. “I say this demon did it. Why not just kill her and be done with it?”

Curled in the corner of the fence was a rabbit, round and white; it should have been adorable. But its wide-open eyes were an eerie crimson, staring unblinkingly at the newcomers. The white fur on one of its hind legs was soaked in dark red, almost black blood, matted together; it had clearly been injured for a long time.

Cha Shiyu frowned. “But there are talismans on this fence; this rabbit demon could not possibly get out.”

Jiang Yi echoed from the side, “Exactly. This rabbit demon has been locked in the cage; how could it come out to cause trouble? Miss Chi, you must stop joking.”

Chi Wei smiled at Cha Shiyu and, catching her off guard, snatched the saber from her waist. “Since someone is already dead, Captain Cha can just go back and say this demon killed them and was then executed. People die on duty all the time. If you do not dare to do it, I will help you.”

As soon as she finished speaking, before anyone could react, Chi Wei gripped the sword with both hands and stabbed the tip down through the top of the fence. With a flash of cold light, the blade pierced through the gaps in the wooden bars, thrusting straight toward the panicked, scurrying little rabbit in the cage!

“Wait!”

“No!”

The crowd cried out in shock. Both Cha Shiyu and Jiang Yi rushed to stop her. While Cha Shiyu reached out to pull Chi Wei’s arm, Jiang Yi’s strike was far more vicious. As the housekeeper of the Xiao manor, she actually threw a direct palm strike toward Chi Wei’s heart.

Chi Wei, as if expecting this, spun around. She swept the downward-stabbing sword upward, slashing toward Jiang Yi’s palm.