Her Husband is Both Delicate and Fierce; The Little Stutterer Coaxes Him Through Tears - Chapter 8

The next morning, A-Tong arrived to wake the pair. Pei Qingyu instinctively reached for his pillow to hurl it at the intruder, only to find it weighed down by a head. He snapped awake instantly, staring in disbelief at the person who had curled into his arms.

This little stutterer actually sneaked into my embrace while I was sleeping.

How cunning.

Yu Tingzheng had already woken up. He rubbed his bleary eyes, and before he even realized where he was, he spotted A-Tong entering and began to scramble toward the outer edge of the bed.

Finding that the boy was acting as if nothing had happened, Pei Qingyu’s face flushed a deep crimson. Fuming with indignation, he reached out and pinned Tingzheng down.

“Mm?” Yu Tingzheng turned to look at him. “Yu’er, it’s time to, to get up. We have school.”

Pei Qingyu kept his face taut, refusing to let go.

Realizing the Young Master seemed to have something on his mind, Yu Tingzheng turned his body fully toward him. “Yu’er, what’s wrong?”

“You” Pei Qingyu’s pale lips thinned and pressed together repeatedly before he finally commanded, “Apologize.”

Yu Tingzheng was baffled.

Did I do something terribly wrong the moment I woke up? Why must I apologize?

“S-sorry.” Though he didn’t know his crime, he figured that if Pei Qingyu demanded an apology, he must have a reason. Yu Tingzheng followed orders obediently.

Pei Qingyu’s expression remained sour as he warned, “In the future, you are not allowed to sneak into my arms to sleep. Otherwise, you’ll go back to the floor.”

Only then did Yu Tingzheng realize his transgression. His small face turned bright red in an instant. “Sorry I how did I end up sleeping on your side?”

Pei Qingyu looked at him with half-lidded, beautiful eyes, his expression suggesting he was looking at a fool. “You should ask yourself that, not me.”

Yu Tingzheng stammered, truly at a loss as to how he had ended up in such a position.

“Get up, quickly. Look at the hour! If we keep dallying, we’ll be late again.”

Again?

Yu Tingzheng blinked. “Yu’er, were you late yesterday?”

“Yes.” Pei Qingyu didn’t think it was a big deal. He already knew everything the teacher taught; if it weren’t for his mother’s insistence, he wouldn’t be getting up at all.

Yu Tingzheng scrambled out of bed and grabbed the clothes prepared the night before. He fumbled with them like a toddler learning to dress for the first time, his movements clumsy and frantic. By the time Pei Qingyu who had risen after him, was fully dressed and washed, Tingzheng still hadn’t managed to tie his belt.

The fabrics used by wealthy families were of superior quality, but the way they were worn was quite intricate. Madam Pei had tied the belt for him the previous day, and he had struggled just to undo it for his bath; today, he had completely forgotten the correct method.

Seeing the time slip away, Yu Tingzheng grew frantic.

The more he panicked, the worse his knots became. To make matters worse, Pei Qingyu stood nearby with his arms crossed, watching the spectacle with a smirk. Despite his youth, Yu Tingzheng was not without a sense of shame; his face burned, his eyes grew hot, and he looked ready to burst into tears.

“I’ve truly never seen someone like you,” Pei Qingyu remarked euphemistically.

Yu Tingzheng knew the Young Master actually meant he had never seen anyone so stupid, but Pei Qingyu was maintaining his refined upbringing by not saying it directly.

Tingzheng’s face was scorching. He considered just tying it haphazardly, but then Pei Qingyu stepped in front of him. The Young Master reached out, snatched the belt, and irritably brushed Tingzheng’s hands aside.

“I’ll do it.”

“Th-thank you.”

“Even two words and you still stutter,” Pei Qingyu muttered as he skillfully tied the silk belt. He looked up at Tingzheng. “Why do you stutter, anyway?”

They were standing very close. Yu Tingzheng didn’t dare meet his eyes. “When I was… small… a snake bit me. I had a… great illness… and it became… like this.”

“Since it wasn’t from birth, there should be a cure. When we return to Luozì City, we’ll find a good physician to take a look.”

“Luozì City?” Yu Tingzheng let out a little giggle. “Is everyone… born there… a male child?” (Translator’s note: ‘Luo zi’ sounds like ‘dropping a son’ in Chinese.)

“Certainly not.” Pei Qingyu finished the knot and glanced at the boy’s narrow waist before inconspicuously averting his eyes. “The zi in Luozì refers to a Go piece, not a son.”

“So… that’s how it is.” Remembering the game he had seen the night before, Tingzheng asked curiously, “Does everyone… in the city… know how to play Go?”

Pei Qingyu gave a non-committal “mm” and urged him to wash up. Only then did Tingzheng remember they were headed to the academy, and he hurried to the basin.

He originally intended to just tie his hair back loosely, but then he remembered Madam Pei’s praise for his half-up hairstyle. He spent a great deal of effort using a ribbon to secure half of his hair properly.

While Yu Tingzheng dawdled, Pei Qingyu didn’t panic in the slightest. If they were late, it wouldn’t be his fault anyway.

By the time they reached the academy, the morning lesson had already begun. The students were swaying their heads as they recited texts, and the teacher was present. He shot the pair a glance but said nothing.

Now that Yu Tingzheng was there, A-Tong left them at the academy and returned home. As Tingzheng took his seat beside Pei Qingyu, his heart fluttered with excitement, and his lips curled into an uncontrollable smile.

He was truly in a classroom. Not as a thief in the shadows, but openly, entering with his back straight.

His joy didn’t last long. He looked ahead and saw Yu Chengfeng turning around to glare at him with a vicious expression. Tingzheng’s heart sank. He had forgotten that in the countryside, there was only one classroom at the academy. Entering this school meant inevitably crossing paths with his brother.

His excitement was extinguished as if doused by cold water. Tingzheng slumped, already anticipating how miserable his days at the academy would become.

“Stop daydreaming. The teacher is calling you.”

Hearing Pei Qingyu’s voice, Tingzheng snapped back to reality. He looked up to find everyone staring at him. The teacher stood at the front, book in hand, his gaze gentle.

Yu Tingzheng knew this teacher was a new arrival young, handsome, and refined. Back when the teacher had caught him eavesdropping outside, he hadn’t scolded him; instead, he had given him a smile.

Tingzheng’s tense body relaxed slightly, and he stood up.

“Pay your respects,” Pei Qingyu coached from the side.

Yu Tingzheng froze, not knowing the proper etiquette. In his awkwardness, he gave a deep, clumsy bow.

The room erupted in boisterous laughter.

Pei Qingyu’s face darkened. He swept a cold, piercing gaze across the room. The laughter gradually died down. Tingzheng’s ears were still red, and he was unconsciously twisting a piece of fabric between his fingers, wrinkling it badly. Fortunately, the teacher didn’t make things difficult; he simply introduced him and told him to sit.

As Tingzheng sat down, his heart was thumping against his ribs. He touched his cheek; it was scalding hot.

“Still clutching it?” Pei Qingyu huffed. “You’ve wrinkled it all.”

Hearing this, Yu Tingzheng looked down at his hand, then followed the line of the fabric. He realized with a jolt that he was gripping Pei Qingyu’s sleeve, not his own.

His face turned an explosive red. He stammered an apology: “S-sorry! I… I didn’t… do it on purpose.”

“Be careful next time,” Pei Qingyu said. “I only allow you to grab it because I am kind-hearted. Others won’t be so generous.”

Yu Tingzheng paused, then beamed a wide smile, nodding vigorously. “I… I know. I won’t… grab anyone else.”

Pei Qingyu was momentarily dazzled by the smile. He turned his head away coldly, only then realizing that he felt quite dizzy. He propped his head up with his arm.

Yu Tingzheng saw this and leaned in nervously, asking if he was feeling unwell. Listening to the stutterer take forever to finish a sentence only made Pei Qingyu’s head spin more. He raised a hand and pushed Tingzheng’s face away.

“Move over. Stay away from me.”

Yu Tingzheng sat back properly, but his worry didn’t fade. He kept stealing glances at the Young Master.

Pei Qingyu glared at him. “Don’t look at me.”

Now, Tingzheng couldn’t even look at the person beside him; he could only focus his attention on the teacher’s lecture.