A Star Reborn: The Queen’s Return
chapter-398

Chapter 398: Hidden

She was so nervous that even after put her down gently on the bedroom bed, she still did not dare to move.

As he leaned over, his fingers swam over Xia Ling’s coat and fell on the buttons near her chest. The cotton shirt was thin that she shrank a little when she felt the heat of his fingertips on her chest.

As such, he paused and withdrew his hand.

“Take off your clothes,” he said. “I will get you a clean set of clothes.”

Xia Ling looked down at her shirt. There was only a small red wine stain at an inconspicuous place. If one did not look carefully, he would not be able to see it. However, the Pei family rules were strict, and he was always particular about not letting her wear stained clothes during meals.

However, Xia Ling was reluctant to change in front of him. Who knows what might happen? After seeing that he was walking towards the walk-in closet to find clothes for her, she quickly got off the bed and said, “I’m going to take a shower.”

She escaped into the bathroom.

The bathroom was renovated many years ago according to her preferences, and it was behind the bed. At that time, they were very close, and even the partitions were all made of transparent glass with lovely, vague patterns. Xia Ling knew what the effect was when she looked at it from the outside. In her past life, she did that many times when she used to laze in bed and enjoy the scene of water rushing down Pei Ziheng’s body. In the mist, he was very arousing to her.

However, now she hated how she loved to play those tricks as she ended up getting caught in her own trap.

She locked the bathroom door, set the lights to the dimmest, and even pulled out all the curtains. However, she still did not dare to use the shower. Fumbling about, she filled the bathtub with water and poured in an entire bottle of bubble bath and sprinkled an entire packet of rose petals on the bath till the water surface could no longer be seen. After that, she quickly took off her clothes and immersed herself in it.

Recently, she put in a lot of effort to shower like that to prevent him from getting any ideas.

Every time when she covered herself securely, Pei Ziheng did not look very pleased. However, she did not know why he never stopped her and never really violated her. Xia Ling found it weird. When did he become so tolerant? She was already a chunk of meat in his cage or a fish on his cutting board. No matter how much he tortured her, she could not escape his grasp.

In contrast, his gentleness and patience made her very uneasy.

However, she did not dare to ask him. She would try to keep this up as long as possible. As long as she maintained the status quo, she and her baby would be safe. Who would think that there are too many good days?

Pregnant women should not bathe for too long, so Xia Ling finished her shower as quickly as possible and took a set of pajamas from the small closet in the bathroom. This set of pajamas were from a famous European brand. Last month when the catalog was sent, she did not hesitate to choose the most conservative one.

Pei Ziheng’s expression was dark, but he still ordered the one she chose.

It was two-piece cotton pajama set with a long-sleeved top and pants. She buttoned all the way to her neck.

As Xia Ling walked out of the bathroom, the temperature difference made her slightly shiver. Then, she saw Pei Ziheng sitting by the bed, holding an unlit cigarette and carrying the clothes he brought for her. It was a large casual blouse embroidered with beautiful and intricate dark flowers; it used to be the style that she liked the most.

“Are you done showering?” His voice was low.

Xia Ling nodded and stood by the bathroom door. The smell of smoke made her uncomfortable, and she did not move.

“Come here.” He said.

“After you put out that cigarette.” She said.

His brows were slightly arched, but he still put out the cigarette as she requested and opened the window for ventilation. “You don’t plan to sing anymore, so why do you care about the smell of smoke so much?” He asked.

“I don’t like the smell.” She answered. She was pregnant, and even though she could not reveal that now, she still had to create the healthiest environment possible for it.

Pei Ziheng did not press her further. He helped her settle down and used a large white towel to dry her wet hair.

A familiar technique and strength were used.

That year, when their relationship was still strong, he really liked to do things like that for her and treated her like a beautiful and delicate doll. The difference was that she was very happy then and accepted all his care without worry. Sometimes she would even throw a little tantrum, complaining that he was using too much or too little strength somewhere…

In fact, no one knew better than Xia Ling about how comfortable his technique was, but she liked the feeling of being pampered by him, just like how he forgave all of her wilfulness and unreasonableness.

However, now, everything had changed.

She was worried about the small life in her belly. The steak dinner tonight was not very appetizing, and she wondered if her baby felt hungry. There was also the issue of using medicine during pregnancy. She could not rest assured until the day Feng Kun gave her a reply…

Just as she was absorbed in her thoughts, Pei Ziheng said, “You didn’t eat enough for dinner right? What do you want to eat for supper? I’ll get Nanny Zhou to prepare it for you.”

Xia Ling came back to her senses. “Something light like porridge and pickled vegetables.”

Pei Ziheng was still gently helping her dry her hair. “So plain? It won’t be nutritious enough.”

Thinking about it, Xia Ling felt that he was right. She had already eaten very lightly recently to avoid morning sickness. Now, she had already successfully convinced Pei Ziheng that they slept together, so it was fine that she showed symptoms of being pregnant now. The more important thing was that her baby had been wronged for too long, and it needed its nutrition.

“Ask her to make some soup then,” Xia Ling said. “Crucian carp soup? I haven’t had that in a long time.”

“You never liked to eat it in the past,” Pei Ziheng said but did not object to it. “There’s no squid in the house. I’ll get someone to send it over from the old house, so you should eat something else in the meantime.” Only Xia Ling and he lived in this villa, and their usual meals consisted of things that they loved to eat, which did not include crucian carp soup as they did not even eat it once in a year. The old house was very different as many people from the Pei clan lived there and had different exquisite tastes. Thus, there was a wider array of ingredients in the large kitchen there.

Xia Ling said, “If it’s too troublesome, then forget it. How about pork ribs soup?”

“I’ll get Nanny Zhou to boil the ribs first. When the crucian carp arrives, she will make crucian carp soup. You can eat a little of both.” Pei Ziheng was always very patient with her. It was rare that she wanted to eat something, so of course, he had to try his best to fulfill her wishes.

Xia Ling did not say anything and let him arrange it.

In the night, the pork ribs soup was served first. She felt uncomfortable after drinking two mouthfuls and stopped after that. Soon, the crucian carp soup was served, but she could not tolerate the smell of it. For the baby’s health, she forced herself to eat a few mouthfuls but could not help but put down her chopsticks.

Pei Ziheng was worried and suggested to invite a doctor over again.

Xia Ling tried to negotiate with him. “How about a few days later? Maybe I just started working and am not used to it. I’m also quite tired, which may be why my appetite is so bad.” Seeing Pei Ziheng’s disapproval, she said, “I really don’t like injections and taking medicine. I promise to rest well during these few days. If things really don’t improve, you can call a doctor then.”

“If you aren’t better after a few days, then I will have no choice but to call the doctor.” Pei Ziheng said.

Xia Ling nodded and somehow got past this round.