Lin He knew the man was doing it on purpose; with his hearing, he must have caught every word. She didn't repeat herself, only pouted, glaring at him.

Wen Ningxuan watched her for a moment, then let out a soft laugh, pulling Lin He onto his lap. "Ah-Er doesn't want to have children?"

Lin He thought it over, then spoke quietly, "It's not that I don't want any, it's just that I'm too young. I want to wait a couple more years. Being too young to give birth can be dangerous."

Hearing this, Wen Ningxuan smiled tenderly. Just now, judging by her tone, he had feared she was unwilling or unprepared to bear his children, which had caused him a flicker of discomfort. He hadn't realized her concern was about her own safety. Compared to her, the children were certainly less important. Wen Ningxuan murmured, "Mmm, then we'll wait a few years until you're older and ready, and then we'll talk." Besides, he wasn't eager to bring a little thing into the world just yet to disturb their current life.

Lin He smiled at him and gave a heavy affirmation, then added a little shyly, "No need to wait years. One or two should be fine. Then you can have as many as you like." Having been an orphan with no family in her previous life, Lin He didn't shy away from the idea of having several children in this one, especially imagining they would be hers and Wen Ningxuan's, which sent a wave of warmth through her heart.

Wen Ningxuan looked at the flushed face in his arms, his mood becoming exceptionally bright. He deliberately teased her, "Then how many does Ah-Er want? But not too many, I think two is perfect. Otherwise, I fear I won't be able to support them all."

Lin He shot him a playfully petulant glance. Seeing the pile of things, she turned to get down, saying she needed to tidy them up. Wen Ningxuan encircled her waist with his arms, refusing to let her go. Lin He struggled to break free. Just then, Zi Yu suddenly opened the door and entered, saying, "Young Mistress, do you think this bundle will do?"

As soon as Zi Yu spoke, she sensed the atmosphere was wrong. She looked up to see the Young Mistress straddling the Young Master, her face bright red. Seeing their posture, Zi Yu felt like slapping herself—why hadn't she knocked before entering? It was happening again, catching the Young Master and Young Mistress in an intimate moment. It seemed her good fortune was over.

Zi Yu recovered quickly. She quickly said, "Young Master, please carry on. I didn't see anything. I’ll leave now." With that, Zi Yu hurriedly closed the door and stood outside.

Lin He, her face still crimson, punched Wen Ningxuan's chest and said, "It's all your fault." Then she slid off him. She opened the door to call Zi Yu back in.

When Zi Yu re-entered, she kept her head bowed, not daring to look at Wen Ningxuan, afraid he might impose a punishment she couldn't bear. Finally, Zi Yu managed to finish putting away the things in the room. Wen Ningxuan simply sat by the bed reading a book and had said nothing throughout.

Zi Yu finally breathed a sigh of relief and was about to leave when she heard Wen Ningxuan's cool voice say, "Ling Xiao will be back in two days. While I am away, have Zi Qing look after the Young Mistress. You are to spend three shichen every day practicing martial arts with Ling Xiao."

Huh? Zi Yu’s mind went blank. It had been two shichen. Now it was three. She realized the Young Master wasn't so easily placated. This was what he had been waiting for. Zi Yu shot a pitiful glance at Lin He, who was sitting nearby collecting things, but Lin He just kept her head down, seemingly having heard nothing. What could a mere maid do? She had no choice but to accept her fate. Zi Yu replied with a dejected expression and walked out weakly.

After Zi Yu left, Lin He put down the items she was holding and said reproachfully, "You did that on purpose. If you scare my little maid away, what will you do then?"

Wen Ningxuan merely smiled dismissively. "Didn't you say Zi Yu and Ling Xiao were quite suitable? Having them spend more time together is even better, isn't it? Ling Xiao isn't that young anymore either."

"Second Young Master, your subordinate is getting old and can't find a wife, so now you're setting your sights on my maid? Ling Xiao is six or seven years older than Zi Yu. Isn't that an old ox eating young grass?" Lin He playfully used a phrase she remembered being very popular in her past life.

"What? Old ox eating young grass? What does that mean?" Wen Ningxuan asked, confused.

Lin He laughed at his bewildered expression. "You don't know? It means the husband is much older than the wife—that's an old ox eating young grass. Like you are the old ox, and I am the young grass."

This girl had so much nonsense logic, and she dared to call him an old ox! Wen Ningxuan put the book down, pulled Lin He onto the bed, and said teasingly, "Mmm, the old ox hasn't eaten any young grass yet today."

"You..." Before Lin He could finish speaking, her lips were sealed. Immediately, the clothes on Lin He’s body seemed to vanish as if by magic, followed by the strong, powerful body covering hers. Then, only soft feminine murmurs could be heard from the room. The sound made Zi Yu outside the door blush crimson, and it even caused the moon outside the window to hide behind the thick clouds, refusing to show itself again...

Two days later, the day for Lin He's return visit to her parents arrived. The night before, Lin He was so excited she hardly slept, thinking about all the things she needed to ask her family about. She tossed and turned, which kept Wen Ningxuan restless beside her. Later, seeing she couldn't sleep, Wen Ningxuan pinned her down and thoroughly "disciplined" her until she finally drifted into a deep sleep.

They woke up early the next morning. Despite her aching waist and legs from being tormented, the thought of visiting her maternal home gave her the strength to suppress the pain and get dressed. The person beside her roughly pulled off her clothes, then yanked her into his embrace, burying his head in her chest, his voice slightly husky. "Why are you getting up so early? The servants handle those arrangements. If your mother sees you looking tired when we arrive, she'll blame me for not taking good care of you."

Lin He rolled her eyes. Would this help her sleep? She wondered who it was last night preventing her from sleeping. And judging by the way things were going, he didn't intend to let her get up now. When had this brute become so brazen?

Lin He pushed his head away and said, "Hurry up and get ready. We have to leave soon. Aren't we supposed to rush back tonight? If we leave too late, we won't have enough time."

Wen Ningxuan kept his head nestled in the hollow of Lin He's shoulder. "If we don't have enough time, we can just stay there tonight. Why worry so much about it?"

"Ah? Didn't we have to return the same night?" Lin He had heard from Zi Yu and the others that tradition forbade staying overnight at the parental home on the return visit. She recalled hearing that the rule was such, and the Old Madam had also mentioned they needed to return early that day.