Chapter 138: The Secret Box

Tao Ming couldn't help but laugh out loud. If a skirt reaching the knees was considered too short, where would that leave miniskirts?

Hearing Tao Ming laugh, Su Nanxing asked with a touch of annoyance, "Am I wrong?"

Tao Ming chuckled, "I understand. Every father in the world thinks his daughter’s skirt is too short, even if she’s only four."

Ruanruan tugged at her skirt, sulking, "Daddy, does this mean I can only wear this skirt in the bedroom from now on?"

Su Nanxing crouched down, looking into Ruanruan's eyes, "Be a good girl, Ruanruan. You can wear it in the courtyard, but don't wear it when we go out."

Ruanruan blinked, "Can I wear it now, then?"

Su Nanxing patted her head, "Of course you can."

Seeing Nuonuo standing there in silence, Tao Ming picked her up and kissed her, "My little sweetie Nuonuo, why have you been so quiet lately?"

Nuonuo stole a glance at Su Nanxing and whispered, "I have been talking."

Tao Ming carried Nuonuo toward the bedroom, saying, "Let me go change first."

As she rested on Tao Ming's shoulder, Nuonuo saw Su Nanxing wave at her. She pouted, feeling aggrieved; the burden of keeping a secret was truly unbearable.

Once inside the bedroom, Tao Ming quickly changed her clothes and held Nuonuo close, asking softly, "Nuonuo, I feel like you've had something on your mind lately." She watched her daughter’s expression closely.

Nuonuo’s eyes darted away. Seeing Tao Ming staring at her, she clung to Tao Ming’s neck, avoiding her gaze as she rested her head on her shoulder. "Mommy, I have a little secret, but I can't tell you."

"Nuonuo is growing up; she has her own little secrets now." Tao Ming patted her back and nuzzled her cheek comfortingly. "That’s alright, Mommy can wait. When you feel it’s time to tell me, you must come and find me, okay?"

"Mommy..." Nuonuo called out hesitantly.

Tao Ming felt she had spent less time with Nuonuo lately; was the little girl unhappy about that? She asked gently again, "My sweetie, have I been neglecting you lately? Once I finish dealing with things tomorrow, I’ll spend the whole day with you."

"No, Mommy. I know you have things to do. I’m not blaming you."

Tao Ming lifted Nuonuo up, looked into her eyes, and said, "Nuonuo, no matter what others think of you, in my heart, you and Ruanruan are both my little treasures."

Nuonuo lowered her head, unable to meet Tao Ming’s eyes. "Mommy, I’m really fine."

Tao Ming sighed and kissed her little cheek. "You don't have to be so sensible. Just be yourself."

Nuonuo asked cautiously, "Mommy, aren't you angry?"

"Why would I be angry?"

"Because I didn't tell you my little secret."

"Mommy won't be angry. Everyone has their own secrets; I have them too." Seeing that Nuonuo was still full of worry, Tao Ming rubbed her little cheek. "Sweetheart, you can pretend you have a little box in your heart and hide your secret inside. Don't think about it usually. When you feel the time is right, you can open that box, or never open it at all. How about that?"

Nuonuo’s eyes brightened. "Mommy, can I really do that?"

"Of course. I still love that feisty little kitty cat!"

Nuonuo immediately retorted, "I am a divine White Tiger, not a cat!"

Seeing that Tao Ming was taking a long time to come out, Su Nanxing feared Nuonuo might let something slip, so he called out, "Wife, are you done changing? Come out to eat."

Tao Ming carried Nuonuo out of the bedroom. Seeing the joy on Nuonuo’s face and her sparkling eyes, Su Nanxing couldn't guess what Tao Ming had said. He walked over, took Nuonuo from her arms, and suggested, "Wife, shall we have dinner with the Su family today?"

"Sure."

Su Nanxing turned to Qiao Ruowei and said, "Mother, we’ll head back to Star-Plucking Courtyard to freshen up first, then we’ll come over for dinner."

Qiao Ruowei looked at Tao Ming and smiled, "Mingming, have Si Shang alter the red one; you can take the others back with you."

"Thank you, Mother."

...

Su Nanxing deliberately slowed his pace. Watching Tao Ming walk away with Ruanruan, he whispered, "Nuonuo, you didn't tell Mommy, did you?"

"I only said I have a little secret. Mommy said everyone has secrets and didn't ask me what it was."

"You did very well. Daddy knows it’s hard for you to keep this secret, but it’s all for Mommy and Ruanruan. Can you hold on?"

"Daddy, I can hold on!"

They soon arrived at the Star-Plucking Courtyard. Ruanruan wanted to play hide-and-seek in the garden, but Tao Ming ushered her into the main room. She sat on a chair, sulking, and let out a deliberate "Hmph!" When she saw Tao Ming enter the bedroom, she raised her voice, "Hmph!"

Su Nanxing walked in right behind her and saw Ruanruan’s puffed-up cheeks. Not seeing Tao Ming, he placed Nuonuo on a chair and asked, "Who are you angry at, Ruanruan?"

Ruanruan pouted, "I want to play hide-and-seek, but Mommy won't let me!"

Su Nanxing coaxed her, "We're going to eat soon. Mommy is surely just worried you’ll be too tired to eat."

Ruanruan started to act up, "Eat, eat what! I don't want to eat!"

Hearing this, Tao Ming called out from afar, "Then let her go hungry."

Ruanruan shook her little fist toward the bedroom, "Hmph! Kids who go hungry won't grow tall!"

"Husband, come in and take a look." Tao Ming knew Su Nanxing would let Ruanruan play, so she decided to go along with it.

Su Nanxing lowered his voice, "You two go play in the garden for a little while. I'll call you when it's time to eat."

"Daddy is the best!" Ruanruan cheered, grabbing Nuonuo and running out of the main room.

Su Nanxing entered the bedroom and saw Tao Ming standing in front of the wardrobe with several dresses draped over her arm. He walked over, wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, and rested his head on her shoulder. "Wife, you smell so good."

"Good?" Tao Ming sniffed her own arm. "How come I don't smell anything?"

Su Nanxing nibbled lightly on her shoulder, "Fragrant and tender."

Tao Ming shivered, "Why do you seem a bit like a pervert?"

Su Nanxing let out a low laugh. Tao Ming lifted her arm draped with clothes, "There isn't even a hanger in this wardrobe. How am I supposed to hang these?"

Su Nanxing pointed to a horizontal bar at the foot of the bed. "We don't have hangers like the ones on Earth here. We usually just drape our clothes over this rack." He grabbed the clothes from her arm and tossed them onto it. "I rarely come back here, so I only put up the simplest one. There are all kinds of intricately carved racks you can choose from yourself."

Looking at the mess of clothes on the rack, Tao Ming felt a headache coming on, "Seeing it all cluttered like this is so annoying!"

"I'm used to it. I used to just throw them like that, and the maids would naturally tidy them up."

Tao Ming wondered if she could exchange for hangers using the 'Shift of Stars' system, but for now, she would have to make do. She flipped through a few dresses and asked, "Which one should I wear tomorrow?"

Su Nanxing examined them carefully and pointed to a long pinkish-white dress, "Wear this one tomorrow."

Tao Ming didn't really care; in any case, none of the clothes here felt comfortable.

Su Nanxing sat on the bed and pulled Tao Ming into his lap, kissing her fiercely before saying, "I've been holding back so much. I wanted to kiss you back when we were delivering the betrothal gifts."

"You act like a sex-starved ghost all day. Can't you think about anything else?"

Su Nanxing leaned down to kiss her again, "I don't know why, but the moment I see you, I just can't control myself."