Chapter 158: Idle Gossip

"Wife, listen to me. Just rest and recover for a few more days." Su Nanxing felt that Tao Ming had put on a little weight compared to the previous days, and thought to himself that he needed to keep up the good work; fattening her up nicely would be best.

Tao Ming resorted to her ultimate act of coquetry: "Husband, I'm about to suffocate being cooped up in this room. Just let me go out for a stroll!"

"Wife, let's wait a few more days."

Seeing that Su Nanxing was utterly inflexible about letting her out, Tao Ming inevitably grew suspicious: "Are you hiding something from me?"

"No, no."

Tao Ming pouted. "We agreed to be completely honest with each other."

Su Nanxing was truly helpless against Tao Ming in this state. Realizing that she would find out sooner or later anyway, he decided to just spill the beans: "Wife, on the second day of your coma, rumors were flying all over the imperial city, claiming that you were caught in bed while having an affair with Qiao Kongqing. I was afraid you wouldn't be able to bear hearing such things if you went out."

Tao Ming let out an "Ah," and then burst into a hearty "Hhahahaha!" "They really have quite an imagination!"

Seeing that she didn't take it to heart, Su Nanxing explained, "Outsiders don't know your true relationship; they only saw the two of you walking closely together, so idle gossip was inevitable."

Once she had laughed her fill, Tao Ming asked, "Am I not even allowed to step out of the Qin family estate from now on?"

Unwilling to have Tao Ming face those judgmental glances and pointing fingers in the future, Su Nanxing probed gently, "Wife, shall the four of us leave Weishui?"

Tao Ming leaned lazily against the head of the bed, parted her lips slightly, and gently breathed out three words: "Why?"

Ever since Tao Ming regained consciousness, every gesture of hers carried an allure she had never possessed before, especially her posture at this moment, which was extraordinarily enticing. Su Nanxing desperately wished he could swallow her whole, yet knowing she hadn't fully recovered, he suppressed his desires and patiently replied, "Let's take our family back to Lianshao and live a peaceful life."

Tao Ming shook her head. "Escaping is useless; one must face difficulties head-on. Besides, I still have to help my brother start a rebellion!"

Unable to fathom why Tao Ming remained so fixated on staging a rebellion at a time like this, Su Nanxing asked, "Why must you insist on rebelling?"

"So that I can walk openly and proudly under the sun."

...

For several consecutive days, Tao Ming pestered Su Nanxing, throwing tantrums because she wanted to go out. Finally unable to hold out against her, Su Nanxing disguised himself, and the two of them came out onto the main streets of the imperial city.

After walking around for a long time and growing somewhat tired, Tao Ming spotted a teahouse ahead with a heavy stream of people coming and going. She pointed at it and said, "Husband, I want to go sit for a while."

"If you're tired, let's just go back." Su Nanxing had no desire to let Tao Ming step inside; every teahouse and tavern in the imperial city was currently flooded with sensational and salacious gossip about Tao Ming and Qiao Kongqing.

Tao Ming tugged at Su Nanxing's arm, acting spoiled: "Good husband, let's just sit for a little while. We've been here for so long, and I've never experienced the common folk's life around here."

Su Nanxing's heart melted into a puddle of spring water, and in a daze, he agreed. By the time he came to his senses and wanted to take it back, he remembered that she rarely ever acted so coquettishly with him before, so he closed his mouth and thought to himself that finding a private room on the second floor would at least shield them from most of the noise.

Seeing that Su Nanxing had agreed, Tao Ming happily quickened her pace and stepped into the teahouse. Noticing there were still empty tables on the ground floor, she walked right over and sat down.

"Wi..." Su Nanxing opened his mouth, but afraid of blowing their cover, he quickly changed his address, "My love, the first floor is rather noisy. Why don't we go upstairs and find a private room? The two of us can rest in peace."

"My lord, I just love sitting right here!" Tao Ming cajoled.

A rough-hewn man nearby chuckled, "This little lady's words are sweet enough to kill someone."

Someone else chimed in playfully, "Beneath that bamboo veil, I wonder what kind of beauty she hides."

A fire flared in Su Nanxing's chest. He pulled Tao Ming close, wrapping an arm around her: "Good fellows, my wife and I are newcomers here, so I kindly ask you to watch your tongues."

Seeing that Su Nanxing was extremely polite, the crowd found it awkward to make any more trouble and resumed their previous conversation.

"I heard the Qin family returned the betrothal gifts sent by the Su family. I wonder if that's true?"

"Naturally it's true. I saw Qin Siyu deliver them personally."

Tao Ming rested both hands on the table, holding a teacup with her left hand while spinning it with the index finger of her right hand, listening intently to the conversation nearby.

Seeing Tao Ming's hand movements, Su Nanxing's heart sank. This was a little habit from her lifetime as the little demoness, indicating that her interest was thoroughly piqued and she wanted to hear more. Yet what was there to listen to in gossip that hurled abuses at her?

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Never would I have guessed that the whore couldn't even wait a single moment, meeting her paramour in broad daylight and getting caught red-handed."

Someone gestured with their hand, "I hear the slut is extremely seductive."

"You said it! The day she entered the city, I only glanced at her, and at least half my soul flew away."

"On the day she was caught in the act, the bitch was standing stark naked by the bed, and that fellow from..."

Unable to restrain herself any longer, Tao Ming let out a sudden snort of laughter.

Someone asked with displeasure, "Why is the little lady laughing?"

Overjoyed and shaking all over with mirth, Tao Ming said, "You all talk as if it really happened. Could it be that you witnessed it with your own eyes?"

"It was spoken by the Su family members themselves. How could it be false?"

Tao Ming felt as though a dagger had been stabbed straight into her heart, never expecting that the gossip had actually originated from the Su family itself. Yet her voice retained its cheerful tone: "And where was it that the Su family caught them in the act?"

"I heard it was in the side room of the courtyard where the Su family's seventeenth young master lives. They were caught on the spot by Madam Su herself."

Tao Ming laughed even harder. "If you ask me, she must be a fool. When meeting a secret lover, instead of finding some secluded spot, she goes and does it right in her own courtyard."

"Little lady, you're a married woman yourself. When passion flares, how can anyone hold back!"

Tao Ming continued, "Well, she could have gone to the Seventh Prince's estate instead. Who in the Su family would dare go there to catch an adulterous couple?"

"Little lady, you must never mention the identity of the adulterer!"

"Why is that?" Tao Ming asked with curiosity, though her heart was filled with disdain.

"Who could possibly afford to provoke the imperial family?"

Tao Ming's voice sounded rather mischievous: "So you lot only curse the woman, then?"

"She flouted female virtue and lowered herself willingly. Who else is there to blame?"

Listening to Tao Ming banter with these people, Su Nanxing felt both anger and heartache. He spoke up, "I actually heard that the seventeenth young master of the Su family has already moved into the Qin residence. Perhaps there is more to this matter than meets the eye."

"That whore has superb methods; it's no wonder the Su family's seventeenth young master is utterly bewitched."

"True enough. If my own wife possessed even half of that whore's looks, I'd endure it too."

Hearing someone praise her beauty right to her face, Tao Ming laughed heartily.

After listening for a little while longer, finding that the people in the teahouse kept repeating the exact same points over and over, Tao Ming gently scratched the palm of Su Nanxing's hand. "Let's go. This is boring."

Once they stepped out of the teahouse, Su Nanxing gripped Tao Ming's hand tightly and pulled her into a quiet alley. "Don't take it to heart. They're just talking nonsense."

Tao Ming let out a self-deprecating laugh. "Some of those words weren't wrong. I am a witch, after all—born specifically to beguile people."

A series of voices echoed sharply in Su Nanxing's mind:

"A despicable demon, yet foolishly daring to crave Our affection."

"A despicable demon, yet foolishly daring to bear Our offspring."

"A despicable demon..."

His heart feeling as though it were being torn to shreds, Su Nanxing closed his eyes in agony, his grip on Tao Ming's hand tightening involuntarily.

Knowing that her previous remark had hurt Su Nanxing, Tao Ming sighed and said, "I'm sorry. I was just... I was just joking."

Su Nanxing pulled Tao Ming into a fierce embrace. "I'm the one who failed you."

"Our standpoints are simply different," Tao Ming said, lifting her chin to keep her bamboo hat from pressing against Su Nanxing's face.

Su Nanxing raised a hand to cup Tao Ming's head and kissed her through the white gauze of the veil. "Wife, I will make it up to you."