Yun Qian glanced at him and said nothing, lowering her eyes and lightly brushing her fingers over the rouge paper. A delicate touch of moisture adorned the space between her brows, adding a touch of elegance.
Under the lamplight, her facial contours were distinct, her complexion as radiant as jade.
A face that reflects the person.
She was fond of everything she heard.
Recently, however, some words pleased her more.
Words like "wife" and "silly girl."
But if her husband did not ask, she would not take the initiative to speak.
Because Xu Chang’an had emphasized "restraint" to her countless times, rules which Yun Qian adhered to scrupulously.
"Comb my hair," Yun Qian said calmly.
"Alright," Xu Chang’an picked up a wooden comb and carefully managed Yun Qian’s long hair.
Feeling the trails left by the comb, Yun Qian looked at the faint rouge mark on her finger.
Initially, Xu Chang’an positioned himself as a steward, and his favorite thing to do was to comb her hair every morning; that was the essence of being a steward.
So, even if Yun Qian wanted to hear him call her "silly girl," it wasn’t likely he would drop calling her "Miss."
In fact, the two words "Miss," which didn’t sound particularly pleasant, held the most weight in her heart... Yun Qian had long decided that she wanted the occasional surprise rather than an amendable title.
She remembered his words.
Loves in the world are just ; only when they go deeper do they turn into kindness. You give me one, and I’ll return one; that’s a lifetime of love shared to and fro.
So, there’s no need to rush things.
She didn’t know how he changed his ways.
Yun Qian raised her head, watching the teenager carefully combing her hair in the mirror, asking: "I remember you said love isn’t deliberate; companionship is more important than anything, titles should come naturally... why suddenly care now?"
"Eh?" Xu Chang’an was stunned by Yun Qian’s inference, though he wasn’t too surprised, knowing that Yun Qian would ponder over everything he said.
"Miss, love isn’t deliberate, now... it’s time to let things happen naturally." Xu Chang’an’s fingers ran through Yun Qian’s long hair, gently twirling some of it, and it was evident he was in a good mood.
Upon realizing he could tease someone, wanting to become more "intimate," that’s letting things happen naturally.
As her husband, having done everything he should and shouldn’t have done, if he wanted to become closer, finding a more intimate nickname might be a good shortcut.
"I don’t quite understand..." Yun Qian nodded, her teeth tapping on her finger, tasting the slightly salty rouge, and opened her eyes: "As long as it’s not deliberate."
"What do you mean?" Xu Chang’an listened to Yun Qian’s unclear words, and now he didn’t understand either.
"Love is not deliberate," Yun Qian watched Xu Chang’an fiddling with her hair ends and said, "If one has to deliberately not call me Miss... I would think you don’t want to show love anymore."
He held onto Yun Qian’s hair for a while, not coming back to his senses until the torrential rain fell outside, accompanied by distant rumbling thunder. Xu Chang’an twitched his eye, holding the comb... and lightly tapped Yun Qian’s head with it.
"Ouch," Yun Qian frowned.
"Miss, to be honest, I’ve never been able to follow your train of thought or logic." Xu Chang’an gritted his teeth.
What sort of mind thinks changing to more intimate words means not showing love?
"I always feel uneasy," Yun Qian said.
"If I can’t give Miss a sense of security, that’s my fault," Xu Chang’an nodded.
An anxious girl, indeed, finds it hard to accept complete change, even if it’s just a title change, one he hadn’t fully considered.
"However Miss, precisely because I know you might feel uneasy, I’m asking for your opinion," Xu Chang’an explained.
Both could come up with a title together, allowing Yun Qian to have an adaptation period.
"No matter what you call me, I’ll like it," Yun Qian said without hesitation.
"Do you remember a saying?" Xu Chang’an asked.
"Once you left the island, you weren’t my steward anymore, so why call me Miss?" Xu Chang’an imitated Yun Qian’s voice and then laughed, "It’s you who said you wanted to hear something more affectionate."
"That was the love of the past, now... I want deeper love," Yun Qian gently nudged Xu Chang’an after hearing his strange tone, then asked, "Do I usually talk like that?"
"..." Xu Chang’an was silent for a while before saying, "Miss, your concerns are indeed hard for me to follow."
"Is it my fault I move too quickly?" Yun Qian asked him.
"Your husband is just too dim to keep up," Xu Chang’an pointed to his face.
"That’s not it," Yun Qian felt the slight pain where she was tapped, her eyes deep with light: "It’s always been me chasing you."
She was the one trying every way to chase him.
"That’s not quite right," Xu Chang’an halted his movements, "I think... it should be me chasing Miss?"
When on the island, wasn’t he the one trying hard to earn goodwill?
If it were truly Miss Yun chasing him... it wouldn’t have taken years; just a word would have done the trick.
"That’s irrelevant," Xu Chang’an ruffled Yun Qian’s hair, then, shouldering the consequence, continued to tidy her messy hair.
As long as they didn’t downgrade from love to mere affection... that’s fine.
"By the way," Xu Chang’an asked after tying Yun Qian’s hair, "Honestly, if I called you ’Miss Yun’... can you adapt?"
"Hmm, I can," Yun Qian responded, noting she had already said she could adapt to any name.
Even names like Xiaohua, as long as he liked it, Yun Qian would respond.
The swiftness of her response seemed dismissive.
"Expecting to ask Miss her preference, that’s my biggest mistake," Xu Chang’an massaged his temples.
Yun Qian still lacked decisiveness; ultimately... the matter fell back onto his shoulders.
Miss Yun didn’t see any fault in her doings, continuing to fiddle with her rouge.
Xu Chang’an was thinking of something.
He was hesitant to straightforwardly call Yun Qian by her name "Qian," as it’s indeed a name, so whether Ah Qian or Qian’Er seemed... especially the latter, he definitely couldn’t say it on the street.
The surname sounded better than the given name, allowing more combinations.
Something like Ah Yun... even though it didn’t sound as intimate as Miss Yun, this "distance" allowed him to say it confidently.
Xu Chang’an moved to the side, picked up a brush and dipped it in ink, leaving neat words on the paper.
Then, he stared at the character Yun, seriously contemplating how to combine it to create a pleasant word.
Xu Chang’an realized after pondering, the word that stirred within him the most when paired with Yun was Qian.
That was the best term.
The problem arose: would he directly call out her full name in the future?
A hint of picking a fight, wanting to quarrel, right?
Yun Qian inhaled the scent of ink, wishing to stand and approach him from behind, finding herself unable due to the weakness in her waist and legs. She managed to support herself just enough to catch sight of the words [Miss Yun] on the paper.
"What are you looking at," Yun Qian questioned, confused.
"I’m thinking I like these three words..." Xu Chang’an responded unconsciously in his deep thought, "but after omitting two, I like it more, though I can’t utter it."
Struggling to find a fitting term.
That sounded worse than Ah Qian.
[Miss Yun]... remove two from three. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ noⅴelfire.net
Yun Qian seemed taken aback, the rouge paper in her hand slowly falling to the ground, bending with effort after a while to retrieve it.
She had said before she didn’t wish to be Xu Chang’an’s daughter.
Taking a deep breath, Yun Qian seriously watched his silhouette, her knuckles pale from clenching, striving to keep her voice steady.
"Don’t... call me mother."