Lu Yuan was caught off guard when she pounced on him—that was one thing—but to now hear such a "blasphemously outrageous" statent co out of her mouth?
Lu Yuan was beginning to suspect that she’d taken the wrong dicine.
As he instinctively tried to sit up, ng Qianqian grabbed his wrists, forcefully pressing them above his head.
This inverted position defied all reason...
Lu Yuan: "..."
Her palms were burning hot, clasping his cold wrists, searing his skin in a way that couldn’t be ignored.
Though her grip wasn’t strong, the intimacy of this posture was undeniable, their bodies inevitably touching.
Her breath, fragrant as orchids, was as soft as a drifting cloud, brushing against his sharp, cold features.
For a mont, Lu Yuan didn’t even know which part of his body was burning more.
His gaze settled on her overly flushed cheeks. After a pause, he steadied himself and asked, "ng Xiaojiu, have you gone delirious?"
ng Qianqian shook her head. "I’m not sick."
Lu Yuan demanded impatiently, "Let go of my hands."
Again, ng Qianqian shook her head. "I won’t."
Lu Yuan beca more certain that sothing was off about her today. Not only was her body unnaturally hot and her breathing erratic, but even her tone of speech and the way she looked at him had radically changed.
Taking a deep breath, Lu Yuan pressed, "ng Xiaojiu, do you even know what you’re doing?"
Softly, she answered, "Yes. It’s insubordination. Tomorrow, I will present myself to the Grand Commander to admit my guilt and receive my punishnt."
"Who asked you to admit anything..."
Before he could finish his sentence, a sudden tickling sensation spread from his neck—it was her; she had buried her face into the crook of his neck.
"Grand Commander, you sll so good."
This wasn’t the first ti she’d complinted him on this, but while last ti it had been a casual remark, now it was laced with an undeniable sense of possession.
Lu Yuan’s fingers curled tightly. "ng Xiaojiu!"
She planted a kiss on his cheek. "I’m here."
Seizing the mont when she wasn’t paying attention, Lu Yuan forcefully pushed her away and stood up, saying, "We’ll talk after you’ve sobered up!"
But just as he left the stepping bed, ng Qianqian suddenly grabbed his wrist, yanking him back with surprising force.
Lu Yuan truly hadn’t anticipated her strength—he was nearly pulled back onto the bed.
With a quick and skilled maneuver, he twisted his arm free. "ng Xiaojiu, get a grip on yourself!"
What had she eaten at the Princess Mansion?
Wasn’t it obvious soone had drugged her?
But she herself was a doctor—who in the world could trick her into this?
A na suddenly sprang to mind: Princess Wanping.
Once she had pestered him endlessly, and when that failed, she turned her troubles onto ng Xiaojiu.
What twisted karma existed between Princess Wanping and the Governor Mansion?
Lu Yuan quickly tapped an acupoint on ng Qianqian to suppress the reckless impulses she had stirred within him. Keeping his composure, he remarked, "The doctor will arrive shortly."
With that, he turned to unbolt the door and pulled it open.
"Nanny Wan."
He called out.
Nanny Wan scurried over. "Son-in-law, what are your orders?"
In a serious tone, Lu Yuan instructed, "Go find Steward Cen. Tell him to head to the Princess Mansion and ask my mother to return to the estate as soon as possible."
This situation might require consulting his mother about so kind of miraculous elixir from his grandmother.
"Understood."
Nanny Wan had no idea why she needed to call the madam back, but as a servant, she simply followed orders.
Still, taking in the sight of the courtyard buried in heavy snow, she hesitantly asked, "In this kind of snowstorm, are you sure the madam needs to rush back imdiately? Wouldn’t it be better to wait until the snow stops?"
"No need."
Before Lu Yuan could finish, the door behind him suddenly swung open with a clatter. A pale hand reached out, grabbing the back of his neck and yanking him unceremoniously inside.
"Son-in-law..."
Bam!
The door slamd shut in Nanny Wan’s face.
Startled, she covered her nose—which narrowly avoided being smashed—and murmured to herself, finishing her earlier question: "No need for what? No need to wait for the snow to stop, or no need to call the madam back...?"
From within the room ca the sound of crashing porcelain, as if every piece on the table had shattered.
"Young people these days really... they’re sothing else."
Nanny Wan hurriedly departed.
These matters between the son-in-law and the young lady? Best to keep out of it—totally out of it!
Inside the room, ng Qianqian and Lu Yuan were locked in a battle.
Lu Yuan would never have believed, even in his wildest dreams, that she could break through the acupoint he had sealed. Clearly, the drug’s effects were extraordinary.
Since it wasn’t convenient for him to deal with Princess Wanping directly, this debt would have to be settled with Ji Li instead.
ng Qianqian, anwhile, wasn’t in top form during their struggle. Lu Yuan spotted an opening and seized the upper hand.
Yet, to his astonishnt, ng Qianqian wasn’t even trying to compete with him in martial arts. Instead, she cast a Gu spell on him with a flick of her hand.
"ng Xiaojiu!"
She removed her hair tie and used it to bind his wrists to the bedpost.
Lu Yuan’s eyes widened in sheer disbelief.
What kind of strange hobbies did this girl have?!
ng Qianqian recalled a scene from the Spring Breeze Painting in the Book Pavilion.
There had been a whip.
Oh, and candles.
She fetched them all.
Lu Yuan: "..."
ng Qianqian leaned in, her delicate hands undoing his robes.
Lu Yuan t her gaze deeply. "ng Xiaojiu, you’ve been drugged. Think rationally."
"Mm."
She answered absentmindedly.
His crimson outer robe slid down to his waist.
His fra was tall and well-proportioned, with broad shoulders and a tapered waist, his muscles defined but not exaggerated—a force of pure masculinity.
"ng Xiaojiu, if Lu Lingxiao, or Chu Nan, were in my place right now, would you do the sa to them? Treat them as your cure?"
Both her body and consciousness were ablaze. "No. Xiaojiu only wants to do this to the Grand Commander."
The mont her words fell, the hair tie binding his wrists snapped under sheer force.
Lu Yuan’s large hand encircled her as he swiftly flipped her onto the soft bed.
For a brief second, ng Qianqian froze. "You... weren’t affected by the Gu...? How do you still have strength?"
Lu Yuan supported himself over her with both arms as he stared down at her unwaveringly. "That sort of Gu won’t work on . I’ll ask you one last ti—do you truly, only want to do this to ?"
ng Qianqian hesitated before nodding ekly.
In a husky voice, Lu Yuan said, "Then don’t regret it."
He raised a hand and removed the hairpin from her crown.
Her cascade of black hair fell like a waterfall.
She looked like an ethereal being who had descended into the mortal realm, untouched by any impurity.
Lu Yuan’s eyes darkened as he waved his sleeve, letting the bed canopy fall.
Snow continued to fall heavily outside.
The Dragon and Phoenix incense candles on the candelabra dripped crimson tears of wax.
-
At the Princess Mansion.
The opera troupe onstage was carrying on lodiously. Liu Qingyun had claid the best seat, eating lon seeds as she thoroughly enjoyed the show.
Bai Yuwei was dying of boredom. "Aunt, let’s go back already."
"We’re not going."
Liu Qingyun replied.
Bai Yuwei grumbled, "You don’t even like listening to opera."
With a sparkle in her eye, Liu Qingyun said, "Today, I do."
Still perplexed, Bai Yuwei asked, "Princess Wanping’s wedding—what’s there to be so happy about? It’s not like it’s your son getting married."
Liu Qingyun responded, "You wouldn’t understand, child."
"What don’t I understand?"
Bai Yuwei asked.
Cryptically, Liu Qingyun said, "You’ll understand when you get married soday."
Bai Yuwei snorted. "I’m never getting married. I want to stay with my parents and Grandpa forever."
Liu Qingyun cracked another lon seed. "Alright."
Frowning, Bai Yuwei leaned closer. "Aunt, did you take the wrong dicine today? You haven’t scolded or hit in three days."
Liu Qingyun: "..."
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