Lan Ningzhen seed to anticipate his move. She pressed her palm against his knee, forcing it back down. After stealing a kiss, she brazenly sucked on Xie Jue’s lower lip. Before he could bite her, she pulled away, grabbed the blanket to cover him, and said laughingly, "Fooling around is fine, but don’t ss with your health. Your body is already weak."
"Lan Ningzhen!" In the darkness, Xie Jue bolted upright like a startled fish, wiping the wetness from the corner of his lips with the back of his hand. His cheeks were flushed crimson, though he couldn’t tell if it was anger or embarrassnt. He raised his hand and slapped her—a slap that landed firmly on Lan Ningzhen’s face, rciless in its strength. Xie Jue had intended to play along with her emotional tricks, even becoming a liar in the process, but he hadn’t planned on their interactions escalating to this degree. This was the second ti today that she had stolen a kiss from him. And it was rare for him to call her by na—his shout echoing clearly in the darkness, accompanied by the slap.
Lan Ningzhen didn’t care about the sting of pain. "You really hit !"
Xie Jue’s chest rose and fell, flustered like a virtuous lady being taken advantage of. Yet, he felt his anger was petty, and even found himself unsettled by his own emotional reaction to such a trivial matter. He was acutely aware that his moods were heavily influenced by Lan Ningzhen. Anger? Perhaps. He certainly hadn’t planned to feel this way about her. Initially, he thought touching or kissing her would be just part of the act—a calculated move. If it had been anyone else, it wouldn’t have mattered. He wouldn’t have cared. It was just acting, after all. But with her... it was different. She made him downright angry. Angry enough to strike her.
He shouldn’t have hit her. No matter what, a man should never raise his hand against a woman.
But he overlooked sothing. The girl standing before him had more strength and skill than he did. If their roles were reversed, with Lan Ningzhen as the man and himself as the woman, there’s no doubt she could play the part of an arrogant rogue, seducing virtuous ladies without a second thought. Strong-arming innocent won? She could probably manage it just fine.
In the darkness, faced with Xie Jue’s fury, Lan Ningzhen cheerfully admitted her fault. "Alright, I was wrong. I couldn’t help myself. We’re just a girl and a boy alone in the sa room—I lost control. If you don’t like it, it won’t happen again!"
A slap in exchange for a kiss—totally worth it.
This promise, "It won’t happen again," sohow angered him even more. How could she say such things so casually? And it wasn’t even the first ti!
"Why do you always seem to enjoy invading my personal space?" Xie Jue couldn’t understand. Even if she liked him, surely she shouldn’t be this audacious. Behaving this way in Yanyang could get her arrested!
Outside, the wind howled as snow battered the windows. The weak oil lamp flickered out in the draft. In the darkness, Xie Jue caught sight of Lan Ningzhen curling her legs up, staring steadily at him. Though he couldn’t see her expression, he felt her smoldering, bold gaze.
"I really like you... I truly do," Lan Ningzhen confessed. "From the very first mont I saw you, I fell for you. But I know... you’re a love I can never hope to reach. No matter how deeply I care for you, the thought of us being together is an impossible dream. At the start, I tried suppressing my feelings. But emotions that defy reason, once bottled up, erupt violently like a burning volcano. Then one day, out of the blue, an opportunity presented itself. I realized I didn’t have to hide my love or suppress my feelings anymore. And from that point on, I couldn’t stop myself—I wanted to be close to you. I wanted to hold you, kiss you, share a bed with you. I wanted to share intimacy with you. I couldn’t help myself..."
Xie Jue furrowed his brows. To him, her candid admission felt both bizarre and far too forthright, enough to make his face flush red. Her words—this girl was simply too much!
She even said "share intimacy"! Such an indecent phrase!
Wait—how did she know those words? Sure, she’d picked up so Yanyang expressions, but no one had taught her these! How could she instinctively use such language?
Lan Ningzhen knew, deep down, that no matter how heartfelt and beautiful her admission might sound, it was still a form of harassnt toward Xie Jue. Unless both parties felt the sa way, her actions were inappropriate.
Carefully, she reached out and wrapped her hand around Xie Jue’s, speaking ekly. "If you don’t like it, this truly won’t happen again. I’ll be more mindful. Is that okay?"
Xie Jue found it difficult to say no—he was, after all, still playing his part.
"...Mm." He muttered vaguely, turning over and lying down. Out of sight, out of mind. Yet for reasons he couldn’t explain, his heartbeat quickened. With the room draped in darkness, the senses of sound and touch grew more heightened. He heard the rustle of fabric as Lan Ningzhen lifted the blanket and slid under. Xie Jue held himself back with all his might—he didn’t want to share a blanket with a stranger.
He’d never shared a bed with anyone since childhood, except Fang Chuning. Yet now, lying there with Lan Ningzhen, her presence implicitly shifted the dynamic between them. He would have to take responsibility for her. From this mont, she would an sothing different to him.
Xie Jue felt agitated, anxious, yet strangely unresentful. This unexpected trip to Beiman had sohow drawn him into a whirlpool of emotions he hadn’t anticipated. No matter how intelligent or shrewd he might be, this wasn’t a situation solvable by logic and strategy.
So be it!
If responsibility is what it takes, so be it!
He was Yanyang’s General, entrusted with protecting countless lives. Right now, his priority lay in achieving his mission in Beiman!
Lan Ningzhen lay quietly behind Xie Jue. He had turned his back to her, ears attuned to her gentle breaths and to the raging snowstorm outside. Yet he couldn’t ignore the inexplicable familiarity—the buried warmth reminded him of winters in Ningzhou. Back then, sharing silence in military tents with Fang Chuning often ant entwining limbs for warmth. Only with Chuning had he allowed monts that intimate.
After Xie Jue’s angry outburst, Lan Ningzhen had restrained herself, behaving unnaturally obedient. Though sharing the sa bed, she took care not to touch him at all—a stark departure from her usual behavior of constantly reaching out. She was truly uncharacteristically well-behaved.
It was almost... too quiet.
Lan Ningzhen broke the silence. "Mr. Helian, have you ever liked soone before?"
Xie Jue replied, "No."
At seventeen, soon to be eighteen, Xie Jue’s life had revolved around family and Fang Chuning. Matters of the heart had always been foreign territory.
Lan Ningzhen fell quiet for a long while. Even without turning to face her, Xie Jue could sense her sigh—a sound laced with regret. "So, you’ve never had soone who moved your heart?"
This ti, Xie Jue hesitated.
He was disciplined and restrained. Even if he had felt sothing, it was buried deep within him, never to be acknowledged. He refused to expose his emotions. He could easily lie, saying there hadn’t been anyone. Yet sohow, silence prevailed.
Lan Ningzhen interpreted his pause with excitent. "Silence ans yes! Who is she? What is she like?"
Xie Jue closed his eyes, forcing his thoughts to empty, desperately suppressing the images bubbling to the surface. He had to keep his mind clear. "It’s not important."
"How could it not be important? To , it matters greatly!" Lan Ningzhen grew worked up, nearly sitting up in her desperation for answers.
Confused, Xie Jue turned onto his side to face her. "Why does it matter to you? Why are you so agitated?"
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