Man Yao looked at his hand—long, fair, with well-defined knuckles, an extraordinarily beautiful hand. It could lead someone out of prison, and it could also push someone into the abyss, couldn’t it? Suddenly, she felt a little afraid and actually took a step back. “I don’t want to ride in the carriage.”
Zongzheng Wuyou was slightly startled. Man Yao thought he would surely be displeased, but to her surprise, he leapt down from the carriage instead, standing before her in all his peerless grace, and said to her with incomparable gentleness, “Then we’ll walk back.”
The breeze of early summer blew across her face, lifting the loose strands of hair by her ears and sending them fluttering softly. Zongzheng Wuyou led her into a secluded, deserted path. All around them was quiet, without a sound.
Man Yao walked forward with her hand in his. The road ahead was pitch-black; where it turned, where it forked—she knew nothing at all, and could only follow his steps. After they had walked for a while, Zongzheng Wuyou suddenly asked, “Do you have something on your mind?”
Man Yao answered casually, “Yes.”
Zongzheng Wuyou clearly had not expected her to answer so readily. He turned his head and saw that her half-lowered eyes had lost some of their former clarity. Thinking back on everything that had happened that night, it seemed her mood had begun to change from the moment Princess Rongle chose Fu Chou. His brows drew together. He stopped, gripping her hand with great force. Then he asked, “Because Fu Chou is to marry Princess Rongle?”
Man Yao nodded. “Yes.”
Zongzheng Wuyou’s heart sank. An inexplicably complicated emotion instantly filled his chest, making him rarely, uncharacteristically irritable. Gazing at her calm eyes, he pressed his lips together and said nothing for a long while. Unconsciously, his hand tightened more and more. Man Yao felt the pain, but made no sound, nor did she struggle free. She only said slowly, “To treat a woman who loves you so deeply like that… don’t you think it’s cruel?”
Zongzheng Wuyou asked in return, “How do you think I should treat her? Do you hope I take her as a concubine?”
Perhaps because their surroundings were too quiet, Man Yao vaguely felt there was a trace of hurt in his cold, deep voice. He asked what she hoped? What hope could she have? She simply felt that even if he did not like Zhaoyun, there was no need to wound her so heartlessly.
That was what she thought, but he said, “If I am not cruel, how can I sever her hopes and let her marry in peace, to live her own life?” He suddenly turned her body toward him, holding her slender shoulders with both hands. Lowering his eyes slightly to look into hers, his gaze was profound like a mysterious whirlpool, drawing her in completely.
Zongzheng Wuyou said, “I don’t like her. I won’t bring her back to the prince’s manor. A-Man, do you… understand?”
Under the moonlight, his face was so gentle, his low, magnetic voice carrying a beguiling quality that stripped away, bit by bit, the defenses she had only just built in her heart. He said he did not like Zhaoyun and would not bring Zhaoyun back to the prince’s manor. Did that mean he liked her? But why did he like her? Because she was someone who had transmigrated here from that other world?
“Wuyou, I…” How was she to tell him her identity? How could she make him believe she had not deliberately approached him? Her lips parted, and she felt somewhat helpless.
Zongzheng Wuyou said, “I’ll take you somewhere.” He held her hand firmly, his movement domineering yet still gentle.
The bright moon cast its clear radiance. At some unknown moment, many stars had appeared in the black velvet night, dazzlingly bright.
Zongzheng Wuyou brought Man Yao to the rear mountain of Prince Li’s Manor. There, the grass was lush, wildflowers swayed, and around a pool of warm water, in the mist-wreathed air, a faint, delicate fragrance drifted.
“This is… a hot spring?” Man Yao crouched in surprise by the hot spring pool built of white marble, lightly stirring the steaming warm water with her hand. Droplets slipped through her pale, slender fingers, refracting gentle ripples of light beneath the glow of the luminous pearls hanging under the eaves of the nearby Agarwood Cottage, like ripples spreading through her heart, circle after circle, carrying that scorching warmth deep into the very depths of her being.
Man Yao could not resist removing her shoes and socks and putting her feet into the water. It was truly warm. She lifted her head and heavily breathed out the turbid breath that had been stifled in her chest. Her heart, thrown into turmoil by the bestowed marriage, inexplicably calmed amid the quiet, fragrant atmosphere before her. Behind her on the grass, Zongzheng Wuyou lay casually, both arms pillowed behind his head, silently watching her movements, his gaze deepening by a few degrees.
“Thank you.” Man Yao turned back, her clear eyes as bright as the stars in the night sky.
Zongzheng Wuyou’s eyes stirred, and he laughed softly. “Do you want to get in and soak? I can close my eyes.”
There was a hint of wicked charm in that smile, and Man Yao’s face grew hot under his gaze. She quickly shook her head. “No need. I’ll just sit like this for a while.”
She turned her head to look ahead. Behind her came the man’s low laughter. She was not annoyed; she was only thinking, would there still be days like this in the future? She and he, tasting tea together, playing chess together, walking hand in hand down a silent road, looking at the stars, looking at the moon, looking at every view worth seeing, speaking of past lives and present lives…
That wordless bitter taste in the depths of her heart quietly rose again. Thinking that she was but a lonely soul who had crossed a thousand years, alone and without kin in this world, how fortunate was she to have met a Zongzheng Wuyou—someone with whom she could freely discuss ancient and modern things, someone who acknowledged her modern ideas? And yet fate, that invisible hand, had mercilessly forced them into their present situation.
She did not dare imagine what his reaction would be if he learned her identity. Her heart actually ached faintly. For a moment, she did not dare think any further, and only sat there in a daze.
“What’s wrong?” Zongzheng Wuyou sensed her abnormality and found it somewhat strange. He sat up, reached out, and directly cupped her chin, making her lowered face look straight at him as he asked in puzzlement.
Man Yao’s crystalline eyes looked directly into the depths of his. Her clear gaze carried a hint of sorrow, as though waiting for him to answer something. Zongzheng Wuyou’s heart could not help but stir slightly, and his fingers gently brushed her delicate cheek. Man Yao stared at him for a long while, as if she had made a decision in her heart. Only then did she speak with difficulty. “Wuyou, if… I were to marry, would you be happy for me?”
Zongzheng Wuyou froze slightly, his eyes carefully studying her face. Then he laughed softly. “Oh? You’re going to marry? Marry whom?” His fingers lingered again and again at the corner of her lips. The tender touch made ripples rise across the lake of her heart, while her mind was already in chaos. Zongzheng Wuyou merely smiled and looked at her, his gaze flickering as he quietly waited for her answer. Man Yao had not expected him to reply so directly. Gritting her teeth, she said with difficulty, “I, I…”
Zongzheng Wuyou sighed and said softly, “A-Man, I know whom you are to marry.”
Man Yao was startled and raised her eyes to look at him. She saw that at this moment, Zongzheng Wuyou’s expression actually held a trace of fervor, his gaze blazing. The corner of his mouth lifted wickedly, and he said to her clearly and firmly, “Because the only person you can marry… is me!”
Man Yao cried out in surprise. As the word me fell, Zongzheng Wuyou had already thrown her down onto the grass with sudden force. Their faces were within inches of each other, their increasingly rapid breaths clearly audible. Her heart instantly pounded wildly beyond restraint. One of his hands tightly encircled her slender waist, while the other caressed her face with gentleness. He murmured, “A-Man, you are mine. You can only be mine!”
Man Yao’s heart was in utter disarray. Everything had happened too suddenly; she had not yet had time to sort out her own thoughts. Reason reminded her that she ought to keep her distance from the man before her. But, but the feeling deep in her heart so loved being close to him, loved seeing him jealous for her, loved how he expressed his displeasure as directly as a child.
Once the spring bud of desire was watered, it grew wildly, irrepressibly. Zongzheng Wuyou could no longer suppress the desire in his heart and kissed her lips. The unique, faint fragrance of a woman rushed toward him, and he only felt the true qi within his body silently flowing, as if straining to break through something.
Beside the mist-filled hot spring pool, the man’s clean, clear scent mingled with the faint fragrance of grass, forming an aroma that could almost drown a person. Man Yao gently closed her eyes and instinctively responded to him. Her hand pressed against his chest. Even through his clothes, she could still feel the powerful rhythm coming from his heart, and her own heart could not help but tremble. She still clearly remembered the first time she had been close to him, when an assassin had pushed her down onto him. At that time, his body had been cold as ice. Pressed against his chest, she could not hear even the slightest sound of a heartbeat. Yet at this moment, though his body was still cold, she truly felt his fierce, raging heartbeat! This realization suddenly caused an unprecedented sweetness and happiness to surge from the depths of her heart, silently spreading through her until her heart quivered.
He said, A-Man, you can only be mine! For Zongzheng Wuyou, who had never approached women, what did this… represent? At this moment, she suddenly no longer wished to think of anything. Marriage alliance, general, bestowed marriage—all of it faded completely from her heart, leaving only the man before her… Zongzheng Wuyou. From when had he quietly entered the depths of her heart?
Man Yao quietly lifted her lashes and peered at the man before her through the fine gaps. She saw his brows slightly furrowed, a few beads of sweat glistening on the tip of his nose, his breathing hurried. His usually pale face was veiled in a faint blush, while those soul-stealing eyes were closed. As though sensing her gaze, Zongzheng Wuyou suddenly opened his eyes. Those eyes, once wickedly charming and cold as a frigid pool in hell, were now filled entirely with intense affection for her. Man Yao’s heart trembled, as if struck by the current in his eyes, and her body shook faintly. The Zongzheng Wuyou of this moment was so gentle, so full of feeling, that she had not the slightest strength to resist.
She hurriedly closed her eyes, both cheeks burning as if on fire, her heart beating rapidly. All her life, she had always kept herself in a clear-headed state, never forgetting to remind herself what she ought to do. Even her fiancé in her previous life had been someone she dated in accordance with her father’s wishes. Even a kiss had only been the natural result of a relationship reaching a certain stage. She had thought that was love. It turned out… she had been wrong!
As Man Yao thought to herself, she suddenly felt a chill on her shoulder. At some unknown point, her clothes had slipped halfway down to her waist. Her body stiffened slightly, and her mind at once regained a little clarity. Was she truly going to entrust herself to such an unfathomable man, whose joys and angers were so uncertain? Although at this moment she could be certain that she had indeed fallen for him, she could not control his feelings, nor could she predict what she would face after this night.
Zongzheng Wuyou seemed to sense the hesitation in her heart, and his sword-like brows drew together slightly. Toward him… she still did not fully trust him. The movements of his hands became even gentler. His burning lips slid to her ear, immediately making her tremble uncontrollably. Her breaths grew slightly hurried, her eyes hazy and almost intoxicated. He breathed softly by her ear, his voice beguiling as he murmured, “What is it? Do you not like me?”
His magnetic voice was clearly low and hoarse with desire. The scorching breath from his mouth scattered over her neck, teasing her sensitive nerves again and again. She instinctively wanted to turn her head away, but Zongzheng Wuyou held her in place with one hand. Looking at his shimmering eyes, her heart was in chaos, and for a moment she truly did not know what to do.
Man Yao panted softly. “I, I…”
Zongzheng Wuyou knew in his heart that he could not be impatient with the woman before him.
Zongzheng Wuyou panted as he raised his head, propping himself up slightly. Looking into her eyes, the light in his own dimmed, and that childlike helplessness appeared on his face once more.
Man Yao’s heart ached faintly. Had her unconscious refusal hurt him?
“Wuyou, you… I…” She suddenly did not know what she should say.
Zongzheng Wuyou panted. “A-Man, don’t reject me…”
During the days he had spent with her, she had spoken with him about everything in that world, yet had avoided only topics related to herself. The her of that world must surely have lived unhappily. This woman’s defenses were very strong; he had to move her with emotion. Thoughts turned swiftly in his mind, and he decided to retreat in order to advance.
Zongzheng Wuyou reached out with both hands to hold her face, exceptionally careful, his expression solemn. He gently pressed a kiss to her lips and sighed in a low voice. “A-Man, do you know? In my heart, you will be the only wife I, Zongzheng Wuyou, will have in this life. If you truly are unwilling, I will never force you.”
Man Yao’s heart shook violently. In her past life and this one, she had lived for more than twenty years, yet never had anyone cherished her like this, cared so much about her wishes! Her nose immediately stung, and tears rose uncontrollably into her eyes. She quickly turned her head aside and widened her eyes, refusing to let the tears fall.
Watching her tears circle in her eyes while she stubbornly refused to let them fall, an indescribable feeling rose in Zongzheng Wuyou’s heart. Unable to help himself, he lowered his head and kissed the corner of her eye. The movement, incomparably gentle, seemed to be telling her of his love and heartache.
At this moment, Man Yao felt Zongzheng Wuyou’s feelings for her from the depths of her heart—not with her eyes, not with her ears, but truly… with her heart. She drew in a deep breath. Her gaze shifted slightly and saw the longing he was striving so hard to restrain in his eyes. A slightly shy smile bloomed at her lips, and she quietly reached out to embrace his lean waist.
The flow of affection changed in no more than a single thought. Many years later, when she recalled this unforgettable night, her heart would still ache with an inexplicable sorrow.
Zongzheng Wuyou’s body instantly stiffened. His eyes held an anxious, wild joy, and he asked urgently, “A-Man?”
In the deep, heavy night, even the half-curved moon hid behind the clouds not far away, unwilling to disturb the pair of figures on the ground.
Zongzheng Wuyou lowered his head and looked at the woman in his arms, who had already fallen into a deep sleep.
He laughed softly. In this world, as long as he, Zongzheng Wuyou, wanted something, there was nothing he could not obtain!
Zongzheng Wuyou faintly lifted the corner of his lips. Looking at the woman’s tightly closed eyes, he sighed softly. “A mirror? Sometimes, what is reflected in a mirror may not necessarily be the truth. A-Man, you are so intelligent, yet even you cannot escape the word love!” After saying this, he picked up the sleeping woman in his arms and walked to the nearby Agarwood Cottage. He gently laid her on the soft couch and carefully covered her with a quilt, completely unaware of how gentle and considerate his actions were at that moment.