Chapter 35: Parry

Yan Xi hesitated slightly, her palms already slick with hot sweat, while her hands were still hooked around Lu Zhi’s neck.

In the end, she yielded to his desire, lifting her delicate face and closing her eyes, kissing him with shallow, breathless gasps.

Her soft, fragrant lips touched his, and her scent filled his senses.

Lu Zhi let out a low, amused laugh.

As her face burned and her cherry lips just parted from his, the man’s hand clamped firmly around her slender waist. He picked her up with one arm, standing up at a leisurely pace, his voice equally unhurried: "What is your motive?"

Yan Xi tightened her hold on his neck, her chest heaving as her breathing quickened. Caught in a pincer movement, she was at a loss; she watched helplessly as he carried her toward the bedroom, while her mind frantically reeled at his words.

He had sensed she had an agenda.

How could she parry this?

The young girl’s breathing grew more labored, her voice sounding increasingly delicate and soft.

"I have no motive. I just... I don’t want to go on like this anymore. Living like this holds no benefit for me..."

"Since things have come to this, I have accepted my fate. Besides, being with the Heir is not entirely bad. The Heir has treated me well; I have lacked nothing in food or clothing, and my life is comfortable. I am sheltered from the wind and rain, and I have more servants attending to me than the wives of other families. The Heir is a man among men, with a boundless future... I, I am merely an orphan... I should not, I should not be overly ambitious or ungrateful... I just want to live in peace... to be the Heir's concubine... and to get along well with the Heir..."

He walked very slowly, and she spoke in fragments, trying her best to steady her heart, yet unable to remain calm.

As she finished speaking, she heard the man laugh again.

It was just as her words ended that he reached the bed with her in his arms.

His large hand pressed against the mattress as he leaned over, lowering her body onto the soft, downy quilt, following her down.

Yan Xi’s slender arms remained hooked around his neck.

Their bodies naturally folded over one another.

One above, one below, the girl was pinned beneath him, her heart beating rapidly. She watched with wide eyes as his handsome face drew near, his dark, unfathomable gaze deep and bottomless, carrying a trace of a mocking smile as he saw right through her.

"Do you want your freedom?"

His fingers lightly caressed her face.

Yan Xi’s body had long since gone limp, tingling with a strange sensation. Between her timidity, her fear, and the natural instinct between a man and a woman, she felt as if she couldn't move at all. Her face was scorching, and her heart pounded wildly.

He could likely hear the "thump-thump" of her heartbeat quite clearly.

Since she had been exposed, she did not deny it. Her voice sounded again, delicate and sweet: "Yes... If possible, could the Heir please not forbid me from leaving the estate? I do not want my freedom restricted; I only want to be an ordinary person..."

The man still held a smile on his lips. As she finished, his handsome face leaned in even closer, his voice nearly a whisper:

"That won't do. What if you run away?"

His body emanated the scent of dragon incense