My Weak Lover Became A Weird Boss - Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Legal Strangers: The Faint Truth

Pei Qingshan asked him: “Why did we get married?”

“Why do you think we got married?” Wen Zhu countered. “You reached the age where you wanted a marriage partner, and I wanted a more comfortable life. Is there a problem with that?”

Wen Zhu, that’s not it.

Pei Qingshan’s eyes were darker than anyone Wen Zhu had ever seen. He rarely saw black so pure and devoid of impurities in a human.

Wen Zhu averted his gaze. “We each got what we needed. After the wedding, you play your games, and I live my life. I think I’ve done a good job of that—did you really think I was that stupid? What kind of civil servant goes on a ‘research trip’ for half a year?”

He raised his cold eyes. In that instant, he looked like a beast trapped in a frigid, iron cage. “But Pei Qingshan, why did you investigate me?”

The shadow behind him suddenly twisted. Pei Qingshan watched as Wen Zhu’s dazed pupils snapped into focus; he alertly lifted his eyelids, his sharp gaze locking precisely onto the space behind Pei.

Wen Zhu took a deep breath, suppressing the restless White Anaconda.

Now is not the time.

Stupid snake, you can’t eat him yet!

“Wen Zhu, you…” Pei Qingshan started, but was impatiently interrupted by Wen Zhu.

“But I don’t care. Officer Pei? Or Commander? Major?” Wen Zhu curled his lips into a smile—the polite, distant smile Professor Wen wore when he was annoyed. He was like a burrowing creature forced to show its antennae, only to immediately retreat back into its cold, hard shell after a brief outburst. “It doesn’t matter. Investigate whatever you want. Just pretend I was never here today.”

In seven years of marriage, Pei Qingshan had never seen Wen Zhu let his emotions show like this, as if a tip of an iceberg was slowly surfacing. He gritted his teeth: “What do you mean by that?”

“I don’t mean anything. Let’s leave it at this.”

After speaking, Wen Zhu turned decisively to leave, only to have his wrist seized by a burning hand.

The invisible serpent body sensed Wen Zhu’s summons and slithered up from beneath him, coiling its body like it was facing a great enemy.

Its sharp instincts could sense that this human carried something extremely dangerous within him. But if Wen Zhu died at the hands of another, the snake wouldn’t survive either…

The slit pupils stared intently at Pei Qingshan as the man’s deep-browed face leaned in. His gaze, as sharp and deep as a sword, swept down aggressively and landed precisely on Wen Zhu’s lips.

The next second, the White Anaconda’s world went dark.

It had been suppressed again by that autocratic tyrant, Wen Zhu!

Bang—

A loud thud.

With the back of Wen Zhu’s head cushioned by Pei Qingshan’s palm, he was slammed against the bedroom door.

In the dark and silent derelict house, the sound of two tangled breaths suddenly erupted. A tongue carrying a faint scent of tobacco swept fiercely into Wen Zhu’s mouth—this was more violent and bloodier than any kiss they had ever shared.

Wen Zhu’s brain felt like it had crashed; it was a total blank. He instinctively used his canines to bite the sudden invader, clenching his teeth to block Pei Qingshan’s deeper kiss. The thick scent of blood, mixed with familiar tobacco, occupied almost all his senses.

Pei Qingshan seemed oblivious to the pain. He moved Wen Zhu’s hand away from his chest as their tangled bodies stumbled into the narrow bedroom. The golden afternoon sun spilled in through the only window.

The small of Wen Zhu’s back was pressed against a hard wooden table. In his dizziness, he could even recall the shape and color of that table as his thin waist was forced into a tight, arched curve.

Pei Qingshan’s rough palm lifted Wen Zhu’s jaw. His fingers forcefully pried into the soft lips, finding the teeth that refused to let go and prying them apart.

Finally, their breaths and tongues mingled.

Wen Zhu was pinned against the dusty wooden table at an unbelievable angle. Lacking support, his trembling hands instinctively gripped Pei Qingshan’s waist. Even through the fabric, his palms could easily feel the burning temperature of Pei’s skin and the heavy rise and fall of his breathing.

This was a sudden kiss that neither had expected, completely contrary to Wen Zhu’s plans. With his mind blank, he was trapped in those thick, powerful arms. The heavy iron taste of blood began to spread, stimulating his delayed nerves.

This isn’t the scent of cannibalism, nor is it the nauseating smell of a human.

Why is it different?

Pei Qingshan felt Wen Zhu’s erratic breathing and slowed his movements. Belatedly remembering the professor’s germaphobia and his prickly temper, he started to pull back a fraction. However, he clearly felt Wen Zhu’s tongue take the initiative, his soft touch haphazardly licking away the blood from the corner of Pei’s mouth.

Officer Pei’s dynamic vision had recently taken the top spot at the Security Academy—a record held for a century.

In that split second, he thought he saw a flash of golden light in those misty eyes. But immediately, a landslide of desire and fervor effectively blinded the brain that had been brilliant its entire life.

In the end, Professor Wen was pressed onto the bed frame. His flailing hand grabbed a handful of thick dust from an iron bar, finally bringing the farce to a halt.

A physiological tear hung from the corner of his eye. He looked so fragile, yet so sharp and cruel.

Pei Qingshan, his voice raspy, kept him trapped by the bed. He clearly hadn’t recovered from the heat of the moment; his breath was scorching. Combined with his naturally fierce features, he looked like a lion that had seen blood, with no intention of yielding his territory. “Wen Zhu, how many words out of your mouth are actually true?”

Pei Qingshan’s interrogation was as sharp as his appearance. Anyone else would have been pinned down by the question: “Why did your phone appear there, while you left no trace of yourself?”

But he knew that once some questions were asked, there was no going back.

His soul felt as if it had been violently torn in two.

One half said: I’ve investigated this far. At most, I’ve found that he fell for me at first sight and hired a drunk to put on a show to get my attention. I haven’t found him doing anything truly harmful. Besides, if he were really up to something, how could his life have been so miserable before?

The other half argued: If he’s so innocent, why is his relationship with Wen Se so strange? Why can he easily evade omnipresent surveillance? And why would he leave his phone at the death scene of that amphibious aberration?

Until he heard Wen Zhu take two breaths and grit his teeth to ask back:

“And you? Are you any better?”

Pei Qingshan stiffened. He dropped his arms. The indomitable fire burning in his chest was suddenly doused with cold water. The hot blood receded from his limbs, leaving only a hollow ache.

He suddenly thought of the warnings Li Weiguang had given him.

“Let it be, Pei Qingshan. Let it be.” Perhaps the kiss had drained too much of Wen Zhu’s strength. He lowered his eyes wearily and repeated, “Let it be…”

“I can tell you everything right now. What I’ve been doing, where I grew up, my salary, my rank—I can tell you all of it without reservation.” Pei Qingshan stared intently into Wen Zhu’s eyes and said sharply, “But what about you?”

Do you dare to listen?

Do you dare to truly let me walk by your side?

The atmosphere curdled; the stagnant air made it hard to breathe.

“What do you want me to say?”

“I’ll listen to whatever you say.”

The phone at the scene, the resurrected Wen Jianye…

He saw Wen Zhu remain silent. All the information from the past few days swirled in his mind. Reaching a conclusion, Pei Qingshan narrowed his eyes and probed further: “Does it have to do with Wen Se?”

He had guessed correctly.

Because the next second, Wen Zhu snapped his head up, frowning at him. “What did you say?”

There was a subtle upward lilt in his voice, different from his previous tone.

Pei Qingshan seized the moment instantly: “Did something happen to her… something you can’t explain with science?”

“Stay away from her.” Wen Zhu stood up. “Pei Qingshan, I don’t care what you do for a living or if you’re a murderer or an arsonist out there.”

“Keep this distance, just like before. Don’t try to take another step forward.”

Sitting on the narrow bed, Pei Qingshan could only see the profile of Wen Zhu’s cold, thin jaw as he walked to the door, and those eyes filled with ice. “Otherwise, you will regret that day ever comes.”

The sun had shifted positions. It wasn’t until the stinging light hit Pei Qingshan’s pupils that he snapped out of his daze. His mind was still filled with Wen Zhu’s eyes—eyes so different from usual.

In the dim light, they had given him a sense of dangerous, indescribable dread.

Coming back to his senses, Pei Qingshan suddenly heard the dull thud of his own heart hammering against his ribs.

It was a new, strange sensation of trembling, mixed with an inexplicable excitement. Pei Qingshan pressed his hand against his chest, feeling as if his entire body had been pinned to the spot by that single look.

Wen Se had been waiting anxiously at the gate for a long time. Finally, she saw a familiar figure appear at the mouth of the alley. She stood up and waved: “Brother!”

As she got a clear look at his face, her movements faltered.

Wen Zhu’s lips were excessively red. The mist in his eyes hadn’t fully receded. His collar was inexplicably crooked and loose, revealing a large area of his porcelain-pale collarbone—and if she looked closely, there was a red mark that looked suspiciously like a bite…

If it weren’t for the fact that Wen Zhu’s brow was low and his mood clearly foul, this appearance would be very easy to misunderstand!

“Brother, what happened?” she asked hesitantly.

“Dammit, he’s difficult.” Wen Zhu swore irritably. “Get in the car. Let’s get out of here before that psycho runs into you.”

“Brother, do you know him?” Wen Se asked.

“Not well-acquainted.”

Wen Se breathed a sigh of relief.

“He’s my legal marriage partner.”

“…” The steering wheel wobbled violently. Wen Se asked in shock, “That’s him?”

“Can you drive properly?” Wen Zhu braced himself against the seat.