Recklessly Breaking a Delicate Branch - Chapter 17

To Jiang Wanshu’s surprise, he controlled her arm again and released it, and the long arrow hit the bullseye once more.

Having grasped the essential technique, Zhou Yan’s elbow, while controlling the arrow, inadvertently brushed against the softness of the girl’s chest, instantly making Jiang Wanshu tremble.

Jiang Wanshu lifted her head, seeing the man’s sharp chin as if he hadn’t noticed. A fleeting thought crossed her mind but was quickly dismissed, overlooking the man’s impropriety just now. She began to focus her gaze on the target, poised and ready.

This was thanks to her naturally calm disposition; her attention always shifted very quickly.

Zhou Yan had a rough nature, and once he decided to teach Jiang Wanshu archery, his mind would no longer dwell on romantic affections. Instead, he concentrated solely on instructing Jiang Wanshu on the essential techniques of archery.

As a strict teacher, he naturally wouldn’t just hold her hand through every action, but because the bow and arrow were too heavy, his hand was still close to the girl’s soft arm. “Take a break first. We’ll continue later.”

With that, Zhou Yan let go of Jiang Wanshu’s tightly bound legs, allowing her to move her legs freely during the rest period.

For the next round of practice, he only controlled the action of her hand holding the arrow, letting Jiang Wanshu take the lead for everything else.

“Keep your eyes level with the arrow, aim precisely, and shoot without hesitation.”

The low, deep male voice entered her ear. His pace was quick, with a strictness infused with a wild, rough air.

Jiang Wanshu focused completely on the target. The arrow rested against the bowstring, and in a flash, it left her hand. However, the arrow spun sharply mid-flight and fell to the ground shortly after.

Jiang Wanshu looked at the bow and arrow suspiciously, just about to ask why this happened.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Yan’s long leg pressed directly against Jiang Wanshu’s knee. With a slight force, he leaned in, pressing her knee and pulling it back.

He picked up another long arrow, notched it tightly, and in the warm autumn sun, the man’s handsome face—his thick eyebrows like cold weapons, highly exotic and complementing his high nose bridge—displayed deep, austere focus.

The wooden long arrow was drawn again within Zhou Yan’s range of motion. It was suddenly released and shot into the target.

The man’s legs were not as soft as a girl’s, and even the muscles in his abdomen were tense when shooting. As the arrow flew, Zhou Yan suddenly realized that Jiang Wanshu was trying to pull out the leg he was pressing. To ensure the accuracy of his next shot, he unexpectedly pulled her right foot further back.

The consequence was that this movement made Jiang Wanshu’s back press more tightly against his body. Instantly, her back felt uncomfortable against his firm abdominal muscles.

Since both of them were focused on the archery, Jiang Wanshu’s words slipped out without her thinking it inappropriate, “Don’t press me so tightly, you’re digging into me.”

Jiang Wanshu’s voice was soft, carrying a hint of a girl’s delicate complaint. The words she spoke were truly provocative for the two of them in such close physical contact. Suddenly, Zhou Yan’s body stiffened. The longbow he was clutching loosened. Since Zhou Yan held the control of the bow at that moment, she released her grip, and the longbow naturally slipped from Jiang Wanshu’s hand and fell.

He bent down to gaze at the girl below him. Because his movement hadn’t changed, a faint pink blush surfaced on Jiang Wanshu’s fair cheeks, revealing an exquisite beauty only seen in spring rouge.

Without a trace of makeup, the girl’s face was still as beautiful as a priceless jewel. Zhou Yan noticed Jiang Wanshu’s expression, and his gaze grew gradually hotter. A wave of desire, mixed with joy and love, surged in his eyes.

Suddenly, Zhou Yan twisted her around, making Jiang Wanshu face him directly. The man’s face was handsome. Before Jiang Wanshu could react, he lowered his head and abruptly embraced and kissed the girl in his arms.

This time, Zhou Yan kissed Jiang Wanshu’s cheek with great restraint, unlike the previous time when he had gone straight for her rosy lips.

The autumn wind blew gently, causing the skirt of the girl’s dress to flutter lightly, brushing against the bottom of the man’s clothes. The different colored clothes of the two merged and intertwined like woven threads.

“Ah! Zhou Yan, you…”

Instantly, Jiang Wanshu was so angry she was furious. Even though they had engaged in more intimate actions before, she still couldn’t bear the shock of experiencing the transgression again.

Using her soft arms with force, and with Zhou Yan currently undefended, she easily managed to push him away. His body didn’t move, but Jiang Wanshu used the push against his chest as leverage to escape his embrace.

The girl who had gained freedom in front of him seemed unsatisfied with her scolding. She hadn’t noticed the man’s true temper and candidly cursed, “You brute! Presumptuous!”

However, her voice was clear and gentle, so even her cursing didn’t provoke anger in others.

Yet, seeing her wronged, tearful appearance, a desire to tease arose in Zhou Yan’s heart.

He embraced her again, tightening his arms around Jiang Wanshu’s body. He curved his lips into a smile, leaning down and holding her with amusement. “Wanwan, aren’t you afraid that I might actually do what you just called me?”

His tone was teasing, but to Jiang Wanshu, it didn’t sound that way. She felt like a hedgehog encountering a wolf, being pursued unnecessarily.

Suddenly, her right cheek was kissed again. Although the action was gentle compared to his usual temper, it was enough to make Jiang Wanshu completely change her demeanor.

“Let go of me.” She struggled and resisted, raising all her prickles.

Unfortunately, the man was strong and was now on guard. Her level of strength was utterly insufficient against Zhou Yan.

The beautiful, delicate girl’s eyes burst with anger; she appeared to be extremely upset.

Zhou Yan hadn’t expected the situation to spiral out of his control. He immediately released Jiang Wanshu.

It was then that Jiang Wanshu could finally breathe.

She quickly backed out of Zhou Yan’s immediate line of sight, glancing at him with a vigilant expression.

Zhou Yan was good at discerning people’s minds. In a moment, he read a few words from Jiang Wanshu’s emotions.

He frowned in displeasure, his expression darkening.

Last time on the horseback, when he lightly kissed her rosy lips, her struggle wasn’t as severe as today. And today’s kiss was much milder than the one that day, so how could she struggle even more fiercely?

Something was wrong!

Zhou Yan didn’t like to beat around the bush with Jiang Wanshu. He cooled his eyes, his face gloomy, and looked over Jiang Wanshu’s entire body. “Wanwan, what are you hiding from me?”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Wanshu’s body shook as if struck by an electric current. Her lower body trembled, and she was in a panic.

She no longer cared about the temper tantrum she had just thrown at the man. Her brain was spinning at an extreme speed.

Zhou Yan was the type of person who would be incredibly obedient to you when things were good, but once his temper flared, he could be an explosive package.

If she let him know that her attitude was fiercer—even explosive—because the time for her to escape from him was growing shorter, causing a sense of resentment to grow larger, which then manifested when he committed an actual transgression after so many days, Zhou Yan would surely destroy her.

She could only be extremely cautious.

Jiang Wanshu’s brain spun rapidly until a thin layer of sweat seeped onto her dress at her back. Only then did she organize her thoughts and speak, arguing, “Zuo Ma Sen had diarrhea the day before yesterday. Actually, it was because I accidentally fed him bad food.”

In fact, Zuo Ma Sen did have diarrhea the day before yesterday; Zhou Yan had told her this.

However, she truly didn’t know why Zuo Ma Sen had diarrhea the day before yesterday. She only knew that Zhou Yan was clever and valued talent. If the matter she spoke of wasn’t as serious as Zhou Yan might imagine, it would be difficult to resolve.

She could only take a gamble, betting that Zhou Yan wouldn’t dwell on this incident.

As soon as her words fell, the man’s expression became inscrutable again, making it even harder for her to read him.

While waiting for the man’s judgment, Jiang Wanshu clasped her hands tightly behind her back.

After a short while, she couldn’t bear the frantic pounding in her heart anymore. She looked up at Zhou Yan with extreme caution, only to be scared into lowering her head again by the tone of his next words.

“Zuo Ma Sen naturally has a weak stomach. Why are you so panicky about this matter?” Zhou Yan was still suspicious, staring intently at Jiang Wanshu.

Jiang Wanshu quickly reasoned, stating a sentence she had concocted in her mind for a long time: “I know you love your horse. And just now, you were so close to me. You’re such a big person, and the pressure made me feel depressed. I suddenly remembered the mistake I made yesterday, so my actions were a bit excessive.”

To increase her credibility, she acted pitifully, loosening the hands clenched behind her back. She looked up, forcing a tear to well up in her eye, acting out the role perfectly. “I was just afraid that if you found out, you’d react just like you are now. That’s why you scared me so much. I didn’t mean to hide it from you.”

Jiang Wanshu’s words sounded utterly flawless. And Zhou Yan was a person who, once he made up his mind about someone, would trust them unconditionally. Naturally, his anger subsided.

As long as she wasn’t thinking of running away.

He lowered his head and said indifferently, “As long as you’re not thinking about running away, that’s fine.”

Zhou Yan wasn’t willing to use his cunning mind in front of Jiang Wanshu, speaking very directly.

Sensing the change in the man’s emotion, Jiang Wanshu visibly let out a sigh of relief. Hearing the man’s words, she boldly asked with a bit of childish petulance, “What would you do if I really did run away?”

She waited for Zhou Yan’s answer, her hands in front of her tightly clenched, probing the man.

In an instant, the man’s clear eyes turned sharp, gleaming menacingly. “If you dare to run away and I catch you, you shouldn’t ever think of returning to the Central Plains again.

I will personally tie you back to my tribe, break your legs, and lock you in my tent so you can never escape.”

Zhou Yan spoke these words cruelly and candidly, sending shivers down Jiang Wanshu’s spine.

She looked up at Zhou Yan’s eyes in fear, her face horrified.

The man naturally noticed Jiang Wanshu’s expression. The girl’s beautiful eyes were wide with shock, her pupils dilated.

He thought he must have scared her.

Threatening people had never been his style. In the past, he never gave convicted death row prisoners a second chance to speak. But for Jiang Wanshu, he was willing to step back.

This was because he was willing to give Jiang Wanshu another opportunity. Regardless of whether she still wanted to escape now, he had given her this chance. If she truly ran away next time and he caught her, she shouldn’t blame him for being ruthless.

However, the person in front of him was currently well-behaved and shouldn’t suffer such grievance.

The man’s large hand reached out and gently smoothed Jiang Wanshu’s black hair in a comforting gesture. “The men of the grasslands value loyalty above all else. As long as you stay properly by my side, I will treat you very well.”

The man’s timely comfort immediately brought Jiang Wanshu back to her senses. To prevent herself from revealing anything, she shook her head, forcefully dispelling the thoughts in her mind, and put on a smile.

“You know I’m so weak. Even if I wanted to escape, I could barely run out of a forest like this.”

Zhou Yan knew Jiang Wanshu was referring to the forest that was the only route to the outside world in front of them. He nodded.

“That’s true. The people of the Worm Vine Tribe carry flaws in their appearance in their genes. A beautiful girl like you, who could significantly reverse the appearance of the next generation, is a treasure that would drive the Worm Vine Tribe mad.

The Worm Vine Tribe is elusive in this deep forest. Even I had to observe them for a long time to figure out some of their patterns of appearance in this forest. If you were caught while escaping, you would…”

With that, Zhou Yan stopped speaking and looked down at her.

His meaning was self-evident, making Jiang Wanshu shudder.

“W-what would happen?” If she were ever caught by the Worm Vine Tribe, wouldn’t he once again descend from the heavens to save her?

Jiang Wanshu then asked, “Would you save me?”

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