Recklessly Breaking a Delicate Branch - Chapter 49

But before Jiang Wanshu could respond, Zhou Shuan fainted the very next moment.

His tall frame collapsed instantly before her, and Jiang Wanshu instinctively reached out to catch him. The man’s body was heavy; in a flash, the weight forced her to bend at the waist.

Just as Jiang Wanshu was at a loss for what to do, Zhou Yan stepped out from the bedroom. He immediately pulled the slumped Zhou Shuan off her, looking at the drunken man with a foul temper. With a swift movement, he hoisted him up by the hips and threw him over his right shoulder in one fluid motion.

It was a peculiar sight—one man draped over another’s shoulder.

Jiang Wanshu covered her mouth in shock. “How could you do that!”

Zhou Yan didn’t know if she was questioning his decision to come out without her permission or his rough treatment of the drunken Zhou Shuan. Displeased, his brows knitted tightly. “Do what?”

Recalling the sight of Zhou Shuan collapsed against her when he first walked out, he couldn’t help but give the man another rough jostle downward on his shoulder.

Seeing his fierce expression, Jiang Wanshu quickly shook her head.

Ignoring her, Zhou Yan turned to head toward Zhou Shuan’s courtyard. After taking a couple of steps, he looked back at the startled girl and said gruffly, “Get back inside. The night wind is cold.”

Jiang Wanshu nodded hurriedly and ran back into the bedroom as if trying to appease him.

Zhou Yan watched her figure disappear into the room before striding away.

As the man’s shadow grew distant, Jiang Wanshu collapsed onto the bed the moment she entered the room. Her heart was still racing, and a sense of suffocating frustration filled her chest.

Zhou Yan had seen that scene—seen her “entangled” with the drunken Zhou Shuan. Usually, he was easy enough to talk to, but Zhou Shuan had fallen into her arms, and Zhou Yan knew of their past. Given his temperament, she had no idea what he would do when he returned.

However, Jiang Wanshu eventually grew tired and fell asleep. Zhou Yan did not return until the middle of the night. When he finally climbed into bed, he was different from usual. Normally, if he saw her sleeping, he would instinctively move quietly. This time, his face was grim, and upon getting into bed, he roughly shook her awake.

To be jolted from a deep sleep would make anyone angry. Jiang Wanshu remained somewhat rational, knowing why he was doing this. She rubbed her eyes. “Zhou Yan, can we talk about this tomorrow?”

As she spoke, she tried to drift back to sleep, but in the next second, her limp body was hauled up by the man.

With his free hand, Zhou Yan pinched her to keep her awake. “Wanwan, get up.”

Under his forceful methods, Jiang Wanshu realized she couldn’t escape his interrogation tonight. Drowsily, she sat up in bed.

Sure enough, once she was sitting, Zhou Yan immediately asked the question that had been haunting him: “That man named Zhou… what were you thinking in your heart when he said that last sentence?”

If that is the case, can I pursue you again?

If that is the case, can I pursue you again?

Jiang Wanshu shook her head, trying to cast the memory aside, but her shoulders were immediately pinned down by the man. She looked up and met his gaze.

Zhou Yan’s eyes were filled with a threatening intensity, as if he would do something drastic if she didn’t answer. Jiang Wanshu stared at him with her beautiful eyes for a long time without responding. To Zhou Yan, her silence looked like hesitation.

Realizing this, a surge of fury erupted within him. He glared at her.

Sensing his rage, Jiang Wanshu couldn’t help but tremble. Her fear caused his anger to flicker and fade; he suppressed his temper, but a sudden sense of panic rose in his heart.

He found he no longer dared to hear her answer. Instead, he pulled her into a sudden embrace, his lips pressing against her pink ones, crushing her in a loss of control.

Jiang Wanshu was terrified by this sudden, demanding kiss. Her frail shoulders were held roughly in his arms as he hovered over her, his emotions on a hair-trigger.

“Mmph… mm… let me go, Zhou Yan!” Struggling for air under the weight of his kiss, she pounded her hands against his chest.

But the man had no intention of letting her go easily. The moment she finally managed to catch a breath of fresh air, she was pinned down onto the bed.

His body was much larger than hers, suddenly blocking out the candlelight. His movements were reckless; as he pressed her down, his thin lips invaded hers once more.

This time, Zhou Yan left nothing to chance. He grabbed both of her wrists and pinned them above her head, while his legs locked hers firmly in place.

Having lost all power to resist, Jiang Wanshu stared up at him wordlessly, her eyes filling with tears.

It was one thing to act indifferent in front of Zhou Shuan, but after all, he was someone she had a history with. How could she truly be as calm as she appeared? The past was the past; she only hoped he would stop being obsessed with her so they could both move on.

She had finally put her worries aside when Zhou Yan carried Zhou Shuan away, but now, being tormented like this, a sense of grievance welled up again.

She hadn’t wronged anyone, so why was she always the one in the weaker position?

It was true with Zhou Yan.

It was true when Zhou Shuan asked such a heartless question and expected an answer.

And it was true with her father and mother, who would always favor her younger brother.

Suddenly, tears overflowed from her eyes like translucent pearls, sliding down her face, over her lips, and onto her collarbone where the man was reaching for the ties of her robe.

Zhou Yan’s movements were frantic. As he was about to pull the silk ribbon at her chest, his fingertip brushed against a wet drop.

“You’re crying?” Zhou Yan followed the trail of moisture and saw her eyes, red and swollen like a little rabbit’s, shedding pitiful tears.

Jiang Wanshu didn’t say a word.

Zhou Yan stopped his movements abruptly. He stared at her, frowning in displeasure. “It’s just intimacy between husband and wife. What are you doing now?”

He hadn’t even blamed her yet for her messy, lingering entanglement with Zhou Shuan.

But he truly couldn’t stand seeing her look so pathetic. His fingertip moved toward her eye, his touch becoming unexpectedly gentle as it met her skin. “What are you crying for?”

Zhou Yan’s fingertips were slightly calloused, making Jiang Wanshu’s skin itch.

Overwhelmed by her emotions, she didn’t feel the itch, but instead began to sob with grievance. She turned her face away, unwilling to look at him.

Seeing this, Zhou Yan felt a fresh spark of frustration. Even if she wanted to throw a tantrum, she shouldn’t use cold violence like that emotionless man.

Zhou Yan believed that habits became second nature. If she continued to treat him this way whenever they quarreled, refusing to communicate, how could they live together in the future?

At the thought of a future without Jiang Wanshu, his expression grew even darker. No, he absolutely could not let that happen.

He looked down and reached out, his palm controlling its strength as he gripped her cheeks to force her to face him. “If something’s wrong, say it. Don’t get into the bad habit of bottling everything up. I’m not going to eat you.”

Then, for some reason, he softened his tone, his voice deep and calm. “It’s just this one thing. I won’t ask about it again in the future.”

In truth, he was afraid of the answer she might give. He feared it wouldn’t be what he wanted. If it wasn’t, he would go mad. He would release the violence he had worked so hard to restrain and drag her back to the grasslands without hesitation.

He knew the saying that even a powerful dragon cannot crush a local snake. Jiang Wanshu’s status here in the Central Plains was noble, while he stood alone by her side. He feared that once she fully reclaimed her identity as a princess, she might turn on him.

After all, in her eyes, he wasn’t her true “Mageba.” The only reason he was willing to accompany her through this was so she could be happy after reuniting with her family, allowing him to stand by her side more legitimately.

When he first came, he didn’t know she had a sweetheart. He thought as long as her heart was empty, he had a chance. But as it turned out, she did have someone. He knew she had a pure heart; for the sake of love, she would never yield to him.

His eyes darkened at the thought.

Forced to look at him, Jiang Wanshu’s brow twitched—perhaps because of his words, or because his treatment of her wasn’t as cruel as she had feared. A spark flickered in her eyes.

He was right; she was the type of person who responded to kindness but resisted force. While his current actions might look rough to an outsider, to her, they felt gentle because she felt no real pressure on her cheeks.

All the grievances of the night suddenly erupted. Under his curious gaze, she took the initiative for the first time to wrap her arms around his sturdy waist.

Zhou Yan’s eyes widened in an instant.

“I won’t. The past is the past. Both he and I have to look forward.”

Boom. Zhou Yan felt as if fireworks had gone off in his head.

She looked as though she desperately needed security, her legs curling up slightly. Hot tears fell onto his chest, and Zhou Yan felt a sharp pang, as if his heart were being scraped by a knife.

He hated her tears; they made his heart ache instinctively.

Emerging from the sheer bliss of her answer, he moved to wrap his arm around her waist, but he was interrupted by her muffled voice: “Zhou Yan, don’t move. Just let me hold you.”

She had never initiated something like this before, and knowing Zhou Yan was the type to take an inch if given a mile, she assumed he was thinking of something improper.

Hearing this, Zhou Yan’s lips curved into a smile. His expression was triumphant as he quickly slid his arm around her waist to hold her back.

“Wanwan, your mind is in a mess.” His tone was clear and proud. “I am not a man who only thinks of carnal matters.”

Otherwise, he never would have agreed to that ridiculous ten-day pact; he wanted her heart more than anything.

Noticing her crying harder, Zhou Yan patted her back gently, as if soothing a child. “Go ahead and cry. Cry out all your grievances, and tell me about them afterward. I’ll settle them for you.”

His beloved was crying and felt wronged; as her Mageba, he should share her burden. Once she finished crying, he would go give Zhou Shuan a beating to avenge her.

He continued to pat her back with light, rhythmic motions.

At his words, Jiang Wanshu truly felt her heart in a flutter. In the silence of the night, it continued to throb for a long, long time.

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