Recklessly Breaking a Delicate Branch - Chapter 53

Jiang Wanshu withdrew her hand, thinking of the way he had spoken recklessly in the Imperial Study earlier that afternoon. “You have a lot of nerve. Didn’t I tell you not to speak out of turn?”

If her father and mother were to discover her tangled relationship with Zhou Yan, given how strict they were with her, she would undoubtedly be “annihilated” by them without hesitation.

“Wanwan, you only used your eyes to signal me not to speak; you didn’t say a word. How was I supposed to know which sentence was ‘reckless’? I could only be self-sufficient and act according to my own thoughts.”

As he spoke, Zhou Yan looked quite aggrieved and pulled Jiang Wanshu into his arms again.

Jiang Wanshu gave him a white-eyed glare. “You are bold indeed, daring to mention conditions in front of the Emperor. You even lied to Father, saying you wanted to strive for progress and enter the martial arts examinations to stand by his side with your own strength, just so you could ask to be the Princess’s personal guard.”

Speaking of this, Jiang Wanshu couldn’t help but find the man audacious. But on second thought, it made sense. If Zhou Yan weren’t bold enough to establish himself as a presence that couldn’t be ignored, he might have long ago ended up a corpse wrapped in horsehide on those distant grasslands—after all, he had said that most people on the grasslands didn’t care for him back then.

“I learned that from Wanwan. You abandoned me and came to the Central Plains all by yourself; that was truly bold.”

Zhou Yan quipped, genuinely no longer minding those past events. Ever since last night, when she had shown her vulnerability before him and he had comforted and cared for her, he could feel that the current Jiang Wanshu was truly different toward him.

Perhaps women’s hearts are delicate; in the beautiful atmosphere of last night, she had begun to harbor some romantic feelings for him.

Tonight, he could clearly sense that when he wanted to be a little more intimate, the blatant reluctance that used to be in her eyes was gone. Even though she was still reserved, her movements were much more relaxed.

He tugged at a strand of her hair, which had just been dried before she got into the canopy bed, and asked about a serious matter: “Did your father say what his arrangements are for you?”

It was undeniable that Zhou Yan possessed the depth of both a scholar and a warrior; otherwise, he wouldn’t have asked about the most critical issue regarding her return to the palace.

Watching this man, who rarely showed a serious expression in front of her, she explained everything:

“Father told me that the news of my marriage journey to the grasslands being intercepted by bandits, with casualties unknown, had long since become common knowledge. Although Father was heartbroken then, since my body was never found, he refused to believe I was gone and delayed issuing a funeral decree for a long time. The grasslands also heard of this, and since I went missing while en route to marry them, they stepped back and haven’t raised the matter with Father until now. Thus, the alliance between the Central Plains and the grasslands has been stalled.”

Speaking of this, Jiang Wanshu sighed and continued:

“So, upon my return, as the Di Princess of the Middle Palace, Father naturally won’t slight me. He will insist on restoring my status. However, he worries that once my identity is restored, there will be gossip and rumors attacking what I was doing during these months of disappearance. For a young lady, the only thing they can disparage is her reputation within the boudoir. More importantly, once my identity is restored, I don’t know if the grasslands will take action again and demand that I fulfill the role of the Third Consort to the old Khan.”

Zhou Yan said solemnly, “Rest assured, if they dare to gossip about you, I’ll beat them until they don’t even recognize their own mothers.”

In Zhou Yan’s worldview, if something could be solved with fists, he would never use words. Gazing at the man before her, Jiang Wanshu couldn’t help but smile from the heart.

Noticing her smile, Zhou Yan pushed his luck, twirling a strand of her hair and bringing it to his nose to sniff its fragrance. The next second, he was swatted away by Jiang Wanshu, whose cheeks were flushed crimson. “Zhou Yan, have you no shame at all!”

“If I had shame, Wanwan would have probably abandoned me long ago,” Zhou Yan replied with amusement.

Jiang Wanshu really couldn’t keep up with his current glibness; she simply ignored him, though her face was full of mock anger.

Zhou Yan watched her, wanting to please her. Recalling her previous words, he continued: “Wanwan, if your identity is restored and that old Khan still wants to claim you as his Third Consort, I guarantee I won’t let him have his way.”

“Is that true?” Zhou Yan spoke with such gravity that Jiang Wanshu, who hadn’t pinned much hope on the situation, felt a spark of renewed hope.

Zhou Yan didn’t answer for a while. Jiang Wanshu’s head drooped again, her voice muffled. “Are you just lying to me?”

In truth, Zhou Yan had simply been dazed by her rare, coquettish demeanor. Recovering his senses, he said, “Why would I lie to you? If that truly happens, I have my ways.”

For that, he naturally had a strategy.

The flickering candlelight shone on the man’s handsome face, making him look particularly alluring. Jiang Wanshu looked up, and as their eyes met, her heart suddenly warmed.

It wasn’t just his looks; that one sentence had pierced her heart, making her feel as though her girlish affections were beginning to blossom.

Shy about her own feelings and afraid Zhou Yan would notice, she quickly pushed him away and straightened the hair he had messed up. “It’s late. You should leave quickly. If my personal maids find you in my bed, they’ll be terrified.”

Zhou Yan narrowed his eyes, somewhat dissatisfied. “Don’t Central Plains girls and their maids usually share a bond of total trust? They grew up with you and are most loyal to you. There’s no harm in them knowing.”

Anyway, he was determined to stay here and not leave.

The night was long; “sleeping alone on a cold pillow” was not a role he intended to play.

Jiang Wanshu stared at him speechlessly, flicked her handkerchief, and finally managed to squeeze out: “Suit yourself! But if you let my personal maids find out about this, I won’t forgive you!”

That was essentially a command not to let the two personal maids know.

Zhou Yan rubbed the bridge of his nose sheepishly and watched her.

Seeing that Jiang Wanshu seemed truly angry and was ignoring him, she blew out the candle and lay down in the dark.

Zhou Yan wanted to coax her but didn’t know how to act. In the darkness, he draped his arm around her waist, but Jiang Wanshu, thinking he had ill intentions, forcefully pulled his hand away. “The ten-day period isn’t up yet. Don’t try anything with me.”

As she spoke, the tips of her ears began to burn again.

Zhou Yan’s desires were stirred only to be extinguished again. He could only “torment” her for a little while longer.

His actions became subdued; he no longer pressed his body against hers, but his words became flirtatious: “Then Wanwan, for the sake of the fact that I’m here so you aren’t afraid of the dark and can blow out the candle yourself, forgive me this once.”

It was rare for a grown man like Zhou Yan to act spoiled toward Jiang Wanshu. She no longer harbored any resentment, ignoring him and closing her eyes to rest.

And Zhou Yan was also waiting for her response.

He had seen her today being completely won over by her younger brother’s weak and pitiful act. Seeing how she was coaxed into treating the boy so well, Zhou Yan had felt a playful urge to try it himself.

If it worked, he might use this trick in the future.

The longer he stayed with Jiang Wanshu, the more he understood her. This contradictory girl was someone who responded to “soft” tactics rather than “hard” ones. That was why he had learned to restrain himself in front of her early on. Looking at it now, the results were good.

However, he still hadn’t heard a word from her. He lifted his head to see what she was doing, only to be stopped by her voice: “I’m tired and want to rest.”

Her lazy voice entered his ears, followed by a formal command: “Tomorrow, you’d better leave this room on your own. A guard isn’t supposed to be this close to a princess; you can only stay by my side during the designated times.”

With that, Jiang Wanshu truly ignored him, closing her eyes and thinking of nothing else, leaving Zhou Yan alone on the bed to sigh.

It seemed this one method wasn’t quite right for her; he would have to adjust.

Suddenly, looking at the silk quilt covering her soft waist, Zhou Yan’s eyes softened incredibly. If the “soft” approach didn’t work, he would use a bit of “hardness”—at the very least, he could steal a little bit of affection.

So, his hand—veins slightly prominent from his strength—quietly reached over her waist and, while she wasn’t paying attention, pulled her into his arms.

He thought she would struggle like before, but to his surprise, the girl didn’t move at all.

Just as Zhou Yan was rejoicing that she was no longer resisting his intimacy, he suddenly heard her faint, steady breathing. He let out a breath.

Well, it seemed he had been happy for nothing.

Only in the depths of a heavy sleep would she be so compliant.

But even if it only happened at this time, Zhou Yan wasn’t angry. At least she wasn’t resisting him in her sleep. He was content.

Holding the fragrant person in his arms, Zhou Yan stopped overthinking, held her close, and closed his eyes to sleep.

Early the next morning, another winter snow fell over the palace. Since Jiang Wanshu’s return, everything had been arranged according to the old ways.

Thus, a crisp voice came into the room to wake her up early.

Jiang Wanshu had long since lost the habit of waking up at the Mao hour (5-7 AM) like the other princesses and concubines. Now, hearing Yunjie call her, she irritably pulled the quilt over her head.

Unfortunately, Yunjie was not a particularly meticulous person. Standing outside for a long time without seeing the Princess come out, she feared something was wrong and rushed inside carrying a copper basin for washing.

The door wasn’t bolted from the inside, so Yunjie entered quickly.

The room was silent, which made Yunjie even more suspicious.

She walked slowly behind the screen to the canopy bed. Seeing that Jiang Wanshu was still sleeping, she felt relieved.

Fortunately, the Princess was fine.

However, she and Yunshu were personal maids specifically sent by the Empress to regulate the Princess’s etiquette; they were supposed to prioritize the Empress’s orders.

But they had grown up with Jiang Wanshu, so there was a degree of genuine “friendship.”

Seeing this, Yunjie sighed, put down the basin, and reached out to take Jiang Wanshu’s hand from under the quilt.

Yunjie had been up for a while and had been standing in the cold; her touch immediately chilled the girl, who was drifting back into her dreams.

“Princess, wake up. The news of your return has spread. Other princesses and princes will be coming here soon.”

Jiang Wanshu didn’t care much about those half-siblings, but the moment she realized the voice belonged to Yunjie, she jolted awake and sat bolt upright.

She glanced panickedly at the other side of the bed and let out a huge sigh of relief.

Fortunately, that man had some self-awareness and knew when to leave.

Yunjie followed Jiang Wanshu’s gaze and noticed something strange. “Princess, when did you change your habit of not sleeping in the middle of the bed?”

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