Recklessly Breaking a Delicate Branch - Chapter 68

Actually, if one thought about it carefully, it wasn’t exactly a room.

It was the “Pavilion,” built by palace servants on her mother’s orders when she was ten years old to supervise her dance practice.

The pavilion was surrounded by various buildings, with gauze curtains connecting the pillars. These curtains served as an excellent barrier, isolating the interior from the outside world. Considering this, it was actually a perfect, quiet environment for Zhou Yan to practice martial arts without being disturbed. Moreover, the space designed for dancing was large enough to be more than suitable.

Seeing how cooperative the man before her was, Jiang Wanshu was naturally pleased. She clapped her hands lightly. “Then it’s settled!”

She was not a girl who dithered. Once she had identified her beloved, she felt the need to make him aware of the “boundaries between men and women” regarding other girls. But after a moment’s reflection, she wondered: did her previous words sound too overbearing?

Like a male supporting character in a storybook who snatches the heroine’s things without knowing better and shows no remorse?

But so what? She liked treating Zhou Yan this way. As long as Zhou Yan was willing to be managed by her, what wrong had she done?

Sure enough, Zhou Yan’s reaction in the next second was exactly as she expected.

He leaned in close, his handsome face wearing a brilliant smile, and lightly pinched her cheek with his large hand. “Has Wanwan ever heard of those male leads in storybooks who take what they want by force, regardless of the heroine’s wishes?”

He rarely encountered such romantic stories. The only ones he’d heard were from that tavern Jiang Wanshu had strictly forbidden him from visiting ever again.

During that time, a trend had emerged in the capital that differed from the usual indifferent and aloof style; instead, it favored male leads who held great power, were ruthless and cunning, and possessed an explosive sense of protectiveness and possessiveness toward the heroine.

Jiang Wanshu’s authoritative tone just now—not asking for his opinion again and looking as though she would kill him with her eyes if he didn’t follow her lead—was extremely similar to those male leads described by the storytellers.

The only difference was that, prior to this, she would at least consult his opinion or acknowledge their difference in gender.

However, the person before him was thin-skinned. Her earlier confession had been a sudden surge of heat to the head. Though she had calmed down, her courage had been spent for the day. Thus, having returned to her original state, her face instantly flushed red upon hearing his words.

She truly hadn’t expected Zhou Yan to describe her in such a way. It was fine when she thought it of herself, but once the words came out of Zhou Yan’s mouth, she felt incredibly embarrassed.

Unable to stop his teasing, she frustratedly threw the handkerchief in her hand at the man’s chest. “You’re not allowed to laugh anymore, and you’re not allowed to say such things!”

Regrettably, they had only just confirmed their feelings for each other. Even if she had a temperament that turned soft when facing a lover, it wasn’t something that would be fully revealed immediately after confirming their hearts.

Jiang Wanshu’s face was like a delicate peach blossom, her cheeks puffed out, her tone helpless yet tinged with a hint of haughty playfulness.

Watching the handkerchief fly toward him, Zhou Yan felt a playful urge. He caught the handkerchief while it was still mid-air, crumpled it into a ball, and gripped it in his hand.

As if flaunting his speed, he waved the balled-up handkerchief before Jiang Wanshu’s eyes, then nonchalantly kept it in his grasp. “See? Was I fast?”

He wasn’t asking; he was stating it with certainty.

Jiang Wanshu had expected the handkerchief she threw to fall to the ground, but she hadn’t expected this fellow, Zhou Yan, to take her personal item into his hand.

Driven by shame, Jiang Wanshu immediately tried to snatch the tightly held handkerchief back. Unfortunately, her movements betrayed her anxiety. Just as she reached out, he stuffed the handkerchief into the breast of his robes.

As the fabric of his clothes brushed against the back of his hand, Zhou Yan took a step back with interest, as if performing a magic trick. He spread his palms open before the girl. “See? Nothing in my hands. If you want it, you’ll have to go past my outer robe and reach inside.”

Zhou Yan arched an eyebrow, his tone full of delight.

How could Jiang Wanshu do that as calmly as he suggested? In an instant, the thought of taking the handkerchief back was suppressed deep in her heart.

She stopped fixating on that single handkerchief and instead stood her ground.

They had only just connected their hearts, and already he loved to joke with her like this. If he did this every day in the future, how helpless would she be? Thus, Jiang Wanshu felt it was necessary to give Zhou Yan a lesson—to let him know who held the dominant position in this relationship.

But then she thought about it and gave up. Oh well; in a relationship, lovers will always yield to one another for the sake of the bond. She would let this fellow have the upper hand for now.

Besides, wasn’t this exactly what she loved about him? A man who was vibrant, kind to her, and yet possessed a bit of an unrestrained edge.

Realizing this, Jiang Wanshu became indifferent.

She looked up at the man and said in a flat tone, “If you want to keep it, then keep it on you for the time being.”

Zhou Yan looked down at Jiang Wanshu, a thoughtful glint in his eyes as if he finally understood her reasoning. He narrowed his eyes and said, “Wanwan, we’ve even shared a bed. Are you still afraid to reach out and take—” this handkerchief?

Before he could finish, his thin lips were instantly covered by Jiang Wanshu’s palm.

The girl’s palm was soft. As it covered his lips, her fingertips inadvertently brushed against them. That unintentional touch sent a tingling sensation through him. Zhou Yan couldn’t help but chase those fingers with his lips, eventually pressing a kiss into the center of her palm.

Startled by this sudden move, Jiang Wanshu jerked her hand back, her picturesque face flushing a deep crimson.

Seeing her react like a spooked rabbit, Zhou Yan’s desire to tease her flared up. He stopped chasing her hand and joked, “We’ve shared a bed, and you’re still afraid of me kissing you?”

These words were so blunt that Jiang Wanshu was momentarily speechless. Another wave of red washed over her face, and her ears felt hot and burning. “Zhou Yan, don’t speak so crudely!”

“The version of me you like was always this way; didn’t you know?” Zhou Yan laughed, flashing his bright white teeth as he continued, “Even if you didn’t know, it’s too late now. Since you said you like me, you have to keep liking me forever.”

Zhou Yan’s words were both domineering and forceful. Perhaps fueled by the thrill of his own words, he suddenly grabbed Jiang Wanshu’s wrist and pulled her into his chest. Looking down, he tilted her chin up with one hand and lowered his head to kiss her.

It felt like a rigid iron rod coated in lubricant; only by clinging tightly to one another could they keep themselves from falling off the cliff.

However, the man in her arms preferred this kind of intense entanglement most of all.

When soft arms wrapped around his waist just as he was about to erupt, the sensation was something not everyone could experience.

Unable to restrain the desire in his heart, he simply picked her up and placed her onto a “Beauty’s Daybed.”

The letter Zhou Yan had been holding earlier had long since fallen under the chair once again.

He focused intently, wanting only for the girl before him to experience sensations she had never even heard of before.

Finally, just as the storm seemed about to subside, in her exhausted haze, she felt those same arms—the ones that made it so difficult for her to find peace—pick her up once more, carrying her away to the canopy bed to begin anew.

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