The Guide to Faking Innocence to Win His Wife - Chapter 22

Night enveloped everything. Inside and outside the town, all was silent; the small thickets along the river stood dark and heavy, like jagged obsidian.

In the third-floor room, the light was on. A porcelain tray holding herbal powder sat on the desk. Without waiting for an invitation, Jiang Zhongmu naturally pulled over a stool and sat by the bed.

“Lift your shirt,” she said. Her expression was solemn, her deep, serious voice carrying a trace of an unidentifiable rasp, as grave as an apprentice in a medical clinic preparing to apply salve to a patient.

Xie Zhiyi, half-propped on the bed, felt her hands tighten at her sides. She hesitated. Very few people could maintain a distant, “normal” interaction after what had happened that afternoon. The thin veil of pretense between them had been torn away again and again.

Xie Zhiyi lifted her eyes to meet the girl’s. One was conflicted, wanting to retreat; the other was feigning professional gravity, though deep within those light amber eyes hid a “little leopard” ready to pounce on its prey at any moment.

Xie Zhiyi paused before speaking slowly: “I’ll do it myself.”

Jiang Zhongmu, knowing better than to rush, nodded immediately and handed her the small porcelain tray. “Make sure it’s stuck on tight,” she instructed.

As Xie Zhiyi lifted her shirt, she suddenly remembered something. She looked up and said, “Turn around.”

Jiang Zhongmu blinked, surprised. To put it bluntly, they had spent plenty of time with their clothes shifted and skin touching last night, and they had kissed countless times today. Jiang Zhongmu was about to massage her stomach anyway—what difference did it make if she watched her put on a patch?

She pursed her lips, but said nothing, obediently turning around to face the other way. Behind her came the rustle of fabric. Jiang Zhongmu looked at the shadows on the floor. Tonight’s moon was exceptionally bright, casting sharp beams through the sheer curtains.

Jiang Zhongmu shifted her body, casting her own shadow over the shoulder of Xie Zhiyi’s silhouette. She curled her lip into a childish, secret smile.

“Done,” a voice said from behind, sounding uncharacteristically flustered.

Jiang Zhongmu turned back, pretending she hadn’t noticed the tension. “Lift it up just a bit…”

“Maybe I should just do the massage myself,” Xie Zhiyi interrupted, her resolve faltering in those brief thirty seconds. Before, she could tell herself Jiang Zhongmu was just a child. But now, with the girl standing right in front of her, placing those unspeakable emotions directly on the table, Xie Zhiyi felt utterly helpless.

Jiang Zhongmu looked at her with a half-smile, a dark emotion flickering in her narrow eyes. “Can you manage it? Sister.”

Xie Zhiyi froze. If she could “manage it,” she wouldn’t need the herbal patch in the first place.

“Are you shy, Sister?” Jiang Zhongmu asked again, her expression still perfectly serious. That was her way—the more mischief she intended, the more she feigned innocence.

“If you don’t let me do it, Grandma will scold me tomorrow,” Jiang Zhongmu added, playing her trump card. She made herself look piteous. “Do you just enjoy seeing me get in trouble? You were secretly laughing when I got scolded this afternoon.”

Faced with this accusation, Xie Zhiyi felt no guilt. “You deserved it,” she retorted. To make the gentle Xie Zhiyi say such a thing showed just how much the girl had provoked her.

Jiang Zhongmu didn’t look remorseful; she looked proud, as if she’d been complimented. It was infuriating. Xie Zhiyi kicked out from under the duvet, her foot hitting the side of Jiang Zhongmu’s knee. The girl’s leg flinched outward but immediately swung back into place. It didn’t seem to hurt her, but Xie Zhiyi’s foot felt the hardness of the girl’s bone, making her even more frustrated.

Xie Zhiyi pulled the duvet tight around her, then cautiously lifted a tiny corner of her shirt. It was a transparently defensive gesture. Jiang Zhongmu found it amusing but didn’t want to push her too far. She rubbed her hands together to warm them, acting as if she hadn’t seen the struggle.

The stool creaked as she leaned in. Burning, rough palms covered the herbal patch on Xie Zhiyi’s soft abdomen. The room fell silent. Moonlight stretched across the floor, tangling around the bedposts.

Xie Zhiyi turned her head away, her hair hiding her reddened ears. Everything was different now. Before, she was embarrassed; now, it was almost unbearable. The more she tried to retreat, the closer Jiang Zhongmu drew. Like a roaring bonfire, there was no backing away; she could only watch as the sparks landed on her hem, igniting a blaze that threatened to consume her.

“Is this pressure okay?” Jiang Zhongmu asked, repeating her tactic from before.

Xie Zhiyi said nothing. She wasn’t a child; she wouldn’t fall for it again. She turned and glared, like a cat showing its claws. But Jiang Zhongmu wasn’t one to give up. Since there was no answer, she pressed her palm down slightly, her hand sinking into the soft flesh.

“Ah…” Xie Zhiyi let out a sharp breath.

Jiang Zhongmu continued to rub in circles. The pressure wasn’t actually heavy, but Xie Zhiyi’s skin was far more delicate than her own.

“Does it feel good?” Jiang Zhongmu asked again, her eyes sincere. She looked like an apprentice anxious to please a customer, asking Is this okay? Is it painful? Tell me if you’re uncomfortable.

Xie Zhiyi, the “customer,” was utterly annoyed. The rough fingertips brushed against her skin, sending ripples across a once-placid surface.

“Is it?” Jiang Zhongmu asked relentlessly. “Mhm?”

The last string of Xie Zhiyi’s patience snapped. She threw back the duvet and kicked again at the same spot. But Jiang Zhongmu had learned. As her leg was kicked aside, she reached out and caught Xie Zhiyi’s ankle.

Her palm clamped around the bone, her fingers like unshakeable shackles. Xie Zhiyi tried to pull back, but the grip only tightened.

“You!” The elder woman looked up in a fury.

The girl remained the picture of gravity. Looking at her face, one would never guess she was behaving so recklessly. Her thin lips were pressed tight, her handsome features masking her mischief. Under the table, she was the student holding the teacher’s gaze while doing something forbidden beneath the desk.

“Jiang Zhongmu! Let go!” Xie Zhiyi glared, truly angry now, summoning whatever remained of her authority.

“Let go of what?” Jiang Zhongmu continued to act.

“I’m warning you, if you don’t—”

“If I don’t what? You’ll tell Grandma?”

Xie Zhiyi choked on her words. That was obviously impossible.

Jiang Zhongmu smiled, finally letting the “little leopard” show its true colors. The heat in her palm intensified, making sweat break out where their skin met. Xie Zhiyi tried to move, but the girl pressed closer until she could feel every callus and line on the girl’s hand.

“Are you looking for a beating?” Xie Zhiyi snapped.

“You can’t beat me,” Jiang Zhongmu replied instantly.

Xie Zhiyi took a deep breath, forcing her temper down. “Let me go.”

“What’s in it for me?” Jiang Zhongmu countered.

What’s in it for her? Xie Zhiyi stared, incredulous. This girl had taken so many liberties already, and she wanted a reward? As if to pressure her, the hand on her abdomen began to rub in varying rhythms sometimes light, sometimes heavy, a deliberate torment.

Xie Zhiyi bit her lip. She was the elder; she had more patience. The scolding words shifted in her mouth before turning into: “What do you want?”

Jiang Zhongmu saw the reluctance but didn’t care. “Anything?”

“Tell me first. I’ll consider it,” Xie Zhiyi said cautiously.

“Then tell me first… does it feel good?” The movement stopped. Jiang Zhongmu looked up at her.

All this for that? Xie Zhiyi hesitated. “I suppose…”

“I mean… did it feel good to kiss me?” Jiang Zhongmu’s lips curved. It was absurd that she could say such a thing with such a serious expression.

Xie Zhiyi’s breath hitched. She pursed her lips, refusing to answer.

“Did it? Mhm?” The hunting leopard had extraordinary patience, asking again and again.

“Jiang Zhongmu!” the elder finally cried out, pushed to the limit.

The next second, her ankle was yanked hard, and the hand on her waist pulled her forward. The sound of fabric friction filled the air. Xie Zhiyi’s vision blurred as she was pulled across the bed and forced to straddle the girl’s lap.

Her shirt shifted, exposing her pale neck and shoulders. She tried to push the girl away, but it only brought them closer. Calloused fingers threaded through her hair, cupping the back of her head, while the hand on her waist tightened. Jiang Zhongmu tilted her head and pressed in.

“Mmm…” The protest was muffled, turning into a low whimper.

The girl had anticipated this; she had eaten a mint before coming upstairs. The cool scent mingled with her burning breath, at once dazing and awakening Xie Zhiyi. Xie Zhiyi’s bare legs dangled, the skin showing the faint red marks where her ankle had been gripped.

Their shadows merged and parted. Whenever Xie Zhiyi tried to pull back, Jiang Zhongmu gripped her waist and pulled her forward. The younger girl was a fast learner; after the afternoon’s practice and a quick look at those “research materials,” she was no longer the passive one.

“Jiang… Jiang Zhongmu,” Xie Zhiyi tried to bite her, to reclaim control.

Jiang Zhongmu let out a low, muffled laugh. Even when it hurt, she didn’t pull away. Instead, she whispered against her lips, “Sister, you can’t blame it on the rocks this time.”

Xie Zhiyi froze, remembering their conversation at dinner, and her strength left her. Jiang Zhongmu seized the chance to deepen the kiss, her hand on Xie Zhiyi’s waist beginning to wander upward.

“Don’t,” Xie Zhiyi whispered, her voice a mix of ragged breath and a piteous sob. The gentle, distant elder was pleading now, making a final stand.

Jiang Zhongmu paused. She didn’t push further. Her hand remained clamped on the slender waist—a stem so delicate it felt as if it might snap.

Outside, the wind blew through the mountains. Grandma had stepped out for some reason, her footsteps echoing below. Someone in the distance slammed a window shut. The moon pulled a veil of clouds over itself.

The woman in her arms went from struggling to limp, her arms draped around the girl’s neck, neither accepting nor resisting. Finally, the greedy leopard let go, resting her forehead against Xie Zhiyi’s.

“Did it feel good? Sister.”

That question again. Endless. Xie Zhiyi didn’t want to answer and didn’t dare scold her; she just looked at the floor.

Jiang Zhongmu laughed, a faint dimple appearing. Her sharp features softened, looking almost childish. “Did you eat the mints I gave you?”

Xie Zhiyi, afraid she would lean in again, answered quickly: “No, they’re in the drawer.”

“You don’t like them?”

“I just didn’t want any,” Xie Zhiyi shook her head.

“And now? Do you want one?”

“Eat them yourself,” the elder said, finally finding a bit of wit.

Jiang Zhongmu arched an eyebrow, reached into the drawer, and pulled one out. “Open it for me, Sister.”

Compared to her other demands, this was simple. Xie Zhiyi took it. The packaging was just a small plastic shell. Even though she felt weak, she managed to tear it open. She held the green mint out, but the rogue didn’t take it with her hand. She leaned down and took it directly from Xie Zhiyi’s fingers with her lips.

Burning breath brushed Xie Zhiyi’s fingertips, leaving a damp mist.

A second later, Xie Zhiyi tasted the mint again, more vividly than before. The mint turned to ice in the heat, making her painfully awake—awake to the fact that she was sitting on the lap of a girl seven years younger than her, kissing her.

Xie Zhiyi raised her hand and covered Jiang Zhongmu’s eyes—those amber eyes that shone like gems in the dark. The girl’s eyelashes fluttered against her palm like a series of tiny fires being lit and extinguished.

She heard Jiang Zhongmu calling her name over and over.

“Sister…” “Sister.” “Xie Zhiyi.”

Xie Zhiyi closed her eyes and tilted her head back, surrendering control entirely. Their shadows finally merged into one. The wind continued to blow, sweeping the fallen leaves into a pile outside.

The hand at Xie Zhiyi’s waist slid down to her knees, and with a sudden lift, they both tumbled back into the soft mattress. Xie Zhiyi let out a muffled groan as Jiang Zhongmu pressed in once more.

The sheets were rumpled into a mess, and the hands bracing against the bed were clenched into white-knuckled fists. The night grew darker, and all things became one color, their outlines lost, indistinguishable.

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