Yue Chunhan’s strength was immense; he easily lifted the man off the ground as if he were a chick.
Dangling by his collar, feet kicking wildly in the air, the man turned to see Yue Chunhan’s dark, grim face and instantly paled, scared almost to the point of wetting himself.
—How had Yue Chunhan returned so quickly? Wasn’t he supposed to be out hunting?
The man forced a smile, struggling desperately to break free from Yue Chunhan’s grip. But Yue Chunhan was not only tall—standing at 1.9 meters with broad shoulders and a narrow waist—he was also tightly muscled and full of strength. His face was as cold as ice, and no matter how hard the man tried, he couldn’t escape Yue Chunhan’s hold.
Su Zhi’s beautiful eyes widened, her full, rosy lips parting in surprise. She hadn’t expected Yue Chunhan to return so soon either. Didn’t Yue Tiantian say he had gone up the mountain to hunt and would be gone for several days?
Surprised as she was, there was no denying that Yue Chunhan, currently holding the skinny man as effortlessly as a chick, seemed like a divine soldier descending from heaven, instantly giving Su Zhi a strong sense of security.
She held her injured knee and elbow, trying to stand but unable to rise. Her ankle, twisted from the fall, throbbed painfully. She could only suck in sharp breaths and bite her lower lip tightly.
The wounds on her fingers that Yue Chunhan had applied medicine to yesterday weren’t even healed yet, and now she had new scrapes. Her skin was indeed delicate, and her luck was utterly awful.
As Su Zhi was lamenting her misfortune, Yue Chunhan glanced down at her from his height before turning to the skinny man and coldly demanding, “What are you doing here?”
The skinny man was a bachelor living on the back street. He usually didn’t work, surviving by pilfering vegetables and fruits, his hands far from clean. If anyone’s yard was left unlocked, he’d sneak in to steal something. If something went missing, he was always the first suspect.
But the skinny man had always been cowardly. Yue Chunhan hadn’t expected him to dare sneak into his yard while he was away.
The skinny man’s eyes darted, ready to spout some lies to fob off Yue Chunhan, even planning to smear Su Zhi’s name. “I… she called me here. It was your wife who seduced me…”
Before he could finish, Yue Chunhan punched him hard in the face, with such force that it knocked out several teeth. Blood instantly filled the man’s mouth, and he wailed in pain.
Yue Chunhan’s face was terrifyingly cold as he looked down at the skinny man, his voice icy. “If you dare say such things again, it won’t just be your teeth you lose.”
Blood streamed down the skinny man’s chin, a horrifying sight. Miserable and pitiful, he nodded frantically.
On the ground, Su Zhi managed to stand by leaning against the wall. The pain from her sprained ankle was so intense it brought cold sweat to her brow. She looked at Yue Chunhan, enduring the pain. “Yue… Yue Chunhan… He stole the clothes I just washed. They’re in his clothes.”
Yue Chunhan glanced down and indeed saw a large, bulging bundle inside the man’s clothes. He reached out to pull it, not expecting the skinny man to still struggle.
Yue Chunhan sneered, giving a strong tug. The bulky bundle of sweater fell to the ground. The man, struggling desperately, fell as well, scrambling to stuff the sweater back into his clothes. His mouth, filled with blood, made his words unintelligible: “…She… gave it… to me…”
The sweater, freshly washed by Su Zhi at noon, had already dried under the midday sun. It was fluffy, emitting the scent of laundry detergent, white and clean. In stark, glaring contrast was the dirty, grimy hand of the skinny man clutching a corner of the sweater, desperately struggling.
His hand was bloody, staining one side of the sweater red. Yet, out of fear of Yue Chunhan, he tried frantically to drag Su Zhi down, making excuses for himself in an attempt to escape punishment.
But Yue Chunhan paid no attention to his wild accusations. His gaze fixed on the sweater clutched in the skinny man’s hand, and his expression darkened instantly.
This was a sign of his rising anger.
Yue Chunhan glanced at Su Zhi, indicating for her to wait there for a moment. Then, with icy eyes, he bent down, grabbed the skinny man by the back of his collar, and—under the man’s terrified gaze—dragged him toward the cornfield behind them.
“Wait… Yue Chunhan… It wasn’t… it wasn’t…”
The man, mouth full of blood, spoke unclearly, still bleeding profusely. His face was filled with terror. In his fear, he even tried to crawl, reaching out to Su Zhi for help, to save him. But instead of receiving Su Zhi’s assistance, Yue Chunhan only tightened his grip on the man’s collar, almost choking him.
The man clutched at his collar with both hands, his face flushed red with remorse.
Didn’t everyone say Yue Chunhan and Su Zhi had a bad relationship? Why had Yue Chunhan not only returned from hunting so early today but also completely ignored his words, believing that little ***** so much…
If he had known it would turn out like this, he would never have dared to do such a thing, even if beaten to death!
Su Zhi, leaning against the wall, dared not move. Her ankle throbbed painfully as she heard the skinny man’s continuous wails and cries of agony coming from the cornfield. The man begged for mercy repeatedly, but in the deserted cornfield, who could help him? Even if someone were there, who would dare to stop Yue Chunhan in his current cold, violent state?
The sound of cracking joints and muffled groans from the beating reached Su Zhi’s ears, and her face paled.
A moment later, Yue Chunhan emerged slowly from the cornfield, his eyes icy, blood staining his fingers.
A few drops of blood were smeared on Yue Chunhan’s cheek, which he wiped away casually. Behind him, the skinny man’s face was bruised and swollen, almost all his teeth knocked out. Blood streamed from his nose down to his chin, covering his face in a pathetic mess. He was in such pain he nearly lost consciousness, lying on the ground emitting weak moans.
Even so, the skinny man didn’t dare say another word. After all, he was the one who had done the despicable thing first—spying on Su Zhi and stealing her clothes. He had no right to complain.
Moreover, it was Yue Chunhan who had beaten him. The man regretted over and over how he could have been so bewitched by beauty that he dared to sneak into Yue Chunhan’s yard while he was away. If he hadn’t stolen anything else or done anything more to Su Zhi, today’s incident might not have ended so quickly.
His mouth was too mangled to speak clearly, but his eyes no longer dared to linger on Su Zhi for even a moment. He was scared to death.
Yue Chunhan’s fist still dripped with blood—the skinny man’s blood. Since the man’s face had been covered in blood, Yue Chunhan had inevitably gotten some on himself.
He walked toward Su Zhi, his tall frame towering over her by several heads. With a narrow waist and broad back, his features were now cold and sinister, incredibly intimidating and oppressive.
Su Zhi, barely standing straight while leaning against the wall, felt her heart pounding wildly. Her mind instinctively recalled the descriptions in the original story of Yue Chunhan’s ruthless nature—almost always beating people half to death, leaving them bruised and swollen, or even worse.
Her face pale with fear, her thoughts began to run wild.
…Would Yue Chunhan think she was having an affair with the skinny man? Had he listened to the man’s wild accusations just now? Would he hit her?
Looking at the blood dripping from Yue Chunhan’s hand, Su Zhi’s face turned ashen. She thought she might also be beaten up by Yue Chunhan, ending up like the man lying by the cornfield wall, bruised, swollen, and covered in blood.
As Yue Chunhan approached, Su Zhi instinctively took a step back, her palms sweating nervously.
Yue Chunhan’s gaze paused.
Su Zhi’s ankle was badly sprained. As she stepped back, her foot didn’t find solid ground, and even leaning against the wall couldn’t support her weight. She stumbled and began to fall backward.
Su Zhi’s face was deathly pale. She thought she would hit the back of her head against the wall, cracking it open and bleeding. But at the critical moment, a large hand caught her around the waist, holding her semi-upright against a solid chest, preventing her from falling to the ground or hitting the wall. Otherwise, not only would her ankle injury worsen, but she would also likely gain several more wounds.
Yue Chunhan’s embrace carried a chilly aura. It was clear he had hurried back, covered in dust. Even his outer clothes were somewhat tattered. When his narrow, dark eyes looked down to meet Su Zhi’s gaze, there was a wild, beast-like intensity that made her heart tremble.
Sticky blood seemed to transfer to her waist through the firm grip of his hand, and the metallic scent of blood filled her nostrils.
It was the same position as on their wedding night. But now, looking at Yue Chunhan, Su Zhi felt even more afraid of him than she had that night.
She was terrified Yue Chunhan might suddenly turn violent, that those blood-stained fists would land on her.
Su Zhi feared pain and was scared of Yue Chunhan. Instinctively, her face pale, she tightly closed her eyes, bracing for Yue Chunhan’s storm.
But instead of being hit, she felt Yue Chunhan gently pick her up.
Her knees bent as Yue Chunhan carried her in his arms, her head resting against his chest, his other arm wrapped around her waist.
It was a classic princess carry.
Su Zhi’s beautiful eyes widened. Pressed against Yue Chunhan’s chest, she could even hear the strong, rhythmic beating of his heart.