Xu Jinnian was truly left with no other choice but to sell his paintings on the street.
Though his mentor, Xue Hongli, helped him remain at the Imperial Academy by waiving many of the fees, he still had an elderly mother to care for. He had rented half a courtyard in Yongxing Lane for them, but even that small space was a rent burden he could barely manage.
He had never disdained selling his art on the street, but he could not let his mother go without shelter or food, so he had hardened his heart to take this step.
However, these commoners were blind; they considered his asking price of five taels per painting to be a fantasy and mocked him for being delusional! Xu Jinnian had almost felt the urge to beat those fools away! His paintings were worth at least ten taels—they were the ones who were blind and ignorant!
When one man was driven off by his curses and mocked him for his arrogance, Xu Jinnian couldn’t help but kick him directly, sending the man off with shouts and curses. After that, even fewer people were willing to approach his stall.
“That scholar is so overbearing; he wants to hit people just because they won’t buy his paintings!”
“Five taels for a painting? Does he think he’s the painting master Xu Daozhi? Hmph.”
“Maybe he’s lost his mind?”
Xu Jinnian was so angry his face turned blue, and he nearly cursed out loud. But thinking of the landlord who kept pressing for rent, and his mother who coughed night and day without money for medicine, he forced himself to endure it, sitting there with a stiff face, painting on his own. He refused to believe there were no discerning eyes to be found.
It was then that a girl wearing a bamboo hat arrived at his stall… and without bargaining, she bought two of his paintings.
Looking at the two small silver ingots in his hand, Xu Jinnian’s expression immediately shifted from gloomy to radiant. He knew there was never a shortage of people with taste.
Before leaving, the woman said she would come back in ten or fifteen days to buy more of his work. Xu Jinnian instantly transformed from a temperamental scholar into a refined gentleman. “Many thanks, Miss. Should your master have a preference for specific paintings, I can even paint specifically for them.”
Although the girl wore a hat, her attire clearly marked her as a servant; therefore, the buyer could only be her mistress. Xu Jinnian wanted to secure such an easygoing and generous patron.
The next moment, he heard the maid say, “You just paint what you like; my mistress says that your paintings are all very good.”
The joy in Xu Jinnian’s eyes deepened; he felt a sense of being understood by a confidante…
After buying the paintings, Su Wantang didn’t wander around and took Xiaotao back to the Ding Prince’s Mansion through a small side gate. She had snuck out stealthily and returned with the same caution, but just as she passed through a small archway, she bumped into someone unexpectedly. Just as she was about to apologize, Su Wantang realized it was Zhao Xuanzhen.
“Heir… Heir.”
Zhao Xuanzhen observed Su Wantang’s guilty expression and raised an eyebrow faintly. “Where have you been?”
“I, I just went out for a stroll…”
She naturally knew Zhao Xuanzhen had been following her, but she didn’t care. Some men were simply born with a “cheap bone”—they didn’t want you, yet they felt you shouldn’t have any ties with others. Tsk, tsk.
Zhao Xuanzhen thought it laughable that Su Wantang tried to lie to him with such poor skill. Too lazy to waste words, he said coldly, “I know you went to see that Xu Jinnian. Second Miss Su, if you still have lingering feelings for him, why enter the Prince’s mansion? Since you have entered, you shouldn’t act in this way, remaining ‘linked like lotus roots’—it only makes one despise you.”
As he finished speaking, Zhao Xuanzhen saw Su Wantang’s eyes instantly turn red.
Startled and fearful, she shook her head repeatedly. “It’s not like that. I don’t have lingering feelings… Half a year ago, when I first arrived in the capital, everyone laughed at me as a country bumpkin, refusing to acknowledge me and mocking me at every turn. Young Master Xu was the only one who never looked down on me.”
Su Wantang lowered her eyes and said softly, “He took me out, helped me get familiar with the streets and alleys of the capital, and bought me food and fun things so that I wouldn’t be constantly anxious… Now that he is in a difficult situation, I just wanted to return his kindness with a little help.”
Zhao Xuanzhen looked down at her with a look that was half-mockery and half-scorn. “In that case, why did you break off your engagement and part ways with him before?”
Su Wantang looked up at him, bit her lip, and spoke in a low voice. “Heir, I have lived a life of hardship since I was a child. People call me a Marquis’s daughter, but no one knows that often my mother and I didn’t even have enough food or clothing. I am truly afraid of suffering… In the future, I want to suffer less. Is that too much to ask?”
Zhao Xuanzhen suddenly recalled how she had devoured the leftovers Su Huajin had “bestowed” upon her. His cold demeanor softened slightly. He replied indifferently, “Do not misunderstand. I just do not want to force anyone. I only thought that if you still had feelings for that Young Master Xu, it would be best to fulfill your wishes.”
Su Wantang’s eyes widened, and she shook her head vigorously. “No, no. I only feel… gratitude toward Young Master Xu. He treated me well when I was down, so I wanted to repay him slightly. Now, I…”
She looked bashful, bit her lip, and lowered her eyes. “In my heart, there is only the Heir.”
Zhao Xuanzhen replied, “Oh? Then why haven’t you come to deliver soup these past few days?”
Delivering soup? Or is he asking to be waited upon?
What laughable possessiveness…
Su Wantang clicked her tongue internally, but on the surface, she appeared shy and whispered, “I was recovering from my injury and taking medicine; it was not suitable for me to conceive, so I dared not disturb the Heir…”
That was what she said, but the disappointment and unease on her face made Zhao Xuanzhen realize immediately that Su Huajin must have been jealous. Moreover, it was indeed true that one shouldn’t conceive while on medication.
Therefore, Zhao Xuanzhen asked, “Then, has your injury recovered well over the last two days?”
The implication was clear.
Su Wantang gave him a shy glance, turned her head away, and murmured, “Yes.” She then heard Zhao Xuanzhen say in a deep tone, “Come to the study to see me tonight…”
Su Wantang’s face flushed red, and she gave a soft affirmation.
That night, the moon was bright and the stars were sparse. Su Wantang, wrapped in a cloak, walked straight into Zhao Xuanzhen’s study. A single small lamp was lit by the desk, casting dim light, but the inner room was bright… She walked around the screen into the inner room and saw that Zhao Xuanzhen had clearly already bathed. He was wearing only a loose long gown, his collar open to reveal a large expanse of his chest and abdomen, and he was reclining on the couch reading a book.
Seeing those powerful pectoral muscles and clearly defined abs, Su Wantang found this man suddenly much more agreeable to look at… Just then, Zhao Xuanzhen set down his book and looked up.
Su Wantang’s cloak was wrapped tightly, revealing only her small face, pointed chin, and crimson lips. Zhao Xuanzhen sat in a relaxed posture and reached out a hand. “Come here.”
He was trying hard to suppress the urgent, restless heat within him… refusing to admit how his body was beginning to stir.
Su Wantang unfastened her cloak, revealing a lotus-root-colored gauze dress underneath. She had also just bathed, her dark hair draped softly, making her beautiful face look both innocent and seductive. She walked forward and placed her hand into Zhao Xuanzhen’s palm, then leaned against the footstool, landing right in front of him.
“Last time, you said my palms were rough…”
A playful glint appeared in her eyes as she slowly extended her hand. “I’ve been nursing them carefully these past few days. Why don’t you try them and see if they’ve become softer?”
Watching that fair, slender hand brazenly rest on his chest, Zhao Xuanzhen’s chest rose and fell. His voice remained deep but turned somewhat hoarse. “Presumptuous.”
Su Wantang looked up, her beauty mixed with a hint of mischievous malice. “Is this… even more presumptuous?”
Zhao Xuanzhen watched that mischievous hand, and the rise and fall of his chest began to grow more intense…
Since he had come of age, he had been resentful because his father’s lascivious and promiscuous nature had caused his mother to live a life of sorrow, ultimately leading to her death from depression. He grew to despise the frivolous and licentious, regardless of gender. After marrying Su Huajin, they had lived a respectful life, and their time in the bedchamber was always dignified and gentle…
Zhao Xuanzhen did not consider himself a frivolous man, yet recently he had been indulgent and driven by desire. He had tried to console himself by saying it was out of urgency for an heir, but at this moment… looking at that hand acting so willfully, a profound and wicked impulse was pulled out of him.
Zhao Xuanzhen’s voice was already hoarse. “Your hand… is still very rough.”
It traced across his chest, as if it were hooked into his skin during the friction.
Before he could finish his words, he saw Su Wantang bite her lip and glare at him in dissatisfaction… The next instant, the reckless girl pinched his chest hard, then boldly turned and sat up atop him.
Su Wantang looked down at him. “The Heir will just have to endure this roughness…”
The heaving of Zhao Xuanzhen’s chest was approaching the point of losing control. As his Adam’s apple bobbed, he kept his eyes locked on the hem of her dress as it traced an arc over his body. With her fair, slender palms pressed against his waist and abdomen, her fingertips tightening and curling with effort… Zhao Xuanzhen closed his eyes, threw his head back, and the forced, muffled groan turned into a sigh of release from his throat…