Initially, Wen Lisheng had thought this was just a bold pickpocket, after all, he had dared to steal from Madam Mei.
Now, however, she saw him as nothing more than a deranged thief with a death wish.
Wen Lisheng was no stranger to gold, silver, and jade, and she could tell at a glance that this purple jade was an exquisite piece of immense value. Carved with the character “Xie,” who else could it belong to but that young master?
She sensed that trouble was brewing.
The fact that this person had managed to steal something from Xie Xiaonan showed he truly had some skill. But if Xie Xiaonan discovered the theft, it would undoubtedly cause an uproar, and the blame would inevitably fall on her father, the prefect.
That would spell disaster!
Wen Lisheng’s mind raced, considering countless possibilities, yet it never occurred to her to doubt the identity of the young man before her. She firmly believed he was a pickpocket.
Little did she know that this cold-faced youth was none other than Xie Xiaonan himself.
Disguised and with his voice altered, he had swapped clothes with his subordinate to retrieve something the latter had left in the tree during the day. Just as he got his hands on it, he ran into the furious Wen Lisheng.
In the ensuing struggle, she had snatched away his protective jade.
Xie Xiaonan felt a surge of irritation rising to his brow. He closed his eyes briefly to suppress his annoyance and said coldly, “Give it back.”
Wen Lisheng snapped out of her daze at his words, scrambling to her feet and clutching the purple jade tightly in her palm. “No way. I’m returning this to the young master.”
She couldn’t possibly hand it over to him. If Xie Xiaonan held anyone accountable, her father would be the first to suffer.
Xie Xiaonan wasted no time arguing and lunged forward to snatch it back.
Wen Lisheng stood on her tiptoes, stretching her arm back as she leaned away. At first, she tried to resist, but he easily seized her wrist with his height advantage and began prying open her fingers.
His grip was incredibly strong, sending a sharp pain through her wrist.
Gritting her teeth from the pain, she switched tactics, trying to reason with him. “You little thief, don’t be ungrateful! Who do you think Xie Xiaonan is? He’s violent-tempered, petty, and holds grudges. He treats human life like dirt. If he finds out you stole from him, everyone here will suffer. Can you bear to see innocent people die because of you?”
Xie Xiaonan had never been described this way before. Back in the capital, everyone spoke of the Jing’an Marquis’s heir with nothing but praise, and he was widely admired. Yet in the mouth of this mere prefect’s daughter, he had become utterly despicable.
Enraged, he snapped, “Nonsense!”
He redoubled his efforts, trying to pry open her tightly clenched fist.
Wen Lisheng’s wrist ached from his grip, and unable to bear the pain, she abandoned persuasion. Instead, she suddenly leaped up and headbutted him.
Caught off guard, Xie Xiaonan was struck hard, his vision darkening and dizziness washing over him. His grip loosened.
Wen Lisheng had hurt herself as much as she had hurt him. Staggering back dizzily, she nearly fell again, but her hand clutching the purple jade never relaxed.
Her head throbbed with pain.
Xi Lu hurried forward, alarmed. “Boss, are you all right?”
Xie Xiaonan was momentarily dazed from the impact. It took him a moment to recover, and his anger only grew fiercer. He wished he could slap Wen Lisheng dead on the spot.
But Wen Lisheng rubbed her head, turned, and broke into a run.
Fuming, Xie Xiaonan pointed at Yu Gui and ordered, “Knock her out and send her back.”Xi Lu hesitated for a moment, wanting to say something, but Xie Xiaonan gave him no chance, striding off in pursuit of Wen Lisheng.
Wen Lisheng ran as fast as her little legs could carry her, desperate to keep the matter quiet. She planned to snatch back the purple jade and hand it over to Wen Puchang for him to resolve. Unexpectedly, the little thief caught up with her in just a few steps, and just as he was about to grab her, she couldn’t hold back a shout, “Help—”
She had only managed two words before Xie Xiaonan covered her mouth again, roughly dragging her aside and slamming her against the rockery.
Wen Lisheng’s back ached, and she scrunched up her face, flailing her arms in struggle. Her tightly clenched fists held little strength, and the blows she landed on Xie Xiaonan’s arms and chest caused no pain.
He retrieved a silk handkerchief from his robes, pinched her cheeks to force her mouth open, and stuffed the handkerchief inside to muffle her cries.
Then, with one hand, he pinned her wrists against the rockery. No matter how she struggled, she couldn’t move an inch.
Though Wen Lisheng was overwhelmingly subdued in their scuffle, Xie Xiaonan was also left panting heavily from the exertion.
He pried open one of her fists with his thumb and felt inside—empty.
He pried open the other hand—also empty.
Wen Lisheng’s hands were empty; the purple jade was nowhere to be found.
Xie Xiaonan was so furious he nearly exploded on the spot, gritting his teeth as he demanded, “Where is it?”
Wen Lisheng snorted defiantly.
His rage surged. It had been a long time since anyone had provoked him like this. His icy gaze swept over her slender neck, then slid downward, settling on the collar of her robe at her collarbone.
Xie Xiaonan gathered both her wrists in his left hand, letting his right hand drop to explore the slender waist cinched by her sash.
He had intended to feel around her waist for the jade, but as soon as his hand touched the thin fabric, he felt the scorching heat of her skin.
Her waist was so slender it could easily be encircled by his hand.
Xie Xiaonan only touched it for a moment before clenching his fist and withdrawing, his breathing growing heavier with anger.
He looked down at Wen Lisheng, his dark eyes frosty and filled with a violent warning. “You’d better hand it over yourself.”
Wen Lisheng didn’t respond at first, but as the pressure on her wrists intensified, feeling as though her bones might snap, she immediately nodded like a chick pecking at rice, surrendering in fear.
Xie Xiaonan released her, assuming she wouldn’t dare cause any more trouble.
But as soon as he let go, Wen Lisheng tried to bolt, yanking the silk cloth from her mouth.
However, they were too close, and she was restrained the moment she moved, pressed firmly against the rockery until her chest tightened, making it difficult to breathe.
Xie Xiaonan was on the verge of fainting from anger. He had never encountered someone so foolish and stubborn, someone he couldn’t let his guard down around for even a moment—otherwise, she’d slip away faster than an eel.
He had no idea where she had hidden the purple jade, and he absolutely refused to search her body by touch. The only option was to frighten her into handing it over herself.
“Has your brain been clogged with lard? Can’t you think about why this thing ended up in my hands?” Xie Xiaonan forced himself to suppress his anger.
“If you call me stupid again, I’ll lose my temper!” Wen Lisheng glared at him, her eyes wide as copper bells.
His anger flared again. “What, should I praise you for being clever instead?”
“Well, is there anyone in Yiguan County smarter than me?” Wen Lisheng retorted, tilting her chin defiantly.
This left Xie Xiaonan momentarily speechless. He had truly never met someone so shamelessly self-praising and utterly convinced of their own brilliance.He didn’t want to engage in a pointless argument with her, suppressing his anger as he said, “No one can steal anything from Xie Xiaonan.”
However, Wen Lisheng had also considered this question, replying, “What if you’re exceptionally good at stealing?”
“Not as good as the person who stole your brain,” Xie Xiaonan couldn’t resist retorting.
“What did you say!” Wen Lisheng immediately understood he was insulting her indirectly.
“With Qiao Ling around, no one can get close to him,” he said, restraining the urge to hit someone.
“Then why do you have his belongings?” she asked.
Just as Xie Xiaonan was about to speak, he suddenly felt a slight sting on his neck. He reached up and touched it, pulling out an extremely fine silver needle.
The next moment, his vision went dark, and he collapsed to the ground.
Wen Lisheng was startled, still unsure what was happening when she felt a needle-like pain in her own neck. Immediately after, her body went limp, and she fell on top of Xie Xiaonan.