Whether it was due to the lingering steam in the room or Yun Miao’s recent use of Spiritual Power, the strange sensation within her body grew more pronounced.Waves of heat surged through her bones and blood like a tide, threatening to drown her in a secret sea of desire.A sudden, intense dizziness struck without warning. Yun Miao’s vision darkened, and she nearly collapsed.Fortunately, she managed to steady herself by grabbing the nearby canopy bed.Faintly, footsteps came to a halt before her.She closed her eyes, shaking her head slightly as she waited for the dizziness to subside before lifting her gaze toward the shadow looming over her.However, the movement caused the veil hat she wore to slip loose and fall.Yun Miao’s eyes followed the hat as it rolled on the floor in circles before coming to rest at a man’s feet.Her gaze paused briefly.Then, almost instinctively, she slowly lifted her head to look at the man’s face.At that moment, he too raised his head, shifting his gaze from the veil hat at his feet to where Yun Miao stood.Their eyes met unexpectedly in the air.Yun Miao wondered if it was her imagination, but the man seemed to hesitate when their eyes met. His previously stern expression softened imperceptibly.A familiar face abruptly filled her vision.Xie Jue froze in place.Although he had suspected something when he saw the Unbound Boat earlier, seeing the face he had secretly imagined countless times—so familiar yet so distant—right before him still left him stunned.He had envisioned their reunion more than once or twice.Yet now, his mind went blank.He stared at her without blinking, as though afraid she would vanish without a trace if he so much as closed his eyes.But soon, Xie Jue realized something was wrong.She seemed not to recognize him, and an abnormal flush was spreading from her neck, past her collar, and up to her face.Fine beads of sweat had already formed on her forehead.Putting the pieces together, Xie Jue quickly understood the situation: she must have been drugged by the man from earlier.This realization made him frown with displeasure.He even regretted letting that man go so easily.Still, he remembered the man’s scent.He would settle that score later.But for now, he didn’t know what to do with Yun Miao.Even the words that had irritated him earlier now inexplicably resurfaced in his mind, like a spell teasing his nerves.Xie Jue found it difficult to look at her any longer.Because he knew all too well the depraved thoughts he harbored toward Yun Miao.Disgusting, vile thoughts he neither wanted nor dared to let her know…So, he averted his gaze first, bent down, and picked up the veil hat that had rolled to his feet.He quietly took a deep breath, adjusting his emotions, straightened up, and took two more steps toward the person opposite him, yet restrained himself to stop at an appropriate distance.Xie Jue reached out, handing the veil hat in his hand toward Yun Miao.On the moon-white gauze, it seemed as if the other’s breath still lingered.Almost uncontrollably, he subtly and gently rubbed it.He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing lightly.“Your veil hat.”His voice was inexplicably dry.He pursed his lips, as if afraid the other might notice something amiss.Though given her current state, she likely wouldn’t notice these details.Yun Miao looked at the hand suspended in mid-air, maintaining just the right distance from her, and struggled to suppress the unfamiliar desire within her body. She opened her mouth: “Thank you.”But her voice sounded even stranger than before.She quickly stopped herself, reaching out to take her veil hat from the other’s hand.Unexpectedly, her fingertips faintly brushed against his.A cool sensation, vague yet clear through the thin gauze, settled on her fingertips.And this touch of coolness, to Yun Miao’s surprise, was like a spark, abruptly igniting the desire within her.In an instant, the fire had spread uncontrollably.This hidden, irresistible desire now overwhelmed Yun Miao, leaving her struggling to cope.Her fingertips trembled uncontrollably.Xie Jue, separated only by a layer of thin gauze, must have sensed her state.This realization made Yun Miao somewhat embarrassed.As if shocked by electricity, she hurriedly took the veil hat from the other’s hand.But she couldn’t tell if it was her imagination—it seemed as though the other had wanted to grasp her hand in return.Yet when she looked up, he had already withdrawn his hand as if nothing had happened.Perhaps it really was just her imagination.Still, her current state was indeed somewhat perilous.The faint, comfortable coolness she had just felt kept tempting her in her mind, urging her to draw closer to the person before her.Even threatening to override her rationality.“Thank you for today’s matter.”Though Yun Miao had tried her best to restrain herself, her voice still trembled slightly.“I won’t disturb you further. If fate allows us to meet again, I will repay you.”With that, before the other could respond, Yun Miao took the first step, preparing to leave.Amid the lamplight, the two passed by each other, their hanging sleeves silently brushing against one another in the quiet.Suddenly, a hand with distinct knuckles lifted and grasped the arm of the person beside him, who was about to leave.Faced with this unexpected turn of events, Yun Miao couldn’t help but pause, somewhat bewildered, turning her head to follow the hand resting on her arm.Before her gaze could land on the other’s face, his voice descended from above her head.“Given your current state… perhaps it’s better if you stay.”The height difference between them forced Yun Miao to look up slightly at him.She blinked slowly at him.In truth, apart from the fine beads of sweat on her forehead and the unusual flush on her cheeks, Yun Miao’s expression appeared no different from usual—calm and composed.But only Yun Miao knew that she was almost drowning in the heat surging within her body.The other’s palm pressed against her forearm through the fabric, a comforting coolness continuously flowing into her.She unconsciously yearned for more.Even as she looked at him, a preposterous thought surfaced in her mind—his lips looked as if they would be very pleasant to kiss.Realizing this thought, Yun Miao hurriedly averted her gaze, subtly pursing her lips.Yet as her eyes drifted downward, they inadvertently caught sight of the partially exposed collarbone and a small patch of fair skin beneath his loosely draped collar.In a daze, Yun Miao seemed to hear the frantic beating of her own heart, pounding incessantly against her eardrums…At this moment, whether to stay or leave seemed like a dangerous decision for Yun Miao.Even though, inexplicably, she felt an indescribable sense of familiarity and trust toward the person before her.Yun Miao struggled to restrain her desires and lifted her gaze to meet his once more."I've been afflicted with Spring Gu."She straightforwardly stated her current condition, though her words carried an implicit warning."I know." His voice remained calm, his expression betraying no ulterior motives. "I can request another room."For Yun Miao, this was clearly a favorable suggestion. Without much deliberation, she gave her assent.She nodded at the man. "Then I thank you."The coolness emanating from the man's palm continued to tempt her.The thread of reason in her mind seemed stretched to its limit. Yun Miao hastily withdrew her hand with a slight tug, as if forcibly separating herself from temptation.Yet this action held a different meaning in the other's eyes.The man paused, retracting his hand. "My apologies, I overstepped."Naturally, Yun Miao could not reveal the truth. She merely lowered her eyes and murmured, "It's nothing."Under the lamplight, both harbored their own thoughts, silently restraining some intense emotion.Xie Jue withdrew his hand, letting it hang by his side. His fingertips lightly brushed against one another, as if savoring the warmth and sensation from their brief contact moments earlier."The bathwater hasn't been used yet. You may use it first. I'll go downstairs to request another room from the innkeeper."His gaze lingered on the crown of Yun Miao's head for another two seconds before reluctantly withdrawing.Then, with just the right measure of politeness and distance, he retrieved his outer robe hanging on the screen, turned, and walked around it toward the door.Yun Miao listened as the man's footsteps gradually faded into the distance before belatedly peering through the screen.She saw his distinct knuckles as he politely closed the door.Yun Miao suddenly felt that perhaps her decision to stay was the right one.Only after the door had been closed for some time did Yun Miao finally withdraw her gaze.The steam rising from the bathtub beside her had long enveloped her, the damp mist seeming to seep into her clothing.It clung uncomfortably to her skin.Yet at this moment, she could hardly distinguish whether her discomfort stemmed from her damp clothes or from the accumulated, unrelieved desires stirred within her body by the Spring Gu.After a moment's hesitation, Yun Miao chose to remove her garments, step into the bathtub, and immerse herself completely.Though it was already summer, after all the turmoil, the prepared hot water had grown tepid.But for Yun Miao, it was just right—in fact, the temperature was even a bit too high for her.She wanted the water to be even cooler, so that it could extinguish and cool the wildfire raging through her limbs and bones.Yun Miao sank her body a little deeper into the bath, resting her head against the edge of the tub.The discomfort in her body did indeed begin to ease.But it was far from enough.Suddenly, the cool sensation from that earlier touch resurfaced in her mind, and along with it, the handsome face of the man flooded her thoughts.Yun Miao was startled and shook her head vigorously, trying to drive these thoughts away.But before she could banish the dangerous ideas, a knock at the door, accompanied by the man's voice, perfectly reached her ears.
Chapter 2
Mistakenly Believing I Was Given the Substitute Lover Script