He saw clearly the slight swelling of her lips.
That was because he had kissed her too hard last night.
He hurriedly lowered his head—not out of shyness, but to conceal the violent surge in his eyes, a tide of emotion that nearly spiraled out of control.
He stared at the cloudy noodles in his bowl, yet his mind was completely occupied by those faintly swollen lips.
He knew exactly why her lips were swollen—his teeth, his breath. She now carried his mark.
A scorching warmth, mixed with a trembling sense of satisfaction, rushed through his limbs in an instant. Even his fingertips felt hot, and he had to restrain himself with all his strength to keep them from trembling.
“She’s eating breakfast with my mark on her…”
“My scent, mixed with this porridge, is being swallowed down by her…”
The thought alone made him shiver with near-excitement.
Ling Yue was completely unaware. She had been here for some time and had learned how the locals drank their porridge—tilting her head back and pouring it straight from the bowl into her mouth, swallowing it in one gulp.Then she set the bowl down.
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Jiang Muchen watching her.
He still had his head lowered. He didn’t turn to look, only shifted his eyes. Those pitch-black pupils were aimed directly at her. When he realized she had noticed, he hurriedly rolled his gaze away.
In those dark eyes was nothing but a desire to peer and pry.
Ling Yue’s heart jolted sharply, as if licked by the cold tongue of a snake.
A nameless anger, mixed with a sense of being violated and nauseated, surged up instantly. Earlier, seeing him clutching a piece of candy tightly in his hand, she had given him several more—yet he was still staring at her.
With a sharp clack, Ling Yue set her bowl down. The sound wasn’t loud, but it was abrupt in the relatively quiet breakfast setting.
“Jiang Muchen.”
Jiang Muchen’s body stiffened almost imperceptibly, but he didn’t lift his head right away.
Ling Yue grew even more impatient, her tone hardening. “Jiang Muchen, is there something on my face?”
Jiang Muchen finally raised his head slowly. In order to hear her voice, he had never turned off his hearing aid.
“P… pretty.”
His voice was a little hoarse, his gaze flickering, as if he didn’t dare meet her eyes.
“You—” Ling Yue flushed red with anger. She pointed at him, her fingertip trembling. “What nonsense are you talking about?! Who asked you that!”
He looked up at her and repeated, “Pretty.”
At that moment, a broad hand gently pressed down on Ling Yue’s shoulder. Her father had come over at some point. His brow was slightly furrowed, disapproval written on his face.“Yueyue, Daddy has told you before—you’re not allowed to lose your temper at others so casually.”
He knew his daughter’s temperament. She would never let herself suffer a loss.
So he didn’t ask what this boy had done to provoke her. He instinctively assumed she was throwing a tantrum and said in a low voice, “I don’t want to hear you shouting at other people again.”
“Dad! He—” Ling Yue felt so wronged her eyes turned red.
“All right, all right,” he said softly. “You two are the same age. You should be becoming friends.”
When he heard the words “becoming friends,” Jiang Muchen’s eyes lit up instantly. He stole a glance at Ling Yue. The young lady stomped her foot in frustration.
“I don’t want to be friends with him! He’s filthy!”
In truth, Jiang Muchen wasn’t dirty. Although his family was poor, he was very clean.
She said it only because she was furious beyond reason.
“Ling Yue!” Her father’s voice turned stern at once. “How can you say something like that! How did I raise such a willful daughter!”
He rarely spoke to her so harshly. He made her apologize to Jiang Muchen—and even that wasn’t enough. He went so far as to force her to walk around the village with Jiang Muchen, forcing her to befriend him.
Because he truly hoped his daughter would learn humility.
What he didn’t know at all… was just how dangerous Jiang Muchen really was.