The earth scorched beneath the sun, and even the wind carried waves of searing heat. The flowers and plants growing in the courtyard had already wilted under the blazing sun, looking listless and drooping.
The moment Qiao Anran stepped out of the car, she felt as though she had been thrown into a furnace. Even without being directly exposed to the sunlight, merely coming into contact with the air, which seemed hot enough to spark flames, made her so overheated that fine beads of sweat appeared on the tip of her nose.
Extremely sensitive to heat, she hurried into the villa in her slender high heels, leaving her newlywed husband, who had been protecting her as she got out of the car, behind.
Seeing how quickly she ran, Li Cangchen knew that she was still as afraid of the heat as she had been before. The corners of his lips lifted slightly, revealing a faint, almost imperceptible smile like ripples passing over the surface of water, which disappeared just as quickly.
Seeing that his Little Jiu’er had already vanished from sight, he immediately followed her inside and casually locked the door after passing through the foyer.
When he entered the air-conditioned living room, he saw that she had taken off her shoes and sun-protective jacket to enjoy the cool air. She was leaning against the sofa with her legs slightly bent and resting on the armrest, revealing her alluring figure clad only in a knee-length spaghetti-strap dress.
The breathtakingly seductive sight made his breathing fall out of rhythm for several beats, and he felt a surge of heat rush toward his abdomen, igniting a powerful desire.
After remaining abstinent for a thousand years and breaking his restraint in a single night, he had tasted that intoxicating pleasure, and it seemed to have become an addiction. He only wanted to press her beneath him and indulge in her without restraint.
He forcibly suppressed his desire and steadied his breathing before stepping forward. He removed his outer robe and draped it over her fair, slender legs, covering the beautiful view that had been faintly exposed.
The woman who had been trying to cool herself down quickly froze at his action. Her delicate face tightened slightly, and her ears flushed as she realized she had exposed too much. She hurriedly sat upright and lowered her legs, pressing them together.
Then she reached beneath the robe and pulled down the hem of her dress, which had ridden up to her waist because of her movements, covering the tops of her thighs.
The dress she was wearing now was one he had bought for her on their way to the Civil Affairs Bureau. He had left her in the car while he went into the shopping mall alone to purchase it.
He had even personally selected the disposable underwear and bra she was wearing.
She wondered whether a man walking into a lingerie shop would have been mistaken for a pervert.
Thinking of that amusing scene, Qiao Anran could not help laughing. Her eyes curved like crescent moons, and her beauty left Li Cangchen, sitting beside her, momentarily dazed.
His gaze seemed completely captivated by her, remaining fixed on her without blinking.
Time itself seemed to stop at that moment. All he could hear was her voice, and all he could see in his eyes was her delicate face, more beautiful than any flower.
He had thought of her for a thousand years, and now she had finally appeared vividly beside him again. She was no longer a hallucination, nor was she a dream.
During the thousand years he had been without her, it was as though his heart had been lost along with her, leaving him incapable of feeling joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness, like a cold corpse.
The passage of countless years had not erased his love for her. Instead, it had only made it deeper, until it had transformed into a pathological desire for control. He wanted to lock their hands together with handcuffs and keep her bound to his side, never allowing her to go anywhere.
His deep eyes gradually became covered in thick gloom, without a trace of light, resembling an unfathomable black hole in the depths of the universe.
Qiao Anran raised her eyes and noticed the darkness in his gaze, and the smile on her lips gradually faded.
The loneliness and longing he had failed to conceal were caught by her. A faint ache suddenly spread through her heart, bringing with it a suffocating feeling that made it difficult to breathe.
She did not know where this emotion came from. She simply felt terribly uncomfortable and desperately wanted to wipe away the frost accumulated between his brows and dispel the gloom floating in his eyes. Even the tip of her nose began to sting.
Her little hand hidden beneath the robe tightened around the fabric as she looked at him and asked, “Do you regret marrying me?”
The short question carried a trace of jealousy that she herself had not noticed. She mistakenly thought he was missing someone else, such as the “Little Jiu’er” he kept mentioning.
Had he mistaken her for the woman in his heart?
The possibility made it impossible for her to remain calm. She absolutely refused to become anyone else’s replacement!
She had truly been blinded by his beauty to rush into registering their marriage so hastily. She did not even know who was in his family, let alone how many relationships he had been in or whether he currently had a girlfriend.
Thinking about this, Qiao Anran lowered her little head in frustration, despising herself for actually allowing a man to bewitch her.
Yet when she thought about their first night together, his movements at the beginning had been somewhat inexperienced, and her instincts told her that it had also been his first time.
But had he dated anyone before her?
Just as she was about to ask, the elegant, cool scent of sandalwood suddenly filled her nose, and his long, slender fingers gently lifted her chin.
He restrained his icy expression and looked at her seriously.
“Little Jiu’er, when it comes to you, I have never regretted it.”
Qiao Anran waved away the hand holding her chin and pressed him further.
“Then, before me, did you ever date another woman? And who exactly is Little Jiu’er?”
There was nervousness in her eyes, and her little hand gripping his robe tightened even more, afraid that she would hear an answer she did not want.
At that moment, all her attention was focused on his features, which were more perfect than a work of art.
She watched as he brought that flawless face closer to hers, so close that she could clearly feel the scorching warmth of his breath against her cheeks.
His lips, now only a centimeter from hers, slowly parted.
“No. There has only ever been you. I have only ever been with you.”
“Little Jiu’er, you forgot. That’s your nickname.”
“!”
Qiao Anran, who had lived for twenty years, widened her eyes at the mention of a nickname and subconsciously murmured, “I don’t have a nickname.”
“I gave it to you when you were little.”
A thousand years ago.
He did not say the last four words aloud.
His heated breath fell against her lips, disturbing her thoughts and making her throat dry. Somewhere deep in her heart, it felt as though a rabbit were trapped inside, making her heartbeat accelerate.
She nervously leaned her upper body backward, creating a little distance between them. After calming her chaotic heartbeat, she raised her head again and looked at him suspiciously.
“When we were little? We knew each other? I don’t remember you at all. Are you sure you haven’t mistaken me for someone else?”
Seeing the jealousy appear in her clear eyes, Li Cangchen suddenly smiled. He reached out and wrapped one arm around her slender waist, which he could almost encircle with one hand, pulling her firmly against his chest so she could not escape.
Then he lowered his head and whispered beside her ear, “Little Jiu’er is jealous?”
His thick, long brows lifted slightly as he looked at her intently from the side.
Her full chest, wrapped in the spaghetti-strap dress, pressed tightly against his chest.
Their skin touched, and their breaths mingled.
Her heartbeat grew faster and faster, while the palm gripping his robe became covered in a thin layer of sweat. Even the earlobe warmed by his breath felt as though it were about to catch fire.
Her eyes, more alluring than peach blossoms, shimmered with breathtaking beauty, irresistibly captivating.
The sandalwood scent emanating from him quietly slipped into her nostrils, making it increasingly difficult for her to maintain her composure.
To keep herself from becoming completely bewitched, she could only turn her face away with difficulty and direct her gaze toward the empty living room. With her other hand pressed against his chest through the robe, she said frankly, “You are my husband on our marriage certificate now. Of course I need to know the details of your romantic history.”
The moment she finished speaking, a sexy, low laugh sounded beside her ear.
“Mm, yes. I belong only to Little Jiu’er. I will never let another woman defile me.”
He paused for two seconds, then raised his hand and turned her chin toward him, looking at her intently before speaking solemnly.
“You have never been anyone else’s replacement. You are my one and only.”
“As for the memories Little Jiu’er has lost, I’ll find a way to help you recover them.”
Qiao Anran had not yet recovered from his confession when his next words shocked her so much that she could barely speak.
“You… mean that I… have lost my memories? We didn’t… meet for the first time last night?”
She stared at him blankly, as though her mind had stopped functioning.
Li Cangchen concealed the cold glint deep within his eyes, lowered his head, and pressed a kiss to her forehead before tracing the bridge of her straight, delicate nose with his lips and finally kissing her soft lips.
“Mm. We knew each other a long time ago.”
His tenderness instantly sent her heart out of control.
The jealousy lingering in her heart gradually faded beneath his kisses.
The kiss was gentle and soft, yet it made her heart flutter.
His careful, tender movements made her feel as though she were fragile glass that had to be held in his palms and protected with the utmost care.
She did not know that the reason he was so careful was because he was afraid of hurting her again.
After they had been intimate several times the previous night and he had helped her recover from the effects of the drug, he had seen the bloodstains on the sheets and her swollen condition, and had nearly stopped breathing from fright.
This was the Little Jiu’er he had carefully cherished a thousand years ago. Back then, he had never been willing to let her suffer the slightest injury. Even though they had shared a bed for eleven years, he had never crossed that boundary.
Yet a thousand years later, immediately after their reunion, he had “bullied” her so badly.
While cursing himself inwardly for being a beast, he had immediately carried her unconscious body into his spiritual plant space and soaked her in spiritual liquid to help her recover.
But she woke up after only fifteen minutes. With hazy eyes, she had clung to him and asked for more.
In the end, he had never been able to refuse her. He carried her back to the bed, which had not yet been tidied, and they continued until the first light of dawn appeared.
Only afterward did he remember that after being drugged, soaking in spiritual liquid would rapidly repair injuries while simultaneously stimulating the body’s desire.
Afterward, he could only apply medicinal ointment to her. The ointment worked slowly and required three hours to restore her completely.
When his Little Jiu’er left that morning, only two hours had passed since he had applied the medicine, so she certainly had not fully recovered yet.
Worried about her condition, he slowly stopped kissing her lips and moved to her ear, asking softly, “Little Jiu’er, does it still hurt?”
“!”
Qiao Anran, who had been dazed by his kisses, immediately flushed crimson at the question.
The redness spread from her ears down her neck and toward the chest concealed beneath the fabric.
She suddenly had no idea where to look, and could only avoid his heated gaze as she answered in a voice barely louder than a mosquito’s buzz.
“N… no, it doesn’t hurt anymore.”
In truth, when she had first left the hotel that morning, walking had been painfully difficult. But after returning to the villa, the pain had disappeared.
Li Cangchen lowered his eyes and saw her flushed cheeks. The corners of his lips lifted slightly, as though her adorable appearance had amused him.
He gently brushed aside the strands of hair hanging beside her cheek with his fingers and said, “You’re that easily embarrassed? Hmm?”
His drawn-out ending instantly stirred up endless romantic tension.
She felt his warm breath spray across her cheeks, and her body suddenly softened like water as she leaned against his strong, slender arm. Raising her eyes slightly, she protested, “Not at all. It’s just natural for me. It’s only because it’s so hot today.”
A soft laugh immediately sounded beside her ear.
“Mm, Little Jiu’er is simply blushing.”
“I… I’m only red because it’s hot!”
The little woman “flailing like an angry kitten” pushed him down onto the sofa and sat on his waist, correcting him in a delicate voice.
Hearing this, Li Cangchen laughed softly as he looked at Little Jiu’er, who was throwing her weight around on top of him. For a moment, he felt as though time had turned back.
A thousand years ago, whenever she became embarrassed and angry, she had also loved pushing him down and sitting on top of him.
The next second, the large hand resting on her waist moved slightly upward and pressed her down with greater force. He tilted his head up and kissed her lips, holding them between his own before slowly deepening the kiss and exploring them.
His large hand then moved to the back of her head, gradually deepening the kiss.
Qiao Anran had already begun to succumb to the sandalwood scent surrounding him. The clarity in her eyes slowly gave way to a dazed haze, and her little hands took the initiative to wrap around his shoulders and neck, responding to his kiss.
Inside the villa, passion burned like fire, while outside, the heat was even more unbearable.
It was already five thirty in the evening, yet the sun hanging high in the sky remained as scorching as molten lava.
The ground was hot enough to fry a steak, and the number of people suffering from heatstroke had risen from dozens to hundreds.
This extremely abnormal weather had attracted the attention of various leaders, who immediately launched investigations.
However, investigations and data collection required time, so everyone could only suppress their anxiety and wait patiently for the results.
At six in the evening, all the furniture, daily necessities, ingredients, and other supplies Qiao Anran had ordered were delivered.
She did not come out herself. Her newlywed husband, Mr. Li, handled everything.
When he saw several large trucks loaded with supplies, his expression remained completely normal. He showed no surprise and asked nothing.
She took the initiative to explain, “The house is too empty, so I bought more things just in case.”
He wrapped an arm around her waist and lowered his head to look at her.
“Mm, Little Jiu’er can decide.”
After everything had been put away, it was already eight in the evening. The previously empty villa had suddenly been filled to the brim.
The kitchen had also taken on the warmth of everyday life. Dressed in an ink-colored long robe, Li Cangchen was preparing dinner for his Little Jiu’er.
Qiao Anran stood to the side, looking delighted as she watched her new husband move skillfully around the kitchen.
“You really can cook? That’s amazing.”
She had assumed that he was just as helpless with household matters as she was, so when he said he would cook dinner, she had even wondered whether she should order takeout in advance.
After all, meals prepared by a beginner were usually not particularly delicious.
But watching his fluid knife skills and the graceful, effortless movements with which he wielded the spatula, she knew that his cooking was undoubtedly at a master level.
At that moment, she looked as though she were watching an artistic performance, unable to tear her eyes away from him.
Li Cangchen continued stir-frying as he answered, “Mm, I learned.”
He had learned to cook for her back then, practicing painstakingly for an entire month.
At that time, she had also stayed by his side just as she was now.
He cooked, and she stood nearby praising him.
“Brother Prince, you’re amazing. Not only are you skilled in both the literary and martial arts, you’ve even mastered the art of cooking.”
“You truly can handle both the kitchen and the formal hall. I can enjoy a comfortable life from now on.”