Zhao Shaoyou instantly took a step back, like a startled bird.
"Father! She is a good person! She is very, very good. Please do not harm her."
Zhao Chu’s mood worsened. Who said he was going to harm her?
Seeing his father’s gloomy expression, Zhao Shaoyou was torn. With the already unconscious Consort in his arms, he likely could not escape his father’s grasp.
But… he truly feared his father would harm the Consort. His father had always been cold and ruthless toward women, never showing the slightest tenderness.
Zhao Chu paid no heed to his son’s foolish thoughts. Suppressing his impatience, he said in a low voice, "Zhao Shaoyou, Gu will say this one last time—give her to Gu."
Zhao Shaoyou’s legs instinctively went weak.
Pu Xi hurriedly spoke up to persuade him, "Little Lord, hand this Consort over to our lord. If she is not treated soon, she may not survive even without being harmed."
A delicate and frail noblewoman could not withstand such rough handling.
Zhao Shaoyou pouted. Fine.
He slowly laid her down. Rong Ci had long since fainted, her face smeared with mud and water, looking utterly disheveled.
Zhao Chu glanced over, slightly disdainful. Without looking closely, he scooped her up with one arm around her waist, turned, and strode away.
Zhao Shaoyou immediately followed, his eyes fixed longingly on them.
Before leaving the woods, Pu Xi glanced at the distant, blurred outline of Yu Mountain in the heavy rain and said, "I suppose the King of Chu at the Wei State Travel Palace should have received news of the Consort’s misfortune by now."
Zhao Chu snorted coldly.
His chest was too hard, his hold not gentle, and his steps too quick. Rong Ci, jostled uncomfortably, frowned and whimpered. Though not fully conscious, her voice carried a note of accusation.
"Husband!"
Her voice was faint, but Zhao Chu, holding her so close, heard it clearly. His steps faltered, and his heart felt as if struck, an inexplicable bitterness rising within him.
It was as if, over a decade ago, someone had called him that way too.
He knew he had once taken a wife, but he had forgotten.
Fifteen years—it was too long.
So long that he had forgotten her appearance, her voice, and whether she, too, had ever called him "husband" with tender dependence.
His expression instantly darkened. He looked down at her, her face scrunched up in evident discomfort.
This face, smeared with mud, was not pleasing to the eye, but…
Zhao Chu felt an impulse to wash her clean and examine her carefully.
Watching his father boldly carry her into the guesthouse, Zhao Shaoyou immediately tried to follow, but Pu Xi quickly stopped him.
"Little Lord, if you go in now, that Consort’s situation might become even worse."
Zhao Shaoyou looked indignant. His father was too domineering.
Inside the Room
Zhao Chu placed her on the bed. He looked down, his expression unreadable as he stared at her face.
The mud was an eyesore. He reached for a cloth from the basin on the bedside table and roughly wiped her face, back and forth, without gentleness.
Until her flawless, clean features were revealed.
His hand stilled. The shadow cast by his lowered lashes seemed to conceal all his thoughts, yet when his brow slightly furrowed, the very air seemed to freeze.
His gaze traveled slowly down her face, noticing how even her soiled long skirt could not hide her slender waist—so delicate it seemed as if it might break with the slightest pressure.
Zhao Chu had also heard such extravagant praises as "the Consort of the King of Chu is peerless in beauty." At the time, he had scoffed dismissively. After all, everyone had two eyes, a nose, and a mouth. How beautiful could she possibly be?
Could she compare to the beauty of the realm?
But now, he felt that the phrase "peerless in beauty" was not an exaggeration when applied to her. Even in distress, her flaws could not obscure her radiance, making it difficult to look away.
His dark gaze finally settled heavily on her lips, reddened from rubbing. Perhaps she had bitten them earlier, as faint traces of blood seeped out.
Against her pale complexion, this touch of red added a hint of decadent, lush beauty.
Zhao Chu simply leaned down, inching closer to the crimson spot until he was just a breath away.
His mind was filled entirely with the sound of her broken sobs from that night. The red lips before him indeed possessed the power to drive one mad, making one want to ravage them mercilessly.
This woman, it seemed, had grown into every crevice of his heart.
Just like the blurred figure that trapped him in pleasure in his dreams, he loved it to the extreme.
He wanted to confirm it again. He wanted to hear how she would cry out in his arms.
Would her cries truly be the same as that woman in his dreams?
Cries that would shatter his very soul.
A sinister glint flashed in his eyes. Without a thought of restraint, he raised his hand and pinched her chin, forcing the unconscious woman to meet his overwhelming, scorching breath.
Rong Ci felt as if a storm were raging in her mouth, her tongue numb from the turmoil.
She instinctively complained in a delicate voice, "Husband, be gentler."
He was always like this, kissing without any sense of restraint.
Zhao Chu’s gaze suddenly darkened.
Who did she mistake him for? Such a familiar and indulgent complaint, so intimate it stirred displeasure in him.
As if punishing her, he bit her fiercely.
Cupping the back of her head as she tried to pull away, he forced her to meet him.
Their breaths intertwined, and he grew increasingly ferocious, as if wanting to crush her in his embrace.
Tears welled in her eyes from the mistreatment. She raised her hand to strike his sturdy shoulder, furious yet tinged with a hint of grievance.
Zhao Chu released her but not entirely. His rough palm slid to support her buttocks, seating her on his lap.
He lowered his gaze to study her intently.
Just like the sensation in his dreams, it was addictive.
It was as if a thick fog had been torn apart, and the woman’s face, which he had never been able to see clearly, now appeared before his eyes.
Beautiful.
And easily capable of stirring his desire.
Unfortunately, she was another man’s woman.
Zhao Chu’s mood darkened instantly. His dark eyes flickered, turbulent depths swirling with indistinguishable meanings and restlessness.
He wanted to take her.
His fingertips traced her waist with heavy pressure, perhaps too forceful, as she finally trembled and opened her eyes.
Zhao Chu calmly awaited her reaction. She should be terrified, held in the arms of a stranger.
Or perhaps furious—a noble lady violated would likely wish to tear him to shreds.
So Zhao Chu thought.
But she did neither. She opened her eyes, closed them, then opened them again.
Her long, thick lashes fluttered.
Her lips parted slightly, seemingly bewildered, her gaze vacant.
"Husband, I think…"
She pursed her lips, uneasy. "I can’t see."
Zhao Chu looked at her. Her eyes lacked focus, and her hands gripping the front of his robe trembled slightly, betraying her inner panic.
His gaze grew complex, and in the end, he curved his lips with an ambiguous smile.
She had gone blind.
And she had mistaken him for her husband.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t be sitting so obediently in his arms, seeking refuge.
Her relationship with her husband wasn’t particularly strong either.
Their builds and scents were different, yet she couldn’t tell them apart.
The darkness in Zhao Chu’s heart seemed to lighten slightly.
He hummed in acknowledgment, holding her firmly in his embrace. His large hand gently patted her back as if to soothe her.
Rong Ci thought it must have been the fall after jumping from the carriage. She had hit the back of her head, perhaps causing nerve compression on her retina and resulting in blindness.
Just like Ziwei.
It should be temporary. Once the blood clot dissolves, my vision will return.
But when the world of a normal person suddenly plunges into darkness, it’s natural to feel uneasy. Rong Ci instinctively clung to the person in front of her.
"Husband, I must have hit my head on a rock when I jumped from the carriage, which is why I can’t see now."
"Don’t worry."
"I’ll definitely be fine."
"Husband, what about the young master who was with me? Is he safe? He saved me. Please don’t harm him, okay?"
Rong Ci was filled with concern for Shao You. She thought it was Chu Xiao who had found her, and only Chu Xiao would kiss her without hesitation while she was still unconscious.
Zhao Chu listened calmly as she nestled in his arms and spoke to him. Her voice was soft but not overly sweet—clear, pure, and crisp, ringing in his ears.
Even though she couldn’t see, she was still worried about the safety of the young man who had saved her.
Of course, she could even mistake her husband, nestling gently and trustingly in his arms without a hint of caution.