Gao Zhi rushed over and hid the book behind her back.
But from the man’s involuntarily trembling eyelashes, it was obvious that he had already seen it clearly.
【A-Zhi… Is she reading these because she intends to compromise herself and accommodate me…?】
【Does she… also think that because my legs don’t work, I’m a… cripple?】
【I…】
【Indeed. In my current state, even standing up is difficult. I might not even be able to do what a husband is supposed to do on his wedding night.】
“That’s not it!”
Gao Zhi hurriedly tossed the book aside and explained,
“What I mean is… Feng Che, don’t misunderstand. I bought this book by accident. I… I haven’t read it.”
Feng Che frowned.
“If you haven’t read it, why did you snatch it away?”
“…”
Gao Zhi bit her lower lip. She saw several veins emerge on the back of his hand as he gripped the wheelchair handle, only to slowly loosen his hold after a moment.
“Gao Zhi.”
Something about his tone felt wrong to her.
“What is it?”
“One year.”
She froze.
“What?”
“Let’s take a year to seriously consider whether we should separate.”
Feng Che lowered his eyes as he spoke.
“We just got married, and you’re already talking about separating?”
Gao Zhi was stunned.
Feng Che had concealed the fact that it would take a year of treatment before they could determine whether his legs could recover.
If, after a year, he still couldn’t walk and live like a normal person, he absolutely could not drag Gao Zhi down with him.
【A-Zhi deserves to live a normal life.】
【Someone like me… how could I possibly be worthy of her…?】
“Feng Che, stop overthinking things. So what if I’ve read that book?”
Gao Zhi grabbed the handle of his wheelchair, suppressing her embarrassment.
“Doesn’t that simply mean I’m willing to…”
“I’m not willing.”
“?”
Feng Che raised his face and quietly looked at her.
“Gao Zhi, during this year, I hope we don’t… do anything improper.”
“But we’re husband and wife…”
Gao Zhi looked bewildered.
“What counts as improper?”
“During this year, we won’t consummate the marriage.”
A faint blush spread across Feng Che’s face. His voice was hoarse as he said,
“If after a year we find that we cannot get along and decide to separate, then it won’t count as disobeying His Majesty’s decree of marriage.”
Gao Zhi stared at him.
“…Did I marry into a nunnery?”
Feng Che’s eyelashes trembled, but he said nothing. A ripple stirred in his heart.
【This way, even if we don’t make it to the end, it won’t affect A-Zhi from… finding another good husband in the future.】
【A-Zhi is so wonderful. How could I let her carry a stain like me…?】
“I’m sorry.”
Feng Che stopped speaking and turned his wheelchair around.
“I’ll sleep in the study tonight.”
“Stop right there.”
There was unmistakable displeasure in Gao Zhi’s voice.
The man stopped.
“Tonight is our wedding night. Several matrons from the Gao family came with me to the Prince’s residence. They’re all my mother’s eyes and ears.
“If you go sleep in the study on our wedding night, how am I supposed to explain that to my parents?”
Before Feng Che could respond, Gao Zhi continued,
“And there are so many eyes watching us here at Prince Huai’an’s residence. If you leave my room tonight, how am I supposed to establish my authority as the mistress of this household from now on?”
“I…”
Feng Che pressed his lips tightly together and said softly,
“I’ll keep the servants under control. I won’t let word get out.”
“There’s no such thing as a wall without cracks. Even if you control the servants here, what about the matrons from my family?
“Even if we follow your one-year arrangement, you can’t make things difficult for me during that year.”
Gao Zhi walked over and blocked Feng Che’s path, speaking each word clearly.
“You’re not allowed to leave tonight.”
Feng Che froze. After remaining silent for a long while, he finally said in a muffled voice,
“Then I’ll have Shang Lu and the others come in and prepare a bedroll on the floor.”
There was only one bed in the room, not even a chaise longue.
Gao Zhi knew that Feng Che was stubborn. The fact that he was willing to compromise this much was already difficult for him, so she didn’t force him further.
Now that she had married into this household, she could slowly find opportunities to change his mind.
“I’ll prepare the bedroll myself.”
Gao Zhi stopped him.
“They’ve been working all day too.”
Feng Che frowned.
“You’ve been working all day too.”
Gao Zhi didn’t answer. She simply took out a spare quilt and bedding from the cabinet and spread them on the floor.
“You should go bathe first.”
Feng Che froze.
“Huh?”
“You’ve been tired all day. Aren’t you going to bathe?”
Gao Zhi raised an eyebrow.
“Bathe… Of course I should…”
Before Feng Che could finish, Gao Zhi interrupted him.
“Fine. I’ll help you undress.”
“No need!”
Feng Che hurriedly said,
“I’ll have Cang Zhu and the others come over…”
Before he could finish, Gao Zhi had already grabbed the wheelchair handle and pulled open his golden belt.
“I’m right here. Why make things so complicated?”
The tips of Feng Che’s ears turned bright red.
“No, Gao Zhi. We just said that we can’t…”
“I never said I was going to sleep with you.”
Gao Zhi raised an eyebrow.
“I’m only helping you undress. You’re acting like a shy bride getting into her sedan.”
Feng Che moved his lips, but before he could say anything, a soft clatter sounded as the belt fell to the floor. His wedding robes loosened, revealing the white inner garment beneath.
He turned his face away, his fingers gripping the wheelchair handle until his knuckles turned white.
“I’ll help you stand.”
This time, Feng Che did not resist. He leaned weakly against her shoulder, then braced both arms against the wardrobe behind her.
He was already tall and broad. As he leaned toward her, his enormous shadow enveloped her, and a faint sandalwood fragrance washed over her.
“…”
Gao Zhi stood directly before that chest as solid as an iron wall. Her gaze traveled upward and landed on the man’s prominent Adam’s apple, and she couldn’t help swallowing.
【A-Zhi… why is she looking at me like that?】
【Have I neglected my training in recent years, so my physique isn’t as good as it used to be?】
Gao Zhi really wanted to tell him that there was absolutely nothing wrong with his physique.
His loose inner robe faintly revealed his firm chest muscles, while the line of his waist tapered downward in an alluring curve, like bait deliberately tempting her to cross the line.
What a ridiculous one-year agreement.
Such an irresistible man right in front of her, yet she could look but not touch.
After living like a nun for two lifetimes, Gao Zhi now desperately wanted to strip Feng Che and have her way with him right here.
“Damn it.”
“What?”
Feng Che lowered his head and caught the fragrance of the woman’s hair—a fresh scent of jasmine that made his entire body tense.
“Nothing. I’m just helping you take off your outer robe.”
Gao Zhi’s fingertips rested on the man’s broad shoulders as she undid the fastenings, as though she were starting a fire in the mountains.
Her soft fingers moved to the small of his back, like a fish darting through water, and the touch immediately drew a muffled groan from him.
“Don’t…”
He reached back and caught her hand. His voice had grown even hoarser, and perhaps it was only her imagination, but there seemed to be the faintest hint of pleading hidden within it.