Duan Wujiu was not lying. Although he wanted to appear sorrowful to gain Liu Zhiheng’s sympathy, the truth was that his past indeed emitted a nauseating stench.
He looked at Liu Zhiheng, his gaze deep and penetrating, as if trying to see through her into his own past.
“Every time I try to recall the past, aside from the headache, I also feel a suffocating sensation like drowning. Only when I smell A Heng’s scent do I feel like I can breathe again.
A Heng, do you know? All the memories in my mind are gone, but there are still many scents lingering. Yet, among so many scents, not a single one brings me comfort. Most of them make me nauseous, cause me pain, fill me with rage, and make me want to destroy this world.”
“Except for A Heng’s scent. Only A Heng’s scent brings me peace.”
Without realizing when, Duan Wujiu had already drawn close to Liu Zhiheng. He knelt on the bed, resting his head against her neck, and sighed.
“So, A Heng, please don’t drive me away, okay?”
…
Liu Zhiheng could feel Duan Wujiu’s warm breath against her neck. The distance between them was so intimate.
Suddenly, Liu Zhiheng felt as if an electric current shot from her neck, instantly spreading throughout her entire body—a sensation that made her shiver, her whole body trembling uncontrollably…
Immediately after, her body reacted before her mind could catch up.
She heard herself let out an unseemly whimper, and then her entire body went limp, collapsing weakly.
Oh no, her Brewing and Fermenting Constitution had chosen this moment to act up…
Duan Wujiu quickly reacted, catching Liu Zhiheng as she fell toward him. He felt the woman in his arms was soft and boneless, her waist so slender he could snap it with one hand.
A hint of pleasant surprise flashed across Duan Wujiu’s face, his beautiful phoenix eyes widening slightly. “A Heng… you’re…”
Has she completely accepted him?
“No!” Before Duan Wujiu could finish, Liu Zhiheng hurriedly denied it.
Liu Zhiheng didn’t know why she had gone limp, but it happened so naturally—her body moved before her mind could react.
Duan Wujiu held her tightly, his eyes seeming somewhat shocked, which made Liu Zhiheng feel a bit ashamed. Her shameless reaction must have startled Duan Wujiu.
Liu Zhiheng wanted to straighten up, but Duan Wujiu’s grip on her arm was so strong, holding her firmly. Even if she weren’t currently weak and limp, she probably couldn’t break free.
Where Duan Wujiu held her felt as if it were on fire, instantly igniting Liu Zhiheng.
She could only bite her lip, trying to use the pain to clear her mind a little.
Her eyes were misty with unshed tears, looking at Duan Wujiu as if she were about to cry at any moment.
Although she intended to refuse, this expression of hers, in Duan Wujiu’s eyes, seemed more like encouragement.
Duan Wujiu’s expression also changed. His gaze deepened, the obsession and dominance he had previously concealed so well now impossible to hide.
“What does A Heng mean by this?” Duan Wujiu asked, his voice becoming somewhat hoarse from suppression.”I didn’t mean that… I just suddenly had a cramp and lost my strength for a moment. Don’t misunderstand…” Liu Zhiheng’s voice was soft, so soft it was as if her entire body had been soaked in water. “Xuelang, could you let go of me first…”
Though she was asking him to release her, her tone didn’t sound like it.
Duan Wujiu didn’t loosen his grip.
He gazed at Liu Zhiheng with deep, dark eyes, lowering his voice as he said, “I won’t let go. It was A Heng who threw herself into my arms.”
“I didn’t mean to throw myself into your arms…” Liu Zhiheng didn’t know how to explain, pleading softly, “Could you let go of me? I’m afraid I can’t get up on my own.”
“Why can’t you get up?”
“Because Xuelang’s embrace is too comfortable.”
…
This was the first time Duan Wujiu had heard A Heng say something like this. The tips of his ears instantly turned red, but his expression didn’t betray the slightest hint of discomfort. Instead, he forced a light laugh.
He didn’t want to appear so flustered and inexperienced in front of A Heng.
“Didn’t A Heng say I’m her child groom? If that’s the case, what’s wrong with holding each other?” Duan Wujiu said.
Thinking of this, Liu Zhiheng sighed helplessly. “I can’t let you be my child groom for now…”
“Why?”
Liu Zhiheng paused, then finally lifted her eyes, those pools of watery light gazing at Duan Wujiu as she whispered, “Actually… I… I have a betrothal with someone else.”
Duan Wujiu’s eyes suddenly turned terrifyingly dark, deep as an ancient well, unable to conceal the killing intent.
“But this betrothal isn’t suitable. My family is planning to break it off, but we can’t do it just yet. We have to wait a while, at most a year, before we can call it off.”
Duan Wujiu’s expression softened slightly, his tone gentle as a breeze and light as rain as he asked softly, “Then, after you break off the betrothal, can I become A Heng’s child groom?”
Liu Zhiheng thought that by then, he would probably have regained his memory and turned his back on her, so it didn’t matter how she answered now. She agreed directly.
“Alright, once I break off the engagement, I’ll let you be my child groom.”
Duan Wujiu was overjoyed.
“Can you let go of me now?” Liu Zhiheng said, her face flushed.
But Duan Wujiu suddenly tightened his embrace, lifting Liu Zhiheng directly and placing her on his lap, letting her chin rest on his shoulder.
“Alright, I’ll wait until I’m A Heng’s rightful child groom before holding her again.”
Somehow, Liu Zhiheng felt that the “holding” Duan Wujiu spoke of and the “holding” she meant didn’t seem to be the same thing.
…
Duan Wujiu’s Adam’s apple bobbed, but in the end, reason prevailed, and he released the person in his arms.
He didn’t want to frighten A Heng. Over the past few days of being together, Duan Wujiu had already figured out Liu Zhiheng’s temperament—she responded better to gentleness than force. If she was unwilling to do something and was forced, she would be very unhappy.
“I’ll wait for A Heng,” Duan Wujiu said in a low voice.
Liu Zhiheng breathed a sigh of relief and whispered, “Thank you, Xuelang.”
Duan Wujiu picked up Liu Zhiheng and gently placed her on the bed, tucking her in under the covers.
Under the blanket, Liu Zhiheng’s small face was flushed, too embarrassed to show more than her eyes, which shimmered with watery light as if trying to entice someone.
“Go to sleep,” Duan Wujiu’s voice was hoarse. “A Heng, don’t tempt me.”
Liu Zhiheng, mortified, immediately covered her face with the blanket. “Sleep!”
Duan Wujiu chuckled softly, his gaze as gentle as a spring breeze as he looked at the person hiding her head under the covers.He truly loved this small mountain cabin. Though it had only been seven days, it felt like a lifetime.
He even secretly prayed that heaven would not let him remember the past.
Because he had a vague premonition that if one day he recalled his past, he would have to willingly step back into that abyss filled with the stench of decay.
He wanted to stay by A Heng’s side. In a way, Duan Wujiu thought, she could be considered the only one in his life.
Because in this world, he only remembered A Heng.
He had only A Heng.