The next morning, when Liu Zhiheng woke up, the heavy snow outside had already stopped.
Liu Zhiheng woke early. When she got up, Duan Wujiu still had his eyes closed.
Liu Zhiheng breathed a sigh of relief. Yesterday, she had clung to him and whimpered—it was truly embarrassing. She really didn’t know how to face Duan Wujiu today.
Liu Zhiheng went to the kitchen first to light the fire. As soon as she left the room, Duan Wujiu opened his eyes.
Duan Wujiu glanced at the spot where Liu Zhiheng had just been lying, instinctively shifting his body over to that side. He moved to where Liu Zhiheng had slept, breathing in her scent with deep intoxication.
…
When Liu Zhiheng returned to the room, she saw Duan Wujiu holding her changed inner garment, taking a deep, affectionate breath. After so many days of getting to know him, Liu Zhiheng understood—he was smelling her scent.
“What are you doing?”
Duan Wujiu was startled, looking as if he had been caught red-handed. The tips of his ears instantly flushed red.
Seeing his reddened ears and neck, Liu Zhiheng couldn’t help but sigh inwardly: This villain, how can he be both perverted and pure?
What a contradictory person…
“I’m smelling A Heng’s scent. A Heng, please don’t hate me, okay?”
For some reason, Duan Wujiu always reminded Liu Zhiheng of a stray dog she had once taken in. Whenever she went out, that dog would sleep on her dirty clothes or carry one of her socks to its bed to hold…
It was just a pity that the dog had suffered too much during its time as a stray. Even though she took great care of it, it only lived for three years.
In a way, Duan Wujiu really was like a dog she had picked up. Thinking of this, Liu Zhiheng’s heart softened.
“It’s fine. Who doesn’t have their quirks? If you like smelling it, go ahead…”
“A Heng doesn’t think I’m… shameless for doing this?” Duan Wujiu seemed to feel a bit ashamed himself, lowering his head and not daring to look up.
“It’s okay. Xuelang is good-looking. Good-looking people can be forgiven for anything they do.”
These words seemed to encourage Duan Wujiu. He lifted his head, looking at Liu Zhiheng with anticipation.
“Does A Heng like my appearance?”
Liu Zhiheng blushed under Duan Wujiu’s gaze. She reached out and ruffled his hair. “Mm, I like it…”
Duan Wujiu obediently let Liu Zhiheng ruffle his hair. His stunning face wore an expression of affectionate enjoyment as he looked up at her, his eyes filled with tenderness and warmth.
Liu Zhiheng’s heart raced under his gaze. That tingling sensation returned, and her face flushed red as she quickly withdrew her hand.
“Let’s go, time for breakfast!”
Blushing, Liu Zhiheng hurried out of the room and touched her flushed cheeks.
This is serious—this man’s gaze is too captivating!
…
These past few days, Chuncao couldn’t stop thinking about the man who was with Liu Zhiheng. It wasn’t because of his appearance, but because of his gaze.
That gaze, as if from the depths of an abyss, was so chilling that she would never forget it for the rest of her life.
Over the following days, Chuncao couldn’t help but sneak over to the Liu family’s small courtyard a few more times, only daring to watch from a distance.
Occasionally, when the courtyard gate opened, Chuncao could see the man sweeping snow in the yard. Sometimes, she even saw him playing and laughing with Liu Zhiheng in the wind and snow, appearing very intimate.
Why was there suddenly a man in the Liu household? This man definitely wasn’t from Taohua Village—she had never seen him before.Because of Xie Tinglan, Chuncao had always paid close attention to the Liu family and was well aware of their situation:
The Liu family had moved here ten years ago as outsiders. Liu Zhiheng’s mother had died from postpartum hemorrhage while giving birth to her younger brother. Over the years, no relatives had ever visited the Liu family, nor had they been seen interacting with anyone outside Taohua Village.
Well, except for the county magistrate.
So who was this man?
After much thought, Chuncao could only come to one conclusion: he must be Liu Zhiheng’s secret lover! Perhaps Liu Zhiheng had seduced him from somewhere…
Chuncao sensed another opportunity. If Brother Xie knew that Liu Zhiheng was keeping a man at home, would he still be willing to marry her?
Chuncao decided she had to call Brother Xie back and let him see how Liu Zhiheng was carrying on with someone else.
…
So once the heavy snow stopped and her parents and brother had gone out, Chuncao finally found the chance to go to the county town to find Xie Tinglan.
When Xie Tinglan heard from the person at the gate that a cute little girl was waiting for him, his first thought was that it must be Liu Zhiheng.
Although Liu Zhiheng hadn’t actively sought him out recently, she used to appear before him every few days, seizing every opportunity to get close to him—whether by tugging at his sleeve or throwing herself into his arms.
So it wouldn’t be strange if she came again.
Xie Tinglan recalled that it had been a long time since he had felt her warmth and softness. Although he despised Liu Zhiheng’s personality and looked down on her vulgarity, he had to admit that he didn’t dislike her closeness.
Before going out, Xie Tinglan even straightened his robes, but when he saw Chuncao standing at the gate, he couldn’t help but feel disappointed.
But he quickly realized his mistake.
If it were Liu Zhiheng who had come, why would the messenger describe her as a “cute little girl”? They would definitely say an exceptionally beautiful woman was looking for him.
Xie Tinglan’s expression turned impatient. “Didn’t I tell you not to come to the academy to find me? Whatever it is, wait until I return to the village.”
He turned to go back inside.
Chuncao bit her lip, knowing she couldn’t miss this opportunity. She quickly spoke up, “Liu Zhiheng is hiding a man at home!”
Xie Tinglan was about to leave, but upon hearing Chuncao’s words, he abruptly stopped and turned to look at her. His gaze was so terrifying that Chuncao almost forgot what she was going to say.
“It’s true! Those two are together every day. The entire Liu family courtyard has only the two of them. Who knows what they’re doing behind closed doors every day? Go back and see for yourself!”
Xie Tinglan felt a surge of anger, though he didn’t know why he was so angry. After all, he had already planned to break off the engagement with Liu Zhiheng, hadn’t he?
He quickly calmed down and said coldly, “Stop talking nonsense. Go back now.”
Chuncao watched as Xie Tinglan turned and went back into the academy, seemingly unconcerned about the matter. She could only stomp her foot in frustration and return alone to Taohua Village.
But when she got back, her parents and brother were already home. Upon learning that Chuncao hadn’t stayed home to look after her younger brother and had sneaked out on her own, they gave her another severe beating.
If they hadn’t needed Chuncao to cook, she might have been beaten so badly she couldn’t get out of bed again.
Dragging her bruised and battered body, Chuncao entered the kitchen.
What should she do? If she couldn’t find a way to leave Taohua Village with Brother Xie, if Brother Xie refused to take her, she would have to live like this for the rest of her life…That night, Xie Tinglan truly tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
He was only half-convinced by Chuncao’s words. He knew about Liu Zhiheng’s infatuation with him, so perhaps there was some misunderstanding in all this.
But the important thing wasn’t whether Liu Zhiheng had actually hidden a man in her home—what mattered was that he shouldn’t care so much about it.
Having stayed awake all night, Xie Tinglan kept his eyes open until dawn. In the end, he requested leave from the county school, citing family matters as the reason.