“Young Master Ji…” A sheen of sweat broke out across Zhao Li’s forehead. No matter how hard he thought, he couldn’t figure out what was going on.
Normally, his father could send ten invitations to the Ji residence and count himself lucky if one was answered. Yet today, this man had followed them all the way to the Zhao family’s doorstep.
Forcing a smile, he hurried to explain. “This woman is a concubine I’m preparing to bring into my household. She’s just throwing a little tantrum. I wouldn’t dare let such a sight offend your eyes, Young Master Ji…”
As he spoke, he shot meaningful looks at the attendants beside him, signaling them to hurry and take her into the residence.
The attendant braced himself and stepped forward, but before he could take more than two steps, the figure in moon-white robes had already mounted the carriage.
Zhao Li stared in stunned disbelief as Ji Xuanyue bent down and lifted the disheveled, bedraggled person from the corner of the carriage into his arms.
“Young Master Ji!” Zhao Li cried anxiously. Instinctively, he stepped forward to block the way. “What does this mean? This woman is Zhao’s concubine. What are you doing, Young Master Ji?”
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a rapid series of footsteps sounded from behind him, followed by a powerful, resonant voice.
“Young Master Ji, your visit truly brings honor to our humble residence. Please, come in and have a cup of tea!”
Having just received the report, Zhao De had hurried out to greet him. But the moment he took in the scene before him, his smile froze.
His son stood there with a blood-soaked bandage wrapped around his arm, blocking Ji Xuanyue’s path.
The young master of the Ji family, a man even the county magistrate treated with great respect, carried a young woman in his arms. Her hair was in disarray, her hands bound behind her back, and a wad of cloth had been stuffed into her mouth.
The sight startled Zhao De, but his mind worked far faster than his son’s. Taking several quick strides forward, he shoved Zhao Li aside while maintaining a warm, spring-breeze-like smile. “Young Master Ji has honored our humble home with his presence, so why are we still standing outside the gate?”
Feigning curiosity, he glanced at the woman in Ji Xuanyue’s arms. “And who might this young lady be?”
Ji Xuanyue lowered his eyes and glanced at him. He looked much as he always did: distant, indifferent, and difficult to approach. Yet for some reason, Zhao De felt a chill spread through his entire body.
“Master Zhao.” Ji Xuanyue raised a hand and removed the cloth from Suyu’s mouth. Then he turned and, after a few steps, placed her inside his own carriage. Letting the curtain fall back into place, he turned again and looked down coldly at Zhao De.
“Your son abducted someone in broad daylight and intended to force himself upon her. The person he harmed also happens to be the one who saved my life.”
“Master Zhao, tell me, how do you think this matter should be settled?”
Zhao De’s smile froze. Having spent half a lifetime navigating the business world, he was a seasoned veteran. After only the briefest pause, he turned and slapped Zhao Li hard across the face. The blow was so forceful that Zhao Li staggered to one side, clutching his cheek and staring at his father in disbelief.
“You wretched fool!” Zhao De barked angrily. “I told you to study properly, and instead you’ve learned how to abduct people in broad daylight? Did all those teachings of the sages go straight into a dog’s belly?”
Zhao Li opened his mouth to defend himself, but Zhao De’s sharp glare immediately silenced him.
Turning back, Zhao De plastered an apologetic smile across his face once again. “Young Master Ji, this is all my fault for failing to discipline my son. The Zhao family will naturally cover this young lady’s medical expenses. Tomorrow, I shall personally bring generous gifts and apologize. What do you think, Young Master Ji?”
Carefully raising his eyes, he tried to detect even the slightest sign of concession on Ji Xuanyue’s jade-like, refined face.
But Ji Xuanyue merely looked down at him coldly and said nothing for a long while.
The silence left Zhao De drenched in cold sweat. Wondering what further compensation he could offer, he noticed Young Master Ji turn his head slightly, his gaze settling on the carriage whose curtains remained tightly closed.
“You needn’t ask me, Master Zhao. The injured one isn’t me. It’s that young lady.” His eyes remained fixed on the carriage as he spoke.
Zhao De was taken aback, then quickly understood. He hurried over to the carriage and addressed the person inside through the curtain. “Miss, my son has acted outrageously. He has frightened and offended you, and as his father, I am deeply ashamed.”
As he spoke, he grabbed Zhao Li and dragged him forward, then kicked him hard behind the knees. “Why aren’t you kneeling and apologizing to the young lady at once?!”
Zhao Li might act arrogantly outside, but at home he dared not disobey his father. Seeing the situation, he had no choice but to drop to his knees obediently. “I was foolish. I’m sorry.”
“Louder!” Zhao De barked. “And promise the young lady you’ll never do such a thing again!”
Zhao Li closed his eyes, struggling to suppress the rage in his heart. “From this day forward, Zhao Li will never lay a finger on the young lady again. If I break this oath, may heaven strike me down with lightning.”
After he knelt a little longer, a slightly hoarse voice finally came from inside the carriage. “Let’s go.”
Only then did Ji Xuanyue withdraw his gaze. Without sparing Zhao De another word, he turned and left.
Zhao De remained standing where he was. Only when the plain, unremarkable carriage had completely disappeared around the end of the alley did he finally relax. Lowering his head, he met Zhao Li’s pale, livid face. “Father…”
Zhao De ground his teeth and snapped, “You little fool! Of all the people you could offend, you had to provoke the Ji family. Are you trying to get the Zhao family killed?”
Clutching his injured arm, Zhao Li’s face was still burning from the slap. Having been forced to kneel and apologize to a woman in front of so many servants, he felt both humiliated and furious. Rising to his feet, he said,
“That wretched girl is just an orphan who gathers herbs. What ‘life-saving benefactor’? That’s nothing but an excuse Ji Xuanyue made up on the spot. He saw her in the street and decided to take her for himself!”
“And you’re still talking!” Zhao De was so angry that his beard trembled. “I don’t care who she is. Ji Xuanyue said those words himself in front of everyone, and you still don’t understand?”
“Have you ever seen Young Master Ji meddle in other people’s affairs in Qingyang Town before? Can’t you think about why he went to such lengths today?”
“Why else? He took a fancy to her looks too!” Zhao Li stubbornly argued back. “That damned girl slashed me with a knife first. Only then did I have her tied up. Even if this ended up before the magistrate, she would be the one in the wrong. Ji Xuanyue is throwing his weight around just because he has money. He’s bullying people. Father, can you really swallow this insult?”
“You will swallow it!” Zhao De barked.
Zhao De slapped his son across the face again. “The Ji family is powerful and wealthy. With a single word, they could cut off every business avenue available to the Zhao family. If you can’t swallow this humiliation, then get back to your study and stay there. If I find out you’re still thinking of causing trouble for that young lady, I won’t wait for Ji Xuanyue to act. I’ll personally break your legs!”
Zhao Li clenched his jaw tightly. Covering his burning cheek, he ultimately did not argue back again. Fuming, he turned and stalked into the residence.
“You unfilial brat!” Knowing full well what sort of person his son was, Zhao De immediately barked orders to the attendants on either side. “Keep a close watch on the young master from today onward. Without my permission, he is not to leave the house!”
Su Yu shrank against the carriage wall. Behind her sat Ji Xuanyue. His head was lowered as he concentrated on undoing the hemp rope that Zhao Li had tied painfully tight around her wrists. A cool touch brushed against her skin. His long, slender fingers pressed lightly into the soft flesh of her wrists, which had been rubbed red by the rope.
Su Yu trembled. Instinctively, she tried to pull her hands away, but the rope still bound them, leaving her nowhere to retreat. “Y-Young Master Ji?” she said hesitantly.
“Mm. Please wait a moment, miss. The rope is tied rather tightly.”
Su Yu fell silent.
A faint rustling sound filled the carriage. A moment later, the pressure around her wrists loosened, and she was finally free.
“It’s done, miss.” Ji Xuanyue’s gentle, low voice sounded within the carriage. He moved back a little and returned to the seat opposite her, deliberately leaving enough distance for her to feel at ease.
“Thank you for saving me, Young Master.” Feeling disheveled and embarrassed, Su Yu dared not meet his eyes. Her gaze remained fixed on the front of his robe instead, where she noticed several drops of blood had already stained the fabric, left there when he had carried her earlier.
“Your kindness is a great one, Young Master. If there is ever an opportunity in the future, Su Yu will certainly repay it.” She had already recognized him as the gentleman she had met in the mountains the day before.
He had probably happened to see what was going on and, remembering the small favor she had done for him by sucking the poison from his wound, stepped in to save her.
But from the conversation she had overheard earlier, this Young Master Ji was clearly a person of great status, someone even the Zhao family dared not offend. How could she possibly presume to involve herself too deeply with such an important person?
Right now, she only wanted to finish her thanks and leave as soon as possible. The only thing she regretted was losing the basket of medicinal herbs. But after she spoke her thanks, the person across from her did not respond for a long while.
Su Yu had already been uneasy. The prolonged silence only magnified her anxiety. After a moment, she could no longer bear it and cautiously lifted her eyes.
The sunlight outside the carriage curtain slanted westward. Light and shadow flickered across the neatly arranged front of the man’s robe opposite her, illuminating the sharp line of his jaw.
She had no idea how long he had been looking at her. But unlike Zhao Li, his gaze was not fixed on her figure or her lips. Instead, it rested on the side of her face.
Instinctively, Su Yu raised a hand to touch it. A sharp sting greeted her fingertips. It was the wound she had accidentally cut earlier.
“If we’re speaking of saving someone’s life, then Miss Su Yu is the one who saved mine.” Ji Xuanyue finally spoke, his tone gentle. “Had you not sucked the poison from my wound yesterday, I’m afraid I would have already lost my life in those mountains.” As he spoke, he held out a plain-colored handkerchief, seemingly intending for Su Yu to wipe the blood from her face.
But Su Yu’s gaze lingered on the handkerchief in his hand for only a moment. She did not take it. “I really am fine. Yesterday, I only helped on a whim. Now… could you take me to the East Gate? I need to go home.”
Seeing she wouldn’t accept it, Ji Xuanyue didn’t insist. He slipped the handkerchief back into his sleeve, lifted the carriage curtain, and instructed the driver to head for the East Gate. After that, he said nothing more.
When the curtain fell, the carriage interior dimmed once again.
Leaning against the carriage wall, he let his gaze settle on the figure opposite him, curled into a small ball, too timid even to look at him.
What a weak and foolish mortal. Such a perfect opportunity lay right in front of her. Anyone else would probably have clung to him like a plaster, begging for his protection. Yet all she seemed concerned about was getting home.
Ji Xuanyue lowered his eyes. Between his fingers was still the handkerchief she had refused. Wasn’t seeking advantage and avoiding harm what mortals did best? Then why was she unwilling to accept even a single handkerchief from him? Why did she look so afraid of becoming involved with him, shrinking into the corner with her head lowered?
A trace of irritation surfaced within Ji Xuanyue. He rubbed his fingertips together.
The carriage was filled with the scent drifting from her blood, carrying traces of fear and resistance. It surrounded him from every direction. It was nothing like the sweet fragrance she gave off when she relaxed the night before.
The essence a medicinal spirit produced could nourish the cracks in his demon core only if it were born willingly, from genuine pleasure and contentment. If he took it by force, it would have no nourishing effect at all.
Ji Xuanyue sighed inwardly. Why had a medicinal spirit’s constitution ended up in such a timid, weak-willed mortal? He could not frighten her. He could not hurt her. And he certainly could not force her. The only option was to coax her, deceive her, and slowly wear down her defenses using this handsome mortal shell of his, refined as gold and jade.
Ji Xuanyue closed his eyes, barely managing to suppress the irritation rising within him.