With Yan Junnuo’s approval, Xiang Zhile spent the entire afternoon discussing the arrangements for tomorrow’s Returning to the bride’s parental home with Steward Li.
It wasn’t until the sun began to set in the west that Xiang Zhile, satisfied, made her way to the Kitchen.
Dinner was still Rib and Egg Noodles.
Over the past two days, Xiang Zhile had gained some insight into Yan Junnuo’s taste preferences.
He disliked sweetness and couldn’t handle spicy food.
If the flavors were too strong, he would frown.
When he encountered a dish that suited his palate, his cool, distant eyes would light up.
He was a bona fide tsundere foodie.
Watching him finish every last drop of the noodles she had made, Xiang Zhile rested her chin in her hands and smiled at him with a silly, endearing expression.
That night, she specifically sent someone to ask Yan Junnuo whether he would be returning to the Bedroom.
The reply she received was: he had matters to attend to tonight and would not be returning to the Bedroom.
After bathing and returning to the Study Room Side Chamber to rest, Yan Junnuo paused slightly the moment he stepped into the room.
He didn’t need to guess at all to know who was inside based on the aura in the room.
Taking three steps in two, he walked to the bedside, where a petite figure was hidden under his covers, revealing only a pair of innocent, fox-like eyes.
“Get out.”
His voice was cool and magnetic, tinged with a hint of lazy hoarseness before sleep, but it held no intimidation for Xiang Zhile.
Xiang Zhile sat up, her smooth silk inner garment slipping down to her shoulders, revealing a glimpse of a bright red Dudou and a small patch of fair, delicate collarbone that couldn’t be fully concealed.
She looked at him pitifully, “Wangye, the covers in the Bedroom are a bit cold. Qieshen can’t sleep alone.”
In the heat of August, she was telling him she was cold?
Yan Junnuo felt his blood pressure rise on the spot.
This foolish woman was definitely doing it on purpose.
He turned away, refusing to look at her. “…Have Chun Chou or Qiu Si warm it up for you.”
“But…” Xiang Zhile pouted, shifting her entire body to the edge of the bed. Her small hand, calloused from work, grasped Yan Junnuo’s thickly calloused index finger. “But Chun Chou and Qiu Si can’t hold Qieshen to sleep all night either.”
Without a second thought, Yan Junnuo pulled his hand back and flatly refused.
“This Wangye won’t do such a boring thing either.”
Wasn’t it enough that he loved and doted on her?
Did she also need him to hold her to sleep every night, warm her bed, and treat him like a male concubine?
Hearing this, Xiang Zhile lowered her head in disappointment and released his hand.
“Then Qieshen will go back to sleep alone. Sleeping alone, the covers are so cold. If Qieshen catches a chill or falls ill, and the people in the manor find out that Qieshen isn’t valued by Wangye, they probably won’t even call a doctor…”
Muttering sorrowfully, she gathered her inner garment and prepared to step down barefoot.
However, before her feet could touch the ground, she was pulled into the covers by a broad, warm embrace.
“…Just this once, so you don’t catch a chill and others think this Wangye mistreats you.”
Nestled in his tense embrace, Xiang Zhile smiled silently.
Then, she spoke with a troubled tone, “But Qieshen is afraid of the dark and has a weak constitution. If Wangye only sleeps with Qieshen this once, what will Qieshen do in the future when she’s scared?”
Outside the door, Chu Shan, upon hearing Xiang Zhile’s words, felt his relatively handsome face darken instantly.
A woman who dared to set fire to the Regent Manor and successfully assassinate the Regent Prince in the middle of the night was now telling the Regent Prince she was afraid of the dark?
Even the big black dog in the backyard wouldn’t believe this woman’s nonsense.
And yet…
“Chu Shan!”
Hearing the call from someone even less credible than the big black dog, Chu Shan immediately straightened his back.
“Wangye!”
“Get farther away!”
“…”
Inside the room, within the bed curtains.
Yan Junnuo held Xiang Zhile stiffly in his arms.
Xiang Zhile squirmed restlessly a few times.
“Stop moving,” his voice still carried a trace of restraint.
“Wangye, please relax a little. Qieshen can hardly breathe from how tightly you’re holding me.”
With his nervousness exposed, Yan Junnuo immediately released her, wrapping her tightly in blankets before pushing her aside. “You’re warm now.”
He then pulled over another thin quilt, turning his back to her as he calmly uttered two words, “Sleep.”
Xiang Zhile watched his entire series of bewildering actions speechlessly, her forehead damp with sweat—from being swaddled in the airtight cocoon of blankets.
She wasn’t actually cold; she had merely wanted an excuse to lure Yan Junnuo back to the bedroom.
Who would have thought this tsundere man would become a blockhead at the critical moment.
Shooting a resentful glance at Yan Junnuo’s back, she let out a soft sigh.
Yan Junnuo’s back remained motionless.
Xiang Zhile struggled free from the blanket cocoon.
Then she shifted closer, pressing against his back and even rubbing against it a few times.
Afterward, she murmured, “I wanted to give Wangye proof, but I didn’t expect Wangye to fall asleep so quickly.”
Yan Junnuo, who had been feigning sleep, trembled slightly. Recalling the soft warmth of her lips from the morning, his heartbeat uncontrollably quickened.
Pretending to be calm, he turned over, facing Xiang Zhile completely.
Xiang Zhile struggled to suppress her rising smile and tentatively leaned closer to him. After confirming his eyes were truly shut, she lightly kissed both of his cheeks, like a dragonfly skimming the water.
When her lips touched his thin ones, she suddenly became reverent.
As if touching the rarest treasure in the world, she lingered clumsily yet boldly on his lips, reluctant to pull away.
Yan Junnuo greedily savored her initiative. Sensing her about to retreat, he couldn’t resist flipping over and pinning her beneath him, turning passivity into dominance as he guided her to deepen the kiss.
Only when both were breathless did he reluctantly pull away from her full, lush lips.
His calloused fingertips gently brushed over her cherry-like lips, his gaze darkening. “Do you know what you’re doing?”