The Minister: Cold by Day, Hot by Night-Chapter 106: Having That Kind of Dream Again
"Then let’s just call it a fleeting affair!" Zhi Wan said, not caring in the least.
The man’s eyes narrowed dangerously. "A fleeting affair?"
"What else would it be? Are you willing to marry into my family?" Zhi Wan retorted, boldly rubbing one of her slender feet against his calf.
The suggestive motion made the man’s Adam’s apple bob.
His gaze darkened as he suddenly reached out and caught her restless foot.
It was petite, her nails neatly rounded and tinged with a faint pink. It rested in his palm, small enough for his hand to close around it completely.
He couldn’t help but toy with it.
Seeing this, Zhi Wan quickly pulled her foot back, rolled over, and lay down facing the inside of the bed.
The man paused before reaching out and pulling her back toward him. His dark eyes were filled with sincerity. "I have my reasons for not being able to marry into your family, but I am willing to take you as my primary wife with all the proper rites."
"I’m not interested," Zhi Wan said, pushing at him.
But this time, she couldn’t move him.
The man gazed at her with profound eyes. After a long moment, he nodded. "Fine. A fleeting affair it is." With that, he pinched her chin and lowered his head to kiss her red lips.
Zhi Wan found herself captivated by his kiss and tilted her head up to respond.
The man wrapped his arms around her shoulders and back, pressing her down beneath him.
Suddenly, Zhi Wan cried out in pain.
"What’s wrong?" the man asked, startled, and stopped moving.
Zhi Wan frowned and mumbled, "My back hurts a little..."
Hearing this, the man turned her over and pulled open her nightgown.
Sure enough, there was a bruise on her fair, slender back.
Although it had faded slightly, it still looked alarming against her pale skin.
"How did this happen?" the man asked in a low voice, his long fingers gently touching the patch of skin.
"It’s..." Zhi Wan seemed to remember something and cut herself off. She pulled her clothes closed and turned back to face him. "It’s nothing. I just bumped into something by accident."
"Did you bump into something by accident, or did someone hit you?" Lu Zhan’s gaze was sharp as he looked at her.
"Of course I just... accidentally..."
"Is that so? But from the look of the injury, it seems to have been caused by the hilt of a blade," Lu Zhan interrupted her calmly. "Are you in some kind of trouble?"
’I can’t believe he’s so perceptive that he figured it out just like that.’
The injury on her back was from when Miss Liu had struck her with the back of a blade that night.
It had actually healed a lot, but it still hurt when bumped by accident.
"It’s nothing, you’re overthinking it." Zhi Wan shook her head in denial. Fearing he would ask more questions, she took the initiative and kissed his lips.
Sure enough, the man didn’t ask again. But, afraid of pressing on her injury, he simply lifted her to lie on top of him instead.
Perhaps having changed his mind, the man became a little wild this time, his long fingers ravaging Zhi Wan’s delicate body.
Zhi Wan lay on his chest, her small mouth slightly agape as she panted. Fine beads of sweat moistened her forehead.
Just as she was finding it hard to bear, a sudden clap of thunder rang out, startling her.
When she opened her eyes, the man wasn’t in her bed at all. But her breathing was unsteady, coming in short gasps, and her heart was racing erratically.
She pressed a hand to her chest and turned to look out the window, only to find that the sky outside was already growing light.
But a moment later, several peals of thunder rumbled across the sky, followed by a torrential downpour.
Listening to the rain outside, Zhi Wan sat up. She thought she might have been hallucinating, but the sticky feeling on her body told her it was no illusion—she’d had *that* kind of dream again.
Her face burned as she resignedly got out of bed.
Shuang’er, who was on duty in the outer room, heard the sound of water from the inner chamber. She groggily got up, and when she came in to look, she saw her mistress standing by the washstand, scrubbing something.
"Miss?" Shuang’er rubbed her eyes and asked in confusion.
Zhi Wan jumped, nearly knocking over the basin of water.
"What are you washing? Let me help you," Shuang’er said, rolling up her sleeves.
Zhi Wan’s face flushed slightly. She stammered, "N-no, it’s fine. I... I got my period and dirtied my pants. I’ve already washed them."
Shuang’er nodded. "Oh, I see."
’I should be thankful it wasn’t Nanny Fang on duty today,’ Zhi Wan thought with a silent sigh of relief. ’Otherwise, that excuse probably wouldn’t have worked.’
"It’s still early. You can go rest a while longer," Zhi Wan said.
Shuang’er returned to the outer room.
After hanging her underpants up to dry, Zhi Wan lay back down on the bed but couldn’t fall asleep no matter how she tried.
By the time the sky was fully bright, she was just starting to feel drowsy when a knock came at her door.
"Wanwan, are you up?"
Zhi Wan: "..."
Afraid that Ouyang Zhenzhu would come into the inner chamber and see the pants she had hung up to dry, she had no choice but to get up quickly.
When she was dressed and went out, she saw Ouyang Zhenzhu standing under the eaves of the corridor, boredly picking at a pillar with her finger.
"If you keep picking at it, you’re going to break the pillar," Zhi Wan said with an amused smile.
When Ouyang Zhenzhu saw her come out, she tilted her head and sized her up.
"What... are you looking at?" Having done something she felt guilty about, Zhi Wan was a bit flustered.
Ouyang Zhenzhu giggled. "Your cousin is back. Did you know?"
"What?" Zhi Wan froze.
"I only heard it from Xi’er. I woke up early this morning and felt hungry, so I had Xi’er go find me something to eat. It turns out she went to the kitchen and bumped into Chen Jiu, who was squatting there eating noodles. Since Chen Jiu is back, your cousin must be back too, right?" Ouyang Zhenzhu said.
Hearing this, Zhi Wan couldn’t stay put any longer. She called for Shuang’er to grab an umbrella and ran out of the courtyard.
Her cousin’s courtyard, arranged by Elder Tian, was right next door, only a few steps away.
When she reached the courtyard, however, Zhi Wan stopped.
’Men and women should keep their distance,’ she thought. ’It wouldn’t be right for me to go straight in.’
She paced outside the courtyard gate for a moment before she saw Chen Jiu approaching with an umbrella.
Their eyes met, and Chen Jiu’s gaze actually flickered away. He stammered, "M-Miss."
Zhi Wan was preoccupied with thoughts of her cousin and didn’t notice his strange behavior. She stepped forward and asked, "Was the trip successful? Is my cousin back?"
Seeing that she didn’t seem to blame him, Chen Jiu let out a breath of relief and nodded hastily. "Very successful. Miss Liu’s band of pirates were all captured, and we seized countless treasures. The Princely Heir is back as well."
Hearing this, Zhi Wan felt relieved. "You’ve worked hard, Ah Jiu."
Chen Jiu scratched his head. "You’re not mad at me?"
"Why would I be mad at you?" Zhi Wan asked, puzzled.
"That night Miss Liu was captured, I deliberately helped her escape. I thought I could win her trust that way. But I never expected her to be so greedy she’d still try to rescue the other pirates. She ended up targeting you, which put you in grave danger, and I couldn’t do anything to stop it..." Chen Jiu explained, his tone deeply apologetic.
"I know you had your reasons. I was never mad at you," Zhi Wan said.
Chen Jiu sighed in relief, but still added, "But when you were thrown into the river, I had already made up my mind. If the Princely Heir hadn’t come to save you, I was going to ignore his plan and rescue you first, no matter what."
"Thank you, Ah Jiu," Zhi Wan said, moved.
Chen Jiu was about to say more when he suddenly looked toward the courtyard gate. "Princely Heir."
Zhi Wan started, turning to look. Sure enough, Lu Zhan’s tall, slender figure was standing by the gate.
"Cousin," Zhi Wan called out joyfully.
