Instead of getting angry, Lu Zhan’s lips curved into a faint smile. He praised her, "I never knew you were so sharp-tongued, cousin!" 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Zhi Wan bit her lip and softened her tone. "Cousin, what just happened... let’s just call it an accident. You know I’ve always respected you and seen you as a brother."

"But I’m not your real brother, and I don’t want to see you as a sister," Lu Zhan said in a low voice.

At his words, Zhi Wan furrowed her brow and couldn’t help but ask, "When... when exactly did you realize the person sharing your dreams was me?"

Lu Zhan paused before speaking. "I first suspected it in Red Leaf Village, but I couldn’t be certain. It wasn’t until we returned to Yangzhou City—that time at Hongyun Restaurant. Your hand was scalded, and when I was treating it, I saw the small mole between your fingers." As he spoke, he lifted her left hand, his long finger gently caressing the mole there.

The gesture was intimate, but Zhi Wan’s attention was entirely focused on his words.

She was astonished.

’So the little mole between my fingers gave me away.’

’In that case, he hasn’t known it was me for very long.’

’That explained it. Before, he had always been polite but distant. Later, his attitude softened, but I could feel he was only treating me like a sister, with no romantic intentions whatsoever.’

’It wasn’t until Red Leaf Village that his attitude toward me began to change subtly.’

’So that’s when he first found a clue.’

’And I was completely oblivious.’

’Playing the part of a dutiful sister by day, while engaging in all sorts of wild, amorous acts with him by night...’

Seeing her expression shift between flushed and pale, Lu Zhan paused. He suddenly reached out, wrapped an arm around her slender waist, and pulled her into his embrace. In a low voice, he murmured, "Wan’er, let me marry you. What do you say?"

Zhi Wan’s body went rigid as she was abruptly pulled back to reality.

’He had never called her by her given name before, always just ’cousin’...’

’Hearing him say ’Wan’er’ felt so strange.’

She composed herself and shook her head firmly. "I’ve said it before. I don’t intend to marry out. I only want a husband who will marry into my family."

Lu Zhan nodded. "Then I can marry into your family."

Zhi Wan faltered. "You can’t," she protested. "You can’t marry into my family. You’re your parents’ only son, and you have to inherit the title one day."

"That’s not a major issue," Lu Zhan said dismissively. "We can have Lu Jun adopted into my parents’ line. I’m sure Second Uncle would be more than happy with that arrangement."

"How could you say that?" Zhi Wan grew pale with shock. Seeing that he wasn’t joking, she immediately declared her stance. "You can’t do something so foolish. I will absolutely not have you marry into my family!"

Lu Zhan regarded her with a cool gaze, his voice low and unyielding. "And I have also said that your husband can only be me."

Zhi Wan’s breath caught in her throat. She frowned, not understanding why he was being so stubborn.

She was about to say something, but he released her. "Get some rest."

Watching him turn and walk out of the cabin, Zhi Wan’s body went limp. As if all the air had been let out of her, she collapsed onto the bed.

’He’s so overbearing!’

’Why does he have to force me like this?’

Zhi Wan’s mind was a chaotic mess.

A short while later, the cabin door was pushed open again.

Thinking it was Lu Zhan, Zhi Wan blurted out, "I’m not going to agree!"

The words had barely left her mouth when a familiar voice asked, "Miss, what aren’t you agreeing to?"

Zhi Wan froze. She looked up and saw that it was Shuang’er who had entered.

A wave of delight washed over Zhi Wan. She quickly stood and grabbed her hand. "Shuang’er, when did you get here?"

"This morning," Shuang’er replied, looking her over carefully. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Zhi Wan was unharmed. "After the Princely Heir took you away yesterday, I went back to the shop with Zhao Dong. I spent the night there. But early this morning, Chen Jiu found me and brought me to this boat."

Zhi Wan breathed her own sigh of relief at her words.

’Thankfully, Shuang’er is quick-witted and didn’t run back to the Duke Dingguo Mansion. Otherwise, who knows what kind of trouble would have erupted.’

’I left a letter for my aunt, so she must know I’ve left the Capital City by now. If Shuang’er had rushed back, my aunt would have certainly sent people to find me, and then this business with my cousin could no longer be kept a secret.’

Zhi Wan was incredibly relieved.

"Miss, what’s going on... between you and the Princely Heir?" Shuang’er suddenly asked.

A pang of guilt hit Zhi Wan. She avoided Shuang’er’s gaze and stammered, "It’s... it’s nothing."

Shuang’er thought she was just being shy. She squeezed her hand, saying excitedly, "I can tell the Princely Heir likes you, Miss. It would be wonderful if you could marry him!"

’Her line of thinking was simple. The Princely Heir was powerful and of high status, with an excellent family background, while her own miss was a lonely drifter. If her miss could marry the Princely Heir, she would have someone to protect her from then on. No one would dare look down on her or mistreat her again.’

At these words, Zhi Wan’s expression changed. She snatched her hand back and chided, "Don’t be ridiculous! There’s nothing of the sort!"

Shuang’er wasn’t the least bit afraid. She giggled. "Alright, alright, I won’t say another word."

’To stop the Miss from leaving the Capital City, the Princely Heir had personally chased her all the way to the docks and even had her ride on the same horse. Such intimacy went far beyond the bounds of ordinary cousins.’

’The strange thing was, she had always been her miss’s personal attendant, yet she’d never seen her have any particularly close contact with the Princely Heir. When did he start to like her?’

’And this business about the Princely Heir wanting to marry into a family—that must be for the Miss, too, right?’

’No wonder the Miss suddenly wanted to leave the Capital City. She must have been trying to get away from him.’

’I’ve really been slacking on the job. How did I not notice the subtle tension between the Miss and the Princely Heir at all?’

Seeing that Shuang’er didn’t believe a word she said, Zhi Wan grew annoyed and pinched her cheek. "I’m hungry. Go get me something to eat."

Shuang’er smiled and replied, "I’ll go right away."

She had just stepped out of the cabin when Chen Jiu approached with a fawning smile, holding out a food container. "Miss Shuang’er, I’ve already prepared the Miss’s breakfast. Could I trouble you to take it in to her?"

Shuang’er gave him a surprised look.

’Why is Chen Guard being so overly enthusiastic today?’

She took the food container. "Thank you, Chen Guard. I’ll let the Miss know."

"Then I’ll have to trouble you to put in a good word for me with the Miss, Miss Shuang’er," Chen Jiu said, his smile widening.

Shuang’er was thoroughly puzzled. She couldn’t help but ask, "Chen Guard, why are you being so polite today?" ’And asking me to put in a good word for him with the Miss? What’s he playing at?’

Chen Jiu cleared his throat and put on a serious expression. "It’s only right to be polite to Miss Shuang’er. Now, you should hurry along. The food will get cold and won’t taste as good. We can’t have the Miss losing her appetite over it."

Hearing this, Shuang’er paid him no more mind, simply hurrying back to Zhi Wan’s cabin with the food container.

Chen Jiu watched until she was inside before he turned and left.

’Looks like I wasn’t wrong.’

’Just a moment ago, the Princely Heir went into the Miss’s cabin and stayed for quite a while. When he came out, the corner of his lip was split.’

’I may not have firsthand experience, but I’ve certainly read about such things in romance novels.’

’Who knows, maybe the Miss is already carrying a little princely heir in her belly?!’