Chapter 116 Don’t Annoy Me

Wen Ning suppressed the curiosity and a slight sense of foreboding that surged in her heart, but nodded with a feigned generosity, "Okay, I'm not angry, Your Majesty, please feel free to speak."

As soon as she finished speaking, the Marquis carried her sideways to the bed and gently pressed her into the soft quilt.

The man's tall body approached and trapped her in a small space.

Xie Jinglan stared at her gravely, his tone laced with sly certainty, "Ning'er, although you say you're not angry, I'm not sure if she won't be embarrassed and angry when I finish. It's better to put her on the couch first...it'll be easier to coax her then."

Wen Ning was speechless for a moment by his straightforward and somewhat shameless words. Her cheeks puffed up slightly, and she bit her lower lip and said helplessly, "If the Marquis doesn't say anything, I will really be angry."

Xie Jinglan didn't dare to provoke her again. His fingertips gently stroked her delicate pink cheek and said lovingly, "Okay, I won't hide anything and I won't avoid anything."

Then, he honestly told the whole story.

"Two years ago, Chen Lin came across a portrait of a woman in a painting studio in Beijing and was immediately struck by her beauty..."

"Does the lady know?" Wen Ning interrupted immediately after hearing the first sentence.

Xie Jinglan chuckled softly, knowing what she meant.

He explained with a smile, "That fellow Chen Lin loves to pretend to be cultured, collecting music scores, calligraphy and paintings, and he seems quite conscientious when he plays with them. But when it comes to his true feelings, he never dares to be foolish. Over the years, his eyes and heart have always only been filled with my sister."

Wen Ning nodded, "That's pretty good."

Then he motioned for the man to continue.

Xie Jinglan entangled a strand of her hair with his fingertips and played with it, then continued, "Chen Lin paid some money to interrogate the owner, and only then did he confess. He said... the painting was a private depiction of a maid in the Marquis's mansion that Tang Zhu had secretly commissioned."

When Wen Ning mentioned Tang Zhu, her heart tightened.

Xie Jinglan keenly noticed her momentary tenseness and gently stroked her back with his warm big hand.

"I immediately suspected that the person in the painting was you, so I immediately took people to seal off the studio and took back the portrait from the owner.

But Tang Zhu still has the original painting in his possession, and I was afraid that if I made it known it would embarrass you, so I secretly went to his residence that night to retrieve it quietly."

At this point, Xie Jinglan's voice suddenly turned cold. "Who would have thought that fellow would actually hang your portrait... over the bedside, a blasphemous act! I immediately took the painting and kicked him hard in the heart!"

His tone was filled with murderous intent, "If the old lady hadn't told me to spare his life that day out of consideration for our old friendship... I would have killed that bastard right then and there!"

The man took a deep breath and looked at Wen Ning, his eyes still filled with hostility. "How can I be willing to let others spy on and describe your appearance in private?"

Then he lowered his voice, feeling somewhat guilty, "Because I was unwilling to give up, so... so I took up the brush and drew another one myself."

Wen Ning's heartbeat was disordered by his narration and the approaching breath, but she couldn't help but be stunned when she heard the last sentence.

"Another painting?"

The man's Adam's apple rolled slightly, his eyes narrowed slightly, "Hmm."

"In the study?" she asked subconsciously, wanting to see what the painting looked like.

Xie Jinglan looked at her deeply, with a hint of barely perceptible tension.

"Not in the study, here."

After saying that, the man took off a small round bead hairpin from her hair and flicked it with his fingertips towards the end of the bed.

The small object, with precise force, was bouncing towards a very hidden ebony protrusion on the carved bed rail at the end of the bed.

There was only a very slight "click" sound, the mechanism was triggered, and the ebony strip slid quietly to the side as if it had life.

What's even more ingenious is that as the secret compartment opens, the built-in mechanism will cause the scroll hidden inside to fall downwards and unfold!

Suddenly, a delicate and lifelike portrait of a woman appeared before the two of them without reservation.

Behind the thin gauze curtains, candlelight flows ambiguously.

In the painting, she is wearing a soft silk dress as light as mist, which is loose and half covers her body, outlining her exquisite and undulating curves.

Smooth shoulders and arms and slender ankles peek out from the gauze, shining with a warm jade-like luster in the hazy light.

Her black hair fell like a waterfall, and her clothes fluttering in the wind concealed some of her spring beauty, making her beauty clear and tender.

The half-covered, half-exposed posture does not appear frivolous. Instead, due to the extremely delicate brushstrokes, it exudes a thrilling, almost divine pure temptation.

Wen Ning held her breath instantly, her cheeks were so red that they seemed to bleed, and even her fingertips were trembling slightly.

She had never thought that she would be described like this... like this in the other person's writing.

He was actually hiding beside the bed, wasn't he facing her every night, observing her every day?!

She raised her hand to hit him, "You! You, you are shameless! How is you any different from Tang Zhu!"

Xie Jinglan had anticipated her reaction like this, and as she raised her hand, he quickly grabbed her wrist, pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly, refusing to let go no matter how she struggled.

He rested his chin on the top of her head, with full regret and flattery,

"Good Ning'er, don't be angry with me... Don't be angry... It's my fault, it's me, Meng Lang... But, but I am a normal man."

His voice was tinged with an indescribable pain and fear, as if he had been reminded of a memory he couldn't bear to look back on. "Ning'er, do you know how I managed to get through those days when you resolutely left and fled to the border town without a trace?

If I hadn’t relied on this little bit of self-deception to comfort myself, I’m afraid I would have…really gone crazy…I wished I could have been poisoned every day so that I could temporarily forget you through the pain…” His voice sank, and he repeatedly murmured begging for mercy, “Good Ning’er, forgive me…don’t be angry with me…”

Wen Ning was held tightly in the man's arms, her whole body filled with his scent. When she heard his words, the anger in her heart melted away little by little, leaving only a soft and wet feeling.

She suddenly understood something.

He's been apologizing all the time these days.

Apologize for past misunderstandings, apologize for the forced concealment, apologize for the forceful possession, and now, even this obsession that is so deep that it is almost paranoid, requires a cautious apology.

He explained again and again, and bowed his head again and again, simply because he was extremely afraid that there would be any rift between them again.

And what about yourself?

Forgive him again and again, understand him again and again, and even can't help but feel distressed when he shows weakness.

It's not because his explanation is so perfect, so reasonable and well-founded, nor is it because I am soft-hearted and easy to bully.

But she had already given her whole heart to him without realizing it.

She liked him.

She loves the Marquis.

This realization was like thunder rolling through her heart, causing her to tremble all over.

Do you want to say it out loud?

No.

Wen Ning immediately rejected the idea.

This is clearly the time to be angry, not the time to express such shameful feelings.

Seeing her ears were red, Xie Jinglan thought she was extremely angry, so he moved closer, his voice full of urgent coaxing.

"Good Ning'er, if you're not satisfied, hit me. Don't hold it in. It's bad for your health. I'll put the painting away now and never take it out again. Okay?"