Chapter 67: He Didn't Push Him Away

Sheng Yunche was speechless, and even felt so angry that he wanted to laugh.

"I'm not a beast," he replied calmly, forcefully pulling her hands away as he continued to remove her menstrual blanket, saying, "I'm worse than a beast."

Ye Mingzhu instinctively arched her body to avoid his hand: "...What?"

"You, you, you..."

Her voice trembled with fear: "Didn't you promise to come back in half a month? You, you really want to fight a bloody battle? This, this... this isn't quite right, is it?"

Sheng Yunche laughed in exasperation: "...What kind of wonderful thing are you thinking?"

What a fierce and valiant battle!

As expected, her family had hired a female tutor; she was truly learned and could even curse without using any vulgar language.

Ye Mingzhu struggled fiercely, like a slippery fish.

He managed to pull her menstrual blanket down a little, but before he knew it, she twisted her body and grabbed the waistband of the blanket, pulling it back up.

He couldn't bring himself to use too much force, and before long, the two were locked in a stalemate.

Sheng Yunche narrowed his phoenix eyes, then loosened his belt and quickly tied her hands together, then bound her to the bedpost.

Now it's finally quiet.

Even the most lively rabbit, once tied to a wooden stake, can only obediently let the hunter pinch its ears.

Sheng Yunche gave a smug hum. Seeing that Ye Mingzhu had finally stopped struggling, he quickly took off the menstrual blanket that was in her way and threw it off the bed. He finally felt relieved.

There seemed to be a faint smell of blood in the air.

Sheng Yunche twitched his nose.

"Sheng Yunche!" Ye Mingzhu suddenly called his name, her voice shrill and very different from her usual sweet and soft tone, clearly indicating that she was anxious and furious.

Sheng Yunche looked up at her.

She didn't say anything more, but her pretty face was deathly pale, and her bright, moist almond-shaped eyes looked at him helplessly yet stubbornly. Although she no longer resisted, her whole body seemed to be covered in sharp thorns.

It was as if if he made any further rash moves or showed even the slightest displeasure, she would bite him, causing him pain and making him bleed.

"Alright." Sheng Yunche reached out and ruffled her hair, then loosened the belt binding her waist and pulled her into his arms. He said in a slightly hoarse voice, trembling with sleepiness, "Go to sleep."

"...What?" Ye Mingzhu was stunned and turned to look at him.

"It's so late, aren't you sleepy?" Sheng Yunche asked back, then added, "You're not sleepy, but I am."

He paused, then explained, "Don't be afraid, I won't do anything to you, I just don't want to see you wearing that."

"But..." Ye Mingzhu had already realized that he wouldn't force himself on her, but she still asked with a dry throat, "I...you tore off my menstrual blanket, aren't you afraid I'll get my filth on you?"

"What dirty thing?"

"It's sunflower water."

"no."

"What?" Ye Mingzhu didn't understand.

“I’m telling you, menstrual blood isn’t dirty.” Sheng Yunche patted her head lightly. “And…”

Nothing on her body was dirty, and on the day they consummated their marriage, he even wanted to kiss her all over.

"And what?" Ye Mingzhu pressed.

After a moment's thought, not wanting to frighten her, Sheng Yunche cleared his throat and said, "And every time you treat me, I have to spit out a mouthful of black blood, as a way of repaying your favor."

Ye Mingzhu was still a little confused.

Is that how it works? And you can even call it repaying a favor?

She bit her lip and decided to lay it all out in advance: "You were the one who wanted to sleep in Linfeng Hall, and you were the one who insisted on taking off my menstrual blanket. If I soil you tomorrow, and you... if you get angry with me, I won't let you off easy."

"Um."

"Speak!" Ye Mingzhu demanded a definite answer.

Sheng Yunche couldn't help but chuckle softly, readily agreeing, "Alright. If you get me dirty tomorrow and I get angry with you, then you'd better not make things difficult for me. Is that alright?"

Ye Mingzhu: "..."

"You little ingrate," Sheng Yunche said with a sly smile, his tone languid. "I even helped you get revenge tonight, and you're still so wary of me."

"What?" Ye Mingzhu asked hurriedly.

Sheng Yunche refused to say anything more, only saying, "Go to sleep."

“…Oh,” Ye Mingzhu replied.

The night was deep.

Ye Mingzhu was held in Sheng Yunche's arms, and she broke out in a light sweat again.

His chest pressed against her back, his strong arms encircled her waist, and even his breath on her head felt like it carried sparks. The constant heat emanating from him made her feel as if she were sitting in front of a fireplace.

If it were before, she would definitely have broken free from his embrace and slept further away.

But for some reason, she hesitated this time and didn't push him away.

She couldn't help but wonder, if Sheng Yunche said he helped her vent her anger, would he be going to cause trouble for Sheng Huai'an?

But Sheng Huai'an didn't return to the manor tonight, and Lian Yu didn't know if she had found him. Could it be that she also sent someone to look for Sheng Huai'an?

...

An hour ago.

In an inn in Yanjing City.

Sheng Huai'an lay on the bed with lifeless eyes. Although he was not restrained, he was like a caged beast, exuding a restless and violent aura.

If he still doesn't realize that Zhang Shuheng has set him up by now, then he's a fool.

But it is precisely because he is not a fool that he is in even greater agony at this moment.

There are constant rumors circulating outside, saying that he and Ye Mingzhu are still entangled, and that there are ambiguous scenes between them, but he doesn't really care.

I've seen many local wedding customs where the father-in-law and the new bride are ridiculed, with people saying things like "the old man who steals incestuous relationships."

Only women would be driven to death by scandalous rumors.

For men, romantic affairs are actually a symbol of their charm. As long as they are carefree, they can even be described as elegant and charming.

His concern was that dealing with the Jia family would be difficult.

Madam Jia had long suspected that there was something going on between him and his sister-in-law Liu Rumei. If she heard the rumors outside, would she make any connections?

If she questions him, how should he answer?

Can we get away with this again?

He didn't want to hear Jia's heartbroken and incessant complaints, and he was also afraid of seeing disappointment in her eyes...

Since her elder brother died, Jia has always encouraged him to be successful and regarded him as the pillar of the family. Her only wish is to see him pass the imperial examination with flying colors so that she can hold her head high. If she knew this, she would probably go crazy.

My thoughts are a jumbled mess.

Sheng Huai'an sighed and got up to pour himself a glass of water.

Just then, with a "whoosh," a beam of cold light shone straight in from outside the window, grazed the tip of his nose, and sank into the bedpost with a "thud," making a buzzing vibration.

Sheng Huai'an's heart leaped into his throat; thankfully, he didn't cry out in alarm.

Upon closer inspection, a letter was found embedded in the sharp dart.

Who is it?

He looked out the window suddenly, but there wasn't a soul in sight.

"Fu'an, Fu'an!" Sheng Huai'an kicked Fu'an, who was sleeping on the ground, with a grim expression, and told him to tear off the letter from the dart and sit down at the table to read it.

After reading the letter, his face turned even uglier.

"Second Master, what happened?" Fu'an asked cautiously.

Sheng Huai'an, with a sullen face, threw the letter at him.

Fu'an hesitated before taking it, then his eyes widened in surprise: "The eldest mistress was tied up and thrown into the dry well by the madam? This... if we don't rescue her soon, she might starve to death, right?"

"Yes." Sheng Huai'an suddenly asked him, "What do you suggest we do? Save them?"

Fu'an took a breath.

Should we ask him about this?

Before the master and servant could come to any conclusion, a noise suddenly came from the window again.

Several dark figures leaped into the room through the window. One of the men, dressed in black, walked up to Sheng Huai'an with a powerful stride and swiftly grabbed his throat.

A voice like that of a demon echoed in the deathly silent room: "You are Sheng Huai'an?"

Sheng Huai'an trembled, wanting to say something, but unable to utter a sound because his neck was being choked. He looked at Fu'an, who had collapsed to the ground, seemingly paralyzed with fear.

A foul-smelling cloth was stuffed into Sheng Huai'an's mouth. He felt nauseous and wanted to vomit, but he couldn't break free at all and could only make futile "ooh" sounds.

However, this is not the end.

Fists rained down on him, and he curled up in pain, wishing he could just die.