Chapter 27 The name "Wei Zhang" will forever remain in her memory...
At the mountaintop, Xue Lanyi noticed that the wind had suddenly changed direction.
Her flowers could no longer drift towards Wei Xuan.
It was getting late, and she had to go home first.
She waved to Wei Xuan from afar, and Wei Xuan smiled, probably telling her to be careful on the road.
Xue Lanyi returned home along the lakeside path under the cover of night, but her heart was not at peace the whole way.
Although she found Wei Xuan, the Duke's mansion and the city of Shengjing still had a tight net waiting for him.
It's unlikely that Xue Lanyi can take Wei Xuan away on her own. The only way now is to strike at the root of the problem by presenting the evidence of Wei Zhang's murder of Prince Qi directly to the Emperor.
Only when the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion is in chaos can he take advantage of the confusion to escape.
However, all these ideas are predicated on her first having evidence in her hands.
Now that Wei Zhang has the fire signal tube in his hand, he must be investigating who has the evidence.
If Xue Lanyi were to directly mention going to Qutan Temple to Wei Zhang, it would easily arouse Wei Zhang's suspicion.
She shouldn't act rashly; she needs to find someone who can freely enter and leave the Duke's mansion and Qutan Temple to help her.
She doesn't have many people she can talk to, so who can help her?
Lost in thought, I found myself walking back to Chong'an Hall.
He bumped into the young apprentice who entered at the same time.
"Watch out!" Xue Lanyi helped the child up.
The child handed the food box to Xue Lanyi, saying, "Sister Ayin instructed me to deliver this nourishing soup to you, Miss."
Ah Yin was the female doctor who treated Xue Lanyi's illness last time.
Perhaps she noticed that Xue Lanyi was in poor health, because ever since she had examined her, she had been sending her different kinds of nourishing soup every day without fail.
Xue Lanyi was naturally grateful. "When will Miss Ayin come to the mansion? I have prepared a small gift to give to her."
"It won't work out these days, the old lady is too busy." The young apprentice bowed and left.
Wei Xuan is now a criminal wanted by the Embroidered Uniform Guard. The old lady is extremely anxious. Some time ago, when she went to Qutan Temple to offer incense and pray for blessings, she fell ill in the temple.
He's probably had a stroke and can't move.
Ah Yin was quite favored by the old lady and was probably confined to Qutan Temple.
Xue Lanyi pondered to herself, then absentmindedly entered her bedroom.
The door creaked open, the sluggish sound echoing inside.
A shadow stretched from the ground to the ceiling on the wall in front of her, like a giant net, and flickered in front of Xue Lanyi's eyes.
Xue Lanyi was startled and looked closely, and saw Wei Zhang in the middle of the shadow, bent over his desk and looking through some documents.
The man was only wearing loose-fitting nightgowns, his firm chest muscles were faintly visible at the collar, and his black hair cascaded down, tied in a half-up bun with a jade hairpin. It was slightly damp, indicating that he had already taken a bath.
Xue Lanyi had been by Wei Zhang's side for three years, and he would spend at least two hours thoroughly handling official business without exception.
Why did you return in less than half an hour today?
Xue Lanyi was somewhat surprised, "Yun Jian... what are you doing here?"
"It's late at night, shouldn't I be asking why you're not here?"
Wei Zhang raised his eyes leisurely, looking calm and collected, but with the slightest movement of his body, his enormous shadow also moved.
Like the maw of a giant beast, it assaulted Xue Lanyi's vision.
A gust of cold wind blew in from behind Xue Lanyi, nearly extinguishing the flame of the candle on the table.
Wei Zhang was trapped in complete darkness.
Xue Lanyi's heart raced, and she froze on the spot.
The two looked at each other from a distance and remained silent for a few moments.
"When I returned from the mansion just now, I saw that the lilies by the lake were blooming beautifully, and I lingered there a little longer than expected, forgetting the time."
Xue Lanyi stiffly walked to Wei Zhang's side, handed him a bunch of lilies, and smiled, saying, "I picked these especially for you."
She had indeed considered that Wei Zhang might return before her, and she also thought that Wei Zhang would become suspicious if he smelled the lilies on her, so she picked a bunch of flowers for him before returning to the house.
Do you like it?
Behind the bouquet, she smiled as brightly as ever.
But Wei Zhang immediately noticed the mottled wormholes on the petals.
A fleeting gloom crossed his eyes, and he said, "I like it."
As the cold wind passed, the flames began to leap again.
Seeing that there was no anger on his face, Xue Lanyi breathed a sigh of relief. "Then I'll go find a vase to put the flowers in."
"No rush, there are more important things to do." Wei Zhang stopped her as she was about to leave.
With a slight effort, Xue Lanyi fell into his arms.
His clothes were thin, and Xue Lanyi could clearly feel the strong force of his legs. She felt extremely uncomfortable and moved away almost imperceptibly, but dared not make any big movements. She asked casually, "What is it?"
Wei Zhang pulled the red paper concubine agreement in front of her and gently tapped her name, meaning that he wanted her to sign it.
This concubine's letter has already been sent back and forth three times. If Xue Lanyi refuses again, things might not go well.
Moreover, the official seals of the concubine's letter had already been affixed by the Shangguan family and Wei Zhang, and only her fingerprint was missing. In fact, whether she pressed it or not, "Xue Lanyi" was already Wei Zhang's concubine.
Xue Lanyi took the cinnabar and pressed her fingerprint on the three characters "Xue Lanyi".
"Alright." She smiled and playfully waved her red-stained index finger in front of Wei Zhang's eyes.
Wei Zhang waited for a while, but did not hear her say or do anything else.
Half a day ago, Xue Lanyi was a clingy chatterbox.
Because today was the day of the concubine-taking ceremony, she clung to his neck, repeating countless times: "Are we really going to get married? Yun Jian, will you always love me? I will always love Yun Jian..."
When she's truly happy, she doesn't hesitate to express her joy.
The reason she pressed the concubine's letter so decisively now was clearly not because of joy, but because she felt that she was not Xue Lanyi, so a concubine's letter could not bind her.
He was ultimately too proud and arrogant.
Wei Zhang remained calm and gently flicked the tip of her nose. "So obedient, shall I reward you properly tonight?"
"What's the reward?" Xue Lanyi sniffed.
A bad feeling crept in, and his fingers gripped the table.
Sure enough, he pulled out a soft pillow and placed it on the table. His low, husky voice was close to her ear, "Take off your clothes and lie on top of me."
"Yun Jian, I..."
Xue Lanyi knew that once she decided to feign intimacy with him, she would not be able to escape unscathed.
But the thought of such a thing made her feel resistant, and her lips opened and closed repeatedly.
"Has your period started?"
Wei Zhang asked her a question that cut off Xue Lanyi's escape route.
Wei Zhang was as sharp as a mirror; Xue Lanyi could not escape his eyes.
She swallowed the rest of her sentence, her tongue lolling out, "No, it's getting late, and I have to go to court tomorrow. I'm afraid you'll get tired."
"The other day when we were still hungry around 1 AM, why weren't you so understanding then?" Wei Zhang gently brushed his nose against her earlobe, his hand already around her waist and holding her hand.
The night before last, when he was on top of her, she held his hand tightly, not wanting him to leave.
Those passionate and daring images from the past flooded her mind, assaulting her wave after wave.
Xue Lanyi didn't know if Wei Zhang was deliberately stirring up her memories; at this moment, she felt both embarrassed and uncomfortable.
Her long, damp eyelashes drooped as she saw him guiding her hand, unbuttoning her short-sleeved shirt one button at a time from the bottom up.
Her outer garment slipped down, and her bare back pressed against his burning chest.
Wei Zhang's breathing became heavier.
Xue Lanyi knew she couldn't escape, so she bit her lip and pretended to be shy, "Just once, don't tire yourself out."
A man's low chuckle came from behind her, his fingertips tracing the curves of her waist, sending a tingling, itchy sensation through her.
He grabbed her slender waist and lifted her up sharply.
Xue Lanyi changed her posture to lie face down on the table.
A tall, slender man loomed over her, his broad shoulders almost completely engulfing her shadow. All that could be seen was his large hand, which could easily cover her waist, supporting her shoulder.
He was so strong and powerful, she was so thin and frail, she could not be broken under him.
Before the man could make a move, Xue Lanyi felt a dull pain in her abdomen.
Even when she had amnesia, she loved him deeply, and it was only through her passionate love that she could barely bear to be with him.
Now she only feels fear towards him, no feelings whatsoever; one can imagine the pain she must endure.
Her eyes were tightly closed, and fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.
But after a long while, the pain she had imagined did not come. She nervously opened her eyes, and what she saw was a dagger.
A flash of silver light streaked past my eyes.
Xue Lanyi almost cried out in surprise, only to see Wei Zhang cut his own palm.
His fingers curled slightly, and with a dull cracking sound, blood dripped down his palm lines into the inkstone.
Tick-tock, tick-tock, the drops merge into a red and black hue.
Xue Lanyi swallowed hard and said haltingly, "Yun Jian, what are you doing?"
Wei Zhang calmly stirred the ink, then took a silver needle, dipped it in a little vermilion ink, and aimed it at Xue Lanyi's shoulder blade.
His other hand circled his fair skin, the chill penetrating his skin and reaching his very bones.
Xue Lanyi trembled violently.
A beam of moonlight from outside the window fell directly on her smooth back, making her delicate skin glow like flawless silk.
The character "奴" (slave) is inscribed on the shoulder blade.
"This tattoo is bad, it needs to be changed."
The tattoo was done by the government when she entered the Jiaosifang (a type of religious institution).
She is no longer Li Zhaoyang and does not belong to the government.
She is Xue Lanyi, and she belongs to Wei Zhang.
She needs to keep this in mind.
Wei Zhang twirled the silver needle, piercing the flesh and slowly probing deeper.
"pain!"
The excruciating pain made Xue Lanyi raise her neck and cry out.
Wei Zhang bent down and gently blew away the bloodstains on the tattoo. "Don't move. My name is similar to my brother's. If we accidentally make a mistake, wouldn't we suffer?"
His tone was kind, but every word he uttered sent shivers down Xue Lanyi's spine.
She didn't know who he was going to make suffer.
She dared not move again, slumping fearfully on the soft pillow.
Her sideburns fell loose, damp with sweat, and clung to her cheeks, obscuring half of her face.
Wenliang's fingers tucked her hair behind her ear and placed a bronze mirror in front of her.
"Watch."
The bronze mirror was able to reflect the tattoos Wei Zhang had made on her body.
He carefully carved each stroke with meticulous detail, his sleeves tucked in.
Wei Daxue's calligraphy skills were on par with Yan Zhenqing and Liu Gongquan, and students of Dayong University eagerly imitated him.
At this moment, the bloody characters "Wei Zhang" were drawn on a woman's back, along with cloud patterns that were unique to him.
Xue Lanyi felt as if her shoulder blades were being squeezed by countless ants, a dense, tingling pain emanating from every pore of her heart.
It wasn't just the physical pain, but also the mark that stung her eyes.
The tattoo Wei Zhang pierced her body was exactly the same as the one on his seal.
He used this seal on all the deeds to his private farmland and houses, and even Xue Lanyi's indenture used this seal.
Now, he has imprinted his seal on her body.
Paper can be burned, but the body and skin cannot.
Li Zhaoyang, who once refused to even get her ears pierced, now has to carry all sorts of marks on her ears for the rest of her life.
Xue Lanyi really wanted to push this culprit away.
But she couldn't. Even if she had to break ties with Wei Zhang, she had to wait until she had atoned for her guilt towards Wei Xuan.
She had no choice but to close her eyes and not look.
Wei Zhang lifted her chin, forcing her to admire his masterpiece, "Do you like it?"
The seal had been carved, and countless bloodstains slid down his back, leaving only the two characters "Wei Zhang".
Her almost bloodless lips moved slightly, "I like it."
Wei Zhang bent down and kissed the blood droplet on her shoulder blade with an appreciative air.
The sweet and slightly fishy taste, mixed with the fragrance of lilies, spreads throughout the mouth.
Even her blood and bones are no longer pure.
She has truly forgotten whose person she is and who she should be loyal to.
He took her hand, which was clenched tightly with hatred, and gently sniffed the base of her thumb.
Sure enough, the nauseating smell lingered.
"Since you like it, how about we get another one tattooed here?"
"don't want!"
The tattoo on his back can be covered up and he can pretend not to see it, but if his name and his blood are imprinted on the back of his hand, wouldn't he have to face it all the time?
Moreover, he still had a sword wound on his wrist, which was temporarily wrapped with a wristband. If he looked closely, he would probably immediately notice something amiss.
Xue Lanyi blurted out and pulled her hand away.
Wei Zhang's smile froze on his lips, the firelight flickering on his face so close to his, half-lit, half-dim.
The two looked at each other in silence for a few moments.
"It hurts too much, let me rest for a bit."
"Delicate."
Although tattoos may cause some bleeding, it's nothing more than the pain of a needle pricking your finger. How unbearable is that?
Wei Zhang had no intention of letting her go, and reached out to grab her slender wrist again.
Xue Lanyi gripped the soft pillow tightly and quickly advised, "Even if you don't care about me, you should at least think about yourself. It's always unlucky to see blood on your wedding night. I also want what's best for you."
The man behind her stopped in mid-air.
Seeing that he was yielding, Xue Lanyi pressed her advantage and continued to persuade him: "People say, 'When a wedding night is marked by bloodshed, the official hat will fall to the ground,' and 'When the red curtains are stained red, one will grow old alone.' Yunjian, you have only recently been promoted, so it is always right to be cautious about some things."
"Besides, I want to be with you forever. If you want to spend every day and night afterward, why do you have to do it on our wedding night?"
...
The person behind her remained silent, and Xue Lanyi assumed he had heeded her advice, so she continued to speak.
From Wei Zhang's perspective, looking down, he could only see that the woman lying face down in front of him had a shapely waist, her lower body was dressed neatly, but her upper body was only loosely covered by a small garment.
Looking back at his appearance, he was like a seductive cat.
With each word she spoke, her dress brushed against him intermittently, like her red lips opening and closing. Wei Zhang, tormented by her teasing, paused in his movements.
Xue Lanyi, unaware of this, offered her wrist to him, saying, "If you insist on stabbing me, I can't stop you. My hand and arm are already swollen in no time. Don't try anything else to torment me."
With a slight turn and a twist of her waist, Wei Zhang was enveloped in a soft, warm embrace.
The image of her leading him in the bedroom today suddenly flooded his mind, causing Wei Zhang's chest and abdomen to swell, and his gaze to darken.
Hot breath sprayed onto Xue Lanyi's lower back, and she suddenly realized something, looking closely.
Wei Zhang was staring with great interest at the point where the two men's clothes met.
Xue Lanyi hurriedly tried to move forward to clear some space, but instead kicked the desk, stumbled, and ended up facing him instead.
Wei Zhang groaned softly, his fingertips brushing away the moisture at the corner of her eyes. "You've been thinking about it?"
Xue Lanyi's face immediately turned bright red.
The tears in her eyes were because she had hurt herself when she bumped into something, which was why she hadn't been thinking about those messy things.
Xue Lanyi was both ashamed and angry, and slapped him.
Wei Zhang easily caught her wrist.
Her fleeting genuine emotion did not anger Wei Zhang; instead, it piqued his interest even more.
For once, a smile appeared on his usually deep and gloomy face. "I'm tough. A little blood won't ruin my career."
Does he mean he absolutely has to get a tattoo on her hand tonight?
But he didn't pick up the needle for a long time. Instead, he placed Xue Lanyi's hand on the web of his hand and casually fiddled with her soft fingers.
His calloused hands kneaded her fingertips in the same way Xue Lanyi had used on him in the bedroom.
A tingling, numb sensation travels along my fingertips.
Xue Lanyi knew that his thoughts had actually been drawn away by something else.
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Author's note: I'll be posting tomorrow. The update will be around 11 PM, and there will be an extra update at midnight.
Updates will be at midnight from now on, lots of content to keep you entertained!
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