Chapter 98 Try to Like Me
The palace was bustling with activity; Wei Zhang had to handle every detail, from the late emperor's funeral to Mu Qinghong's succession.
Wei Zhang left, and it was already the following evening.
During this time, Granny Liu was sent to deliver clothes to Xue Lanyi and to persuade her to return home.
She's very stubborn, and I don't know who she's stubborn with, but she just won't leave.
For a full twenty hours, they remained in the Xi Cui Palace, neither eating nor drinking nor moving.
When Wei Zhang pushed the door open again, the girl was still sitting in the same spot, with Granny Liu squatting beside her, comforting her.
Wei Zhang stood at the doorway, gazing into the distance, and in a daze, he recalled the same scene when he and she first made love.
After leaving that day, he passed by the back door and happened to see through the crack in the window that the girl was huddled up with her knees drawn up to the family portrait of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion. Her wet eyelashes were lowered, but she still managed a strained smile and said, "At least, I'm one step closer to the heir."
If, if only, Wei Zhang had burst through the door and embraced her then, preventing the tear from falling from her eyes.
Would there have been no more hardships afterward?
Wei Zhang thought helplessly, then quietly walked to Xue Lanyi's side, squatted down, and lifted her chin, "Who are you arguing with?"
Xue Lanyi looked up with her red and swollen eyes, only to meet a pair of eyes that were just as tired as hers.
Wei Zhang had been without sleep for two days and two nights, and there was a faint smell of medicine on his body, indicating that he had seen the imperial physician.
He rarely calls a doctor; he usually treats minor illnesses and injuries himself.
At this moment, amidst her busy schedule, Xue Lanyi summoned the imperial physician, thinking that he must have gone to inquire about Wei Xuan's illness.
Xue Lanyi's two days and two nights of waiting had finally paid off. She didn't hide it from him and said in a muffled voice, "I'm just being stubborn with you."
Before Wei Zhang could say anything more, she pouted, and tears rolled down her cheeks like broken pearls, falling into Wei Zhang's palm through his fingers.
His pitiful look was truly for Wei Zhang's sake.
He's been busy for two days, and she'll have to squat here for two days straight; her legs must be numb from all that squatting.
If Wei Zhang is busy for another two days, or simply doesn't come at all, wouldn't she have to wait until she turns into a statue... a waiting-for-husband stone?
As this bizarre thought flashed through his mind, it was as if a single tear from her pierced through the pent-up frustration in Wei Zhang's heart, allowing the oppressive feeling to dissipate.
He waved the others away, a hint of a smile creeping onto his cold, stern face. "Where do you get the confidence that you'll win this gamble? Aren't you afraid I'll really lock you up here and leave you alone?"
The voice was so soft it could drip water.
He never talks like that.
Xue Lanyi knew she had won her gamble.
She looked at him, her eyes, washed clean by tears, were devoid of any impurity. "I'll bet you really do like me, even just a little bit."
Wei Zhang had not expected her to be so frank. His gaze lingered for a moment, and he stared at her for a long time.
You made the wrong bet.
He suddenly bent down and gently hugged her, resting his chin on her shoulder, his low, husky voice whispering, "I really like her, I really like her."
Xue Lanyi choked up slightly again.
Over the days they've spent together, she's come to realize that this man might not just be attracted to her body.
So even though he abandoned her last night, she still wanted to gamble on his heart one more time.
She clearly made the right bet.
She bit her lip. "Then will you save him? Will you let him go?"
"Then...would you try to like me?"
It wasn't the same kind of intimate pleasure as before, nor was it a forced smile.
It was a genuine and heartfelt attempt.
Wei Zhang's arms encircled her tightly, so firmly that even without much force, Xue Lanyi knew she couldn't escape.
He has absolute power, so why bother with futile resistance?
So, give it a try.
Since you'll be living with him from now on, even if you can't like him, you have to learn to accept it.
She didn't want to be trapped and die like her mother.
She closed her eyes slightly. "Probably."
Wei Zhang understood the true meaning behind those two simple words.
That's all he can ask for now.
It's already great that they're willing to give it a try.
He turned his head and carefully gave her a light peck on the cheek.
Xue Lanyi did not refuse, and nodded in agreement with her eyelashes lowered.
He did not take any further action.
She whispered in his arms, "When should we save him? Let him go as soon as possible."
Wei Zhang's brows furrowed slightly, and a complex thought flashed through his eyes.
In any case, it was the right thing to get Wei Xuan out of their lives sooner rather than later.
"Tomorrow, we'll go and detoxify him tomorrow."
Xue Lanyi's eyes finally brightened, and she wanted to laugh happily, but she managed to suppress the expression that shouldn't have been on her face.
He nodded slightly, but then a question arose in his mind.
Mu Qinghong had told her that the poison in Ah Xuan's body would deplete a person's bodily functions and cause them to lose all their martial arts skills.
The poison seeps into the veins and lungs insidiously, and even if the person doesn't die, they will become paralyzed and unable to take care of themselves by middle age.
This slow-acting and insidious poison exists in every drop of blood, lingering for a long time, and even the legendary healer, Doctor Luo, is powerless to cure it.
"How do you plan to save him?" she asked Wei Zhang.
Wei Zhang's eyelashes trembled slightly. "Anyway, you just need to know that he will be better tomorrow."
"However... I also have a condition." Wei Zhang's eyes gradually became very dark, like a fog that made it impossible to see clearly, or like a swamp that one would sink into if one looked at it for too long.
Xue Lanyi instinctively turned her head to the right to avoid danger.
Wei Zhang leaned in, his thin lips almost touching her ear, "Before you save him, give me a child, a child with both of our blood in it."
She knew he wouldn't suffer any loss.
She turned her head further away, trying to escape his burning breath. "We'll talk about this later."
"No." He became stubborn, leaning closer to her, his deep, magnetic voice whispering in her ear, "I want to be inside, tonight."
"You! Even if you are the best... even if you are, it might not be as you wish."
"That... is my fate."
A complex thought flashed through his mind, but he didn't touch her, waiting for her answer.
Xue Lanyi was already prepared to offer herself to him, and since he had already agreed to her request, she had no reason to object.
Her hand stiffly climbed up his neck, her brows furrowing slightly. "No, not here."
"Right here."
She's right.
She is his woman, the one he wants to spend his life with, and her mother should know that.
He picked her up and carried her into the inner room.
Everything around the main hall was old and worn, but the couch was clean and tidy, with freshly made bedding and new curtains.
Scented sachets hung at the four corners of the bed, emitting a faint fragrance of lilies.
"It seems you were well-prepared last night."
"No!" Xue Lanyi quickly shook her head.
It was Granny Liu who, seeing that she refused to return to the mansion, instructed people to prepare a bed for her to rest in.
She had no interest in decorating the room.
She wouldn't make any special preparations in advance just to have sex with him.
"Yes, it was Grandma Liu who prepared it!"
"You instructed Granny Liu to prepare this?"
"Um...no, no, no..." Xue Lanyi was so anxious that she couldn't speak, opening and closing her mouth again and again, trying to explain.
Wei Zhang placed her on the couch, propped his arms on either side of her head, and watched her hurried movements with a leisurely air.
She saw clarity and amusement in his eyes.
How could someone as intelligent as him not know who made the bed?
He was teasing her on purpose.
She felt like a fool being played by him, and then fell silent, frowning in annoyance.
He tucked the stray hairs from her temple behind her ear. "Remember to wear two gardenia sachets next time too."
"If you like it, do it yourself."
"So, you know I like gardenias?"
"..."
He doesn't like lilies; he only says he likes lilies because he's copying his brother.
He loved gardenias, and he planted gardenias all over his yard.
Even if Xue Lanyi didn't deliberately try to understand, she would have learned about it through exposure.
She remained silent and offered no explanation.
Wei Zhang then asked, "Do you know why I like gardenias?"
Xue Lanyi remained silent, unsure what kind of trap he might set for her if she spoke.
She muttered to herself, "I didn't expect you to be such a glib-tongued person."
I only knew him as a man of few words from childhood to adulthood, but I never imagined he was such a genius of sophistry.
Xue Lanyi did not argue with him about right and wrong.
He suddenly said, "Because of you."
Because of what?
Is it because she's so glib-tongued?
"Don't blame everything on other people." She snorted, but her tone was charmingly innocent and lively.
Wei Zhang smiled and said, "If you like me to talk a lot, I will try to talk more in the future."
He seemed not to understand what she was saying.
She nudged his shoulder, making it clear to him, "I don't like your glib tongue."
"Then you should be more composed and taciturn than me?"
"..."
There was nothing I could say to him.
Xue Lanyi punched him on the shoulder indignantly, then, after savoring the words she had just uttered, she couldn't help but chuckle out loud.
So, he could make her laugh too.
He gently stroked her cheek with the pad of his thumb, smoothing away the worry from the corner of her eyes. "Relax, try to accept me, okay?"
The warm breath sprayed onto Xue Lanyi's face.
She was still a little unaccustomed to it, but she didn't argue. She bit her lip and lowered her eyes.
After hesitating for a moment, she changed her hand from punching him to gripping his clothes tightly on his shoulder.
"You...you go slower," she stammered. "It will hurt."
Thinking back on her unpleasant experiences on the bed, Xue Lanyi still felt a lingering fear. Wei Zhang hadn't done anything, yet her frail body was already trembling uncontrollably.
Inside the enclosed four-sided curtains, Wei Zhang could clearly hear her breathing, which she tried to relax but was still tense and rapid.
He huddled in her shadow like a wounded little rabbit, trembling.
Wei Zhang was filled with mixed emotions and gently kissed her cheek.
Matters of the bedchamber could have been postponed for a while, but...
There are some special circumstances at the moment.
Before tomorrow arrives, he wants to have her one more time.
Wei Zhang leaned down, not daring to get too close to the main event, and only kissed her cheeks and neck intermittently.
She was so thin that when she tensed up, her features contorted, and the veins in her neck bulged out noticeably, as if they would crumble at the slightest bump.
Wei Zhang didn't press down any further. "Would you like to eat something first?"
I'm afraid I won't be able to stand not eating properly for half a month.
Xue Lanyi didn't hesitate when asked this question and immediately responded with an "Mm!"
Perhaps subconsciously she still wanted to escape, but upon hearing his words, she felt as if she had been granted a pardon, released his shoulder, and tried to sit up.
He remained on top of her, asking, "Sit on me and eat?"
"..."
He always came up with strange and bizarre ways to torment her.
But since they were already like this, sitting on his lap wasn't a big deal, so Xue Lanyi obediently nodded.
The man's figure still enveloped her.
She nudged his shoulder, but he remained unmoved.
Xue Lanyi looked up at him, confused, only to be met with his maliciously smiling eyes.
He repeated, “Sit on me and eat.”
Xue Lanyi opened her mouth, as if she wanted to say something more, when suddenly a warm current came from her lower abdomen.
She instinctively brought her knees together, only to realize that his hand had somehow slipped under her skirt.
Xue Lanyi was already weak, and after his teasing, her hands became even weaker, and she weakly resisted him through her clothes.
The man's fingertips were soft, but his wrists were strong and powerful, and Xue Lanyi couldn't push him away at all.
Xue Lanyi suddenly realized that his earlier remark, "sit on my lap to eat," had a hidden meaning.
He wanted her to sit and eat like that.
He's full of bad intentions.
To everyone's surprise, Xue Lanyi readily agreed. Embarrassed, she said in a muffled voice, "You, you're making a fuss, I don't have the strength."
"You don't need to put in any effort, just feel it."
Wei Zhang's tall figure loomed between her knees.
He exuded a powerful aura, yet his lower body remained calm and composed.
She quickly succumbed to his grasp.
She couldn't ignore the physical sensations; she had to admit that he was now more adept at using force than before.
An unspeakable pleasure welled up in her body, and she raised her neck to breathe deeply, yet she couldn't help but secretly curse him for using such dirty tricks on her, which he had learned from who-knows-where.
“When you were not around, I studied and practiced diligently every day.”
He seemed to be able to see right through her, and he chuckled softly in her ear, answering her question without her asking.
So, he was not in his study dealing with government affairs, but rather studying this matter.
That's absolutely awful!
Xue Lanyi quickly covered his mouth, not wanting to hear his nonsense.
In the instant she was distracted, he took another step forward.
Xue Lanyi was caught off guard and let out a soft moan.
He stood still, giving her time to react.
Xue Lanyi used to fear the pain of the first moments of lovemaking the most, but this time she didn't feel any intense tearing, and instead felt a sense of fulfillment.
She bit her lip, embarrassed and ashamed, trying not to let her emotions show.
But the quiet exhale from her throat betrayed her true feelings.
This reaction caused Wei Zhang to instinctively intensify her movements; her body jerked upwards, her long hair cascading down, and pitiful tears welled up in her eyes.
Tonight was a special night, and he wanted to give her the best feeling, so he ultimately held back.
He lifted her by the waist, turned her over, and the two switched positions.
She sat facing him in his lap, her clothes intact, yet...
Xue Lanyi hurriedly tried to get down, but he pressed her legs down, saying, "No rush, eat your fill first."
"Who's getting impatient?" she scolded him.
Wei Zhang, however, smiled and casually pulled a petal-shaped pastry box from the pillowcase, as if by magic, to the edge of the bed, within Xue Lanyi's reach.
Xue Lanyi shook her head.
"Eat your fill." Wei Zhang was genuinely worried that she might faint again if she couldn't hold on any longer.
He lifted the lid of the food box.
This box must have been delivered by Granny Liu an hour ago. It must contain freshly baked pastries from the imperial kitchen, as the aroma was wonderful when it was opened.
Xue Lanyi was indeed hungry, and she was also worried that she might faint and delay tomorrow's business.
But who in the world eats sitting like that?
She looked at the man in front of her with eyes full of sorrow.
Wei Zhang had no intention of leaving. Instead, he propped himself up on the couch and sat back leisurely, watching her.
While we were intimately touching, I watched her eat pastries.
"Wei Zhang," she called to him.
"Um?"
Are you sick?
Xue Lanyi really couldn't think of any words to describe him.
She cursed him from the bottom of her heart, and he laughed instead.
He rarely smiled and usually had a cold expression in front of others, but today he was all smiles, and even showed some of the spirit of a young man.
Xue Lanyi suddenly realized that he was not a fifty-year-old man; he had just celebrated his twenty-fifth birthday not long ago, and deep down he still had the roguishness of a young man.
The more she scolded him, the deeper his smile became.
That's really sick.
Xue Lanyi ignored him and turned to look at the pastries.
She knew very well that he wouldn't let her go tonight, and she couldn't let herself starve to death in bed.
So he reached out to take the sesame and pepper cake.
When she moved, her lower abdomen also moved.
She frowned, making as small movements as possible, holding the sesame cake in both hands, nibbling and swallowing it in small bites, trying not to let him notice and prevent him from succeeding.
Her head was bowed low, and Wei Zhang couldn't see her face from his angle. He could only see her rosy cheeks puffing out and contracting, and the pancake in her hand had a thumb-sized chip in it.
So cute.
He never knew before that even eating was so interesting to her; it was far more interesting than those cold, hard accounts and official documents.
He didn't urge her, but sat quietly, taking in her every move.
When a sesame seed stuck to her cheek, he reached out and wiped it away. "You like spicy food?"
Xue Lanyi paused in her eating, looked up, and met those soft, watery eyes.
She had seen that look in someone else's eyes before, and she understood its deeper meaning.
She avoided eye contact, saying, "It's none of your business."
When she was little, her uncle would tease her with sweet cakes, and Wei Xuan would coax her with candied fruit, so everyone naturally assumed that she liked sweets.
Eating sweets is good; lively and lovely little girls all love to eat sweets.
Eating spicy food is bad; it's not dignified, it easily causes acne and internal heat, and it makes you look ugly.
Therefore, she rarely eats spicy food, has never eaten spicy food in front of others, and has absolutely never told anyone that she likes spicy food.
How could Wei Zhang know her tastes?
Why would I specifically prepare spicy pepper cakes for her?
Filled with doubt, she turned back and asked, "How...how did you know?"
Wei Zhang remained mysterious and didn't answer, instead asking, "Wouldn't you say this is a case of finding a kindred spirit?"
"..."
Xue Lanyi snorted lightly, "You talk too much."
"If you like, I will try to say more in the future."
"I don't like..."
Xue Lanyi suddenly realized that the topic had come full circle.
She was momentarily annoyed, and her lower abdomen subconsciously tightened.
The man gasped.
Xue Lanyi sensed something was wrong, her face suddenly turned bright red, and she frantically tried to find a place to hide.
A hand gripped the back of her head.
"So energetic, looks like you've had a good meal..."
His eyes darkened slightly as he turned and gently laid her back down on the bed.
Perhaps she had already adapted to the force within her body, or perhaps she had unexpectedly discovered that he was a chatterbox.
The chatterbox isn't as cold-hearted as he seems.
Xue Lanyi's emotions were no longer so tense, and she met his gaze openly.
When he leaned closer, she didn't know what possessed her, but she breathed on him.
She had just eaten pepper cakes; her lips were red and swollen, looking ugly, and even her breath tasted spicy.
She wanted to give him a piece of her mind, to vent her frustration at not being able to win an argument with him tonight.
"You have bad breath." The man paused, and asked, "Haven't you brushed your teeth for days?"
When she heard someone say that her breath smelled bad, she became unhappy and frowned.
But then he added, "But I don't mind."
His smile widened, and he bent down to suck on those two swollen, red, sausage-like lips.
The curtain falls.
The pale yellow silk curtains rippled like water, floating all night long...
After calling for water three times during the night, Xue Lanyi couldn't take it anymore and fell into a deep sleep.
The next day, as the sun shone through the gaps in the curtains, Xue Lanyi opened her eyes.
I don't know what time it is, but with the sun high in the sky, it must be quite late.
With her mind preoccupied with rescuing Wei Xuan, she peeked out through the crack in the water.
The rustling footsteps outside kept coming and going.
Overnight, the furniture, curtains, and door curtains in the palace were all replaced with new ones, and the room was spotless and brand new.
Xue Lanyi was somewhat surprised and wanted to peek in.
The arm that had been pressing against her chest was pulled back, and Xue Lanyi was pulled back into the man's embrace.
Wei Zhang rarely slept without wearing his nightgown, but at this moment he was half-naked and lying face down on the couch, his strong arms holding Xue Lanyi tightly.
He didn't open his eyes; his strong features showed a hint of languor from just waking up, making him less intimidating.
"Sleep a little longer." The voice was thick with nasal congestion, and the hand instinctively reached up.
Before the person even woke up, their hands were already getting restless.
Xue Lanyi waved his hand away, "Go and see, someone has broken in!"
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