Chapter Seventy-Nine: Mutual Love
Hearing these words, probably no woman would not be moved.
Ruan Bi was no exception; her heart pounded, yet a mixture of embarrassment and apprehension lingered within her. He saw right through her, like she was naked—a truly unpleasant feeling. His personality, too, evoked a complex mix of attraction and fear. He was magnanimous yet meticulously detail-oriented, clear-cut yet also capable of magnanimity. When things didn't go his way, he'd leave room for maneuver, observing her performance. But once her bottom line was crossed, he'd be ruthless—drawing knives, ordering the destruction of carriages to cut off escape routes, and so on—there was nothing he wouldn't do. And he did it openly, rationally, and with complete control, leaving his opponents humiliated. Truly a strategist, he understood the importance of "a just cause" and the principle of "winning hearts and minds is superior to conquering cities."
It was obvious that she had been completely defeated this time. Although she didn't dislike him—in fact, she quite enjoyed it—she also felt that this man was too amazing and wondered if she could handle him.
The Prince of Jin noticed her vacant gaze and knew she was lost in thought again. He was truly displeased. If any other woman had heard these words, she would have already let out a soft moan and fallen into his arms, blushing and brimming with desire. But she—her face flushed, yet she remained lost in thought. He was still angry, and the fingers holding her chin tightened slightly.
This time, she let out a soft "oh," staring intently at him. There was no shyness to speak of; her eyes gleamed, almost as if she were scheming. The Prince of Jin frowned, asking unhappily, "What are you plotting now? I don't know how someone your age can have so many thoughts?"
"What other thoughts could I possibly have?"
"Didn't you move?"
“I really didn’t touch it.” Ruan Bi shook her head firmly.
Little did she know that when he asked her what she was thinking, he wasn't really asking what she was thinking; he was actually asking for a response. "I just made that promise to you, why aren't you responding at all?"
Hearing her say that, he felt disappointed. Thinking about how he hadn't slept all night, how he had sent people everywhere to investigate her background, the details of Master Ziying, and the evidence of Prime Minister Chen's crimes, and how difficult the road ahead was, if she still dragged her feet and refused to move forward... the more he thought about it, the more frustrated he felt, his anger rising, but he didn't know what to do with her. He grabbed her slender waist with both hands, pulled her to his side, and looked her face from left to right.
He gripped her hands tightly, like iron clamps, making it hard for Ruan Bi to breathe. Seeing his eyes gleaming as he looked her over, Ruan Bi felt uneasy and whispered timidly, "I really didn't have any intentions."
He remained silent, neither confirming nor denying, his gaze continuing to wander.
"I will definitely let go of my past concerns..."
She didn't know if he heard her or not; he remained silent, his hands, which were wrapped around her waist, were burning hot, as was his gaze. The temperature in the room rose as a result; although it was late autumn, it felt like the sweltering heat of midsummer, and Ruan Bi felt herself sweating profusely.
"When I went to the Duke of Gu's mansion last time, didn't I deliberately wear this outfit?"
He gave a cold "humph." "If you hadn't worn that outfit that time, I would have directly..."
"Directly what?"
The Prince of Jin fell silent, for he had never considered doing anything to her directly. Although many times he thought, if all else failed, he would simply take her back to the Prince's residence, set the record straight, and who in the world could do anything about it? Sometimes, in his anger, he even considered killing her outright, to save himself from worrying about her all the time. But more often, he longed to take her to Xingping City, to ride horses together on the grasslands and watch the sunset. He knew her life in the Ruan family was difficult, that she had learned a great deal of cunning at such a young age. He also knew the strict rules of the capital, that every word and action was bound by etiquette, and that neither of them could be truly free. Therefore, he had to take her to Xingping City; only there could he see her truly free.
His heart softened, and his anger subsided, but another fire remained, swirling in his mind. He couldn't control himself and lowered his head to gently bite her earlobe.
Ruan Bi was terrified and quickly said, "Don't do anything reckless, others will notice."
He hummed in agreement, then remained silent, still biting down very lightly.
Ruan Bi felt a tickle in her heart and quickly swore, "I really didn't have any impure thoughts, I swear."
He just grunted in response, refusing to let go. He loosened his grip on her waist slightly, but the heat from his palms continued to radiate. Ruan Bi felt dizzy and her mind was starting to wander. Barely managing to stay conscious, she whispered, "Your Highness, I was wrong, please forgive me." She didn't even realize that her voice had become sweet and delicate.
Hearing this, the Prince of Jin felt immensely pleased and responded with a muffled reply. He thought to himself how foolish he had been to try and reason with her. He had always known she was a coward who feared power but lacked virtue, and wouldn't learn her lesson until she faced dire consequences. He hadn't hesitated to be firm, and she had given in immediately. Understanding this, he was even less willing to back down and instead bit her again with even more force.
Ruan Bi felt a slight pain, which cleared her mind a little. She patted his arm and said, "Let go! How am I supposed to face people later?"
The Prince of Jin loosened his teeth, leaned close to her ear and said, "Okay, but you have to say something nice to me. Every time we meet, I'm the one who talks, and you just listen. There's no such thing as a free lunch."
Ruan Bi chuckled and asked, "What sounds good?"
"Whatever you say, it will sound nice."
"Prince Jin was born in the Year of the Dog, and he's said to bite. Does that sound nice?"
The Prince of Jin chuckled and said, "You dare to insult me? You've got some nerve."
"What, you want to punish me with twenty strokes of the military rod?"
"You can't even withstand ten strokes of the military rod."
Ruan Bi gave a disbelieving snort.
"Don't be so stubborn. I can snap you in two with just a light pinch," said the Prince of Jin, tightening his grip and pinching hard.
Ruan Bi was immediately choked and couldn't breathe, letting out a weak "whimper".
This sound was naturally delicate and pitiful, yet deeply moving. In this atmosphere, it was like a spark falling into a pile of oil, instantly exploding. Prince Jin felt all the blood rushing to one place in his body. His mind went blank at first, then wicked thoughts flew everywhere. He quickly let go and even gave him a push.
Ruan Bi lost her balance and stumbled back a few steps until she bumped her back against the wall. At first, she was puzzled and looked at him blankly. But when she saw his face turn red and his eyes burning like fire, and that he didn't dare look at her, she immediately understood what was going on. She blushed as well, turned around, and chuckled, her head against the wall.
The Prince of Jin noticed her shoulders twitching and said, "Are you secretly laughing?"
Ruan Bi suppressed a laugh and said, "No."
"Then what are you doing with your shoulder?"
I'm crying.
Why are you crying?
Ruan Bi couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"You were indeed laughing." The Prince of Jin felt embarrassed, then incredulous, and asked in a low voice, "You understand?"
Ruan Biming asked knowingly, "What do you know?"
"You know what I'm talking about."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
The Prince of Jin stood there, lost in thought for a moment, sometimes thinking she understood, sometimes thinking it was impossible for her to. One moment he hoped she understood, the next he hoped she didn't. "How old are you anyway? Sometimes I feel like you're older than me."
Ruan Bi thought to herself, "Brother, you've hit the nail on the head," and couldn't help but laugh again.
The Prince of Jin looked at her trembling shoulders and felt truly helpless.
Just then, two knocking sounds rang out, followed by Youde's voice: "Your Highness, there's been a commotion in the reception room. I just went over to listen, and it seems that Second Miss Ruan is looking for Fifth Miss. What should we do?"
The King of Jin said in a harsh tone, "Kill her."
Ruan Bi, inside the house, and You De, outside, were both stunned.
Youde wondered, "Could it be that the Prince and the Fifth Miss have broken up again?" Looking up at Yu Qing, who was hiding on the beam, he saw him sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, like an old monk in meditation. "Your Highness, are you serious?"
"nonsense."
Ruan Bi snapped out of her daze and looked closely at Prince Jin. She saw a hint of murderous intent between his brows; he clearly wasn't joking. "Why would I kill her?"
“I wanted to kill her last time. If it weren’t for her, I could have had the Empress Dowager directly betroth you to me yesterday. Today I specially asked Yunying to bring you here, just so I could spend some time with you. But she’s causing trouble again. Killing her wouldn’t be enough to vent my anger.”
Seeing his cold tone, Ruan Bi's confused and infatuated mind cleared up a bit. She suddenly remembered their encounter at Wanmiao Residence, where he had originally intended to kill her. It seemed that although he loved and cared for all people and bestowed blessings upon the common folk, these were all high-ranking rewards. If anyone dared to touch his sore spot, losing their head would be a trivial matter.
It can't be said to be wrong, because this is inherently a privileged society.
The Prince of Jin continued, “Yesterday when I entered the palace, my mother mentioned her to me, saying that the second granddaughter of Ruan Wenxiao was also quite good. My mother is the daughter of the former King’s Privy Councilor, so she is from a distinguished family. Moreover, she is skilled in embroidery and calligraphy, and is a rare find with a kind heart and gentle nature. Humph, does she think I don’t know what she’s up to? She embroidered a tattered painting and presented it to my mother, just to try and get a marriage proposal.”
A soft cough came from outside, and said, "Then, Your Highness, I'll go and kill her."
Ruan Bi quickly said, "Wait, Youde, please don't do anything rash." Turning to look at Prince Jin, she asked, "How can you kill someone in front of so many people?"
“What’s so difficult about that? Youde just bumps into her, and I guarantee she’ll vomit blood and die tonight.”
Hearing him mention killing as easily as killing a chicken, Ruan Bi felt a mix of emotions. Although she disliked the second young lady, she didn't want her dead.
The Prince of Jin glanced at her sideways, a half-smile on his face, and said, "What, are you scared?"
"Let's not kill anyone."
"Oh?" Prince Jin beckoned to her, and Ruan Bi had no choice but to walk to his side. He took her hand and said, "Fine, if you say you won't kill me, then you won't." He raised his voice slightly, "Youde, did you hear what Fifth Miss said? No matter what method you use, make her shut up and not dare to speak." After saying that, he looked at her with a half-smile.
Youde chuckled and replied, "Yes."
Ruan Bi finally realized that he had been teasing her, and she glared at him fiercely. The Prince of Jin found her both angry and reproachful, utterly adorable, beyond words. He remained silent, simply watching her. Ruan Bi knew their parting was imminent, and her heart overflowed with tenderness. She couldn't help but reach out and wrap her arms around his waist.
The Prince of Jin felt a surge of sweetness in his heart and said, "This is the first time you've taken the initiative to embrace me."
"You remember all of this?"
"Of course. In the beginning, I wanted to be nice to you, but you ran away faster than a rabbit. After I smashed your carriage once, you finally became smarter, but you were still very wary of me and didn't even write me a letter. I sent Yunying to your mansion, and you finally became a little more sensible. Sigh, sometimes I feel like I'm abducting a girl."
Ruan Bi was deeply moved. The barriers in her heart had long been flattened by his words and actions. After thinking for a moment, she leaned in and gently kissed his cheek, then quickly pulled away, saying, "Now, it seems this humble woman has snatched the prince away."
The Prince of Jin froze, only recovering after a moment. He looked at her closely, finding her utterly wonderful and captivating. "How about we snatch her again?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
