It's not allowed to touch.
It turned out that today was another day for delivering medicinal herbs. Li Xiuman took advantage of Zhang Chuntian's sleep and quickly came alone to sell the herbs. Just as he was about to go home, he was attracted by the smell of the pastries. He thought Zhang Chuntian would definitely like them, so he came over to buy one. He arrived early, and the pastries were not yet fully cooked, so he had to wait there for about half an incense stick's time.
Lee Soo-man glanced at the Drunken Immortal Restaurant across the street, initially reluctant to linger, but the stall owner insisted that the freshly steamed dishes were the best. So Lee Soo-man decided to wait.
Unfortunately, today was the day he stood at the door, and several men who were drunk from the Drunken Immortal Pavilion spotted Li Xiuman.
"Hey, why is this male prostitute dressed like this!" the drunken man said, pointing at Lee Soo-man.
Lee Soo-man pulled away half a step with disgust, saying, "I'm not a male prostitute, just a farmer, very rough." His intention was to remind him that he was a rough man, and that wealthy people like him disliked people like him the most, so they wouldn't bother him.
Upon hearing this, the drunk man exclaimed, "She's not a male prostitute, yet she's so beautiful."
"Tsk tsk, isn't it still your first time? Let me pamper you properly." The drunk man took out a few silver notes from his clothes and threw them at Li Xiuman's face.
Lee Soo-man was furious and tried to leave, but was stopped by a drunk man.
"I've already given you the money, and you won't even let me touch you?"
Lee Soo-man reached out and pushed the drunk man.
“I don’t like men.” He pushed the person away.
The man was even more delighted. "You really are a virgin! Even better! You'll like it after I've done it to you a few times."
The man was accompanied by two servants. He beckoned, and the two servants immediately obeyed and went to restrain Lee Soo-man.
Lee Soo-man panicked and tried to run away, but was pulled back. He struggled desperately and was pushed to the side of the road by his servants. He stumbled and bumped into the tables and chairs of a stall, hurting his waist.
"You've got some character! I'm going to ride your spirited steed!"
Lee Soo-man got up to leave again, but was tripped by a servant. Both servants were skilled in martial arts, and Lee Soo-man twisted his ankle and could no longer move.
"Get out of my way! I said I don't like men, get out of my way! This is the main road, is there no law anymore!" Lee Soo-man endured the pain and pushed the man away.
The man chuckled and reached out to touch Lee Soo-man's chin.
As those hands were about to touch him, Lee Soo-man realized that today was truly the end for him.
He closed his eyes, thinking that if the man really touched him, he would fight him to the death. Anyway, he would never see Zhang Chunfeng again while he was alive, so there was no difference between living and dying.
Before the man could even touch it, he suddenly yelled, covered his head, and squatted down.
The two servants rushed to check on their master and saw that the man's head was covered in blood.
"Which thief dares to harm my master!" the servant shouted.
“I injured your father.” Zhang Chunfeng sneered, raising another wine pot and smashing it at the servant.
She was skilled in archery and horsemanship, and she could smash the wine jug with deadly accuracy.
The attendant was about to speak when the man saw Zhang Chunfeng's face and immediately sobered up.
Regardless of what he had done to offend the Zhou family's ancestors, the man covered his head and scurried away like a rat.
By the time Zhang Chunfeng and Zhou Zhengdu came downstairs, the group of people had vanished without a trace.
Lee Soo-man had been trembling all over since he first heard Zhang Chunfeng's voice.
Now, Zhang Chunfeng has seen him in this disheveled state.
How shameful. Li Xiuman thought bitterly, still not daring to look at Zhang Chunfeng's face.
Zhang Chunfeng looked down at Li Xiuman. The man was sitting on the ground, still with long legs and a narrow waist. The lines of his shoulders, hidden under his clothes, resembled the blurred edges of an ink painting. A beauty mark adorned the tip of his nose, and his rosy lips were pursed. With his head down, a section of his fair neck was exposed. That neck was so soft, so white, so tender, it tempted one to take a bite.
With just one glance, Zhang Chunfeng knew she was beyond saving. All the efforts she had made over the past month were in vain; she still loved him.
“Go find a sedan chair, I’ll take my sister-in-law back,” Zhang Chunfeng said to Zhou Zhengdu.
Zhou Zhengdu seemed to be thinking about something. After listening to Zhang Chunfeng's words, he paused for a few moments before nodding repeatedly and going to find a sedan chair.
Zhang Chunfeng stepped forward, intending to help Li Xiuman up, but Li Xiuman instinctively flinched away with both arms.
Zhang Chunfeng snorted coldly, the sound penetrating Li Xiuman's ears and into his heart. Li Xiuman's heart began to ache again.
Zhang Chunfeng didn't give Li Xiuman any choice but to forcefully pull him up. Li Xiuman's back and feet ached, and the sudden pull made him gasp in pain.
"What a fool," Zhang Chunfeng said coldly, recalling how Li Xiuman had closed his eyes in front of that drunkard earlier. He hadn't even resisted? He had been like a lamb, offering his neck to be groped!
Even after being reprimanded, Lee Soo-man still dared not look at Zhang Chunfeng. The two had not seen each other for a full month, and just being pulled up by Zhang Chunfeng through his sleeve made Lee Soo-man feel weak all over.
He softened from the bottom of his heart to the very core of his being. He wasn't helpless against the drunkard; he was prepared to fight to the death. It was only when facing Zhang Chunfeng that he felt utterly helpless, truly like a fish on a chopping board, at Zhang Chunfeng's mercy.
Zhou Zhengdu found a sedan chair, but Li Xiuman saw that there was only one sedan chair and was afraid of being in the same sedan chair as Zhang Chunfeng.
He shook his head immediately, "I can walk by myself."
“It takes an hour to walk home from here. Your legs will be ruined by the time you get back.” Zhang Chunfeng forcefully shoved the man into the sedan chair. “Isn’t having a mentally challenged brother enough? Do you want me to have a lame sister-in-law too?”
Her words were so harsh that Lee Soo-man could only lower his head and dare not speak again.
Zhang Chunfeng seemed to exchange a few words with Zhou Zhengdu before getting into the sedan chair.
This sedan chair isn't very big. Usually, larger ones have seating in the middle and on the sides. This one only has a small space in the middle.
Lee Soo-man quickly moved to the side, but in that small space, Zhang Chunfeng sat down inside, and although there was no physical contact between them, the hems of their clothes became entangled.
The sedan chair was about to be lifted. The curtain on Lee Soo-man's side of the sedan chair was lifted again.
"Sir, your osmanthus cake." It was the same stall owner from before.
Li Xiuman hurriedly tried to say that he hadn't paid, but Zhang Chunfeng said, "Take it, let's get in the sedan chair."
After getting out of the sedan chair, Li Xiuman held the steaming hot osmanthus cake in her arms and thought to herself, "So she just bought some pastries."
Zhang Chunfeng glanced at Li Xiuman, then took the pastries from Li Xiuman's lap, untied one, and tasted one himself. The freshly baked pastries were hot and fragrant, with a smooth and silky texture; they were truly delicious.
After eating one, she coldly ordered, "Open your mouth."
“I wanted to buy it for Chuntian…” Before he could finish speaking, Zhang Chunfeng suddenly pinched his chin, forcing him to raise his head. Then, she forcefully pried open his mouth with her fingers, stuffed the pastry inside, and pressed his chin down to close his mouth.
Lee Soo-man coughed repeatedly from the choking, but when he caught Zhang Chunfeng's gaze, he dared not cough loudly and obediently chewed the pastry slowly in his mouth before swallowing it.
He ate too quickly and didn't taste the specific flavor of the pastry at all. Only after swallowing did he feel a faint osmanthus fragrance linger in his throat.
Zhang Chunfeng watched Li Xiuman obediently swallow. The gloom that had been weighing on his heart vanished instantly. Li Xiuman was so well-behaved at that moment.
Yes, why should I say those words of blessing to Lee Soo-man? Since he says he has a bright future, then let him pursue that bright future. Since he says that once he achieves fame and success, he can choose any man in the world he wants. And if he can choose any man he wants, then Lee Soo-man is naturally among them.
If she truly achieved fame and success, wouldn't she be able to win over Lee Soo-man? What if he wasn't willing? He'd still eat even with her chin being held by her. If she had to force him like this every day from now on... well, that wouldn't matter.
As long as I can see him, I'll take him by force, no matter how I try to seize him.
As Zhang Chunfeng thought about it, tenderness gradually returned to his peach blossom eyes. He stared intently at Li Xiuman, making Li Xiuman feel hot all over. Li Xiuman tried his best to shrink back, refusing to meet Zhang Chunfeng's gaze.
Zhang Chunfeng smiled and said, "Why are you being so distant with me, sister-in-law?"
Lee Soo-man was taken aback. After all, the two had done so much together, and he was very familiar with Zhang Chunfeng's many subtle expressions and facial movements. He had a feeling that there was something else going on in Zhang Chunfeng's words.
I did not.
“When I injured my leg, my sister-in-law took me home. Now that she is injured, I will take her home myself. So we are even. There’s no need for you to do this.”
These words brought Lee Soo-man a slight sense of relief, but a wave of bitterness washed over him. They were even now; he and she were no longer connected.
Seeing that Lee Soo-man hadn't moved, Zhang Chunfeng reached out, her slender fingers landing steadily on Lee Soo-man's beautiful neck. Her fingertips gently rubbed against the bones of Lee Soo-man's neck.
Lee Soo-man got goosebumps all over his body. He felt weak, like a cat being grabbed by the neck, and dared not move his head or body.
"You, you shouldn't do this," Lee Soo-man said.
Zhang Chunfeng's smile widened. "What do you mean by 'don't do this'?"
With one hand gripping Lee Soo-man's beautiful neck, the other hand suddenly grabbed Lee Soo-man's body, forcing him to face him directly.
"Is it that you can't touch me? Or that you can't hug me? Or maybe..."
Li Xiuman was shocked and opened his mouth to shout, but Zhang Chunfeng covered his mouth.
"Does your sister-in-law want all the sedan bearers outside to hear this?"
Li Xiuman's face was flushed, and he dared not move. His mouth and nose were covered by Zhang Chunfeng's hands, and he could not breathe. He tried to open his mouth and breathe through Zhang Chunfeng's fingers, and his eyes became wet.
"Sister-in-law, are you still being stubborn? Don't you like me?" Zhang Chunfeng deliberately touched her finger once and then stopped, leaving her fingers glistening with moisture.
Li Xiuman truly felt like dying. He was so embarrassed that, despite saying he didn't like it, Zhang Chunfeng was soaked through with so much moisture that it looked as if he had just washed his hands.
"Stop the sedan chair," Lee Soo-man said, his voice trembling with suppressed sobs. "I want to get off."
Zhang Chunfeng gently wiped his wet hands on Li Xiuman's fair face. Li Xiuman huddled up with his eyes closed, his long, curled eyelashes trembling.
"There's a pond outside. Does my sister-in-law want to be out in the wild with me?"
"I... I already made myself very clear last time," Li Xiu said stubbornly, though her whole body was still trembling uncontrollably.
"Heh." Zhang Chunfeng's smile deepened. He hooked Li Xiuman's chin, forcing her to look him in the eye. "Everyone says my sister-in-law has a good temper, but now that I see her, she's really awkward and strange. She's not well-behaved at all, she's really asking for it..."
The last word, Zhang Chunfeng whispered into Li Xiuman's ear, was undisguised and naked, piercing into Li Xiuman's ear like the hottest coal in winter. With just one slap, Li Xiuman's neck, ears, and even his entire body turned red.
"Stop the sedan chair, I..." Lee Soo-man pursed his lips, then continued without any backbone, "The clothes I washed are still by the pond and haven't been brought in yet."
He came here to wash his clothes in the morning. People in the village usually hang their freshly washed clothes out by the pond for a while to dry slightly so they won't be too heavy when they bring them home.
Zhang Chunfeng smiled slightly upon hearing this, "So that's what it is." She then called out, "Stop the sedan chair."
"Did I go and collect your laundry?"
Lee Soo-man retorted, "Which one of these clothes do you recognize as belonging to your family?"
Seeing Zhang Chunfeng stand there for a moment, Li Xiuman limped off the sedan chair, with Zhang Chunfeng following behind.
To get to the riverbank, you have to come down from the road and then walk into the woods; it's quite a distance.
The two entered the woods, and with the trees providing a backdrop, Zhang Chunfeng suddenly stepped forward and lifted Li Xiuman up in his arms.
Lee Soo-man was genuinely surprised. "Chun-feng, put me down. I'm very heavy."
"It's not heavy. We've done this position before. I know your strengths and weaknesses."
Lee Soo-man blushed again upon hearing this. He was always knocked unconscious by Zhang Chunfeng's various tricks, which left him unable to cope.
Zhang Chunfeng wrapped his arms around Li Xiuman's waist and genuinely felt that the person in his arms had lost even more weight in the past month.
Come to think of it, before she married into the family, Li Xiuman only had to take care of herself and her ailing mother. Now that she's married into the family, she has to take care of the mentally challenged Zhang Chuntian, the fifty-something-year-old Li Shi, and also do Zhang Chunfeng's laundry and make his shoes.
When Li Xiuman saw the clothes, he asked Zhang Chunfeng to put him down and carefully put all the clothes into the basket.
“I’ll have someone find a young maid to help you tidy up the house in a bit,” Zhang Chunfeng said, slowly walking over and taking Li Xiuman’s hand. “Marrying into my family will only make things harder for you.”
Lee Soo-man's hand was held tightly, and she noticed that Zhang Chunfeng's tone was very different from before. She felt a little embarrassed. Someone who had never experienced passionate love didn't know how to respond to it.
"It's okay, you'll get used to it," Lee Soo-man stammered.
Zhang Chunfeng shook his head and opened his arms to embrace Li Xiuman.
“I don’t want you to be like this. It was my fault before. I was enjoying myself in the Zhou mansion and never thought that all the work of this family would be left on your shoulders. You have lost a lot of weight.”
Zhang Chunfeng nuzzled Li Xiuman's neck with the tip of his nose.
"My heart aches for you."
Lee Soo-man lowered his head, his eyes moist. She felt heartache? Was she truly the only one in the world who cared for him? Just moments ago, Lee Soo-man felt he'd rather be dead, a shameful urge to die. Now, held tightly in Zhang Chunfeng's arms, he felt a blissful urge to die. Zhang Chunfeng's embrace was so warm, so hot, his faint fragrance filling his nostrils, cleansing his very being.
All the hard work, all the fatigue, all the toil day and night over the past few days are nothing.
"I...I'm really fine." Lee Soo-man's voice was a little hoarse. For a moment, he hated himself for being so tongue-tied. He could say those decisive things back then, but now he just couldn't bring himself to say sweet words. He was truly tongue-tied, so incredibly tongue-tied.
“Sister-in-law, I just said we’re even,” Zhang Chunfeng suddenly said.
Lee Soo-man's once warm heart instantly plummeted to rock bottom. Zhang Chunfeng always had this ability to easily manipulate his entire heart. If Zhang Chunfeng really wanted to play with his heart, he could probably make him suffer terribly.
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