Chapter 221 -

Chapter 221: Chapter

Nine leaned back against the carved bedpost, crossing his arms as he looked at her with a solemn glint in his eyes.

"Well, Host, if you’re really going to pull this off, you better start preparing yourself," Nine said, his voice dropping into a quieter register. He suddenly paused, his gaze shifting toward the heavy wooden door of her chamber. "Speaking of preparing... your stubborn general is coming this way right now."

Yueqing blinked, surprised. "Wenzhe? Coming here?"

"Yep," Nine snickered, dusting off his white sleeves as he began to fade into glowing particles of light. "Good luck, Host. You’ve got a very broken man on your hands."

With a soft shimmer, Nine vanished into thin air.

Yueqing stood up from her seat, smoothing down the front of her night robes. She walked over to the door, her heart thumping against her ribs. Just as Nine had warned, heavy, unsteady footsteps echoed right outside her room.

Before she could even reach out to touch the brass latch, the wooden door swung open with a creak.

Wenzhe stood in the doorway. His dark hair was slightly unraveled, his sharp silver-embroidered robes looked rumpled, and his usual cold, unyielding posture was completely gone. The moment his dark, bloodshot eyes locked onto Yueqing, his rigid frame simply collapsed forward.

"Whoa—Wenzhe!" Yueqing gasped, catching him as his massive body fell straight into her arms.

He hit her like a falling mountain. Yueqing stumbled back two steps, her small frame straining under his heavy weight. Before she could push him back to ask what was going to happen, Wenzhe wrapped his long arms tightly around her waist, burying his face directly into the crook of her neck.

Soft, broken groans escaped his throat, followed by a quiet, trembling sob that vibrated straight through her chest.

Yueqing froze, her mind going completely blank. The terrifying, ice-cold General Xi, the man who commanded thousands of soldiers without blinking was holding her like a lost, heartbroken child, weeping silently against her neck.

"Hey... hey, what is wrong with you?!" Yueqing nagged frantically, struggling to support his broad shoulders. "You heavy block of wood, lift your feet! I am going to break into two pieces if you keep leaning on me like this!"

Gritting her teeth, Yueqing dragged his heavy body toward the bed step by step, huffing and complaining the entire way.

"Honestly! You weigh as much as an iron carriage! Move your legs, Wenzhe!"

With a final, dramatic heave, she managed to push him onto the soft silk mattress. But the moment his back hit the bed, Wenzhe didn’t let go of her waist. Instead, he pulled her down with him, burying his face back into her lap while holding her tight against his chest.

Yueqing lay awkwardly pinned beside him, her breathing heavy as she looked down at his dark head. She already knew the truth, she knew about his father’s crazy plan to annul his marriage, about the Crown Prince’s rebellion, and the terrifying trap his family was walking into. But seeing Wenzhe reduced to this broken state made a painful ache bloom right in her chest.

"Wenzhe," Yueqing said softly, trying to keep her tone calm despite her heart pounding wildly. "What happened in the study? What did your father say to you?"

Wenzhe stayed silent for a long moment, his hot breath fanning across her robes. He didn’t offer a single word about his father’s betrayal or the dark secrets hanging over the Xi family.

"Nothing," Wenzhe rasped out, his voice thick and rough from crying. He tightened his arms around her waist, squeezing her close. "I just... I just want to hold you."

Yueqing’s cheeks instantly flushed a bright, burning red.

[Hold me?!]’ she screamed in her head, her inner voice going completely frantic. [First you ignore me all day like I’m a ghost, and now you want to be clingy?! My heart cannot handle this much emotional drama in one night!]

To break her own chaotic tension and relax her racing heart, Yueqing lifted her hand and brought it down hard right onto his firm buttocks with a loud SLAP!

"Ow!" Wenzhe groaned in pain, his dark eyes snapping open as he sat up abruptly, clutching his side.

Yueqing instantly scrambled off the bed, smoothing her messy robes and folding her arms tightly over her chest. She stood right in front of him, glaring down with her brows pulled into a sharp, annoyed frown as she began her full nagging routine.

"What on earth do you take me for, General Xi?!" Yueqing huffed loudly, pointing a finger at his face. "First you kiss me out of nowhere in the palace, then you ignore me the entire way home and act like I don’t exist! And now you burst into my room late at night, crying and demanding hugs?!"

She stomped her foot dramatically, her voice rising in frustration. "Wenzhe, are you completely insane, or do you suffer from sudden memory loss?!"

Wenzhe sat on the edge of the bed, his dark eyes slowly tracing her face. Her lips were pouted into a deep frown, and her hair tumbled freely down her back without a single hairpin holding it up. Without her usual stiff hairstyles, she looked remarkably cozy, soft, and cute. His gaze drifted down to her loose silk nightwear, which draped softly over her chest.

Yueqing was still standing right in front of him, her arms folded tightly as she rambled on, completely unaware of where his attention had landed.

"...and another thing! You can’t just treat me like an emotional rollercoaster! One minute you’re an icy block of wood, and the next you’re—hey! Are you even listening to me?!"

Wenzhe wasn’t listening to a single word. His mind was entirely blank. Driven by pure, unthinking impulse, he reached his hand straight out and casually cupped one of her breasts through the thin silk.

Yueqing’s speech cut off mid-sentence. Her eyes went wide as saucers, and she instantly brought her hand down, slapping his wrist away with a loud PAT!

"Wenzhe! What are you doing?!" she shrieked, her cheeks burning bright red.

Instead of answering or apologizing, a faint, sleepy smirk touched Wenzhe’s lips. Without missing a beat, he reached out his other hand and grabbed her other breast with a soft, quiet giggle.

SMACK!

This time, Yueqing slapped his hand away so hard his arm bounced back.

"Wenzhe!" Yueqing yelled, her hands flying over her chest as her face flushed from hot embarrassment to genuine, furious rage. "Are you out of your mind?! I am talking to you about serious things, and you are sitting there playing with my body like a shameless rogue?!"

She stepped back out of his reach, her chest heaving as she glared down at him.

[This man has officially lost his sanity!] Yueqing screamed internally, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird. [His family is falling apart, his father is planning treason, and his brain has completely dissolved into perverted nonsense! Nine! Nine, come back and fix his brain!]

Wenzhe let his hands drop into his lap, looking up at her with heavy, half-lidded eyes.

He let out a long, weary sigh, his expression softening as he looked into her angry, glaring eyes.

"I’m sorry," Wenzhe murmured softly, his voice low and genuine. "I... I just missed you."

Hearing his soft apology, Yueqing let out a long, heavy sigh, her shoulders dropping in defeat. She knew he was a hopeless cause.

Wenzhe looked up at her, his dark eyes shadowed with a heavy, quiet intensity that made her breath catch in her throat.

"Yueqing..." Wenzhe spoke softly, his deep voice barely above a whisper. "If I wanted to annul our marriage... what would you say? Would you agree to it?"

Yueqing froze for a second, catching her breath.

"Agree? I would jump at the chance!" Yueqing boasted confidently, tossing her chin up. "In fact, I would sign the papers far earlier than whatever schedule you have planned. I’d demand a massive mountain of gold and silver as my divorce compensation, pack my trunks, and leave to live my absolute best life in complete luxury and peace!"

Wenzhe listened to her grandiose exit strategy, his brows furrowing into a deep, dissatisfied frown. He stared straight into her eyes, his lips curling into a quiet, knowing line.

"You wouldn’t agree," Wenzhe said plainly, his voice smooth and steady. "Because you love me."

Hearing those words spoken so casually out loud, Yueqing’s face instantly flushed a burning, volcanic red.

"No, I don’t!" she shrieked, her voice jumping an octave higher in pure denial as she lashed out at him. "What on earth are you talking about?! Who loves you?! Don’t flatter yourself! You are delusional!"

Despite her loud, panicked protest, her bright crimson face and frantically beating heart betrayed her completely.

[This shameless, arrogant, block of wood!] Yueqing screamed frantically in her mind, her cheeks melting from the sheer heat. [Who gave him the confidence to say that with a straight face?!]

A faint, mischievous smirk finally touched Wenzhe’s lips. the first genuine trace of lightness on his face all evening.

He didn’t waste his breath arguing with her denial. Instead, he reached out, caught both of her hands in his broad palms, and gave a swift, firm tug.

"Whoa—!"

Yueqing lost her balance entirely, letting out a sharp gasp as she tumbled forward, landing squarely onto his lap. Before she could scramble backward or hit him again, Wenzhe wrapped his long, muscular arm securely around her waist like a band of steel, locking her firmly against his chest.

"Let go of me!" Yueqing huffed, wiggling against his grip with her face still burning hot. "You’re heavy, you’re shameless, and you’re abusing your martial arts!"

"I’m not letting go," Wenzhe murmured near her ear, his chin resting lightly on her shoulder as his tight grip relaxed into a warm, grounding embrace. "You can ask for all the gold in the treasury, Yueqing... but I am not letting you annul anything."