Xu Mo was not accustomed to being held but if it was not for how harsh last night was, she would not have been so obedient. When they arrived at the dining room, she told him to let her down.

After their meal, Xu Mo went for an afternoon nap while Li Rufeng stayed in the study to handle affairs.

The study was divided into two sections and the decorative ornaments were arranged opposite to each other. The room was very s.p.a.cious, enough for two people.

Li Rufeng felt somewhat concerned and walked towards the west side of the room. He looked at the medical books on the table and picked up one t.i.tled [Various Typhoid Prescriptions]. When he flipped it open, remarkable graceful handwriting stood out from the paper.

He turned over a few pages then returned it to its original place.

Originally, he only thought she was only interested in the art of healing but he did not expect that she would personally compile medical books.

All of a sudden, he recalled that from a young age he was arranged a marriage with a princess he had never seen by the late Emperor. He never held any hope for the marriage and only wished to completely devote himself to His Majesty.

On the day the princess returned, hundreds of government officials welcomed her. Although the young lady was dressed in the plainest green cheongsam*, her beauty was unaffected by her youthful appearance. Even the common women were dressed more exquisitely than her.

*TL-note: The cheongsam is one of the most typical, traditional, and female body-hugging dress with distinctive Chinese features for Chinese women.

Three days later, a banquet was arranged for the princess at Jingyang Palace. The young lady was only slightly adorned but compared to the imperial concubines who competed for supreme beauty, she had the same simple yet elegant appearance.

As the renovation at the princess" residence was completed, their wedding was brought up again at the banquet. Although he had a good impression of her, he did not wish to enter the royal family but who could defy a royal decree. He could only accept his fate.

The young lady, however, stood up, walked slowly towards the centre and kneeled down, "Royal Brother, I know as your younger sister I should not disappoint the efforts of the late Emperor and yourself but as you know my lifespan is uncertain with my illness. The right chancellor has such peerless talents, I feel we will not be a good match."

Upon hearing these words, he saw a flash of joy disappear from his father"s face. As for himself, he was a proud man and did not wish to become one of three thousand.

However, the late Emperor had already been mentioned and he did not dare to act rashly as everyone looked on.

Therefore half a month later, he took her as his wife and moved into the princess" residence.

On their wedding night, they exchanged the cross-cupped wine* and never spoke to each other again. The residence"s servants were few and each had their own duty to manage so it was both a peaceful and elegant place. Although it was not comparable to the extravagant royal palace, this place suited him perfectly.

*TL-note: This is a traditional Chinese wedding practice where the husband and wife exchange a cup of wine before they consummate to symbolise they have become as one.

He had his mind in politics and had no mood to bother with trivial things such as romantic love. While she enjoyed the peace and quiet every day and wanted no one to distract her. He felt this was very good. If it was impossible to treat each with mutual respect then it was better to not see each other at all.

Until that night when her illness relapsed and she was in unbearable pain. He could not find any reason to neglect her.

When he stepped into the room, a masked man dressed in white was applying needles to her snowy white skin. Underneath the long hair that partially covered her face, the beauty"s complexion was both pale and delicate.

"Yunfu, I am hurting." She vaguely called out in a weak voice.

In an instant, that aloof man with a needle in his hands became gentle and tried to softly pacify her. It won"t hurt. After this time, it will never hurt again.

He stood there and stared at them for almost an hour.

When the man finished applying the needles, he placed her down on the bed, covered her with a quilt and let down the curtains. The man"s movements were gentle yet skilled as if he had performed this many times.

Once everything was done, the man turned around and looked at him.

"You are Li Rufeng." He asked.

"Yes, I am."

"Since you are not interested in her then in a month"s time I will come and take her as my wife." The masked man left these words and disappeared.

The man of the house stood there for a long while but in the end, he still went over to take a look. And with that, it was a look he will never forget in all his life.

The young lady was awake. Her eyes were clear and bright, not a blemish in sight.

"You do not need to take his words to heart. He is just too lonely." The words floated out of her pale lips and swayed his heart.

He

Yunfu!

Li Rufeng knew exactly who she was referring to and felt somewhat bitter inside as she defended an outsider.

"Princess, please forgive Rufeng but this person"s ident.i.ty is unknown and highly skilled in martial arts. He must be an outlaw, you should not get close to him."

When she heard this, the lady smiled weakly with a distant look, "If it was not for him, I am afraid you wouldn"t even be able to see a set of my bones."  

As the candle melted and flickered, the room fell silent and the sound of falling leaves could be heard from outside.  

"Since we are both not interested then we should not waste each other"s time anymore. After all, we were forced to be together because of circ.u.mstances."

He was startled and thought back to that person with the self-righteous manner and it all made sense, "Princess wants a divorce?" Unless there was a major wrong-doing, the royal family cannot be divorced. Even if it came to that, it was the royal family who did the divorcing as their dignity must never be disgraced. In the past, it was not uncommon for a princess to divorce her husband.

"No." Her red lips lightly opened and her eyes showed a trace of regret. "It"s a mutual separation as we have both remained chaste. The right chancellor is well-known in the Jing Kingdom, I am certain you will choose a perfect wife whom you will spend a lifetime together."

For a good while, they both remained silent.

At that moment, he felt as if there was an inferno set ablaze inside of him but his handsome face continued to be expressionless. She must have calculated this all along time by not eating or sleeping together just for the sole reason to mutually separate.

The young lady began to feel uneasy at the man"s silence but she already had no more strength after today"s ordeal. She had heard that he was a simple and pure-minded man so she a.s.sumed he would accept as it was more advantageous for him.

"Right chancellor, if you are worried that my royal brother will not allow it then leave it to me, I……" Her eyes widened as her voice got cut off and he appeared in front of her. From a few inches away, she could clearly see a face that was incomparable as G.o.d Luo"s.*

*TL-note: G.o.ddess of the River Luo was a deity in ancient China. She is described as being of the utmost beauty and tenderness.

When she came back to her senses, she wanted to push him away but she had no strength in her body.

He took advantage of this, lifted his legs and climbed into bed.

He then placed his hands on both sides of her head as if to imprison her.

Originally, he was mad with fury and only wanted to shut her mouth but when he felt those soft sweet lips. His desire spread like a gigantic web and trapped him within.

The young lady tried to turn her head but he held her lower jaw and she could not move.

"How dare you……" She attempted to rouse him but as soon as she opened her mouth, he seized this opportunity and made his way in.

His l.u.s.t rapidly subsided when he realised their first intimate moment was quite rough and the lady beneath him was angry and complaining. Even though it felt really good, he did not want to be disrespect the beauty.

The man let go but the girl stayed angry. She had just started afresh here and was barely sixteen but to be disrespected like this. Even though he was very attractive, she could not stay composed any longer.

She fiercely stared at the person who was smiling warmly and called out, "Ying, get over here immediately."

Anying

"Princess, this is a matter between husband and wife so it is unsuitable for Anying to interfere. Plus you owe me a wedding night." When he finished, he took off his shoes and began to shed away his clothes one by one.

"You……" The young lady"s eyes filled with alarm and fear then spoke in a trembling voice, "I am, my body……is unwell."

The man was already down to his intimate underclothes, he lifted the quilt and said, "You don"t need to do anything, just leave it to Rufeng."

When she heard this, her whole body shook and she continued to s.h.i.+ft herself further in while contemplated on how to deal with him.

Suddenly her waist felt tight and she was dragged into a warm embrace.

"You, let me go." She begged him while tightly grasped the bedsheets with her head turned away, afraid to look at him.

If he becomes softhearted and let her get away now then surely tomorrow she will isolate herself from him.

The man thought for a while and suppressed his unwillingness to continue. With his long slender fingers, he found the belt on her waist and pulled it part without the slightest bit of hesitation.    

When her intimate underclothes came off, her white skin seemed extremely tender against her lotus-print dudou* as if she had just come out from a sh.e.l.l.

*TL-note: Dudou is a piece of cloth that covers one"s chest and belly. It was used by Chinese women as an undergarment in ancient times. It is similar to a sleeveless and backless halter-top.

The women of Jing Kingdom are tall but she had a pet.i.te figure with a tiny waist that he could hold in both hands. She seemed weak and neglected like an orchid in an empty valley waiting for someone to pluck home.

Once again their lips met and he barred her resistance while his large hands moved freely against the beauty"s curves.

In the end, he was still unable to cease the yearning in his heart. He moved his large hands behind the young lady"s neck and removed the last piece of barrier. A beautiful, undiscovered view instantly appeared in front of him.  

She was ample and full with an exquisite collarbone and a flat smooth abdomen……

His eyes trailed downwards and as he was just about to remove her bottom-half, his hands were taken a hold of.

The naked pale young lady with tears in her eyes shook her head as she tightly held on to his hands.

The man stopped and after a while, he said, "Rufeng will give the princess another half a month to adapt. Princess, you must not avoid me and from now on we will eat and sleep together. And there must be no more thoughts about separating or else we will consummate the marriage tonight."

The young lady frowned and could only nod her head while the scolding big thing pressed against her abdomen as if to tell her his words are not hollow.

From then on, the two of them lived as a normal couple for half a month.

That night, Li Rufeng knew she was unwilling but he wanted her.

He finally understood that she was a rare innocent n.o.blewoman who had an indifferent temperament and avoided immorality. She had spent most of the time with her head in medical books and rarely went out.

Although they had never met before, he was initially critical of her and treated her differently but she continued to remain deeply in his heart. As they interacted more, he felt very satisfied and became more enthusiastic.

When they were both reading in the study, his gazes always fell in her direction. And on several nights, he had secretly kissed her. On the rare occasion that she was happy, his own heart also followed…… Within a month, she had managed to enter every inch of that unmovable heart never to be forgotten again.

<> Chapter 4