Mei Jiu wanted to tell Hua Rongtian that she wasn’t Mei Ruhan, nor was she the assassin from the Konghe Army who had replaced Mei Ruyan. She was Mei Jiu. However, after a moment of silence, she simply responded, “Husband.”
Mei Jiu hadn’t forgotten that besides being her husband, Hua Rongtian was also an excellent politician.
Hua Rongtian paused, regaining his usual calm and wisdom. Recalling what Mei Jiu had said earlier, a vague idea flashed through his mind.
“Mei Shisi…” Hua Rongtian suddenly remembered the year he went to Meihua Village to propose.
Mei Jiu’s face changed slightly. Although her previous words had almost revealed her identity, how many people in this world would think of resurrection in another’s body? Had she underestimated Hua Rongtian?
Hua Rongtian had merely been testing the waters, but seeing her reaction, he was surprised. “You’re Mei Shisi?”
There were many reasons for seeking to marry Mei Shisi back then, but the two most important were: that the Mei family desperately needed her mother, and having grown up outside the family, she wouldn’t have a strong sense of belonging to the Mei clan.
Of course, these were just afterthoughts. Their main purpose was to test whether this Mei family was the one within the Konghe Army and to gauge the Emperor’s attitude.
The Emperor and the Hua clan were now openly at odds, which was closely related to this matter.
Hua Rongtian couldn’t make sense of many things. Mei Shisi should only be seventeen or eighteen years old, but the woman before him appeared to be in her twenties. Yet her every move didn’t resemble that of an assassin who had trained for many years in the Konghe Army. Moreover, why would the Emperor think of using Mei Shisi as a replacement?
Seeing Hua Rongtian deep in thought, Mei Jiu realized he hadn’t considered the possibility of resurrection. His bold guess was simply because he had never seen the female assassins around the Emperor, nor had he met her before.
Their eyes met, and Mei Jiu looked away.
A cold wind carrying snow gusted in from outside, rustling the pages of the book on the bed.
Not long after An Jiu left the city, she spotted a tall, dark figure in the snowy night, standing out starkly against the white landscape.
“Chu Dingjiang,” An Jiu called out as she ran towards him.
Her speed was like the wind, and Chu Dingjiang thought she might crash into him. Unfortunately…
“Try not to stop suddenly when running at high speed,” Chu Dingjiang offered a dignified reason. “It can damage your internal organs.”
An Jiu found this logical and agreed promptly. “Alright.”
“In situations like today, you can just crash into me. You won’t hurt me,” Chu Dingjiang added.
An Jiu glanced at him sideways, noting his solemn expression, and nodded. Then she asked, “Were you waiting for me here? Did something happen?”
“I guessed you’d go see Madam Hua, and I was worried about your safety,” Chu Dingjiang provided another unquestionable reason. “The Liao Kingdom definitely won’t give up on obtaining a drug person’s heart blood.”
“Mm,” An Jiu agreed. If Wei Yuzhi came looking for her again, she might not be as lucky as last time.
“You need to focus on your training and stop running around,” Chu Dingjiang advised with a fatherly air. “Instead of spending time releasing lanterns with others, you’d be better off practicing more martial arts.”
An Jiu pondered for a while. “After careful analysis and logical deduction, are you… jealous?”
“Haha!” Chu Dingjiang rubbed her head. “You don’t understand a man’s magnanimity. I wouldn’t take such small matters to heart.”
“Really?” An Jiu was skeptical, but remembering his usual grand manner, she thought perhaps she was overthinking.
Chu Dingjiang had previously taken a hands-off approach with An Jiu, not rushing even if she was slow to understand. But after some consideration, he decided he couldn’t continue like this.
He had many things to do in the future and couldn’t always be by An Jiu’s side. If talented and handsome young men kept pursuing her, he couldn’t guarantee An Jiu wouldn’t develop feelings for one of them. So it was better to secure her heart for himself first.
This was Chu Dingjiang’s first time doing something like this, but he figured if conquering a city was no problem for him, capturing a woman’s heart should be easy. The key was to proceed step by step.
He hadn’t used his inner force to protect himself, and by the time they returned to the island, the fine snow had frozen into patches of ice on his outer robe.
“Come in and warm up by the fire,” An Jiu said.
Chu Dingjiang followed her into the room without hesitation.
An Jiu had borrowed a brazier from Sui Yunzhu. When she returned to the room, she saw that Chu Dingjiang had stripped down to his thin undergarments, revealing the contours of his muscular physique.
“Why didn’t you use your inner force to protect yourself?” An Jiu asked curiously as she placed the brazier in front of him.
“It would consume too much inner energy,” Chu Dingjiang replied with a straight face.
In truth, for someone of his cultivation level, that small amount of inner force was negligible. Otherwise, why would he use it so casually? But An Jiu had no inner energy herself and didn’t understand these things.
However, An Jiu wasn’t so easily fooled. “Then why do you often use it to block snow and rain?”
Chu Dingjiang pondered for a moment. “Don’t you think it looks impressive?”
An Jiu stared at him speechlessly, feeling as if she was meeting him for the first time.
“You should take off your clothes and warm up too,” Chu Dingjiang suggested.
An Jiu quickly stripped down to her undershirt, her bare arms swaying near the brazier.
Chu Dingjiang had practiced abstinence for many years. Initially, he had no feelings for An Jiu, but just seeing her body had left an indelible impression in his mind, nearly causing a nosebleed. Now, this scene was truly hard to resist.
She had let her long hair down, the damp strands clinging to her arms, accentuating their jade-like whiteness. Her top was tucked into her pants, emphasizing her slender waist that seemed as if it could be encircled by one hand. The thick pants made her buttocks appear even more pert…
Chu Dingjiang felt a certain part of himself suddenly rise to attention.
An Jiu, unaware of his reaction, deftly untied her pants as well, revealing her underwear underneath. Her long, straight legs, white as snow, were exposed. Her body, twice reforged, was like smooth ivory, her fine white skin emitting a warm glow.
Feeling painfully swollen, Chu Dingjiang lowered his head to avoid looking.
“Oh, the charcoal is almost burnt out,” An Jiu walked over, using the fire tongs to stir the coals in the brazier.
A pair of small, delicate feet entered Chu Dingjiang’s field of vision. Due to the cold, her ten plump, round toes were tinged with a faint pink. There were some newly healed wounds on the side of her feet, a light red color, adding a uniquely cruel and bewitching beauty to their cuteness.
He hurriedly raised his head, only to see An Jiu walking barefoot to the wall, bending over to search for something. Her loose underwear allowed a view of her round buttocks from this angle.
Chu Dingjiang could feel his pulsing, something about to erupt.
Based on his previous life experience, he knew what was about to happen.
He grabbed his outer robe hanging nearby, but it was a step too late.
It was over!
He looked down at his wet crotch, hearing the sound of his male dignity shattering into pieces.
“There are a few more pieces,” An Jiu pulled out a bag of charcoal from a pile of miscellaneous items. When she turned back, Chu Dingjiang was nowhere to be seen.