Chapter 74

Chapter 74

Though Ji Hanyi was somewhat petite, she was not thin. She looked dewy and softly rounded.

Dazed and disoriented, she found herself pressed into a corner of the carriage. The figure before her was shrouded in shadow, and Shen Si’s tall frame blocked most of the already dim light, enveloping her completely in his darkness.

Ji Hanyi still felt as if she were dreaming. Her eyes were half closed, and she peered at him through a sleepy haze. All she could make out was a scarlet official robe. Lowering her gaze, she saw the carved rhinoceros-horn belt around his waist. When she looked up again, she found herself staring at the fierce beast embroidered across his chest.

Unable to make sense of what she was seeing, she reached out to touch the embroidered Xiezhi. But its fangs were pointed at her, and she found them terribly frightening. Her head swam and her eyelids grew heavy. Her fingertips changed course, clutching Shen Si’s lapel instead.

Shen Si glanced at Ji Hanyi, then lowered his eyes to the fingers gripping his clothes.

He had always kept himself impeccably neat and could not tolerate so much as a wrinkle in his robes. Yet now, despite the creases Ji Hanyi had made, he merely stared at her soft, pale hand for a long while. His fingers twitched. In the end, he reached out and enclosed her hand in his palm before looking back at her face.

Sleepy tears still shimmered in her eyes. The corners were flushed red, and her long lashes trembled faintly.

Her delicate brows and eyes were veiled in mist. The translucent green earrings beside her cheeks glimmered softly, and the bite mark on her red lips looked lush and glistening. The sight made Shen Si’s entire body tense.

She had no idea how alluring she was at that moment.

The hand in his palm was soft and docile. She let him toy with it without stirring.

She truly did seem drunk.

Even so, Shen Si gently lowered Ji Hanyi’s hand. Finding it slightly cold, he placed it against his chest and covered it with his own hand to warm it.

He studied her lovely, flushed features, then leaned closer. His voice held a rasp even he did not notice.

“Madam Xie.”

Ji Hanyi seemed to hear him, but her brows knitted together.

There was no telling what she was dreaming. The hand Shen Si had placed against his chest pressed forward again, its fine, soft fingers carrying a delicate fragrance. It seemed as though she were pushing him away — and yet also inviting him closer.

Shen Si let out a low, stifled sigh and drew a deep breath.

But the hand soon lost its strength and went limp once more. He tightened his grip around it.

Shen Si sat beside Ji Hanyi, one hand braced next to her face as he gazed down at the tears in her eyes. They were wet and hazy, with tear tracks still staining her fair cheeks. Even drunk, she remained quiet, barely moving at all.

Her winter hood had already slipped off, revealing a cascade of raven hair. Her cloudlike coiffure and jeweled ornaments filled his darkened gaze, while her exposed pale neck offered a sight that stirred the imagination.

Heat surged wildly through his body. The hand braced beside her face slowly curled into a fist, and his broad back bent lower despite himself.

All he could see were those slightly parted red lips.

She would soon obtain her divorce from Xie Yuheng anyway, he thought. She had left the Xie Family today; she need only never go back. He would make every arrangement for her.

The woman he had yearned for night after night was now right beside him.

Shen Si had always been skilled at restraining himself, but his instinctive desire for her and the depth of his feelings had already passed beyond his control.

Just then, Ji Hanyi murmured again.

Her words were slurred, as if she were rambling drunkenly.

Her brows drew together once more, and she seemed to be in some discomfort.
After drinking wine that strong, how could she not feel awful?

Shen Si shifted upright, but ultimately restrained himself and tapped lightly on the carriage wall.

Wen’an had been waiting outside all along. Seeing that his master had another order, he hurried forward.

Shen Si instructed Wen’an to prepare a sobering decoction. Wen’an acknowledged the order, though inwardly, he could not help lamenting on his master’s behalf.

His master was perfect in every way — he was simply far too proper.

Madam Xie was drunk, and there was no one else here. If his master took the opportunity to make their union a fait accompli, how could Madam Xie possibly refuse him afterward?

Otherwise, with that eternally aloof expression of his, Madam Xie might go her entire life without ever realizing that his master loved her.

Thoughts were only thoughts, however. Wen’an remained quick and efficient, and soon returned with the sobering decoction. He had even prepared a bowl for Rongchun.

Inside the carriage, Shen Si took the bowl, bent down, and brought a spoonful of medicine to Ji Hanyi’s lips.

But the woman sleeping off her drunkenness clearly had no intention of cooperating. She turned her head aside and refused to drink.

Ji Hanyi was rarely ever petulant. She had always been soft and sweet, but now, as if disturbed in the middle of a dream, she instinctively reached out to push him away. The medicine spilled across her collar.

Shen Si let out a quiet sigh. A trace of tenderness had entered his habitually distant eyes. He used a handkerchief to wipe her collar clean, then bent over her and coaxed her in a low, hoarse voice, feeding her one spoonful at a time.

Ji Hanyi was still very obedient. Even drunk, she did not throw a tantrum. After pushing him away a few times, she obediently opened her mouth. She had always been softhearted; whenever anyone spoke gently to her, she could never bring herself to resist.

In truth, Shen Si had always known everything about Ji Hanyi — her temperament, her preferences. Yet she had likely never tried to understand him.

After drinking half a bowl of the sobering decoction, her crimson lips glistened with moisture. Shen Si saw a tear slowly slip from the corner of her tightly closed eye and reached out to wipe it away.

But as he tried to withdraw his hand, her soft fingers caught hold of it.

Her expression seemed deeply aggrieved. She pulled his hand into her embrace, pressing his palm against her full breasts. Shen Si’s entire body tightened, yet he lowered himself despite that, allowing her to hug his arm.

Her soft fragrance enveloped him, and at last, he made out what she was saying.

She wanted him to hold her.

Or perhaps he was not the one she was calling for at all.

But Ji Hanyi had already wrapped her arms around his waist. She nuzzled her face against his neck and murmured again in a soft, hoarse voice, “Papa…”

Shen Si stiffened slightly before tugging at the corner of his lips.

Being mistaken for her father was still better than being mistaken for another man.

The carriage was spacious, but with two people lying inside, it still felt somewhat cramped. Shen Si remained half propped up, letting the woman beside him cling to his waist.

The front of Ji Hanyi’s collar was still damp from the spilled decoction. Afraid she might catch cold, Shen Si tried to tuck his handkerchief against it. The moment he lowered his head, however, a soft arm curled around his neck. He paused and looked down. The woman beneath him was still hopelessly drunk, her eyes closed, yet she was clinging to his neck and pulling him down against her.

Shen Si gazed silently at Ji Hanyi’s sleeping face. Soft, alluring, and delicate, she looked like a tempting morsel waiting to be swallowed whole. His fingers tightened involuntarily around her waist.

He was not a man without mortal passions. Her taking the initiative to draw close nearly ignited the desire already boiling inside him.

He tightened his arm around her slender waist and turned onto his side. His thin lips hovered barely a finger’s breadth from hers, and Shen Si’s throat bobbed with rare nervousness.

He was still suppressing himself, still holding back, but the lips so tantalizingly close to his own moved forward and brushed softly against his.