The room was deathly silent. The palace lamp in the corner burned quietly, occasionally crackling with sparks. Outside was pitch black, with only the occasional summer cicada’s chirp passing through the slightly open window. Moonlight poured in like water through a corner of the window crack. The night in Wupeng City was cool, with pleasant temperatures and a peaceful atmosphere.

For those trained in martial arts, hearing was exceptionally acute, especially in such a quiet environment. Soon, the deliberately hushed voices of men drifted in from outside. The guards gathered carefully, gossiping shamelessly about their master:

“The young master usually looks so serious, who would have thought he’d enjoy this sort of thing.”

“Exactly! Making so much noise, clothes thrown everywhere, what an intense scene!”

“That woman’s luck has certainly turned, managing to catch our young master’s eye.”

“Though that woman’s figure is truly impressive, those legs, so long and white…”

“Have you lost your mind? That’s the young master’s woman. Be careful, or the young master will gouge out those dog eyes of yours!”

“Ah, Brother Zhang speaks the truth. We must completely forget about this, pretend we’re blind.”

“I’ve been in this household for so many years. You might think the young master’s temper has improved a lot, but back in the day, he was quite a fearsome character. Who in the mansion wasn’t afraid of him? Listen to me, and you won’t go wrong! But speaking of which, that young female servant has excellent qualities, that figure, that face, but… why does she seem somewhat familiar?”

“You find every beautiful woman familiar.”

…

The group chuckled, and then their voices faded, likely having walked further away.

Inside the room, the two remained in their original positions, each clutching the other’s throat, their legs tightly intertwined. Their eyes locked, filled with too many complex emotions.

A sudden breeze blew through the slightly open window, making the large red gauze curtains dance. Dozens of gauzy drapes swayed together, passing between the two of them. The soft fabric brushed against their eyes, and through the transparent curtains, both appeared somewhat blurred to each other.

Time slowly passed. From far away, the night watchman’s drum penetrated the thick darkness, echoing throughout the vast mansion like ripples on a river when a small boat glides across the misty southern waters, slow but determined, so prolonged, like a song expressing Biantang’s unique gentle charm.

Their gazes gradually, inch by inch, cooled.

From initial shock, embarrassment, anger, and hostility, slowly transformed into two calm stares. Like a massive stone thrown into a lake—despite the huge splash it initially created, gradually the stone sank, water covering it, drowning it bit by bit until only ripples remained, echoing, floating, eventually settling into stillness as if nothing had happened.

With unspoken agreement, they simultaneously released their grip on each other’s throats, withdrawing slightly, gradually.

Chu Qiao pulled up the silk blanket, holding it against her chest to cover her exposed fair skin. Her eyes fixed steadily on the man opposite, unblinking, suppressing all emotions, leaving only intense wariness and caution.

Indeed, this man was the Fourth Young Master of the Zhuge family, Zhuge Yue, who had just arrived in Wupeng City by land. Given his status, a small city guard of Biantang would naturally strive desperately to curry favor.

The previously furious man gradually calmed. His gaze was dark, his eyebrows slanted upward, his eyes cold but without obvious hostility, returning to his usual demeanor—languid with a touch of chilling detachment. The man descended from the large bed without hesitation, walking straightforwardly to the center of the room to pick up the black-gold robe he had removed earlier. He casually put it on, drawing the waist sash diagonally to reveal a large expanse of bronze-colored chest.

Then, unexpectedly showing mercy, he picked through and retrieved Chu Qiao’s completely soaked outer robe. He walked over, one hand holding the dripping wet clothes, the other extended toward Chu Qiao, saying in a flat tone: “Hand it over.”

“Hand what over?” Chu Qiao raised an eyebrow: “What are you talking about?”

Zhuge Yue lightly raised his eyebrows, glancing at her sideways with an expression that seemed to say she should stop pretending to be confused.

“Has Yan Xun become so destitute after fleeing back to his stronghold with that gang of beggars from the Great Unity Association that you’re forced to go out and steal?”

“What did you say?” Chu Qiao’s eyes grew cold with anger: “Watch your words!”

Zhuge Yue glanced at her dismissively, saying with disdain: “You’re already meat on the chopping block, yet you still dare to be so arrogant.”

Chu Qiao sat on the bed, her expression cold, but she didn’t retort. One wrong move and all would be lost. Tonight’s mission had been a complete failure. She felt immensely annoyed, thinking that her luck seemed exceptionally poor lately.

Though she didn’t want to admit it, when she saw Zhuge Yue’s face moments ago, her heart had genuinely surged with a strange sense of relief. Perhaps falling into his hands was much better than falling into others’ hands.

At the very least, he wouldn’t immediately cut off her head. She knew that the capital had put a bounty on her head, not on her as a person.

“Hand it over.”

Zhuge Yue persisted tirelessly.

“Hand what over?”

“Stop playing dumb with me!” The man snorted coldly, looking at her coldly: “Just now in the corridor, it was you, right? What did you steal from me? Do I need to spell it out?”

Chu Qiao suddenly understood but stubbornly said: “Who wants your things? I just grabbed it in passing and threw it away already. If you want it, send someone to fish it out of the lake at this dog official’s house.”

Zhuge Yue’s brow furrowed slightly, his gaze gloomy. Chu Qiao looked at him fearlessly, her eyes bright and stubborn, yet showing calm determination.

With a “puff” sound, Zhuge Yue coldly threw the wet clothes at Chu Qiao’s face, then turned and walked to the door. As soon as he opened it, guards came running forward. Zhuge Yue gave a few simple instructions in a low voice. They weren’t loud, and the content was simple—merely telling someone to go down to the lake to retrieve a jade pendant.

However, when the guards heard this, their faces immediately turned green. The lake wasn’t large; sailing a small boat around it would take at most half an hour, but it was over four zhang deep. Looking for a small jade pendant in such a vast place…

One guard raised his head with a pained expression and said hesitantly: “Young Master, this is…”

Before the guard could finish, a sudden “bang” came as Zhuge Yue extended his hand and violently slapped the guard’s head, immediately making him see stars, his head involuntarily lowering.

“Who told you to raise your head!”

The guard nodded vigorously but didn’t dare raise his head again.

Sitting on the bed, Chu Qiao was startled when she heard this, because the door directly faced this ridiculously large bed, and at this moment, she still hadn’t put on her clothes.

The guards quickly withdrew. Soon, many torches lit up outside, with voices shouting. All the guards were awakened from deep sleep, along with the city guard’s servants, heading in large numbers toward the jasper lake in the back garden.

When Zhuge Yue turned back, Chu Qiao had already put on her completely wet clothes. However, these clothes were made of thin gauze, now clinging to her body like she was wearing nothing, adding a bewitching allure.

Zhuge Yue looked at Chu Qiao, then gradually frowned. Chu Qiao, seeing his strange look, couldn’t help feeling awkward.

Zhuge Yue walked straight to a row of wardrobes, casually opening one. Chu Qiao’s expression changed, but before she could cry out, there was a “bang” as a woman, bound hand and foot, fell out of the wardrobe and landed on the floor, right at Zhuge Yue’s feet. Zhuge Yue reacted quickly but mistook this woman for an assassin hiding in the wardrobe. So the Fourth Young Master of the Zhuge family mercilessly delivered a flying kick. The poor female servant, not even having touched the ground yet, took this blow and flew back like a ball, her body immediately curling up like a shrimp. If her mouth hadn’t been gagged, one could imagine how loud her scream would have been.

Fortunately, Zhuge Yue didn’t know the woman’s identity and didn’t use his full strength. Seeing the seductive woman lying on the ground with half her clothes torn off, Zhuge Yue was stunned, his brows tightly knit, appearing to be thinking hard.

The woman had already become like a frightened bird—knocked unconscious for no reason, waking up to find herself locked in a wardrobe, and just when she was finally released before she could shout that there was an assassin, she was kicked hard. At this moment, facing this man who emanated murderous intent, she promptly rolled her eyes and fainted.

“Hey! Don’t hurt her.”

Zhuge Yue turned his head to see Chu Qiao’s face clearly showing embarrassment. He immediately understood. Since the female servant in this room was Chu Qiao in disguise, the one on the ground must be the original woman prepared by the city guard for him.

Understanding the situation, Zhuge Yue didn’t even look at the woman on the ground. He turned back to take clothes from the wardrobe, returned to Chu Qiao’s side, threw the clothes to her, and said with a slight curl of his lips: “Xing’er, your hand is still as ruthless as ever!”

“Don’t call me Xing’er!” Chu Qiao didn’t remove her wet inner clothes but directly put on the dry outer robe, saying coldly.

However, as soon as she finished speaking, an angry snort suddenly came. Zhuge Yue immediately pounced like a fierce tiger, his strong body pressing Chu Qiao tightly beneath him. His legs clamped her long legs like iron pliers, one hand gripping her chin fiercely, his face somber as he said maliciously: “Then what should I call you? Jing Yue’er? Or what? Chu Qiao?”

Zhuge Yue’s face was gloomy, his eyes like huge storm spirals brewing. The pressure of his hand increased, his voice hoarse as he said word by word: “What? After joining Yan Xun, you don’t even recognize your ancestors anymore, even changing your surname? Why not take the Yan surname directly?”

Chu Qiao coldly stared back at Zhuge Yue, saying icily: “Let me go!”

“Let you go?” Zhuge Yue laughed coldly: “Where do you want to go? Did you come to Biantang for your soon-to-be-married old lover or to detour to Yan Bei? How did I never notice before that our little Xing’er is a beauty that ruins kingdoms with a single smile?”

“Zhuge Yue, I’m warning you, let me go!”

“Warning?” Zhuge Yue’s lips curled into a smile, his eyes narrowing coldly like an eagle’s: “Xing’er, is this your first day knowing me? When has Zhuge Yue ever feared anyone’s warnings?”

Without thinking, Chu Qiao formed her fingers into claws and fiercely went for Zhuge Yue’s neck!

Zhuge Yue moved just as quickly, leaning back. Chu Qiao’s hand slipped from his neck and grabbed his collar. The robe was only loosely tied, and now it was pulled open halfway, revealing much of his bronze, muscular chest. Zhuge Yue’s finger slid from Chu Qiao’s chin down her fair neck and delicate collarbone, smiling wickedly: “What? So eager? You went to such lengths to get close to me—could it be you’re using feminine charms on behalf of Yan Bei?”

Chu Qiao’s expression remained unchanged, though her eyes narrowed slightly with annoyance. Suddenly, she pulled out one leg and kicked fiercely at Zhuge Yue’s groin! The movement was swift and ruthlessly fierce!

Zhuge Yue was no ordinary person. In this confrontation, how could he fall behind? He pushed up with both hands, his entire body making a backward arch in mid-air. By the time he landed, Chu Qiao’s attack had missed. Zhuge Yue supported himself with both hands, suddenly pressing close again, adopting the same position as before on top of Chu Qiao, face to face, close enough to feel each other’s breath.

“Hmph!”

Chu Qiao snorted angrily, a flash of anger in her eyes. She twisted her hands and punched Zhuge Yue’s shoulder.

Zhuge Yue’s shoulder sank, completely dissipating the force. His body tilted outward, causing Chu Qiao’s body to involuntarily turn with him. Zhuge Yue embraced her waist in one motion, suddenly turning inward. The bed’s brocade bedding turned with them, quickly wrapping around their bodies like a large dumpling. Zhuge Yue pressed Chu Qiao’s hands with one hand and once again trapped her legs with a scissor lock.

Chu Qiao struggled hard, but the more she moved, the tighter the blanket wrapped them. Combined with Zhuge Yue’s greater strength, after a moment, she lay powerless on the bed, breathing heavily. Seeing she couldn’t struggle free, she even tried to lift her head to bite him.

After the struggle, Chu Qiao’s clothes had been torn open, revealing large patches of snow-white skin. Her face was flushed red, her eyes glaring fiercely at Zhuge Yue, her chest heaving with anger.

“Still not convinced?”

Chu Qiao cursed in extreme anger: “Bastard!”

Zhuge Yue lay on top of Chu Qiao, listening to her intense breathing and rapid heartbeat, smelling the fragrance emanating from her body. His expression suddenly softened. The man smiled triumphantly and slowly said: “Are you going to keep fighting?”

Chu Qiao pressed her lips together. In recent years, she had rarely been bested by others. Beyond her unwillingness to admit defeat was a hint of inexplicable panic. For some reason, at this moment, she only wanted to leave this place immediately and never see this man again.

“Let me go!”

“Xing’er, you always say that one phrase. Don’t you get tired of it?”

The lower hem of Chu Qiao’s garment was open, revealing two snow-white legs. Zhuge Yue’s legs were tightly wrapped around hers. With skin against skin, the atmosphere suddenly became subtle.

Chu Qiao stared fiercely at Zhuge Yue, gritting her teeth: “I want to stab you twice!”

Zhuge Yue laughed heartily, his gaze bewitching, his lips crimson, uniquely unrestrained and seductive: “Why not come and punch me twice instead?”

“Hmph!” Chu Qiao turned her head away angrily, refusing to look at him again. She couldn’t win in a fight, couldn’t escape, and her martial skill was only about equal to his. She might have slightly more experience, but in a prolonged battle, her stamina couldn’t match a man’s, especially with his large contingent of guards outside. Chu Qiao’s eyes immediately reddened with anger: “Just kill me!”

Zhuge Yue looked at her with amusement: “Xing’er, you’re not going to cry just because you can’t beat me, are you? That doesn’t seem like you.”

The tense atmosphere relaxed, but their posture remained extremely intimate. At this moment, the unconscious woman on the floor suddenly made a short sound, clearly about to wake up.

Chu Qiao was startled, but saw Zhuge Yue’s expression change as he immediately released her hands, grabbed a piece of brocade, and threw it to cover the face of the woman below!

However, just as he released her hands, Chu Qiao shouted coldly, pushed with her feet, and immediately slithered out of the blanket like a loach, kneeling on the bed about to run down!

Zhuge Yue immediately smiled coldly, though the smile hadn’t even reached his eyes when he grabbed a piece of brocade. The brocade was extremely thin, instantly wrapping around Chu Qiao’s ankle like a nimble snake. Chu Qiao, unaware, inwardly cursed her misfortune. Immediately after, Zhuge Yue suddenly pulled back with force, causing Chu Qiao to fall, rolling together with him in a heap.

In that split second, there was a tremendous crash as the entire large bed collapsed with a rumble, and the bed frame supporting countless gauze curtains and pearl curtains fell. Numerous red gauze veils and bright pearls fell together, deeply burying Chu Qiao and Zhuge Yue beneath!

The sound was extremely loud; the people outside heard it.

Only half the guards remained on duty; the other half had all gone to fish for the jade pendant in the lake.

A young guard carefully asked the guard surnamed Zhang: “Brother Zhang, what was that sound from inside?”

The guard surnamed Zhang was also listening carefully. Hearing the question, he nodded slightly and said mysteriously: “I think the bed collapsed.”

“The bed collapsed?” The young guard secretly clicked his tongue: “My goodness, so intense!”

Zhuge Yue was bound by a pile of silk, making a great effort to crawl out. However, just as his head emerged, his expression immediately changed.

Chu Qiao was kneeling half in front of him, her expression cold, her gaze frosty, holding a piece of broken bed beam in her hand. The wood’s end was sharp and thin, now pressed firmly against Zhuge Yue’s throat!

“Don’t move!”

The young woman commanded coldly.

Zhuge Yue smiled faintly, glancing at Chu Qiao’s front chest: “Next time you do this to someone, put your clothes on first. Otherwise, you lack intimidation.”

“Enough talk! Let me go immediately!”

Zhuge Yue smiled: “Xing’er, aren’t you confused? You’re the one holding me hostage. How can I let you go?”

“Zhuge Yue, don’t think begging you is my only option. Even if I kill you, I still have a chance to break through and escape. I just don’t want to take that step. Though we have grievances, I don’t want to kill you like this.”

“That’s unfortunate,” Zhuge Yue shrugged, indifferently saying: “As long as I’m alive, I won’t let you go.”

Chu Qiao slowly narrowed her eyes: “Don’t force me!”

“Don’t force me either.”

Just then, a sudden sound of footsteps came from outside. Both were startled, hearing the chaotic footsteps outside, clearly not Zhuge Yue’s guards.

At this moment when Chu Qiao was slightly distracted, Zhuge Yue suddenly tilted his body, trying to dodge the weapon in her hand.

But in that instant, Chu Qiao cautiously noticed Zhuge Yue’s movement. Almost instinctively, she thrust forward the wooden spike in her hand. The action was fluid, without hesitation, as if she had practiced it thousands of times.

With a “poof” sound, a red light sprayed out. Chu Qiao’s heart chilled, her pupils instantly dilating. Just then, from outside the door came the respectful voice of the city guard: “Young Master, are you still awake?”

Zhuge Yue and Chu Qiao sat at opposite corners of the large bed. Zhuge Yue had a wooden spike embedded in his shoulder, as thick as a thumb. In the hands of an expert like Chu Qiao, it had completely pierced through Zhuge Yue’s shoulder. Blood gushed out, flowing over half the bed.

Everything happened in an instant. The moment the wood pierced Zhuge Yue’s body, Chu Qiao even saw his slightly open mouth. Under such intense pain, he would surely groan in agony. But at the same time, the city guard stood firmly outside the door!

Ru Cheng was from a military background. In his youth, he had followed his father to join Biantang’s expedition army, fighting to Daxia’s inland. If not for encountering Yan Bei’s lion Yan Shi Cheng, perhaps Biantang would have replaced Daxia by now, becoming the master of Red River land. Ru Cheng’s father had died in that battle, and the Tian family had been demoted by the court for delaying military operations, their status greatly reduced. Now they could only guard a small city with difficulty. His hatred for Yan Bei was understandable.

At this moment, if Zhuge Yue made even the slightest unusual sound, he would undoubtedly break down the door without hesitation. Once Chu Qiao fell into his hands, the result needed no explanation!

Instantly, Chu Qiao’s first thought was to reach for her calf. Normally, she always had a dagger there. With her skill, at such a distance, killing an already injured person would be no problem. With a knife to the throat, he would have no chance to call out.

However, she forgot that not long ago in the corridor, she had lost her dagger.

Almost simultaneously, Zhuge Yue also noticed Chu Qiao’s instinctive movement. His eyes narrowed slightly, clearly understanding one message: she wanted to kill him!

“Young Master? Are you asleep?” Ru Cheng continued to call carefully.

At this critical moment, Chu Qiao heard Zhuge Yue ask in a calm, unwavering tone: “Is that Lord Tian? What important matter brings you here in the dead of night?”

Chu Qiao’s heart immediately turned upside down. She suddenly looked up, saw Zhuge Yue covered in blood, and was stunned.

“It’s like this—I heard that the Young Master lost something important in the lake. The guards have been struggling for half the night without finding it. I came to ask if you would like me to dig a canal to drain the lake water. That might make it easier to search.”

Zhuge Yue took a deep breath, one hand tightly covering his profusely bleeding shoulder, saying solemnly: “Thank you for your kind offer, Lord Tian.”

The city guard chuckled: “Being able to help the Young Master is my honor.”

“If there’s nothing else, please go back to rest, my lord.”

“Then I’ll take my leave. Sleep well, Young Master.”

Footsteps gradually receded, and outside became quiet again.

Zhuge Yue exhaled deeply, leaning powerlessly against the bed. Then he gripped the exposed section of wood, gritted his teeth, and yanked it out with a swoosh!

“Mmm!”

Zhuge Yue’s brows furrowed tightly, his face contorted, a painful groan escaping his throat, though he still forcibly controlled his volume.

Blood immediately gushed out in large quantities!

Chu Qiao was startled, then suddenly lunged forward, covering his gaping wound with her hands!

The tremendous pain nearly made Zhuge Yue blackout. Chu Qiao supported his shoulder, anxiously asking: “How are you?”

Zhuge Yue’s face was pale, completely bloodless. After a long while, he slowly said: “Not dead yet.”

“Don’t move. I’ll bandage it for you.”

Chu Qiao stood up, quickly ran to the bathroom, and soon returned with a wooden bucket. With a few nimble steps, she jumped onto the bed and began skillfully cleaning Zhuge Yue’s wound.

Zhuge Yue said hoarsely: “There are… many wood splinters inside. They need to be picked out.”

Chu Qiao paused, looking up at Zhuge Yue’s pale face, slowly asking: “Can you bear it?”

Zhuge Yue replied noncommittally: “How will we know if we don’t try?”

Chu Qiao found a dagger in the room. There was wine on the table. After sterilizing it with fire, she handed a handkerchief to Zhuge Yue, saying: “Bite on this to avoid biting your tongue when it hurts.”

Zhuge Yue took it but didn’t use it, holding it in his uninjured hand instead.

Chu Qiao said no more and began focusing on treating his wound.

The wound made by this wooden spike was more serious than one made by a dagger. Not only was it larger, but it was also jagged, tearing out large pieces of flesh, and embedded with countless splinters. If not thoroughly cleaned, they would rot inside the body.

Facing such an injury, even Chu Qiao’s hands couldn’t help but tremble.

“Let’s… let’s find a doctor.”

Chu Qiao looked up at Zhuge Yue, her gaze determined.

She knew that once a doctor came, she would certainly be exposed, and only death would await her. But perhaps during the confusion of the doctor’s arrival, she could seize an opportunity to escape, though this possibility was small.

Zhuge Yue snatched the dagger, his expression gloomy: “If you can’t do it, I will.”

Saying this, he was about to dig into his flesh.

“I’ll do it! I’ll do it!” Chu Qiao panicked, quickly taking back the dagger, and then looking up at him deeply.

Zhuge Yue half-closed his eyes, appearing unconcerned. If not for his paper-white complexion, Chu Qiao might almost doubt whether he was the injured person.

Then, she took a deep breath and began treating Zhuge Yue’s injury.

Three hours later, the eastern sky showed the first light of dawn. All of Chu Qiao’s clothes were soaked with cold sweat. Finding the clothes she had initially changed out of in this room, which contained her personal wound medicine, she applied the medicine and bandaged his wound with clean white silk. Finally, everything was done.

Throughout the process, Zhuge Yue hadn’t made a sound, and Chu Qiao hadn’t dared to look up at him. Now looking up, she saw the man had passed out, his forehead covered in large beads of sweat, his brows furrowed into a character “川.” The towel in his hand was soaked with sweat, and his hair was also wet as if dipped in water.

After putting everything in order, Chu Qiao helped him lie on the bed, washed a face towel to wipe the blood and sweat from his face, then took a dry cotton cloth and wiped his hair dry, stroke by stroke.

From afar came the sound of roosters breaking through the morning mist. Outside was bright, with servants coming to knock on the door. Chu Qiao nervously disguised her voice to say Zhuge Yue hadn’t woken up, immediately provoking quiet laughter from the young guards.

Indeed, after such intense activity all night, he would probably sleep for an entire day.

Since they were to stay in Wupeng City for two days anyway, the guards instructed the city guard’s maids not to disturb the young master… um… disturb the young master’s rest, just bring food at regular times.

Returning to the bedside, Zhuge Yue was still in deep sleep. Chu Qiao lowered her head, her face showing fatigue. She gazed at this man, at his straight brows, bewitching eyes, crimson lips, and that mouth that always uttered cold words, gradually furrowing her brow.

Her brows were knit so tightly as if they would never relax.

“We are enemies,” Chu Qiao murmured, not knowing whether she was speaking to Zhuge Yue or herself.

“Publicly, I am a traitorous slave, and you are an imperial nobleman. Privately, you killed Lin Xi, Zhi Xiang, Little Seven, and Little Eight, and killed many children of the Jing family, causing Yan Xun and me to live like pigs and dogs in the capital for eight years. I also killed your grandfather, and your servants, and defected from the Zhuge mansion. The conflict between us cannot be reconciled. You killing me is understandable; I killing you is justifiable. We have no affection, no need to show mercy. Your death, my life; your life, my death. It’s just… it’s just… as it should be…”

As she said, these words should have been irrefutable, without any logical flaws or ethical improprieties. Before, Chu Qiao had never had the slightest hesitation.

But for some reason, at this moment, her voice grew increasingly small, gradually becoming like a mosquito’s hum, so quiet that even she could barely hear it.

Looking at the man’s furrowed brow even in unconsciousness, she couldn’t help reaching out to gently touch the wound on his shoulder.

“Regardless, I owe you a life.” Chu Qiao slowly said: “Zhuge Yue, I’m sorry.”

The room was deadly quiet. Outside the window, the morning sun rose, its warm light filtering through the window paper, casting dappled shadows.

Chu Qiao is half-sat on the ground, leaning beside Zhuge Yue. Fatigue overwhelmed her like a tidal wave, and she fell into a deep sleep just like that.