Wuyan was greatly shocked. She never expected this person to arrive at such a time. Seeing his gaze deep and burning, brazenly surveying her exposed skin, she clutched her robe ties, her fingers trembling involuntarily.

Huo Chang’an’s eyes were sharp as knives, like a hunter examining prey, scrutinizing her with a slight curve of his lips. “Won’t Your Ladyship invite this marquis inside? Is this your way of treating guests?”

Wuyan took a deep breath. “Huaisu isn’t home. You can wait for her in the main hall – there are servants to attend you there.”

“Ridiculous! Li Huaisu left me a message saying she had something to ask of me. This marquis coming personally is already a great favor. I’ll wait wherever I please.”

Huo Chang’an sneered coldly and suddenly pushed into the room. With his imposing physique, Wuyan had no way to avoid him and could only stumble backward. By the time she steadied herself, Huo Chang’an was already inside. His gaze fell on the bathtub in the room, immediately darkening several degrees. Wuyan understood – in this coming and going, Huo Chang’an and Suzhen had missed each other. She felt ashamed, angry, and startled, but couldn’t drive him away. “Fine, if Your Lordship prefers to wait here, I’ll leave.”

Huo Chang’an watched her coldly. As she walked quickly past him, his eyes grew deeper, and he suddenly reached out to seize her wrist.

Hot energy flowed from his rough palm. Wuyan suppressed her panic and looked at him coldly. “Your Lordship, please conduct yourself properly.”

“How proper is it for you to bathe in a man’s room, Consort Wei?” He spoke mockingly, lowering his head to sniff at her neck, his tone dissolute and frivolous. “So fragrant. My five concubines at home together don’t smell as sweet as you, Consort Wei.”

Wuyan’s face flushed red, and she was so shocked and angry that her vision darkened. She gritted her teeth to steady herself and retorted sarcastically, “Marquis Huo, how does Wei Wuyan compare to your noble and beautiful wife?”

Actually, as soon as these words left her mouth, Wuyan regretted them. He didn’t take her seriously at all, insulting her to the utmost, yet she was also lowering herself to compete with him over what?

Huo Chang’an’s eyes momentarily grew hazy, as if remembering something. He smiled faintly, “Lian Yue is naturally better than you. She’s a good wife – she won’t be promiscuous, won’t be hypocritical, won’t say one thing while thinking another, won’t use friendship as an excuse to seek protection while actually trying to get close to your man.”

Wuyan was struck hard by his words, stars dancing before her eyes, a sweet metallic taste rising from her throat. She swallowed it back forcefully and, without a word, struck at his face with her free hand.

“You dare hit me, Wei Wuyan? What right do you have to hit me?”

Huo Chang’an laughed coldly, his eyes like fierce demons, his whole body radiating coldness. He pressed her mercilessly onto the table, his arms exerting force to pin her shoulders, pressing her beneath his tall frame.

“Apologize to me! Say you were wrong!”

Huo Chang’an was tall and robust with powerful martial arts. With just slight effort from him, Wuyan was like a caged bird. Not to mention his angry strength – Wuyan felt as if armor had fallen on her. She couldn’t even move, and even breathing became difficult.

Yet Wuyan refused to submit no matter what. She bit her lower lip and struggled desperately.

Her chest and abdomen pressed tightly against his strong, hot body, rubbing together. She felt his breathing quicken, his eyes becoming terrifyingly dark and bloodshot, and something hot and hard pressing against her private parts from below.

He looked deeply at her and lowered his head toward her lips.

In her daze, Wuyan suddenly remembered how before, when he gently kissed her, he would react immediately, staring at her wildly and greedily as if wanting to devour her alive, yet his handsome face would blush slightly as he bit his teeth and pushed away her shy, frightened self.

She would pretend to be calm and tease him, “Oh my, even the famously romantic marquis blushes.”

He would become angry from embarrassment, pulling her roughly into his embrace for another round of tender loving, nothing like the current situation.

Wuyan suddenly thought, if he wanted to kiss me once, I wouldn’t push him away – just once, to end our half-lifetime of entanglement. I’ll never harbor hope again, never again.

She thought in a daze, looking at his deep, arrogant expression full of disdain, feeling herself debased to this extent, her vision immediately blurring.

He gripped her chin with one hand, his force vicious, ignoring her pain, almost crushing it. His cold voice, mixed with hot mockery, scattered by her ear, “What did you think I would do?”

“To such an unclean woman like you. What – Murong Liu doesn’t want you, so you start exchanging meaningful glances with Murong Qi? Since you’re so loose, this marquis will treat you like a prostitute today.”

As he spoke, he tore open her robe, his large hands grasping the tender flesh of her chest, fondling roughly through her undergarment. He narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze filled with burning lust, showing indulgent enjoyment and abandon, a thin sigh escaping from deep in his throat.

Wuyan was nearly driven to collapse by his stimulation. Red-eyed, she opened her mouth to scream, but he didn’t care at all. Without a trace of pity in his eyes, he contemptuously raised an eyebrow and covered her mouth forcefully with one hand.

Her robe was completely torn open. Wuyan shook her head desperately, her hoarse voice breaking in her throat, in his palm. She stared blankly but finally stopped struggling. She thought dimly that if he really violated her, she would kill herself.

Not because she cared about chastity, but because she couldn’t bear his humiliation. She also didn’t want to admit that in his heart, she was already worthless.

“Huo Chang’an, you bastard! I’ll kill you!”

Just when she was in complete despair, first came the sound of the door being hastily pushed open, followed by Suzhen’s voice ringing out in panic and fury. Through her blurred vision, Huo Chang’an left her body, and Suzhen ran over, standing in front of her. Her thin frame was trembling all over as she pointed at the man ahead who was calmly arranging his robes with a mocking smile, almost crying out, “Surnamed Huo, bullying a woman like this – are you even human!”

She grabbed everything on the table and hurled it at him with force. Huo Chang’an didn’t dodge. He casually extended his palm in an extremely contemptuous manner. The teapot, tea plates… everything that reached him was swept away by his palm wind, all falling shattered to the ground without even touching his robes. He looked at Suzhen like a cat playing with a mouse, “Li Huaisu, do you think you can hurt me even slightly? Everyone in your Court of Judicial Review combined might be able to fight me to a draw.”

Suzhen was also ruthless, “Good! Just stand there and don’t you dare leave. I’ll call people over right now. Huo Chang’an, you coward, I was completely wrong about you!”

Huo Chang’an’s expression was arrogant, his smile wild, “Big words! You’re now like a fish crossing the river, barely able to protect yourself. Let this marquis guess – Lian Yu now ignores you, so you’re looking for me to help you enter the palace. How about it, did this marquis guess correctly?”

“So what if you’re right or wrong? I no longer need your help. I know your martial arts are strong – just wait there, don’t leave.” Suzhen sneered and was about to leave with Wuyan.

But Huo Chang’an’s gaze had already fallen on Wuyan. Perhaps it should be said that from beginning to end, he had been watching her faintly. His lips curved, “Consort Wei, if you want me to help her, use yourself in exchange. This marquis will send someone to wait at the old place. Think carefully and send someone to notify me.”

Wuyan had been standing silently with pursed lips, but hearing this, she trembled slightly. Before Suzhen could speak, Huo Chang’an moved, and his figure had already disappeared onto the rooftop.

It was clear that the person he wanted to negotiate with was never Suzhen.

Suzhen was trembling with anger. She quickly turned back in alarm, “Wuyan, you absolutely cannot agree to him.”

Wuyan lowered her eyes, her voice extremely hoarse, “I’m sorry, Huaisu. If it were anything else, I would risk my life to help you, but this matter… I cannot, I…”

Suzhen immediately felt heartbroken, “What are you saying? Not only won’t I accept help, but if you really did this, I’d truly cut ties with you. What do you take Feng Suzhen for?”

She gritted her teeth, “Huo Chang’an is just a bastard who will get his comeuppance sooner or later.”

Wuyan suddenly smiled. She forcibly swallowed the waves of metallic coldness rising in her throat, coughing violently. Suzhen fearfully patted her back. After a long while, she finally heard her say quietly, “With his status and position, and the Murong family’s military power, even His Majesty might not be able to deal with him. In this world, the only one who can handle him is Lian Yue. Do you think that’s possible?”

When Little Four delivered Miaoyin’s letter to Li Zhaoting, Wei Chenghui and Si Lanfeng were secretly discussing matters in Li Zhaoting’s study.

Seeing Miaoyin’s letter, Wei Chenghui was quite surprised, “Young Master, when did you establish relations with this Prime Minister Miao’s daughter?”

“It’s heaven-sent opportunity. Having one more friend is better than one more enemy. Prime Minister Miao has considerable influence in the Wei Kingdom.”

Li Zhaoting replied faintly, casually opening the letter.

After reading it, he curved his lips.

She politely declined his invitation for Qixi, saying Lian Yu had already accepted her invitation, so she wouldn’t go to his place tomorrow. Whether she succeeded or not, she would invite him to dinner afterward as thanks, asking him not to refuse.

This was exactly as he expected. He felt no anger. Having anticipated this result, he had made the invitation to sell her a favor. Originally, he had already arranged to meet Gu Shuangcheng tomorrow. Though Gu Shuangcheng now knew Feng Suzhen’s identity, since Lian Yu hadn’t completely cut ties with Feng Suzhen, Gu Shuangcheng would keep the appointment to know her enemy.

Then, he would also invite Feng Suzhen out, letting her see the scene of him with Shuangcheng – that would surely be quite interesting.