103: Confessing love

"Be careful."

He whispered, his voice much raspier than usual.

The late summer wind, carrying the sweet scent of locust flowers, slipped into the room through the gaps in the window lattice, yet it could not dispel the stagnant atmosphere filling the space.

As Situ Jun leaned over to tidy the copper basin, he caught a glimpse of the red mark on Liu Xuaner's ankle becoming increasingly prominent, as if she had been bitten by something, and his heart suddenly tightened.

"Madam, this injury..."

"It's nothing."

Liu Xuaner hurriedly pulled her foot back, covering the mark with a handkerchief.

"It was probably a mosquito bite from the road."

She turned her face away, only to see Situ Jun’s frowning reflection in the bronze mirror; for some reason, it made her feel even more flustered than Bei Batian's cold expression.

Just then, a commotion suddenly erupted from downstairs.

Someone slammed the table and shouted:

"Have you heard? The Xihua Sect is holding a Marriage Recruitment!"

"Marriage Recruitment? For whom?"

"Who else could it be but the Quasi-Saint Son, Zhuang Xian! They say he's looking for a woman with an excellent Spiritual Root to become his Dao Companion..."

The handkerchief in Liu Xuaner's hand suddenly tightened.

The words 'Dao Companion' were like a poisoned dagger, stabbing straight into her heart.

She thought of Zhuang Xian's smug appearance, and of that Divorce Letter from Bei Batian—thin as a cicada's wing yet heavy as a thousand pounds—and her nails dug deep into her palms.

Noticing her abnormality, Situ Jun raised his hand and closed the window completely.

"Madam, do not listen to this idle gossip."

He paused and pulled a small celadon bottle from his robes.

"This is Golden Sore Ointment; apply some to the wound before bed."

Liu Xuaner took the bottle, and feeling the warmth of his fingertips, a sudden impulse surged in her heart.

"Steward Situ, tell me..."

She bit her lip.

"What if I were to participate in the Marriage Recruitment?"

The teacup in Situ Jun's hand slammed heavily onto the wooden table, scalding tea splashing onto his hand, yet he was completely oblivious, his gaze locked onto her deathly pale face.

In the candlelight, Liu Xuaner looked like snow about to be scattered by the wind, yet two stubborn flames burned in her eyes, stinging his heart.

"Does Madam know what it means to become a Dao Companion of someone from the Xihua Sect?"

His throat tightened.

"Zhuang Xian is now the Quasi-Saint Son of the Xihua Sect, you..."

"Of course I know!"

Liu Xuaner stood up abruptly, her embroidered shoes slipping on the wet floor. Situ Jun instinctively reached out to support her, but she forcefully avoided him.

She stumbled and gripped the edge of the table, her loose long hair cascading down like black silk.

"Do you think I want to gamble with the rest of my life? But is there any difference between staying in the City Lord's Mansion living a stifled life and going to the Xihua Sect? At least..."

She suddenly choked up.

"At least I can see those people pay the price with my own eyes."

The laughter and chatter downstairs grew more piercing as someone vividly described how peerlessly handsome Zhuang Xian was, drawing bursts of laughter from the crowd.

Liu Xuaner's fingertips trembled. She suddenly remembered their wedding day, when Bei Batian personally placed the Phoenix Crown on her head and said he would make her the most noble lady in the world.

And now, she had become an object to be given away.

"I'm going."

When she turned around, her eyes were cold as frost.

"If Steward Situ is unwilling to come along, I..."

"Shut up for a moment!"

Situ Jun's voice was terrifyingly cold.

He took off his outer robe and draped it over her shoulders, the warm fabric wrapping around her thin frame.

"Tend to the wound first."

Liu Xuaner looked at Situ Jun's tense jawline, her throat aching with bitterness.

The candlelight cast shadows on his brow, turning his usually gentle eyes deep and dark.

She sat down obediently and let him kneel, his fingertips dipped in Golden Sore Ointment as he gently applied it to her ankle. The coolness mingled with the herbal fragrance spread, yet it could not match the scorching heat from his palm.

"Speak up if it hurts."

Situ Jun didn't look up, his voice muffled in his chest.

Liu Xuaner bit her lower lip and shook her head, but she trembled slightly when the ointment touched the wound.

His movements paused, and when he looked up, his eyes surged with an emotion she couldn't understand.

"Why must you be so headstrong?"

After applying the medicine, Situ Jun looked at Liu Xuaner with a complex gaze and said:

"Sit down first, I have something to say to you."

Liu Xuaner sat down as told, her beautiful eyes fixed on Situ Jun.

Situ Jun took a sip of the tea on the table and looked at Liu Xuaner.

"Actually, the reason I accompanied you out was just to help you relax; I never truly intended to send you to the Xihua Sect."

He took out the Divorce Letter written by Bei Batian's own hand from his Storage Pouch and handed it to Liu Xuaner.

"This is the Divorce Letter with which Bei Batian cast you off. It was originally meant for Zhuang Xian, but for certain reasons, it ended up in my hands."

Liu Xuaner took the Divorce Letter. Although she had already learned of this fact from Bei Batian's letter, seeing the Divorce Letter now made her tears fall uncontrollably.

After a long while, she wiped her tears and said:

"Thank you. Since you don't want to go to the Xihua Sect with me, you should go back on your own."

Situ Jun sighed, stood up, and wiped the moisture from the corners of her eyes.

"I will not let you go, because you are my woman. I love you! Do you understand now?"

Liu Xuaner felt as if she had been struck by lightning, her entire being freezing in place.

The cicadas' chirping outside suddenly became deafening. She looked at the surging heat in Situ Jun's eyes, and her throat felt as if it were blocked by the cinnabar in the Golden Sore Ointment, both hot and astringent.

"You..."

She took half a step back, her back hitting the cold corner of the table.

"What nonsense are you talking!"

Situ Jun pressed forward step by step, trapping her between the table and his chest.

He was surrounded by the familiar scent of herbs, mixed with his hot, slightly ragged breath.

"I'm not talking nonsense. From the first moment I saw you, I fell in love with you."

His thumb brushed over her reddened eyes.

"Why do you think I became the steward of the West Courtyard? Why did I like patrolling the West Courtyard every day? Three months ago, that night, it was me, not Bei Batian. That night..."

"Impossible..."

Liu Xuaner shook her head, tears falling again.

"That was clearly..."

"Clearly always Bei Batian, right?"

Situ Jun smiled bitterly, his fingertips following her falling tears all the way to her trembling lips.

"That was just a small trick; I had no choice."

He suddenly pulled her into his arms, his grip so strong it felt as if he wanted to meld her into his very bones and blood.

"It's different now. He divorced you, and I am no longer just a lowly steward to be manipulated."

Situ Jun's Adam's apple bobbed as he suddenly dropped to one knee and took her cold hand.

Unwashed Golden Sore Ointment still clung to the lines of his palm; the bitterness of the herbs mixed with his body heat, burning her so much she wanted to pull her hand away, but he held it even tighter.

"Xuaner, marry me!" His voice carried a slight tremor.

Liu Xuaner trembled all over, looking at Situ Jun kneeling before her as countless memory fragments flooded her mind.

"Three months ago..."

Her voice trembled, her fingertips unconsciously brushing the tips of his hair.

"Why didn't you say so sooner..." She choked up, pounding his shoulder. "Why did you have to watch me struggle in the abyss?"

Situ Jun suddenly grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his embrace.

The candlelight flickered in their overlapping shadows as his hot breath fanned against her ear.

"I was afraid you would hate me, afraid you would think I was taking advantage of your misfortune. But when I heard you were going to the Marriage Recruitment..."

He lowered his head and bit her trembling lip with a desperate intensity.

"I would rather you hate me than see you fall into someone else's hands."

After a brief daze, Liu Xuaner slowly raised her arms to encircle his neck. All the past grievances, frustrations, and surprises melted into a long, lingering kiss.

Not until the Night Watchman's clapper sounded outside did the two panting lovers separate.

Situ Jun rested his forehead against hers, his voice raspy.

"I know this is sudden, but I swear I will spend the rest of my life making it up to you. I will let the whole world know that you, Liu Xuaner, are my, Situ Jun's, most beloved Dao Companion."

Liu Xuaner broke into a smile through her tears, her fingertips lightly tracing his features.

"It turns out the warmth I yearned for was hidden by my side all along."

She suddenly remembered something, her face flushing red.

"Then... was tonight also part of your design?"

The tips of Situ Jun's ears turned red, and he looked away awkwardly.

"Who told you to always be so stubbornly proud..."

Before he could finish, he was silenced by a kiss Liu Xuaner initiated.

Moonlight climbed up the window lattice, stretching the shadows of the embracing pair and outlining their entwined silhouettes on the floor.

The chirping of the cicadas outside gradually ceased, leaving only two burning hearts drawing closer and closer in the silent night.