Chapter 120: Careful Even in Jealousy
Chapter 120: Chapter 120: Careful Even in Jealousy
His feverish lips trailed down from her cheek, soon landing on her collarbone to nibble delicately.
Cui Lingyao reached up to cup his face. "Alright, that’s enough. What are you trying to do?"
"I want you,"
Xie Jinbai was utterly shameless, admitting it with perfect candor. "These past few days, my dreams have been filled with you."
Sometimes, they were in bed, tangled in a desperate, passionate embrace.
Other times, the dream would fixate on the day she fell into the water, and he would relive the loss of her over and over.
And then there was the sight of her walking away with Shen Tingyu, her back to him, never once looking back.
No matter what he tried, she still didn’t want him.
She just didn’t want him!
The helplessness he felt in his dreams was all too real. Xie Jinbai was still shaken, and a tremor entered his voice.
"When we get back to the Capital City, we’ll start planning our wedding. I don’t care about the past anymore, but Yaoyao, from now on, you can’t look at any other men."
Cui Lingyao: "..."
’This man is still a little unhinged,’ she thought.
’Even after I’ve been patiently placating him for so long, even after letting him hold me and kiss me.’
’But the moment something goes wrong, he reverts to this frantic, unhinged state.’
Xie Jinbai had no idea she was thinking of him as a lunatic. As he spoke, his hand unconsciously began to snake inside her clothes again.
He was quickly stopped.
Cui Lingyao dug her fingers into his wrist. "You’re addicted to taking advantage of me, aren’t you?"
His wrist stung, but Xie Jinbai let her squeeze it, whispering, "Just a touch. I won’t do anything else."
Cui Lingyao let out an exasperated laugh. "Is that the only thing on your mind?"
"No," Xie Jinbai shook his head earnestly. "It’s not just this."
Cui Lingyao: "..."
’When it came to being a rogue, she was truly no match for him.’
She decided to just stop talking.
Xie Jinbai watched her for a moment, then lowered his head, leaning in to kiss her again.
Cui Lingyao turned her face away, dodging the kiss.
The kiss landed on her cheek instead. Xie Jinbai didn’t seem to mind, continuing to kiss her cheek as he softly called her name.
"I’ve missed you so much," he sighed softly. "I’ve always missed you."
His soul longed for her.
And his body did, too.
As if remembering something, he grabbed her wrist. "Don’t worry, my wounds have mostly healed. Feel for yourself..."
At some point, his robes had fallen open.
Cui Lingyao felt her wrist tighten as he guided her hand inside his robes.
His abdominal muscles were firm, taut, and searingly hot.
The heat made Cui Lingyao’s fingers tremble slightly.
This obsessive intimacy made her scalp tingle and her mouth go dry.
’She even began to suspect the man was deliberately trying to seduce her.’
’If she didn’t do something soon, she was afraid he’d truly manage to coax her into...’
Cui Lingyao shuddered. Her curled fingers suddenly splayed open, and she planted her palm against his abdomen, pushing hard. "No!"
Her reaction was so sudden, and aimed where it was, that Xie Jinbai’s entire body went stiff. Caught off guard, he was actually pushed back a little.
Cui Lingyao seized the opportunity to get up.
But in the next instant, an arm tightened around her waist. The man had recovered and reached out to pull her back.
"Why are you running?"
He was clearly displeased. Grabbing her wrist, he tried to guide it to his chest again. "Is there any part of this body you haven’t seen before? Are you disgusted with it now? If there’s something you’re not happy with, just tell me..."
"No, no, no!" Cui Lingyao’s face fell in alarm as she hastily snatched her hand back. "Don’t be like this."
She pulled back with great force. Fearing he might actually hurt her, Xie Jinbai frowned and let go.
"What are you afraid of? I won’t do anything else. I just want..."
"No! You’re always like this. Every time you show up, you’re either here to interrogate me or to get handsy."
’His schemes were endless, and he always managed to leave her completely flustered.’
Annoyed at her own weakness, Cui Lingyao said angrily, "You’ve gone too far!"
"..." Xie Jinbai looked at her, speechless. "How have I gone too far?"
’He was certain they were husband and wife.’
’She had even admitted that she liked him and was willing to marry him again.’
’Since their feelings were mutual, and they were basically an old married couple anyway, what was wrong with a few kisses and cuddles?’
Cui Lingyao couldn’t win the argument against him. After glaring angrily for a long moment, she finally said through gritted teeth, "You’re just too manipulative."
’Somehow, in all the confusion, they had ended up in bed together.’
’And he even wanted to take things further.’
’Given the state of their relationship, it was far too soon to even talk about letting go of the past.’
"You’ve held Shen Tingyu against me and interrogated me countless times, but I only ever had a verbal engagement with him. Nothing ever happened! But what about Li Wanrong? To this day, she is still your concubine in name."
The trauma had been too great, and Xie Jinbai was deeply averse to revisiting that part of the past.
Especially when it involved Li Wanrong.
That had been his greatest folly.
But since she had brought it up of her own accord, he couldn’t avoid the topic.
Her attitude had finally softened. She was willing to placate him and had even agreed to marry him again. He couldn’t allow any more misunderstandings to fester between them.
Xie Jinbai scrambled to profess, "I’ve only ever been with you. Her virginity test is still intact. When we return to the Capital City, I’ll make a public declaration so the whole world knows of my innocence."
Cui Lingyao: "..."
’Innocence.’
’Physical innocence, for a man of high status and power in his late twenties, was a complete joke.’
’Yet he had said it with such utter seriousness.’
Seeing her silence, Xie Jinbai thought she didn’t believe him and hurriedly added, "I swear I never even laid a finger on her. I’ve never even considered... doing that sort of thing with any other woman."
From the day he first realized his feelings for her, he had been convinced they were fated to grow old together.
Even during the period when he hated her most for her cruelty toward him, Xie Jinbai had never wavered in this conviction.
To share a bed in life and a grave in death—whether she liked it or not, she could only be with him until they grew old, until they entered the tomb together.
Not in the middle of their lives, nor at the end—no one else would, or could, ever come between them.
He had decided on the date of Li Wanrong’s death long ago.
She didn’t even count as a transient figure in their story.
He explained with great patience.
Cui Lingyao did believe him. She believed that he had never touched Li Wanrong.
But she felt no sense of relief.
’So what if he hadn’t touched her? They had still been married.’
’A very grand wedding ceremony, at that.’
’Everyone in the Capital City knew about it.’
’She had seen it with her own eyes: the two of them in their wedding robes, standing side by side, celebrating with their guests.’
’She had even attended their wedding banquet.’
’It had happened so many years ago, and she hadn’t thought much of it at the time. But recalling it now, she felt a bitter ache.’
A lump formed in Cui Lingyao’s throat.
Xie Jinbai was still talking. "You have to believe me. No matter how much of a scoundrel I can be, I would never do that. The night she entered the manor, I didn’t even dare to sleep in the study. I was in a frantic hurry to see you. I wanted to explain everything, to comfort you..."
He trailed off.
At the same time, both of their minds went back to that night.
When he had arrived, she had already bathed and was curled up in bed, flipping through a novel. She showed no trace of the bitterness a wife should feel when her husband takes a new bride; in fact, the expression on her face was relaxed and cheerful.
When she saw him, she had even urged him to go to Li Wanrong and consummate the marriage.
And after that...
Cui Lingyao pressed her lips together. "So, you decided to torment me like that?"
"..." Xie Jinbai was left speechless by the question, wanting to say something in his own defense.
’How could that be considered torment?’
’She was just too delicate. For three years of marriage, he had always held himself back, never daring to be truly unrestrained with her.’
’Even that time, when he was so angry he could have killed her in that bed, he hadn’t been able to bring himself to be truly forceful.’
’He had only been a little rougher than usual, and she had seen it as... a punishment.’
’She was going to be the death of him with her false accusations.’