Waking up from a deep sleep with a start from the pain, Su Jin rubbed her aching head and turned around to see Xie Jingchen staring at her intently, his eyes openly filled with disdain.
Even the dullest person would know who caused her to hit her head, and in her anger, she was slightly alarmed—how did he wake up ahead of time?
Not only did he wake up, but he also stared at her with that murderous look.
Still staring!
Su Jin glared and said, "Didn't kill me with that hit, are you planning to make up for it?"
His eyes were cold, and just as Su Jin detected a dangerous glint in his eyes, her neck was grasped, making her feel like swearing. It seemed like she was courting death.
Her breath was being slowly taken away, her once pale face gradually turning purple.
Su Jin struggled to resist, using all her strength to slap his hand, "Let go...."
The words that came out were shattered by his grip.
The man's handsome brows gradually knitted, the slapping on the back of his hand didn't really hurt, but it wasn't without sensation either—it didn't feel like a dream.
He released his grip.
But his brow furrowed even deeper.
Dreaming of her was already unusual, let alone this being reality.
Breathing freely again, Su Jin greedily gulped air, coughing due to her anxiousness. If he had used a little more force earlier, she would have met King Yama.
Xie Jingchen retracted his gaze from Su Jin and scanned the room once more, his eyes pausing on the bright red wedding candles and the phoenix crown on the dressing table. A thought flashed through his mind, and his heart felt like it was sinking into an icy pond.
Suppressing his anger, he suddenly turned to Su Jin and saw her clutching the quilt, looking at him warily, as if she were an injured deer in the forest.
He must be crazy!
He actually saw vulnerability and innocence on the face of a female bandit who dared to snatch a man in public!
It must be his illusion. Xie Jingchen, with a cold face, asked a question he was eager to confirm, "Why are you in my room?"
Indeed, he didn't know anything, and Su Jin knew she couldn't blame him, but how was she at fault? She didn't do anything, yet she had to bear a bad name and almost got choked to death.
With lingering fear and her spine still cold, there was no point in expecting her to have a good temper. Su Jin gritted her teeth and said, "You fainted after spitting blood at the gate of Marquis Dongxiang Mansion and were carried back. Duke Zhen Mansion saw you in a coma and asked the Emperor for a marriage to bless you with fortune, as you can see, I married you!"
The abrupt rise in pitch and the suppressed anger in her eyes all told Xie Jingchen that the woman in front of him didn't want to marry him.
After all, snatching him in public didn't mean she was willing to marry a dying man for good fortune, gambling her entire life.
Looking at Su Jin, Xie Jingchen asked, "Who undressed me?"
He wanted to ask who stripped him naked and sent him to the female bandit's bed, but after asking, he realized he had asked the wrong person—she probably didn't know.
Su Jin answered sincerely, "I did."
She couldn't refuse to admit it; this matter would fall on her head regardless, and she was honest, with nothing to hide.
Xie Jingchen's face darkened, and Su Jin, fearing he would choke her again, hurriedly said, "I undressed you to save you! I didn't do anything inappropriate to you!"
These words naturally popped out of Su Jin's mouth. Before Xie Jingchen could respond, she rolled her eyes weakly. Who would believe she did nothing just by saying so, especially after snatching him in the street and having him naked now?
Holding her quilt, Su Jin looked at Xie Jingchen and said, "I was wrong to snatch you in the street that day, but I did it to save you. You also know my father wanted to choose a husband for me, but no one was willing to marry me. I saw you look good but were poisoned and dying; it was a pity. I thought I could detoxify you, you could stay with me, and we would mutually benefit each other."
Su Jin lied with open eyes as if it were all true.
Seeing Xie Jingchen's brows tightly knit, seemingly believing her three-tenths, she intensified, "But I didn't expect you to be so ruthless, actually causing me to fall at the Marquis Mansion's gate!"
Xie Jingchen gave Su Jin another look, got up, grabbed a piece of clothing, and walked out.
He said nothing, neither admitting nor denying.
It appeared that her fall was not entirely unrelated to him.
That night when she bathed, she discovered a bruise on her ankle, like something had hit it. She suspected her fall wasn't as simple as Xingxing said because of the excitement of snatching a handsome man and tripping over the doorframe.
The door creaked open and quickly closed again. Su Jin didn't know if he would come back. The earlier commotion had completely wiped away her sleepiness.
Outside, Xie Jingchen had no sooner stepped out than a shadow appeared at the door.
"Is what she said true?" Xie Jingchen asked.
The shadow replied, "The Imperial Physician declared you wouldn't survive the night. It was the Eldest Young Madam who administered acupuncture to help you wake up."
It was precisely because the Imperial Physician declared Xie Jingchen wouldn't make it through the night that, no matter how much Marquis Dongxiang argued to postpone the wedding, Duke Zhen Mansion was unwilling. A dead man's light extinguished; all marital arrangements meant nothing.
Su Jin performed acupuncture on Xie Jingchen, the Hidden Guard knew, yet did not stop her. Since he was nearing death, what more could be done? Treat a dead horse as if it's alive.
But he didn't think a female bandit could actually save the Young Master.
The Duke once said Feihu Village of Qingyun Mountain harbored hidden talents. It seemed his words were not unfounded.
And the words Su Jin just said—the Hidden Guard sought to apologize, "I didn't know the Eldest Young Madam snatched you to save you and almost caused your death."
Inside, Su Jin stared into space, clutching her quilt.
Would he come back? If not, she'd commandeer the whole bed.
Just as she planned to lie down, the door creaked and opened again. Xie Jingchen returned shortly after leaving, directly walking to the bed to lie down in his previous spot, and closed his eyes.
The seamlessness of his actions left Su Jin dumbfounded, as if he hadn't noticed the living person beside him. She couldn't help pushing him.
"I agreed," he said.
Caught off guard, Su Jin blinked blankly, "Agreed to what?"
"For us to mutually benefit."
Su Jin's mouth twitched fiercely. Who wants to mutually benefit with you? She had only said that to bluff him, to diminish his hostility toward her. How could he take it seriously!
But she had said it, so she couldn't contradict herself and had to think of another way.
Seeing Xie Jingchen lying there, Su Jin hugged her quilt, deliberately provoking him, "So you're just planning to lie there, letting me do whatever I want with you?"
A small flame flickered in Xie Jingchen's opened eyes, shimmering brightly.
He'd never seen such a shameless woman!
She could even say such things like 'do whatever I want' with ease, suppressing the urge to choke her, he said, "If I don't lie here, where should I sleep?"
Su Jin was silent for a moment and said, "You can sleep anywhere, but if you sleep on the bed, I won't feel safe."
Xie Jingchen chuckled, "Shouldn't I be the one to say that?"
Su Jin's face flushed, feeling an impulse to kick him.
Ever since she snatched him in the street, was she now immune to feeling shy or thin-skinned?
Throwing the quilt down, Su Jin looked at him and said, "Let me be honest, I fancy even more handsome men now and don't intend for us to mutually benefit. I can detoxify you, but you only need to give me a divorce letter, and we can separate peacefully, each finding happiness."
A wife as fickle, promiscuous, and shameless as me shouldn't be kept long, not even until the New Year. Don't hesitate—promptly hand me a divorce letter so I can leave where I'm not wanted.
Su Jin disparaged herself, feeling as though the divorce letter was beckoning her.
Xie Jingchen's face turned faintly ashen, and through gritted teeth, squeezed out words, "Provoking me won't work."
Su Jin grinned, "Who's provoking you? I'm speaking the truth."
With eyes closed, Xie Jingchen half-smilingly said, "These days, the Iron Armor Guards have surrounded Dongxiang Marquis Mansion watertight. Besides the Dongxiang Marquis Mansion's servant, only the Imperial Eunuch has entered. Could it be you've set your sights on him?"