Unyielding Spring Mountains - Chapter 70: Marry Me

Qi Yan suddenly grasped her hand and said softly, “It’s not beating fast. Are you sure you didn’t hear it wrong…”

He tried to let the night cover his embarrassment and pretended to be calm, his eyes fixed on Wei Zhen.

Wei Zhen leaned in, her chin resting on his shoulder. “Can you marry me within two years? No, within three years?”

Qi Yan replied, “It won’t take that long.”

“What if? If you don’t know when you’ll conquer Qi, will I have to keep waiting for you? I’m afraid even three years would be too short.”

“It won’t be.” Qi Yan chuckled. “With Zuo Ying’s help inside the Qi Palace, the Eastern Campaign may not be as difficult as it seems. Besides—”

He paused, slowly propping himself up. Wei Zhen’s gaze followed him as his handsome face gradually lowered. “If it really takes that long to marry you, Wei Zhen, even I would feel restless.”

The deep, magnetic tone of his voice was like sand scraping against Wei Zhen’s heart.

She only felt her chest crawl with countless ants, gently nibbling at her heart.

“Then hurry and come marry me.”

If they moved even closer, their lips would touch.

Cold air seeped through the blankets, and Wei Zhen shivered, suddenly realizing that she was only wearing a single layer of innerwear after bathing and lying down. The fabric was so thin, it barely covered anything.

She reached for the blanket, trying to cover herself.

Qi Yan lowered his gaze to glance, then looked back up.

In the bright moonlight, her long hair spread over the pillow, her thin white garment like snow, outlining her graceful, delicate figure. The light green undergarment faintly visible, embroidered with plump lotus seeds and translucent, soft pink lotus flowers, painted a vivid, lively scene.

Her inner garment was loosely tied, and because of her movement to grab the blanket, it slipped even more. The ribbon of her small garment dangled, something almost ready to be revealed.

Wei Zhen quickly tried to retie her garment, but his fingers had already grabbed the ribbon before her. Instead of retying it, he wrapped the ribbon around his fingers, winding it over and over.

Wei Zhen’s heart trembled at his gesture.

She hurriedly grabbed his arm. Qi Yan lowered his face, his lips brushing against her ear. “Didn’t we already kiss before? Why are you still so shy?”

Wei Zhen’s face flushed. “That was different.”

“How is it different?” Qi Yan rested his chin in her neck, his hand wrapped around her face, lazily gazing at her with a teasing expression.

Cold air kept leaking in. Their cheeks were flushed, but neither of them stopped. They were like two people challenging each other to see who would back down first.

Wei Zhen said, “That night, you were whipped. You admitted our relationship to Jin Wang, so I shared a bed with you. When I saw your wounds, I couldn’t help but want to be close to you.”

They had lain entwined that night. He kissed her back, her wounds, her shoulders. And not just that…

“And tonight?” Qi Yan turned his head slightly, his hair as sharp as a blade, his face as beautiful as jade. He lowered his head, his thin lips lightly kissing the ribbon entwined around his fingers, all his teasing intentions laid bare.

The more he acted this way, the more it stirred the heart.

His voice carried a hint of desire, like it wanted to seep into her bones.

His eyes darkened, locking onto her. “Do you want to be close to me tonight?”

His palm covered the light green fabric, completely hiding the bright red lotus flower embroidered on it. His other hand, still holding the ribbon, slid down to grasp her slender waist. He hadn’t even done much, yet her body was already trembling against his hand.

He quietly studied her. “This outfit looks very nice. It suits your complexion. Just as beautiful as the last one.”

Wei Zhen’s cheeks burned. She had never been praised so earnestly. “What was the last one?”

“The light peach-pink one,” Qi Yan said. “I kissed you then, so I remember it very clearly.”

The hand he used to hold a sword all year round was roughened with a thin layer of calluses. Wei Zhen could clearly feel the coarse touch against her skin. Her forehead gradually became damp with sweat. She lifted her hand to wrap around his neck, and Qi Yan leaned closer. “What is it?”

“I hope you return soon. Don’t make me wait too long.”

“I won’t,” Qi Yan whispered.

Her eyes were filled with concern for him, making him want to pull her into his arms and protect her.

Qi Yan’s hand slid down her waist. As he turned his head, he noticed a vase on the table still holding a branch of hibiscus. Its petals were dewy and vivid, just like the girl before him, blooming enchantingly in the darkness.

The hibiscus branch had been bent, its dew glistening, a faint fragrance wafting through the air.

Wei Zhen turned her head away and, after a moment, pulled out a clean handkerchief from under the pillow, taking his hand in hers.

The cloth was damp. She blushed as she looked at him. He wasn’t much better; his ears had turned completely red, though he tried to act serious.

Though he said he wouldn’t make her wait long, when they would meet again was still uncertain.

She propped herself up and gently pressed her lips to his, responding to his earlier actions.

Two people who were about to part couldn’t stop themselves from kissing deeply, as if trying to make up for all the kisses they wouldn’t be able to share in the days to come.

Gradually, she sensed his discomfort.

Wei Zhen noticed something, gritted her teeth, and whispered into his ear, “Qi Yan, are you feeling uncomfortable?”

Qi Yan raised his dark eyes. Wei Zhen looked into his gaze and felt that someone like him must be favored by the heavens—even the shadows cast by his eyelids seemed like a divine touch.

She gently stroked his eyelid, her other hand covering his burning ear.

The girl’s hand was cool but not icy, just right to soothe the heat raging within him.

Her other hand intertwined with his fingers as her lips drew near, her soft voice saying, “Qi Yan, your hands are those of a warrior. They feel rough, with thin calluses.”

Qi Yan’s breathing quickened, as if anticipating what she would do next.

“And my hands? How do they feel?”

As she spoke, her delicate fingers brushed along his ear, then down his neck, lightly grazing his throat.

Wherever she touched felt like feathers brushing against his skin, sparking an itching sensation that only grew stronger.

His heart pounded, and just when he wanted to grab her wrist to stop her, he held back, wanting to see what she would do.

She reached for his waistband, her gaze meeting his, filled with hesitation.

Qi Yan’s voice was low and hoarse. “We’re not married yet…”

“I know,” Wei Zhen replied.

She took his hand, and the young man tilted his head back, his ever-composed face now full of restless desire. His throat bobbed up and down under her touch.

They bathed together afterward and lay side by side in bed, breathing slowly returning to normal.

Wei Zhen rested her head on her hand, still hearing Qi Yan’s breathing from behind. She knew he was still awake.

He held her tightly from behind, their bodies curled up together.

He whispered in her ear, “I have to leave at dawn.”

“Be careful on the road. Wear more clothes and stay warm. Don’t act recklessly. If I want to contact you…”

“You can write to me. Jin Wang doesn’t allow you to come to the front, but you can at least write to me every ten days or half a month.”

“Every ten days or half a month? What if I want to write to you every day?” she countered.

Qi Yan’s chest rumbled slightly with laughter. “If the princess doesn’t mind the trouble, I’d be more than happy. Though it would be hard on the messenger.”

Wei Zhen chuckled softly.

After a while, he took her hand and spread her fingers, opening her palm.

Wei Zhen lowered her head, watching as his slender fingertips traced a symbol in her palm.

She frowned slightly. “This is…”

“The symbol for our correspondence. Remember to use this mark to prevent our letters from being forged or tampered with.”

After Qi Yan finished speaking, he saw Wei Zhen staring at her palm in a daze and asked, “What’s the matter?”

Wei Zhen replied, “Nothing.”

She shifted in his arms, gently embracing him, her voice soft. “I’ll remember. Take care of yourself. It’s very late, so just rest here tonight. Don’t trouble yourself by making another trip back.”

Qi Yan said, “Alright.”

A long while passed, and when the breathing of the person beside her gradually became steady, Wei Zhen opened her palm and gently traced her fingers over it.

Just now, when Qi Yan embraced her from behind, she had felt a momentary daze, and scenes from her past life resurfaced before her eyes.

He was not the only man who had held her like this and written words in her palm.

Outside, the sound of rain continued to fall. In her previous life, it was also a rainy day—

In the final year of her life, she had gone to the abandoned palace in the northern part of Chu to rest and heal.

Though she was blind, her vision damaged, she still wished to do all the things she had always wanted to do during her remaining days. But at first, the palace maids constantly obstructed her, forbidding her from picking flowers, riding horses, or even climbing mountains.

Only that one guard was willing to accompany her.

That day, they went up the mountain together, only to be caught in a torrential downpour, with the path down blocked by mud and rocks.

The two of them were trapped in a cave, relying on a campfire for warmth.

But as night fell, the cold seeped in. She trembled from the chill and then felt someone embrace her from behind, using his body to keep her warm.

At that time, she was still the Queen of Chu, and being this close with a guard was certainly crossing the line.

His accent was not purely of Chu, with traces of Jin. Wei Zhen, having been blind for a long time, had developed a keen sense of hearing. For instance, she could tell that he was deliberately altering his voice when speaking to her, not wanting her to recognize his true voice.

That night, she asked him how his name was written, and he did just that—spreading her hand and writing his name in her palm.

Just a name from him, most likely made up on the spot.

But Wei Zhen remembered it anyway. He said his name was Jin Lan.

During that period of time, he accompanied her as they roamed the wilds, led the horse while describing sunsets to her, and read scriptures to her in the stillness of the night. He was like a blazing light piercing into her days of perpetual darkness, dispelling the gloom within her heart, only to disappear suddenly and without a trace.

The rain pattered steadily, and Wei Zhen pulled herself away from the memories of the past. She recalled how, in the cave, his clothes were soaked through, and when he removed them, she had accidentally touched his body. She had never encountered someone whose entire body was covered in scars of various sizes.

A sudden thought emerged in Wei Zhen’s mind. She turned to look at the man before her.

She remembered clearly that the man had a scar on his waist.

Wei Zhen’s fingertips trembled slightly as she reached toward Qi Yan’s waist.

In truth, she knew well that even if Qi Yan had scars, it wouldn’t prove anything.

However, when she lifted his inner garment and her fingers touched the muscle of his waist, the sensation of a scar was unmistakably clear. Wei Zhen’s heart couldn’t help but tremble.