Chapter 20.2

Substitute Marriage (6) –  Agile and Clever (2)

“Miss Li, are you marrying me of your own free will?”

The words had been brewing for a long time, but Li Ruo Shui’s words and behaviour inexplicably made him feel close, as if it didn’t matter what he said.

Li Ruo Shui wasn’t surprised at all when she heard what he said.

“No.”

Zheng Yan Qing sighed with relief at her words and his expression turned more natural. He took out a piece of letter paper from his wedding dress and put it on the table apologetically.

“Miss Li, this is the contract I wrote.”

Li Ruo Shui ate her food and took a look at it.

It was a hand-stamped contract, agreeing that he will separate with her after half a year.

“No.” Li Ruo Shui put down the paper: “One month at most.”

Zheng Yan Qing was stunned for a moment, nodded and smiled. He coughed a few times and then put the paper back.

“It seems that Miss Li has come prepared.” He picked up his chopsticks relaxedly, his expression unchanged.

“Don’t worry that I’ll tell anyone, it’s better that you turn this place upside down.”

Li Ruo Shui nodded at him with a deep expression: “You must think highly of me.”

All she did was to approach Lu Zhi Yao. As for the main line of the original book, about the male and female protagonists storyline, she didn’t worry about it at all.

“Cough cough cough!”

Zheng Yan Qing heard such words for the first time and uncontrollably coughed for a long time.

Li Ruo Shui thought it was because the window was open, and that he was coughing due to the cold wind, so she got up to close the window.

Lu Fei Yue and Jiang Nian, who had been searching the Zheng Mansion over and over again, happened to pass by. Originally they just passed by to see if anything had happened, but seeing that the window was closed, they approached there immediately.

The wedding banquet was not yet over, and most of the maids and servants were helping in the front hall, so the place was basically unguarded.

Lu Fei Yue and Jiang Nian went under the windowsill and were looking in through the window when they suddenly heard a soft sound from above.

They looked up and saw Lu Zhi Yao sitting on the beam of the corridor with his knees bent, and his hands flipping a few dark yellow candy wrappers. They could not see his expression from below.

Lu Fei Yue and Jiang Nian looked at each other with some doubts in their minds.

Jiang Nian climbed up the beam and asked him in a whispering voice.

“What are you doing here?”

Lu Zhi Yao threw the candy wrapper down and that familiar smile curled up on his lips again.

He pulled out a green porcelain bottle from his pocket and returned in the same whispering voice: “To give her medicine.”

Jiang Nian: ……

He really couldn’t understand it.

“Then we will go and search again, and you keep an eye to prevent Young Master Zheng from doing anything bad to her.”

Lu Zhi Yao paused his hand which was playing with the porcelain vase and raised his head slightly: “What kind of bad thing? Will he kill Li Ruo Shui?”

“It’s not that kind of bad thing.” Jiang Nian waved his hand, opened and closed his lips as he spoke out euphemistically, “It’s something that a married person would do.”

“Lock her up?”

“What……” Jiang Nian took a deep breath, but still kept his voice down: “No matter what it is, you should pay attention to it. If something goes wrong, go in and knock Zheng Yan Qing unconscious.”

“Like this.” Lu Zhi Yao smiled and nodded his head.

Jiang Nian’s reminder did make him realise that he should indeed go in and knock him out.

After Lu Fei Yue and Jiang Nian had both left, he immediately descended the beam and did not wait a moment longer.

Inside the room, Li Ruo Shui had already eaten and washed up. She was sitting on the side waiting for Zheng Yan Qing to redraft the contract.

But she was really too tired and sleepy. She had stayed up all night yesterday and had been busy all day today, so she could not stay up long and fell asleep on the table.

After Zheng Yan Qing finished writing the contract, he looked up and saw this image, and couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief.

He put the contract away, tapped Li Ruo Shui’s arm and called her several times, but there was no response.

Zheng Yan Qing sighed. He took a thin blanket from the side and draped it over her, helping her up from her seat.

“Excuse me.”

But his physique was weak, and it was difficult to lift Li Ruo Shui up.

Just when he was considering whether he should carry her on his back, a pain in the back of his neck caused him to faint.

“Excuse me.”

Lu Zhi Yao’s tone was gentle and he smoothly caught the fallen Li Ruo Shui.

After hugging her, a stream of light flashed over his hand. It was a sharp dagger. His eyelashes curved and he was about to attack when he heard a few murmurs from Li Ruo Shui.

The dagger in his hand turned around between his fingers, but returned to his sleeve. He then held Li Ruo Shui in his arms and lifted his foot over him.

The candle in this room had long been extinguished by him, and at this moment only the moonlight through the paper window was left to illuminate the room slightly.

He didn’t need the light in the first place.

He could still walk without his blind stick, just a little slower.

Carrying Li Ruo Shui to the bed, he reached out and touched the surface of the bed. There was no more dried fruit as it had already been cleaned up.

Lu Zhi Yao put Li Ruo Shui on the bed and bent his knees to sit on the footrest himself.

He took out the porcelain bottle and pulled Li Ruo Shui’s right hand, preparing to apply medicine to her.

“There’s still one last time left.”

A soft sigh echoed through the silent room, and Li Ruo Shui, who hadn’t slept behavingly, rolled over again to face him, with long breathing.

Lu Zhi Yao touched the bruises on her palm and fingers, not knowing what he was thinking.

Suddenly, Li Ruo Shui’s hand lifted and landed right on the side of his face, gently stroking his cheek.

He had been sitting on the beam for a long time, and he didn’t like to wear much, so his body temperature had always been low. When he suddenly touched the temperature of her palm, it was as scorching as fire.

It was so hot that it made his heart skip a beat.

The hand was very restless, touching and kneading him every now and then. The scar on her palms was rubbing against his cheeks, bringing a numbing and tickling sensation, like comforting and pleasing.

Lu Zhi Yao was silent for a long time, and then laughed in a low voice. He laughed for a long time and the corners of his eyes curved up with infinite spring love.

He took Li Ruo Shui’s hand down and applied the ointment for her, sighing softly.

“So agile and clever even when you’re asleep.”