The next instant after the door closed again, a shadow appeared behind her—it was the gentleman on the beam who had landed.

He bent down and leaned closer, speaking lightly, "Wanwan, don’t you think it’s time for you to take a bath?"

"..." Xie Wanqing took a deep breath and turned to glare at him, "Lu Ziyuan, what exactly are you trying to do!"

"I want you, will you give yourself to me?" Lu Ziyuan’s expression didn’t even flicker as he looked at her and said, "From beginning to end, the only thing I’ve ever wanted to do is have you."

He’s truly hopeless.

Xie Wanqing couldn’t help but laugh out of anger, her fingers trembled as they covered her chest, "How did you become such a ruffian!"

What happened to his pride?

Wasn’t he aloof and arrogant?

Wasn’t he supposed to be unattainable!

Lu Ziyuan also laughed, lifting his wrist to hold her shoulder and said with a smile, "If I didn’t come to find you, you would never take the initiative to find me, Wanwan, did you know? I waited for you the whole day today."

He lifted her chin, looking down into her angry eyes, his smile faded, "No one has ever dared to make me wait so long, but on my way here, I hoped you did it on purpose."

On purpose to tease him, to torment him, to bully him.

Any reason would do.

At least it wouldn’t mean she was ignoring him, indifferent to him.

Truly humbling oneself into the dust.

Xie Wanqing’s heart tightened uncontrollably, she pursed her lips and couldn’t speak for a long time.

As her gaze lowered, the hand on her chin gently pinched, forcing her to lift her eyes again.

Perhaps he hadn’t told her that he loved her eyes immensely. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

Even if they held contempt for him, he liked seeing his reflection in her beautiful eyes.

"Wanwan," he smiled at her, his voice soft, "I’m going to the front."

Northern Border.

These two words flashed through Xie Wanqing’s mind.

He had already mentioned that he would be heading to the Northern Border this year.

When he returns from the Northern Border...

Her vision darkened, the man in front of her somehow moved closer again, Xie Wanqing thought he was about to kiss her, but he didn’t.

Lu Ziyuan simply stared at her without blinking, as if he wanted to etch her into his heart, "Will you come with me?"

"...!" Xie Wanqing’s pupils widened suddenly, "You want to take me to the battlefield!"

Lu Ziyuan replied, "Would you be willing?"

"No!" Xie Wanqing flared up in anger, "I know you’re used to acting rashly, but I..."

"I’m just worried about you," Lu Ziyuan interrupted, "The journey to the Northern Border is long and arduous. If anything happens here, I’d be powerless, Wanwan, I don’t want to experience the pain of you not waking up again."

His tone was gentle, merely stating a fact, not speaking of his feelings, nor exposing the humiliation of his vulnerability.

Listening to him, Xie Wanqing’s fingers slowly clenched inside her sleeve, her lips moved, stiffly saying, "I don’t need your concern."

"Your safety is something I can’t ignore," he said, his thumb stroking her soft jaw, "Will you come to the Northern Border with me? At most one year, I’ll flatten the Jin Dynasty and bring you back to the Capital."

"I’m not going," Xie Wanqing said with a wooden expression, "You can of course forcibly take me away without considering my feelings, but let me tell you, you’ll only get..."

"Shut up!" Lu Ziyuan’s expression changed instantly, he said sternly, "If you say one more reckless word, I’ll take you to the camp to serve."

The word ’serve’ from his mouth was definitely a verb.

Xie Wanqing, being sensible, stopped talking immediately, though her eyes still showed anger.

After a long gaze between them, his expression gradually softened, "Really not going?"

"Not going." Xie Wanqing said.

Lu Ziyuan looked at her deeply for a long time, finally letting out a small sigh, "Then don’t go."

She was more stubborn than he ever was.

Just as Xie Wanqing sighed in relief, she saw him hand over a bamboo tube, "Open it and take a look."

The bamboo tube was not too big or too small, the seal had already been torn open by him, she only needed to lift it gently to open.

After some thought, Xie Wanqing pulled out the cork and poured out the contents.

A jade ring and a curled-up piece of paper.

The paper bore a few bold and unrestrained characters.

Glancing over it quickly, Xie Wanqing saw the words ’Purple Bamboo Forest’ and twitched her lips.

Could he really be there, waiting longingly for her?

How did he think she would be willing to rendezvous with him alone?

It turned out, the part about waiting for her the whole day was true.

"With this ring, you can mobilize all my personal soldiers in the Capital City,"

Lu Ziyuan picked up the jade ring from her palm, and said in a low voice, "This is my last resort left for you. When I’m not in the Capital City, if you sense anything amiss, don’t risk probing, go straight to the Prince Zhenbei Mansion. There’s a tunnel there leading to the Capital Suburb Camp. Once there, no one can harm you in the slightest..."