Chapter 258: Exposed

Gu Yueyi felt all the hairs on his body stand on end. His mind, previously clouded by lust, instantly cleared. He quickly explained, "Junior Sister, I was momentarily confused just now; I didn't intend to offend you."

Qiu Honglei's voice turned cold as she withdrew her bright yellow lantern. "If there's a next time, don't blame me for not respecting our fellow disciple bond."

"Yes, yes, yes, this was an accident. It definitely won't happen again." Cold sweat trickled down Gu Yueyi's back as he hurriedly retreated. Although they were separated by a screen, he kept his head as low as possible to avoid angering her and provoking her to attack. He had tried to overestimate her abilities before, but he hadn't expected her to be so formidable. And what about that lantern of hers? Did their master give it to her? Their master was truly biased! He secretly wiped away a bead of cold sweat, remembering how many times he had previously tried to flirt with her. Yet, a hint of confusion lingered in his mind. Usually, when he teased her slightly, she would always respond with a gentle smile. Why was she suddenly so angry today?

"One more thing," Qiu Honglei scoffed, clearly displeased with his behavior on the boat earlier. "If you need to escape in the future, just escape. Don't use our own people as human shields."

"Yes, yes, yes, next time for sure," Gu Yueyi nodded profusely. However, he grumbled inwardly, *Since you're so powerful, why didn't you just act on the boat earlier? If we had teamed up, facing Chen Xuan wouldn't have required such a hasty escape.* Of course, these thoughts were only confined to his mind; he wouldn't dare show even a hint of them.

"You may leave," Qiu Honglei waved her hand, clearly having no desire to engage with him further.

Gu Yueyi, as if granted a great pardon, hurriedly ran out.

Qiu Honglei, meanwhile, played with the conch in her hand, a smile returning to her face. She attributed the disruption of her grand plan to Chen Xuan's sudden appearance, but overall, she considered it a positive outcome. She had confirmed that the man was worth her investment.

***

"Achoo!" Zu An sneezed as a cold wind blew over him upon his return to the Chu family residence. He went back to his room to find a set of clean clothes to change into, then hurried towards Chu Chuyan's chambers.

"I wonder if she remembered to leave the door open for me," Zu An mused, looking up at the high-hanging bright moon. It was already late. He stealthily made his way to Chu Chuyan's courtyard. Due to the previous incident of intruders, Qin Wanru had specifically increased the security. Ordinarily, not even a fly could get past the current defenses. However, Zu An possessed an improved and enhanced version of "Sunflower Phantasm," and when he couldn't evade, he would simply use his "Great Wind" skill to teleport, allowing him to infiltrate successfully.

"What kind of world is this! Sneaking into my own wife's room like a thief!" Zu An muttered indignantly.

Arriving at the agreed-upon window, Zu An noticed that the lights inside were off. "My wife Chuyan is indeed sensitive, worried about the lights being seen from outside." He looked around, confirming that no one was present. He then placed his hand on the window and gently pushed.

Why wouldn't it budge? Zu An, disbelieving, applied more force. But it remained unmoving. "Did I remember the wrong window?" He recalled his previous conversation with Chu Chuyan; perhaps they had misunderstood which window the other meant. He quickly moved to another window and tried to push it, but it also wouldn't move.

What the hell? He tried all the windows one after another, but none were open. Zu An's face instantly fell. *What about their agreement?* He had resisted the temptation and declined Qiu Honglei's invitation, only to come back to this? After thinking it over, he concluded that Chu Chuyan was probably too shy and perhaps a little unaccustomed to the situation at first. But the first few days were the most crucial for expelling the cold from her body; they absolutely couldn't delay. He didn't dare call out to Chu Chuyan, fearing he might alert the guards outside. So, he took out a dagger, gently inserted it into the window crack, and pushed the latch aside. He tiptoed inside, then closed the window again.

"Why does this feel like I'm breaking in?" This was clearly his own wife's room! A wave of displeasure washed over Zu An. His previously hunched posture straightened, and he stood proudly.

Walking towards the bed, he vaguely saw a graceful, slender figure lying on her side, facing away from him. "This woman really needs a good talking-to; look how sweet and tender Qiu Honglei is!" Thinking that Chu Chuyan had promised to leave the door open for him but then reneged, Zu An felt a surge of frustration, believing he needed to assert his marital authority. So, without a word, he slipped into the covers and wrapped his arms around her. After all, they had already shared the most intimate encounters in the secret realm, and later, when he healed her, Chu Chuyan had even taken off her clothes in front of him. He felt he should be more proactive; perhaps she was no longer as resistant to him.

His arms embraced a soft, fragrant warmth, but Zu An felt a hint of confusion. How could Chuyan's body have become so much fuller after only half a day?

"Yan'er, stop messing around..." The beauty in his arms suddenly stirred, murmuring as if in a dream.

Zu An was terrified, as the voice clearly belonged to Qin Wanru! Just then, Qin Wanru seemed to sense something amiss. Groggy, she began to turn to check. Suddenly, a slender finger reached out from the side and pressed an acupuncture point on her. Qin Wanru gave a soft 'hmm' and then continued to sleep soundly. A slender, graceful figure sat up beside them, revealing a charming face that was both delicate and slightly annoyed—it was none other than Chu Chuyan.

Zu An was utterly bewildered. He looked down at the woman he was holding; she was noticeably fuller and more glamorous than his wife. It could only be Qin Wanru. "What is going on?" Zu An's mind went blank.

"My mother was worried about my health and insisted on sleeping with me to take care of me," Chu Chuyan explained, looking embarrassed. "I refused a few times, but she persisted, and I was afraid of making her suspicious, so I had to agree."

Zu An: "..." *What kind of plot twist is this? How could I have possibly predicted it?*

"Why didn't you tell me in advance?" Zu An said weakly. He had just received a massive fright, and his young, fragile heart had taken critical damage; he still hadn't fully recovered.

Chu Chuyan's gaze dropped, and she said with slight annoyance, "Aren't you going to take your hand off?"

Zu An looked down and instantly felt mortified. He snatched his hand back as if he'd been electrocuted. "Uh... I was flustered just now and didn't realize."

Chu Chuyan scoffed before saying, "I asked Xiao Zhao, and she said you weren't in the manor, so how was I supposed to tell you? I had no choice but to lock all the doors and windows to warn you of the change, but who knew you'd force your way in!"

"I thought you were just a little unaccustomed and shy because it was your first time. Since removing the cold qi in the initial treatments for your condition is very important, I was eager to get in," Zu An explained. He didn't want her to think he was a pervert.

Chu Chuyan bit her lip, her expression hesitant. "Alright, but please don't be so reckless in the future. I can't always pinpoint Mother's acupuncture points so quickly. If she found out you were... disrespectful to her, you probably wouldn't be able to stay in the Chu family anymore." She knew her mother had never been particularly fond of Zu An, and if she found out about this, she would definitely go mad. That's why Chu Chuyan had to act quickly and incapacitate her.

"My wife, you really do care about me," Zu An said, a faint smile appearing on his face. *My efforts to save you weren't in vain.*

"Who said I care about you?" Chu Chuyan's face flushed slightly as she quickly explained, "It's just that such a situation would be embarrassing for everyone, so I was just warning you."

"Alright, alright, hurry up and undress," Zu An said, simultaneously spreading out the bag of silver needles he had prepared.

Chu Chuyan: "..." *Can this guy ever talk normally?* It was supposed to be a normal treatment, yet why did it sound so strange coming from his mouth? She let out a silent hmph, then slowly unbuttoned her clothes and gradually slipped them off. Having been a prodigy in the cultivation world since childhood, she certainly didn't want to spend the rest of her life as an invalid confined to her bed. Of course, if anyone other than Zu An were to administer the needles, she would absolutely never agree. Presumably, their intimate relationship in the secret realm had subconsciously made her less resistant. Of course, she was completely unaware of any of this.

Zu An once again admired Chu Chuyan's snow-white, delicate skin. She didn't have Qiu Honglei's strong fragrance, but her faint, subtle scent was still impressive. He took out the silver needles and slowly inserted them into her acupuncture points, beginning to expel the cold qi from her body.

Chu Chuyan suddenly spoke, "Don't disturb my mother."

Zu An paused, then shifted his body further away from Qin Wanru. "Alright!"

After an unknown period, Zu An withdrew all the silver needles and let out a long sigh of relief. "Mission accomplished, today's task is done." In his mind, however, he was fantasizing about what it would be like to acupuncture her from the front next time. *Hmm, can't scare her away at first, take it slow, take it slow.*

"Thank you," Chu Chuyan quietly put on her clothes. Turning around, she noticed the fine beads of sweat on his forehead. Her heart softened, and she took out a scented handkerchief, intending to wipe his sweat.

Suddenly, her movements stiffened, and her expression grew a few degrees colder. "Where did you go today?"

"I went out for a stroll with Yucheng and Hongcai," Zu An said evasively. He couldn't very well tell his wife he'd gone to a brothel, could he?

"Is that all?" Chu Chuyan scoffed.

"What else?" Zu An felt a pang of guilt.

Chu Chuyan fell silent. After a long moment, she said abruptly, "You smell of another woman."

"Huh?" Zu An quickly lifted his sleeve to sniff it. *No, there's nothing! And I just changed clothes! As a keyboard warrior, how could I make such a rookie mistake?* But she still smelled it? *Are women really that sensitive to scents that aren't their own?* He still tried to brazen it out. "Are you sure you're not mistaken? Maybe it was your mother's scent that you accidentally picked up."

Chu Chuyan sneered, "You also have another woman's lipstick on your mouth."

Zu An: "..." He finally remembered that he and Qiu Honglei had been mouth-to-mouth when she gave him air underwater earlier. *Fading lipstick is deadly!*

Zu An fled in a panic, silently cursing the unscrupulous merchants of this world. Qiu Honglei must have used the most expensive cosmetics, yet they still had this problem. "Wait, hold on," he thought. "Didn't she say she wouldn't mind if I found other women? So why am I feeling guilty?" Zu An instinctively wanted to turn back, but for some reason, after a few steps, he dismissed the idea. "Forget it, no need to invite trouble."

When he returned to his own room, his body suddenly stiffened. A sword was pressed against his neck.