Chapter 49 A Brief Entanglement

Time is the most fitting remedy for healing wounds; love is the most perfect way to wear down hatred.

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“I’m tired. I’m going upstairs to rest,” Xue Zuining set down her chopsticks and headed straight for the stairs.

Lu Huaining’s indifferent gaze silently followed her wounded figure until she disappeared behind the closed door.

But Xue Zuining could not have guessed that, just as she vanished from his sight, the phone she had left on the coffee table began to ring with a distinctive tone.

Xiao Yu, quick-eyed and nimble, picked up the vibrating phone, intending to take it upstairs, when the man’s cool voice sounded, carrying an unmistakable command, “Give it to me.”

After a hesitant glance upstairs, she handed it over. Lu Huaining took it without a word, his eyes darkening the instant he saw “Mother” flashing on the screen. The forbidden memories in his heart were once again provoked without warning. Without hesitation, as the screen dimmed, he firmly chose to turn off the phone.

The warm phone was returned to the stunned Xiao Yu, and the man’s cold footsteps carried him away from the dining table.

When Lu Huaining pushed open the tightly closed bedroom door, he was greeted by the sight of her standing before the bathroom, brows furrowed, frustration etched across her face as she stared at the nightgown in her hands, lost as to what to do.

The wound, disinfected and bandaged, still seemed to carry the scent of blood. Xue Zuining frowned, staring at the layers of white gauze, anxious about how she could manage to bathe herself. She turned, about to call for Xiao Yu, only to see the man leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed, an amused look in his eyes.

Was he waiting to ridicule her? Xue Zuining approached him step by step, her mind composing the biting words she imagined he’d deliver at any moment. Seeing the faint curve of mockery on his lips, her delicate brows drew together. She turned sideways, brushing past him…

Her palm touched the cold doorknob, but in the next instant, his presence enveloped her from behind, sudden and inescapable. Her smooth forehead collided with his broad chest—everything happened in an instant. She found herself swept up into his arms, her clear eyes glaring at him, a mix of embarrassment and confusion flickering within them. His warm breath brushed her ear as he spoke, “Let me help you bathe…”

“Don’t you dare!” Xue Zuining, furious, heard his low, magnetic voice rise in the night, “Shy, are we?”

“You—” She was so provoked she lost her words. Just then, he suddenly lowered his head, and in the instant before their lips touched, she closed her eyes in shock—but he stopped all movement.

A gentle, almost unconscious smile tugged at his lips. Carrying her into the bathroom, Lu Huaining pressed a few buttons on the remote, and soon the large bathtub filled with steaming water. With one swift motion, he stripped away the shirt she wore, tossing her unceremoniously into the bath, sending up a splash of water.

Xue Zuining hadn’t yet adjusted to the warmth when he stepped in after her. Panic seized her—was she to accept his coldness one moment and be swept into physical intimacy the next?

He watched with amusement as she shielded her chest, shrinking back in the water. Escape? Where could she possibly go? Lu Huaining reached out and pulled her into his arms. “So eager?”

Speechless, Xue Zuining slapped the water in exasperation, droplets landing on both their faces. He cupped her cheeks, kissing away each bead.

Was this all a dream? Through the mist, Xue Zuining’s trembling lashes fluttered open, and in her eyes was the reflection of a man kissing her with such care. In this moment, his icy lips no longer cold, brushed her collarbone, glided down her arm, and rested tenderly upon the water-soaked bandage.

“Does it still hurt?”

His voice, full of concern, sent a chill through her body despite the warmth of the water. Her breath faltered. “Lu Huaining, what new torment do you have for me?” Her gaze flickered to her wet wound—was he planning to leave her crippled?

His deep eyes fixed on her misty ones, as if she were plum blossoms blooming in the snow, dazzling the world. “Fool.”

His terse reply only confused her further. But Lu Huaining, gazing into her doe-like eyes, gently caressed her face. Xue Zuining, you can’t possibly know—sometimes your stubbornness makes me forget I’m supposed to hate you…

“Let me go!” Xue Zuining felt as if he were a wild beast ready to lose control. She tried to push him away, but he held her effortlessly.

“Don’t move.” His words, always so few, yet brooked no defiance.

His hands moved over her, blurring the line between bathing her and caressing her with longing. His warm palms, mingled with the hot water, swept over her skin, making her body sink deeper, the ripples lapping at her cheeks. Fear of drowning made her instinctively encircle his neck, the unthinking gesture driving him wild. His kisses fell soft and dense, and amidst their tangled breaths, he whispered, “Remember this—Lu Huaining has only ever bathed one woman in his life. That woman’s name is Xue Zuining…”

Her heart trembled, like a leaf shivering in the wind.

Lu Huaining, is this truly you?

Her heart knocked gently on his lingering tenderness, yet his gaze, heavy with regret in the heat of passion, fell upon the bloodstained bandage.

Naked, she was lifted abruptly from the water, shivering as the cold air struck her. Lu Huaining grabbed a bathrobe, wrapping it around her damp body. “I’ll get Xiao Yu to take care of your wound.”

She turned away, catching sight of her blurred reflection in the mirror, and let out a helpless laugh.

On an autumn weekend morning, playful sunlight rushed in the moment the heavy curtains were drawn.

“Is it late already?” Xue Zuining rubbed her sleepy eyes, reaching for her phone on the nightstand as usual, only to find it powered off.

Xiao Yu finished with the curtains and turned, saying, “Sister, you need to go to the hospital this morning to have your dressing changed, so I woke you up. You left your phone in the living room last night—I just brought it up for you.”

“Really? It must have run out of battery.” Yet when she turned it on, the battery was full.

Before Xue Zuining could figure out what had happened, a torrent of incoming texts left her dizzy.

“Xue Zuining, if I don’t see you before ten this morning, you might as well be dead!” The last message, sent at 5:30 a.m., was signed Zhong Yilan.

In a panic, she dialed the number. The call was answered quickly, and her heart sank. If it had gone unanswered or been hung up on, it would mean her mother was furious. But for her to answer so easily meant only one thing: her mother was already beyond anger.

Before she could speak, the emotionless voice on the other end said, “Come see me at the sanatorium.”

With that single sentence, the call was abruptly cut off. Her mind was in chaos, haunted by just two words: It’s over!