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Chapter 218: Chapter 218: Mu Yan: Yes, I’ve Fallen for You!
As soon as Chu Yin saw the visitor, she was startled into a shudder; standing at the door was none other than Zhan Hui.
Zhan Lan was also flabbergasted—how had her older brother found this place!
Chu Yin first looked towards Zhan Lan with her large, blinking eyes, a baffled expression on her face, she gritted her teeth and asked: "Did you betray your sisters?"
Zhan Lan responded to Chu Yin: "It really wasn’t me!"
Zhan Hui, with a grim face, pulled Chu Yin out of the door and took her away.
The entertainers were still dancing. Zhan Lan smiled and shook her head; it seemed her brother was going to be jealous.
The man who was serving tea to Zhan Lan asked with a smile: "Miss, shall we continue the dance?"
Zhan Lan raised her hand and said nonchalantly: "Continue the music, keep on dancing!"
Why not dance? Chu Yin was gone, but tonight she was the one paying the bill—1000 taels of Silver, and only a few dances had been watched; her heart ached at the thought.
Zhan Lan sat alone in the private room, cracking pumpkin seeds, watching the entertainers dance.
When the melody of "Butterflies in Flight" played, her hand also began to rhythmically pat along.
Just as Zhan Lan was immersed in enjoyment, fixated on the graceful figures of the entertainers.
With a bang, the door was kicked open.
Zhan Lan put down the cup in her hand and looked towards the newcomer.
Mu Yan entered with an icy expression; all the entertainers stopped dancing and playing their music, and left the room.
"Lord Mu, how did you come here too?" Zhan Lan felt like today was downright bizarre.
Why did both Zhan Hui and Mu Yan know about this place, which Chu Yin had described as very covert, absolutely undetectable by others? 𝓃𝓸𝓿𝓹𝓾𝓫.𝓬ℴ𝓶
Mu Yan strode forward, grabbed Zhan Lan by the wrist, and lifted her up from the soft cushion.
Zhan Lan was pulled in front of him; her eyes, like those of a small deer, suddenly dilated with fear. What had made Mu Yan angry again?
"Zhan Lan, are you trying to test my patience on purpose?" The veins on the back of Mu Yan’s hand stood out.
Zhan Lan said with a grievance: "I just came to listen to the music, I did nothing else!"
"What else do you want to do?" Mu Yan cornered her against the wall.
Zhan Lan suddenly remembered, when Zhan Hui had arrived, the entertainers were unaffected, continuing with their tasks.
But when Mu Yan arrived, they stopped what they were doing and all left. Zhan Lan speculated: "Lord Mu, they are your people!"
Mu Yan replied coldly: "Don’t change the subject!"
Their eyes locked, Mu Yan’s gaze was intensely fiery. He drew closer to Zhan Lan, their bodies almost precisely aligned, leaving no place for Zhan Lan to hide.
Mu Yan looked into her eyes and said, "I’m going to tell you right now, the question you asked today."
"Ah?" Zhan Lan leaned back against the wall a bit more, a suggestive ambiance enveloping the whole room.
Pinned against the wall by him, their proximity so close, Zhan Lan was almost unable to breathe.
Mu Yan stared at her, articulating every word: "Yes, I have developed feelings for you!"
At that moment, a firework burst outside, illuminating Mu Yan’s eyes which were as beautiful as the stars.
The flush on Zhan Lan’s cheeks deepened upon receiving the answer, was Mu Yan confessing to her?
Mu Yan, watching her evasive gaze, said: "Why are you avoiding my eyes? Could it be that you like me too?"
Zhan Lan confronted his intense gaze, replying: "I don’t!"
Seeing the expression on her face, the corner of Mu Yan’s lips curved into a beautiful arch, he murmured: "Stubborn little girl."
"I really... mm..."
Zhan Lan’s lips were gently covered by Mu Yan’s soft ones, and her mind went blank in an instant.
Mu Yan’s right hand wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer to his body.
Zhan Lan’s head was supported by his left hand, her lips tenderly kissed, immediately throwing her heart into disarray.
"Fool, breathe!" It wasn’t until Mu Yan noticed Zhan Lan’s tense body that he stopped kissing her.
Zhan Lan looked up at Mu Yan’s high bridged nose, touching the tip of her nose, his chest rising and falling, their cheeks very close, his attractive eyes magnified in front of her. A mist of water filled Zhan Lan’s eyes as she looked at Mu Yan’s eyes, still lingering with desire, and asked, "Why did you... again..."
Mu Yan’s fingers caressed her lips and he asked in a low voice, "Do you like me kissing you?"
Zhan Lan didn’t know how to answer. Mu Yan smiled and teased, "Forgotten? Shall we do it again?"
Zhan Lan pushed him away, covering her lips, "Stop messing around!"
Mu Yan wasn’t upset at all by Zhan Lan’s distant attitude towards him; instead, he moved closer again, saying softly with a smile, "Today after you left, Vermilion Bird told me that that night I had a fever, you cared for me all night, helped me wipe down my body to cool it down..."
Zhan Lan frowned, that Vermilion Bird, sneaking peeks behind her back, no wonder there was no sign of anyone when she was looking for him.
Seeing the embarrassed expression on Zhan Lan’s face, Mu Yan placed her hand on his heart and said, "You coming to this kind of place, I am very angry. Is my physique worse than theirs!"
With those words, his hand guided Zhan Lan’s into his clothes, sliding down to his abs.
Zhan Lan closed her eyes, Mu Yan is nothing but a male siren!
"You touched it that night, you can’t possibly not know, right?" Mu Yan whispered in her ear.
His warm breath made Zhan Lan turn to dodge a little, with a smile in Mu Yan’s eyes.
Zhan Lan, who was decisive in killing on the battlefield and never held back in street fights, who could argue against a host of scholars in court, was nothing compared to her present shy and feminine demeanor, which only made Mu Yan more attracted.
He continued in her ear, "Shy?"
Zhan Lan broke free from him and stood at the doorway, saying with embarrassment and annoyance, "Mu Yan, stop asking me. I will not fall in love with any man again!"
Mu Yan looked at the sadness spilling from Zhan Lan’s eyes, feeling an inexplicable heartache. Why did she say she would not fall in love with any man again?
Could it be that she had loved someone before? But from her clueless state, it hardly seemed possible.
Mu Yan dismissively said, "I’ll give you time, Zhan Lan, you’ll come to like me!"
"Let’s go, you’ve caught a cold for me now; I must take responsibility." Mu Yan took Zhan Lan by the wrist and led her to his carriage.
Zhan Lan wanted to resist, but Mu Yan stared into her eyes and said, "You can’t beat me, so give up!"
Zhan Lan: "....." Just you wait till I regain my powers from my previous life, Mu Yan!
When Mu Yan got home, he led her into his room, and a servant quickly brought a bowl of medicinal soup.
Zhan Lan looked at the black concoction and asked, "What is this?"
Mu Yan, resting his chin on his hands, looked at Zhan Lan, "Drink it, and the cold will go away. It’s my secret recipe."
Zhan Lan eyed Mu Yan suspiciously. Seeing that she wasn’t eager to drink, he picked it up and took a sip himself.
"It’s not poisoned, don’t worry!" Mu Yan handed the bowl to Zhan Lan.
Zhan Lan, half-doubtful and half-trusting, took a sip. It was sweet, not bitter.
So she took a few more sips, feeling relief in her throat. Zhan Lan put down the porcelain bowl, looked seriously at Mu Yan, and said, "Can you promise me something?"
Mu Yan nodded, "Tell me."
Zhan Lan bit her lip, "Can you... not kiss me whenever you please..."
If the first kiss was an accident, the second because he was drunk, today they were both very sober.
If things kept going intimately like this, her relationship with Mu Yan would become unclear.
