Chapter 948: Ginger Gets Older and More Cunning

Feeling a soft, smooth touch within the quilt, Zu An was first startled, then overjoyed. "Dan Dan," he exclaimed, "you've been ready and waiting for me all along!"

Sang Qian was consumed by shame and fury, thinking, "These two scoundrels have clearly been involved for a while."

Although she had already suspected it, suspecting it and experiencing it firsthand were two different matters.

Sang Qian's rage points increased by +444, +444, +444...

"Huh?" Zu An mumbled, a little puzzled. "Why is that girl Xiao Qian so angry?"

Sang Qian was surprised he could sense her anger, but then she was overjoyed, thinking, "Yes, yes, quickly realize something's wrong!"

Aunt Mu had sealed her acupuncture points, so she couldn't speak to warn him. She could only hope he would discover it himself.

Immediately, she heard him mumble again, "That girl always seems to dislike me. She probably guessed our relationship."

Sang Qian thought, "This guy is quite self-aware," but she had no time to think about anything else. She could only ceaselessly pray for him to quickly realize the problem.

Unfortunately, things did not go as she wished. Zu An was already tipsy from the alcohol, and what's more, a man's blood would certainly be rushing downwards at such a moment. How could he possibly think rationally?

She soon felt herself being held tightly in his embrace, like a toy. Knowing her fate was inevitable, her heart was filled with despair.

"Huh, Dan Dan, you've gotten thin," Zu An mumbled, suddenly feeling that the touch was a bit off.

Sang Qian was mortified with shame and anger. She thought, "Normally, I'm already sufficiently disheartened by my sister-in-law's figure, and now I have to be dealt a critical blow by him too!"

However, amidst her sorrow, a glimmer of hope reignited. Her figure was clearly different from her sister-in-law's. She thought, "This guy should be able to sense the abnormality; it's still not too late for him to stop now."

Unfortunately, she immediately heard another remark: "That cursed Hu family business! They made you rest so poorly these past few days that you've gotten so thin!"

Hearing him curse and grumble, Sang Qian was so frustrated she wanted to cry but couldn't. "Is this guy truly drunk or just pretending?" she wondered, "His words even form a logical loop!"

However, she soon had no mind to think about these things. Sensing his practiced movements, before she could react, she felt as if her body was pierced by a red-hot iron, and two lines of silent tears slipped down her cheeks.

***

Aunt Mu, who was secretly observing the situation from behind a large tree outside, quietly spat. Listening to the creaking and groaning of the bed, she mused that she would need to find time to replace it with a sturdier one.

At the same time, a hint of worry appeared between her brows. "Qian'er is having a terrible time tonight," she thought.

***

The next morning, as the eastern sky gradually lightened, Zu An, who was half-asleep, was suddenly awakened by a series of soft sobs.

Still groggy with sleep, he casually patted the backside of the beauty in his arms. "Dan Dan," he mumbled, "why are you crying so early in the morning?"

The other person didn't answer, only looked at him with swollen, red eyes.

Zu An's vision gradually cleared, and he suddenly saw clearly the woman in his arms. It was not the charming and alluring Zheng Dan, but the elegant and pretty Sang Qian, who was now weeping heartbreakingly, like pear blossoms bathed in rain.

He quickly rubbed his eyes and mumbled, "Am I dreaming? Why am I dreaming of your sister-in-law?"

"Let go!" Sang Qian bit her red lip tightly and pushed the man off her.

Last night, she was like a small boat in a storm, enduring the ravages of the tempest. Towards the end, she was utterly exhausted and unknowingly fell into a deep sleep.

Waking up this morning, she finally regained her ability to move. She instinctively tried to leave, but he was holding her tightly, like a pet. She tried many times but couldn't break free.

Thinking of what she had endured, she was overwhelmed with grief and couldn't help but cry, which then woke Zu An.

Zu An finally realized this was not a dream. He sprang up in alarm, grabbing the quilt to cover himself. "What have you done to me?" he demanded.

Sang Qian was speechless.

She nearly fainted from anger. "How can there be such a despicable person in this world?" she thought, wishing she could lunge at him and bite him fiercely.

Seeing her body exposed and the vivid plum blossom stain on the bedsheet, which made her appear even more like a wounded fawn, Zu An finally came to his senses. He wrapped the quilt around her and asked, "What exactly happened?"

With the quilt wrapped around her, her cold heart finally felt a slight warmth. "It's nothing," she said.

Had her virginity been taken by him? Did she hate him? Of course, she did.

But to truly blame him, she couldn't really say.

After all, what happened yesterday was truly bizarre. Even she, as his daughter, hadn't expected her father to do such a thing, so how could she blame Zu An?

The more she said this, the more puzzled Zu An became. He quickly looked around. Yes, the familiar surroundings, the familiar bed—this was Zheng Dan's room. He could only tentatively ask, "Did you perhaps come to the wrong room last night?"

Sang Qian took a deep breath, feeling a surge of indignation in her heart. She retorted coldly, "Even if I came to the wrong room, this is still my sister-in-law's room!"

Sang Qian's rage points increased by +233, +233, +233...

Zu An gave an awkward smile, his expression embarrassed. After all, Zheng Dan was still the Sang family's daughter-in-law.

Sang Qian clearly had no mood to blame him further at this moment. She took a deep breath and said, "Turn around. I need to get dressed."

"Okay." This time, Zu An abandoned his usual glib demeanor and honestly turned around.

If it had been any other woman, he might have teased her a few more times, but having spent time with Sang Qian, he only saw her as a younger sister. Now that something like this had happened, he couldn't help but feel a sense of guilt.

What was even more troublesome was her identity. He had just formed an alliance with the Sang family. The matter with Zheng Dan was one thing, after all, they had been together first, and the Sang family seemed to have tacitly approved.

But now that something like this had happened, not only had he taken their daughter-in-law, now he had even harmed their daughter. Zu An inwardly asked himself, if it were him, he would probably be furious to death.

Just as he was wondering how to deal with the situation, Sang Qian's deliberately calm voice came from behind him. "Okay," she said, "you can turn around now."

Zu An turned around and saw that she was fully dressed, still as pretty and charming as ever. Only her hair was disheveled, and there was a lingering trace of the storm on her face, making her appear even more fragile and appealing.

"What happened today was just an accident," Sang Qian said calmly, head lowered, avoiding his gaze. "Only heaven, earth, you, and I know about it. Once we leave this room, no one is to ever mention it again, understood?"

She knew her father's intentions, but she truly could not fully cooperate by using her own body as a bargaining chip.

Moreover, she still harbored some resentment towards her father, so she definitely couldn't let him have his way.

Zu An was startled. "This isn't fair to you," he said. "I'm not an irresponsible person..."

Although there was no talk of feelings between them yet, he knew the importance of a woman's chastity in this world. Now that this had happened, he couldn't just get up and leave, could he?

Sang Qian directly interrupted him. "I don't need you to take responsibility," she said.

After saying this, she walked straight towards the door, but as soon as she took a step, she stumbled and almost fell.

Zu An quickly reached out to steady her. "What's wrong?" he asked.

Sang Qian pushed him away. "How dare this guy even ask?" she thought.

Her sister-in-law usually appeared delicate and soft. "How could she possibly endure this beast?" she wondered.

Sang Qian's rage points increased by +313, +313, +313...

She glared fiercely at him, then limped away.

Watching her disappearing back, Zu An felt a throbbing ache. "What a mess this is," he thought.

"Oh, right, where's Dan Dan?" Zu An was startled. Just as he was about to look for her, he saw Zheng Dan hurrying towards them from a distance in another direction.

He was about to call out when he suddenly remembered something. He quickly rushed back into the room and simply collected all the messy bedsheets into his Glazed Orb.

Just then, Zheng Dan arrived. She was startled to see Zu An. "Why are you here?" she whispered. "It'll be troublesome if anyone from the manor sees you."

Zu An stared intently into her eyes. "Why weren't you in the room? Where did you go last night?"

He even suspected that Zheng Dan had orchestrated all of this. She might want to drag her sister-in-law into it too, so that things would be much more convenient for her later. Given her past conduct, she was certainly capable of such a thing.

Zheng Dan rubbed her head. "Perhaps I drank too much wine yesterday," she said, "I actually fell asleep in Xiao Qian's room. Oh, right, have you seen Xiao Qian? I didn't see her when I woke up."

"No," Zu An said somewhat unnaturally. Since Sang Qian didn't want this matter exposed, he would respect her wishes.

He had just carefully observed Zheng Dan's expression; it didn't seem like she was lying. He also realized that the Sang family had almost tacitly approved their relationship now, so she naturally didn't need to take such a risk. "Was last night truly a beautiful mistake?" he wondered.

"You should go back quickly; the servants will be getting up soon." While he was still deep in thought, Zheng Dan was already pushing him away. It was getting late, and it would be truly troublesome if others saw him in her room.

After Zu An had left, Zheng Dan was about to go back for more sleep, but she stared blankly at the empty bed. "Huh," she wondered, "where did the bedsheets go?"

Meanwhile, Zu An returned to his own room. Then, guiltily, he pretended to just be getting up and happened to encounter Sang Hong, who was exercising in the morning.

"Did you sleep well last night?" Sang Hong asked with a smile.

"Very... very well," Zu An stammered, his gaze somewhat evasive.

"That's good," Sang Hong chuckled. "I was worried I hadn't hosted you well enough."

"Extremely thoughtful..." Zu An thought to himself, "Perhaps even a bit too thoughtful." He couldn't detect anything unusual in Sang Hong's expression, which made him even more uneasy.

"How about we have breakfast together?" Sang Hong said, putting away his training stance and inviting him.

"No need," Zu An replied. "I just remembered I have an important matter to attend to at home." Feeling very guilty after having just ruined their daughter, he couldn't possibly stay. He quickly found an excuse and hurried away.

Seeing his pathetic flight, Sang Hong couldn't help but smile. "This guy also has days like this," he thought.

After Zu An had walked away, Aunt Mu came over from the side. "Master," she asked, "aren't you going to seize the opportunity to demand a proper status from him?"