Chapter 14 “Only Kiss If You Like”

Chapter 14: "Only Love Justifies a Kiss"

"Feng Jiuyue! I’ve sent you so many letters—why haven't you replied to a single one?"

Yuan Ye strode toward me, his voice brimming with accusation. His long, foxy eyes blazed with fury; though half his face was obscured by a hood, I could still discern his dark, brooding expression.

In a few swift steps, he was before me, reaching out to seize me. I recoiled instantly, and my outstretched arm struck the sedan chair, making me gasp in pain.

"Your arm?"

Only then did Yuan Ye notice the bandage on my upper arm. Seeing the seeping blood, he raged, "So clumsy—you might as well die of sheer stupidity!"

He snarled at me viciously, completely abandoning his earlier demand about the letters, and moved to inspect my injury. But mid-reach, his hand was intercepted by a cool, pale, slender one, halting it abruptly.

Xie Yan had appeared beside me. His expression was glacial, his face like frost, and his gaze, sharp as a blade, pierced Yuan Ye.

I used to think Xie Yan was harsh with me, sometimes severe when I erred. But seeing his demeanor toward Yuan Ye now, I realized he had been remarkably gentle with me.

Though Yuan Ye was tall, he was no match for Xie Yan, who possessed a foreign lineage, standing a full head shorter. Accustomed to a life of indulgence, Yuan Ye’s strength was like a mantis attempting to stop a chariot against Xie Yan. With a mere twist of his wrist, Xie Yan made Yuan Ye yelp in agony, all his previous arrogance vanishing.

Watching Yuan Ye’s face flush with pain, I felt a secret satisfaction. After years of tormenting me, he was finally receiving his just deserts!

With a gentle wrench, Xie Yan dislocated Yuan Ye’s entire arm. It hung limp, like a grotesque, broken limb.

Large beads of cold sweat broke out on Yuan Ye’s forehead, his face contorted in pain, eyes wide as he began to hurl insults at Xie Yan.

"Xie Yan, you bastard child of a foreign entertainer! Your mother must have been with countless men to birth a pale-eyed freak like you!"

"You’re no better than your mother—learning to embrace a thief as your parent at such a young age. Aren’t you ashamed to bear the title of Crown Prince now? If the Empress could conceive, she’d never want a mangy foreign dog like you!"

"Playing the part of Crown Prince—I spit on you!"

I knew little of Xie Yan’s background, and he had never spoken of it to me. But in Yuan Ye’s vile mouth, everything became utterly defiled. Whatever decisions Xie Yan had made in the past, he must have had his reasons. I would not permit Yuan Ye to slander him like this!

With that thought, I raised my hand and slapped Yuan Ye, cutting short his stream of obscenities before they could fully escape his lips.

Yuan Ye seemed startled by my sudden blow. His face was twisted by the impact, but he paid it no mind, merely pressing his tongue against his throbbing cheek and continuing as if unfazed.

"Xie Yan, don’t be fooled by Feng Jiuyue’s angelic beauty and innocent facade—he’s been played by me countless times! You’re scrambling to wear my cast-offs—aren’t you disgusted?"

All the blood in my body surged to my head. Yuan Ye! This utter scoundrel! How could he shamelessly fabricate such things that never happened? How could he so brazenly defile my reputation?

His bullying and calling me a mere girl didn't provoke such fury, but today he was slandering me in front of the person I cared for.

I was consumed by hatred—I wished I had a knife in my hand right then to pierce his throat!

Driven by rage, I couldn't even discern which of my hands was uninjured. I simply wanted to slap Yuan Ye into silence, but as I raised my hand, Xie Yan caught it.

His cool fingertips gently brushed my palm. His gray pupils were clear and luminous, like a serene lake amidst a snowy wilderness, calming my frantic emotions and even easing my ragged breathing.

"Whore! Come hit me! Feng Jiuyue! Let me tell you—as long as I live, you’ll never know peace!"

Yuan Ye bared his teeth, roaring and shrieking at me like a cornered beast devoid of hope, intent on dragging me down to hell with him.

Thankfully, I had Xie Yan.

I gently squeezed Xie Yan’s hand and watched as he effortlessly sent Yuan Ye flying several meters with a single kick.

The commotion had erupted violently but subsided just as swiftly.

The General of the Northern Garrison, though a convicted criminal, mustered his last shred of dignity, relying on his years of military service to barely preserve Yuan Ye’s life.

After all, insulting the Crown Prince was not a crime to be easily overlooked.

It hadn't been long since I last saw the General of the Northern Garrison, yet his temples were already streaked with gray, a stark contrast to his former heroic bearing. This was the true face of a hero in decline. Yuan Ye continued his deranged outburst in the hall, and the Emperor waved his hand, ordering attendants to drag him away.

As Yuan Ye was being dragged off, he passed by me, his eyes bloodshot, a crazed, twisted smile fixed on his lips. That smile sent shivers down my spine. He said to me, "Feng Jiuyue, I won’t let you off. See you soon."

My heart sank endlessly. Those words felt like a solemn vow, a pledge to drag me into an endless abyss, leaving me utterly at a loss for how to react.

I didn't know why he hated me, nor why he tormented me. I had once treated him with genuine kindness, only to end up being resented. I didn't understand, so I feigned indifference.

Xie Yan sent escorts to take me back to the Chancellor’s residence and dispatched a royal physician to treat my wound. It wasn't serious—just some reopened stitches. The physician gave me a pain-relief powder, and I began to feel drowsy, drifting into a hazy sleep filled with bizarre dreams.

In my dreams, there were children’s cries and laughter, my father’s long sighs, and Yuan Ye as a child, acting like an adult, patting the boy beside him on the shoulder and saying, "Little Yue, from now on, I’ll protect you. They won’t dare bully you!"

The little boy nodded, his voice still carrying a child’s innocence. He said to Yuan Ye, "Thank you, Little Ye brother."

That was me.

Two children huddled together, catching crickets in summer and sparrows in winter. The dream was peaceful and serene, but suddenly a thunderstorm erupted. Yuan Ye instantly transformed into a teenager, sneering as he walked toward me, kissing my lips wildly.

"No! No! No! Let me go!!!"

I struggled awake from the dream, drenched in cold sweat. My eyes were blurry, still adjusting to the room’s light, when I saw Xie Yan lazily reclining on the soft couch in my room. The setting sun illuminated the pages of the book in his hand. He turned to look at me, suspicion swirling in his phoenix eyes.

"You… why are you here?" Still disoriented from the nightmare, I was somewhat dazed to see Xie Yan.

He didn’t answer but walked straight toward me, reached out to touch my face, and asked softly, "Did you have a dream?"

"Yeah." I nodded, still shaken. Raising my head, I could see Xie Yan’s sharp jawline and broad shoulders. Suddenly, I wanted to hug him. The Yuan Ye in my dream was too terrifying—I was scared.

The scent of Xie Yan’s incense was faint, but I liked it. I sat up and tentatively wrapped my uninjured arm around his shoulder, gently resting my face against his shoulder blade.

"Don’t be childish." Xie Yan’s voice held no displeasure, nor did he push me away. He merely accused me of a baseless fault in his cold tone.

"Xie Yan," I called his name softly. I had uttered his name countless times before, but only this time did it carry such intense reliance. "You can’t kiss me just for fun."

"Hm?" Xie Yan responded lightly, his tone dismissive, as if saying, "So what?"

Annoyed, I gently tugged at his loose black hair and said fiercely, "You only kiss someone if you like them. If you don’t like them, you don’t kiss them. Fun isn’t a reason to kiss someone—got it?"

I must have been too drowsy from sleep to dare speak to Xie Yan like this—it was like having the courage of a bear and a leopard.

I thought Xie Yan would simply break my fingers, but instead, he lowered his head to look at me. His eyes were truly beautiful, the outer corners curved like a cold moon. When he looked at someone so intently, there was a captivating focus.

Bewitched by his beauty, my mind still foggy, I hooked my arm around his slender neck and brushed my lips against his cool, thin ones. "I like you, so I’m kissing you. I’m kissing you because I like you, not because it’s fun."

"Got it?"

After doing this, I guiltily covered my face, afraid Xie Yan would strike me down without another word.

But Xie Yan showed little reaction. Only a hint of warmth flickered in his cold eyes. He gazed at me for a long moment before suddenly reaching out, gripping the back of my neck like a chick, and bringing my lips to his.