Chapter 24
"Qin Wanshu, why didn't you accompany Han Shibin? I thought he was really hoping you'd be with him, especially since he hasn't seen you for a long time," Zuo Qinghuan suddenly said.
Qin Wanshu's movements halted; in fact, she didn't know why herself.
"I don't know; I just feel a bit out of place around him," Qin Wanshu said softly.
"Qin Wanshu, why don't you feel out of place around me?" Zuo Qinghuan asked the critical question.
"You and I originally had nothing to do with each other; you have no responsibilities towards me, but he was my husband and should have been loyal to me, so that's why I care," Qin Wanshu said as she finished washing the dishes, turned off the faucet, and looked at Zuo Qinghuan.
"Is that so?" Zuo Qinghuan retorted, meeting Qin Wanshu's gaze.
"Otherwise, what do you think?" Qin Wanshu raised an eyebrow, feeling that her explanation was quite reasonable.
"Maybe it's because you don't love him and have an uncontrollable fondness for me," Zuo Qinghuan said as she leaned closer to Qin Wanshu, speaking in a somewhat profound manner.
"On what basis do you say that?" Qin Wanshu raised an eyebrow, not understanding why Zuo Qinghuan was so self-assured.
"Dare to do an experiment?" Zuo Qinghuan moved even closer to Qin Wanshu.
"What kind of experiment?" Qin Wanshu asked.
"Kiss me and compare whether you prefer Han Shibin's kiss or mine. Do you dare?" Zuo Qinghuan whispered near Qin Wanshu's ear.
"It wouldn't be of any benefit to me, would it?" Qin Wanshu sidestepped out of the kitchen, leaving the ambiguous situation that Zuo Qinghuan had deliberately created.
"How could it not be beneficial? I could let you be a normal woman," Zuo Qinghuan followed Qin Wanshu closely, resembling a devil trying to tempt people into sin.
"I've never felt that I'm not normal," Qin Wanshu said dismissively.
"In the end, you're just afraid. You're scared of having feelings for me," Zuo Qinghuan asserted, determined to take no loss for herself.
"Do you really want to kiss me?" Qin Wanshu raised an eyebrow in response, perhaps thinking it was time to dampen Zuo Qinghuan's enthusiasm.
"Mm." Zuo Qinghuan nodded; her teasing tactic was indeed effective, and her heart raced.
"Alright then, I'll let you kiss me," Qin Wanshu said with a smile.
Zuo Qinghuan looked at Qin Wanshu's calm and smiling face, feeling suddenly nervous. She slowly leaned in closer to Qin Wanshu and pressed her lips against hers.
As Zuo Qinghuan's face drew nearer, Qin Wanshu felt her nerves tense slightly; the sensation was utterly unfamiliar.
Zuo Qinghuan's hands naturally wrapped around Qin Wanshu's waist, bringing them even closer. Her agile tongue passionately tempted Qin Wanshu, but what should have been a fiery kiss faltered under Qin Wanshu's strong resistance, leading to Zuo Qinghuan's defeat.
"How was it?" Qin Wanshu asked, a teasing smile on her face as she looked at Zuo Qinghuan. She was quite confident in her self-restraint.
Could it be that she was truly one-sided? Zuo Qinghuan frowned, realizing that this woman really didn't react to her kiss at all.
"Let's try again." Zuo Qinghuan was unwilling to accept reality and said sulkily.
Qin Wanshu didn't refuse; she knew Zuo Qinghuan wouldn't easily give up. Zuo Qinghuan tried again, but once more, it ended in disappointment.
"How could this happen?" Zuo Qinghuan looked at Qin Wanshu in disbelief. Did this woman really have no desires? Zuo Qinghuan's spirit drooped like a defeated rooster.
"Can you let go of me now?" Qin Wanshu asked with a smile, addressing Zuo Qinghuan, who was still holding her.
"Not letting go. If you don't like me, why are you letting me misunderstand?" Zuo Qinghuan continued holding onto Qin Wanshu's waist, complaining.
Qin Wanshu felt completely innocent. From start to finish, none of this had anything to do with her, right?
"If you don't like me, why are you so close to a 'third party'? Why did you kiss her? Why did you let her kiss you?" Zuo Qinghuan felt like Qin Wanshu was completely beyond her comprehension, turning all her logic about people upside down.
Qin Wanshu suddenly felt powerless. Was this reasoning even possible? She realized that she truly didn't understand Zuo Qinghuan's overbearing way of thinking.
"Alright, I need to go back. Let's meet again another time," Qin Wanshu said, thinking that Han Shibin would probably come to the Qin family house to look for her in the afternoon. She felt it was time to return home; telling lies wasn't a big deal, but being caught in one wouldn't be good.
"Oh…" Zuo Qinghuan's "oh" dragged out very long.
"Qin Wanshu, do you actually like me or not?" Zuo Qinghuan still wouldn't let go, relentlessly pursuing an answer.
Qin Wanshu had a bit of a headache. This woman really wouldn't give up until the very end.
"I don't exactly dislike you," Qin Wanshu gave a balanced response.
Zuo Qinghuan wasn't entirely satisfied with that, but it was still better than hearing that she wasn't liked at all.
"Hmm, alright, you can go then. I'll call you tonight," Zuo Qinghuan reluctantly released Qin Wanshu.
Qin Wanshu didn't linger much longer, immediately driving back to the Qin family house. On the drive home, she thought about Zuo Qinghuan's kiss and embrace and shook her head with a smile. No matter how she looked at it, she felt like she and Zuo Qinghuan had been doing a lot of absurd things lately.
Zuo Qinghuan lay on the sofa, staring at the ceiling, thinking about the two kisses earlier. Why hadn't Qin Wanshu reacted at all? A woman who lets you kiss her should have quite a bit of affection for you, right? But she had no reaction whatsoever. Or was it that this woman was just exceptionally good at restraining her desires? Those overly restrained types were the worst. Zuo Qinghuan threw a pillow across the room in frustration.
Sure enough, when Han Shibin went looking for Zuo Qinghuan at the Jinwu Club, he found she wasn't there. After waiting for her for half an hour, his mood was quite sour. He decided he was done with Zuo Qinghuan, then drove home, took a shower, and cleaned himself up before heading over to the Qin family house.
By this time, Qin Wanshu had already returned home and was in Old Master Qin's study.
When Han Shibin arrived at the Qin house, he couldn't take Qin Wanshu back with him right away. Instead, he made small talk with his father- and mother-in-law, waiting until dinner, when Qin Zheng and Qin Wanshu finally came out of the study.
"When did you get back, Shibin?" Qin Zheng asked. His fondness for his granddaughter extended to his grandson-in-law as well.
"I got back this morning. Grandpa, what treasure did you collect yesterday?" Han Shibin asked, knowing exactly how to engage Qin Zheng in a topic he loved.
"Hmm, it's indeed a treasure," Qin Zheng's expression softened as he spoke about something dear to his heart.
"What could it be, to make Grandpa cherish it so much?" Han Shibin asked curiously.
"It's a Ru ware bowl. We believe it's an imperfect piece that didn't make it into the imperial court back in the day and ended up in the civilian world. But even so, it's incredibly valuable."
"As they say, no fortune can compare to even a shard of Ru ware. I feel like it would be worth spending a fortune on," Qin Zheng said with a smile.
"What makes Ru ware so special?" Han Shibin asked.
"'As blue as the sky, as smooth as jade, with cicada-wing patterns and sparse stars, supported by sesame-sized kiln marks.' It's the finest of all porcelain, and extremely rare nowadays," Qin Wanshu explained briefly. Her tone brightened as she spoke of the treasure, clearly in a good mood.
"I'd love to see this rare treasure later," Han Shibin said, playing along with the excitement of both Qin Zheng and Qin Wanshu. He was good at maintaining appearances.
"This piece is indeed rare," Qin Zheng said, smiling broadly as he spoke of it, his attitude towards Han Shibin becoming even warmer.
Dinner went smoothly, with Old Master Qin in high spirits. Later that night, Qin Wanshu and Han Shibin returned home together.
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