The autumn and winter in the Northern Land are chilling to the bone.

The long-neglected official residence is swept by the wild wind, and the rickety canopy bed creaks in the silent deep night. Occasionally, the girl’s rapid moan can be heard, soon shattered into pieces.

The girl on the bed has a flushed face, her beautiful almond eyes slightly open, unfocused, her consciousness in disarray.

Xie Wanqing can no longer remember how long she’s been tormented, only feeling as if she has returned to Dayang Lake. But this time, she became the painting boat drifting on the lake’s surface, sometimes riding the wind and waves, sometimes swaying slowly after hitting a reef.

The man above seems to have said something. She tries hard to hear clearly, only to see a drop of hot sweat slide down his nose.

It falls onto her face.

She wants to reach out to wipe it, only to find her hands pinned over her head.

Her face unwittingly shows a tinge of grievance, "You... let go..."

Lu Ziyuan releases her hands as requested, leaning down to kiss her.

His lean waist and abdomen apply force as he leans down.

Xie Wanqing’s eyes suddenly widen.

The legs wrapped around his waist tremble unconsciously.

Her free hands, instead of wiping away the sweat, wrap around his neck.

She keeps pleading with him.

Words she would never say when awake now spill out effortlessly without any coaxing.

Lu Ziyuan stops, lowering his head to kiss her lips gently.

He patiently waits for her to ride out the afterglow before continuing.

Not until the sky outside gradually lightens does the bed stop shaking.

Inside the room, Xie Wanqing has already fallen into a deep sleep.

No matter how noisy the person on top gets, she doesn’t wake up.

A man who has abstained for two lifetimes now finds it hard to control himself.

Throughout the night, he finds himself slipping out of control.

When everything ends, looking at the girl full of red marks and made weak by him, his rationality finally returns.

He checks her from head to toe, ensuring she’s unhurt before pulling her into his embrace.

The sleeping girl is very obedient, resting quietly in the crook of his arm, her lips slightly pouting from being compressed by her side-sleeping position.

He doesn’t know how many times he kissed those lips throughout the night. Now, they’re a little swollen and dry, as if lacking moisture.

Lu Ziyuan takes another look and leans down to kiss her once more, savouring her lips briefly, before releasing her and putting on some clothing to get out of bed. He pours himself a glass of water and drinks it all, then walks back to the bed with the water glass to feed the deeply sleeping girl a drink.

His eyebrows carry a hint of satisfaction after the intimacy, yet his face shows no obvious joy. He looks down at the girl on the bed for a moment, lost in thought.

......

Her body wakes before her mind. Xie Wanqing feels soreness in all her limbs, especially at the base of her legs, so achy and swollen that she doubts she’ll even manage to get out of bed.

The next moment, her eyebrows knit slightly in discomfort, and a familiar scent comes close, warm lips imprinting on her forehead, seemingly trying to smooth out the wrinkles.

Xie Wanqing’s lashes flutter lightly as memories rush into her mind like a tide, her breath halting for an instant.

"Awake?" Lu Ziyuan asks, lying sideways and looking at the girl in his arm, "If you’re awake, open your eyes and look at me. The deed is done, closing your eyes won’t solve the problem."

He reaches out to touch her trembling lashes, teasingly, "Not willing to wake up, do you want to continue?"

Only then does Xie Wanqing realize both of them are unclothed, their skins touching, and she can distinctly feel that after he speaks, he purposely presses his body a bit closer.