Chapter 49: “Would You Be Angry If I Kissed You Now…”

The front courtyard of the Shen residence was in complete chaos.

Shen Father looked utterly bewildered, while Shen Yun frowned as he stepped forward to stop people but couldn’t hold them back. Shen Chi, curious, rummaged around everywhere—opening antique chests one moment and silk fabric boxes the next.

He muttered under his breath, “Why didn’t they send any rare flowers and herbs?”

Shen Xuzhi pulled Si Jin along to hide behind some distant shrubs.

Si Jin’s cheeks brushed against the grass blades, making her itch, and she scratched lightly. “Why are we hiding?”

“To see what tricks Xiao Chongyun is up to.”

Si Jin furrowed her brows slightly, her gaze fixed on the chaotic front courtyard of the Shen residence, yet she never caught sight of Xiao Rong.

Even Shen Xuzhi murmured, “Where is Xiao Chongyun? Did he only send gifts without showing up?”

Si Jin’s neck twitched involuntarily, and for no reason, she suddenly turned to look behind her.

“What’s wrong, Xiao Jin?”

There was no one behind them—after all, they were still within the Shen residence.

Si Jin withdrew her gaze and shook her head, pulling Shen Xuzhi up as she rose. “My legs are numb from squatting. Let’s go.”

The two returned to Shen Xuzhi’s courtyard.

“Bribery! He’s definitely trying to bribe me, and he’s even bribing my father and brothers!”

Si Jin was somewhat distracted and asked offhandedly, “So, have you been bribed?”

“Of course not… I haven’t even gotten a clear look at what he sent.”

After a moment of quiet grumbling, Shen Xuzhi suddenly leaned in closer. “Could it be that you’re the one he’s bribed?”

Si Jin’s eyes flickered briefly before she snapped back to attention. “Bribe me for what? I haven’t received any benefits from him.”

She hadn’t even caught a glimpse of him.

“Then what were you so distracted about just now?”

Si Jin pressed her lips together and remained silent for a long while.

She just suddenly felt that she didn’t understand Xiao Rong as well as she thought she did. Right now, she had no idea what he was trying to achieve.

Arguments were irritating, and the cold war was stifling.

Whether it was turning and leaving abruptly back then or, after several days had passed, him making all these moves without showing up—it was completely unlike his usual behavior.

Si Jin had also been wondering if Xiao Rong had corrupted her. Now that he wasn’t pestering her relentlessly or immediately appearing to forcefully take her back, she actually felt that something was off.

When she finally snapped out of her thoughts, she realized Shen Xuzhi had been staring intently at her.

“Don’t… don’t look at me like that. I wasn’t thinking about anything just now. I was just…”

Shen Xuzhi suddenly spoke up, “Xiao Jin, why don’t you go back and take a look?”

Si Jin widened her eyes. “You said you weren’t bribed!”

Shen Xuzhi’s eyes darted away briefly before she looked back, putting on a serious expression. “What I mean is, he hasn’t been entirely inactive, right? This matter isn’t too big, but it’s not trivial either. Staying stuck like this isn’t a solution. What you wanted was to talk it out, wasn’t it?”

Setting aside her tangled thoughts for a moment, Si Jin narrowed her eyes slightly at Shen Xuzhi.

Bribery—this was blatant bribery!

Shen Xuzhi’s eyelashes fluttered nervously, and she quickly waved her hands. “It’s just going back to take a look. If he still acts the same way, you can always leave. This time, don’t come to my place. Let’s leave the capital directly and go to Xiqiu. Yes, head to Xiqiu. I’ll arrange the carriage and luggage. As for the things he sent to the Shen residence, I won’t keep a single item. I’ll exchange everything for silver, and we’ll use it as travel expenses. I’ll go tell my father and brothers to put the things down right now.”

Si Jin had initially intended to keep watching her a while longer, but now had to quickly reach out and pull her back: “Don’t go, don’t go. I’ve already caused you all enough trouble.”

“Don’t talk nonsense! Though I’m persuading you, I never once found it troublesome!” Shen Xuzhi seized the chance to lean closer, nuzzling against Si Jin’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, no one can buy me off. I’ll always stand by your side.”

No sooner had she finished speaking than Si Jin pressed a finger against Shen Xuzhi’s forehead, lifting her head up.

“You just slipped up, didn’t you? ‘Though I’m persuading you’—so you admit you’re persuading me on his behalf after all.”

Shen Xuzhi’s eyes widened in surprise. She quickly grabbed Si Jin’s finger, chuckling cheerfully: “Not for him! I’m looking forward to running off with you after swindling all his money.”

In the end, Si Jin still hadn’t decided whether to return and take a look.

She felt it was foolish to hold onto this resentment after so many days had passed, yet surrendering so easily seemed even more foolish.

But even before making a decision, she found herself already stepping out of the Shen Mansion.

Lan Xin inquired: “Madam, shall I prepare the carriage?”

Si Jin paused mid-step, gazing at the distant street before shaking her head: “I’d like to stroll around first.”

Perhaps while walking, her thoughts would shift, and she’d turn back to the Shen Mansion.

With this in mind, Si Jin moved forward.

The grand gates of the Shen Mansion gradually receded behind her, and the street intersection ahead already revealed vendors’ stalls.

The street buzzed with activity, figures of pedestrians flickering in the distance. The scene before her seemed to beckon her forward, promising to disperse the gloom in her heart.

Si Jin’s attention settled on the nearest stall.

A child was tugging at their mother’s skirt, apparently wanting to buy a paper kite.

Seeing this, Si Jin also felt inclined to approach and take a look.

Suddenly.

A jarring, unusual noise pierced her ears.

From the corner of her eye, Si Jin caught a shadow swiftly moving under the tree shade—like wind, or something else.

Before her thoughts could process it, her body continued stepping forward.

The shadow abruptly closed in on her.

Si Jin’s eyes widened instinctively, her breath catching.

The wind whistled past her ears, darkness enveloping her vision.

The next instant.

The newcomer actually hoisted her over their shoulder by the waist.

“Ah! Help! Who are you?!”

Si Jin screamed in shock.

She couldn’t believe it—how could someone, in broad daylight, right in front of her accompanying servants and the pedestrians not far away on the street, dare to abduct her like this?

Even the Shen Mansion was close behind her, and the guards at the gate could easily surround the perpetrator.

Though her mind insisted this was utterly impossible, she was indeed being carried away at a brisk pace.

“Let me go! Let me go!”

Si Jin struggled desperately, her cries echoing through the air.

Her waist suddenly tightened—a large hand had precisely grasped her sensitive spot, causing her final shout to warp abruptly in pitch.

Si Jin jerked her head up. Besides glimpsing the black brocade clothing of the person carrying her from her peripheral vision, she also saw her own servants standing frozen in place.

Not only did they show no intention of rescuing her, but some were even tentatively retreating backward.

Panic surged through Si Jin, yet she seemed to realize something.

Struggling violently, she twisted sideways from the person’s steady arms to look back.

She couldn’t clearly see the person’s face, but a strand of hair brushed past her cheek, a familiar scent wafting into her nostrils. As the other person bent to step into a carriage, her whole body nearly lost balance, teetering as if about to fall.

“Ah!” Another startled cry.

Xiao Rong grabbed her by the waist, tossing her into the carriage as effortlessly as if she were a sack of cotton.

Si Jin tumbled onto the brocade cushions inside, nearly losing her balance and falling into an extremely undignified position.

She quickly tightened her core to steady herself.

Propping herself up with one hand on the cushion, she lifted her gaze to glare at the man before her.

Xiao Rong’s expression was even darker than hers—the one who had committed all these misdeeds now sat with a face like thunder.

He didn’t even glance at her, his lips pressed into a tight line as he strode forward wordlessly and sat down beside her.

The carriage hadn’t moved, and there was no sound from outside, making the cramped interior feel stiflingly silent.

Si Jin felt a surge of anger.

What was the meaning of this?

Kidnapping her?!

Her furious glare went unnoticed by Xiao Rong.

He truly didn’t look at her, keeping his eyes fixed straight ahead, staring at the carriage curtain as if trying to bore a hole through it.

“Xiao Chongyun, what do you think you’re doing?”

Si Jin’s voice was cold as she demanded an answer.

Xiao Rong’s grim expression didn’t soften; his Adam’s apple bobbed slightly.

The atmosphere grew increasingly tense, thick with unspoken tension that could erupt at any moment.

Si Jin noticed Xiao Rong’s fingers curl unnaturally.

It was a gesture he made when restraining himself—she’d seen it a few times before, though it had always ended in failure, leaving her never quite sure what he was holding back in those moments.

Suddenly, Xiao Rong turned his head. His gaze was icy, his eyes bloodshot—a ferocious sight, yet Si Jin detected a trace of weariness in him.

But his stare was the complete opposite of such fragile descriptors. The moment it landed on her, it eagerly enveloped her entire being, drinking in every detail of her.

Greedy, sticky—declaring the utter failure of his brief restraint.

Yet what Xiao Rong said was: “If I kissed you now, would you be angry?”

“Wh-what?”

After building such a tense atmosphere and pulling a near-kidnapping stunt…

This was what he had to say?

Si Jin had no intention of answering such a distracting question, nor was she in the mood to kiss him.

She took a deep breath, her face stern as she asked, “Have you been waiting outside the Shen residence all day?”

“No.”

Xiao Rong paused. “Not just today.”

Si Jin’s brow furrowed slightly, finding this absurd, but she couldn’t help probing further: “Since the day I arrived?”

“Mm.”

“I’ve been outside the Shen residence the whole time, but I never saw you come out.”

Si Jin was both exasperated and amused.

Of course she hadn’t come out—it had only been two days, and besides, she was still irritated by Xiao Rong’s attitude. Not only had she not considered returning home yet, but she also had plenty to discuss with Shen Xuzhi. Why would she think of leaving?

And even if she had…

“What were you planning to do, stationed outside the Shen residence?”

Xiao Rong’s face tightened, the darkness in his eyes deepening.

He didn’t answer, but his entire demeanor betrayed his intentions.

Just waiting to snatch her the moment she stepped out?

Si Jin’s expression clearly conveyed how unreasonable she found this possibility.

“That’s not it.” Xiao Rong denied it, his tone utterly serious, seemingly truthful. “I didn’t think that way before, but just now… I couldn’t help myself.”

Whether it was true or not, he had still dragged her into the carriage.

Si Jin didn’t want to argue with him about this any longer.

The atmosphere remained tense and deadlocked, hardly conducive to calmly discussing the conflicts that had arisen between them.

The carriage fell into a stretch of silence.

Si Jin had long averted her gaze, lowering her eyes.

Her line of sight was fixed on the folds of her skirt, yet from the corner of her eye, she could perceive the man beside her staring intently at her.

Si Jin couldn’t help but feel somewhat helpless.

She thought to herself that if she truly continued to lock horns with Xiao Rong, given his temperament—which allowed him to lurk ominously in front of the Shen residence for two days or even longer—they might very well remain deadlocked here until the end of time.

Si Jin parted her lips slightly and made to adjust the awkward posture she had been sitting in all this while.

Words were already on the tip of her tongue as she lifted her gaze and used her hands to prop herself up.

The moment her bottom left the embroidered cushion—

Si Jin’s raised eyes saw Xiao Rong’s expression change abruptly. He suddenly reached out and grabbed her wrist, urgently saying, “Xiao Jin, don’t go.”

His fingers were icy cold, his grip a bit too firm. For a moment, it tightened like a vise, but then quickly eased, instead pressing his entire hand tightly and seamlessly against the skin of her wrist, drawing warmth from her.

Xiao Rong’s breathing was slightly heavy, the corners of his lips twitching with difficulty as he spoke in a strained voice, “Could you… come home with me?”