Coaxing Lu Xueqi, Otherwise I'll Be Kneeling on Durians

"Last night!" Lu Jiuyuan said indifferently, "I was with Jin Ping'er!"

Lu Xueqi's fingers froze.

The hand resting against his neck seemed to have been flash-frozen, remaining completely motionless.

Her complexion turned deathly pale in an instant—not the pallor of anger, but a deeper, bone-chilling whiteness that seemed to seep from within.

The light in her eyes dimmed bit by bit, like a lamp being slowly extinguished.

Grief and disappointment intertwined, sinking into the deepest depths of her gaze.

She withdrew her hand and took a step back.

Then another step. Her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, she said nothing at all. She turned around, presenting her back to him.

"Xueqi—"

"Don't touch me."

Her voice was as cold as tempered ice.

Lu Jiuyuan ignored her, stepping forward to pull her into his arms from behind.

Lu Xueqi's body stiffened, then she began to struggle. Her elbows struck his chest, her heels stomped on his feet, and her fingers pried at the hands he had locked around her waist.

"Let go of me."

"I won't."

"Lu Jiuyuan, let me go!"

Lu Xueqi's tone was filled with frost as she called him by his full name.

Lu Jiuyuan tightened his arms, pulling her even closer.

With her back pressed against his chest, he could feel her body trembling like a petal battered by a storm.

"Xueqi, listen to me."

"I don't want to listen." Lu Xueqi's voice trembled. "Let me go."

"I know you're angry with me."

"I'm not angry." Her voice suddenly turned calm, as still as stagnant water. "I just feel that I am ridiculous."

Lu Jiuyuan's arms stiffened for a moment. She turned her face away, refusing to let him see her expression, but he could feel warm liquid dripping onto the back of his hand.

"Xueqi!!!"

"I waited for you for a long time." Lu Xueqi's voice was very soft, so soft it sounded like she was speaking to herself. "When you stood up for me at Yuqing Hall, I was so happy I couldn't sleep all night. When you held my hand by Yueya Lake, I..."

Her voice hitched, her throat bobbing slightly as she swallowed that sob back down.

"I thought I was the only one in your heart."

Lu Jiuyuan turned her around to face him.

Lu Xueqi's eyes were rimmed with red, and fine, shimmering moisture clung to her lashes, yet there were no tear tracks on her face. She had swallowed her tears, refusing to even cry in front of him.

"Xueqi, I'm sorry."

Lu Xueqi turned her face away, refusing to look at him.

"I know saying sorry is useless." Lu Jiuyuan cupped her face, his thumb gently brushing across her reddened eye corners. "But I am sincere. Regarding last night, I won't make excuses or shirk responsibility. It was my doing, and I own it."

Lu Xueqi's lashes fluttered, but she remained silent.

"But my feelings for you have never changed." His voice was very low, low enough that only she could hear. "Holding your hand by Yueya Lake was real. Telling you in the room that you are the most beautiful wife was real.

Last night, when you fell asleep with your head on my shoulder, I looked at your face and thought that meeting you in this life is the greatest blessing I, Lu Jiuyuan, have ever received."

Lu Xueqi's lips moved as if to speak, but ultimately, no sound came out.

"As for Jin Ping'er, I have failed you." Lu Jiuyuan's gentle voice paused. "But I won't say that I will never see her again, because that would be a lie.

I don't want to lie to you, Xueqi.

I don't want to tell you a single lie."

Lu Xueqi finally raised her head to look at him.

Those eyes were red and shimmering with water, like Xiaozhu Peak after the rain—shrouded in mist, impossible to see clearly.

"Then tell me!" Lu Xueqi's voice trembled slightly. "In your heart, between her and me, who is more important?"

Lu Jiuyuan looked at her for a long time.

The mountain wind whipped his robes, and her long hair was lifted by the breeze, brushing against his fingers.

"You." Lu Jiuyuan looked at her with tender, lingering affection. "From beginning to end, it has always been you."

Lu Xueqi stared into his eyes, as if confirming whether he was lying.

She watched for a long time—long enough for the wind to die down, long enough for the leaves on the trees to stop rustling, long enough for the long, clear cry of an unknown bird to echo from afar.

Lu Xueqi lowered her head and buried her face in his chest.

"I hate you." Her voice was muffled, thick with a nasal tone.

"Mm."

"I really hate you."

"Mm."

"You're a jerk."

"Mm."

Lu Xueqi raised her hand and struck his chest. It wasn't heavy, as if she were venting, or perhaps confirming that he was truly standing there.

Then she stopped moving, leaning into his embrace like a cat drenched in rain that had finally found a place to hide from the storm.

Lu Jiuyuan held her, resting his chin on the top of her head, saying nothing.

A long time passed—long enough for the person in his arms to stop shivering, long enough for her breathing to steady, long enough for that bird in the distance to call out once more.

"Senior Brother," Lu Xueqi said, her voice very soft.

"Mm."

"From now on, you aren't allowed to lie to me again."

"Okay."

"No matter what happens, you must tell me."

"Okay."

"You aren't allowed to keep things from me."

"Okay."

"You aren't allowed to..." Lu Xueqi paused, her voice dropping lower, "...you aren't allowed to only keep her company and not me."

Lu Jiuyuan looked down at her; she was burying her face in his chest, refusing to look up.

He let out a laugh, very soft, but Lu Xueqi heard it and struck his chest again.

"What are you laughing at?"

"Laughing at how cute you are."

"I'm not cute." Lu Xueqi's voice was muffled. "You're making fun of me."

"I'm not." Lu Jiuyuan cupped her face and lifted it from his chest so she would look at him. "Xueqi, every word you said, I have kept in my heart. I won't lie to you, I won't hide things from you, and I will keep you company."

Lu Xueqi looked into his eyes. There was sincerity there, tenderness, and something else she couldn't quite name.

She didn't speak, turning her face away with the tips of her ears glowing red.

Lu Jiuyuan watched that flush of red, his heart softening into a complete mess.

He lowered his head and kissed her.

Lu Xueqi's body stiffened for a moment before she began to struggle—not the desperate struggle from before, but something lighter, more symbolic, as if to say, I'm still angry, don't think you can just coax me into being fine like this.

He didn't stop.

One hand held her waist, while the other supported the back of her head, anchoring her in his embrace.

Her struggle grew lighter and weaker, until it stopped entirely.

Lu Xueqi's hands gripped his lapels, clutching them tightly as if afraid he might run away.

Her eyelashes trembled, her breathing trembled, and even her heartbeat trembled.

But her lips no longer dodged; instead, slowly, tentatively, and cautiously, she began to respond to him.

The kiss was long.

Lu Xueqi's emotions shifted, bit by bit, within that long kiss.

She let go of his lapels, her fingers slowly relaxing and pressing against his chest, feeling the powerful rhythm of his heart.

After a long while, she pushed him away and took a step back.

Her face was flushed, her lips slightly swollen, and her eyes were still red, but the layer of ice in their depths had shattered.

Lu Xueqi kept her head down, not daring to meet his eyes, her voice so soft it was almost scattered by the wind.

"I have three conditions," Lu Xueqi said, taking a deep breath.