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Edited on July 19, 2022.

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Chu Zhu Yu was leisurely sipping tea inside of the Xing Yuan Tea House.

She felt weird because the tea tastes very familiar, it's similar to the tea that she brews everyday.

Even though she can't say that only her tea should have that kind of taste, their menu was just too similar to her tea house in Luo Yang. Every type of tea leaves that they promote, down to the cup, was too similar. Even the scent was exactly the same, so it's impossible to say that it's a coincidence.

"Xiao Er, has your Tea Master ever visited Luo Yang?"

Chu Zhu Yu was very curious, she asked the little boy who was wiping the table across from her.

"Yes lady, you have sharp eyes. Our Tea Master is someone who came from Luo Yang, then settled down here in Cong Zhou. Luo Yang is where the Emperor resides in, so the Tea House there is better than what we have in Cong Zhou. In Cong Zhou, only our Tea House will let you experience the taste of Luo Yang's tea."

Perhaps he was secretly learning from the Tea Master who worked in her Tea House, and then went to Cong Zhou to start a business.

That was Chu Zhu Yu's initial thought.

"Hmm... Can I meet the Tea Master who brewed this? I am also from Luo Yang."

"Well..." the boy hesitated. "Our Tea Master is a unique person, he never shows anyone his face. Even when he is brewing tea, he would always wear a bamboo hat."

"A bamboo hat?"

"My boss said that talented people have peculiar tastes." Xiao Er lowered his head as he answered.

All of a sudden, the streets outside of the Tea House were filled with people, it became very noisy. Most of the people inside of the tea house went outside to see what was happening.

"Pardon me, lady! I need go out to see what is going on!" Xiao Er hurriedly ran outside.

Chu Zhu Yu lifted the boiling cup and resumed sipping her tea.

Even the scent of the tea was similar to her Tea House. However, the way of brewing the tea was slightly different, that's why it also affected the taste.

As she consumed the tea, she inhaled its scent and silently affirmed once again that its scent was similar to hers. However, something was added to slightly change the scent.

"Oh no! This is bad! The soldiers are inspecting every street inside of the city!"

A lot of people started panicking.

"What?"

"Are the bandits here again?"

"Who commanded the search?"

Everyone started whispering to one another.

"They say that the search was instigated by General Xiao, and the soldiers outside were looking for a woman." A man dressed as a scholar told everyone as he returned from the outside.

Bam!

Chu Zhu Yu dropped the tea cup, its contents spilling on the table. The people inside the Tea House turned to look at her. She hurriedly lowered her head, and grabbed the tea cup.

Did Xiao Zhi Zhi really command his troops to inspect the streets? And the woman he is looking for, is it-

"What was the woman's crime?" someone asked.

"I think she isn't a criminal. I saw the portrait given by the soldier, and it wasn't a bounty. The woman also didn't look like someone who would commit a crime." the scholar replied.

"What was the woman's features in the portrait?" Another person asked out of curiosity.

The scholar tried to remember.

"It seems the woman had a round face, her eyes were round, she was a bit plump, her nose was slightly bent upwards, she had cherry lips, she had a yellow wooden hairpin tidying up her hair, I heard from the soldier that the woman was petit, her height was around five feet..."

Based off of the scholar's raw description, it was no wonder that all of the people inside the Tea House looked at Chu Zhu Yu again. Sensing the atmosphere, the scholar also glanced at Chu Zhu Yu. His eyes widened.

"Aiya, she is..."

"She is the woman in the portrait!"

"Hurry! Hurry and capture her! Hand her over to the soldiers outside!"

At that moment, everything became chaotic. Everyone was preparing to make a move, when suddenly two soldiers entered the Tea House, led by the Xiao Er.

The Xiao Er walked closer to the soldiers and gave a respectful bow, "If this lowly one isn't mistaken, the lady in the portrait is the same guest who is drinking tea inside of the Tea House."

One of the soldiers walked steadily, until he stopped and stood in front of Chu Zhu Yu. The soldier opened a portrait, and tried to match it with the woman in front of him.

"Pardon me, lady. Is your name Chu Zhu Yu?"

Chu Zhu Yu was dumfounded. She never thought that her actions would create such a fuss inside of the city.

"Lady?"

Chu Zhu Yu got out of her reverie, her fingers tightly grasped her skirt, "...Yes."

After she confirmed her identity, the soldier kneeled, "Lady, please stay here for a moment."

"What?" She was surprised.

She saw the other soldier walk out of the Tea House and release a signal up to the air.

The purple smoke light flashed in the sky. Time passed by slowly, until she saw a black figure briskly walking into the Tea House.

He looked handsome in his black robe. He had a gold belt on his waist, and his elegant features made him look like a mysterious black official or an honorable scholar.

The gold jade hairpin in his hair matched with his belt, and his smooth, black hair fell over his face. His pitch-black eyes were very similar to his black robe, they almost melt together.

He slowly walked closer to her table, he had a cold smile on his face.

But his smile made her feel extremely uncomfortable, it gave a sense of danger. His silent smile felt scarier than his words of anger.

Chu Zhu Yu unconsciously stepped back, she continued until her back was against the wall.

He towered over her. He looked down at her and exterted a commanding position. She couldn't predict what his deep, dark eyes were trying to convey.

Finally, he stopped right in front of her eyes, still looking at her. He gently held her wrist. But since his five fingers held her palm tightly and won't let go, his nails almost pierced her skin.

It hurts!

Chu Zhu Yu frowned, but Xiao Zhi Zhi laughed and said,

"Zhu Yu, aren't you tired after playing so much? It's time to go back."

"Jue Qing, I..." she wanted to explain.

"However, if you want to escape, it's too late now."

His laughing voice got even scarier, he held her shoulders roughly, and slowly pushed her out of the tea house in big steps.

---

Her stomach is against his left shoulder, Chu Zhu Yu's head was turned upside down, she looked similar to a sand bag. Xiao Zhi Zhi kept on walking until they arrived at the courtyard of the Zhi Residence.

"Jue Qing, put me down!" She shouted, she felt like all of her blood flowed to her head after staying upside down for a while.

Xiao Zhi Zhi silently kept on walking.

"Fine. I know I was wrong, I shouldn't have went out secretly, but I only wanted to visit the tea house, I would have returned on my own!"

She admitted her fault, she just wanted to escape from this uncomfortable situation.

He still did not say a word.

When they arrived at the Zhi's Residence, Officer Zhi welcomed him cautiously, "Congratulations to the general for finding Lady Chu..."

"Officer Zhi, please tell Jue Qing to put me down!" Chu Zhu Yu asked for help.

Tell him? How could he even dare to speak like that to the general!

Even the blind knows that Xiao Zhi Zhi has a terrifying expression right now, if looks could kill, everyone would be dead! Officer Zhi only glanced at her, silently begging Chu Zhu Yu to preserve his life.

Bam!

Xiao Zhi Zhi opened the door with only one palm and looked behind him, "No matter what happens, or what kind of noise gets out from inside this room, no one is allowed to enter until I order otherwise!"

"Yes!" All the troops followed his command.

Xiao Zhi Zhi shut the door and dropped Chu Zhu Yu from his shoulder. For a moment, Chu Zhu Yu felt very dizzy from being tossed to a bed.

That hurts!

Even though the bed has a very soft blanket, Chu Zhu Yu still felt her back hurt.

"I know I was wrong... Still, you shouldn't do this to me!" She lifted her torso and gently massaged her hips.

"...Perhaps I am too good to you, too soft on you, that's why you forget all the promises you make to me."

Xiao Zhi Zhi walked closer until he was next to the bed, he lowered his body and glared at Chu Zhu Yu.

"No... That's not true ah." She answered guiltily.

"Cong Zhou isn't fully safe because bandits still roam the streets, but you still went out in such a way. Tell me, what will you do if you encountered danger?" He slowly caressed her hair.

She realized that his slender fingers were as cold as ice once it made contact with her face.

His cold fingers casually caressed her hair, but it felt slightly ambiguous. The way his fingers were caressing her hair almost made her stop breating.

All of a sudden, Xiao Zhi Zhi removed her hairpin, causing Chu Zhu Yu's long hair to drop.

"Wha-"

He calmly continued combing her smooth hair with his fingers, he chuckled with a deep voice,

"Let me tell you what will happen if the bandits of Cong Zhou kidnaps you, since you don't seem to understand the possible consequences of your actions. If by chance, they kidnapped you... You will be physically assaulted, or maybe you will die by decapitation. But the most likely thing to happen is being raped by numerous men at the same time..."

His voice was so soft and calm, it was the only sound resonating in the inner room. His smile got bigger, but she trembled a bit from hearing his words.

"I didn't know that could happen." She answered timidly.

"...If I make you mine today, maybe that will make you stay by my side."

His voice sounded like a woodwind instrument. It sounded mesmerizing, like a soft feather gently stroking her. He softly spoke near her ear, and it was enough to make her zone out for a bit.

His left hand embraced her waist, while his right hand pulled her waist belt.

"No!" Chu Zhu Yu started panicking.

She uses all of her energy to push Xiao Zhi Zhi down, she tries to escape from the bed.

Will he... no! no! Even though she really likes him, she doesn't want to experience her first time in this kind of situation.

But his hand already grabbed her hand and he slowly dragged her back to the bed.

"Let go of me! I want to go out!"

She struggled, but she couldn't overpower him. His broad chest was pressed against her body, and her clothes were starting to get messy.

"Don't resist me, Zhu Yu."

He embraced her and softly whispered to her ear. His warm breath tickled her, and he softly kissed her forehead. Gently, he placed his head on her neck, entirely confining her with his arms.

"Only in this way, you will willingly stay beside me."

"No Jue Qing, even if you don't do this, I will stay by your side." She replied in a rush, trying to create a gap between them. However, no matter how hard she tries, she can't push him.

"Really?" he laughed.

She raised her head, and saw his disbelieving face.

"Listen Jue Qing, I might secretly go out sometimes, but I will always return to y-!"

"You think I will still believe your words when you've broken your promises time and time again?"

He ripped her clothes and gently sucked her neck, placing hickeys all over her neck and shoulders.

She couldn't help but shiver after her shoulders got exposed to the cold air. But her slight tremble only provoked his desire for her.

"No...." she pushed him, but he didn't budge.

His dark eyes were filled with desire. He kissed her cheeks, licked her ears, and whispered in a deep voice,

"Zhu Yu, I can't even begin to explain how much I love you. I'm bound to you because of my need to sleep, but you... don't need me. You could just disappear, and that terrifies me."

She knows how much he loves her, but she didn't expect that he will do this kind of thing to her!

Chu Zhu Yu goes all out to push Xiao Zhi Zhi by extending her arms and trying to kick his chest. But no matter how much she pushes, it didn't work on him.

He even takes advantage of the situation by hugging her tighter to him. He sucked her lower lip and bit it slightly.

Chu Zhu Yu hisses because of the pain. Using this, he entered his tongue and kissed her deeply. His tongue entangled with hers, and they fought for control.

She soon went limp and became lightheaded. She forgot to swallow, and soon a silver thread went out from the corner of her mouth.

"Mn..." she moaned, she couldn't feel her limbs anymore, she could only let him kiss her.

His kiss was dominating. It felt as if he would swallow her whole.

Her face is now very hot and red. She felt suffocated, until finally he unlocks their kiss and removes his tongue from her mouth, but even then his lips didn't move away from hers.

She has no energy left. She felt his tongue brush against her lips.

"You are mine." He declared.

She didn't reply, she just gasped for breath. His hands moved down, and he looked as if he will tear off her skirt.

Chu Zhu Yu inhaled sharply, their eyes met, and she looked pleadingly at him.

"Don't! Don't force me to hate you!"

"... What?"

Xiao Zhi Zhi was stupefied.

Her words were like a sharp dagger that pierced his heart. His heart started thumping painfully.

"Why would you hate me?"

"This is wrong, Jue Qing! Forcing me to give my body to you is wrong! If we make love, we should both agree it! ...If you will continue to do this, then I will hate you forever."

She doesn't want him to hold her like this. When he is angry and she is unwilling. She wants their first time to be a happy moment.

"Forever?" he whispered painfully.

Chu Zhu Yu continued, "Perhaps I will never understand how you feel right now. But, I never thought of leaving you! On that day when your face looked pale, when you embraced me tightly with your trembling body, I vowed to myself that I will never leave you!"

It's true. On that day when she jokingly blurted out words that she didn't mean, he gave out such a painful response. She has no abilities that would make her more special than others. Does she really deserve his love?

" Jue Qing, I am not clueless. Your caring towards me, your doting, I understand it all very well! I remember everything we shared together. Perhaps at the beginning, I only felt pity towards you because you couldn't sleep without me, but I... I don't even know when, I just started to love you. Everytime you hug me to sleep, I get butterflies in my stomach. I feel so happy that you can have a sound rest because of me.

"You... love me?" his eyes widened.

"Yes. I love you."

She confidently looked at him in the eyes.

"That's why you don't have to be so overbearing, I am willing to stay with you for the rest of my life!"

She gave him a heartfelt promise.

He slowly relaxed and radiated a surprised but extremely happy aura. He looked at her, and spoke slowly with a calm voice, word for word.

"Even though I experienced plently of awful things because of what I did in the past, I still waited for a time when I could find peace. Zhu Yu, as long as I have you, I will glady endure any sort of suffering that life may throw my way."

She stared at Xiao Zhi Zhi and wondered, how can there be a person that could love her so deeply like this?

(E/R: And that my friends, is how Jue Qing learns about consent 😂)