Chapter 48: Mine
Song Hemei could feel her heart start to race uncontrollably again. Especially when she met the clear, deep eyes of the man before her, it made a heat rise from her chest to her neck, threatening to burn her cheeks and ears to a scorching red.
This was not good.
Yu Yeqing stood at the door, and to her, it seemed like a kind of enticement. Her lashes trembled unconsciously, and her feet had already taken two steps forward before she remembered she had serious business to ask about.
Right, she had serious business. She couldn't let others overhear it outside, so going into his room was only natural.
Song Hemei took a deep breath, straightened her back, and tried to appear justified and confident. The room had no candles lit, and behind her, she couldn't tell if it was the lantern from the shop or the moonlight outside. Either way, it let her clearly see Yu Yeqing's shadow slowly engulfing her.
He stood behind her, then slowly closed the door, leaving no gap.
Song Hemei's heart pounded twice more. Watching their overlapping shadows gradually disappear before her eyes, she couldn't help but let her thoughts drift in that direction.
She steadied herself and took the initiative to speak: "What did you want to say?"
Her voice came out, no longer addressing him as Lord Yu. Whether it was because she herself felt guilty, she didn't know, but hearing her own softened tone, she sensed a kind of anticipation that anyone could detect.
She bit her lip and closed her eyes in slight chagrin.
Why was she so unable to hold her composure?
He invited her, and she came—wasn't that far too cheap of her?
He had left without a word back then. At the very least, he owed her a proper explanation now. Since he had been pretending they weren't familiar for so long, why suddenly invite her tonight? Did he think she was someone who could casually indulge in a fleeting affair?
The more she thought like this, the more her heart, which had been racing almost past rationality, slowly began to calm down.
The man behind her remained silent. Song Hemei took a deep breath, placing her hand on the table: "If you're not going to say anything, then I'll go back."
She turned around, only to abruptly see his tall figure standing right behind her, pressing down on her with an oppressive force in the darkness.
She gasped, instinctively stepping back, and her lower back slammed right into the corner of the table, sending a sharp pain through her. She let out a muffled groan.
But before she could react, the spot where it hurt was covered by a warm palm. With a slight push, her entire body was pressed into his embrace, against his chest.
Song Hemei's eyes flew wide. Her hands instinctively pressed against his chest, and she lowered her voice: "What are you doing?!"
At the sound of her voice, Yu Yeqing relaxed his grip a little, but then, as if something crossed his mind, he tightened it again, holding her firmly without letting go.
Song Hemei's throat went dry, her heart racing in her throat. The clean, crisp scent of the man before her invaded her nose, making her forget to struggle. She stared quietly into those eyes that were still bright even in the darkness.
She didn't know what he wanted to say. Even now, he was still hesitating, not speaking. But the more he did this, the more Song Hemei felt that what he was thinking really was that thing.
This made her hesitate a little.
She cared about his leaving without a word. But if he couldn't manage to say something soft, was she supposed to just push him away and go back?
Yet she clearly understood that she didn't want to let it go so easily. Leaning in his arms, she felt an impulse to wrap her arms around his neck and rest her head against his chest.
It felt like three years ago, when there was a place, a person, where she could let her rebelliousness vent, where she could escape for a moment.
Thinking this, Song Hemei lowered her gaze slightly, the strength in her hands pressing against his chest easing. She let out a soft sigh. Since he wouldn't speak, she would be the one to ask first.
She moved her lips, the words just leaving her throat for her mouth and teeth, when she heard Yu Yeqing's suppressed, hoarse voice: "Lianzhu... is he mine?"
"Huh?"
Song Hemei felt as if those words had squeezed all the tangled thoughts out of her mind, leaving only bewilderment and confusion: "What the hell is yours?"
But just asking this question seemed to have used up half his courage. His heart was beating fiercely, and Song Hemei felt as if it was slamming straight into her.
Obsession overpowered reason, and when he spoke, his tone carried a bit more certainty: "Lianzhu is my child."
Song Hemei was still stunned by his words. In the darkness, the room was silent for a long moment before she slowly let out a hiss: "It shouldn't be, right?"
It couldn't be, she remembered. Yu Yeqing and Cao Lingchun shouldn't have been acquainted at all.
Yu Yeqing seemed to be influenced by her doubtful tone, and when he spoke again, he wasn't as certain. It came out rather tactfully: "Even you can't tell?"
It was only at this moment that Song Hemei's brain finally caught up, and she understood what he meant.
So all these days, letting him get close to Lianzhu was because he mistakenly thought Lianzhu was their child. Calling her here tonight was also for this matter, and not for anything else.
A surge of annoyance rose in Song Hemei's heart. She pushed him hard: "Let go!"
He was probably still thinking, and in his lapse of attention, his grip loosened, allowing her to shove him away.
Song Hemei laughed coldly in anger, unwilling to let him score in words: "What do you mean 'yours'? Don't flatter yourself. That's Shao Wen'ang's seed. If you don't believe me, go ahead and find a way to test the blood."
These words carried immense force. Yu Yeqing fell silent. The breath that had carried him to ask the question dissipated completely. Now, the words "wishful thinking" weighed on him, making him lower his head and close his eyes, as if looking at her would reveal his own pathetic reflection in her mocking gaze.
But the more he acted like this, the more furious Song Hemei became. She hated his sullen silence.
"Back then, it was you who left without a word. What did you take me for? You left, and you expect me to suffer alone, carry your child, and let the child be falsely claimed under the Shao family name? I don't know what you're thinking in your head, or if all men are like this—see a child and think it's theirs. Don't you know yourself whether you shot it in or not back then?"
The angrier she got, the more she spoke without restraint. She wished she could say something harsher, to see how far she could push him until he poured out everything.
"Even if there was one, I would never have given birth to the child and caused trouble. Did you think I'd just wait day after day with a child for you to wake up and come take me away? I'd rather drink an abortifacient, even if it killed me too. I would never—"
Before she could finish, the man before her suddenly stepped forward, his lips pressing down hard on hers, cutting off her words. He lifted his arm and pulled her into his embrace, pressing her down onto the table.
Song Hemei's heart leaped to her throat, blood rushing through her body.
So this was what it was like when he was pushed too far. At least he was using his mouth now...
But was it supposed to be this fast?
Before she could react, the pressure on her lips withdrew. Yu Yeqing's breathing was rough and heavy, his reason finally returning, aware of his rashness and offense.
But he didn't let go of the person in his arms.
His Adam's apple bobbed, his thin lips pressed together. The surging impulse and reason tore at each other, driving him once again to lower his head, slowly closing in on the woman in his arms, and then, tentatively, pressing the tip of his nose against hers.
Song Hemei felt her entire body stiffen, a numbing sensation running from her back up to her scalp.
She swallowed, her breathing becoming erratic. The tips of their noses touched and rubbed, making her eyes feel dry, as if in the next moment, warm, wet lips would come to suck and nibble on hers.
But she didn't know when that next moment would come. It was like a knife hanging over her head, refusing to grant her relief for a long time.
Amidst the initial surge of passion and anticipation, she remembered three years ago—he was always like this, as if deliberately teasing her, slow and tormenting.
Back then, she thought it was out of courtesy, or maybe shyness?
Now she was sure that wasn't the case. She had said so many cutting things to him just now, so he was certainly furious.
Right now, he was clearly threatening her, provoking her. Perhaps if she said another word like that, what she would receive would be fiercer and more violent than just now.
She didn't resist at all, letting the faint tickle of his nose tip linger. It felt as if any movement on her part would be seen as backing down.
"Yu Yeqing." She dropped all pretense of politeness and called him directly by name.
Yu Yeqing paused, finally letting her go, lifting his head slightly. But then he immediately lowered himself again and pressed his lips to hers.
Very, very lightly, like the first ripples on the surface of water. But then, he sucked on her lower lip. The pulling sensation made her lips tingle, even more pronounced in the darkness.
Song Hemei felt something explode in her brain. After three years, this sensation came rushing back, like a floodgate opening uncontrollably. Her lips instinctively parted, and his tongue naturally slipped in to intertwine.
Yu Yeqing's movements were no longer gentle as they had been at the start. The force on her lips increased, pressing her firmly against the table, unable to move at all, leaving her only to endure. Her eyes grew hazy, as if whatever happened next would naturally follow.
Until she couldn't breathe, their entangled lips finally parted. Yu Yeqing was right in front of her, his breathing heavy. His eyes seemed to glow in the deep night, fixed on her, making her instinctively avert her gaze.
Song Hemei swallowed, the tingling on her lips not yet faded. But the situation was indeed a bit awkward.
She cleared her throat slightly, about to say something, when Yu Yeqing seemed to have a sudden epiphany. He spoke: "I didn't leave without a word."
Song Hemei was startled. She looked up at him, meeting his deep, dark, yet chilling eyes.
"You made the choice first."
Song Hemei was at a loss: "What do you mean?"
Yu Yeqing didn't answer immediately. His gaze shifted to her lips, his voice hoarse: "You chose to go back to the Shao family, to break things off cleanly with me. When you made that decision back then, did you ever think of today?"
These words struck Song Hemei as odd. Something didn't feel right.
But before she could figure it out, her body suddenly stiffened.
He was too close to her.
She could immediately feel a subtle change in him—
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