The abstinent and powerful minister is cold and aloof during the day, but he adores her in his dream

Chapter 115: He had very close contact with her.
"Alright, put it on." The man's deep voice pulled Zhiwan back to reality.

She looked up at the man.

She saw that the man had already stepped back, and his expression was normal, without any abnormality. It was as if what had just happened was just her imagination.

But the feeling of the man's arm around her waist was so clear that it was impossible to ignore.

In fact, last night at the villa, when she was delivering wontons to her cousin, she almost fell down the steps. To save her, her cousin pulled her into his arms.

But at that time, he was very polite, only putting his hand on her shoulder and letting go quickly.

But just now, he directly put his arm around her waist.

Moreover, because he was holding shoes and wooden branches in his hands, he couldn't free his hands, so he wrapped his arms around her waist.

As a result, she was forced to press her entire body against his chest, resulting in very intimate contact with him.

The thought of this made Zhiwan feel a little embarrassed and uncomfortable.

But perhaps my cousin had no other choice but to do it.

If her cousin didn't hold her back, her feet would inevitably be stuck in the mud.

But is this cousin in front of her the same one who, in the peach grove of the Fu family, watched her fall to the ground without offering a helping hand because of the taboo against men and women touching each other?
Zhiwan was somewhat bewildered.

"Aren't you going to put it on?" Lu Zhan asked casually when he saw that she was still not moving.

Upon hearing this, Zhiwan composed herself, looked down, and discovered that her cousin had already cleaned her shoes and placed them on the ground in front of her.

She quickly put on her shoes and said, "Thank you, cousin."

Lu Zhan remained silent, his long, raven-feather eyelashes drooping slightly, concealing the turmoil within. In his mind, he saw the girl's slender waist and her delicate, jade-like feet.

He stood there for a long time with his thin lips pressed tightly together. He took a dagger, chopped off a wooden stick from the side, and then used the dagger to smooth the stick into a round shape.

Zhiwan watched silently, not understanding what he was going to do.

"Grab it."

Before long, Lu Zhan finished whittling the wooden stick and handed one end of it to her, gesturing for her to grab it.

Zhiwan asked, puzzled, "Why would you catch it?"

"Go up the mountain," Lu Zhan said succinctly.

Upon hearing this, Zhiwan immediately looked at the winding mountain path, her calves trembling slightly. Biting her lip, she shrank back and asked, "Do we... still have to go up?"

"Does my cousin like to give up halfway through things?" Lu Zhan asked casually.

Zhiwan: "..."

She obediently stretched out her right hand and grasped one end of the stick.

Seeing this, Lu Zhan paused for a moment, but said nothing.

He grasped one end of the wooden stick and led Zhiwan up the mountain.

Looking at the stick between the two, Zhiwan secretly blamed herself for being overly suspicious.

The person in front of me is still that well-behaved and polite cousin.

With Lu Zhan leading the way, Zhiwan found the ascent up the mountain much easier.

She followed her cousin's example, stepping on the grassy hillside, and finally the soles of her shoes no longer got muddy.

The mountain behind Red Leaf Village wasn't particularly high, and the two of them soon reached the top.

Even with her cousin leading the way, Zhiwan was still panting heavily when they reached the top of the mountain.

She had never climbed a mountain since she was a child, and she usually stayed at the Duke of Dingguo's mansion, so she was not very physically fit.

Seeing that she was panting heavily, Lu Zhan found a rock for her to sit on.

After sitting down, Zhiwan took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from her forehead, muttering, "Climbing mountains is too tiring. I'm never climbing again."

Upon hearing this, Lu Zhan said with a half-smile, "My cousin is so delicate; she should climb more in the future."

Zhiwan admitted that she was a bit spoiled, but she couldn't help feeling a little resentful after her cousin said that. "There are even more spoiled girls, cousin. I've never seen any."

"Yes, I'm just not knowledgeable enough," Lu Zhan nodded.

Zhiwan paused for a moment, then blurted out, "Cousin is too modest. Cousin has visited brothels in both the capital and Yangzhou. He has a wealth of experience, how could he be ignorant?"

Lu Zhan paused for a moment, then his gaze fell on her face, and he said seriously, "I'm sorry to have made you laugh, cousin. I won't go there again in the future."

Zhiwan was taken aback.

She actually regretted it a little after she finished speaking.

Her cousin's habit of visiting brothels was his business and didn't bother her; she shouldn't have interfered.

She had expected her cousin to be unhappy, but to her utter surprise, he told her so solemnly that he would no longer go there. She felt a strange, inexplicable feeling in her heart.

"Are you thirsty?" Lu Zhan suddenly asked.

Zhiwan snapped out of her reverie and nodded, "A little, but it's possible..."

Before she could utter the word "endure," the man suddenly stretched out his hand in front of her.

Those were a pair of hands with distinct joints, long and beautiful.

Looking at the hand in front of her, Zhiwan felt a strong urge to paint it.

Seeing that she was staring at his hand without moving for a long time, Lu Zhan paused and urged her gently, "Take it quickly."

When Zhiwan came to her senses, she noticed that there were several unidentified fruits in his palm. They were bright red and looked delicious.

"When did you pick these?" Zhiwan asked with a hint of delight, reaching out to take one.

"I saw some by the roadside on the way up the mountain, so I picked them." Seeing that she liked them, Lu Zhan's coldness seemed to dissipate somewhat, and he explained gently.

Upon hearing this, Zhiwan felt somewhat ashamed.

When she was climbing the mountain, she was so focused on climbing that she didn't pay any attention to her surroundings and didn't notice her cousin picking fruit.

She stared at the fruit in front of her, and suddenly her happiness faded. She asked hesitantly, "Is this fruit really edible?"

“Of course,” Lu Zhan affirmed.

Zhiwan was still somewhat hesitant.

My cousin comes from a prominent family. His food, clothing, housing, and transportation are all taken care of by servants. He doesn't have to lift a finger. It wouldn't be surprising if he didn't know the difference between grains. How could he possibly recognize wild fruits?

Thinking of this, she swallowed hard and, taking advantage of her cousin's inattention, secretly stuffed the fruit into her sleeve.

I'd rather not eat it.

If it's poisonous, she'll die here at such a young age.

She hasn't even found a husband yet; she doesn't want to die so young.

Lu Zhan turned around and saw that the fruit in her hand was gone. He assumed that she had eaten it, so he gave her the remaining fruit.

"You take your time eating, I'll go check over there."

"Okay," Zhiwan replied obediently.

Once Lu Zhan was out of sight, she stood up from the rock. Afraid that Lu Zhan would notice, she turned around and chose a spot in the opposite direction from Lu Zhan, intending to throw the fruit away far away.

"Boom!"

The fruit fell into the grass with a dull thud.

Zhiwan found it somewhat amusing, so she started dropping the stones one by one.

When I threw the third one, there was no sound.

She felt strange and looked up, only to meet the man's cold, dark eyes.

Zhiwan's smile froze, and she stammered, "Cousin...cousin?" Only after she finished speaking did she notice the fruit between his fingers, and she immediately felt guilty.

No wonder there was no sound; it turns out my cousin caught it.

But why would my cousin be there?
She clearly threw it in the opposite direction from him.

Zhiwan calmly climbed down from the rock.

"Why did you throw the fruit away?" Lu Zhan walked over, holding the fruit, his brows furrowed slightly, looking somewhat serious.

Zhiwan was extremely embarrassed.

Who would have thought that her cousin would catch her throwing fruit on the spot?
"It's too sour, it doesn't taste good." After a while, she made an excuse and whispered.

Lu Zhan frowned and remained silent.

Seeing that he didn't speak and his handsome face was serious, Zhiwan couldn't help but feel a little scared.

"Cousin, I didn't mean to," she murmured.

Lu Zhan glanced at her indifferently; this girl had given him quite a "surprise".

When he came back from the other side, he was almost hit by the fruit she threw, and he thought it was some kind of hidden weapon.

He picked up the fruit, took a bite, and said calmly, "It's sweet, not sour."

Upon seeing this, Zhiwan was startled and exclaimed urgently, "Don't eat it! What if it's poisonous? Spit it out!"

In a moment of desperation, she took two steps closer to him and grabbed his sleeve.

(End of this chapter)