Dream of the Red Chamber: Madam, please have some self-respect!

The fragrance of plum blossoms mingled with the scent of ink, and carried a hint of the warm sweetness of a woman's hair. Jia Yun felt a sense of déjà vu about this smell—when Li Wan was tiptoeing to help him carry the book, and a section of her slender arm slipped out from her pale sleeve, startling him so much that he quickly ducked.

But the fragrance still stubbornly seeped into Jia Yun's heart.

Jia Yun's heart sank: "Oh no!"

Could it be her?

Sure enough, when Jia Yun looked up, the pale face under the cold moonlight was now filled with a mixture of astonishment and disdain. Who else could it be but Li Wan?!

The moment their eyes met, even the breeze seemed to freeze.

Li Wan's knuckles turned white as she gripped the ram's horn lantern. The lantern's shadow flickered on her face, making her expression even more complex and difficult to discern—her eyes, which were usually accustomed to seeing the world's pleasures, were now brimming with seven parts shock and anger and three parts bewilderment.

"This wretched child is even more audacious than Master Zhen..." She suddenly recalled watching Jia Yun's lowered eyes from afar in the west corridor years ago when he saw off guests. At that time, he seemed quite polite, but who knew he was secretly...

Li Wan, unable to sleep in the middle of the night, went out for a walk to clear her head, never expecting to run into Jia Yun, who had just climbed over the wall of the Ningguo Mansion!

In an instant, she immediately recalled the rumors circulating in the mansion about Qin Keqing and Jia Zhen's ambiguous relationship, and then she thought of Jia Yun's previous "entanglement" with Wang Xifeng. And then she saw him sneaking out of this place late at night...

A filthy thought of "secret rendezvous and illicit affair" instantly filled her mind!

"What a shameless, filthy brat!" Li Wan trembled with rage, her blue satin shoes slipping on the damp cobblestones. "Shameless scoundrel! I misjudged you! You actually... you even dared to get involved in that..."

She was convinced that Jia Yun had gone to meet Qin Keqing in secret, and she despised his character to the extreme.

After saying that, he turned to leave, and judging from the direction he was heading, he was in a hurry to report back to Lady Wang!

Jia Yun felt a sudden chill run down her spine!

If this matter gets out, not only will Qin Keqing's reputation be ruined, but she will also face certain death!

He absolutely cannot escape the charge of "breaking into the Ning residence at night and assaulting the clan leader"!

Before he could explain, and disregarding the boundaries between men and women, he darted forward and suddenly covered Li Wan's mouth from behind, dragging her soft, fragrant body into the shadows of the nearby rockery without a word!

"Ugh! Ugh!" Li Wan struggled desperately.

Those usually calm almond-shaped eyes were now filled with terror; she thought Jia Yun was about to do something indecent to her.

Jia Yun held her tightly in his arms and hissed urgently in her ear, "Auntie, don't shout! Do you want to kill everyone?! If you rush out now and people see us fighting, do you think you can explain yourself?! Neither of us will survive!"

These words sent a shiver down Li Wan's spine, and she loosened her struggles, but the humiliation and hatred in her eyes grew even stronger.

Just then, two night patrol maids carrying lanterns walked towards them, chatting and laughing.

Jia Yun was extremely anxious, fearing that Li Wan would cause further trouble.

So he unconsciously tightened his arms, making their already close bodies fit together even more tightly.

Li Wan felt the boy's chest burning hot behind her, which made her weak with embarrassment, yet she dared not move an inch.

After the maid had gone far away, Li Wan forced out a tearful curse through gritted teeth: "You filthy bastard! You shameless scoundrel! Disgusting! I misjudged you! Let me go!"

When Jia Yun saw that she was so indiscriminate and convinced that he had done something immoral, he was also filled with inexplicable anger.

He was clearly trying to save someone, but he was falsely accused of being a lecher!

He looked down at the person in his arms.

Under the moonlight, Li Wan's face flushed with anger and shame, making her appear much more vibrant than her usual pale self.

And those slightly trembling earlobes, as clear as jade, were so close.

A surge of vile desire suddenly rushed to Jia Yun's head.

Jia Yun suddenly chuckled softly, his voice becoming hoarse: "Since Aunt keeps calling me a lecherous scoundrel and saying I'm vulgar... fine, today I'll prove that accusation true, and you won't be wronged by your insults!"

After saying that, he suddenly lowered his head, opened his mouth and took that cool and soft earlobe into his mouth, grinding it lightly with his teeth!

"Ah—!" Li Wan had never been so blasphemed!

Suddenly, Li Wan felt as if she had been struck by lightning. An indescribable tingling sensation exploded from her earlobes, causing her to let out a short and sharp scream!

But the cry was exceptionally clear in the night!

What was that sound?

"There seems to be some movement over there!"

"Go and take a look!"

The two maids who had just walked away and the servants patrolling nearby were immediately alerted and ran towards the rockery with lanterns in hand!

Li Wan was so frightened that she was scared out of her wits, and her face turned as white as paper!

If someone were to discover that she was arguing with Jia Yun in the dead of night, and that she had been bitten on the ear, she wouldn't be able to explain herself no matter how hard she tried, and would only face certain death!

And Jia Lan's future will be completely ruined!

At this critical moment, Jia Yun reacted extremely quickly.

He suddenly grabbed a stone from the ground, mustered all his strength, and hurled it hard at the grass in the opposite direction!

"Thud!" The sound of a pebble hitting the ground was clearly audible.

"It was just stray cats fighting. It gave me quite a fright." The servant's voice rang out first, followed by scattered conversation, before the sound of footsteps faded into the distance.

The two survivors were both drenched in a cold sweat.

Li Wan's legs went weak and she almost collapsed, but Jia Yun held her tightly around the waist and she was able to stand up with difficulty.

Through the thin fabric, Jia Yun could feel the slenderness of her waist, and... and below that, the plump, rounded curves, which were quite fleshy.

She appeared slender, but in reality, she was plump and supple. Everywhere you touched her was cool, smooth, and soft, and her pale skin seemed to glow in the dark.

Jia Yun composed himself and looked at her frightened, tearful appearance. The anger in his heart subsided, replaced by a lingering fear.

He lowered his voice, but his tone remained icy: "Auntie, you'd better keep tonight's events a secret! I didn't do anything, believe it or not! But if you dare to utter a single word, you'll ruin my plans..."

"Be careful, Jia Lan!"

The name "Jia Lan" pierced Li Wan's heart.

She could endure any humiliation for her son!

Li Wan bit her lower lip tightly, tears welling up in her eyes, and in the end, she could only nod.

Seeing that she had given in, Jia Yun slowly released his grip.

Li Wan, no longer restrained, staggered and ran towards the other end of the courtyard.

But tonight, she probably won't get a good night's sleep.

At that moment, Jia Yun watched Li Wan's departing figure and secretly slapped himself twice more.

Damn it, you beast!

The next morning, Jia Yun found an excuse to go to Li Wan's garden.

It just so happened that he encountered Li Wan outside, who was leaning against the railing, feeling melancholy.

At this moment, she was wearing a moon-white silk dress, which made her figure appear even more slender from a distance.

Although Li Wan was not as plump as Feng Jie or Qin Shi, she possessed a unique, cool, and reserved charm.

At this moment, the sunlight shone on her pale skin, making it appear like a piece of fine mutton-fat jade, translucent and luminous.

Jia Yun stepped forward and bowed respectfully, but his tone carried a meaning that only the two of them could understand: "Greetings, Aunt."

Li Wan stiffened upon seeing him, instinctively taking a half-step back and turning her face away, not wanting to look at him, but her ears involuntarily flushed red.

Looking at her frightened and ashamed expression, Jia Yun felt a sudden softening in his heart: "Last night... I was being presumptuous. But the situation forced me to be so abrupt, so I apologize to you."

He then bowed deeply.

Li Wan's eyes immediately reddened, and she turned her face away, her voice choked with sobs: "You...you knew you were being presumptuous, so why did you bother to provoke me? I only ask that we go our separate ways from now on, and never have anything to do with each other again!"

Jia Yun straightened up, his gaze darkening as he looked at her slightly trembling shoulders. He then softened his voice again: "Aunt, please don't speak out of anger. There are some things that are not convenient to say right now. In a few days... I will come and explain them to you, and then you will understand my good intentions."

Upon hearing this, Li Wan burst into tears.

Not wanting to lose her composure in front of him, she stomped her foot and turned to leave.

As Jia Yun watched her departing figure, the faint fragrance of plum blossoms mixed with books seemed to linger in his nostrils, and his heart was filled with complex and indescribable emotions.

Meanwhile, in the East Mansion, chaos had already broken out.

The servants found Jia Zhen unconscious in a secluded room of Tianxiang Tower, so they hurriedly carried him back to the room and called a doctor to treat him.

But how could such news be kept from people?

The official story from the East Mansion is that: Last night, Master Zhen heard strange noises in the backyard and suspected that a thief had broken in, so he went to check it out himself.

Unexpectedly, the thief was fierce and managed to injure Grandpa Zhen before escaping. The matter has now been reported to the authorities for investigation.