Chapter 289 - 166: Vice Envoy, You Don’t Want...
"Thank you for this opportunity, Your Excellency. I will do my utmost to live up to your high expectations!"
Hearing this, Chen Sheng’s spirits lifted, and he solemnly cupped his fists.
.....
A while later, Chen Sheng bid farewell to Nie Xuanfeng. He didn’t return directly to his quarters, but instead took a detour to the rear offices of the Jingwu Bureau.
Deep within the rear offices was a quiet, secluded bamboo forest—a place Sun Yuzhi favored for solitude.
Sure enough, deep in the bamboo forest, beside a smooth slab of bluestone, he saw the familiar, graceful figure.
However, Sun Yuzhi had shed her imposing official robes, now dressed in a lake-blue, waist-cinching gown. Her dark hair was simply held up with a plain wooden pin.
She had shed some of her usual cold authority, revealing a more delicate and graceful femininity.
She stood with her hands clasped behind her back, her head tilted slightly up, gazing at the fragmented light filtering through the bamboo canopy. It was impossible to know what she was thinking, but her back conveyed a rare sense of loneliness.
Hearing the deliberately heavy footsteps behind her, Sun Yuzhi knew who had arrived, but she neither turned her head nor spoke.
Chen Sheng stopped about twenty feet away. His gaze swept over the graceful curve of her waist, accentuated by the gown, before finally resting on the elegant, fair nape of her neck, exposed by her pinned-up hair.
Taking a deep breath of the crisp, bamboo-scented air, Chen Sheng slowly walked forward to stand beside her. He gazed at the same patch of sky, fractured by the leaves, and spoke softly:
"Vice Envoy, are you out here alone lamenting the fleeting seasons, or... pondering some difficult decision?"
"What does it have to do with you?"
Sun Yuzhi turned her head to glance at him, letting out a faint, cold huff before turning away again.
"Of course it has to do with me."
Chen Sheng turned his head as well, his gaze landing on the elegant lines of her profile, which held a nearly imperceptible mix of stubbornness and sorrow. "Envoy Nie said that you were the one who proposed the marriage alliance with the Nie Family. Is that true?"
Sun Yuzhi was silent for a moment. When she spoke, her voice was calm and steady, yet it held a chill colder than usual.
"If we don’t leverage the Nie Family’s influence, I can’t be completely certain I can protect you from the White Tiger Hall’s next assassination attempt. Even if we get lucky and fend off a second attack, a third... I couldn’t stop it."
She spoke those last few words very softly, her voice heavy with a sense of powerlessness.
"So,"
Chen Sheng’s gaze flickered, and his voice deepened. "You chose to sever this budding... thread of affection with your own hands?"
"Nonsense!"
Sun Yuzhi whipped her head around to glare at him, her sharp brows furrowing. A faint, almost imperceptible blush colored her cheeks.
"I don’t know what you’re talking about. Between us, there is only the professional relationship of a superior and her subordinate. What ’thread of affection’? I simply... I simply cannot bear to see a promising talent cut down by some vile plot before he has the chance to truly shine."
"Don’t flatter yourself!"
Sun Yuzhi spoke quickly, a hint of flustered anger in her voice from having her true feelings exposed. She deliberately put on a stern expression, trying her best to maintain the authority of a Vice Envoy.
"Oh? Is it really just... such a ’normal’ professional relationship?"
Chen Sheng suddenly chuckled. He then reached out an arm and, with startling naturalness, wrapped it around Sun Yuzhi’s slender waist, pulling her gently toward him.
"Insolent! Let go!"
Sun Yuzhi’s body stiffened slightly. She glanced down at the arm around her waist, her voice turning sharp and commanding. The tips of her ears, however, grew even redder.
"No."
Chen Sheng’s reply was decisive. His arm remained firm, showing no sign of loosening its hold.
Sun Yuzhi stopped struggling. She simply lifted her gaze to his eyes, now just inches away. Gone was his usual playful cynicism and calm calculation, replaced by a clear, unwavering seriousness.
She suddenly asked, "So what will you do? Would you rather die than accept the marriage alliance with the Nie Family?"
Chen Sheng shook his head, his tone calm yet clear.
"I’ll accept the marriage alliance with the Nie Family. It is indeed the best way to resolve the current crisis with the White Tiger Hall and secure a better future for myself. I have no reason to refuse."
The faint glimmer of light that had just sparked in Sun Yuzhi’s eyes instantly died, replaced by a deeper bitterness and self-deprecation.
’Sure enough... How ridiculous of me to have felt that flicker of hope.’
However, Chen Sheng’s next words made her look up in stunned silence.
"But,"
Chen Sheng looked directly into her eyes and said, word by word, "Accepting the marriage alliance does not mean I have to give you up, Vice Envoy."
"After all, in my humble opinion, Vice Envoy... you don’t seem to truly want to sever this ’thread of affection’ either, do you?"
A faint smile touched the corners of Chen Sheng’s lips.
Sun Yuzhi froze, her heart skipping a beat at the searing heat in his eyes and the sheer audacity of his words.
It took her a long moment to process what he’d said. She stared at him in disbelief, her sharp features a whirlwind of indignation, incredulity, and a flutter of emotion that even she hadn’t recognized.
"You..."
Sun Yuzhi took a deep breath, trying to keep her voice steady, but it still came out with a slight tremor.
"What kind of outrageous idea is that? Don’t tell me... don’t tell me you expect me... to be your mistress?"
The moment the words left her lips, Sun Yuzhi felt her own cheeks burn. Still, she stared daggers at Chen Sheng, wanting to see just how shameless this impossibly bold man could be.
Chen Sheng met her gaze, his smile widening. He actually feigned a look of serious contemplation before asking nonchalantly:
"Can I?"
"Shameless!"
Sun Yuzhi was utterly stunned by his confident and undisguised ambition. After a long moment, she finally managed to hiss the word through clenched teeth.
Her cheeks, already flushed from indignation, now burned with a deeper, furious crimson.
She jerked her hand up to push away the arm around her waist, but the moment her hand made contact, most of its strength inexplicably vanished.
Seizing the opportunity, Chen Sheng tightened his arm, pulling Sun Yuzhi even closer. His hand slid down to rest on her rear as he lowered his head and whispered in her ear, his voice laced with amusement and low enough for only her to hear:
"Vice Envoy, you don’t really want to draw a line between us, do you?"
"Mmph—"
Before Sun Yuzhi could reply, his lips were on hers, and a deep blush instantly spread across her face.
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