Chapter 655: What a Crappy Suggestion (1)
As expected of the imperial family’s holiday villa, they were not only situated at the mouth of the hot springs itself, the baths in the villa were extremely luxurious.
This villa had been built in the previous dynasty with massive amounts of manpower and resources. However, this luxurious palace hadn’t been completed for long before the previous dynasty came to an end, leaving the next dynasty to reap this unexpected benefit.
He CHangdi lifted up the heavy blinds covering the entrance to the bath of the inner hall.
Since the hot spring water came from the ground, there was a special sulphurous smell specific to hot springs lingering in the air. That heavy smell was further mixed with incense and flower fragrances, making it hard to breathe.
He Changdi kept his footsteps light and silent.
As he passed under the last set of blinds at the entrance, the slender figure in the wide oval bathing pool came into view.
Chu Lian’s nerves had been strung tight these two days thanks to the fall and the situation afterwards. It was a rare chance for her to visit a hot spring, and its waters did not disappoint. The warmth of the hot spring water surrounded her weary body and allowed her to relax completely.
She sat at the side of the pool, where there was a specially carved curved platform to sit on. The water went up to her collarbone, leaving her fair, smooth shoulders open to the air.
Her long, silky hair had been pinned up by a simple wooden hairpin, leaving two locks of hair to frame her lovely face. Those two long locks made a wavy trail where they touched the water, giving a touch of flair to the scene.
Afraid that she would slip deeper into the pool, Chu Lian was resting her slender arms on the white jade steps behind her, which were covered by a thick carpet. One hand was placed upon the railing of the jade steps, the end of which was carved into the shape of a phoenix’s head.
The steam billowing up from the pool made her sleepy. She leaned her head on her forearm and shut her eyes as she laid partly on the carpet.
This was the beautiful scene that greeted He Changdi when he entered the bathing area.
Chu Lian was currently sitting with her back towards him.
Half of her fair back was revealed to the open air, while the other half remained hidden under the steamy waters. Her delicate shoulder blades, so similar to butterfly wings and wet from the waters, reflected the dim glow of the lanterns.
A few stray locks of hair trailed down from her long, elegant neck.
Two thin arms stretched out over the woolen carpet laid on the white jade steps.
Her snow-white skin looked like exquisite porcelain against the dark crimson of the carpet.
The Adam’s apple on He Changdi’s throat dipped as he gulped once.
For some reason, Captain Guo and Zhang Mai’s words rang through his head once more.
His pupils dilated, and his entire body tensed up as his breathing became heavier.
Wenqing and Wenlan were guarding the door outside, so Chu Lian wasn’t expecting any intruders. The warmth of the waters had already lulled her into sleepiness, so she didn’t notice that He Changdi had entered the hall and was standing by the pool.
He Sanlang clenched his hands tightly and took a deep breath. He shut his eyes as he tried to suppress the desire that had flared up in his heart.
He slowly walked over to Chu Lian as he battled fiercely with himself.
Two sides of him warred against each other, but finally, the evil side won over the good one…
With a deft movement of his fingers, he took off his belt and tossed it to one side. It was quickly followed by his outer robe, which flew off to another corner.
He Sanlang was left only in his inner clothes in a short moment.
He entered the water from the other side of the pool. Chu Lian was leaning on the edge of the hot spring pool with her eyes shut, so she was completely unaware of his movements.
While still in the middle of a daze from all the steam around her, Chu Lian suddenly felt a pair of strong arms hugging her from behind.
Her slight body was pulled flush against a hard chest.
One of He Changdi’s arms reached around Chu Lian to grope the softness he loved the most, while the other slid down to the side of her waist and belly to stroke it gently.
Chu Lian’s eyes had already widened in alarm the moment she had been caught. The haze that had been hanging over her head dissipated at once, and she subconsciously thought of screaming and struggling.
However, her head was turned to the side by the intruder and her tongue was immediately entwined with his before she could even draw up the wits to shout.
All she could do was let out muffled protests.
In the midst of her struggles, Chu Lian’s almond-shaped eyes finally caught sight of the person who was attacking her.
The sight of those familiar features made the tension in her thumping heart fade away. However, what came next wasn’t happiness or excitement, but endless sadness and grievance.
Since her mouth was still covered, all she could do was complain loudly in her own mind.
How could He Changdi act this way!
He had clearly been ignoring her for these few days and he hadn’t even dared to meet her once. Yet he had now appeared without any warning and was bullying her! Did he know how scared she had been when a strange man’s arms had been wrapped around her so suddenly?!
The combination of the lingering fear and those thoughts made the tears she had been holding back for so long spill out of her eyes. They rolled down her cheeks like strings of pearls.
