The bright moon hung in the sky, casting intertwined shadows onto the soft snow. Thin layers of snow fell gently from the treetops, landing on warm skin before quickly melting away. The droplets, mixed with still-warm sweat, flowed along the smooth lines of the neck, soaking the soft collar.
Wang Dian gripped Liang Ye’s shoulders tightly, his eyes tinged with a burning red – likely from anger, though possibly for other reasons. His breathing became rapid and irritated, unable to form words, so he simply clenched his mouth shut.
But Liang Ye refused to yield to his wishes.
The heavy cloak crumpled between Wang Dian and the rough tree trunk. The treetops swayed, sometimes slowly, sometimes quickly. Liang Ye eagerly admired the face before him. The corners of the eyes and brows that often carried a smile were now tainted with worldly colors. That expression, which had seemed forever composed and aloof, now crumbled, both pained and pleasured.
“Does it feel good?” he threw Wang Dian’s words back at him.
Wang Dian’s grip on his shoulders suddenly tightened. As if not wanting to see him, he pressed his forehead against Liang Ye’s shoulder.
Liang Ye grabbed Wang Dian’s jaw, forcing him to look up. With a gloomy smile, he said, “That day on the boat, Zhen saw you… smiling so happily.”
Wang Dian grunted at his action, then grew irritated by the eerie tone, his ears turning red. “Liang Ye!”
It was a vivid illustration of what it meant to be “outwardly strong but inwardly weak.”
Liang Ye leaned in close to his ear and said with delight, “Scream a little louder. It’s best if more people see you like this…”
He whispered the last few words. Wang Dian glared at him, furious and embarrassed. This was truly pushing his limits. He gritted his teeth and said, “I’ll… fucking kill you.”
Liang Ye’s hand caressed Wang Dian’s lower back unhindered. The slightly rough sensation made Wang Dian shudder unconsciously. Liang Ye smiled with great pleasure, his eyes revealing malicious joy. “How about Zhen fucks you to death first?”
Liang Ye was a beast.
When he went mad, he was worse than a beast.
In the depths of winter, the ground beneath the snow was frozen solid. The blood of the poor horse that had died miserably was almost frozen. Yet he still wouldn’t let Wang Dian go. His energy was offensively boundless. Wang Dian’s body heated up and sweated, only to be chilled to the bone by the cold wind. In the end, he no longer cared if there were fucking secret guards around. He only wanted to castrate this dog Liang Ye and make him a eunuch for life.
He wished he could just pass out and be done with it, but unfortunately, he remained painfully conscious throughout, remembering every vulgar and shameless word Liang Ye said.
Finally, when Liang Ye had his fill, he reluctantly let him go. He wrapped Wang Dian in the cloak and effortlessly pulled him into his arms.
Wang Dian didn’t even have the strength left to curse at him. He could only angrily give him the middle finger, which Liang Ye then bit, playfully and provocatively biting down hard.
He closed his eyes, refusing to acknowledge Liang Ye further. But Liang Ye wouldn’t leave him be, lowering his head to bite and grind on his ear for a long while. When Wang Dian still wouldn’t open his eyes, Liang Ye mumbled unclearly, “…No one saw.”
Wang Dian lifted his eyelids to glance at him.
Liang Ye’s gaze was like a hungry wolf eyeing a piece of meat it had already tasted. Wang Dian cursed silently in his heart as his eyelids grew heavy and closed again.
After an unknown amount of time, he was jolted awake by being submerged in water. Just before he choked, someone hugged him from behind and pulled him to the surface.
Wang Dian turned his head angrily, catching only a glimpse of Liang Ye’s stubbly chin before being pressed against the edge of the wooden tub. He was suddenly alarmed and said hoarsely, “Enough.”
“Zhen is not satisfied,” Liang Ye said. His chin rested on Wang Dian’s shoulder, which was covered in messy, intimate marks. Smiling, he fished out the copper coin hanging from Wang Dian’s neck by a gold thread. He tapped it carelessly against Wang Dian’s lips. “If you can’t let go of Zhen, why are you leaving?”
Wang Dian frowned but didn’t answer.
“You never intended to marry Zhen from the start, nor did you plan to come back.” Liang Ye’s smile faded slightly, his voice taking on an irritated edge. “Wang Dian, Zhen has been more than generous to you.”
Wang Dian’s throat hurt terribly, and he didn’t really want to speak, but he still said hoarsely, “I don’t like being an empress, and I don’t want to be trapped in the palace depending on someone else for the rest of my life.”
Liang Ye’s chest, pressed against Wang Dian’s back, heaved violently. He pulled Wang Dian tightly into his arms. “If you want to live, you must be Zhen’s empress.”
Wang Dian chuckled softly. “Then kill me.”
Liang Ye angrily turned him around. The smile hadn’t faded from Wang Dian’s face, but he was caught off guard by Liang Ye’s reddened eyes, causing him to pause briefly.
“Zhen—” Liang Ye glared at him fiercely. Despite being the one who held the power of life and death, he was as agitated as a cornered wild beast. His eyelashes were dampened by the steam from the hot water, moist and dark. He stubbornly and helplessly repeated his demand, “Zhen won’t kill you, Zhen won’t hurt you, Zhen just wants you to stay.”
Wang Dian’s heart felt as if it had been twisted. He raised his hand to touch Liang Ye’s reddened eyes, softening his voice, “Without being the empress?”
“As the empress.” Liang Ye gripped his wrist.
Wang Dian sighed, “Liang Ye.”
Liang Ye suddenly flipped him back and pressed him against the edge of the wooden tub, his actions bordering on madness. The bit of sympathy that had just risen in Wang Dian instantly vanished, replaced by a bellyful of curses.
Liang Ye knew nothing of restraint or gentleness. He was rough and passionate, angry and unwilling, as if only in these brief moments could he completely control Wang Dian.
In the end, Wang Dian cursed him vehemently before passing out under Liang Ye’s increasingly excited and jubilant gaze.
As he lost consciousness, Wang Dian hazily thought that, leaving everything else aside, if he really became the empress, he would truly be fucked to death by this inconsiderate bastard.
The following evening.
The moment Wang Dian woke up, he knew he had likely caught a cold. His body was wracked with chills. He cursed Liang Ye eight hundred times in his mind before attempting to sit up in bed. His face immediately contorted in pain—every part of his body ached, especially his lower back. It felt as if he had rolled down a flight of stairs and then been severely beaten.
Bastard.
Beast.
Wang Dian took a deep breath, intending to get out of bed to find water. Suddenly, he felt a coolness around his wrist. He raised his hand to look and saw a thin, long golden chain attached to his wrist, with the other end roughly nailed into the bedpost.
“…” Wang Dian suspected he was seeing things.
What a cliché and vulgar tactic. The hole in Liang Ye’s brain must have been hit by a meteorite.
Then he watched as the door was pushed open from the outside. Liang Ye entered cheerfully, carrying a bowl of medicine. His eyebrows slightly raised, his face full of satisfaction, he said, “You’re awake.”
Wang Dian shook the golden chain in his hand. “What is this?”
“Zhen had it specially made for you.” Liang Ye sat down on the bed and hooked a finger under the chain on Wang Dian’s wrist. “Zhen personally designed the style, and adjusted the thickness to match Zhen’s own wrist…”
“When you weren’t here, Zhen tried it on several times, but always felt something was missing.” He looked very pleased. “It looks best on you.”
Wang Dian tried to make him see reason. “Even without this damn chain, I couldn’t run away.”
“That’s not necessarily true.” Liang Ye’s face suddenly darkened, though his touch remained gentle as he caressed Wang Dian’s face. “You’re the smartest person Zhen has ever met, cunning and unrestrained.”
“…” Wang Dian wanted to slap him.
Liang Ye hugged his waist and rested his forehead on Wang Dian’s shoulder, laughing. Wang Dian’s face remained expressionless, unable to think of any retort for a moment. After a while, Liang Ye straightened up and casually pulled the golden chain out of the bedpost. His fingertips brushed against Wang Dian’s wrist, and the thin chain opened, falling in a heap in his palm.
Liang Ye idly wrapped the chain around Wang Dian’s neck, saying smugly, “How could Zhen bear to bind you? This chain is for play. We’ll try it out tonight.”
“….Fuck.” Wang Dian’s expression twisted for a moment.
Damn it, might as well use it to tie him up instead.
Liang Ye put away the golden chain, took a sip of the medicine, then held it to Wang Dian’s lips. “Drink this, and your cold will get better.”
Wang Dian didn’t take it with his hands, but drank the medicine directly from Liang Ye’s hand. After a pause, he said seriously, “Liang Ye, I—”
“Zhen has matters to attend to,” Liang Ye suddenly stood up, his face cold. “You should sleep first.”
Wang Dian swiftly grabbed his wrist. Liang Ye seemed to want to break free, his voice hard and cold, “Wang Dian, don’t be ungrateful.”
Wang Dian’s head felt heavy, and he hadn’t used much strength to grip Liang Ye’s hand, yet he easily pulled him back.
Liang Ye stared at him, his expression guarded and sharp, exuding a murderous aura.
“Come here and let me hold you,” Wang Dian said weakly. “I feel like shit.”
Liang Ye hesitated for a moment, suspicious yet unable to resist moving closer. Then Wang Dian pulled him forcefully into an embrace.
Wang Dian’s entire body was hot, even his breath was dry and burning. Liang Ye, with an unreadable expression, allowed himself to be held for a while before slowly raising his arms to encircle Wang Dian’s waist.
Out of Liang Ye’s sight, Wang Dian’s lips curled slightly into a smile as he gently patted Liang Ye’s back.
Liang Ye’s shoulders slumped, most of his weight pressing onto Wang Dian as he silently held him tighter.
Wang Dian then stroked Liang Ye’s ears, squeezed his neck, and meticulously touched every part of him, not even sparing a single strand of hair, before finally being satisfied enough to stop. He completely failed to notice Liang Ye’s increasingly unusual gaze.
When Wang Dian tried to push him away, Liang Ye pressed his entire body against him. Wang Dian sank into the soft blankets, clearly feeling Liang Ye’s “intentions”. He looked at him as if he were looking at a beast. “Liang Ye, I’m sick.”
Liang Ye grinned, “Zhen was seriously injured before, yet you still wore Zhen out.”
“That was different…” Wang Dian argued guiltily.
Liang Ye’s hands slowly undid his belt. “You provoked Zhen first.”
Wang Dian grabbed his hand and said in a deep voice, “Liang Ziyu.”
Liang Ye’s movements paused briefly. Wang Dian imperceptibly let out a sigh of relief, but before he could fully relax, he was flipped over and pressed into the fluffy blankets. Liang Ye lay on top of him, smiling as he whispered in his ear, “Wang Dian, did you think that by showing a little weakness, Zhen would let you off?”
“Don’t even think about it.”
