Chapter 09.1: “It hurts.”

The shameful aftertaste in his heart was mercilessly exposed by the instigator.

Jiang Yao, without regard for anything, grabbed a pillow and pressed it towards Duan Zhuxian’s mean mouth, but encountered a strong resistance just as it was about to hit the target.

The pillow immediately slipped from his hands and fell to his feet.

The next second, his wrist was pinched.

Duan Zhuxian stared at him, pressed his fingertips on his pulse, and caressed it slightly.

It was light, but to Jiang Yao, it seemed like a provocation.

Jiang Yao was stunned for half a second, and his blood rushed to his head in an instant, exploding in anger. He swung a punch at Duan Zhuxian’s chest, which was precisely caught by Duan Zhuxian’s other hand, with the deftness of catching a kitten.

Due to an accident in his childhood, Jiang Yao was sent by his parents to learn fighting for several years, becoming known for his fast and fierce boxing style, making the belligerent rich kids avoid him.

From childhood to adulthood, he never lost a fight, even when at a disadvantage. Not to mention now, when both were equally restrained in a confined space, he continuously miscalculated.

He couldn’t accept being completely at a disadvantage; in the midst of the chaos, he focused and saw that Duan Zhuxian had unbuckled his seatbelt at some point, and leaned over from his seat with his tall frame, dominated him in an oppressive angle.

No wonder every move was done with ease, it turns out there was cheating involved.

“Duan Zhuxian, are you still reasonable?”

Jiang Yao asked loudly.

Duan Zhuxian did not speak, only raised his eyebrows slightly.

Jiang Yao was furious that he struggled in vain, so he could only attempt to kick Duan Zhuxian with his feet, but due to the double restraint of the seatbelt and Duan Zhuxian, several kicks missed their mark, and his legs were pinned down by Duan Zhuxian.

“Stop it, or you’ll only tire yourself out.”

A deep and slow voice came to his ears, Jiang Yao paused and lifted his head, then meeting Duan Zhuxian’s gaze that seemed to fall from his eyes, but he always felt a strong mockery hidden within that gaze.

All sorts of past events flashed through his mind.

The fire of resentment in Jiang Yao’s chest flared up even more, he pulled with all his might, and almost breaking free from the restraint.

But Duan Zhuxian directly brought his wrists together, held them with one hand, and pushed them over his head towards the back of the chair.

The back of his head hit the soft, delicate leather, and Jiang Yao was dazed for a moment.

That night, Duan Zhuxian also used this position to pin him down, until the back of his head was deeply buried in the pillow, then he pulled out a tie and tied him up when he was unprepared.

All the moves used were underhanded, completely lacking in martial virtue.

Bad memories and premonitions surged together in his mind, causing Jiang Yao’s scalp to tingle.

In the blink of an eye, Duan Zhuxian raised his now-free hand, and touched his tie with his fingertips.

At this moment, Jiang Yao’s hair stood on end, and he shouted out in a panic: “If you have the ability, let me go and have a fair fight outside!”

“You said it yourself that I’m not reasonable,” Duan Zhuxian replied.

Duan Zhuxian lowered his gaze and looked at the young man who was gritting his teeth under him. He flicked his tie lightly with his fingers, and slowly propped himself up on the armrest beside him.

Jiang Yao’s chest heaved suddenly with great force, and he let out a heavy sigh of relief.

Duan Zhuxian was not repeating his old tricks, he was merely straightening his disheveled tie.

Just like a beast in gentleman’s clothing, who after revealing his savagery, must immediately tend to his facade to maintain his hypocrisy.

The car suddenly fell into silence, even more silent than the night outside the car. The two of them were facing each other up and down like this.

One clamped the other’s wrists, the other ready to counter at any moment, their heavy breathing entwined, and a few short seconds felt longer than eternity.

Moments later, Jiang Yao twisted his hand with difficulty, turned his face to one side, and lowered his gaze, with his eyelashes just covered the small flame in his eyes.

His lips moved: “It hurts.”

A sullen complexion and an annoyed tone, but paired with that stunning face that could captivate at any moment, seemed to have a strange effect, like the claw of an agitated cat scratching at Duan Zhuxian’s heart.

From beginning to end, he never used his full strength, only slightly taking advantage of spatial superiority and psychological tactics. So it was not enough to cause the big man too much pain.

Moreover, Jiang Yao’s skin was too fair and delicate, just pressing a finger for a bit longer would leave red marks, which he had just experienced a few days ago and he also didn’t wish to always leave crude traces on it.

But it was rare for him to see Jiang Yao surrender to him, and his heart softened a bit. The fingertips pressing on the pulse gradually loosened, followed by the fingers circling the wrist bone.

Three seconds later, there was a ‘bang’.

Jiang Yao picked up the pillow and covered Duan Zhuxian’s face fiercely with it, not holding back at all.

Assistant Lin returned to the side of the road with his document bag, and happened to bump into this scene through the car window.

He remembered that a few days ago, Mr. Duan had reminded him that Mr. Jiang had a bad temper.

Looking at it now, Mr. Jiang’s temper is likely, for the most part, directed only at Mr. Duan.

Having realized this, assistant Lin broke out in a hot sweat as if he had uncovered some earth-shattering secret, henceforth treating it as taboo and didn’t dare to ponder further.

After the commotion in the car had ended, he silently slipped into the driver’s seat and started the car like an invisible man.

The dispute that was initiated solely by Jiang Yao also ended solely by him, leaving only an indifferent back of the head to others, and even the red highlights at the end of his hair exuded intense dissatisfaction.

Duan Zhuxian slightly turned his head, his dark gaze skillfully tracing the silhouette he had outlined countless times before, from the slender waist slowly upward, following the pale neck, stopping at the tips of his hair.

Jiang Yao’s hair was as soft as he had imagined it over the years.

That night, he clasped the back of Jiang Yao’s head with one hand from behind, rubbed his scalp with his fingertips, and buried them in the warm hair that he had never touched before, until the gaps between his fingers were completely filled with hair.

At every critical moment, Jiang Yao would arch his neck as if on the brink of death, cursing under his breath in defiance, yet unconsciously, the back of his head would actively press closer to his palm, ensnaring himself repeatedly.

The red hair that slipped between his fingers, curling and trembling as he tightened his grip, like the most beautiful plume of a peacock, or the proud tail of a red fox.

Jiang Yao was completely unaware of the almost blatant gaze behind him, and focused intently on his sulking.

In fact, from their very first meeting, when his entire attention was captured by this opponent who could be called perfect, he keenly realized that Duan Zhuxian was not as gentle and refined as he appeared on the surface.

But at that time, he admired Duan Zhuxian, considering him someone worth delving into, so much so that with every interaction with Duan Zhuxian, he carried infinite expectations.

Even an inadvertent encounter with that deep, dark gaze could inspire the thrill of mining treasures along a profound path.

But now, he only sees Duan Zhuxian as a beast in gentleman’s clothing.

Strip away that layer, and there’s nothing but perversion left.

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