◎ The Four Great Kings of the Kingdom ◎

If Tao Xiaoxi knew what Chen Fang was thinking at that moment, she would definitely correct him. It wasn’t just once, it was actually three times… well… maybe more.

Their first kiss happened the day after they decided on their wedding date, and it took place in their new house.

Chen Fang had bought the new house a while ago, and it was in the same building as the old lady’s apartment. The old lady lived on the first floor, and their new house was on the second. The real estate development had been partially handled by Chen Fang’s company, and he had a good relationship with the developers, which allowed him to get a great internal price. There were no purchase restrictions in the area, so he bought two properties outright and took a loan for one more. The first and second floors were fully paid for, while the third floor was financed with a loan. He figured that once he got married and had children, the third-floor apartment could serve as a dowry if they had a daughter or a bride price if they had a son. Although it was a bit early to prepare for all that, it was better to be ready.

Once the wedding date was set, it was time to start furnishing the new house. The old lady, like Meng Qing, was a practical person who got things done quickly. She urged Chen Fang to take Tao Xiaoxi to check out the house, so they could figure out what needed to be changed or added.

Chen Fang had planned to pick Tao Xiaoxi up at three in the afternoon, but something came up in the city, and by the time he returned, it was already after six. He had dinner at Tao Xiaoxi’s place and promised her father, Tao Wenyong, that he would bring her back before 9 p.m. They were just going to the new house to make a list of things they needed for tomorrow’s shopping trip.

Tao Xiaoxi had heard from her teacher’s wife, who was also Old Zhou’s wife, that Chen Fang was making good money, but had no concept of it. She didn’t truly feel the reality of his wealth until she saw the house. This neighborhood was one of the most upscale in their county, and even though county housing prices were cheaper, buying three units at once was still a significant amount of money. Moreover, the old lady’s debts from when she was ill had all been paid off by Chen Fang, who had earned everything by himself.

In contrast, she felt utterly inadequate. She had graduated six years ago, and it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that she had achieved nothing.

She stood in the living room, sighed, and Chen Fang asked if she was disappointed with the décor or the size. Both were easy to fix.

Tao Xiaoxi waved her hands quickly. She definitely didn’t mean that.

“I just think you’re amazing and I’m so useless. After working for a few years, I’ve barely saved any money. You not only support yourself, but you also take care of your family. I don’t know if my parents can even rely on me in their lifetime.”

Chen Fang, seeing how deflated she looked, almost laughed. He hadn’t brought her here to make her feel bad about herself.

“Being amazing isn’t just measured by how much money you can earn,” she said. “I heard from uncle that the animations you helped create won many awards and are highly regarded in the industry. Not everyone can achieve that. I don’t even know if I’ll ever win anything in my life. Comparing the two of us, you’re way more impressive than I am.”

Tao Xiaoxi had studied animation design and production in college. Originally, Meng Qing wanted her to study medicine, but she was squeamish around blood. Meng Qing, along with Tao Wenyong and Old Zhou, spent a whole day and night discussing what major to choose for her. They settled on finance, computer science, and artificial intelligence as possible options. In the end, it was her own weak yet firm request that led Meng Qing to allow her to pick animation as her last choice. There were five universities, each offering six major programs, and Meng Qing thought that even with her luck, she shouldn’t end up in the very last option.

But in the end, Tao Xiaoxi was indeed accepted into that last major. When she found out the admission result, she pretended to be upset in front of Meng Qing, but later laughed in her bed for a long time.

She really loved animation. After working for a while, she had indeed participated in many successful projects that won awards, though she was just one part of the team. It was never solely her work, but every time someone visited her home, her dad would proudly bring it up. Every time she heard him mention it, she just wanted to hide her face and run away.

“That was the work of our whole team,” Tao Xiaoxi explained.

“Being part of such an amazing team just proves how talented you are,” he said sincerely.

His tone was so genuine that it made her feel a little embarrassed.

Noticing her face getting redder, Chen Fang asked, “Are you hot? If you are, just take off your jacket.”

Tao Xiaoxi considered shaking her head but ended up nodding instead. Her jacket was a little too thick for the weather. She took it off and draped it over the couch. Then she pulled out her phone from her bag and made a note of things she still needed to buy, trying to shift her focus away from their conversation.

“Is there anything else you need to buy?” she asked, handing him her phone.

Chen Fang stood beside her, but instead of taking the phone, he glanced at it briefly. “Maybe add one of those hanging chairs like the one in your room. You like them, right?”

Tao Xiaoxi turned to look at him, surprised. She liked hanging chairs, but she remembered he had never been in her room. How did he know about it?

Chen Fang explained, “Uncle told me that when you get home, you love sitting in the hanging chair in your room.”

“Oh,” Tao Xiaoxi replied, feeling that her dad and he weren’t shy about anything, talking about all sorts of things. “When I’m on the couch, my mom nags me for being lazy,” she added, thinking for a moment before saying, “I can be quite lazy, and the hanging chair is very comfortable.”

After living together for a while, true personalities inevitably show. She didn’t want him to have overly high expectations of her, only to be disappointed. So, she occasionally told him about her lazier side as a kind of “warning” in advance.

“Then let’s get one,” he said. “That way you can relax on the couch or in the hanging chair, your choice.”

He looked into her eyes, but his gaze drifted down, and they were suddenly very close—closer than they’d ever been before.

Her skin was so fine that even her pores were invisible, like a freshly peeled egg. Only tiny, soft hair around her temples moved gently in the breeze from his breath. Her lips were small, like a perfect cherry, always soft and rosy. He couldn’t help but wonder if that was her natural lip color or if it was from lipstick.

Suddenly, he realized how close he had gotten to her face. He was aware of the surprise in her eyes, but he didn’t intend to stop. Eventually, they were going to end up like this. They weren’t just playing house; they were really married, and there would be nights spent in the same bed, even during the day if they felt like it.

At first, Tao Xiaoxi kept her eyes open as Chen Fang softly brushed her lips. His voice was low and rough as he commanded, “Close your eyes.”

She obediently shut them.

Tao Xiaoxi had initially thought he would be very experienced with this kind of thing. In her mind, his face and carefree personality had always made him the center of attention at school, with girls from all grades frequently visiting to catch a glimpse of him. After entering society, he must have become even more popular with his maturity and experience.

But he hesitated at her lips, and Tao Xiaoxi wondered if he was pretending to be innocent. Then, when he tried to deepen the kiss, their teeth clashed painfully. She realized he wasn’t pretending at all.

She pulled back a little, watching him. His expression didn’t show much, but the area around his ears was flushed, almost as if blood might drip out. There was a subtle hint of frustration in his eyes, which was very different from the confident image she had of him. She bit back a smile and stood on tiptoe to comfort him. “It’s okay. I’ll teach you. Once is a start, the second time will be easier.”

She guided his tongue deeper into her mouth, focused only on being a good teacher. She didn’t notice his discomfort at first, but just a few seconds later, he pushed her back onto the couch, his lips and tongue exploring every corner of her mouth. She felt her breath shorting, and her mind began to blur, trying to figure out if he truly didn’t know what he was doing or if he was pretending.

She had barely started the kiss, and with his intelligence, he shouldn’t have been this inexperienced. But Old Zhou had said he was smart, just didn’t apply himself to studying. It seemed like his cleverness had been put to use elsewhere.

It was as if he could read her thoughts. He buried his face in her neck and explained, “This isn’t about study. It’s instinct. And besides, we don’t need a second try. If we don’t get it right today, you won’t be going anywhere.”

He really wasn’t experienced, and there was no shame in admitting it. During the years when the old lady was ill, he had been busy caring for her, working part-time jobs, and struggling financially. These last few years, he had focused on making money, probably out of fear of being poor again. That’s why he worked almost every waking minute. Finding a partner wasn’t even on his radar until this year. He had planned to work for a few more years before considering it.

He wasn’t in a hurry, but the old lady was. She was eager to meet her granddaughter-in-law and hold her precious great grandson. In the end, she even brought up Old Zhou. Old Zhou advised him to take it easy. He said that no matter how much money one earned, it would always be enough as long as it met the needs. Work and life should be balanced, and men shouldn’t push their bodies too hard.

At the time, he scoffed at Old Zhou. He believed some things he could solve on his own, and nothing else could bring more peace and balance than making money.

But when soft, warm jade was in his arms, he realized how foolish that scoff had been.

Chen Fang had promised Tao Wenyong to send her home before nine. Tao Xiaoxi entered her house just a minute after nine. After changing her shoes, she hurriedly walked to her room, commenting as she passed the two people watching TV in the living room, “I don’t know what got into me tonight. The traffic was awful.”

Meng Qing stared at her lips for a moment. The words in her throat twisted but she swallowed them down. She decided to let it go. She was an adult, and the two were about to get married. As long as she wasn’t staying out all night, she wouldn’t make a big deal of it.

Tao Wenyong laughed and told Meng Qing, “That Chen Fang kid is really reliable. He promised to bring her home by nine, and he did. Back when we were about to get married, we would have dragged it out as long as we could.”

Meng Qing gave him a sharp look, thinking to herself, “You were always slow because you wanted to do too much but lacked the courage. Yet this kid, sticking to the time, might have already taken care of everything that needed to be done.”

Tao Xiaoxi looked at her swollen lips in the mirror. The more she looked, the redder her face became. Her description of him wasn’t wrong. He was like a wolf, locking on to his prey, and not letting go, gnawing at her with relentless force until he had practiced it to perfection on her.

After that night, they had indeed become familiar. From being awkward old classmates, a month-long boyfriend and girlfriend, and a day of being engaged, they had transformed. Now, whenever they met, Tao Xiaoxi couldn’t help but stare at his lips. When she did, her face would turn red. She didn’t understand why she blushed; she wasn’t a pure, innocent girl. But she couldn’t control it—his impact on her that night was just too big.

Because… she had heard a rumor about him.

Back in high school, there were the so-called “Four Great Kings” in their grade. She didn’t know how the title came about, but even someone like her, who was focused only on studying, had heard of them. It seemed they were quite famous. Her desk mate, Jiang Youlin, told her that Chen Fang was one of them, and the leader of the four. She thought they were some sort of gang, so for a while, whenever she saw him, she would subconsciously avoid him, fearing she might cross him.

During their freshman year, they had a high school reunion. He didn’t attend, but she was dragged there by Jiang Youlin. After a little drinking, Jiang Youlin asked their male classmates what the “Four Great Kings” meant. Was it because Chen Fang was good at fighting?

The guys laughed loudly, almost causing the whole room to burst. They nodded and said, “Of course, he’s the best at fighting. Isn’t that well known?” The majority of the girls looked confused, not understanding why the guys were laughing. Was this something funny?

One girl, blushing, quietly told Jiang Youlin, “It seems it’s because he… well… you know… it’s really big.”

Jiang Youlin didn’t get it, but Tao Xiaoxi instantly understood. She didn’t know why she figured it out so quickly. She had never read anything outside of her professional books.

That night, she really felt it.

Although it was through clothes…

But… yes… indeed…

The rumor was true.

Tao Xiaoxi sat cross-legged on her bed in a Xiuhe dress. Her uncle’s younger sister, Tao Xiaoxiao, stood outside the door with a group of kids, preparing to ask for red envelopes. Jiang Youlin was jumping around, searching for a hiding place for Tao Xiaoxi’s shoes. Finally, she hid one, but just as she was about to hide the other, she remembered something. She rushed over to Tao Xiaoxi’s side and whispered in her ear, “Tomorrow morning, you have to report to me whether the rumor about Chen Fang being the leader of the Four Great Kings is true pr not, alright? I’m dying of curiosity.”

Tao Xiaoxi heard the loud sound of firecrackers downstairs. She was already nervous, and with Jiang Youlin’s reminder about what was to happen tonight and the “Four Great Kings” rumor, her heart almost jumped out of her chest.

He had arrived. She was really getting married. Was it too late to jump out of the window? Tao Xiaoxi sat motionless on the bed, looking calm on the surface, like a bystander watching the excitement at the door. But in her mind, a thousand thoughts were running wild, each accompanied by the sound of “leader of the Four Great Kings…”

The gap in the door widened. Two girls and a group of kids were no match for the wolves outside. Holding a bouquet, he entered, surrounded by a crowd.

He really looked good in a suit. The black tuxedo made him appear even more sharp and tall. Tao Xiaoxi’s gaze met his, but she quickly looked away, focusing on the mandarin ducks on her dress.

His eyes locked on her lips, and the photos were nothing compared to reality.

Tao Xiaoxi felt his gaze, gathered her courage, and lifted her eyes to meet his. She slowly moved her gaze from his chest upwards. When her gaze reached his waist, a voice came from outside.

It was Jiang Youlin’s…

…The leader of the Four Great Kings.

Tao Xiaoxi’s face instantly turned red, as vibrant as the red roses in Chen Fang’s hand.

It made one wonder…

Would you dare to…

Pluck…

Destroy…

Violate…