SEC Chapter 85 You've stolen my soul.
Chapter 85 You've stolen my soul.
Without waiting for a reply, he helped her take off her red cloth shoes and then pulled off her white cloth socks.
Although Li Xianglian's feet were used to working all year round, they were now clean and white, exposed under the dim light. Her toes were round and cute, like tender lotus shoots just dug out of the ground.
Qin Rushan's throat tightened, and he grabbed her foot with his large hand, pressing it directly into the hot water.
"hiss--"
The water was a bit too hot, and Li Xianglian gasped for breath.
Her toes instinctively curled up, stepping into his palm.
This step felt like it had struck Qin Rushan right in the heart.
The sound of rushing water was particularly ambiguous in the quiet night.
Qin Rushan washed very slowly.
His fingertips brushed against the soles of her feet, causing a ticklish sensation.
Li Xianglian couldn't help but want to pull her leg away.
Her body involuntarily leaned back a little, her hands bracing against the hard bed behind her, and even her breathing became erratic.
"Stop...stop rubbing..."
"Behave yourself."
Qin Rushan warned in a hoarse voice, but his grip on her hand didn't loosen. Instead, he squeezed her hand as if giving her a massage. "You'll be crying later. Save your energy for now."
Finally finished washing.
He took a dry cloth, wrapped it around the little feet, and carefully wiped away every drop of water.
Just when Li Xianglian thought this humiliating torture was finally over, Qin Rushan did not let go.
He suddenly lowered his head and brought it to his lips.
Li Xianglian never expected him to pull this stunt.
He shuddered violently, as if electrocuted, and jerked back, his voice distorted: "Dirty! It stinks!"
She had been running around in the fields all day, sweating and covered in dirt, and even after washing herself, she still felt uncomfortable.
That's so disgusting!
Qin Rushan, however, held on tightly and refused to let go.
He looked up, his dark, bright eyes staring intently at her.
"Where does it smell?"
He grinned, revealing a set of white teeth.
"It smells wonderful. My wife smells wonderful from head to toe, even more intoxicating than Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor)."
Li Xianglian's mind went blank at his shameless words, and her face turned so red it was almost bleeding.
This man, how come he can spout such lewd nonsense so easily? His skin is thicker than the corner of a city wall!
"Alright."
Having probably had his fill of the sweetness, Qin Rushan finally loosened his grip and splashed the foot-washing water onto the floor of the outer room.
He closed the door to the inner room, turned around, and went back to the bedside.
A huge shadow instantly descended, encircling Li Xianglian within that small space.
The masculine scent was overwhelming, carrying a strong smell of tobacco and alcohol, and was full of aggression.
Qin Rushan looked down at her, his fingers on the top button, and with a "click," he unbuttoned the first button.
Then came the second one, and the third one.
His strong chest was exposed, along with a hideous old scar.
"The water has been poured out, and the feet have been washed."
Qin Rushan casually tossed the military jacket onto a chair, knelt on one knee on the edge of the bed, and cornered her against the wall. "Now, it's time to get down to business."
The sound of that button popping open was like a thunderclap to Li Xianglian's ears.
She watched as he took off his green military uniform and tossed it casually onto a stool.
Next up is the white tank top inside.
When he ripped off the last piece of clothing, Li Xianglian felt her breath catch in her throat and her heart almost stop beating.
What a physique he had!
The dim light shone on his bronze skin, making every muscle look as if it were cast in iron and bronze, bulging hard and with smooth lines full of explosive power.
His broad shoulders, thick chest, and well-defined abdominal muscles rose and fell with his breath, exuding a strong and aggressive masculine aura.
Especially when he turned around to get something, the deep and shallow scars on his back were crisscrossed on his taut latissimus dorsi muscles.
It looks shocking, yet it makes you want to reach out and touch it.
Those are a man's medals, and proof of his wildness.
Li Xianglian only glanced at it before feeling the heat rush towards her, making her legs weak and her breathing rapid.
The air in the room seemed to have been sucked out, and every breath was filled with Qin Rushan's scent, so domineering that there was nowhere to escape.
She hurriedly looked away, not daring to look at that powerful body any longer. She frantically groped around on the kang (a heated brick bed), trying to find something to distract herself or hide herself.
Reaching under the pillow, my fingertips suddenly touched a soft piece of fabric.
Li Xianglian was slightly taken aback, and subconsciously pulled the thing out.
By the flickering light, she could see the object in her hand.
It was a slightly faded undershirt, old-fashioned, with worn edges and two small patches.
Those stitches...that was her own handiwork!
Li Xianglian's mind went blank for a moment.
If I remember correctly, I lost this little jacket three years ago that summer.
She had only been married into the Zhao family for a short time at that time.
Once, I washed clothes and hung them out to dry in the yard. A strong wind came, and when I went to collect the clothes, I couldn't find this one piece anywhere.
For this, she was scolded for two days by that old hag from the Zhao family, who said she was a spendthrift and couldn't even keep a tattered piece of clothing.
How did I end up... here?
Moreover, judging from how neatly it's stacked and even smells of soapberry, it's clear that it has been carefully collected for a long time.
"this……"
Li Xianglian's mind was a complete mess. She clutched the small garment in her hand, feeling like it was a hot potato—she couldn't throw it away, nor could she keep it.
She looked up, her face flushed and pale, and stammered, "This...this is the one I lost...how...how did it end up with you?"
At this moment, Qin Rushan was only wearing a pair of military green shorts.
He looked at the small garment, showing no shame at being caught, but rather extreme composure.
He reached out his calloused hand and snatched the fabric from her grasp.
They didn't throw it away.
He brought the old, worn-out garment to his nose and took a deep breath.
The action wasn't lewd at all; on the contrary, it carried an almost morbid piety and infatuation that made Li Xianglian's scalp tingle.
"I stole it."
Those two words were spoken with conviction and conviction.
Li Xianglian's eyes widened.
Qin Rushan, a tough guy respected by the whole village, who could break bricks with one hand and hunt wild boars in the mountains, actually... actually did something like stealing women's clothes.
"It's been three years."
His voice was deep, like it contained grit, making one's heart tremble. "Ever since I first saw you in the reeds by the river three years ago, you've stolen my soul."
He casually tossed the undergarment back onto the pillow, then braced his large hands on either side of Li Xianglian, trapping her between himself and the wall, his scalding heat locking her firmly inside.
"You have no idea how I've spent the last three years."
Qin Rushan stared into her eyes, his gaze bloodshot, as if he wanted to pour out all the desires he had suppressed over the years. "Every time I saw you in the village, seeing you being tormented by those beasts from the Zhao family, my heart felt like it was being torn apart by a knife. But at that time you had a man, I couldn't touch him, because touching him would only hurt you."
His hand touched her cheek.
"So many nights, I lay on this bed, listening to the noises from the neighbor's yard. I heard Aunt Zhao cursing you, I heard you coughing, I heard you crying in the woodshed. I wanted nothing more than to rush over and smash that wall down, and cripple that whole family of beasts."
Qin Rushan's breathing grew heavier and heavier, his chest heaving violently. The pent-up anger that had been suppressed for three years finally found an outlet today.
"When I can't sleep, I take out this garment. I smell it and imagine you sleeping just a wall away. That's how I release my pent-up desire."
Li Xianglian felt like she was on fire as she listened to these extremely explicit words.
She never knew that beneath this man's cold and ruthless exterior lay such deep and fanatical thoughts.
"Qin... Qin Rushan..."
She called his name tremblingly, her voice trembling with sobs, but not out of fear, but rather a shudder struck by his profound love.
"Call me Brother Shan."
Qin Rushan lowered his head, his forehead touching hers, their noses rubbing together, their breaths mingling. "Now it's all right, this wall is finally useless."
His hand slowly slid up her waistline, and through her clothes, the temperature of his palm was frighteningly hot.
"You are finally my wife, Qin Rushan's wife."
He whispered on her lips, "From now on, I won't just look but not eat anymore. Tonight, I'm going to collect all the debts I've accumulated over the past three years, with interest."
Before she could even react, Qin Rushan's angular face pressed down completely.
The moment their lips touched, the taut string in Li Xianglian's mind snapped.
The kiss was not gentle; it carried the domineering and predatory nature of a mountain man.
The strong smell of tobacco mixed with the spiciness of Erguotou forcefully pried open her teeth, penetrating deep into her mouth and sweeping over every inch of her territory.
The shock made her spine go weak and her toes curl up.
"Well……"
Li Xianglian felt a little breathless from his kisses, and her hands instinctively pressed against his chest, which was as hard as an iron plate.
She tried to push, but the hot, muscular touch beneath her made her weak all over, unable to muster any strength.
That wasn't rejection at all; it was clearly flirting, a playful refusal.
Qin Rushan was not about to let her go.
One hand gripped the back of her head, giving her no chance to back down, while the other hand slipped inside the front of her red satin jacket.
Those large, calloused hands touched her delicate skin on her waist without any obstruction.
A clash between roughness and delicacy.
Li Xianglian shuddered violently, as if she had been electrocuted.
"No...light..."
Li Xianglian managed to squeeze out two words during a breath, too ashamed to open her eyes.
The kerosene lamp was still burning on the table, its dim light casting shadows throughout the room. If someone were standing near the window...
"It's good to keep it lit."
Qin Rushan, panting heavily, bit her lip hard, his voice hoarse, "I can only see clearly when it's lit. I've been watching her back for three years, today I'm going to see it to my heart's content."
As he spoke, he exerted force under his hand, and the red satin jacket slid down Li Xianglian's shoulder, piling up at her waist, revealing the patched white shirt underneath.
The shirt was yellowed from washing, and the collar was frayed. It hung loosely on her body, which only accentuated the delicate features of her collarbone and her slender figure.
Qin Rushan's gaze lingered on the bony collarbone for a moment, the lust in his eyes suppressed by a surge of heartache and rage.
Too thin.
During the three years she worked like a slave in the Zhao family, she became so thin that she was skin and bones, and her collarbone hollows were sunken, which was heartbreaking to see.
The ribs were faintly visible under the thin skin, looking as if they could break with the slightest force.
Qin Rushan gently stroked her prominent collarbone with his fingers, as if afraid that the slightest force would damage this fragile beauty.
"From now on, you'll follow me and eat two bowls of rice at every meal. If you miss even one bowl, I'll punish you. I'll fatten you up to be plump and healthy."
Hearing his domineering yet heartwarming words, Li Xianglian's eyes welled up with tears, and the resistance she had felt due to shyness completely dissipated.
She mustered her courage, stretched out her somewhat rough little hands, and tremblingly wrapped them around his strong waist, pressing her face against his burning chest, listening to the thunderous heartbeat within.
"Okay, I'll listen to you..." she replied softly, her voice so gentle it could melt your heart.