Chapter 3: The Oath to Protect My Gorgeous Wife
Fortunately, Zhang Wuji seemed to like Zhao Min a little more. Even the original Song Qingshu had to admit that Zhang Wuji really did deserve the label of a proper gentleman.
According to the original story, the two of them would regain their composure very quickly here, and Zhang Wuji would leave not long after.
What shocked Song Qingshu was that Zhang Wuji let out a long sigh and called out with feeling, "Zhiruo!"
While Zhou Zhiruo was still stunned, he stepped forward, wrapped an arm around her waist, and lowered his head as if to kiss her soft lips.
Not only Song Qingshu, but Zhou Zhiruo herself was stunned. She reacted quickly, slipped free of Zhang Wuji's embrace, and dodged out of the way.
Damn, this wasn't how the script was supposed to go!
Song Qingshu stared at Zhang Wuji from the bed, eyes wide. For a moment his thoughts were in complete disarray. Was this still the big-hearted gentleman from the original novel, seducing another man's wife in the middle of the night?
If he remembered correctly, there was still a Princess Shaomin waiting for him at home. He wanted to see how Zhang Wuji was going to handle this mess.
Outside, the patrol steps of the disciples sounded in the corridor. Zhou Zhiruo was flushed with shame and fury. "Zhang Wuji! You... you..." She didn't even know what else to say.
"Zhiruo, you've always treated me well since we were children. How could I ever forget the feelings you had for me? If it weren't for saving my sworn father in Haozhou last time, you would already be my wife now."
Zhang Wuji sighed and looked at Zhou Zhiruo with deep feeling.
Zhou Zhiruo's heart was thrown into turmoil. Hearing him mention what had happened at the Haozhou wedding, her heart filled with hatred. "You followed that vixen Zhao Min away in front of every hero in the world. When have you ever cared about my feelings? Now you and Zhao Min are living happily together, and I have become Mrs. Song, yet you come here to talk to me about old feelings!"
"Th-this..." Zhang Wuji was stumped at once, frozen there and unable to say a word.
Seeing his expression, Zhou Zhiruo suddenly felt a surge of irritation. She raised her voice and said, "Leader Zhang, the two of us are alone together, a man and a woman in the dead of night. It's only natural that people would gossip. Please go."
Zhang Wuji was taken aback. He said softly, "Then when I come by later, I'll avoid your disciples. We can talk slowly. I have a lot I want to say to you."
Watching Zhang Wuji's figure disappear into the night, Zhou Zhiruo looked lost, hugging her knees as she sat motionless in the chair. No one knew what she was thinking; her face would show a shy blush one moment, then a trace of faint anger the next.
Only then did Song Qingshu get a chance to take a good look at this new wife of his. She was as graceful as orchids, refined and aloof, truly the distilled spirit of the Han River and Emei, worthy of the original novel's praise of her as "fresh and elegant, with remarkable beauty." In the TV adaptations of The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber from his past life, every actress who played Zhou Zhiruo had been a rare beauty, but this woman before him seemed even more striking, carrying a touch more softness than Gao Yuanyuan and a touch more coldness than Zhou Haimei.
No wonder the Song Qingshu of the original story had been haunted by her, day and night, unable to let her go. Even after getting Zhao Min, the most beautiful woman in the Mongol realm, Zhang Wuji still found himself unwilling to part with Zhou Zhiruo.
Thinking back to their wedding night, when Zhou Zhiruo had seen that Zhang Wuji never came to steal the bride and, heartbroken, had let Song Qingshu do as he pleased, the owner of this body should originally have had the chance to take Zhou Zhiruo's virginity on the spot. Unfortunately, the Song Qingshu of that time, driven by jealousy and a man's pride, refused to take advantage of her misery.
"What an idiot!"
Song Qingshu admired him, but he also felt a little angry at how hopeless he was. He knew that once a woman already had another man in her heart, it was almost impossible to start from the emotional side. If you wanted to drive out that man's shadow, the best way was to take her body first and then work your way into her heart. Only by becoming her first man could you barely dilute the longing she still felt for her first love.
"You had the chance back then and acted too cool to take it, and now you're about to let some other man reap the benefits. You even made me suffer for it."
Song Qingshu cursed the former owner of the body again. Inwardly, he swore, "I'm sorry I took your body. But by the logic of the story, you were going to die anyway. The only compensation I can offer is to do my best to protect your gorgeous wife from being touched by any other man and to make your name shake the whole world..."
The next few days unfolded according to the original story. Zhou Zhiruo joined Zhang Wuji in breaking the Vajra Demon-Subduing Circle formed by the three Shaolin Du monks, and word of Zhang Wuji's qi deviation and berserk frenzy spread everywhere.
Zhou Zhiruo had originally planned to kill Xie Xun and then return to Emei, but that night Zhang Wuji poured out his feelings to her, and she ended up abandoning the idea on the spot.
After the Lion-Slaying Assembly, Zhou Zhiruo used Song Qingshu's serious injuries as a reason not to travel. She stayed at Shaolin Temple, sent most of her disciples back to Emei, and kept only one or two attendants with her. The disciples all whispered that their leader was indeed deeply devoted to her husband.
Song Qingshu watched coldly from the sidelines. He could more or less guess what Zhou Zhiruo was thinking deep down.
But after that night, Zhang Wuji never came again. As Song Qingshu got better day by day, Zhou Zhiruo's expression was visibly growing anxious.
Black Jade Intermittent Ointment was a miracle medicine for setting bones, and back then Zhang Wuji had used the Nine Yang Divine Skill to force its power straight into Song Qingshu's marrow. After a few days, Song Qingshu could already get out of bed and walk. Aside from being a little weak, he was no different from an ordinary man.
"Zhiruo, why aren't we going back to Emei yet?" Song Qingshu asked Zhou Zhiruo cautiously.
"The roads are full of chaos and fighting. We'll leave once you're fully recovered." Zhou Zhiruo's voice carried an unfamiliar chill.
Song Qingshu had long since learned how to read the room and swallow his pride from his years struggling in the modern business world.
Now that he was basically a useless invalid, and since his previous-life TV image of Zhou Zhiruo as a somewhat ruthless woman was deeply ingrained in his mind, he knew she could send him to meet the King of Hell with a flick of her finger. All the initiative was in her hands, and he wasn't so stupid as to confront her. If he angered her and she decided to kill him without hesitation, she could simply live openly with Zhang Wuji in private and then claim that he had died of his injuries. Given the dutiful-wife image Zhou Zhiruo had shown during this time, no one would suspect a thing.
Thinking of the promise he had made to the original owner of this body, Song Qingshu couldn't help but give a bitter smile. There has never been anything like a thief guarding against a thief for a thousand days; if he wanted to protect Zhou Zhiruo's virginity, he would first have to take it himself. But...
Looking at his own powerless state now, Song Qingshu could only smile wryly. He really was a combat power of five, and Zhou Zhiruo in front of him might as well have been a Super Saiyan. Forcing anything was absolutely impossible.
In the last few days, Song Qingshu kept finding excuses to chat with Zhou Zhiruo whenever he could. Her response was extremely cold, and only when the conversation turned to matters of the martial world did she become a little more responsive.
At first, Song Qingshu had only wanted to grow closer to her, but while their relationship made no progress, those casual conversations unexpectedly let him see this world in a new light.