Chapter 323: Volume 1 Chapter 323 Prison Cage (8) Repair

Under her short breath, the man strained to suppress himself, stopped, and asked in a muffled voice: "Does your chest feel uncomfortable?"

In the narrow changing room, her whole body was held in the man's embrace, with no gap left; the lingering, scorching kiss made her heart race anxiously, and only after stopping did she feel a bit better.

"Mm..." her voice trembled softly and sweetly, her swollen lips trembling; having been bullied, she felt no resentment or anger, overly obedient as she answered his question.

Fu Shao Huai buried his face in her neck, inhaled the fragrance, restrained the emotion in his eyes, and said: "When you go over, you must pretend not to know me."

Jiang Zhi was puzzled: "Why?"

Fu Shao Huai rubbed her plump, cute earlobe red, his voice hinting at a subtle tenderness.

"There's no reason."

If others knew she was his person, it would bring her only harm, with no benefit at all.

The girl had never said she wanted to go out and look around while staying in this manor; this was the first time. So he would not stop her.

…

Night fell quickly, completely swallowing the last glimmer of sunset, and a few sparse specks of stars began to twinkle on the horizon.

Jiang Zhi wrapped herself in a thick fox fur, her light makeup clear and translucent, her beautiful face hidden beneath the face-covering gauze.

"Miss Jiang, I'll be beside you, you don't need to be afraid." Wang Guan Jia, having spent these days, already regarded her as his granddaughter; fearing she'd be scared in an unfamiliar setting, he specially comforted her.

Jiang Zhi stepped down from the car, lowered her gaze gently: "Mm, thank you, Uncle Wang."

Their arrival attracted no notice; the girl's body was completely covered by the fox fur, her face indistinct, and passersby glanced once and didn't look again.

Qiao Yu was the Qiao family's sole heir, the treasure of Old Lady Qiao's heart; his ability to defy family opinion and insist on studying medicine stemmed from having Old Lady Qiao as his backing.

The Qiao family enjoyed high prestige in South City; they had long been in the timber trade, expensive timber could fetch astronomical prices, and the lumber they cultivated was top-notch—this was the main reason the Qiao family could establish itself in South City.

The Qiao and Fu families were both aristocratic clans; when Qiao Yu and Fu Shao Huai were still in their mothers' wombs, they were already engaged by fingertip, but no one expected the Qiao family to bear a son, so this marriage was called off.

For this birthday banquet, the Fu family would naturally attend, so many people scrambled to get in, hoping to see Fu Shao Huai.

The Qiao family's courtyard was vast; the banquet was held in the main hall, and before the feast began, the main hall already had many people standing.

Thinking the banquet had not yet started, she walked to the courtyard to breathe some fresh air.

"This place is chilly, Miss Jiang, you'd better go inside." Wang Guan Jia said worriedly.

In early winter, last night's snow continued to fall to this day, covering the ground with a thick layer, causing all vegetation and buildings to lose their color.

She stood on the steps of a pavilion; although dressed warmly, the upper half of her face exposed to the air still turned pale from the cold.

"It's fine." She extended her palm and caught a snowflake.

At that moment, several voices came from not far away.

"A Lian, I'm really envious of you; after marrying Marshal Fu, I'll get to see him every day."

"Marshal Fu will also come tonight, A Lian; don't forget your principles when you see beauty."

A shy female voice sounded: "What are you talking about?"

As soon as the words fell.

Three figures slowly walked over, appearing before her.

Jiang Zhi's gaze fell on the most beautiful girl in the middle.

She was the female lead of this world, Bai Lian; as her name suggests, her appearance was extremely beautiful, her features delicate, and her frailty evoked pity.

She was of the same type as the original host, but the original host was less lively in personality.

In the plot, the female lead Bai Lian was the fiancée of the antagonist Fu Shao Huai; when they became engaged, the Bai family's status was not low while the Fu family was gradually declining, so this engagement was maintained solely because of the deep friendship between the two families, never being called off.

But now, Fu Shao Huai has amassed military merits on the battlefield, his status soaring, he was directly promoted to the rank of commander; the two families' positions have completely reversed, and everyone knows the Bai family has gained the greatest advantage.

Moreover, Fu Shao Huai has never flirted with women from childhood; he is famous for keeping away from female company, far superior to those rich youths who linger in pleasure quarters.

Thus, many noble young ladies of South City envy her greatly.

In the early plot, the female lead Bai Lian had only met the antagonist Fu Shao Huai a few times; she fundamentally disliked him, at most regarding him as a brother in her heart.

In the middle to later stages, the male lead gradually won the female lead's heart, while Fu Shao Huai, who never felt any affection for the female lead from start to finish, directly called off the engagement when it was moved forward.

Thus, the Bai family bears a grudge against him.

It's not the Bai family's fault; when the Fu family was down on its luck, only they helped the Fu family. But now that Fu Shao Huai has risen to the position of commander, he wants to dissolve the engagement—isn't that a white-eyed wolf?

But Fu Shao Huai never intended to marry into the Bai family; all this was merely Father Fu's unilateral decision.

As Bai Lian approached the garden pavilion, she instantly spotted the person standing inside.

A corner of the cheongsam's printed color showed from beneath the fox fur's hem; if she wasn't mistaken, that silk came from South City's most expensive tailor shop that serves only aristocratic families, and the fox fur draped over her shoulders was also a luxury item, priceless yet unobtainable.

The Bai family traded in textiles, so she had seen most kinds of fabric.

Bai Lian eased her slightly startled expression and stepped into the pavilion to escape the snow.

The two girls beside her were collateral branches of the Bai family; Bai Lian was the direct line, and they could only accompany her as supporting characters.

"A Lian, who do you say she is? Wrapped up so tightly, I thought she was a famous courtesan from Hundred Joy Gate." The curly-haired girl lowered her voice.

The other girl in a pale yellow printed cheongsam burst out laughing upon hearing that.

Who doesn't know what Hundred Joy Gate is—a place of fireworks and entertainment, where even the most famous courtesans have lowly status.

Although their voices were soft, they were all in the same pavilion, so Jiang Zhi naturally heard them too.

Wang Guan Jia heard the sound, glared angrily at those girls, and said: "Ladies, mind your words!"

The curly-haired girl snorted coldly: "I'm just stating the facts."

Bai Lian grabbed her once, stopping her from speaking further: "Yan'er, don't say more!"

Bai Yan'er could only swallow her anger and say nothing more.

Jiang Zhi was all too familiar with this routine; listening made her feel like calluses were forming on her ears.

She looked at the female lead Bai Lian, who resembled her somewhat, and couldn't help asking Brother Seven: "Am I her substitute?"

777: "That's right, Host. This world evolved from a novel; in the novel, the villain loves the heroine, but the heroine loves the male lead, so the villain can only find a look-alike substitute, resulting in a deeply tragic love."

But I never expected that after the novel became a villain's world, the villain not only didn't like the female lead, but even called off the engagement, so in this world you not only have to complete the main quest, but also have to find a way to set the plot straight.

Jiang Zhi asked lightly, "What do you think, will Fu Shao Huai, who has 90 Love Points for me, like the female lead Bai Lian again?"

777 also couldn't figure it out, "Why don't you give it a try? If it really doesn't work, I'll try hard to find a way to change this mission."

Jiang Zhi resigned: "Fine."