Marrying the Soft-hearted Villain

Hearing Ruan Hanshan's voice, Ruan Qiuqiu instinctively covered her flushed face and turned to look at him.

Ruan Hanshan wore a light blue robe, his hair cut short. His eyes, which shared a slight resemblance to hers, looked towards them, clearly conveying the message "I'm not happy." His handsome face darkened slightly, evidently displeased.

Unlike their previous somewhat sudden encounters, this time it wasn't a rainy night nor their bonding ceremony. Ruan Qiuqiu had come specifically to see Ruan Hanshan, and naturally, she had more time to observe his appearance.

He really did resemble her, not just in appearance, but also in temperament, though his was sharper, calmer, and more dignified.

Ruan Hanshan's gaze fell on Ruan Qiuqiu and Yuan Jue. His inky eyebrows showed no fear towards His Majesty the Demon King, but rather a hint of dissatisfaction.

Tian Ye watched from the side, her heart pounding.

If I remember correctly, Ruan Hanshan only has mid-stage fifth-order strength, and his ability is only ice-based. Physical strength is a weakness for humans. Even with those weapons from the underground humans, he could at most fight me to a draw. How can he be so impolite to Yuan Jue, who is so much stronger than him?

At this point, Tian Ye and the other demons were still unaware of the relationship between Ruan Hanshan and Ruan Qiuqiu.

Although they had some speculations due to their similar appearances, they didn't think of them as siblings, assuming it was just a coincidence.

Under Ruan Hanshan's gaze, Ruan Qiuqiu felt a bit of pressure for some reason. She subconsciously wanted to loosen her hand that was linked with Yuan Jue's, but in the end, she continued to gently hook her fingers with his.

Looking at Ruan Hanshan's still-unpleasant expression, Ruan Qiuqiu felt a little guilty. In her hazy memories, this wasn't the first time she had played with Yuan Jue and ignored her brother.

"…" Ruan Hanshan tightened his grip on the prepared sheepskin scroll filled with notes on newlywed matters. Watching this familiar scene, he felt a prickle in his chest, a mixture of warmth and a slight sting.

He didn't say anything, but turned around and sighed softly. "Come in."

Ruan Qiuqiu could sense her brother's disappointment, and she felt a little nervous.

After her memories awakened, she remembered some things about her parents and brother, but those memories were like a veil, letting her know but not truly remember.

To her, Ruan Hanshan was like someone she felt a natural closeness to, but wasn't very familiar with.

Ruan Hanshan clearly understood this, so he didn't push her.

During the time since their bonding ceremony, Ruan Hanshan had investigated Ruan Qiuqiu's life over the years.

He discovered that after the incident more than twenty years ago, Ruan Qiuqiu had disappeared. She only reappeared in the Wind Lion Tribe a year or two ago, with impaired intelligence, only occasionally returning to normal.

As for how he knew these things, Ruan Hanshan lightly rubbed his fingertips—

Before Ruan Qiuqiu woke up and before she bonded with Yuan Jue, he had already joined forces with that wolf to crush the Wind Lion Tribe and the Flame Wolf Tribe, who had bullied Ruan Qiuqiu.

Under immense pressure, the Wind Lion Tribe's leader couldn't lie and revealed the truth.

"It was probably last winter. She suddenly appeared at the entrance of our tribe. Because she was a weak human and carried a lot of good things, we kept her. But her mind wasn't quite right; she couldn't remember anything anyone said."

The Wind Lion Tribe leader said tremblingly, "She kept asking where her father, mother, brother, and Brother Yuan were. Later, I simply made up a story, saying she was an orphan, and Ruan Qiuqiu believed it. The demons and humans in the tribe, wanting amusement, never told Ruan Qiuqiu the truth."

"No demon would talk to her, and humans weren't keen on getting close to a fool. As time went on, she became more and more silent, with fewer and fewer lucid moments. Finally… the last time she was lucid was when we wanted her to marry… His Majesty the Demon King."

The old lion demon's words lessened some of the guilt in Ruan Hanshan's heart for not finding Ruan Qiuqiu all these years, but it still couldn't make him forgive himself.

Because from the time his sister reappeared to when she was forced to marry Yuan Jue, almost a year had passed, and he hadn't found her.

Based on those descriptions, he knew that Ruan Qiuqiu hadn't had a good time during that period.

But what gave Ruan Hanshan some comfort was that at that time, Ruan Qiuqiu only had her subconscious; her main soul probably hadn't returned, so she didn't have many memories and wasn't in too much pain.

Perhaps because he had found his family, Ruan Hanshan had become very sensitive. In just the short time it took to walk from outside to the cave and sit down, so many thoughts had flashed through his mind.

Ruan Qiuqiu only felt that the pressure around Ruan Hanshan was constantly low, as if he was in a bad mood, and she felt nervous.

Since the three of them entered the cave, Ruan Hanshan had only sat opposite her and Yuan Jue with a wooden face, without saying a word.

Even now, he just sat there silently, not uttering a sound.

This atmosphere made Ruan Qiuqiu panic. She had no experience interacting with family. She nudged Yuan Jue's leg under the stone table, wanting the wolf to say something to ease the tension.

Yuan Jue felt it. He took his little wife's hand under the stone table and gently touched her palm with his calloused fingertips—

Ever since she saw Ruan Hanshan, my wife has been very nervous.

He had met Ruan Hanshan several times and remembered the past. He knew that Ruan Hanshan was outwardly gentle but inwardly cold to others, only showing genuine concern for his family.

My wife… doesn't need to be so nervous.

But Ruan Qiuqiu's palms were sweaty and trembled slightly when he tickled them.

Her cheeks were still flushed from his earlier words about unlocking more positions with each additional treatment. Suddenly seeing Ruan Hanshan, she hadn't yet recovered, her gaze darting around uncertainly…

After receiving Ruan Qiuqiu's signal for help, the wolf's heart began to race.

Then, feeling Ruan Qiuqiu scratch his palm questioningly, his whole body briefly stiffened. His large hand couldn't help but tightly grasp hers, his handsome face slowly turning red under Ruan Qiuqiu's gaze. His narrow, blood-red eyes fixed on her, gradually filling with intense joy.

Ruan Qiuqiu just looked at the wolf, and he became shy.

Just because she scratched his palm back.

In front of her brother.

In front of her older brother, who was clearly in a bad mood and not speaking.

And he was obviously shy, as if afraid others wouldn't notice.

Ruan Qiuqiu: "…………"

She took a deep breath, her head slightly lowered. The word "Brother" was stuck in her throat, somehow difficult to utter.

Ruan Hanshan saw her discomfort and didn't say anything. He just pushed the food he had prepared earlier on the stone table and said gently, "Did you get cold just now? Have something to drink."

His voice was gentle but carried a bit of brotherly authority, which didn't make her feel repulsed.

"Thank you… Brother." Ruan Qiuqiu replied softly, then quickly lowered her head, pulling her hand away from Yuan Jue's. She picked up the small wooden cup filled with hot tea that she hadn't noticed before on the stone table in front of her.

She took a sip. The temperature was just right, and the warm tea was very comforting.

Ruan Qiuqiu put down the cup and noticed a few small, red fruits placed on the broad, green tea leaves beside the wooden cup. They looked very sweet.

[END]

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