Chapter 22: Men and Women Should Not Have Physical Contact

Chapter 22: Chapter 22: Men and Women Should Not Have Physical Contact

At the sound of his voice, Zhi Wan tilted her head up to look at the man before her.

He wasn’t in his official robes today, but a set of dark green casual attire. His posture was as tall and straight as a pine, with a matching belt cinching his taut waist. The slightly lifted hem of his robe revealed long, straight legs. When he looked down at her, there was not a hint of a smile in his eyes.

His entire demeanor was icy, with only the tiny beauty mark at the corner of his left eye showing any sign of life.

Zhi Wan was clearly afraid of him, but at this moment, hearing his words of concern—devoid as they were of warmth—her tears began to fall against her will.

She hastily lowered her head. "I-I’m fine." Though she tried her best to control herself, a sob in her voice gave her away.

Lu Zhan’s handsome brows furrowed.

’But she’s still young,’ he thought. ’It’s only natural for her to break down after a scare like that.’

But he wasn’t accustomed to dealing with a woman’s tears, so he pretended not to notice and asked coolly, "Can you get up on your own?"

Zhi Wan quickly wiped away her tears. Once she had composed herself, she nodded. "Yes, I can."

"Then get up," Lu Zhan said.

Helplessly, Zhi Wan pushed herself up from the grass, shakily rising to her feet.

Although she had stopped her tears, her eyes and the tip of her nose were both red, like a pitiful little rabbit.

Duan Ling, who had been watching for a long time, couldn’t help but shake his head.

’Old Lu really has no idea how to be gentle with women.’

He strode over and gave Lu Zhan a strange look. "Is that young lady really your cousin?"

Lu Zhan glanced at him. "So what if she is?"

Duan Ling nearly choked.

’So what if she is?’

’He wanted to ask, Then why are you so cold to her?’

’Besides, when I asked him which household the young lady was from earlier, this guy said he didn’t know with a perfectly straight face.’

’And it turns out the young lady is his cousin?’

He slowly forced out, "Nothing much!" Then, his eyes fell on Zhi Wan standing there awkwardly, and he couldn’t resist adding, "If you had just reached out to help a moment ago, your cousin wouldn’t have fallen."

"Propriety dictates that men and women should not touch," Lu Zhan said, his brow furrowed.

"How old are we? And how old is your cousin? Didn’t you just say she’s only a little girl?" Duan Ling argued, growing more animated.

Lu Zhan’s expression darkened. He ignored Duan Ling completely and turned to Zhi Wan. "Where’s your maid?"

"She’s still back there," Zhi Wan replied.

Lu Zhan nodded and said no more.

Just then, Shuang’er arrived with the other servants in tow.

Though the incident had happened in a flash, Shuang’er and the others had still heard Wang Zeren’s terrified scream from before.

Seeing Zhi Wan standing there unharmed, she was instantly relieved, completely unaware of the danger her miss had just been in.

Shuang’er was surprised to see Lu Zhan was also there and quickly curtsied. "This servant greets the Princely Heir."

Lu Zhan reprimanded her in a heavy voice. "As her personal maid, your duty is to protect your miss without leaving her side. What were you doing just now?"

Hearing this, even someone as unperceptive as Shuang’er could understand that her miss must have just been in danger.

Her face went pale. She grabbed Zhi Wan and began checking her over anxiously. "Miss, are you all right?"

Zhi Wan’s face flushed slightly.

’I’m not all right,’ she thought. ’My bottom hurts from the fall.’

But with Lu Zhan and Duan Ling present, she was too embarrassed to say so. She just shook her head. "I’m fine."

While relieved, Shuang’er also felt deeply guilty. She immediately knelt. "Please punish me, Miss."

The two older servants with her quickly knelt as well.

"It’s not your fault. Get up, quickly," Zhi Wan said hastily.

None of them would rise. "Please, Miss, punish us."

Greatly distressed, Zhi Wan whipped her head around to look at Lu Zhan. "Cousin, it’s not Shuang’er’s fault, or any of theirs. I was the one who got carried away playing and ran too far..."

Her heart trembled under the man’s frost-laden gaze, and her voice trailed off.

Even so, she withstood his pressure, pulled Shuang’er to her feet, and said to the two older servants, "You two get up as well."

Lu Zhan’s brow furrowed slightly, his eyes filled with disapproval.

’Just now, that maid Shuang’er must have been too busy playing around to follow, allowing her master, Zhi Wan, to be left alone and in danger.’

’If I hadn’t happened to be here, the consequences would have been unthinkable.’

’In his eyes, these servants attending to Zhi Wan had all been severely derelict in their duties. Yet Zhi Wan was letting the matter go so easily. That would only teach the servants not to take their jobs seriously, and they would surely repeat the offense.’

But this was Zhi Wan’s affair, and Lu Zhan had no desire to interfere. However, seeing her fragile and naive expression, his brow furrowed. He couldn’t stop himself from saying in a heavy tone, "Your miss, out of affection for you, cannot bring herself to punish you. But you, as a servant, have neglected your duties and put your master in danger. According to the rules of the Duke Dingguo Mansion, you will receive ten strikes of the rod upon your return!"

He was speaking to Shuang’er.

Shuang’er showed no objection. Instead, she said respectfully, "It was indeed this servant’s negligence today. I accept the punishment!" She was just thankful her miss was unharmed. Otherwise, she couldn’t have escaped blame even in death.

Zhi Wan glanced at Lu Zhan, puzzled. ’My cousin has always been so aloof. Why is he getting involved in my personal affairs today?’

’Shuang’er has been by my side since we were children and has always been loyal to me. What happened today was a complete accident; it can’t be blamed on her at all.’

’Ten strikes of the rod... how much would that hurt?’

’How could a young woman like Shuang’er possibly bear it?’

With that, she looked at Lu Zhan beseechingly. "Cousin, could we change the caning to a month’s docked pay? A caning... a young woman can’t endure that."

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

Lu Zhan glanced at her, his face impassive. "She is your personal servant, so I cannot discipline her. But as for the servants of the Duke Dingguo Mansion, I still have some say."

Zhi Wan froze. ’What does he mean?’

’Is he saying he won’t punish Shuang’er?’

However, before she could even breathe a sigh of relief, she saw his gaze land on the two older servants. His voice was imperious and intimidating. "You two were assigned by the Duchess to serve the Miss. Yet because of your negligence today, you allowed the Miss to fall into danger. Upon your return, you will go and receive your punishment!"

"Yes, sir," the two older servants replied respectfully, their heads bowed.

Hearing this, Zhi Wan’s face turned slightly pale.

’So that’s what he meant...’

’Shuang’er is her personal maid, so he can’t discipline her. But the two older servants belong to the Duke Dingguo Mansion, so he has the authority to punish them.’

’But what happened today wasn’t their fault at all...’

’Besides, my position in the Duke Mansion is already awkward. If I cause the staff to be punished, I’ll only be resented even more.’

"Cousin, could you please not..." The words ’punish them’ had barely formed on her lips before Lu Zhan’s icy gaze swept over her. Her throat tightened, and she swallowed the rest of her sentence.

A wave of anxiety washed over her. ’My cousin is being far too unreasonable.’

Unable to help herself, she cast her gaze toward Duan Ling.

As her beautiful, helpless eyes fell on him, Duan Ling’s heart softened. He wanted to help her, but he knew Lu Zhan better than anyone—what he said was final.

’Once Lu Zhan gives an order, it can’t be changed.’

’Besides, Lu Zhan has always prioritized rules. How could he possibly forgive the household staff for such a serious dereliction of duty?’

’After all, if they hadn’t happened to pass by and see what was happening, the young lady would have met a terrible fate.’

In the end, he could only shake his head at Zhi Wan, helpless to intervene.