Clumsy Beast, Keep Your Paws Off - Chapter 189

Chapter 189: Chapter 189: Soreness and the Surrender of Shame
Su Qinglan decided the show was absolutely not over.

If anything, she felt it was barely getting started.

With a delicate sigh, she arranged her expression into the perfect mix of pitiful beauty and subtle villainess charm. Then she turned those eyes…those big, innocent, lying eyes toward Han Jue, whose face was still red enough to roast meat on.

“Han Jue…” she murmured shyly, voice soft as a feather. “My whole body hurts… how am I supposed to apply the paste like this?”

To add some artistic credibility, she shifted just a little.

Hss—!

A sharp hiss of pain escaped her.

And that part wasn’t acting. Her hips did, in fact, send an entire complaint letter to the heavens.

Han Jue’s brain, already fragile, immediately collapsed into panic mode. The cold aura he was known for evaporated like steam in fire.

“Lan Lan, don’t move!” he blurted, stepping closer so fast his hair nearly blew back. “It hurts…you shouldn’t move. Don’t move.”

He reached out instinctively, steadying her like she was made of glass.

“I… I will help.”

The words left his mouth.

And then he went still.

Because he realized what he had just offered.

Su Qinglan lit up instantly. “Really? Okay! Then help me.”

Too late for regrets.

She turned around, presenting her bare back to him with all the shameless elegance of a seasoned flirt. Her messy hair fell forward, revealing smooth shoulders and a collection of red marks.

Han Jue could only stare.

Then gulp.

Then stare again.

Steeling himself, he dipped his finger into the paste and touched her back.

Su Qinglan let out a relieved, dramatic sigh. “Ahhh~ so good…”

Then she added a small, purposeful hiss just to watch him jump.

It worked beautifully.

Han Jue froze, eyes wide. “Lan Lan, I…I’ll be gentle.”

You are already gentle, she thought gleefully. If you go any gentler, you’ll be applying this paste through spiritual transmission. Calm down, Bluetooth Jue.

His movements became so feather-light she wasn’t sure he was even touching her anymore. The man was practically floating above her back, barely grazing her skin. He even blew softly on the paste to cool it further.

That one almost made her tremble.

“Han Jue…” her voice shook before she could stop it.

He jerked his hand back like she’d burned him. “Did it hurt?!”

“No,” she muttered quickly, cheeks warm. “Just don’t blow suddenly like that…”

He didn’t question it. He simply nodded stiffly and continued, looking like a solemn monk applying holy medicine.

Inside, however, he was mentally punching Hu Yan into a crater.

Brute. Idiot. Useless tiger. How dare he bruise her like this? I hope Rong Ye hits him again.

Still, he finished carefully, finally covering all her back.

Then came the dangerous part.

The front.

Han Jue stared at the bowl. Then at her. Then back at the bowl. His ears were steaming.

Han Jue gulped audibly. He was reaching his limit. Su Qinglan, taking pity, decided that was enough teasing. She could apply the rest herself, or better yet, she could just heal the bruises internally with her Level 3 plant ability.

But the moment had been too good. The cooling sensation and her shy beast husband made her day.

“Han Jue, it’s enough, I will apply the rest myself,” she said, turning to face him and reaching out to take the bowl from his hands.

But as she shifted on her knees on the stone bed, trying to reach him, she immediately hissed again. She felt a sharp, tearing pain radiate from her honey pot. “It seems it is really too sore,” she muttered. The sudden movement, combined with the pain, caused her foot to get tangled in the hide covering her knees.

With a small scream of discomfort, she lost her balance and fell directly onto Han Jue.

The thin hide that had been preserving her modesty was gone in an instant, and she collapsed entirely into his arms, soft body against rock-hard muscle.

Han Jue, shocked, instantly took her into his arms to steady her. But his eyes widened to the size of dinner plates at the sight in front of him.

He looked down at her completely exposed front body, his controlled mind momentarily shattering. Her front was also covered with so many more red marks than her back!

“That damn tiger… has he lost his mind?” he cursed.

A cold, protective rage finally replaced his shyness. Now he really wanted to strangle that tiger! His heart clenched painfully at her small whimper when she shifted slightly in his embrace.

With fierce, gentle care, he immediately cradled her soft body. “Lan Lan, don’t move. I will help,” he said, his voice low and utterly serious.

All the redness was gone from his face. His heart was clenching, and he needed to fix her pain. He immediately helped her lie back down on the stone bed, positioning himself between her legs.

“No, no, I can manage…” she tried to protest, but he cut her off.

“No,” he commanded firmly, his expression deadly serious—almost like he wanted to kill someone.

With a deep, cleansing breath, he picked up the bowl and started applying the paste to her front body with careful, solemn dedication.

He tried desperately to keep his shaking hands steady. Su Qinglan closed her eyes and sighed, the coolness of the paste finally hitting all the hot, bruised skin. It was truly good.

Han Jue repeated a hundred times in his mind like a mantra: It is okay. She is my mate. There is nothing wrong here. He tried to clear his mind, which was dangerously jumping to the wrong side seeing her so vulnerable beneath him. He needed to focus.

He slowly, meticulously applied the cool paste, massaging the herbs lightly into her skin.

Soon, he reached the inevitable, dangerous point. He had applied the paste everywhere except that place, which was undoubtedly the most sore and swollen part of all.

With a final, huge, deep breath, he slowly parted her legs. Su Qinglan, lost in the wave of coolness and relief, did as his guiding hands instructed.