Chapter 68 Dining with His Highness

“Has Your Highness had dinner yet, since you’ve come so late at night? Why don’t we eat together?” Qiu Shuzhi saw his face turning red with embarrassment and decided not to tease him further.

“…Mm.” Yue Guanyi seemed to hesitate for a moment before nodding in agreement.

He thought to himself, having suddenly barged into Qiu Niang’s room late at night, if he rashly asked about her wound, she might become suspicious. It would be better to agree first, then apply medicine for her inconspicuously.

Ji Mei had only prepared one set of bowls and chopsticks, but fortunately, there were other utensils like soup spoons and side plates. So when she heard his movements in the room, she had already moved the unused bowls and chopsticks to his position. It seemed that after they had confessed their feelings for each other, they hadn’t had much time to be alone together. This was a good opportunity.

Yue Guanyi surveyed the dishes on the table, his brows furrowing almost imperceptibly: “Why are there only four dishes?”

“Is four dishes not good enough?” Qiu Shuzhi raised an eyebrow with a hint of amusement.

“I clearly-” He was about to say something but suddenly fell silent.

The Yulin Army’s discipline was lax and had always been neglected, so the food for patrolling the imperial city was much worse than that of other armies. In the past, he could turn a blind eye to these things, after all, it wasn’t under his jurisdiction.

But now that Qiu Niang was the commander of the Yulin Army and often led the soldiers on patrol, how could he bear to let her eat cold pickles and steamed buns like those low-ranking soldiers? He wished he could directly insert the imperial kitchen’s chef into the Yulin Army.

Yet he couldn’t be too conspicuous, he could only let those low-ranking Yulin soldiers benefit from Qiu Niang’s influence and improve their meals as well.

He had clearly instructed the kitchen that the Yulin Army commander should have at least six dishes and one soup prepared, and they must be different every day, with even the ingredients being of the best quality.

He clenched his fists tightly, his fingertips turning pale. It seemed the food suppliers were lining their own pockets again, daring to skimp on his orders. A cold gleam flashed in his eyes – he would make sure to break those despicable bones when he got back.

Qiu Shuzhi placed his tightly clenched fist on her leg. The tense hand turned into a ripe peach on its own, opening up without her effort to reveal its juicy flesh.

“There were originally six dishes, but I couldn’t eat that much alone, so I gave the rest to Ji Mei and the others to share.” She gently squeezed the soft flesh of his palm, pausing for a moment: “Thank you for your thoughtfulness.”

The jade-like hand on her leg twitched twice. Yue Guanyi was silent for a moment: “You knew all along.”

Qiu Shuzhi nodded with a smile, her long hair cascading down her back and falling in front of her body. The tips of her hair fell into his palm. His eyes moved, and taking advantage of her inattention, he gently played with the ends of her hair with his fingertips, revealing a hint of satisfaction as if he had stolen a taste.

“Earlier, Ji Mei told me that since I started serving in the Yulin Army, the food gradually improved. I vaguely guessed it might have something to do with Your Highness, and it turns out to be true.”

She picked up the white jade chopsticks and pinched a piece of jade bamboo heart, bringing it to his mouth.

“Come, open your mouth,” she said, her lips curling up.

Yue Guanyi’s eyes widened slightly. The aroma of the food was right under his nose, but his eyes were filled with shock, not daring to open his mouth.

How could he let Qiu Niang feed him? It should be him serving her.

“Qiu Niang, I-”

“Is it delicious?”

Qiu Shuzhi took advantage of his open mouth to push the jade bamboo heart in. Whatever he was about to say would have been more subservient talk anyway, which she didn’t want to hear. Rather than that, she preferred to see the usually high and mighty Crown Prince being obedient and docile in front of her. Occasionally teasing him could even make him blush.

Yue Guanyi pressed his lips tightly, chewing dryly a couple of times before nodding: “It’s delicious.”

Under extreme nervousness, he could no longer taste the food. Even the most exquisite delicacies tasted like chewing wax in his mouth.

“Then have another piece of soft braised tofu.”

The soft-braised tofu was coated with a translucent, glistening sauce. Each piece of tofu was fully saturated with the juice, making one’s mouth water. However, the sauce-covered tofu was both soft and slippery – too much force would break it, too little and it would easily fall.

“Ah-” The piece of tofu she had just picked up fell onto the table.

She carefully picked up another piece, her other hand cautiously cupping underneath. Just as she was about to bring it to Yue Guanyi’s mouth, it fell again, but fortunately landed in her palm.

It was just eating tofu, not taking advantage of Yue Guanyi, why was it so difficult?

She sighed, about to switch to a soup spoon, when suddenly a cool hand covered her wrist.

The cool, lofty mountain hermit lowered his head and took the soft tofu from her palm into his mouth.

Qiu Shuzhi almost couldn’t hold her chopsticks steady.

But Yue Guanyi appeared extremely calm and normal, of course, if one ignored the redness spreading from his neck to the tips of his ears.

He took out a snow-white handkerchief from his sleeve, made of the finest soft gauze with the most exquisite Su embroidery craftsmanship. Every detail exuded elegant artistry.

Qiu Shuzhi originally thought he was going to wipe the corners of his mouth, but to her surprise, he used it to wipe her palm.

The thing that was just now an art piece in her eyes was now wiping the oil from her palm. Yue Guanyi wiped very carefully, not missing even the tiniest spot, completely unconcerned that once the soft gauze was stained with oil, it would be completely ruined and impossible to clean. It was as if her hand was the true work of art, and that hundred-gold Su embroidered handkerchief was just an ordinary rag.

I’ve

This action of his left Qiu Shuzhi at a loss.

All her actions towards Yue Guanyi were tactics she had learned from idol dramas in her previous life, formulas carefully designed under industrial society. But in the face of Yue Guanyi’s sincere actions, they all seemed insignificant.

“Is your wound better?” Yue Guanyi suddenly asked after finishing wiping her hand.

Qiu Shuzhi put down her chopsticks and touched the arm that had been cut by the assassin. “The wound has scabbed over, it’s just that new flesh is growing, and it occasionally feels a bit itchy.”

“May I take a look?” Yue Guanyi’s gaze seemed to pierce through her clothing.

The wound had almost healed, and Qiu Shuzhi originally didn’t want to show him, but feeling Yue Guanyi’s gaze, she felt a warmth in her heart.

“There’s not really much to see.” She untied her outer robe, exposing her chest and one side of her arm. The snow-white skin, usually hidden by clothing, looked like it was covered in a layer of soft snow under the warm orange light. Her delicate collarbone rose and fell slightly with her breathing. On her immaculate arm was an abrupt scar, long and deep, with a ghastly colored scab.

Almost instantly, Yue Guanyi drew in a sharp breath. His fingers trembled as he touched her wound.

The scabbed wound was uneven. As the commander of the Yulin Army, she couldn’t avoid wielding swords and spears. The newly formed scab would tear, leaving tiny cracks through which blood would seep. Just as it healed, it would split open again, never fully recovering.

“Such a deep wound, it seems it will inevitably leave a scar,” Yue Guanyi felt a twisting pain in his heart.

He took out a small porcelain bottle from his bosom: “I have a special medicine here for treating this kind of wound. Applying it will help the wound heal faster.”

He said it was medicine for treating scars, but in fact, it wasn’t. This was a prescription he had barely managed to pry out of Jiang Si’s mouth. Although it couldn’t completely cure the poison in her body, it could temporarily slow down the outbreak of the poison worms.

Qiu Shuzhi held his hand: “There’s no need. I still have the Soft Jade Ointment bestowed by the Empress Dowager. Your Highness should keep this medicine for yourself.”

“Father Empress?” Yue Guanyi’s arm stiffened for a moment, then he lowered his head, his voice dejected: “The Soft Jade Ointment from Father Empress is rare in this world, far better than my ordinary medicine.”

Qiu Shuzhi was so embarrassed she almost wanted to bang her head against the wall. How could she have forgotten about this?

Qin Qing and Yue Guanyi were already on bad terms, and their stepfather-son relationship was extremely delicate. Last time he came to see her, he had discovered the handkerchief Qin Qing had secretly given her. Now he learned about the Soft Jade Ointment gift, wouldn’t her relationship with the Empress Dowager become even more unclear?

“It’s not what you think. The Empress Dowager bestowed this ointment on me when I first entered the official ranks,” she hastily explained.

“I understand.” Yue Guanyi lowered his head, his voice sounding like a small husband who had discovered his wife’s affair but was forced to accept it. But his tightly clenched fingers were almost crushing the porcelain bottle. His pitiful, enduring appearance tugged at one’s heartstrings, making him incredibly lovable.

You understand nothing, you don’t understand anything at all.

Qiu Shuzhi sighed inwardly, fearing he would overthink again. She grabbed his collar and lightly pecked his tightly pressed thin lips. In that instant, their eyes met, their breaths intertwining closely.

“My relationship with the Empress Dowager is only that of subject and ruler. From beginning to end, you are the only one I love. Believe me.” She pressed her forehead against his, their noses touching, their bodies intimately close, clearly feeling each other’s warmth.

In an ordinary family, even if a husband was magnanimous, he would still make a fuss if he knew his wife had taken a lover. Yet he was obedient and enduring, silently bearing everything, as if the person she was having an affair with was his nominal stepfather, and in his eyes, this didn’t seem to violate any ethical norms.

Whether it was the handkerchief he discovered on that rainy night, or this time, there was never any anger or jealousy in Yue Guanyi’s eyes. Instead, there was more panic. He was too afraid of losing her, fearing that her momentary fondness for him would disappear with the appearance of other men. So he exhausted himself trying to please her, regardless of good or evil, right or wrong.

Qiu Shuzhi even thought that if one day she told him she had fallen in love with the Emperor Consort, he might steal the Emperor Consort from the palace overnight and deliver him to her bed.

The sudden warmth on his lips made Yue Guanyi’s eyelashes tremble nervously and excitedly. The candlelight danced in his phoenix eyes, radiating brilliance.

He carefully embraced her waist, feeling not a hint of disgust from her, and then, taking advantage, rested his head on her shoulder. His heart was pounding furiously in his chest: “I believe you, Qiu Niang, of course I believe you.”

Soft Jade Ointment given to Qiu Niang when she first entered the palace…

So that old Qin Qing had designs on Qiu Niang that early.

He tightly held her soft waist, his arms as rigid as an iron cage confining a prisoner. The deeply hidden jealousy and resentment crawled out howling from an unfathomable abyss at this moment. Thick, gloomy juices like crushed dark magma tore through his beautiful facade, crawling with the most sinister and filthy poison.

How could he not be jealous?

He was so jealous he was almost consumed by the wild waves, even his frantic breathing carried a reckless madness. Years of holding the power of life and death had long made him regard human life as worthless. A sea of blood like a collapsing mountain filled his vision. Only by crushing her body into his own flesh and blood could he regain a shred of sanity.

How could one truly love someone and watch with open eyes as that person’s heart embraced another?

His heart was full of grievances, his belly full of jealousy, his gut full of resentment. An ocean of jealousy pressed heavily on his heart, almost crushing his figure. Let alone the Empress Dowager’s handkerchief in Qiu Niang’s possession, even if Qiu Niang listened to some coquettish actor’s play on the street, or glanced at some palace servant, or even the clear water she had scooped up, the flowers she had admired, or the moon she had gazed upon – his jealousy grew darkly in the unseen soil.

He was merely enduring, pretending to be magnanimous.

No woman would like a man who was constantly jealous and suspicious. Even if she was pleased for a moment, over time it would only increase her annoyance.

But no matter how magnanimous he pretended to be, no matter how he tried not to be jealous, his heart always felt as if it was being stabbed viciously by an ice blade. The thought of someone coveting his Qiu Niang made him feel a bone-deep, heart-wrenching pain. The sea of jealousy in his heart grew deeper and deeper, his overwhelming envy swelling like a raging flood. A desperate sense of suffocation ground him into a puddle of rotten flesh and worms.

He had become Qiu Niang’s appendage, unable to live without her.

That shameless old widower, sooner or later he would grind him into a pile of minced meat.

Qiu Shuzhi was completely unaware of Yue Guanyi’s frenzied thoughts. She gently caressed the person in her arms. His hands were clasped tightly around her, making it a bit hard for her to breathe. She could feel Yue Guanyi’s thin shoulders trembling slightly.

She ran her fingers through his cascading ink-black hair. Her long, white fingers, like white jade, slipped into his hair. His thin body instantly shivered sensitively, the roots of his ears turning bright red.

She smiled, unable to conceal the tenderness in her heart, and kissed his blood-red earlobe.

The wet sensation on his earlobe brought such a huge impact that it almost made his whole body convulse. A tidal wave of wild joy surged forth, extinguishing all the sourness and dark jealousy that had just filled his heart. His entire being felt as if it was suspended in mid-air. If he hadn’t been tightly gripping her waist, he would have melted into a puddle and slid off the chair.

“Qiu Niang, Qiu Niang,” he buried his face in the crook of her neck. Her soft, fragrant scent made his already unclear mind sink further into a daze. He could only murmur her name over and over again, his speech slurred.

“Mmm—”

Qiu Shuzhi listened to his voice calling her name over and over again as if infatuated. Though he was dressed in white robes, cold and aloof like a banished immortal, he seemed to have been pulled down from his godly pedestal, falling into the sea of desire and the mortal world.

Her heart stirred. She gripped his chin and kissed him.

It was a long, deep kiss. The two embraced, their necks intertwined. The flickering candlelight cast a warm glow over their bodies, as if they were shrouded in a layer of misty rain.

Yue Guanyi was so excited he almost fainted. The lingering pleasure threw him into the clouds. It was as if fireworks were exploding in his mind. In an instant, everything around him lost its color, everything became dim and lackluster. Only his heart was burning, almost to the point of boiling.