Chapter 69 Her Highness’s Tireless Spirit of Enterprise Her Highness’s Tireless…

After a deep kiss, Qiu Shuzhi pulled away, with a bit of glistening moisture still remaining at the corner of her mouth.

Since that day of confession, it was their first time being alone together, engaging in intimate acts without reservations. Yue Guanyi was so excited that he felt as if all the strength had been drained from his body. He leaned limply against her embrace, panting softly, with a thin sheen of sweat breaking out on his slender back.

He wiped his flushed face with his hand. His usually gloomy eyes were now tinged with a crimson madness. His tongue swirled in his mouth, savoring the lingering taste of her saliva. The porcelain bottle in his hand cracked into fine fissures under his tight grip.

He felt dazed for a moment, inwardly cursing himself for being so lustful and shameless. Seeing Qiu, he couldn’t move his feet, his mind was muddled and unable to think clearly, to the point where he had forgotten the purpose of his visit.

He pressed against her shoulder, his voice like the collision of ice and jade: “Qiu Niang… This medicine was not easy for me to obtain. Please let me do something for you.”

Qiu Shuzhi lovingly stroked the stray hairs behind his ear: “Alright.”

On a midsummer night, the bright moon hung high, its clear radiance enveloping everything. Occasionally, a cool night breeze swept through, clearing away the fallen leaves in the garden.

Yue Guanyi poured out the medicine from the porcelain bottle. It was a white powder with a strong and peculiar odor, impossible to tell what herbs it had been ground from.

He evenly sprinkled the powder on the bandage, looking nervously at the wounds on her arm: “This medicine is potent. It might sting when applied, but its effects are excellent. Please bear with it, Qiu Niang.”

“It’s no matter, go ahead.” She wiped the thin layer of nervous sweat from his forehead with her sleeve. Even though she was the one injured, he seemed more anxious than anyone.

The cold powder scattered onto her wounds, seeping into her bloodstream through the tiny cracks of the scars. Waves of stinging pain came continuously, causing her to furrow her brow slightly. This medicine was indeed more painful than any she had used before, truly potent as he had said.

Yue Guanyi wrapped the bandage around her arm, round by round. His fingertips would inadvertently brush against her skin, each touch sending a slight tremor through him. Especially her garments – the white silk constraining the most delicate skin, like a treasure hidden deep in the sea revealing its most alluring corner, wantonly attracting the gaze of onlookers. With each breath, the warm temperature of her arm inadvertently slid across the back of his cold hand, burning hot to the touch.

“It’s done.” Yue Guanyi hurriedly finished bandaging the wound and averted his gaze. His usually gloomy and cold phoenix eyes were now in complete disarray, self-loathing scorching him as he despised his own baseness, mixed with an indescribable, obscure, strange pleasure.

At this moment, Qiu Niang was like a deity who had salvaged him from the abyss of despair, and also like a demon luring him into an endless sea of sin.

He floated and sank within it endlessly, willingly drowning in it.

“Mmm…” Qiu Shuzhi looked at the crooked bow on her arm, then at the skin inadvertently exposed on her chest, and at Yue Guanyi’s flushed face.

The pure Crown Prince was shy again.

“Thank you, Your Highness,” she said with a smile as she put on her clothes and tied her sash, reining in her previously somewhat unrestrained demeanor.

“No- no need,” Yue Guanyi stammered, almost biting his tongue.

Having just applied the medicine, the room was filled with the bitter aftertaste of the drug.

He ladled a bowl of almond and lily bulb soup and served it to Qiu Shuzhi, attending to her meal.

If Qiu Shuzhi personally feeding him earlier could be considered a kind of intimacy, then he should be clear about his own position now.

He was nothing more than a small pet who had gained favor due to Qiu Niang’s momentary whim. How to curry favor, how to please, how to serve – he needed to grasp the right timing for all of these.

“By the way, tomorrow is Her Majesty’s first court session since returning to the capital. You will be personally appointed as the Yulin Zhonglang General by Her Majesty in front of the court for your meritorious service in capturing the assassin at the hunting grounds.”

Qiu Shuzhi paused with the soup spoon in her hand and looked up at Yue Guanyi: “I suppose Your Highness had a hand in this arrangement?”

The Embroidered Uniform Guard’s intelligence network was all-encompassing, even within the Yulin Army. If Li Liang could submit a memorial to the Empress Dowager, it meant that Yue Guanyi had already previewed it.

Yue Guanyi observed Qiu Shuzhi’s expression, unable to discern her pleasure or displeasure for a moment. He nervously gripped the edge of the table and nodded: “I know you intend to control the Yulin Army, and the military tally of the Yulin Army is now in your hands. If you wish to confront the Li clan’s connections head-on, that’s fine too. However, having the position of Zhonglang General can make your authority more legitimate.”

“Moreover, you have indeed rendered great service before the throne. Even a triple promotion wouldn’t be excessive.” He was afraid of saying something wrong, each sentence carefully crafted to please.

Qiu Shuzhi’s eyes darkened as she slowly approached him. Her cold aura was so oppressive that it left him breathless, his tightly clenched palms leaving deep nail marks.

Had he done something wrong? Was what he did not to Qiu Niang’s liking? Would Qiu Niang dislike him for acting on his own like this? Yue Guanyi’s face turned deathly pale, a silent stillness slowly spreading in his eyes, like waiting for the pronouncement of a death sentence.

Suddenly, Qiu Shuzhi smiled faintly and cupped his face, giving him a light peck.

Yue Guanyi’s cautious way of speaking just now made Qiu Shuzhi feel as if she was taking advantage of him.

Originally, she came from a humble background and didn’t have the golden finger of a novel’s transmigrated female protagonist.

Here, the written characters, music, and history were completely different from those in history. She couldn’t rely on plagiarizing the poems of great poets to rise to prominence in one step. Nor was she proficient in science and technology, unable to make inventions and creations. The only good family background she had to her name had also fallen apart in her childhood.

She could only climb up step by step from the bottom, adapting to the rules of the game in this society. Every step was extremely arduous.

She understood why Yue Guanyi would treat her so cautiously – it was nothing more than wanting to protect her dignity as a woman.

It was like in her previous life when a rich girl dated a poor boy. She had grown up in luxury, but now lived a hard life with the poor boy. Not only that, but she had to pull strings and build resources to help him rise quickly, while also accommodating his self-esteem, afraid of making him feel like he was living off her.

Ironically, it was often these poor boys who, after achieving success and fame, were most likely to turn against their wives’ families. This had been true throughout history, for both wealthy merchants and famous officials, giving her a chill at the thought of such great kindness being repaid with enmity.

Although she had never changed her intention to be self-reliant, she would gladly accept Yue Guanyi’s assistance if he was willing to help her. She would remember his kindness and not ungratefully reject his goodwill.

Moreover, even without Yue Guanyi’s efforts, the young Empress would have promoted her to Yulin Zhonglang General anyway. Whether it was the King of Dian, the Qin clan, or the noble clans at court, they were all threats. The young Empress was too eager to bring military power back into her own hands, and at present, she was the young Empress’s best choice.

She cupped Yue Guanyi’s cold face and pecked his lips again.

“You… don’t blame me for acting on my own?” Yue Guanyi’s eyes flickered with a dim light, stunned for several seconds, his voice hoarse and broken.

“How could I?” Qiu Shuzhi answered in a low, almost humming tone, raising her eyes to meet his gaze.

Only then did Yue Guanyi’s tense expression react from the torment of near-death pain. There was no suffocating silence anymore. He breathed roughly, with a faint glimmer of moisture at the corners of his eyes, which were burning red.

“Why are you crying… Are you angry with me?” She reached out to wipe away the warm moisture at the corner of his eye, guessing that her previous demeanor must have frightened him.

“No.” He took a deep breath as if having survived a calamity, but due to excessive tension and fear, he let out a sound close to a sob.

Qiu Shuzhi was startled by this low, muffled sob, thinking that her serious manner just now had scared him to tears. She hurriedly hugged him tightly, kissing his face randomly, and pressed against his ear to beg in a low voice: “My good Your Highness, my good Yue’er, I was just teasing you earlier. It was my fault. Don’t be angry, don’t cry.”

“I’m not-” His thin lips trembled slightly, buried in her neck like a whimpering puppy.

The most beautiful rhetoric in this world could not compare to her soft and gentle voice. That call of “Yue’er” made him lose all sense of heaven and earth, causing his whole body to go numb and unable to control himself, his heart trembling uncontrollably.

She had never called his name like this before. She would only respectfully and coldly call him “Your Highness,” as distant as if separated by clouds, never as intimately as calling him “Yue’er” now.

Did this mean that her affection for him had increased by another degree? He couldn’t help but hug her, his hands tightly clutching her sleeves, his chin nuzzling against her collar. Even if it was just a momentary pet name, the gentle echo in his ears was enough for him to savor for half a lifetime.

“That’s good. If I had known, I definitely wouldn’t have teased you earlier. It was all my fault.” She gently stroked his back. “Actually, I’m more than grateful that Your Highness could do these things for me. How could I blame you?”

Qiu Shuzhi’s voice sounded slightly cool at first, but upon careful listening, one could sense its gentleness and softness, with a strong ability to comfort, dispersing his tense nerves.

Even after returning to Fengyang Pavilion, the soft echoes of her voice still lingered in his mind. It was the most wonderful music in the world. If possible, he truly wished to become a small creature living on the strings of her voice, feeding on her voice and love night and day.

“Has Your Highness seen Lord Qiu?” Chang’an had been waiting for Yue Guanyi half the night, and finally seeing him return to the palace, immediately asked with a smile.

Yue Guanyi nodded. He had not yet extricated himself from that intimate and ambiguous encounter. The lingering warmth and subtle fragrance between his lips and teeth bloomed into a secret tryst known to no one.

He smiled foolishly like a man in love, looking up at the bright moon, wondering if Qiu Niang had gone to bed yet, and if she was looking at the same moon as him.

“Your Highness, let this humble servant help you retire,” Chang’an stepped forward, intending to remove his clothes, but Yue Guanyi pushed him away.

“Don’t come near!” He frowned deeply, staying far away from him.

These clothes had been embraced by Qiu Niang, still retaining her faint scent. He himself was reluctant to touch them much, fearing to soil that already ethereal fragrance.

Suddenly, he raised his head and asked, “Chang’an, who is the most famous courtesan in the capital?”

Chang’an was taken aback: “Why is Your Highness asking about this?”

Yue Guanyi didn’t explain: “Find her and send her to my private residence.”

“…Yes.” Chang’an retreated.

Yue Guanyi sat on the cold bed, wrapped in his clothes, as if still in Qiu Niang’s embrace, his expression longing.

His inadvertent low whimper and sob had made Qiu Niang cherish him like a precious treasure, even calling him by an endearment he dared not even dream of. Though unintentional, it made him understand how a man should please a woman to make her more tender towards him.

Courtesans were the most skilled at seducing women and knew best what kind of men women liked. Whether it was serving in bed or in daily life, they had all sorts of pleasing techniques at their fingertips.

Even if these techniques were considered vulgar and base by respectable families, as long as they could make Qiu Niang love him more, he was willing to become even a male prostitute.

He turned over, hugging his clothes tightly to his chest, falling asleep embracing her scent.