Volume 1 Chapter 33
Long Yi looked at Leng Jiu for a while, as if his gaze could penetrate her, but she remained calm and lightly smiled, without any hint of reluctance or nervousness on her face. Suddenly, the dark clouds lingering in his heart dispersed, and he couldn’t help but laugh at himself, realizing how ridiculous it was to suspect her of falling in love with someone else, especially someone like Hua Jinzhi. He felt like he was delusional!
He laughed aloud, “What the Empress Dowager said is indeed true. However, I haven’t decided on this reward yet, I’ll leave it until I return to the palace to discuss. As for the matter of marriage…” He turned to look at Hua Jinzhi, “Do you have any preferred woman?”
Hua Jinzhi shook his head, “I’ve been stationed at the border, just returned to the capital recently, how could I have a preferred woman?”
“In that case, do you like Princess Seven or Princess Eight? I remember you’ve met several times in the study hall!”
Hua Jinzhi solemnly replied, “I thank the Empress Dowager and Your Majesty for your kindness, but I am just a nameless soldier, yet to achieve any merit. It’s too early for me to marry.”
Long Yi naturally knew he would refuse, and he wasn’t surprised or annoyed. Moreover, he felt he had seen through Leng Jiu’s heart, feeling very good at the moment, “Since Jinzhi is unwilling, I won’t force it. If one day you meet a woman you like, I’ll arrange the marriage for you. How about that?”
Hua Jinzhi still bowed his head, “Thank you, Your Majesty!”
Leng Jiu waved her hand, “Enough! Just consider it a casual remark. I’m feeling a bit unwell today after seeing so much. I’ll return to the palace to rest for a while. I hope everyone enjoys themselves!”
“Farewell, Empress Dowager!”
Leng Jiu left without even a glance back, took a few steps and her body stiffened slightly. Lu Chang quickly supported her, worriedly saying, “Your Majesty, be careful!”
Long Yi frowned slightly at this, calling for Qu Gonggong, “Is the Empress Dowager really in such poor health?”
Qu Gonggong smiled at his words, whispered something in Long Yi’s ear, and immediately his frown disappeared, replaced by a smile!
There aren’t many things in the world that could make Leng Jiu annoyed, but menstruation is definitely one of them, especially in this ancient time without sanitary pads. It’s practically life-threatening!
Lu Chang had the phoenix carriage brought over and helped Leng Jiu onto it, finally seeing her relax a bit!
Knowing she was feeling uncomfortable at the moment, Lu Chang tried to find something to say, hoping to distract her attention, “Why did the Empress Dowager suddenly think of arranging a marriage for Master Hua today?”
Leng Jiu leaned weakly against the cushion, lifted her eyelids at the sound, “Long Yi was suspicious, causing a scene at my place last night because of Hua Jinzhi. Today, he’s using the marriage to Hua Jinzhi to test me. Since that’s the case, I’ll bring up the marriage matter first and let him test to his heart’s content!”
In Leng Jiu’s view, Long Yi was just being paranoid, picking faults for no reason, even acting like he was betrayed. It’s ridiculous. He ignored her when she loved him deeply, and now that she’s ignoring him, he’s causing trouble. Men are just incorrigible!
Only then did Lu Chang understand the reason behind today’s incident, “But Master Hua’s complexion didn’t seem good!”
Leng Jiu narrowed her eyes, “I don’t care about him! None of them are reliable. You’re the only good one, although you’re a bit cheeky, at least you haven’t caused me any trouble!”
Lu Chang chuckled at her words, looking at Leng Jiu inside the carriage, “The Empress Dowager is seeking amusement again. If I dared to cause trouble for the Empress Dowager, I would have been kicked far away by the Empress Dowager long ago!”
Leng Jiu felt powerless and didn’t want to say much to him. She lay on the pillow like a soft bone, “Hurry up! I want to go back and bathe!”
“Yes, yes!” Lu Chang hurriedly agreed and urged the carriage bearers to quicken their pace!
Back in the palace, Leng Jiu immediately plunged into the bath, thoroughly washing herself, and then changing into clean clothes. Only then did she seem to come alive again. Previously, she felt uncomfortable during her period, but never like this, it’s like it’s killing her, really tormenting her!
Having someone bring lunch, she ate hastily before going to bed to sleep, although she slept quite a bit last night. At this moment, although feeling a bit drowsy, she couldn’t fall asleep no matter what. Helplessly getting up: “Lu Chang!”
“I’m here!” Lu Chang hurriedly came in, “What does Your Majesty command?”
Leng Jiu patted her drowsy head, “Go fetch a thick cloak for me, I want to go for a walk!”
“Yes!”
Soon, Lu Chang brought a thick fox fur cloak, pure white in color, looking very beautiful. It seemed warm without needing to be worn, but does she have such a cloak?
When Leng Jiu saw the confusion in Lu Chang’s eyes, he smiled and said, “This is something the Emperor just sent over, saying that a few white foxes were killed a few days ago and Xiu Niang just finished weaving it today. It was originally intended for Lady Li, but somehow it ended up here. I saw that this fox fur is both warm and beautiful, so I kept it. I couldn’t let Lady Li have it cheaply!”
Leng Jiu smirked at the words, “Forget it! Although the person who sent the gift isn’t great, it’s still a good item. Why bother with oneself?”
“Just so!” Lu Chang agreed, then opened the cloak and draped it over Leng Jiu, tidying her hair a bit. He exclaimed, “Your Majesty is beautiful, and only this kind of cloak can complement your beauty!”
“You’re flattering!” Leng Jiu shook off the cloak. It wasn’t heavy, but once worn, it felt warm. It was quite chilly when she got up just now, but now it felt like being wrapped in a blanket, quite comfortable!
“Let’s go! Let’s take a stroll in the garden!”
Leng Jiu originally wanted to see the peonies and chrysanthemums, but when she saw a group of birds playing in the distance, she lost interest!
Seeing Leng Jiu’s furrowed brows again, Lu Chang immediately said, “I know of a quiet place here where ordinary people won’t go. Although there are no peonies, there’s a cluster of bamboo under the Princess Xiang’s pavilion, where chrysanthemums are planted. It should be in full bloom now!”
“Yeah! Let’s go take a look!”
Lu Chang led Leng Jiu to a secluded courtyard in the southwest. There were also several palaces here, but no one was living here at the moment. The palace maids who were supposed to watch over had been reassigned to help elsewhere, so it was particularly quiet here! Behind the last palace was a bamboo forest of Princess Xiang. It wasn’t large, but it wasn’t small either. Under the bamboo, a few clusters of wild chrysanthemums grew untended, but they bloomed very luxuriantly!
The fragrance of bamboo mixed with the scent of chrysanthemums slightly lifted Leng Jiu’s mood. She walked along the secluded path and found a vacant grassy area in the middle of the bamboo forest. The lush greenery underfoot felt extremely comfortable. Leng Jiu was never one to worry about formalities. She simply lay down on the grass. With the thick fox fur wrapping her, she didn’t feel cold. The thick green grass beneath her was very comfortable. The sky above was a deep blue, and there was the rustling sound of bamboo leaves in her ears, which was extremely delightful!
Lu Chang originally wanted to remind Leng Jiu that the ground was cool, but seeing her enjoying herself, he didn’t say anything extra. He just made a mental note to have some ginger soup or ginger tea brewed when they returned!
Feeling in a good mood, Leng Jiu was about to doze off drowsily when she suddenly heard Lu Chang calling out, “Your Majesty!”
Leng Jiu slightly opened her eyes and glanced sideways. A red figure was walking towards them from the edge of the bamboo forest, and his gaze was fixed on her!
“The Empress is resting here. Master Hua, please don’t disturb!” Lu Chang blocked Hua Jinzhi’s path.
Upon hearing Leng Jiu’s words, Lu Chang stepped aside and walked to the entrance to stand guard!
Hua Jinzhi walked step by step to Leng Jiu’s side, looking down at her from a higher position. At this moment, his heart stirred again with a kind of ripple that he couldn’t control. She was wrapped in a fox fur, with only her face exposed. Wrapped in a white fox fur, her small face looked fair and rosy, not that she had a very small face, but at this moment, it looked delicate and exquisite, making it hard to look away. She was very beautiful. Compared to every time he had seen her since her return, she was more beautiful than ever. And those thoughts he had never dared to think of all surged up from the bottom of his heart, unable to be suppressed!
“Why are you here?” Seeing him staring at her for a long time without speaking, Leng Jiu finally opened her eyes, but still didn’t get up. She didn’t feel like moving right now!
Hua Jinzhi snapped out of his reverie from his own thoughts, knelt down beside her within a foot, and looked at her. This moment was a moment of awakening, and his heart was full of anger and sadness!
“You… why did you arrange a marriage for me?”
Leng Jiu knew he would ask this, sighed and said, “You’re already eighteen. Others would have married and had children at eighteen. Is it wrong for me to arrange a marriage for you? Besides, you have a marriage contract with the royal princess. My arranging a marriage is just a formality. Is it important?”
Upon hearing Leng Jiu’s indifferent tone, a wave of anger surged up in Hua Jinzhi’s heart. “But you never asked for my opinion. Even if there’s a marriage contract, I couldn’t marry the princess. Who gave you the right to make decisions without my consent?”
Leng Jiu was speechless. “In the end, it didn’t succeed, did it?”
“But you wanted to marry me to someone else. Isn’t this wrong?” Hua Jinzhi growled softly, turning to look into Leng Jiu’s eyes, his face full of anger and sadness!
Leng Jiu was slightly stunned. “I just said it casually. If it made you angry, I apologize!”
Hua Jinzhi became even angrier, so angry that his fair face turned red. “You foolish woman, you… you…”
“You’ve been mumbling for half a day without making any sense,” Hua Jinzhi said anxiously, his eyes widening. But Leng Jiu just looked innocent, which made Hua Jinzhi even angrier. His gaze swept over her slightly parted lips, and without knowing why, he suddenly leaned in, kissing her red lips and fiercely biting!
Startled by his sudden attack like a wild beast, Leng Jiu’s heart skipped a beat. The pain on her lips made her furrow her brows. “Ouch! It hurts!”
Hua Jinzhi’s body stiffened at her words, but he didn’t let go. His movements on her lips involuntarily softened a bit. The roughness and anger were gone, replaced by caution and lingering.
Looking at his face up close, Leng Jiu saw that his skin was not as delicate as a woman’s, but it was smooth and flawless, without a single blemish. Perhaps due to embarrassment or anger, his fair skin was now tinged with a rosy hue, incredibly beautiful! Although the kiss on her lips was not very intense, it stirred her heart like a feather, making her unable to resist feeling slightly moved!
Raising her hand to gently prop up his head a bit, Leng Jiu looked directly into his somewhat embarrassed and lustful eyes. “Do you know what you’re doing?”
Hua Jinzhi bit his lip and grunted, “You kissed me that day, and now I’m kissing you back, so we’re even!”
Leng Jiu raised an eyebrow. “Unfortunately, it seems it’s not that simple now!”
With that, she pressed down on Hua Jinzhi’s head and pressed her lips against his. Her petite tongue skillfully parted his lips, carrying a scorching flame that engulfed his tongue, along with his thoughts!
For a moment, Hua Jinzhi was stunned by Leng Jiu’s actions. The sweetness in his mouth made him tremble. His hands couldn’t help but hold her body tightly, then he closed his eyes and immersed himself in this deep kiss!
Initially, it was Leng Jiu taking the lead, but soon Hua Jinzhi learned. His fiery tongue counterattacked, constantly drawing nectar from her mouth, along with her strength, gradually dissipating in this kiss!
As the kiss ended, Leng Jiu lay on Hua Jinzhi’s shoulder, her face flushed red, her lips slightly parted as she breathed lightly. Hua Jinzhi wasn’t much better off. If the first kiss taught him the beauty of kissing a woman, then this kiss was like a poison, deeply addicting him! Because of his lack of experience, he was also blushing hotly, his chest rising and falling continuously. Obviously, he had been holding his breath for a while. His bright eyes now had a different color, like blooming peach blossoms, enchanting and soul-stirring!
The incredibly soft body in his arms made him reluctant to let go. He trembled all the way to the tip of his heart. Her fragrance, her warmth, at this moment, everything about her fascinated him. Lowering his head slightly, he met her dazed eyes, and his heart trembled again. Lowering his head slightly more, he looked at her slightly parted red lips and couldn’t help but lower his head again…
－－－－－－ Afterword －－－－－－
I’m very straightforward! Nearly four thousand words! Ah, Hua Jinzhi kissed her, and it was a French kiss! Hurry up and shower me with flowers and diamonds, haha! Also, the scoundrel hasn’t been active for a long time. I plan to let him out for a stroll tomorrow, haha!