Chapter 271 Bathing

In just one day, Beiyuan was finally in sight.

This summer palace was built a long time ago, and many of its regulations were different from those of today. For example, the palaces and courtyards varied in size and were arranged in a staggered manner. They were almost like dozens of places to live, which were set aside in a mountain landscape, making it very quiet and cool.

Qi Yuxuan lived with the eldest princess in Fuqu Garden, which was halfway up the mountain and had the most beautiful scenery in the Beiyuan Palace. It was also very convenient as it was easy to go up and down the mountain.

This is because the Empress Dowager and the Emperor favor the eldest princess, and Qi Yuxuan has benefited from it.

They, as the masters, didn't need to worry about packing their belongings. Many of the items had already been delivered yesterday. Therefore, Qi Yuxuan only took a quick tour of the Fuqu Garden, where she would be staying for the next month, before heading straight to the Crown Prince's Shengxing Palace.

"cousin?"

Without waiting for an announcement, she lifted her skirt and stepped over the threshold, intending to find the Crown Prince.

Shengxing Palace is much larger than the East Palace. For some reason, there are no guards at the gate. The little eunuch who delivered the message has disappeared. Even Eunuch Sun, who usually accompanies the Crown Prince, is nowhere to be seen.

Feeling puzzled, she walked around for several dozen steps and suddenly saw a half-open door to her left, from which she could hear some sounds.

"cousin?"

She called out again before entering the room.

There was no response.

Is the Crown Prince not here? But that shouldn't be the case; everyone has just settled in, hasn't they?

As she was thinking, she had already stepped in with one foot. When she looked up, she met the gaze of the crown prince, who was soaking in the pool in the garden, shirtless.

The young man had a tall, fair, and strong body. His well-defined arms, chest, and lower abdomen, which were submerged in the water, were still covered with clear water droplets. He sat by the edge of a pool that was about two zhang in size, and his gaze was unusually blank.

Qi Yuxuan suddenly took two steps back, momentarily forgetting the threshold beside her feet, and tripped, falling backward to the ground with a thud, her buttocks immediately throbbing with pain.

"What are you doing taking a bath?!"

Her eyes widened, and she seemed to realize that staring like that was inappropriate, so she quickly looked away and scrambled to get out of the door.

"Splash—"

As the sound of water suddenly arose, Qi Jun casually wrapped a middle garment around himself, stepped barefoot onto the pebbles laid out on the garden ground, and strode quickly toward the little girl who was still sitting on the ground, her cheeks flushed red as if they could drip blood.

It's possible that the more flustered a person is, the more likely they are to make mistakes in simple, everyday actions.

She thrashed about with her hands and feet, but failed to get up from the ground. Instead, she looked like a turtle turned upside down, struggling in vain.

It wasn't until the Crown Prince reached out and scooped her up from the ground, nearly causing her to fall into his arms, that Qi Yuxuan finally regained her balance.

Does it hurt?

Qi Jun frowned. Behind her were pebbles, so this fall must have been quite serious.

Qi Yuxuan immediately took a big step back, her eyes fixed on the tips of her shoes, not daring to look around.

"No, no, I'm so sorry. I didn't know my cousin was taking a bath. The eunuch who delivered the message is nowhere to be found, and I was in a hurry, so I came in without waiting for the announcement... I'm not familiar with the layout of Shengxing Palace. I thought I would be led by guards or palace servants, but the huge palace was completely empty. I didn't mean to wander around aimlessly, nor did I intend to visit my cousin. I..."

The more she tried to explain, the more anxious she became, talking rapidly as if she were about to bite her own tongue.

"It's alright."

The crown prince's voice was calm, as if he were not the one being seen bathing.

Qi Yuxuan's heart calmed down a little, but the next moment, it was thrown high again by the other party's words—

"It's nothing serious that you saw me naked. In fact, you're the first girl I've ever seen... It's also my fault for being considerate of my staff who were tired from their journey and giving them half an hour to rest. Otherwise, this wouldn't have happened."

"You don't need to feel guilty. This was an accident, and I won't hold you responsible."

Qi Yuxuan felt her head buzzing. She bit her lower lip hard, her ears burning hot.

She clearly came to discuss serious matters, how did it turn out like this?!

"I'm sorry..."

"Cousin, since it's inconvenient for you, I'll come again tomorrow."

She finished speaking hastily and turned to leave.

He had only taken half a step when it felt like someone had grabbed him by the back of his collar, choking him.

"It's convenient, you tell me."

The prince's slow, deliberate voice came from behind her. He was so close that she could almost feel his warm breath on the back of her neck, which gave her goosebumps.

She said dryly, "Cousin, you should take a shower first. I can talk to you tomorrow."

Qi Jun stared at the back of the little girl's head and sighed silently in his heart.

"Then go ahead and wait, I'll be there soon."

Qi Yuxuan immediately agreed: "Okay!"

As soon as the restraint on the back of her collar loosened, she slipped away as fast as she could, ignoring even the Crown Prince's helpless calls for her to slow down, and ran off in a flash.

Qi Jun looked down at his wet undergarments, turned and went into his bedroom. He dried himself off and dressed, and after about half an incense stick's time, he returned to the front hall.

The little eunuch who was delivering the message appeared out of nowhere, looking around but not seeing Princess Chang Le.

"How strange! I only went to the outhouse for a short while, and the princess has already disappeared? Could she have already left?"

He muttered to himself, when suddenly he heard hurried footsteps behind him. He turned around abruptly and saw Princess Chang Le with a flushed face.

"Princess! Where have you been? I was just about to talk to you. The Crown Prince is taking a bath right now and will probably be gone in about fifteen minutes..."

Qi Yuxuan quickly replied, "I understand. I'll wait here for a while. You can go now."

She covered her face, afraid that someone would notice her embarrassing state, and tried to calm her pounding heart. After sitting down, she poured herself a full cup of tea and drank it down in big gulps.

Only then did she belatedly realize that something was wrong with her buttocks.

The ground there was covered with pebbles. Although every pebble used in the palace was carefully selected and perfectly round, falling on them would definitely hurt more than falling on flat ground.

There was no one in the main hall at the moment, so she subtly rubbed her hands to ease the discomfort.

She inevitably recalled the scene that had made her feel so awkward and embarrassed.

As for what the Crown Prince said about not having to take responsibility even if she saw his naked body... she wouldn't take that seriously.

Don't say she only glanced at the upper body. She's seen men playing polo shirtless on Dragon Boat Festival before. Even if she really saw the whole body, so what?

Unlike women, men are not bound to marry even if they are seen naked.

The Crown Prince must have been just joking when he said that.

Lost in her thoughts, she lost her earlier tension and embarrassment and quickly calmed down. But when she heard the Crown Prince's footsteps approaching, her heart started pounding again.