The next morning, Jing Zhe opened his eyes.

Contrary to her usual behavior, Liu Jinghong did not get up early. Instead, she remained in the same position as last night, lying on her side next to Jing Zhe, looking at him closely. Even when Jing Zhe opened his eyes, she did not look away, but instead looked at him even more carefully.

Such directness made Jing Zhe a little embarrassed.

Last night, although Jing Zhe tested Liu Jinghong's feelings for him, he still made advances at her, and even though she tried to push him away, it was to no avail.

However, Jing Zhe still held onto the last line. After feeling that he had thrown away all of Liu Jinghong's psychological constraints, he stopped and held her in his arms as they slept soundly.

The moment you open your eyes is now.

After exchanging a glance with Liu Jinghong, Jing Zhe remained calm and feigned curiosity: "Fifth Sister, did you sleep in my room again last night?"

Liu Jinghong didn't hesitate and nodded, her bright eyes filled with clear autumn water.

"Fifth Sister, I slept so well last night. I want to sleep with you again, just like when I was little!"

Jing Zhe then acted coquettishly, pulling Liu Jinghong closer to him.

This time, Liu Jinghong did not refuse.

Her long eyelashes fluttered, and her red lips parted slightly: "Zhe'er, is it really just like when we were little?"

"..."

Jing Zhe didn't react for a moment, but nodded and said, "Yes, when I was little, my sister would hold me like this to sleep. But now that I'm older, it's me holding my sister!"

This time, Liu Jinghong remained silent.

The autumn water in her eyes seemed to suddenly lose its ripples. She slowly sat up and said calmly, "Zhe'er, it's time to get up and go to court!"

"Oh, okay..."

Jing Zhe sat up and looked at Liu Jinghong, who had already gotten out of bed and seemed to be doing nothing wrong, and suddenly felt a little puzzled.

It seems... she's unhappy?

She should have performed flawlessly, so why was she disappointed?

Jing Zhe thought to himself with a headache.

At this moment, Liu Jinghong brought him water from outside and put down the new clothes as well: "My second sister asked me to bring these back yesterday. Wear these to court today!"

"oh."

After saying that, he went out.

Zhu Xinning brought a cotton robe without any embroidery or patterns, perhaps because she felt the occasion was too formal and it wasn't appropriate to wear something too flashy.

After he finished dressing, Liu Jinghong had also changed into a set of silver-white armor and stood in the dim light, looking heroic and dashing.

At that moment, the door was pushed open, and Zhu Xinning came in.

"Are you all ready? Then let's go to court together!"

...

The three of them boarded the carriage together.

From the moment she boarded the carriage, Liu Jinghong remained silent. She lifted the curtain slightly, gazing into the distance with a calm expression.

Zhu Xinning seemed to have noticed Liu Jinghong's strange behavior as well, and gestured towards Jing Zhe with her lip, as if asking him what was wrong.

Jing Zhe helplessly shrugged, indicating that he didn't know either.

I was still wondering: what exactly is it that Fifth Sister is angry about?

Sigh, all I can say is that a woman's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea!

Before long, the carriage arrived smoothly outside the palace gate.

As soon as they got out of the car, they saw that Zhu Tong and Chen Jiannan had already arrived and were standing outside the palace gate, seemingly waiting for them.

Chen Jiannan looked somewhat disheveled, perhaps because he had gotten up too late. His hair was messy and he hadn't had time to tidy it up. He was wearing the same clothes as yesterday, his face was pale, and his eyes were bloodshot. It seemed that he hadn't slept well last night.

However, it's understandable. Someone who can't hold their liquor but is forced to drink until they're completely drunk, and then dragged out of bed early in the morning, is bound to be in a bad mood.

Chen Jiannan stood outside the palace gate, initially in a daze, but when he suddenly saw Jing Zhe getting out of the car with two beauties, he seemed to be injected with adrenaline and instantly became energetic.

That bastard!

He got me drunk last night, but he seems perfectly fine.

Moreover, since we've both been drinking, why do I have to go to court with an old man while he gets to have two beauties?

God, this is so unfair!

"Uncle has arrived!"

Zhu Tong nodded. "Since you're all here, let's go into the palace together!"

So the group of five prepared to enter the palace. Jing Zhe didn't forget to greet Chen Jiannan: "Brother Chen, you can really hold your liquor! You drank so much yesterday, and you're still so energetic today. I, on the other hand, can't do it. My head is throbbing!"

As he spoke, Jing Zhe touched his head, as if it really hurt.

Hearing that he was in pain, Chen Jiannan suddenly felt his head hurt less and laughed, "Young Master Jing, I thought you were fine after drinking, but I didn't expect you to be so weak! It seems you still need to work on your drinking capacity! As talented men, we not only need to be good at poetry, but we also need to be good at drinking!"

As he spoke, Chen Jiannan deliberately glanced at Zhu Xinning, puffed out his chest and held his head high, looking very energetic.

However, Zhu Xinning didn't even glance at him, which made him a little disappointed. Zhu Tong, on the other hand, looked at him a few times, and then at Jing Zhe. He was sure he could tell who had a better alcohol tolerance.

He shook his head again, thinking that Jing Zhe was able to discuss matters with Emperor An alone and severely defeat the third prince of Southern Qi. With such mental fortitude, Chen Jiannan seemed insufficient.

But Chen Jiannan still likes to use him as a hypothetical enemy. I don't know whether I should pity him or not. But it's good that way. The stronger the opponent, the greater his progress should be.

Jing Zhe wasn't angry at all. He waved his hand and said, "Brother Chen is absolutely right! I still have a lot to learn from Brother Chen about drinking capacity! There's no time like the present, so let's have a drink today! After court, let's have another round, and we won't leave until we're drunk!"

As she spoke, she glanced at Liu Jinghong again, wondering if he would act the same way as last night after he got "drunk" again.

Hehe, I'm really looking forward to it!

Seemingly sensing his ill-intentioned gaze, Liu Jinghong didn't dare to look at him, her expression remaining calm, only slightly turning her head to one side, as if nothing had happened.

But the blush creeping up her fair neck betrayed her true feelings.

"..."

Chen Jiannan's original intention was just to show off, but he didn't expect to end up with a lot of trouble instead of showing off.

His head was still throbbing. If it weren't for the court session, he would never have gotten out of bed. He was just waiting for the session to end so he could go back and get some rest and recharge!

After court, shall we continue?

Headache!

"Young Master Jing... I think we don't need to do this today!"

"What, Brother Chen, do you look down on me?"

"No, I just feel..."

"Brother Chen, were you just bragging?"

"Who blew it?"

Chen Jiannan retorted, "I just feel that from today onwards, we're all officials appointed by the imperial court. How can we drink every day?"

"What if Brother Chen's boss makes you drink it?"

"As an official, it's naturally difficult to refuse one's superior..."

Chen Jiannan glanced at Jing Zhe, thinking to himself, "Anyway, you can't be my boss! You like to drink, right? Once I become your boss, I'll get you drunk!"

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