Chapter 60 "For me, and for her too."...

The emperor suddenly thrust his waist forward, and Yuan Chaolu was swept into the depths of the churning brocade quilt. She felt a surge of emotion welling up from her heart and flowing over her limbs and bones.

...

The Changqiu Palace was eerily quiet; the only sounds in the air were the rapid beating of hearts and the rhythm of each other's breathing.

As the storm subsided, Yuan Chaolu buried her face in the cloud-like pillow, looking as listless as a dewy crabapple blossom, as if it would shatter at the slightest touch.

Even though Yuan Chaolu felt she was in good physical condition, she felt as if all her strength had been drained, and she collapsed there limply. Her black hair cascaded down her snowy back, and her sweaty fingertips rested on the wooden headboard, tightly gripping it, or perhaps she had forgotten to let go.

If it weren't for her faint breathing and the gentle rise and fall of her shoulders and back, one would have thought she had been killed on the bed.

She turned her head to look back, a few strands of her hair clinging to her sweaty cheeks, her eyes and brows tinged with a hint of spring passion, her cherry lips slightly parted, her eyes sparkling, making one want to press their palm against her slender neck once more.

Xiao Zhuo squinted and looked down at her, the veins on his long neck still pulsating, as he was still recovering from the afterglow.

The first time Xiao Zhuo saw her in his dream, she was just like that, as if made of water, impossible to break apart.

Before coming to Changqiu Palace tonight, Xiao Zhuo met with someone else besides the Prince of Yan—

"Your Majesty had two dreams in which a woman tempted you to indulge in lust. Was the woman in those dreams actually Miss Yuan the Second?"

The hall was quiet and empty, shutting out all noise. As always, Xiao Zhuo sat opposite Ying Hui during their Buddhist rituals.

"Yes, in the first dream, she mentioned that she and her husband were not on good terms after marriage. I originally thought it was because of the marriage I had arranged between her and the Prince of Yan, so I agreed to annul the engagement. Unexpectedly, not long after, she became engaged to Pei Xi."

Xiao Zhuo raised his eyes and said, "Only then did I realize that the husband she tearfully told me about in the second dream was Pei Xi."

Abbot Yinghui paused abruptly with his prayer beads, pondered for a long time, and then sighed, "Back then, I said that His Majesty's dream might be a harbinger of the future, but now I think it could also be a dream from a past life."

"Unresolved past issues?" Xiao Zhuo asked, his eyes meeting the flickering candlelight.

Abbot Yinghui nodded: "It is the lingering obsession from the past that has manifested in the dream, giving His Majesty an opportunity to set things right. Such things do not happen often, but they are not uncommon."

Abbot Yinghui quoted Buddhist scriptures to explain, his gaze distant, "His Majesty is troubled by the past and has always had a heartache. Miss Yuan Er may be the opportunity to lead His Majesty to escape."

"However, whether this opportunity is a tribulation or a blessing depends on Your Majesty."

Xiao Zhuo has always been adept at navigating the battle between desire and self-destruction. He watched himself sink deeper and deeper into depravity with a clear mind, experiencing a long-lost sense of pleasure. Even now, with her by his side, he has not escaped her control.

Ultimately, he still retained his rationality. Even if he married her and brought her into the palace, he would never stoop to the point of losing control due to love. Now, he was navigating between the two bottom lines of losing control and rationality, which brought him a strange pleasure that surpassed that of the past.

at the moment……

Xiao Zhuo returned to his room and met the clear, gentle gaze of the woman in front of him. As he drew closer again, she said in a hoarse voice, "No more, tonight is enough."

Everything is in just the right balance right now.

He can grasp it, just like—

He grasped her waist again, causing her eyes to redden. She repeatedly said no, and as she shook her head, her long black hair brushed against the back of his hand, like a struggling fish.

**

The moon hangs high in the sky, its clear light casting a thin blanket over the grass and trees. As the night deepens and the dew grows heavier, the crabapple trees under the eaves can no longer withstand the moisture of the night dew and lazily bend over.

At this moment, the world was a dazzling white, as if someone had inadvertently spilled a cup of silver nectar, which was now scattered all over the ground.

As night deepens, some people warm their hearts in their tents, while others get drunk under the moon.

Prince Xiao Luozhi of Yan sat in the courtyard, gazing at the bright moon in the sky. He tilted his head back and drank another cup of wine, the liquid sliding down his chin and into the depths of his clothes, completely unaware. He looked up at the bright moon in the sky.

"I am His Majesty's own brother, how can His Majesty treat me like this?" Xiao Luo rested his hands on the stone table.

Pei Xi stepped forward and took the wine cup from the Prince of Yan's hand. "Your Highness, you have drunk enough."

Xiao Luozhi waved his hand and pushed the person away.

"My brother can like whoever he wants, any girl is fine with me, I won't say a word about anyone else, so why Yuan Chaolu?"

His brows furrowed tightly: "If my brother had told me earlier that they had been in contact, and that the one riding the heavenly horse in the martial arts review was clearly Yuan Chaolu, I wouldn't have ended up like this!"

The night dew dampened the Prince of Yan's stray hairs, which clung to his cheeks, making his drunken face appear even more flushed.

Pei Xi gestured for the Prince of Yan's attendants to leave, then helped the swaying Xiao Luozhi, saying, "Your Highness, it's time for you to return."

Xiao Luozhi turned around and grabbed Pei Xi, saying, "Yuan Chaolu painted a picture for me and went to the pleasure boat with me. We have a lot to talk about. I have never met a woman like her before, but she has no feelings for my brother. She said she is afraid of him. Every time I meet the Emperor, I feel like I am walking on thin ice. How could she possibly feel at ease..."

"My brother would never cherish her. Teacher, why don't you and I go find her now?"

Young people are usually sincere, but they are also prone to acting on their emotions. Now, they have been betrayed by their closest relatives, which has brought them great pain. They have nowhere to vent their resentment.

Pei Xi said, "Originally, she was the second young lady of the Yuan family who was not yet married, but now she is your sister-in-law. Your Highness, Prince Yan, should no longer be concerned about the Empress."

Xiao Luozhi turned around, his eyes red-rimmed: "Teacher, don't you feel even a little bit sad?"

Pei Xi stared at the Prince of Yan for a long time without saying a word, then released him.

Xiao Luozhi said, "So what if she's the Empress? She might be married and not doing well, yet I'm still willing to marry her..."

Pei Xi heard footsteps behind him, and when Lu Changli arrived at his side, this was the first thing he heard.

The two high-ranking officials present frowned in unison.

Lu Changli looked at Pei Xi and said, "Your Highness is being ridiculous. You stay here, and I will go get some hangover soup."

Pei Xi nodded, but then saw the Prince of Yan lean against the railing again, coughing violently and vomiting up all the wine.

Pei Xi's gaze swept over the lanterns hung under the corridor for the Emperor and Empress's wedding, his eyes filled with silence.

The courtyard is not far from the Imperial Medical Bureau. Since many guests are staying in the palace tonight, all the imperial physicians in the Imperial Medical Bureau are on duty. At this moment, the lights and candles in a row of halls are also lit.

When Lu Changli entered the Imperial Medical Bureau, he happened to see two women talking in the courtyard.

Qi Yu whispered instructions to the physician in front of him, but when she saw her gaze gesturing, she turned around and was surprised to find that Lu Changli had already been standing a zhang away.

Lu Changli's gaze swept past Qi Yu and then fell on the veiled woman. "This imperial physician looks extremely unfamiliar."

"Yes, this is a newly recruited female physician from the Imperial Medical Academy named Qingheng. I am currently giving her some instructions."

"Qingheng," Qi Yu said, looking at the woman beside him, "come and greet Minister Lu of the Ministry of Personnel."

The woman, carrying a medicine box, stepped forward and bowed her slender body in greeting. The night breeze lifted a corner of her plain white veil.

Above the veil were a pair of gentle eyes, but below her cheeks, a horrifying centipede-like scar clung, making her entire face appear exceptionally ugly.

She spoke, her voice hoarse as if someone had ruined it, "Lord Lu."

Lu Changli looked away and said, "I need some hangover soup."

The Imperial Medical Bureau had naturally prepared hangover soup for the night. Qi Yu called out loudly to the people in the Imperial Medical Bureau, and soon Lu Changli left with the food box.

Only when that figure completely disappeared into the dark night did Qi Yu turn around to look at the person beside him. He saw her staring intently at Lu Changli's back, her eyes calm as still water, undisturbed in the slightest.

With no outsiders present, Qi Yu entered the bedchamber. The candles were not lit, and he groped for the lampstand in the darkness.

"Are you really sure you want to enter the palace? It's not too late to back out now, but once you start moving around the Imperial Medical Bureau, you won't be able to leave easily."

Qi Yu looked up as he spoke, only to see—

The woman in the mirror is touching her face.

Then, as if her fingertips had found some hidden seam, she applied a little force, and the layer of skin attached to her cheek made a "ripping" sound as it peeled off her cheek.

This is a flawless, indistinguishable mask.

The moonlight illuminated the woman's face beneath her skin. She raised her eyes, her gaze firm yet gentle: "From the day I chose to step into Luoyang, I had already thought things through."

"For me, and for her."

**

The sky was bright, and the morning light shone through the latticed windows, casting dappled patterns of light inside the hall.

The palace maid held a large mirror in her hands, reflecting the image of the Empress. She had changed into a court dress, her long black hair was tied up high, and her hair was adorned with gorgeous pearl hairpins. She was touching the marks on her neck that had not yet faded in front of the mirror, but her spirit was refreshed and showed no signs of fatigue.

In the mirror, behind him on a bed draped in light gauze, the king still slept soundly.

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The author's note: His Majesty's downfall has its own rhythm.