Chapter 69: Imprisonment (1) [VIP]

After another moment of silence, she had nothing to hide now, so she spoke first, determined to tell the maid everything: "Ying'er, if you have any questions, don't keep them to yourself. I will answer them truthfully."

Meng Ying'er frowned in thought, then hesitated for a moment before saying, "When did you and Mr...."

"Do you still remember that late night when you knocked on my door?" Recalling the night her husband barged into her boudoir, she felt as if it were a lifetime ago. She smiled wistfully and replied softly to the maid, "He was in my room at the time, so I didn't dare open the door."

The master had already announced it to everyone, so she no longer needed to lie to the girl. From now on, she could tell her story with peace of mind. From then on, she walked alone, having nothing to do with the Music Bureau.

Hearing her frank words, Meng Ying'er's mind drifted back to that quiet moonlit night. She paused in wonder, then shamelessly asked, "It's been so long? Then... did Qingluo and the gentleman ever get intimate?"

Chu Qingluo's cheeks flushed red at the sound of the words. The tenderness of a few moments ago still surfaced in her mind. She hesitated, at a loss for words: "Ying'er, this is a private matter between me and my husband. I don't want to disclose it to others."

Unexpectedly, the girl's eyes darkened. After a moment's thought, she whispered in a complaining tone, "You just said you would answer truthfully. I just asked a question, and you changed your mind so quickly."

"Hmm..." She quietly avoided the girl's gaze, not understanding why she insisted on knowing. She just hummed softly, feeling the shame she had just felt spreading all around her.

The master had clearly explained everything to everyone in the mansion, but for some reason, she still felt like she was having an affair.

The step did not move for a long time. Meng Ying'er was stunned when she heard the words. She lowered her eyes and rubbed the corner of her sleeve. She hesitated and said, "I mean...skin-to-skin contact."

"Does Ying'er have to know this?" Chu Qingluo knew that the girl was referring to the man in the tent. She also knew that the girl had admired the gentleman for many years and did not want to hurt her too deeply.

"I just want to let go of my hope..." Meng Ying'er forced a smile, her face looking particularly embarrassed, and her worry already revealed, "Since you are Qingluo's beloved, I can give up my hope from now on and stop dreaming like that."

The maid was not good at hiding her feelings. Although she had expressed her happiness and was glad to see her and her husband getting along so well, when this day really came, she was still worried in her heart.

“I have…”

She answered cautiously, her embarrassment gradually fading away. She carefully observed Meng Ying'er's expression and saw that the girl was both embarrassed and hurt, as if she knew that the flawless white jade she had been thinking about for years had been completely tarnished.

The pretty girl beside her was trembling violently, as if she hated her to the core. She had expected this day to come, and the past affection would end here.

"Sir, you value etiquette as your life, but for you, you've already abandoned it..." After a long while, Meng Ying'er finally spoke softly. She shook her head in disbelief, tears streaming down her face, her eyes silently wet. "I never knew that Sir would be so bent on doing this for a girl."

"It seems that I still don't understand you, sir..." The girl wiped away her tears with her sleeves and suddenly smiled at her.

"Qingluo, you must treat the master well. He must be a perfect husband and will never treat you unfairly."

She knew the maid's thoughts from the beginning to the end, and knew that her feelings for Mr. Qu surpassed those of any other woman in the mansion. Yet, she continued to spend many hours with Mr. Qu, hiding it from her closest friend, Miss Meng, in the Siyue Mansion.

She has always been cold-hearted, almost heartless, and she should have given up these so-called friendships between the schools long ago.

Chu Qingluo's face was slightly cold, and she asked the pretty figure beside her: "Ying'er, don't you blame me for not telling you?"

"I... I have nothing to blame." Meng Ying'er's almond-shaped eyes couldn't hide the loss and sorrow. She looked up at the cloudless blue sky and sighed to herself, "This is a private matter between Qingluo and Mr., there's no need to tell anyone else."

"You are my only friend in this mansion, and I didn't want you to come between us," she hesitated, wanting to tell another lie. She said a few words and then stopped. "I wanted to find a chance to tell you, but I didn't expect you..."

This was also a lie. She had never thought of telling the maid. Even if everyone knew about it, she would not say a word to the maid.

She is full of hatred, and if she wants to protect her friends, she should stay as far away from them as possible.

"It's normal for you to feel resentful. When you want to see me one day, you can come find me again," Chu Qingluo said indifferently, seeing through the girl's sorrow, and motioned for the girl to go back to the pavilion for a rest. "If you don't want to see me in this life, it's also what I deserve."

"I am indeed a little sad..." Tears welled up in her eyes again. Meng Yatou pursed her red lips, choked up for a moment, and asked in a trembling voice, "Who came up with this idea first, you or sir?"

"I can't remember, maybe both," she thought, her words becoming more harsh. "It was all consensual, there was no coercion. He had feelings, I had no intention, and the pleasure we had in bed was for both of us to enjoy."

Meng Ying'er seemed stunned and took a few steps back unconsciously. She turned around, covering her tearful face and heading back to her room: "I'm going back to my room to be quiet for a while. I'm sorry, I..."

"Go,

A cool breeze blew around, Chu Qingluo wrapped her thin clothes tightly and walked out of the courtyard steadily.

The pretty figure walked away lonely. Even though she couldn't hear the sobbing, she knew that Meng girl would cry for a long time after returning to the pavilion.

As she was about to take a step forward, Feng Yang seemed to have sensed the cool breeze and brought her a cloak, gently draping it over her shoulders.

"Feng Yan, let's go." There was no turning back here, so she walked decisively, looked at the carriage, and quickly stepped into it. "If you don't go back,

"Did the princess cry?" The man in black followed closely and stared at her for a moment. He found that she had tears that had not been wiped away, and he felt panicked.

Chu Qingluo leaned on Yu Fengyan's shoulder with a faint smile, closed her eyes slightly, and replied calmly.

"The wind was so strong in the courtyard just now that sand got into my eyes."

Feng Yan looked at her with pity and held her in his arms, wanting her to sleep more comfortably: "They are all just passing visitors. I am the princess's home."

"You are absolutely right. I shouldn't be troubled." After a moment's silence, she smiled softly, her lips revealing her usual coldness.

The Si Yuefu behind her seemed like a sweet dream she had, but now that the dream was over, she should be completely awake.

But the clearer she became, the lonelier she felt...

The Lingning Hall in the palace is still majestic and solemn, surrounded by green tiles and red eaves, magnificent and majestic, but it makes people feel particularly quiet and cold.

The hazy and dim setting sun shone through the high wall. She walked in and ordered Feng Xuan to hide in the shadows among the trees.

A palace maid in the garden saw a bright and beautiful figure approaching with lotus steps. She hurriedly bowed to her and bowed respectfully: "Miss Chu is back. His Highness has been waiting for her."

It was not yet nightfall, but His Highness was already waiting for her in the palace. He must have been angered by her actions during the day and was thinking about how to punish her.

Chu Qingluo nodded calmly and followed the palace maid into the bedroom under the sunset.

There is a carved screen separating the hall. Pearl curtains on both sides sway in the wind, and light smoke and faint fragrance are lingering. A person is sitting leisurely on the mahogany couch.

Seeing the charming woman approaching, the arrogant figure narrowed his eyes slightly, dismissed the dancers surrounding the couch, and cast a gloomy gaze on her.

"I pay my respects to His Highness the Ninth Prince," Chu Qingluo bowed gracefully and spoke humbly, "I heard that His Highness has been waiting for me for a long time, so I deserve to be punished."

She pronounced the word "concubine" gently, as if she had really given up her heart. From then on, she regarded him as her master and served him wholeheartedly.

Chu Yanshuo looked at her meaningfully with his narrowed eyes still closed, then chuckled: "Since leaving Lingning Palace, you have been inseparable from Mr. Qu. There are already rumors in the palace that you and Mr. Qu are having an affair..."

"Hahahahaha..." His laughter was filled with a hint of chill and subtle anger. The Ninth Prince leisurely approached her, chuckled, stroked her hair, and whispered in her ear, "Don't you think this rumor is ridiculous?"

The rumor of the kiss on the palace road might have been known to His Majesty the Ninth Prince. The master said it would take a few days, but she felt that with his spies throughout the palace, he would know everything within half a day.

"From now on, I will not see you, sir."

She looked at him calmly, but she didn't expect the hand entangled in the black hair to move to her neck, pinch her neck, and gently apply force.

"My beauty, please think carefully about who is your master..."

His eyes gradually turned sinister. Chu Yanshuo pinched her neck tightly, increasing his strength. He watched her face turn pale, and a sense of satisfaction welled up in his heart: "I was wrong, but I will be punished..."

She pinched the man's wrist too tightly. Chu Qingluo's face was calm, but her reply was intermittent: "I...I will obey Your Highness. From now on...from now on, I will serve Your Highness wholeheartedly."

The Ninth Prince let go in an instant, his thoughts impossible to discern. He waved his sleeves and ordered all the maids in the bedroom to leave.

"You all should leave now. I only want her to serve me tonight."

Before nightfall, His Highness wanted to go into the warm and soft tent with her. He must have been eager to possess her. Chu Qingluo was stunned for a moment, and seeing that there were only two people left in the hall, she quietly grasped the dagger in her sleeve.

"What are you standing there for? Can't you take off your clothes?" Chu Yanshuo frowned slightly, and suddenly looked at him with displeasure, with a hint of sarcasm in his words.

"Hasn't Mr. Naqu taught you how to please a man?"

After hearing this, she approached with a sweet smile, unbuttoning her robe leisurely, and then began to flatter: "Sir, you teach me the zither and elegant conduct. As for the art of pleasing others on the couch, I am waiting for your instruction."

The delicate figure in front of him smiled like a flower, her eyelashes slightly drooped, even more enchanting than when he first saw her. Chu Yanshuo stared at her silently, then suddenly grasped her slender jade fingers and asked, "What did the beauty just say...are you serious?"

"May I ask what Your Highness is talking about?" Chu Qingluo asked in a delicate voice, raising her phoenix eyes slightly and lightly meeting the unfathomable gaze of His Highness the Ninth Prince.

Leaning over her ear again, the Ninth Prince repeated in a low voice, "From now on, I will not see you, sir."

She smiled sincerely, and when she saw His Highness's hand loosen slightly, she continued to unbutton her brocade robe: "The Imperial Edict is here, and I can only be His Highness's. Instead of constantly thinking about escaping Lingning Palace, it is better to serve His Highness peacefully."