After Shang Changge left Fengyi Palace, the Empress adjusted her phoenix robe and went to her study to handle matters concerning the inner palace. Halfway through...

I felt a bit tired, so I put down my pen and rubbed my temples for a while before I felt much better.

Rong Momo was grinding ink beside her, worriedly saying, "Your Highness, perhaps you got up too early today and worked day and night. Why don't you lie down for a while?"

The Empress nodded: "Very well."

As Shang Changge left Fengyi Palace, she turned a corner and coincidentally bumped into the person she had been wanting to see recently—Shang Ye.

Shang Ye probably hadn't expected to encounter Shang Changge either. After a brief moment of surprise, he respectfully bowed according to the rules of seniority and then called for someone:

"Royal elder sister."

Shang Changge raised an eyebrow, marveling at the child's politeness, and then gave a warm, approachable smile, telling everyone to dispense with formalities.

"Fourth brother must have come to pay his respects to the Imperial Concubine, right? Fourth brother is truly filial."

Shang Ye and Shang Rui were born of the same mother, but their eyebrows and eyes resembled those of Emperor Mingde and Consort Yunrou, respectively.

As Shang Changge recalled what Shang Xuanzhi had said last night, the smile in her long, beautiful phoenix eyes became even more enigmatic.

Shang Ye: "Your Majesty flatters me. Your Majesty is just as filial."

Shang Ye's answer sounded formulaic at first glance, but upon closer listening, it was perfunctory, clearly indicating that he didn't want to talk much with his elder sister.

Shang Changge disliked doing things that annoyed people, but today she had no choice but to do it. With a sigh, she shrugged and began her performance:

"Fourth brother, there's no need to flatter me. My relationship with the Empress Dowager has been strained for a long time."

"I only came today because the Empress Dowager summoned me. There wasn't much to say, just a few words of concern and a bunch of tonics for me."

Shang Changge glanced at the tonics being carried by the maid, a hint of mockery rising in the corners of her eyes, but her smile remained unchanged.

"Tsk, I have to say it's good to be engaged to the General. My mother treats me almost as well as Aze now."

"Alright, after I leave the palace, I will personally deliver one of these tonics to the General. Fourth Brother, you are busy."

After the performance, Shang Changge led his entourage away, leaving Shang Ye and his followers behind.

Only after Shang Changge and her entourage disappeared around the corner of the palace wall did Shang Ye straighten up, his manners impeccable and leaving no room for criticism.

Shang Ye, dressed in a prince's robe, stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the empty bluestone corridor.

With eyes and brows resembling Emperor Mingde's, the intense, well-hidden loathing and malice towards his elder sister, Shang Changge, had faded considerably.

He hated all his brothers and sisters equally, especially his elder brother Shang Rui, but things would be different from today.

He thought he could be more lenient with his eldest sister, after all, in some ways, she and he had many similarities.

They received no favor from their respective mothers, and the so-called love they received from their fathers was also fake.

As for how to be tolerant?

Perhaps one day when he ascends to a high position, he can make the eldest princess die a quick and painless death on her own.

Everyone else was executed by slow slicing and their corpses were whipped for three days, but his good brother Shang Rui...

He will turn him into a human pig, making him suffer day and night in agony, unable to live or die, to vent his hatred!

Shang Changge couldn't read minds, so she naturally didn't know that Shang Ye was even more perverted than her. After leaving the palace, she went straight to the General's Mansion.

Shang Changge happened to run into Xiao Ji, who was just about to leave. She smiled and asked if he was in a hurry. Xiao Ji replied that he wasn't.

With a single tug, she dragged the nearly two-meter-tall General Xiao into the mansion, leaving the servants looking at each other in bewilderment.

The ruthless one was out on business and not in the manor, but the Soul-Chasing One, who had been beaten up at the Princess's manor before, was there.

Seeing this rare scene of his fellow student chattering, he caught up with Qingyao and asked what was going on today.

Qingyao: "Guess."

Qingyao didn't have the habit of gossiping about her master; she was a maid who had received strict training.

Soul Chaser: ...

He guessed, he guessed... well, he dared not guess.

A cold wind howled, inside the warm pavilion that Xiao Ji had specially prepared for Shang Changge, who was afraid of the cold.

The singer pressed down on Xiao Ji's chest muscles, pinning him to the soft sandalwood couch covered with a plush blanket, and brought up the old story again:

"Xiao Ji, I will not have your child."

Xiao Ji let Shang Changge hold him down without resisting, not understanding why the little rascal suddenly brought this up, but he obediently continued:

"I know, but I have no intention of having children."

Shang Changge didn't know if Xiao Ji was telling the truth or not; if it were before today, she would have believed him.

But after her stepmother begged Xiao Ji to come to her, she inexplicably gave her tonics, which made her wonder: "Really?"

Xiao Ji looked at Shang Changge's furrowed brows, and after a moment he let out a long sigh, not out of impatience or anger, but out of apology.

He didn't put on airs as usual, nor did he follow the typical pattern of being secretly or openly flirtatious.

A strong, powerful arm reached out and pulled Shang Changge into a hug, his large hand stroking her slender back with a soothing tone.

"It is my fault."

"Tomorrow I will send someone to inquire if there is a prescription that a man can take to prevent a woman from getting pregnant. If so, that would be best. I will drink it to eliminate any future problems, and it will also put the princess at ease so she can marry me."

He then noticed that the little rascal was wearing the palace attire required for entering the palace, and from that, it wasn't hard to guess what had happened.

...

Shang Changge rested her unadorned face on Xiao Ji's chest, her feelings a complex mix of emotions she had never experienced before, and remained silent.

The warm room fell silent.

Xiao Ji was very perceptive and quickly noticed Shang Changge's low spirits. He felt a pang in his heart and pulled her up a little.

Without their eyes meeting, Shang Changge's long eyelashes drooped.

This was the first time Xiao Ji had seen his little rascal like this in the months they had been together. He didn't know what to do and felt more heartache than anything else.

His handsome, rugged face gently pressed against Shang Changge's, whispering sweet nothings, his steady voice unusually tender:

"What's wrong? Are you unwilling to get married too early? It's my fault for not thinking things through and for being too hasty."

"Don't be afraid, I haven't written to my father yet. I'll talk to the Empress and handle things so she won't make things difficult for you. Just relax..."

Shang Changge did not answer Xiao Ji, who took it as Shang Changge's tacit agreement, and explained in a soft voice, word by word, sentence by sentence.

This includes how to handle the aftermath of the incident, and the most outrageous statements:

"When an emperor dies, the country observes a three-year mourning period, therefore..."

"I should have discussed this with you before asking the Empress. I'm sorry, I startled you..."

...

The warm pavilion fell silent again as Shang Changge reached out and covered Xiao Ji's mouth.

The familiar sight of their eyes meeting, one above the other, was different for Shang Changge, though he remained just as bold.

He pulled open Xiao Ji's left side of his shirt, lowered his head, and kissed the spot where Xiao Ji's heart was beating with his soft, full, crimson lips.

Just like when General Xiao first kissed her fingertips, this kiss was devout and solemn, but Shang Changge couldn't resist her sweet talk.

After the kiss, he clung to Xiao Ji's burly frame like an octopus, and when he opened his mouth, it wasn't to confess his feelings, but rather—

"Xiao Ji, you're finished."

She's finished too.

Xiao Ji hugged Shang Changge tightly. His chest heaved violently, his sensual throat moving, his husky, magnetic voice alluring:

"You little rascal, I want to kiss you."

Shang Changge smiled gently, leaned in and offered her red lips, ending a sweet, almost saccharine kiss led by her. She added:

"Didn't we say before that there's no need to ask about these things? Xiao Ji, I like you, even more than before."

Xiao Ji's eyes suddenly darkened. The kiss, led by Xiao Ji, was like a raging blizzard in the dead of winter, an uncontrollable frenzy.