Chapter 72. Lu Zichen is of decent appearance and is willing to offer himself as a bedmate. ...
Upon seeing her, Chen Liangyu couldn't stop smiling, holding a wine cup in a gesture of inviting the moon to its full glory, even though there wasn't a drop of wine in the cup. She slurred, "Your Highness, give me another five thousand carts of grain. I want it, I want to fight the chieftain... Jingming is still waiting for me at the post station."
Rong Jun hurriedly bowed and apologized, "Your Highness, I know I was wrong."
Xie Wenjun descended the steps one by one, but there were always three steps that seemed to descend from the heavens. Every step she took exuded arrogance.
A group of white-robed youths and Changning guards were kneeling in the courtyard.
Xie Wenjun, like a pine tree growing high on a cliff, accompanied by wind and clouds, walked past everyone to Chen Liangyu. Chen Liangyu felt that Xie Wenjun's hair was too plain, so she carefully placed the flowers she had picked into Xie Wenjun's hair one by one, making it look like a floral wreath. Finally, she still had two small flowers in her hand.
Chen Liangyu thought for a moment and then took the title upon himself.
The tube was inserted crookedly, so she fumbled around above her head for a while to straighten it slightly, then stared at Xie Wenjun.
Is it pretty?
"nice."
Chen Liangyu swayed, then sat down, holding onto the edge of the table. She tugged at Xie Wenjun's sleeve and pointed at the group of white-clad youths, saying, "Since they're so good-looking, you can chase them all away and take care of me."
The people kneeling in the courtyard all lowered their heads even further.
Lu Sutai and his men tinkered around and brewed a lot of fruit wine, which was served in all sorts of colors. Even those who liked wine and loved to drink could get quite drunk, not to mention Chen Liangyu's capacity for alcohol, which was barely a full bottle and would slosh around.
Chen Liangyu seemed to have a lot of grievances: "They are not as good as me."
Xie Wenjun glanced at Rong Jun, who quickly cleared everyone else away, removed the guards at the door, and also withdrew.
Xie Wenjun leaned down slightly. "Do you know what they were brought here for?"
Chen Liangyu struggled to stand, supporting herself on the table, and placed her hands on Xie Wenjun's chin.
He brought his breath close and exhaled a sweet, pleasant scent.
Xie Wenjun's cheek was gently cradled in two hands, catching her completely off guard as a warm, burning touch landed on her lips. Chen Liangyu was still tipsy, even her eyes tinged with an indescribable warmth. "Is that so?"
Xie Wenjun asked, "Do you want this?"
Chen Liangyu: "I don't want to..."
Xie Wenjun stopped halfway through helping her up, his eyes seeming to hold the flickering embers of a lantern going out one by one. "If you don't want to, why are you doing this?"
"...I don't want you to do this with other people."
"Alright." Xie Wenjun lifted the person up and dragged them into the house. "Daiqing, have Rongjun inform Jingming that the General will stay overnight tonight."
Chen Liangyu really needed a place to lie down and close her eyes. As soon as she touched the couch, she leaned back and lay down with her legs dangling, muttering, "Give me the provisions."
Xie Wenjun let her lie flat on the couch. Daiqing brought a basin of water, soaked a towel in the water until it was fully saturated, wrung it out, and Xie Wenjun dismissed the others, gently wiping the sweat from Chen Liangyu's forehead and neck.
"Let's not talk about supplies tonight."
Chen Liangyu sat up straight, clearly displeased, and said, "Didn't you promise to take care of me? As a princess, you should keep your word."
Xie Wenjun pressed closer, forcing Chen Liangyu to retreat. However, there was only a bed behind her, so she could only prop herself up on it with her elbows, half-lying down. She had no way to avoid Xie Wenjun's deliberate approach.
Everything around was red.
Shi Tan even had a red silk curtain set up here.
The room suddenly warmed up, as if sparks were flying between eyes, and the atmosphere inside the red silk curtains became indescribable in the night.
Chen Liangyu recalled that night at Liangyuan. She had been telling herself not to think about it anymore, forcibly suppressing that unspeakable memory. But now, she could no longer suppress it.
She was scared again. She crawled under Xie Wenjun's arms and hurriedly moved from the bed to a chair.
Xie Wenjun said with a mix of helplessness and amusement, "You're going to support me? Waiting for me here? Chen Liangyu, I hardly recognize you anymore. You weren't this shameless before."
Her hand tightened around Chen Liangyu's long neck.
Chen Liangyu stepped back to dodge, then grabbed Xie Wenjun's face, pinching and pulling it, kneading and shaping it: "You used to call me A-Li, but now that you've grown wings, you call me Chen Liangyu."
Xie Wenjun said, "We have no food supplies. But if you're willing to beg me, I might be able to come up with a solution."
The two were so close that Chen Liangyu could even feel their noses touching and rubbing against each other.
"I beg you," Chen Liangyu blurted out without thinking.
But Xie Wenjun clearly didn't mean it that way; she was unmoved by those three shameless and emotionless words.
Lu Sutai asked from behind the door, "Princess, would you like someone to serve you tonight?"
Chen Liangyu: "Get out!"
The sound of hurried footsteps came from outside the door, and in the blink of an eye, the person was gone. The wind grew stronger, and raindrops pounded on the eaves.
Chen Liangyu closed her eyes briefly, then opened them again and asked, "Does Your Highness truly lack someone to warm your bed?"
"Yes, we're short of them. How about that?"
Chen Liangyu pulled Xie Wenjun into his arms, saying, "I am of decent appearance and would like to offer myself as your bedmate!"
After saying that, he pressed his lips against hers for a while until Xie Wenjun couldn't breathe and then he let go.
Xie Wenjun said, "Wait a minute."
Chen Liangyu listed Xie Wenjun's "crimes" one by one.
"The Shuofang trade route and the Southern Continent have been scheming against me. What's wrong with me taking some profits?"
Chen Liangyu forced Xie Wenjun to sit astride his legs, removed the ribbons from her dress, and with a gentle pull, the clothes slipped off her shoulders and piled up at her waist.
However, her clothes were neat and tidy, not a single detail out of place.
Chen Liangyu pulled out two sleeves and had Xie Wenjun cross her wrists and tie a knot.
A flurry of kisses traveled from her neck down to her lower back.
Before long, he had aroused himself to the point of being filled with lust.
"Do you want to?" Chen Liangyu asked.
"Not here."
Chen Liangyu untied the tightly wrapped fabric around Xie Wenjun's wrist and lifted her up around the waist. The silk curtains were smooth, made of the finest silk, cool against the skin yet slightly warm, and filled with a fragrance—a rich aroma that blended sandalwood and the scent of a hundred flowers.
Two long, slender legs wrapped around Chen Liangyu's strong waist.
Their jaws clenched gently, their lips pressed together.
A blinding flash of lightning streaked across the sky, followed by a deafening clap of thunder, which seemed to make the mountains and earth tremble.
Chen Liangyu felt dizzy and struggled to part her lips, letting out a long breath.
She forced herself to regain her senses, clinging to all her rationality.
As Gu Xie had warned her before in Linxia, she actually developed blasphemous thoughts towards the princess and even went so far as to commit a blasphemous act.
What is unforgivable is that she craved this feeling.
She seemed addicted to everything about Xie Wenjun—her body temperature, her delicate fragrance, and the soft murmurs that escaped from her lips; she didn't want to lose any of it for even a moment.
Only now did Chen Liangyu realize that her feelings for Xie Wenjun were different from her feelings for others. From the moment she took Xie Wenjun's hand, or perhaps even earlier, her promise to Empress Huixian had quietly transformed into an obsession with spending her life with her.
That's why she would be obsessed with him and repeatedly let herself be swayed to the point of losing her mind by Xie Wenjun's words.
She loved Liu Xu's talent and her shrewdness in planning.
I love her brilliance, and I love her darkness.
Why does Xie Wenjun repeatedly indulge her filthy thoughts?
Was it for the military power she held?
Xie Wenjun didn't need to make such a big sacrifice. She would have done it willingly if she had just asked.
Little did she know that the person beneath her was oblivious to her impending doom, and just as her boiling blood was about to subside, he said, "If you can't handle it, then lie down!"
The barely cooled passion was instantly boiled over by this one sentence.
Chen Liangyu placed a hand on the back of her head and pressed down on her shoulder to hold her in place. "Since Your Highness says so, then please forgive my overstepping."
Many years ago, it seemed to be the sixteenth or seventeenth year of the Xuan Yuan era—she couldn't remember exactly—it was a few months after Emperor Xuan Yuan and Chen Yuanqing revealed their intention for her to marry Crown Prince Yi Zhang that He Yunzhou had invited palace matrons to the Marquis's residence to teach them about bedroom arts and the art of serving one's husband. This was a routine procedure for daughters of high social standing like her before their marriage. She knew a little about it. Xie Wenjun didn't.
No one had ever taught Xie Wenjun even the slightest bit about human affairs.
How dare she be so arrogant?
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Xie Wenjun frowned, turned her head and buried half her face in the quilt and pillow, her eyes tightly closed.
"You're so scared, yet you try to provoke me?" Chen Liangyu said.
In the drizzling rain, the deer unfurled its tightly closed green calyx, revealing petals that were pure white with red spots. Raindrops drifted with the wind into the eaves and pattered against the windowpanes.
"Your Highness, open your eyes..."
The candles were still burning, casting shadows on the soft curtains.
Chen Liangyu's hands clearly show knuckles and veins, and there are calluses on his palms and the area between his thumb and forefinger, giving a rough, rubbing sensation when touched.
Xie Wenjun straightened her back and lifted it slightly.
The Changning Guards guarding the inside and outside of Qunfangyuan are changing teams again.
She could hear the door to the duty room opening and closing repeatedly, and the guard's footsteps were as hurried and orderly as ever.
Chen Liangyu disliked having bed curtains drawn; the two curtains were merely superfluous decorations. The bed was exposed in the spacious side room, and one could see the shadows of people moving back and forth outside the door and through the bright window.
Xie Wenjun reached out to pull the clasp on the bed curtain.
Chen Liangyu grabbed her wrist, supported himself with his hand, and looked up at her.
She wanted to ask Xie Wenjun why he didn't go to Dingbei City in Suzhou to see her first, but the fear in her heart reached her lips faster than she could say anything.
This sounds like an accusation.
Furthermore, Xie Wenjun's journey had indeed been shorter if he had gone to Wuzhou first, and there was no proper reason for him to take the long way around to Suzhou first.
"How long will Your Highness stay in the Northern Territory this time?"
Xie Wenjun slightly opened her eyes, hooked her arm around Chen Liangyu's neck, and turned her over so their gazes shifted. "What, are you already kicking me out? I didn't expect that even with someone right beside my bed, you, General Chen, would still be so unwelcoming to me. Or is there something fishy about the taxes and provisions of the three northern prefectures, and you, the commander-in-chief, are afraid I'll uncover some details?"
"Your Highness, please investigate as you wish. What do I have to fear? The longer the investigation lasts, the better." His eyes, filled with affection, gazed at Xie Wenjun for a long time. He leaned forward and kissed her eyes with lightning speed. "You must investigate every single detail thoroughly. I'm waiting for your investigation."
Xie Wenjun said, "Haven't I already arrived?"
With a wave of his hand, Chen Liangyu caused the curtains to drape, leaving only a layer of dim light and shadow.
Xie Wenjun gritted her teeth and said, "What kind of logic is it that you won't take it off yourself?"
She grasped Chen Liangyu's leather belt and slowly untied it.
The leather belt was loosened, and the clothes were slightly open.
Chen Liangyu allowed her to take off her outer garment, then once again gripped her back, sliding down to cover Xie Wenjun's inner thighs, and with a slight outward force, Xie Wenjun sat on her waist.
This posture makes it easier for her to venture into secluded places.
His lips landed on Chen Liangyu's heart.
That was Xie Wenjun's answer.
"These are the questions I should be asking you. Are you doing this voluntarily? Do you wish to continue?"
"Yes, Your Majesty, I am willing."
Upon hearing this, Xie Wenxi grabbed Chen Liangyu's chin. In this awkward situation, he both loved and hated her. "Chen Liangyu, she is a useful person. She can even endure the humiliation of crawling between someone's legs?"
Years ago, her words, "The only person I can use is the one I love," burned like a hot iron into my heart. Now, it seems that Chen Liangyu has finally discovered that there are even more suitable "useful people" in the world.
Is the person available to her tonight still the one she loves?
A strange feeling even crossed Xie Wenxi's mind. Could the person from back then be considered someone she admired?
That's not necessarily true.
She said she wanted to challenge the laws and principles of this world, and the stakes she was betting included herself.
Her as a person. Her marriage and family background.
Her military talent and conquests, and the bloody path she carved out step by step.
Perhaps there is also the pleasure she enjoys on the bed right now.
After the new emperor ascended the throne, he hesitated over the matter of establishing an empress: should he establish his first wife or the person he truly wanted to spend his life with? Xun Xian had married another woman from the Xun family as a concubine of the Prince of Qi. Based on this alone, even though Xun Shuheng was the emperor's first wife, he had ample reason not to establish an empress. Giving her only the title of concubine was already an extraordinary favor.
In this way, I can fulfill my childhood promise and make Chen Liangyu my empress.
To Xie Wenjun's surprise, Chen Liangyu refused without hesitation, saying, "Rather than having another concubine in the harem, what the world needs more today is a military general who can guard the border for the Emperor."
She saw through the many unavoidable circumstances the emperor faced after ascending the throne. No longer on the same path, she discarded the past like a hot pancake being tossed aside, consciously retreating to her duty as a "subject."
At that time, Xie Wenjun saw through Chen Liangyu's so-called admiration, realizing it was truly hypocritical.
This heartless and cold-blooded thing.
The rhythm between the fingers gradually became regular.
Humiliation of crawling between someone's legs? That doesn't seem quite right here.
Chen Liangyu's ears burned. "I can bear it. I'm just afraid Your Highness can't."
Xie Wenjun's slender white arms climbed up her neck, burying her face low.
Chen Liangyu almost laughed, but suddenly wanted to look at Xie Wenjun's face.
Unexpectedly, the princess who had been so imposing during the day, threatening to seize the Shuofang trade route from her and then take back the Southern Continent, turned out to be an ostrich when she took off her outer robe and lay on the bed.
They could only bury their faces and close their eyes to endure it.
Chen Liangyu grasped Xie Wenjun's head and pressed her lips to hers, quickening her pace. Time seemed to pass by, but she slowed down, and Xie Wenjun's hair was already soaked with sweat.
Just when Xie Wenjun thought it was all over, she fluttered her long eyelashes in surprise, slowly opened her eyes, and the first thing she met was Chen Liangyu's eyes. Her eyes were full of tenderness.
Chen Liangyu reached out and brushed the fine hair that fell beside her ear, tucking it behind her ear, and whispered to her, "Rest a bit." She hadn't taken off her inner garment, wearing only a white undergarment, and Xie Wenjun's dress was still half-on, clinging to her thin fabric. Without any visible exposure, they appeared even more alluring and seductive under the red curtains.
Chen Liangyu asked, "Are you tired, Your Highness?"
Xie Wenjun was unwilling to admit that doing such a thing was indeed somewhat strenuous. She hadn't moved an inch, so why was she complaining of being tired?
She slowly shook her head.
Hearing that her breathing had calmed down a bit, Chen Liangyu swept her up in his arms and laid her flat on the bed. He then leaned closer.
"As long as you're not tired."
A flicker of panic flashed in Xie Wenjun's dark eyes. She braced herself against her arms and backed away, "Chen Liangyu..."
"Call me A-Li."
Chen Liangyu grabbed her ankle, pulled her down, and dragged her beneath him. "Why does it seem like I'm the one bullying you?"
Xie Wenjun's eyes widened slightly.
Before Xie Wenjun could speak, Chen Liangyu didn't give her the chance. The wind and rain outside the room showed signs of stopping, but not inside. Xie Wenjun was truly overwhelmed; her eyes were moist, and she swallowed hard.
“Ah Li…”
It sounded like a lament, like weeping. It was more like a plea.
The wind and rain outside, which had been stopping, started again. This rain was a rare treat; the three northern states had been without rain for a long time, and drought was rampant.
The drought had raged for a long time, but Xie Wenxi's arrival brought much-needed rain after the long drought.
He's a lucky star.
Taking advantage of the situation, Chen Liangyu lifted Xie Wenjun's ankle, and their legs parted again. "Your Highness, don't go, stay."
The room was enchanting.
You can also hear gentle intimacy and coaxing.
Author's note: Thank you for reading this far!
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