Chapter 281
“Qing Nian, although you are in the mud, you have never been stained by it. Everything you did was just to protect yourself. In Jiangnan, I saw a different you. Your tenacity and determination moved me and touched me deeply,” Song Xuan said with a hint of excitement.
No matter what the other person looks like, they all make his heart flutter.
As Song Xuan finished speaking, the great net of inferiority that bound Shen Qingnian's heart finally fell away. After her muddy heart was held in his hands, the mud on it was gently wiped away, revealing its original softness and beauty.
Under the flickering palace lanterns, Shen Qingnian felt a sudden flash of white light before her eyes, and her heart warmed instantly. She leaned against the man's strong chest and began to pull at his collar.
"I want to see where the knife wound is," she said, her voice nasal and sounding somewhat pitiful.
She had seen that wound twice. The first time was at the hunter's house; although the man tried to avoid it, she caught a glimpse of it in a fleeting moment. The second time was that night...
Now that they had talked things out, Song Xuan didn't hold back anymore. He took the initiative to unbutton his outer robe, pull open the collar, and reveal the scar on his chest.
By the dim, swaying palace lanterns, the knife scar on his chest was clearly visible, showing how much force had been used at the time.
Shen Qingnian gently stroked his chest with her fingertips. The cool fingertips touched the hot and firm chest, causing Song Xuan to groan softly.
The two shared a deep bond; sometimes, even a single glance was enough to make him lose his composure, let alone take such initiative.
Shen Qingnian, however, was completely unaware. Her gaze was fixed on the knife wound, a mark left because of her, a mark of her sins.
Her eyes filled with tenderness as she gently stroked the area, murmuring with heartache, "Does it hurt? It must hurt..."
Song Xuan's dark eyes were like ink dots, filled with complex emotions. He spoke in a low voice, "It hurts, Qing Nian. You should make it up to me."
Shen Qingnian looked up at the man and asked, "As long as you ask, I will do it."
She definitely deserves compensation.
Song Xuan's Adam's apple bobbed slightly, and the next moment, he grabbed Shen Qingnian's slender hand. He seemed to have a fever, and his body was very hot.
The man's handsome face was illuminated by the palace lanterns, half hidden in darkness and half glowing with candlelight. Shen Qingnian felt that his gaze was as deep as ink, which made her heart beat faster.
She caught a whiff of the man's scent—a blend of her own jasmine fragrance and the aroma of ambergris, the two scents overlapping and intertwining, much like her own relationship with the man...
The atmosphere inside the hall shifted from the relief of having just opened up to an ambiguous and warm one.
Shen Qingnian sensed Song Xuan's change, and her face flushed, her eyes also felt hot.
"Your Majesty..." Her tone unconsciously became tinged with shyness, and she understood what the other party meant by compensation.
Song Xuan tightened his grip on her waist slightly, and she tiptoed, wanting to offer her lips to him.
The atmosphere was getting more and more intense, and just when everything was about to fall into place, a loud 'bang' suddenly came from the palace door.
Immediately afterwards, a group of eunuchs carrying palace lanterns rushed in, and palace servants led by Xiaxiazi ran in, accompanied by Xiaxiazi's somewhat high-pitched voice.
"These audacious palace maids and guards! Not only did they dare to have a secret rendezvous in the inner palace, but they even dared to hide in the Siqing Palace! Take them away and hand them over to His Majesty..."
Before Xiazi could utter the last word, he knelt down with a thud, and the other eunuchs also knelt on the ground.
Xia Zi had just received a report from two eunuchs that there seemed to be some commotion inside Si Qing Palace. Upon hearing this, he immediately led his men over. No one understood better than him the importance of Si Qing Palace in His Majesty's heart. If someone were to sneak in and damage the objects inside, he would not see the sun rise tomorrow.
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