Chapter 57
Pei Du's mind wandered after holding her for a while. He had a soft and delicate girl in his arms, and she was also talking sweetly to him. The pure-hearted prince, who had not been able to resist her charms for months, found his hand unconsciously stroking her slender waist.
Xie Qinghong put her arm around his neck, stared at him intently for a long time, and then sighed, "You've really gotten so much darker. It's a good thing I didn't go with you, otherwise if I got this dark, I definitely wouldn't want to come back."
Pei Du: "?" Okay, he shouldn't have expected to hear anything nice from Xie Ayao's mouth. Sweet words are just a drug to bewitch his mind.
He heard from his subordinates that a long separation is better than a honeymoon, so he deliberately chose to return at midnight to avoid the tedious welcoming ceremony. Even if he just held Xie Ayao and did nothing, it was still a tender moment. But no one said that they could see how much darker he looked when the lamp was lit, and that he would be disliked.
Xie Qinghong suddenly remembered that he had scars on his face, and didn't know how many wounds he had on his body, so she quickly let go of his hand and asked, "Besides your face being blackened, what other wounds do you have on your body..."
Pei Du looked at her indifferently: "You've gotten tanned too, do you want to take a look?" Skin color was secondary, but this month of campaigning had indeed trained him well, and his muscle lines were smooth and perfect. He was just thinking about how to elegantly take off his clothes to show them off without appearing too eager.
Now that he had a way out, he slowly placed his hand on his belt and quickly unbuttoned his shirt under Xie Qinghong's gaze, which was half worried and half suspicious. Xie Qinghong sat up and swept his eyes over his upper body with pure intent. Although there were some scars, they were mostly healed. The most serious one was a slash that went diagonally from his shoulder to near his heart, and the new flesh was a pale pink.
Xie Qinghong's eyes were filled with heartache. She immediately took out the premium skin-whitening cream from the scar-removing ointment and carefully applied it to each scar. As she applied it, her eyes reddened, making Pei Du dare not have any more desires and obediently let her do as she pleased.
After wiping his upper body, Xie Qinghong paused subtly for a moment, gesturing with her eyes for him to take off his pants.
Pei Du did not move.
Xie Qinghong gestured again, and even in the dim candlelight, a blush could be seen on his dark face. This greatly puzzled Xie Ayao, a married woman. "No, Pei Du, you've done so many things, yet you're acting all innocent and shy in front of me?"
This doesn't fit your persona!
Her hand paused, and she felt the heat on her face. She put the ointment aside, turned her back, and pretended not to care, saying, "Then you apply it yourself. I'm not going to watch." She didn't care to watch. Ha, what a pretentious act.
She waited a while, then heard rustling sounds behind her. It seemed that Pei Du had loosened his belt and opened a medicine box. A moment later, a body radiating heat suddenly pressed against her from behind. She straightened her shoulders and back, but could still feel his powerful muscles brushing against her shoulder blades.
His soft breath fell behind her ear, and the once innocent-looking Prince Pei asked in a hoarse voice, "I've applied it. Do you want to check it?"
Xie Qinghong didn't move, so the person behind him went even further, wrapping his long arm around her and locking her in his arms. His inner garment was wide open, and who wouldn't say that the scene was incredibly sensual?
Xie Qinghong hesitated for a moment, then quickly glanced back up and down. Good, aside from his exposed chest, he was wearing pants. She had to admit, the newly minted war god prince was somewhat alluring; it was just that his overwhelming rose scent made her hesitant to make a move.
This skin-whitening cream has many advantages, such as high quality and fast results, but it has one negligible drawback—it's too fragrant. At least until today, she hadn't thought it was a flaw; a little bit would make her smell nice, which was great. But tonight, she didn't just apply a little; she smeared it all over Pei Du, this big man, as if he had just been pickled in roses, and every bite he took smelled like roses.
Xie Qinghong was so overwhelmed by the fragrance that he couldn't help but wave his hand in front of his nose, trying to get rid of the almost cloying scent.
Pei Du saw her actions and immediately understood. His face darkened as he questioned, "You put so much on me, and now you're complaining that I smell too good?"
Xie Qinghong: "I feel sorry for you. So many scars, they hurt your body but they hurt my heart. I can't bear not applying more."
Pei Du was momentarily dazed by her sweet words, then suddenly realized something and asked, word by word, "How long will this taste last?"
Xie Qinghong comforted him, "I only applied it to one fingernail, and it would fade away in a day."
Pei Du: "...How many nails did you paint today?"
Xie Qinghong glanced at the nearly empty jar of ointment and calmly said, "It's only a finger's width. Don't you like it?"
Pei Du smirked, "I love it, I love it to death." Then, without warning, he pinned her down, kissing her ears, her nose, her lips, and down her neck, lingering and caressing her, leaving her with the scent of roses.
The next day, Xie Qinghong didn't wake up until almost noon. When she woke up, the pillow beside her was no longer warm. She asked where Pei Du was, and A Yue replied, "The young master went to pay his respects to the prince and princess early this morning. He said he had something to discuss and that you don't need to wait for him to have his meal."
——
In the study of the Prince of Nan, since Pei Du returned to the city without prior notice, the welcoming ceremony that the Prince of Nan had originally arranged was naturally canceled. Now, the Prince of Nan has summoned the chief secretary and advisors of the Prince's residence to discuss how to publicize the victory, which is also to establish Pei Du's prestige as the heir apparent.
The Prince of the South has a reputation for being able to stop children from crying at night, but he lacks prestige. Even now, there are rumors that he bullies the poor Princess Consort because of his status as the Prince of the South.
Some people are curious and ask: What is the basis for saying this?
The passerby angrily replied: "With so many poems titled 'Lament of a Lady in Her Chamber,' haven't you heard of even one or two? The poems are full of the Crown Prince's wife's lingering sorrow. It's pitiful that the Crown Prince's wife is so devoted, but the Crown Prince is too heartless. He went to war not long after their marriage. How can the Crown Prince's wife stand in the Southern Prince's mansion?"
After discussing for a while and roughly deciding on the subsequent procedures, everyone inevitably relaxed a bit. Then, looking at... the prince smelling the fragrant roses, the atmosphere in the study became somewhat subtle.
Finally, it was the Southern King who broke the silence, asking with disdain, "What's that smell coming from you?"
Pei Du didn't even look up, calmly replying, "Madam was worried about my wound, so she applied the ointment because it smelled like medicine."
Upon hearing this, someone immediately expressed concern: "Where is the young master injured? Is it serious? The conditions in the army are not good enough. Why not let a renowned doctor examine the young master, so that the young master's wife will not worry?"
The Prince of the South gave a cold sneer, seemingly without leaving a trace. Was such a small wound worth mentioning? He probably put on a pitiful act in front of his wife, without even feeling ashamed.
Pei Du frowned. None of the people present were his wife; he couldn't very well expose his chest to show them his scars. So, he casually raised his hand. He also had a red mark on his hand, scratched by Xie A'yao's fingernails the night before—a solid fingernail-sized mark, already bleeding. This was probably the most serious wound on his entire body.
Concerned onlookers immediately rushed forward to examine the wound, and then fell silent upon seeing it. Did the prince think they didn't have a marital life? They worked tirelessly from dawn till dusk for the cause of the South, but they weren't bachelors.
The Prince of the South cleared his throat before sneering, "Don't you find your fragrance cloying? Hurry up and wash it off, or people will think you're wearing perfume. What kind of behavior is that?"
Pei Du raised his eyebrows unhappily: "The ointment was washed off as soon as it was applied, and the medicine hasn't even taken effect yet. This is Madam's kind intention. As for what others say, why should I care?"
The Prince of Nan was in a bad mood. You didn't care, you were aloof, you just walked out and left, leaving me, the father, to take the blame. Twenty years ago, old grievances were brought up again and again. Twenty years later, he was dubbed a "scumbag" and became even more notorious than the "tyrant of the Pei family" back then.
The more the Prince of the South thought about it, the angrier he became. With a single glance, he dismissed everyone else from the study and went to have a private chat with his son, whom he hadn't seen for a month.
After everyone had left, only Pei Du remained seated. The Prince of Nan, no longer able to restrain himself, casually tossed the book beside him at Pei Du's head. However, Pei Du easily dodged it, tilting his head to the side.
The Prince of the South cursed loudly: "You don't care what others say, you're so high and mighty, you cold-blooded scumbag, you married me and then left, not caring that your father was implicated because of you. It's been twenty years and people are still spreading rumors about my dirty deeds from back then!"
Pei Du: "..." Just listening to the first half, he thought his father had gone mad. After listening to the second half, he understood.
He flicked his sleeve, and the scent of roses in the austere study grew even stronger. The Prince of the South couldn't help but sneeze, and immediately became even more furious. Wasn't this unfilial son afraid of being suffocated by the stench?
Pei Du made a sarcastic remark: "That just means people can't make mistakes, otherwise mistakes from long ago can be brought up again. Father, let's learn from this." If he were to be the subject of gossip, it would definitely be because of his father, after all, his relationship with Xie Ayao was stronger than gold.
The King of the South was furious, wishing he could draw the sword of the King of Yue and show this brat the demeanor of a bully in his prime, and even break his leg with the hilt of the sword! At the critical moment, the door to the study opened.
When the door opened, Xie Qinghong and Princess Nan greeted them with smiles. Xie Qinghong said with concern, "The young master is badly injured; he needs medicine."
Nan Wang said with difficulty, "Didn't I just apply it? I smell all over."
Pei Du rose lightly, clutching his chest as he walked toward the door, his voice strong yet gentle: "It's still A-Yao who cares about me. Father, you don't need to worry, the wound in my chest is almost healed, it's nothing serious."
Princess Nan immediately glared at Prince Nan, her eyes filled with "I'll settle the score with you later." Prince Nan clutched his chest, feeling as if he had just drunk a pot of very strong tea.
Xie Qinghong's beautiful eyes could only hold Pei Du. She half-supported him as he left the study, and when they reached the flower-lined corridor, she flung her hand away: "Don't pretend. You're as strong as an ox, why would you need to apply medicine?"
Pei Du chuckled in her ear, "So it seems my wife was quite satisfied with my last night?"
Xie Qinghong immediately felt guilty. He looked around to make sure no one was watching, then stomped hard on Xie Qinghong's foot: "Not at all, you lecher! If it weren't for my mother worrying that my father would beat you to death, I wouldn't have gone to save you!"
Pei Du continued to laugh in her ear: "I knew it, A-Yao only cares about me."
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