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"Stay for a drink tonight?"
The woman's voice was like a bewitching enchantress, stirring up the delusions in his heart. But when his gaze fell upon her luxurious clothes, He Tingfang trembled violently, and then felt disgusted with his own filthy thoughts.
"Your Majesty, it is getting late, I shall take my leave..."
"Shouldn't I thank Mr. He? If you hadn't saved the little prince, His Highness wouldn't have simply confined me to my quarters." Su Yunruo scoffed lightly, swirling the wine cup in her hand slightly, a few drops spilling onto her slender white wrist, then trickling down her forearm and into her clothes…
"This is what I should do." He Tingfang withdrew his gaze and bent down even lower, afraid of seeing anything he shouldn't have.
"Sir, you are a man of great talent and proud nature. Why are you so humble..."
He Tingfang felt a force on his shoulder, which turned his body up. The air was filled with the fragrance of perfume, which was rich but not pungent, mixed with a hint of alcohol.
He Tingfang sensed that he was probably drunk, and his heart began to pound uncontrollably: "Your Majesty..."
"If you think highly of me, then drink this glass of wine." Su Yunruo teased He Tingfang when she saw his dazed look, which only made He Tingfang more at a loss.
"Yes, Your Majesty." He only wanted to escape this place as soon as possible, and without thinking about anything else, he drank the wine cup in one gulp.
"Cough cough cough—" He Tingfang lowered his eyes and calmed down a bit: "Your Majesty, I shall take my leave first."
Before he could even reach the door, a maid outside suddenly slammed it shut with a blank expression. A surge of heat rose from within him, and He Tingfang's heart skipped a beat. He turned back in disbelief.
"Your Majesty, you..."
“Tingfang is truly intelligent,” Su Yunruo said as she gracefully approached, the two of them only inches apart. She placed her delicate hand on the man’s shoulder and slowly moved it downwards…
"Your Majesty, you have overstepped your bounds." He Tingfang gasped for breath, pushing him away, stumbling and falling to the ground, his eyes red-rimmed. "Do you know what you are doing? His Highness the Second Prince is still—"
"Shh—" Su Yunruo half-squatted down in front of him, her fingertips covering his thin lips. "Of course I know, Tingfang."
“But if His Highness cared about me, he wouldn’t have taken away my stewardship and confined me for three months because of a baseless accusation. If he truly cared about me, why are there so many new women in the inner courtyard…”
"I fell ill today, and when I sent a message, His Highness ignored it." Su Yunruo seemed to have thought of something interesting. "But why did Tingfang come..."
He Tingfang was stunned: "Your Majesty..."
"Tingfang, can you grant Yunruo's wish just this once?" Su Yunruo's eyes were red-rimmed, and her peach blossom eyes looked softly into his, giving He Tingfang the illusion that perhaps she also harbored the same feelings as him...
The mixture of medicine and wine added a touch of ambiguous intimacy to the quiet, cold night.
He Tingfang's Adam's apple bobbed slightly, barely able to suppress the heat rising within him, and he asked in a hoarse voice, "Your Majesty, have you thought this through? If this matter comes to light, we will all be..."
"No." Su Yunruo cupped his cheeks and gently kissed him. "Your Highness won't come over, and there's no one watching you."
He Tingfang stood up with a tense expression, but hesitated when he saw the woman's half-drunk state: "Your Majesty, perhaps you spoke carelessly while drunk, but I cannot abandon you..."
“Tingfang, Ke Yunruo’s wine is exactly the same as yours.” Su Yunruo’s fingertips caressed his Adam’s apple, coaxing him gently, “If you really don’t want to, I won’t force you. There’s a guard from the Su family outside; go and call him in. I need his help—”
"Hmm..."
Su Yunruo was startled for a moment; the hands that held her waist were burning hot. Her fingers traced the man's back, reminding him between kisses, "Go...go to the inner room..."
He Tingfang lowered his eyes and gave her a deep look before carrying her behind the screen...
The candle burned for half the night.
Amidst the ups and downs, the moments of confusion and disorientation, Su Yunruo suddenly recalled her earlier words and couldn't help but smile. There were no guards; it was just him all along.
"Are you feeling unwell?"
The person at the head of the table asked in a hoarse, low voice. Su Yunruo shook her head and hugged him again...
Fortunately, she won her gamble.
In the same night, the warmth of affection filled the room and made people's hearts burn.
Yu Baizhou's eyes were unfathomable as he watched the woman's every move.
"No one will go to the tent looking for the general tonight; the military advisor will handle it." Song Ling casually straightened his collar. "Does the general have any other concerns?"
"What did A-Ling say to Jinghe? He might misunderstand." Yu Baizhou didn't know why he asked this question, nor what answer he was hoping for.
“Ling said that after we get married in the future…” Song Ling’s lips curled up slightly: “Let him make the decision.”
"What's there to misunderstand about this answer?"
Seeing that she received no response, Song Ling looked up in surprise and saw Yu Baizhou standing silently in place, his face expressionless.
If it weren't for the fact that his ears were slowly getting warm again, Song Ling would have really thought that he was calm and didn't care at all.
Song Ling: "What, General, are you really planning to keep this a secret, waiting until things are settled so you can have two women on each arm? It seems... um..."
The man leaned down and pulled her into his arms, kissing her lips. Song Ling's eyes widened slightly.
It's unclear how the man with his eyes closed sensed it, but he raised his hand and covered her eyes, gently caressing them as he whispered, "Close your eyes, A-Ling."
Darkness breeds courage, and whether their actions were self-deception or not, Yu Baizhou was much bolder and fiercer than before.
The man's somewhat broken voice reached her ears: "There won't be anyone else..."
Perhaps provoked by her words, Song Ling thought to herself in a daze that a person who is usually gentle and restrained is like a cage that has been broken, turning into a wolf to devour its prey...
Song Ling thought today was a good day, and her arm unconsciously went up to him. Just as the man gently bit her neck, there were a few knocks at the door.
"Girl, are you asleep?"
The man outside the door spoke softly, with a hint of hesitation and probing.
A knife was thrust into it.
Yu Baizhou suddenly woke up, straightened the woman's slightly loose collar, and felt a little annoyed after realizing what he had done.
The woman's originally pale face became flushed, and her eyes looked at him with a watery gaze, seemingly dissatisfied that he had stopped at this moment.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself." Yu Baizhou gently kissed her forehead to comfort her. "Wu Sheng... he might have something urgent to attend to..."
Song Ling's lips were slightly swollen. She pursed her lips and looked at him with a resentful expression: "What urgent matter could there be in the middle of the night?"
"Wait a moment."
This is what Song Ling said to the person outside the door.
Wu Sheng responded, but then felt a faint rustling sound as if there were still people in the room, and thought he must have misheard. After all, he had never imagined that General Yu would stay overnight.
"Where are you going?" Song Ling called out to the person walking into the inner room. "Stay here. I'll settle accounts with you later."
As soon as the door opened, Wu Sheng saw that his young lady looked displeased. Song Ling had never shown her displeasure before; when had she ever displayed such obvious unhappiness?
Wu Sheng's intuition told him that he seemed to have arrived at an inopportune time tonight.
But it was too late to suggest leaving.
Sure enough, upon entering, she saw General Yu sitting somewhat uncomfortably on the other side. Considering the young woman's expression and clothing, an answer was already obvious.
It seems he interrupted the girl's good time?
Wu Sheng hesitated for a moment and stopped in his tracks: "Why don't you rest first, young lady, and I'll ask again tomorrow?"
"Now, let's talk." Song Ling sighed, poured him a cup of hot tea, and pointed to an empty chair: "Sit down and talk."
Seeing Wu Sheng hesitate and look at Yu Baizhou to the side, who was about to get up on his own, Song Ling felt a surge of anger: "There's nothing he can't listen to."
Upon hearing this, General Yu silently sat down again, lowered his eyes, and drank water.
Wu Sheng knew the young lady was angry and wanted to resolve the matter quickly so he could return home as soon as possible. "Why did you ask about Aunt Qi Ying today? Has something happened to her?"
What he really wanted to ask was why she had suddenly become so distant with Qi Ying, because Song Ling had never been a capricious person. Her change in attitude reminded Wu Sheng of Shi Jue.
The kill order against Shi Jue has not been lifted yet. Wu Sheng is worried that Qi Ying might have made the same choice.
"What, are you going to plead for her? For that little bit of affection?"
"Still for the sake of Qiman?"
Wu Sheng didn't even dare to look her in the eye. He knew it was betrayal, but he still clung to a sliver of hope. His voice was barely audible: "She is, after all, Qi Man's mother, and an elder who watched us grow up."
"If she hasn't done anything seriously wrong, could she..."
"I understand," Song Ling interrupted him. "I have another way to handle this. You can go back now."
Song Ling narrowed her eyes, watching Wu Sheng's figure disappear from sight, then smiled.
She seemed fairly satisfied with Wu Sheng's reaction.
"What does he mean by 'betrayal'?" Afraid a draft would blow in, Yu Baizhou quickly closed the door. "Will it be detrimental to you?"
“Actually, it’s not really a matter of betrayal,” Song Linghui explained, holding his hand. “It’s just that their paths are different from ours. At first, it was only Shi Yu, but now Qi Ying has also been persuaded. If this continues, I wonder how many people will choose that person.”
Seeing the man's incredulous expression, Song Ling smiled and said, "General, you must be surprised that Huailai, which has weathered so many storms, has become like this. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that it's on the verge of collapse and falling apart."
Yu Baizhou: "I can see that they all respect you and shouldn't leave just because of outsiders' instigation. Perhaps it's just because I'm not the kind of lord they expect."
As for standing on the opposite side of them, it's simply a matter of choosing others as one's master.
Song Ling shook her head slightly: "If someone with ulterior motives tries to sow discord, who can guard against it?"
He had heard this "person" from Song Ling many times, which made Yu Baizhou increasingly suspicious. "Is this the person who hurt you?"
"Yes." A hint of sarcasm flashed in Song Ling's eyes: "This time it was just my miscalculation, but next time I will definitely not let him take advantage of me."
"Then who exactly is he...?"
"General, are you trying to change the subject again? We haven't settled our score yet." Song Ling crossed his arms, looking like he wouldn't let him off the hook until he gave him a satisfactory answer.
Who exactly changed the subject... Yu Baizhou sighed inwardly. If she didn't want to talk about it, then she wouldn't.
Since that person dared to attack Song Ling, he definitely wouldn't have done it only once. He'll just have to send more people to stay close to her in the future.
Because of Song Ling's deliberate concealment, Yu Baizhou felt a little annoyed: "If A Ling wants to do it, then do it somewhere else."
Song Ling was surprised for a moment: "Where to change to?"
As soon as she finished speaking, the man swept her into his arms and said in a slightly hoarse voice, "Let's go to the couch to settle things."
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