"Oh, she wore a veil when she went to play Cuju the other day, and she's still wearing a veil today with so many people around. Second Brother's concubine is really something else."
Chu Ning's words sparked much discussion among the other princes and nobles.
Just as Chu Rui was about to ask the beauty to remove her veil, he saw her frown and cough softly. Seeing that her eyes were red from coughing, Chu Rui felt a pang of heartache.
What happened?
The beautiful woman's voice was soft and pitiful, "Your Highness, I caught a cold today. The doctor said it would spread to others, so I put on a veil."
The beautiful woman smiled reluctantly, "Of course, if the princes are not afraid, I can remove my veil, but..."
She gazed at Chu Yi on the main seat, paused, and lowered her head as if she didn't recognize him at all. "But I dare not pass this on to His Highness the Crown Prince. Please forgive me."
As she spoke, she was about to kneel down and admit her mistake.
Everyone present thought it was perfectly reasonable.
Unexpectedly, the crown prince on the main seat spoke up, "Enough, since you are ill, there is no need for formalities. Sit down."
Everyone looked at Chu Yi in surprise.
Seeing his calm expression and lack of emotional reaction, they couldn't understand why he would let go of a mere concubine.
Chu Rui felt no gratitude; he merely thought Chu Rui was hypocritical.
He stared intently at the beauty, "Come sit here with me."
A princess of Chu was already sitting next to Chu Rui.
When the Princess of Chu saw the woman swaying gracefully as she sat down to Chu Rui's left, as if Chu Rui could only see her, the Princess of Chu's smile became increasingly stiff.
"What would you like to eat?" Chu Rui asked the beautiful woman beside him in a low voice.
The beauty replied absentmindedly, "Whatever."
The beauty glanced around and saw many people present, almost none of whom she recognized.
Her gaze lingered on a man in the far corner for a moment, and when she looked away, she met the eyes of the Crown Prince, who was second only to the Emperor, sitting on the main seat.
The other person glanced over seemingly casually, but their gaze was truly intriguing.
She slightly raised the corner of her eye, then casually lowered her head and accepted the food Chu Rui placed on her plate.
Her voice was sweeter than usual: "Thank you, Your Highness."
Chu Yi's eyes darkened slightly as he listened to the completely different tone.
Although Chu Rui also served food to Princess Chu, his gaze was far more intense. Princess Chu was so angry that her face turned slightly pale, but due to the occasion, she could only continue to pretend to be gentle and magnanimous.
The banquet continued, with music and dance filling the air.
Halfway through the drink, the beauty's cough worsened. Chu Rui, not wanting her to be so tired, told her to go home first.
Not long after she left, people would occasionally leave their seats, either to go outside to sober up or to use the restroom.
A maidservant followed the beautiful woman, carrying a palace lantern behind her. After a while, she fell silent.
The beauty turned her head and looked at the empty space behind her. She frowned slightly, as if she hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to do. She could only quicken her pace and continue walking forward.
He had only taken two steps when he was knocked unconscious from behind and dragged into a room.
The beautiful woman was carelessly thrown on the ground, and the people who dragged her away quickly left. Then, an ugly man crawled in from outside and looked at her with a lewd smile.
He ripped off the beauty's veil, and when he saw her stunningly beautiful face, his smile became even more perverse and disgusting.
"What a beautiful woman. Now, let me pamper you properly."
Just as the man was about to undress the beauty, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his back, his vision went black, and he collapsed.
A stone fell to the ground as he walked down.
The beauty opened her eyes, looked at the stones on the ground, sat up halfway, and saw the person walking in from outside.
She looked at him with a bewildered expression, and as he drew closer, she fearfully covered her body and backed away, "You...you don't come any closer..."
Chu Yi frowned slightly as he looked at her. "I know it's you."
"This is so boring." Nan Zhi stood up, clapped her hands, and approached him step by step. "Am I not pretty?"
Chu Yi was cornered by her. Looking at her fair and delicate face and her slender waist, the tips of his ears turned red, and he said in a low voice, "Beautiful."
"Since you're so pretty, why didn't you molest me like that guy did?"
"Zhizhi, I don't know how..."
"Shut up!" Nan Zhi looked at him coldly. "Who are you calling Zhizhi?"
Chu Yi dared not speak.
Nan Zhi instinctively crossed her arms, only to be poked by the object. Impatiently, she took an apple from her clothes and started wiping it on Chu Yi's clothes.
A crisp sound rang out, and she showed no trace of the aloof and stunning beauty she had been before. She crunched on the apple, not caring about her image at all.
Chu Yi looked at her flattened chest and then at the apple in her hand.
So that's how she fooled Chu Rui?
"What, want some?" Nanzhi glanced at him.
"No……"
"Here you go." Nanzhi took out another apple and handed it to him.
Under her direct gaze, Chu Yi had no choice but to wipe the apple with his own clothes and start eating it with her.
However, he ate with unparalleled elegance, unlike her rudeness.
Chu Yi didn't usually like eating these things, but perhaps because he saw her, he felt that this apple was sweeter than anything he had ever eaten.
He really wanted to ask her where she had been these past few days and what she wanted to do at the Prince Rui's residence, but looking at her indifferent profile, he moved his lips but didn't ask anything.
"Once you've finished eating, hurry up and leave. From now on, we'll go our separate ways and no one will know anyone else."
Chu Yi's eyes suddenly darkened, and he finally couldn't help but ask, "Why, wasn't it... that day..."
His ears were strikingly red, and he looked at her with a mixture of grievance and helplessness.
Nan Zhi almost fell for his charm and kissed him, but after calming down, she found it amusing: "Your Highness, what happened that day?"
Chu Yi pursed his lips, seemingly finding it difficult to speak.
Nan Zhi laughed heartlessly: "That day, it was just you kissing me and me kissing you. We're even now. Didn't you say you didn't want me to take responsibility?"
"But……"
"But what?" Nan Zhi poked his chest, her eyes cold and devoid of any warmth. "It was a bit much of a stretch for me to tell you to die, but I also transferred half of my true energy to you. Your lifespan is now several months longer than before. In the end, you're the one who benefited. Don't pretend to be pitiful with me here."
Chu Yi didn't say anything more, but just looked at her silently with drooping eyelids.
Nanzhi almost couldn't resist kissing him again.
Right now, in order to quickly put an end to her thoughts, she sneered, "If you don't leave, believe me, I'll shout it out loud and tell everyone that you molested me!"
If this gets out, anyone would run away.
But instead of running away, he reached out and hugged her tightly.
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