Chapter 109 "I really like this ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress)..."
Yan Jiarou was in a state of turmoil. She loved Xiao Che, and if she had to choose between him and Xiao Jue, she would naturally side with Xiao Che.
The current situation is not that Xiao Che will die if she doesn't choose him, but that he will be accused of treason if she doesn't choose Xiao Jue.
She didn't understand the affairs of the court, but she knew that treason was no small crime. Anyone involved in treason would at least lose their head; they would often be implicated in the execution of their entire family.
As a prince, Xiao Jue would never be subjected to the punishment of having his entire family executed. But could his life be spared?
If Xiao Che had done the same thing, the Emperor would have certainly shown leniency and dealt with him leniently. But Xiao Jue, whom the Emperor has always disliked, has done something like this again. In his rage, will the Emperor take his life?
This is something no one can guarantee.
Yan Jiarou was terrified that Xiao Jue would lose his life. She already owed him enough. It would have been better if she hadn't known about this, but now that she did, if she just stood by and watched Xiao Jue go to this doomed situation, fall into the trap that Xiao Che had already set for him, and bear the crime of treason, she would never be at peace with herself for the rest of her life.
No, she couldn't stand idly by. She had to find a way to inform Xiao Jue and make him realize his mistake so that she could save him.
Having made up her mind, Yan Jiarou felt a little more at ease.
The problem now is that Xiao Jue won't let her go back, and she can't leave Han Guang Palace. How can she send a message to Xiao Jue?
Lost in thought, Xiao Che suddenly kissed her cheek lightly, his voice tinged with laughter: "What are you thinking about, little rabbit?"
“I…” Yan Jiarou’s eyelashes trembled, and she lowered her eyelids somewhat guiltily: “I was thinking, why won’t you let me go back… Yingxue is still waiting for me in Chenghuan Palace, I said I would go back…”
“Baby, you said the same thing last time. But you went too far and ended up staying in Han Guang Palace. I think Yingxue is used to it by now, so it’s fine.”
"This time is different!" Yan Jiarou pushed him away and looked up hurriedly, saying, "I want to go back!"
Xiao Che slowly straightened up, lifted his eyelids to glance at her, and asked in an ambiguous tone, "Oh? Why is it different this time?"
"I..." Yan Jiarou realized she had been too obvious and quickly tried to cover it up: "...Yingxue brought me a few popular storybooks from outside the palace today, and I haven't had a chance to read them yet. Besides, what did General Yan mean just now? It was as if he was keeping a close watch on me. What, am I an outsider? Is there anything I can't hear? Besides, I didn't hear anything. I'm not interested in your court affairs at all."
"He called me 'sister-in-law' the last time we met, but this time he treats me like an outsider and even tries to detain me. Why should I listen to him? I refuse to listen to him and I want to go back!"
His words were a mix of truth and falsehood; the latter part of his complaints about Yan Xiao were genuine, and his expression didn't seem fake.
She was born with the temperament of a pampered young lady, and everyone had to coax her. She would throw a tantrum at the slightest displeasure, so these words were indeed in line with her personality.
Xiao Che looked at her for a while, then slowly smiled and gently scratched her chin like he was coaxing a kitten: "Yan Yan, he's already calling you sister-in-law. As his sister-in-law, why are you still arguing with him?"
“Don’t be angry, baby,” he said. “Yan Xiao didn’t mean it that way. If you’re still angry, I’ll apologize to him on your behalf.”
Yan Jiarou pursed her lips and tentatively asked, "Then... can I go back?"
"No," Xiao Che said with a smile.
The refusal was very decisive.
Yan Jiarou's heart sank to the bottom in an instant.
She turned her face away, clearly troubled: "...Why?"
Xiao Che raised an eyebrow, pinched her chubby cheek, and smiled slightly: "Who told you to secretly eavesdrop outside the door? Keeping you in Han Guang Palace is a small punishment."
"...I'm not an outsider, why can't I listen!"
"Even your wife shouldn't listen. Little Rabbit, eavesdropping is never a respectable thing."
Yan Jiarou pouted: "...But I said I didn't hear anything. Don't you believe me?"
He reached out and ruffled her hair: "It's not that I don't trust you, it's just that I feel more at ease when you're by my side."
He paused in his work: "Besides that, there will be some changes in the palace in the next few days, and I'm worried about not having you by my side."
"Yan Yan, be a good girl, okay?"
Yan Jiarou let out a breath, knowing that Xiao Che wouldn't let her leave. If she didn't make a scene to leave now, it would seem deliberate, so she could only nod for the time being.
As for what happens next, we can only wait and see.
Perhaps she could find a chance to sneak out later when Xiao Che had fallen asleep.
When she came to her senses, Xiao Che had already led her into the study.
The moment the door closed, she snapped back to reality.
Xiao Che leaned against the door with his arms crossed, giving a lazy smile: "Little Rabbit, you still haven't told me what brings you here to see me now?"
"Oh..." Yan Jiarou was in a state of confusion, but after his reminder, she remembered the purpose of her trip.
She lowered her head, pursed her lips, untied the sash at the front of her robe, and took off the cloak she was wearing, revealing a ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) underneath: "Yingxue went out of the palace today and brought me back a lot of things. Hmm... there's a ruqun from Jinxiufang that's especially beautiful. I really like it and wanted to wear it to show you..."
She twirled around as she spoke, then asked him with a smile, "Brother, is it pretty?"
Xiao Che looked up and saw that she was wearing a scarlet brocade dress with gold and silver threads embroidered with dark patterns on the hem. As she turned gently, the twelve hems of the dress rippled with a rosy hue.
Under the candlelight, the embroidered threads on her skirt shimmered and sparkled, making her even more radiant.
Xiao Che swallowed hard and said, "Beautiful, very pretty."
Yan Jiarou, pleased with the compliment, happily lifted her skirt and threw herself into his arms, looking up at him with sparkling eyes: "So, do you like it?"
Xiao Che touched the back of her full, round head and looked down at her.
The scarlet ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) made her look even more beautiful.
With its vibrant color reminiscent of crabapple blossoms, and the springtime charm emanating from its brows and eyes, it is truly captivating.
Despite her beautiful and charming features, she still exudes an air of innocence.
Her cheeks still had baby fat, making her look adorable and charming.
Looking at his eyes, it was more like a small animal trying its best to please its master, hoping to get his praise. After getting his wish, it looked at him happily, almost wagging its tail.
So naive as to have no idea what her current appearance meant to him.
This contrast only makes it more alluring.
Xiao Che kissed her forehead, his voice hoarse, and chuckled softly, "I like it, how could I not like it?"
"Really? I'm glad you like it."
With his slender fingers resting on the sash in front of her, Xiao Che slowly and methodically continued tying it: "It looks good and is easy to take off, of course I like it." As soon as he finished speaking, the entire ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) slid down from her chest and piled up at her ankles.
Yan Jiarou let out a soft cry, pressing herself against Xiao Che's body and using him as cover: "Brother..."
With two cotton balls tightly pressing against his front, Xiao Che swallowed hard, feeling a sharp pain. He bent down, picked her up, and carried her to a soft couch in the study, gently placing Yan Jiarou on it.
Even as he pressed down on her, Yan Jiarou was still worried about the ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) that had fallen to the ground: "My ruqun..."
Xiao Che kissed her eyes, his voice hoarse, and patiently replied, "What's wrong? Did you manage to tear it again this time?"
His tone was a mix of helplessness and doting: "Baby, can you concentrate a little?"
Speaking of tearing her dress, Yan Jiarou couldn't help but recall the last time in the rockery, when Xiao Che acted too hastily and tore her dress because it was difficult to take off. She couldn't help but complain, "Last time... last time you tore that dress, you said you would compensate me, but you still haven't done so."
"Ancestor, I've already sent you a whole box of gold leaves, enough to buy ten dresses, how can it still be considered that I haven't compensated you?"
"How can they be the same!" Yan Jiarou retorted indignantly, "A dress is a dress, and gold leaves are gold leaves. I don't want gold leaves, I want a dress!"
"Okay, next time I leave the palace, I'll personally buy one for Little Rabbit, okay?"
"That's more like it... Well, but I need you to take me with you! How will I know if it fits if I don't try it on?"
"Do I need you to try it on yourself?" Xiao Che tucked a stray strand of her hair behind her ear, chuckled, and said playfully, "After being with you so many times, there's not a single part of your body that I don't know. How could I not know your size?"
Yan Jiarou was taken aback, a blush creeping onto her cheeks. She stammered, "...I don't care, I want to go myself. I'll only be sure if I try it myself."
She claimed everything was foolproof, but she was just looking for an excuse to get him to take her out of the palace. Xiao Che's lips curled slightly, but he didn't expose her.
"Okay, next time when I have some free time, I'll take Little Rabbit out of the palace with me, okay?"
"Okay!" Satisfied with the answer, the little girl wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a big kiss on the cheek.
Xiao Che, unable to contain himself, gently bit her earlobe, his breath ragged as he said, "...Then you'll have to stay obediently in Han Guang Palace for the next few days and not go back. If you get bored, I have some storybooks here that you like to read, which I bought especially for you. You can take them and read them."
"I don't want to!" Mentioning the storybooks Xiao Che had given her, she found it difficult to speak: "All those storybooks of yours are indecent, I don't want to read them..."
Xiao Che raised an eyebrow, only then remembering the several storybooks he had given to Xiao Tu before. It seemed that one of them was a book called "The Thirty-Six Styles of Chun Palace". He hadn't done it on purpose. Perhaps the bookstore owner had misunderstood and given him this "Fire Avoidance Diagram". No wonder Xiao Tu looked at him with a rather profound look back then.
Although it wasn't intentional, showing Tsubaki Palace to Usagi so she can learn more isn't a bad thing.
She was just like a child in bed, knowing nothing, and it took him a long time to teach her before she improved a bit. Unfortunately, her comprehension was too poor, so perhaps she really needed to learn from pictures: "If you hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten. Didn't I ask you to learn last time? How did it go? Did you learn it all?"
Yan Jiarou snorted: "Brother, you're really shameless to make me learn that kind of thing. I won't learn it."
Xiao Che tapped her on the head: "It's one thing to be slow-witted, but why won't you study? Are you being disobedient?"
Yan Jiarou deflated: "Where have I been naughty..."
"Then learn it."
Xiao Che also became interested, and said that he got up, took the fire avoidance diagram, and handed it to Yan Jiarou: "Choose for yourself."
Yan Jiarou took it blankly, blinked, and looked up at her with a bewildered expression: "Choose? Choose what..."
Xiao Che raised an eyebrow: "This is the first time you've caused trouble today."
Yan Jiarou blushed deeply and didn't want to choose, but she was afraid of upsetting Xiao Che, so she finally gritted her teeth and pointed to the sixteenth move, saying, "I want this one!"
Xiao Che glanced at it, somewhat surprised: "Women?"
Yan Jiarou didn't understand this, but she felt that this kind of troublemaking was particularly fun: "You used to bully me, now it's my turn to bully you, I'm going to ride my brother like a horse!"
"Oh? Then we'll see if you have the ability."
As it turned out, she wasn't that capable after all; she lost herself in no time and then became listless and unwilling to move.
Xiao Che looked at her with amusement, got up and pinned her down, then began to rough and ravage her.
This pleasant encounter continued into the night, and as usual, Yan Jiarou fainted.
After Yan Jiarou faints, she usually sleeps very soundly and will not wake up until noon the next day unless someone wakes her up.
This has always been the case, so Xiao Che naturally had no doubt that there would be an exception.
But this time, in the middle of the night, she suddenly opened her eyes, her gaze clear and bright.
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