Chapter 174 What He Craved, What He Wanted
"I am here."
Ji Qingwu's voice was soft and gentle.
Emperor Wusu's body temperature was rising, which also made her face hot and her heart pound.
The lamplight cast the shadows of the two embracing figures onto the milky-white window paper.
Where she couldn't see, the emotions in the man's eyes suddenly erupted, a thousand times more intense than any Ji Qingwu had ever seen before.
If Ji Qingwu does not refuse Wei Ting today...
They cannot get married.
He will never again give away what he desires and wants.
He didn't know how much time had passed, so long that Ji Qingwu's eyelids grew heavy and he became drowsy.
She opened her drowsy eyes and saw that most of the candle flame in the lampshade on the table had burned out.
Emperor Wusu did not move an inch.
Even if she held Qiuqiu for a long time, her arms and legs would go numb, let alone him holding such a big person as her.
Ji Qingwu nudged him and said softly, "Your Majesty."
Emperor Wusu suddenly opened his closed eyes, his tone tinged with annoyance at being disturbed.
Where are you going?
Their eyes met, and Ji Qingwu's distress vanished instantly.
His eyes treated her as if she were some kind of "criminal" who needed to be closely watched, and he tightened his grip on her waist, as if to prevent her from escaping.
After a short rest, Ji Qingwu's eyes regained their sparkle.
She blinked and said, "It's getting late, we should go to bed."
The implication was that His Majesty should return to the palace, and she wanted to sleep.
Emperor Wusu saw that her cheeks were imprinted with the cloud patterns embroidered on his robe, which looked quite playful, and he pinched her cheeks with his fingers.
"You want to drive me away?"
Ji Qingwu said, "His Majesty has to attend court tomorrow, and returning to the palace too late will affect his rest."
He shook his head: "I will rest here."
"Your Majesty, are you joking?"
He has such a large palace like Zhaoyang Palace to live in, yet he comes to seize her small plot of land.
Emperor Wusu, however, carried her into the inner room, saying to himself, "Last time you borrowed the pavilion in my Lotus Pavilion for one night, now it's time to return the favor."
Did she want to stay overnight?
She was forced to go by Li Yuzong, but the emperor did help her clean up the mess of Prince Yong's affairs, which she had already repaid last time.
As soon as Ji Qingwu was put on the bed, she ran inside. She shrank at the foot of the bed, watching him warily as he stood in front of the bed.
Emperor Wusu raised his hand and pinched his brow. Even though his hand was partially obscured, it was still clear that his furrowed brows revealed obvious fatigue.
Because the maids serving her were all asleep, she only lit the lamp in the outer room after entering the room.
Ji Qingwu leaned against the foot of the bed, and with the light coming in from outside, he felt as if there were dark circles under his eyes.
The sense of loneliness and weakness that he had shown under the sycamore tree just now was released again.
Considering how diligently the emperor usually handled state affairs, often staying up late to review memorials, and how things had recently become unsettled in the northern army...
He must be exhausted, and Ji Qingwu's heart tightened as well.
The city of Lin'an is now flourishing with flowers, and Beili is spared from the ravages of war, all because of him.
The wise and righteous Ji Qingwu thought to himself, what harm is there in letting the exhausted emperor rest here for one night?
Emperor Wusu glanced at her discreetly, and this time, instead of pinching his brow, he sighed and rubbed his forehead.
He said in a low voice, "Since Awu is so unwilling, I will not force him."
As he spoke, he coughed several times.
Ji Qingwu moved forward a little, no longer huddled in the corner, wanting to reach out and take his pulse to see if there was anything seriously wrong.
The night was cool, and the emperor had waited for her outside for so long. It was late and the dew was heavy, yet he still had to brave the night to return.
Reason told her that she could not let the emperor stay overnight in her room, but Ji Qingwu felt a pang of pity for him because of his exhausted appearance.
While hesitating.
The sound of someone sitting up and walking towards them came from outside.
Ji Qingwu realized what was happening and hurriedly reached out to pull Emperor Wusu onto the bed, forcefully pushing him inside, and then frantically lowered the bed curtains.
This action was performed in one smooth motion, naturally requiring the emperor's strong cooperation.
"Miss, are you asleep?" It was Lanzhi's groggy voice.
Ji Qingwu was surprised that the maid woke up so quickly. It seemed that she had been learning medicine from him and had improved her health in the past few days.
Lanzhi walked into the inner room and seemed to see a figure moving on the bed. She asked in confusion, "Fifth Miss, how did I end up sleeping in the outer room?"
Ji Qingwu tried to smooth things over, saying, "Lanzhi, you must have been working too hard lately. It's okay to sleep a little longer. Go back to sleep."
She pulled over the pile of light blue brocade quilts and covered Emperor Wusu completely with them. Afraid that he would run out, she also reached out and pressed his body down.
Through a thin gauze bed curtain, Lanzhi saw Ji Qingwu leaning against the bedside, as if the intertwined figures she had just seen were an illusion.
Lanzhi's mind was foggy, and she thought she had misread it. She asked in surprise, "Fifth Miss, why didn't you light the lamps?"
"Need not!"
Sensing that her tone was too intense, Ji Qingwu tried to speak calmly, saying, "No need to turn on the light, I'm going to sleep now, you should go and rest too."
Lanzhi felt dizzy and couldn't remember how she got to the outer room.
She nodded and said, "Okay, Fifth Miss, I'll keep watch outside. Call me if you need anything."
Once Lan Zhi's footsteps faded into the distance, Ji Qingwu turned his gaze from the bed curtains to the raised quilt on the inside of the bed.
Ji Qingwu suddenly felt someone pull her waist. He pulled her down, and she slid under the quilt.
Emperor Wusu's body was half-pressed on her.
The two of them were both covered by the blankets, their breaths mingling.
Ji Qingwu suddenly remembered what good she had done for His Majesty the Emperor. She forced a smile, not caring whether he could see her in the pitch-black bed.
She whispered, "Your Majesty, once Lanzhi is sound asleep, you can quietly slip out, and I'll keep watch for you."
Emperor Wusu reached out and touched her face precisely, his well-defined fingers rubbing her earlobe.
"Why did you sneak out? Am I so shameful to be seen by others?"
He did not lower his voice.
Ji Qingwu quickly raised his hand to cover himself with the blanket, leaving no gaps, which caused the two of them to press even closer together.
Lanzhi was assigned to her by Lady Qiao. If she were to discover this, Lady Qiao would most likely also find out about her relationship with the Emperor.
She nuzzled his palm with her cheek ingratiatingly and whispered, "It's not that Your Majesty is ashamed, it's that I'm afraid."
He felt the smoothness in his palm, and his tone softened accordingly.
What are you afraid of?
Under the same blanket, so close to him, Ji Qingwu felt that his heart had also drawn closer to the person beside him.
She spoke frankly, "I'm afraid my mother will find out, and I'm afraid it will cause her trouble."
"Am I a nuisance?"
Ji Qingwu corrected, "It is the power in His Majesty's hands that will cause big trouble."
Emperor Wusu's eyes flickered. He hadn't expected her to say such a thing. This child is still teachable.
Ji Qingwu felt suffocated and could hardly breathe. She tried to get out of the covers to get some fresh air, but she had only crawled out a little bit.
He then grabbed her waist and pulled her back.
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