Chapter 46 "Staying in the Palace Tonight"
The deep voice warmed her, and Ji Qingwu felt like she was about to burst into flames.
She wondered if she was hallucinating from the heat, because she felt like the emperor was flirting with her.
Before she could figure it out, she heard a slightly hoarse voice.
"I will stay in the palace tonight."
These words stunned Ji Qingwu, and she quickly looked up from his embrace.
Meeting Emperor Wusu's deep, inky gaze, she regained her senses and quickly gave him a push.
She immediately retorted, "That won't do; my family is still waiting at home."
A blush of shame and indignation crept onto her face. What did the emperor take her for? A fleeting pleasure? Someone to be bullied at will?
Ji Qingwu's eyes, which had been misty just moments before, were now clear. She declared loudly, "Moreover, I am already engaged."
Upon hearing the words "marriage agreement," Emperor Wusu released her hand, letting her walk away, and the intimacy they had just shared vanished.
Ji Qingwu straightened his outer robe and took a few steps back.
"What are you thinking about?" Emperor Wusu said in a deep voice, "The Empress Dowager will definitely summon you to the palace again tomorrow morning."
Yes.
Tomorrow, the Empress Dowager will definitely come to her to reprimand her. Her precious princess fell into the water, and she might punish her severely.
Even though she was from the Empress Dowager's maternal clan, and both belonged to the Ji family, her act of pushing Princess Qingyun into the water was even more hateful.
"I meant well. If someone from the palace comes to the Ji residence tomorrow morning to take you away, your family will surely be disturbed."
So that's what it meant to keep her in the palace, not what she thought...
If Madam Qiao were to see her being carried away by the eunuchs, she might fall ill from fright on the spot.
Ji Qingwu forced a smile and said awkwardly, "Your Majesty is wise."
Emperor Wusu stared at her face and said casually, "Since you don't want to stay in the palace, go home early. If you go back now, you can sleep for two or three hours. When the palace gates open tomorrow morning, the head eunuch of Cining Palace should go to the Ji family to arrest you."
He hesitated for a moment, then added, seemingly unsatisfied, "At worst, I'll just get a beating and suffer some physical pain."
A beating can kill someone if it's too severe.
She had seen soldiers arresting fugitives, pinning them to the ground and whipping them with thin bamboo sticks until their skin was torn and bleeding.
It's not easy to heal in the height of summer; it rots and decays, and even if it does heal, it leaves terrible scars.
Ji Qingwu couldn't stand that his own buttocks had become like that too.
It would be better to just chop off her head; she could just close her eyes and it would be over in a second. She even started to feel a dull pain in her buttocks.
Ji Qingwu opened his mouth, but before she could speak...
His Majesty the Emperor then turned around and left.
Li Yuzong had been waiting in the distance. When he saw the Emperor leave with a cold face, he quickly followed.
Emperor Wusu walked with a steady gait, covering a great distance in just a few steps.
Ji Qingwu stood there, watching his tall, straight figure, like a pine tree, gradually disappear into the distance.
She had already realized that the emperor intended to protect her.
Otherwise, she would have been punished in Cining Palace tonight, her buttocks probably broken into pieces.
Ji Qingwu recalled what Qiao had said before: everyone in the palace had their own ulterior motives, but only His Majesty the Emperor's wishes mattered the most.
If the Empress Dowager wants to punish her, who can stop her? Only the Emperor can.
She jogged a few steps and caught up with him.
Hearing the chaotic footsteps behind him, Emperor Wusu raised the corners of his mouth, and Li Yuzong, being very perceptive, took a few steps back.
Ji Qingwu followed behind him, slightly out of breath, and said, "Your Majesty, I had impure thoughts just now. Please forgive me, you are a magnanimous person."
Emperor Wusu did not stop walking, but slowed down considerably. He reminded her with a tight smile, "The palace gates will be locked soon. Miss Ji is anxious to go home. If you don't leave now, you won't be able to leave at all."
Ji Qingwu looked embarrassed when he used the same words he had said to shut her up.
“Miss Ji is not familiar with the roads in the palace. Li Yuzong, why don’t you go and see her off?” Emperor Wusu kindly said.
Eunuch Li walked to Ji Qingwu's side and gestured, "Yes, please."
She went around to the emperor and stood before him again, boldly saying, "This humble woman will not leave tonight; I beg Your Majesty to take me in."
"Take them in?"
Emperor Wusu stopped and said casually, "Do you know who the women who are allowed to enter my Zhaoyang Palace are?"
Ji Qingwu shook his head: "I don't know."
Li Yuzong bowed and said, "Zhaoyang Palace is the Emperor's sleeping quarters. Only the concubines of the inner palace can enter the palace."
Ji Qingwu bit her lip and suggested, "This humble woman will not go in; I will just stand guard at the palace gate."
Li Yuzong exclaimed, "Miss Ji, this is unacceptable. You are the daughter of a court official and the niece of the Empress Dowager. How can we allow you to do the work of a night watch maid?"
It would have been better if the Empress Dowager hadn't been mentioned. But the fact that she was brought up only strengthened Ji Qingwu's resolve. After all, she was just a palace maid on night duty.
“Eunuch Li, I can.”
Emperor Wusu looked at her, and a meaningful smile suddenly appeared on his lips.
"Do you know what the palace maids on night duty are supposed to do?"
Ji Qingwu shook her head again; she really didn't know.
Li Yuzong stepped forward to explain, bowing his head as he said, "The palace maids on night duty are divided into those for the first night and those for the second night. They must wait outside the palace gates and listen for any sounds or movements inside the palace."
Ji Qingwu nodded; this was similar to what a maid in an ordinary household would do.
Eunuch Li explained in detail: "Whether His Majesty slept soundly, how many times he coughed, how many times he got up at night, and how many times he drank water must all be recorded and told to the eunuch in charge the next day for filing."
Ji Qingwu hadn't expected that there would be so many rules for "night watch".
That wasn't all. Li Yuzong continued, "If a concubine comes to serve you at night, you must be especially careful. When she calls for water, you must make sure the stove doesn't go out."
Inside, the emperor and empress were engaged in passionate lovemaking, and the palace maids on night duty had to listen at the door. After the event, they had to rush to the washroom to add hot water for the emperor and empress to bathe in.
The thought of eavesdropping on Emperor Wusu's affairs with women filled Ji Qingwu with a mix of emotions.
She twisted her fingers and secretly glanced at Emperor Wusu beside her. Could it be that he was going to choose one of the concubines tonight?
But it could also mean sleeping alone.
Ji Qingwu wanted to take a gamble, so she nodded to Eunuch Li, indicating that this was acceptable.
Li Yuzong glanced at the Emperor's expression discreetly and clicked his tongue.
"This servant forgot to mention, there is one more thing: if His Majesty is in the mood, the palace maids on night duty may also enter the palace to serve him in bed."
However, this was an absurd thing that the previous Liang emperor had done, but Emperor Wusu had never done it.
Even if Ji Qingwu were usually very open-minded, he couldn't think straight at this moment.
She gave up the idea of being a "night watch maid".
Ji Qingwu lowered his head, looking at the gold-belted court boots under the bamboo-green brocade robe with dragon patterns in front of him. He was still standing in front of him, showing no intention of leaving.
The best way to talk to someone who wields power and is also deep in thought is to be sincere.
Do not lie, do not make excuses, only speak your true thoughts.
Ji Qingwu stopped beating around the bush with Emperor Wusu and asked directly, "Your Majesty, do you have a way to save me?"
Emperor Wusu looked at the top of her head and asked, "When you dragged Qingyun into this mess, didn't you think of any countermeasures? You impulsively caused trouble, and now you're asking me for advice?"
You couldn't tell if the voice was happy or angry.
"I managed to save the princess and bring her ashore. Although I have committed a major offense, I have also made a minor contribution."
Ji Qingwu looked up, tilting her delicate chin, and observed the emperor's expression.
She said in a sweet and gentle voice, "Your Majesty, don't you think so?"
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