Without suspicion
Shortly after Lan Yunyi left the bathroom, Xia Guo took over to serve her.
Xia Guo smiled and said, "The general said that he would personally come to dry the princess's hair after she finishes her bath."
Shen Yao smiled and asked, "Where is the general?"
"He's waiting in the bedroom," Xia Guo thought. "I also saw the general tell A Yuan to go to the study first."
Shen Yao's heart, which had just softened, suddenly jumped.
But on second thought, Lan Yunyi was just cunning, but not a madwoman whose actions were unpredictable. She shouldn't be so easily fooled as to kill her after being tricked a few times.
The rational part of her mind told her not to worry too much, but the emotional part was unpredictable. If she and Lan Yunyi had married freely rather than by imperial decree, she would definitely be a capricious and wicked woman.
Shen Yao sighed and submerged her face in the water to stop thinking about these mind-numbing things.
Lan Mansion Study.
Lan Yunyi, still damp and with a gloomy expression, called out to A Yuan, and then went into the study with him.
A-Yuan had never seen him so solemn before, and she was quite nervous for a moment. But when the two arrived at the study, Lan Yunyi slowly lit incense and circled the incense burner for a long time before suddenly asking, "A-Yuan, I remember you seem to have met Chengxin before."
A Yuan nodded in agreement: "This servant has seen her before, and she is indeed quite beautiful."
Lan Yunyi looked at him silently.
After a long while, when A-Yuan's back ached from bending over, Lan Yunyi finally spoke again: "How is it not vulgar?"
A-Yuan tilted her head, looking puzzled, but didn't ask any more questions. After thinking for a moment, she said bluntly, "Her face is kind and her skin is clean, with delicate eyebrows and bright eyes... red lips and white teeth."
In any case, in his memory, that monk was indeed good-looking.
When he and Lan Yunyi first tried to see Chengxin, they were turned away. Later, he listened to Lan Yunyi's advice and often went to temples to worship Buddha. After going many times, he was able to meet the abbot of the temple.
As he was thinking, he suddenly felt a burning gaze on his head. A-Yuan looked up and saw Lan Yunyi's gaze fixed on him, with a cold smile playing on her lips.
A Yuan has been with him for more than four years. It was Lan Yunyi who saved him from the desperate situation of fighting with dogs for food. Therefore, he is very loyal to Lan Yunyi. Over time, he has been able to figure out the different meanings of each of his smiles.
For example, his sneer right now implies that he wants to kill someone.
Next, A-Yuan's answer would determine the other person's life or death.
Lan Yunyi opened his mouth, then closed it again without speaking. After a long while, he hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped. A-Yuan waited patiently, and finally, he asked, "How do you compare to me?"
A-Yuan: "Huh?"
Lan Yunyi: "Between me and Chengxin, who is more beautiful?"
A Yuan opened his mouth, seemingly trying to replicate his master's earlier state, but his muscles reacted faster than his brain, so without thinking, he said directly, "You are so beautiful, how can Cheng Xin compare to you!"
No one spoke for a long time.
The study was deathly silent; even the cracking of the dry wood inside seemed to be clearly audible.
"Really?" Lan Yunyi finally broke the silence.
A-Yuan thought for a moment and nodded, "Really."
After saying that, he looked up at Lan Yunyi's face and saw that she was frowning and looking at him with suspicion.
A-Yuan's pupils dilated in shock, and she stood frozen in place as if struck by lightning, her mind going completely blank.
He had been following Lan Yunyi for so long, and this was the first time Lan Yunyi had looked at him with such distrust.
"Alright then." Lan Yunyi waved her hand, then faced the incense burner again and lifted her outer robe to get closer to it. "Go back and rest."
A-Yuan looked at Lan Yunyi with a sorrowful expression, but he also knew that once the seed of doubt was planted, his master would have to see the answer to the question with his own eyes. There was nothing he could do about it.
So A-Yuan didn't press the matter and left with a bow.
...
After the bath, Xia Guo immediately sent someone to summon the prince consort, and then, together with several maids, carried Shen Yao's wet hair back to the bedroom.
After returning to the room, all the maids withdrew. Lan Yunyi took a soft cloth and gently wrapped it around Shen Yao's hair, rubbing it with great care. Her warm, rough fingertips would occasionally touch Shen Yao's neck.
Shen Yao was completely absorbed in thinking about all the possible outcomes of his conversation with A Yuan.
But perhaps it was too late, and she considered many possibilities, but none of them seemed likely to make Lan Yunyi come over to help her dry her hair.
In the end, Shen Yao stopped thinking about it and let Lan Yunyi's hands wander through her hair. She gradually felt a sense of peace, as if enveloped in the fragrance of pear blossoms…
The aroma seems stronger than ever before.
She leaned back against Lan Yunyi, feeling dizzy.
Lan Yunyi smiled and let Shen Yao lean against him, then said, "Sister, you still prefer Zhishi, don't you?"
"Probably," Shen Yao thought to herself. More importantly, she felt that the fragrance emanating from Lan Yunyi made her feel exceptionally peaceful.
So she tilted her head and sniffed, and said, "You smell very nice, I like it."
Lan Yunyi paused in her act of drying her hair, then continued drying it as if nothing had happened, saying, "The Consort Lan in the palace often sends me sandalwood, but I usually prefer this pear scent. I just don't know which one you prefer, sister?"
Shen Yao noticed that Lan Yunyi called him "elder sister" using the title "Consort Lan" instead of "elder sister." She wondered if this was to distinguish herself from Consort Lan or simply out of respect.
Shen Yao hesitated for a moment, then asked in return, "Sandalwood?"
“The ladies in the palace all love to worship Buddha, and Consort Lan has been influenced by this and is now used to the smell. She can’t sleep without it,” Lan Yunyi said. “I will have Xia Guo send the sandalwood incense to the princess later.”
Shen Yao said "Oh". Actually, she liked them all.
After that, Lan Yunyi remained silent and carefully wiped Shen Yaozai's hair clean.
Night had fallen, and it was finally time to go to bed.
Last night, on their wedding night, she fainted and nothing happened between them. Now, she feels that letting him leave her bedroom like that wouldn't be good for either of their reputations.
Lan Yunyi was leisurely tidying up the cotton towels he used to dry her hair, but he seemed to have a bit of obsessive-compulsive disorder. Even though he was about to fold them, he would always unfold them again and fold them neatly, making sure that each piece of cloth was perfectly aligned.
Shen Yao paused for a moment, then said, "General."
Lan Yunyi gave a soft "hmm".
Shen Yao said, "Stay tonight."
Lan Yunyi paused in folding the cotton towel, then said in a low voice, "...I didn't take a bath today, it wouldn't be good if I offended my sister."
Shen Yao: "Anyway, you're not doing anything. Go and wash yourself up quickly before going to bed."
Lan Yunyi: "Naturally, I won't do anything."
Shen Yao hummed in agreement and climbed onto the bed.
After a while, Lan Yunyi returned to the bedroom, blew out the light, and then groped her way to lift the bed curtains in the dark.
He sat by the bed for a while first.
Shen Yao turned her back and leaned further in.
Lan Yunyi paused, but didn't lie down. Instead, she sat on the edge of the bed and leaned closer to Shen Yao. Finally, she stopped when she was about half a fist's width away from Shen Yao's ear.
Shen Yao opened her eyes and turned around abruptly. Lan Yunyi merely raised her chin slightly to avoid their noses bumping together.
Shen Yao's heart suddenly started racing.
She recalled her past life's words and suddenly understood what they meant by "excitement".
But she really didn't like that feeling.
Lan Yunyi lowered his eyes, his eyelashes fluttering gently like small fans. He smiled, and even his breath carried the sweet scent of pears.
It seemed even stronger than before, with a hint of sandalwood that was almost completely masked. In short, the complex fragrance was so strong that Shen Yao almost sneezed.
Fortunately, she held back.
She couldn't help but ask, "Is the fragrance so strong because you're afraid I'll touch you today?"
“Sister, what are you saying?” Lan Yunyi said, reaching out to grasp Shen Yao’s hand. “It was clearly me who begged you to pamper me.”
Shen Yao didn't believe his nonsense, pushed his shoulder away, and sat up. She tidied up the other side of the bed and said, "Go to sleep."
A glint flashed in Lan Yunyi's eyes, but she remained still.
Shen Yao looked at him with a puzzled expression.
The next second, the other person grabbed her shoulders and they both fell onto the bed.
Shen Yao was startled, and when she looked up, she met Lan Yunyi's crescent-shaped eyes.
Are you scared?
He neither called her "sister" nor respectfully addressed her as "princess," revealing his undisguised intention to suppress her.
Shen Yao chuckled, thinking there was nothing to fear; she wasn't afraid of such things at all. It was just that she was utterly inept at handling these situations, so she once again turned her face away and remained silent.
Lan Yunyi stroked her hair, leaned closer again, closed her eyes, and gently kissed Shen Yao's neck.
Shen Yao subconsciously gripped his shoulders tightly. She didn't know if it was because Lan Yunyi's fragrance was too strong or what, but when he kissed her, Shen Yao felt dizzy.
"Does my sister like the scent on me?" Lan Yunyi asked softly.
Shen Yao: "It's alright."
Lan Yunyi chuckled again, then got up and released her hand. She gathered her clothes and sat down on the edge of the bed with her back to Shen Yao, saying, "The princess truly has no suspicion of me."
Shen Yao didn't speak.
Under the flowers and the moon, no one wants to be the one to spoil the fun. Besides, if it weren't for Emperor Sheng's interference, and she didn't have an assassination mission, she thought she and Lan Yunyi might have been able to become friends.
Shen Yao sighed, feeling that whether she did it or not wouldn't make much difference. The most important thing was that their relationship hadn't reached that point yet, and doing it would only hinder her from thinking things through calmly in the future.
Shen Yao said helplessly, "You should go to bed early, Prince Consort. We still need to visit Prince Jing tomorrow."
Lan Yunyi: "To visit Prince Jing?"
Shen Yao said, "Consider it my homecoming. I will also write a letter with Prince Jing to present to Father Emperor."
Lan Yunyi frowned, and suddenly tightened her grip, coldly saying, "A letter of divorce? What letter of divorce? Did I do something wrong?"
Shen Yao winced in pain, but only frowned slightly and said calmly, "...I and Prince Jing wrote a letter together to Emperor Sheng to report that we are safe."
“…Oh.” Lan Yunyi realized it was just those red tape again, so she didn’t investigate any further.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
