Chapter 44:

Lai Fu received the order and left. Emperor Jing sat there in a refreshed mood, watching Lai Xi, who still stood silently aside.

After a brief thought, he said, “Summon Chunpin to attend tonight.”

“Yes, Your Majesty, I understand.”

Layue hadn’t expected the Emperor to summon her so late at night, so she was slightly surprised, though she quickly recovered. She had already taken a bath and her hair was slightly damp. At this moment, the wind was howling outside.

Layue furrowed her brows in thought for a moment, then finally put on many layers of clothing before heading out. Lai Xi at the door saw Chunpin’s plump figure and couldn’t help twitching his lips slightly.

“Director Lai Xi, let’s go.”

“Ah~”

Even though she was riding in a palanquin, Layue still hugged her arms tightly around herself. It was quite cold at night. She wondered why the Emperor suddenly thought of having someone attend him at this late hour.

Of course, she didn’t know that Emperor Jing had been scheming quite a bit about her in his private chamber.

When she arrived at Xuanning Hall, she saw the Emperor reading a book. He wore a loose black sleeping robe. Though of average build, the Emperor preferred wearing large, baggy sleeping robes. Layue noticed that as he leaned slightly sideways, his chest was slightly exposed, his long hair cascading over the black robe. Even though he had sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, he still exuded a seductive charm.

No wonder the women of the harem flocked to him. If he didn’t have such noble status, his good looks, gentle personality, considerate nature, and sweet words would still easily win the hearts of women.

“Your humble concubine greets the Emperor.”

She gracefully bowed, her smile cheerful and delicate.

“Rise quickly. Come to me.” He extended his hand, his expression serene, with a faint smile on his lips. Had one not known his true identity, they might easily have been enchanted by him.

He reached out and touched her cheek.

“So cold! It must be getting even colder outside. However, since the temperature inside is so warm, you should take off your outer garment, otherwise you might catch a chill.”

Emperor Jing did not hide anything from Layue. Many official documents were placed on the table in the outer chamber.

Layue was aware of this and obediently nodded, planning to go into the inner chamber to remove her outer clothing.

As soon as she turned around, he pulled her back. His expression was serious, but his words were not. “Why are you leaving already, Layue? Aren’t you going to take off your clothes?”

Look at that, he could say such words so confidently, truly making one feel disdain.

Layue didn’t act coy. She smiled gracefully, like a blooming rose on her cheeks.

“Do you want to watch?” Her small hand gripped his collar, leaning back slightly, making him appear even more disheveled.

Seeing her like this, Emperor Jing wasn’t angry in the slightest. “Using the word ‘want’ here seems somewhat inappropriate. I think it’s only natural for me to look at you.”

Then, he actually started to help her take off her clothes. Layue blushed. She was always like this—no matter how bold she appeared or how provocative her words were, she would always blush before anything happened.

“…”

“What did you say? Your voice is too soft. Even with my good hearing, I’m afraid I can’t hear it.”

He teased her. It wasn’t without reason that the Emperor teased her like this. Her tender face, the translucent jade hairpin simply holding up her hair, and the dampness still visible despite being wrung dry after her recent bath—this unique charm was quite captivating.

Her eyes sparkled as she leaned against the Emperor’s body. “Your Majesty is so naughty…”

As soon as she said this, that sweet, sultry tone made Layue herself shiver involuntarily.

Emperor Jing froze momentarily but swiftly regained his composure. With a suggestive smile, he blew softly into her ear and murmured, “This emperor can be even more mischievous… My dear Yue’er knows this perfectly well, yet you still feign temptation tonight.”

Although Layue blushed, she still reached her small hand into his robe, tracing circles on his chest.

“Well then, will the Emperor allow Layue to witness your charm?”

At this, the Emperor laughed heartily, breaking the intimate atmosphere in the room.

“You’re still just a child… You haven’t even fully grown, yet you still want to witness your charm…” He spoke playfully, causing Layue to lightly punch his chest with her pink fists. She hadn’t expected the emperor of a nation to speak such slightly “vulgar” words.

Startled by his words, she blushed deeply and didn’t respond.

The Emperor’s breath tickled Layue’s neck as his hand ventured lower. As they both panted, the Emperor pulled at her undergarments.

Layue naturally resisted. This was the outer chamber. Although Lai Xi was already outside the door, it wasn’t 100% secure. Moreover, this was where the Emperor occasionally handled official matters. She wanted to be a seductive concubine who pleased her master, but that didn’t mean she wanted it to happen here, did it?

Seeing her resistance, the Emperor seemed to become more interested, peeling off her layers of clothing one by one, clearly filled with a different kind of anticipation.

Before long, she was stripped down to just her undergarments, which were already in disarray.

“Under the heavens, there is joy to be found everywhere. My dear Yue’er, just yield to me…”

Though he looked like a refined gentleman, he was completely uninhibited in their intimate moments.

Although Layue was somewhat reluctant, she didn’t say anything that would spoil the mood.

It’s hard to gain someone’s affection, but it’s easy to ruin it all.

Without much effort, their tugging and pulling seemed more like playful teasing. Eventually, Layue was pinned beneath him on the table, with official documents pushed aside. Layue slightly turned her head and saw the topmost memorial. The open page contained accusations against the Sixth Prince.

Though she couldn’t see clearly, she managed to make out a few large characters. Biting her lip, she turned her head to look at him, her small arms wrapping around his neck.

She coquettishly said, “Please, Your Majesty, show mercy.”

If there were many traits about Layue that endeared her to the Emperor, this look of complete dependence on him was certainly one of them.

He pulled down her undergarments and thrust forward, both of them exhaling in unison.

Then came a storm of passionate movements. Despite this, he continued to tease and coax her into saying sweet things. Layue was tormented until she was nearly broken, yet he still teased her with playful words.

“Yue’er, call out once, just for me, okay?”

She glared at him with her seductive eyes, biting her lip and turning her head away, pretending to be unmoved, but her restrained little act only stirred his cruel desires further.

With a fierce thrust, she let out an “Ah!”

Her long lashes slightly lowered.

“So beautiful. You really like it, don’t you?”

Seeing her embarrassed and angry expression, he continued to tease.

“Do you really want it?” Without waiting for her response, his tongue plunged into her mouth, flipping and rolling as if devouring her.

After a very long time, Layue had already lost track of when she had started to “surrender.” All she knew was that at this point, her body had softened, and so had her voice.

During the height of passion, she was even more tender and affectionate, rubbing against him like a small animal, begging him, only seeking that moment of mercy from him.

After their love-making, they lay entwined together. The Emperor sat on the chair, while Layue nestled on top of him. He covered both of them with his black robe. Though it couldn’t cover everything, it did cover her completely. She softly sniffled, no longer as seductive as she had been at first, but this made him like her even more.

After he had released himself, he appeared even more satisfied and lazily relaxed.

She stole a glance at him, then moved her body slightly, bringing her legs together. Her expression was somewhat shy.

Every time at this moment, her small animal-like behavior softened his heart. He grabbed her thigh with his big hand and thrust forward once again, entering her. She bore his weight, tightly hugging him, large tears sliding down her face…

When Layue slowly woke up, she was already lying on the bed in the inner chamber of Xuanning Hall, and the man who had passionately made love to her earlier was no longer in the inner chamber. Layue was extremely exhausted, but even so, she still got up. Her clothes were not in the inner chamber. She originally wanted to call someone to come in, but then she thought again and put on the Emperor’s robe that was draped aside, gracefully stepping out.

At this time, Emperor Jing was in the outer chamber, his brows tightly furrowed, as if something was troubling him. Hearing the sound Layue made, he lifted his head with a smile, his eyes scanning her body with deep meaning.

“You wearing it like this… it actually looks quite nice…” His voice was very soft.

Layue pouted as she came to his side, “So is it strange or beautiful?”

He ruffled her messy hair and lifted her chin, “Isn’t it beautiful? Not only do I like to look at it, but others would also be willing to see it.”

Layue didn’t delve into the other implications in his words.

Instead, she slightly lifted her small chin in a playful manner, “Of course I’m beautiful. Otherwise, why would the Emperor favor me so much? Others look at me because they are overwhelmed by my beauty.”

She knew that if she said anything else, the Emperor would likely become even more suspicious. It was better to go with the flow rather than stubbornly argue. Her behavior made Emperor Jing chuckle.

“How can you be so conceited? I think you’re just an immature little girl.”

“That’s not true at all!” Her tone was coquettish.

Her eyes sparkled with mischief, and then a naughty smile appeared on her face as she leaned closer to the Emperor, “I’m not. You know that very well.”

After saying that, she even stuck out her chest slightly, challenging him.

“Pu!” Emperor Jing finally couldn’t hold back and burst into laughter.

He pinched her cheek playfully, not minding her pained expression.

“You, what kind of person raised you to be like this?” Holding her in his arms, Emperor Jing gently combed her hair back.

“Were you raised by your grandmother?” The Emperor asked with concern.

Layue nodded.

“En. After my mother passed away, my father married a stepmother. Although she is my cousin’s aunt, my grandmother was always worried. Both my sister and I were raised by my grandmother.”

“How did they treat you?”

“Very well, of course. I didn’t have any conflicts of interest with my stepmother, so why wouldn’t it be good? Besides, I believe that my mother must have trusted my cousin’s aunt as a person when she chose her for my father before her death. Parents all over the world wholeheartedly care for their children. Even if my mother wasn’t thinking about me, she would never have allowed someone unsafe into the Shen family for the sake of my older brother.”

“You really are insightful.”

“Perhaps in other matters, your humble concubine may be foolish and naive, but in this matter, your humble concubine is very clear. Although my cousin’s aunt is very cold towards my brother and me, we are not close relatives after all. I also can’t treat her as my own mother, so I won’t demand that she must treat me as her own daughter. If she were to feign kindness and concern for me, I would actually be afraid. This way is better, maintaining a clear boundary between us.”