He showered twice before going to bed and had someone change the bedding that had been freshly dried. Even though it was not hot in March, Li Qishen could not stand it. He tossed and turned for half the night before he could barely fall asleep. When it was almost midnight, he woke up again in a daze. His back was hot and sweaty. He wanted to take off his pajamas to feel comfortable.
Of course he wouldn't take it off. Even if there was only one person on the couch and there was no one to serve him in the inner hall, Li Qishen was still used to wearing thick clothes. But it was too hot right now, so he couldn't help it. He turned over and sat up, and lifted the quilt to let some cool air in.
When he sat up, the cool breeze didn't get in, but through the half-loose and half-hanging bed curtain, he could see a figure standing beside the couch. It looked like a young lady, probably half a head shorter than him, wearing a chest-length skirt, which made her look slender and graceful.
The figure was slender, but Li Qishen had no intention of appreciating her. He reached under the pillow and pulled out the short knife that was pressed underneath. In a short moment, the short knife moved back and forth between his fingers, and the scabbard fell to the ground. The blade was coated with a cold light, and it was directly aimed at the eyebrows of the person beside the couch.
"… What are you doing?" The girl standing beside the couch was obviously frightened, and her voice was a little distorted. The window was not closed tightly, and she took a half step back, just stepping into the moonlight that was flowing in.
The moon was bright tonight, and the clear silver light flowed in the house like a river of moderate width. The girl was immersed in the moonlight, and her long hair and eyelashes were shining faintly. Her face was obviously surprised, her brows were furrowed, and her lips were tightly pursed. Her lips were originally the light color of the first blooming spring flowers, and after pursing them, they seemed even lighter, making people want to dip lip balm or flower juice and gently paint them on her lips.
Xie Wangzhi stared at Li Qishen for a while, blinked, as if he finally realized something was wrong with him, and felt a little embarrassed, "Um... am I too presumptuous and scared you?"
"…No." Li Qishen quickly sheathed his knife. It was really rude to meet someone in his pajamas. He wanted to find a robe to put on temporarily, but after searching around on the couch, he couldn't find any of the clothes he had casually put on the quilt before going to sleep. He had no choice but to pull his pajamas together casually and whispered, "Sorry, I think too much."
"It's okay. It's not nice for me to come here like this. And I disturbed your sleep, didn't I? I'm sorry... I just, um..." Xie Wangzhi didn't notice Li Qishen's abnormality. He walked forward and sat down beside his couch. He moved a little closer, but his eyes were a little wandering. "Well, I'm a little worried."
"What are you worried about?" Li Qishen was stunned and continued speaking according to her words.
"It's the rash here." Xie Wangzhi raised his hand and gestured at the area below his collarbone. "I suddenly remembered it... At that time, I had a rash and went to see a doctor for medicine, but the doctor didn't say that this medicine can be used for other people. Maybe your symptoms are not good, and the doctor didn't prescribe you any external medicine. I'm afraid it will be bad for you if you apply it."
"I think it's okay." Li Qishen said honestly, "It's just a little cold when I first applied it, but it does relieve the itching. I also applied some before going to bed."
"Really?" Xie Wangzhi suddenly came over and stretched out his hand, "Let me see."
Li Qishen was caught off guard and had no time to dodge, as Xie Wangzhi had already loosened the belt of his pajamas. For comfort, the pajamas were loose and made of silk, so once the belt was loosened, the collar collapsed immediately. One side was fine, just loosened; the other side was terrible, sliding directly over the shoulder, revealing the boy's fair skin and sharp collarbone.
Logically, no matter how open the society is, one should politely avoid the boy's body when suddenly seeing him. However, Xie Wangzhi didn't care. He supported himself on the couch with one hand and raised the other hand, stroking the still red rash with his fingertips lightly, as if he was deliberately provoking a furry cat.
The girl's body temperature was lower than Li Qishen's. The moment her fingertips touched him, Li Qishen shuddered all over. His collarbone was clearly brushed by the cool fingertips. After a brief moment of slight chill, it was as if a fire had been lit under his skin, which began to burn. The heat spread from his collarbone and burned into his bones, making him feel hot all over and swallowing unconsciously.
The feeling was too strange, like stuffiness, and like something else he had never touched before. Li Qishen instinctively wanted to do something, but he didn't know what to do. His mind was a mess, and his eyes slid down and fell on Xie Wangzhi.
Unlike him, Xie Wangzhi was calm and had no idea how uncomfortable Li Qishen was. She focused on that small piece of skin and leaned slightly towards him, half of her body hidden in the shadow of the bed curtains and half of her body covered in moonlight.
From where Li Qishen was standing, Xie Wangzhi was really thin, with round shoulders. A little further down, one could see her straight collarbone, which was slightly protruding from her thin top, and showed through her fair skin. Under the moonlight, she looked like a piece of jade waiting to be worn and caressed. Her neck was graceful and slender, and from the back of her neck to her waist, because of her posture, the moonlight outlined an extremely soft line, which made people tremble with fear.
To be fair, considering Xie Wangzhi's age, words like "charming" and "amorous" don't apply to her, and she doesn't have a seductive look. But when she leaned so close, the slight lines of her chest became clearer, and one could vaguely see the faint ups and downs unique to young girls, like an unopened flower bud.
Li Qishen suddenly realized that she seemed to... not have tied her tiara tightly.
However, Xie Wangzhi was completely unaware. She moved closer, put her pale pink lips close to his collarbone, and blew very lightly, feeling a slight itch and coolness, as if scratching his heart through the skin.
Li Qishen trembled all over, and suddenly turned over and sat up, his chest heaving violently, and beads of sweat dripped from his head. The last breath in the dream seemed to still remain on his collarbone. He raised his hand and scratched it hard twice, but the slight itch was branded into his bones, just like the heat in his body at this moment, burning him tossing and turning, unable to sit still.
He took a few deep breaths, but his throat was still blocked, as if something inexplicably stuck there, unable to move up or down, making him anxious. Li Qishen looked down at the quilt piled on his knees, and suddenly felt annoyed, so he kicked the quilt off the bed.
The quilt that Chunli was covered with was thick, and on top of it were the clothes that she would temporarily wear tomorrow. The sound of it falling to the ground was quite loud, and a head popped out from behind the screen in surprise: "… Your Highness? What's wrong with you?"
"… It's okay." Li Qishen stared at the quilt for a while, then lay down with his back to the screen, "I'm upset. Leave."
There were no lights on in the inner hall, and Changzu didn't have clairvoyance, so he couldn't see through the screen and see what was going on inside, so he could only respond. He estimated the weather at the moment and felt it was a bit stuffy, and guessed that Li Qishen was awakened by the heat, so he got angry with himself, but since he said "back off", Changzu couldn't go in and change Li Qishen's bedding.
The young eunuch who had served in Qingsi Palace for more than ten years sighed, shrank back to his original position, and shook his head.
…Alas, young people are hot-tempered and there is nothing we can do.
**
Recently, Li Taoqi has known what it means to be overwhelmed. State affairs and family matters have been taking place one after another, making him so busy that he has to stumble over every step.
The two Taoist priests introduced to the palace by An Guangxing years ago used some kind of magic to gain Li Chengjing's trust. They settled down in the palace openly and made elixirs one after another. If it was just elixirs, it would be fine. Anyway, Li Chengjing would eat them alone. He could eat more cinnabar and mercury, and when he had eaten enough, he could go directly to Xuanyuan Palace. This would be a good thing for the country and the people.
The problem lies in the raw materials used for alchemy. Lingzhi and mountain ginseng are not important. As long as you are willing to spend money and take the trouble, you can always find them. However, the two Taoists not only want herbs grown in the field, but also want to take them from people. It seems that they are targeting the young palace maids who were newly selected into the palace this year.
As soon as the news of the serious injury leaked out, there was a wave of impeachments in the court. The memorials submitted were piled up like firewood. There were even a few old ministers who had served during the reign of Emperor Pingxing and said, "If this is true, I am ashamed of Emperor Pingxing. I would rather die by hitting my head against the Danfeng Gate."
Everyone will die one day, and when the two dynasties' elders collide, their names will be recorded in history books. However, even if Li Chengjing is finished, Li Taoqi may also be implicated if things go wrong.
Li Taoqi could only appease these court officials who wrote letters to him again and again. It was a pity that a prince had to be so humble and almost acted like a grandson in front of them.
State affairs are difficult to handle, and family affairs are not easy either. Li Taoqi admits that he has no feelings for the Crown Princess, but he has earned a reputation of being respectful and respectful to each other, and usually no one provokes anyone. He feels guilty about this matter, but he really can't think of anything about the Crown Princess, so he can only mix this guilt with fatherly love and double it on his daughter.
The weather this year was strange, with alternating cold and hot weather even in the beginning of spring. The wheezing disease that the little princess had since birth recurred, and she couldn't sleep well all night. Children are ignorant and cry when they feel uncomfortable, but she was coughing and couldn't even cry. She cried intermittently like a broken bellows, which made Li Taoqi feel heartbroken.
But the Crown Princess was not a worry-free person either. Early in the morning, a piece of news came from the East Palace. The eunuch who came to deliver the message was out of breath and his face was pale. When he entered the hall, he knelt down and kowtowed twice before saying that the Crown Princess had hanged herself. Fortunately, the palace servants discovered it early and summoned the imperial physician in time to save her.
Li Taoqi was so scared that he dropped what he was doing and hurried back to Lizheng Palace, just in time to see the Crown Princess.
The Crown Princess was kneeling behind the table, wearing a soft white dress, with disheveled hair and dull eyes. She was not wearing any makeup, and her already dull face looked a little haggard, like a white flower broken by wind and rain.
Li Taoqi wanted to scold her for being crazy, but seeing her like this, he thought of her miscarriage and couldn't bear it. He just took a few steps forward and said softly, "What's the fun of hanging yourself? You only have one life. I am your husband after all, and Shu'er is still young. If you have anything on your mind, can't you tell me?"
The Crown Princess' pupils shrank when she heard this, and she turned to look at Li Tuoqi. She seemed to not recognize who was in front of her, and stared blankly for a while, and suddenly two lines of tears slid down, and her pale lips trembled: "Being insulted by the Seventh Prince... What else can I live for?"
The author has something to say: At this time, Changsheng was still an innocent boy, unable to face his instinctive urge to be blocked by Ajin, and was in a state of confusion and chose to escape... In short, he still wanted to save face.
But if he grows up a little bit, he will be shameless sooner or later (spreading hands) Thank you to the little angels who cast the tyrant votes or irrigated the nutrient solution for me~
Thanks to the little angels who cast [mines]: Guo Ma, Celia, and Shi Fang Xiao 1;
Thanks to the little angel who irrigated [nutrient solution]:
8 bottles of Doudoudoudoudu; 5 bottles of Eryu; 1 bottle of Banqiuweiyu;
Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!