You Can

Su Luoqian hurriedly grabbed the window frame for support, her fingers digging into it until her fingertips turned white with tension.

When she came to her senses and realized what he had done, her face flushed bright red.

"You lecher. Shameless."

Lu Jingsi's palm rested on her lower abdomen, his fingertips in a rather dangerous position through the fabric of her dress.

Paying no heed to her defiant words, he asked, "Doesn't Your Highness want to go downstairs?"

"I do! Right now!"

With that, Su Luoqian pushed aside her shyness, hurriedly pulled free of his hand, and lifted her skirts to push open the door of the pavilion.

At the foot of the steps, Zelan and Fulin were waiting beneath a tree.

Hearing the door open behind them, they instinctively looked up.

Her cheeks red, Su Luoqian slowed her steps and cleared her throat before giving an order. "Eunuch Fulin, have dinner prepared."

Fulin did not know what had happened between his two masters in the pavilion, but when he saw Lu Jingsi standing at the top of the steps behind Su Luoqian, he quickly understood and bowed. "Yes, Your Highness."

Su Luoqian's heart remained in a fluster throughout dinner, and the feeling lingered even after the meal was over.

Once the servants had cleared the dishes, Lu Jingsi sat at the table and rinsed his mouth.

Afterward, he casually picked up the book she had left on the table and opened it.

The title on its cover was perfectly respectable: The Autumn Examination Journey.

In truth, however, it was a lingering, heartrending love story between a scholar traveling to take the examinations and a demoness.

Lu Jingsi leafed casually through a few pages, his brows drawing into a tight knot.

Su Luoqian had been standing behind the screen, holding her breath as she watched his expression. Seeing this, she hurriedly slipped into the small bathing room off the inner chamber.

As she undid her ties, she kept her ears pricked for any sound outside.

A sudden smack rang out, as though Lu Jingsi had tossed the book onto the table.

Her fingertips trembled, and her slender fingers only pulled the ties tighter.

Then she heard the man get up and move about, and, amid the sounds, his voice telling Fulin to prepare water for a bath.

At last, more than half of Su Luoqian's worries were laid to rest, though the other half still hung over her.

Up in the pavilion earlier, the two of them had not managed to go through with it. He certainly would not let her off tonight.

Fortunately, he had left the main chamber for the moment, so she could at least bathe in some peace.

When Su Luoqian emerged from the bathing room, her hair was damp, and Zelan took a towel to wring and dry it for her.

Su Luoqian sat at the table and picked up the storybook Lu Jingsi had casually tossed there earlier. She turned to the page where she had left off and continued reading with relish.

As she read, she discussed the plot with Zelan, mistress and maid exchanging quiet words and smiles.

The night grew late.

When her hair was almost dry, Su Luoqian covered her mouth and yawned.

It was past the middle of the hour of Xu, and Lu Jingsi had yet to return. She raised her voice and asked, "Where is His Highness?"

The servant waiting outside answered, "Your Highness, the prince is still in the study."

Hearing this, Su Luoqian finally set her mind completely at ease.

It was good that he was in the study. She would take the opportunity to go to bed; once she was asleep, he would not be able to do anything.

She carefully put the storybook away and went into the bedroom in the inner chamber.

After her bath, she had been worried that he would suddenly appear and had accidentally pulled the ties too tight. Now they were rather uncomfortable.

With her back to the screen, Su Luoqian had lowered her inner robe halfway, leaving it hanging from her slender arms, and was looking down as she adjusted the ties of her undergarment.

Beyond the landscape screen, the woman's soft breasts stood pert, and her waist tapered to a slender span.

A broad expanse of her fair, delicate back was exposed, half veiled by her soft black hair.

The stark contrast between black and white struck the eyes of the man behind her.

Lu Jingsi strode inside.

Hearing his footsteps, Su Luoqian was so flustered that she did not even have time to fasten her undergarment. She hurriedly pulled up her inner robe, her scallion-white fingertips clutching the collar tightly, and turned to look at him.

"How did you come in without making a sound?"

"It's late. It's time for bed."

With that, he took the collar of her inner robe from her hand. Without taking it off or tying it, he grasped the ties in his long fingers and forced her back, step by step, to the bed.

Su Luoqian's legs were already pressed against the edge of the bed, leaving her nowhere to retreat.

Yet he continued to press forward.

The two figures fell onto the bed, the movement making the surrounding candle flames tremble. Before long, the bed curtains fell.

Muffled sounds came from within.

Su Luoqian's voice was alluring and breathy, both shy and annoyed.

"...Mm, you're so heavy..."

"I can't... it's so uncomfortable..."

Lu Jingsi's deep voice followed. "You can."

The curtains swayed, and a pale hand could dimly be seen gripping the gauze tightly, as though trying to stop the rocking that was growing ever harder to withstand.

But within moments, a pair of broad hands enveloped that slender white hand and pulled it down.

With practiced ease, he found the sensitive spot on her waist.

Su Luoqian bit her lip and gave a muffled moan. Her whole body was impossibly soft, trembling uncontrollably as she buried her flushed face in the brocade pillows and bedding.

Lu Jingsi paused and kissed the side of her neck. Holding her, he turned slightly, laid his long fingers on her slender knee, and lowered his eyes to look at it.

It was indeed red all over. By morning, it would likely be covered in bruises again.

Lu Jingsi's eyes darkened further, and he spoke in a hoarse voice. "All right."

He laid her flat.

Su Luoqian had no strength left at all. She asked haltingly, "Can't... mm, can't we stop..."

"No."

That day, she had carelessly pinned the blame for "not knowing when to stop" on him. She had never imagined that one day she would have to bear the hardship herself.

Lu Jingsi brushed aside the sweat-dampened black hair clinging to her face and bent down to kiss her. The desire in his dark eyes had not diminished in the slightest.

The curtains concealed most of the passion on the bed, but could not hide the vivid sensuality that filled the room.

Sweet cries reached the ear, and warm fragrance filled the air.

Fulin, who was keeping watch outside the main chamber, moved down the steps and waved to the other servants. "All of you, stand farther away."

Several maids lowered their heads, their ears red, and obediently moved away.

During the first few months after the prince and princess consort married, they had rarely shared a bed, and even on the few occasions they had, everything had been quiet.

Thus, none of them had expected the prince to be so energetic.

Fulin looked up at the moon.

It was already past midnight. Presumably, the princess consort would be unable to get up again tomorrow morning.