Your Highness, Please

Inside the wooden cabin.

By the light of an oil lamp, Xian tossed and turned on the hard bed, unable to fall asleep.

His thoughts were still trapped in what had happened at dusk.

"Would Anlìyà be terribly disappointed that I just left like that?"

Xian held his palm before his eyes and examined it. Thinking of how diligently the girl had cared for him these past few days, he was filled with guilt.

He turned his head and saw a large basket of bright, juicy red fruits in the corner of the room. They had all been sent over by Uncle Simp, whom he had met in the orchard today.

That basket of fruit only made Xian feel even more guilty.

His hand clenched tightly into a fist, his slender knuckles turning faintly white from the force.

"I want to help them too!"

"But right now, I'd only bring them disaster."

"If only my Status Blessing were real. No, strictly speaking, it really is real—it's just completely useless here!"

"Repaying kindness is my principle. Xian, use the same perseverance that raised your exam score by two hundred points in the three months before the college entrance exam and think of something!"

Xian lightly tapped his forehead, trying to force himself to think of a way out of this predicament.

"The root of the village's crisis is that they can't pay enough taxes. In other words—two words: no money!"

"And the reason for this situation is that damned Clay Merchant cheated the village, leaving the red fruits unsold and piled up, so they couldn't pay the Agricultural Tax."

"Wait, merchant..."

Xian vaguely felt that he had found a way to break the deadlock.

Tap tap tap.

Just as he sank into thought, there was a sudden knock on the door.

"Your Highness, are you asleep?" Anlìyà's gentle voice came from outside.

For some reason, Xian felt that her voice seemed to be trembling slightly.

"Not yet." Thinking of what had happened at dusk, he felt somewhat guilty, and his voice unconsciously lowered.

"Your Highness, may I come in for a moment?"

"Of course." Xian rose and opened the door.

Only when Anlìyà stepped into the circle of lamplight did he belatedly notice that she seemed different from usual today.

She still wore that linen corset-like outer garment, but her soft golden hair, like an autumn wheat field, seemed to have just been washed. The ends were still slightly damp, carrying a faint, maidenly fragrance that made one's heart feel refreshed.

Her fair, delicate cheeks were faintly flushed with a lovely crimson, and her beautiful azure eyes looked at him, moist like those of a newborn fawn.

For some reason, Xian sensed a trace of seductiveness in them.

"What is it—"

He was about to ask when the girl before him slowly untied the corset at her waist and removed her outer garment.

Underneath was a beautiful blue dress. Its light fabric clung to her graceful curves, its hem swaying gently like bluebells moving in the wind amid morning mist.

Even in those shabby clothes, Anlìyà's appearance had already rivaled the biggest celebrities dominating Blue Star's entertainment industry. Now, with golden hair and a blue dress complementing each other, she was as beautiful as an elf stepped out of a fairy tale—beautiful enough to make one tremble. Every movement radiated an indescribable charm.

Even Xian, who had grown used to seeing female internet celebrities edited by beauty filters until they looked like heavenly immortals, was stunned by her beauty.

"Your Highness, please cherish me!"

Before Xian could react, a soft, warm body threw itself into his arms.

So soft, so soft—like marshmallows.

So hot, so hot—like she had a fever.

Xian felt as though a warm little deer were licking his face, making his blood boil.

"What are you doing?!"

Forcing himself to calm down, Xian pressed his hands against the girl's smooth shoulders and slowly pushed her away.

By the lamplight, he took in Anlìyà's appearance at that moment.

The usually cheerful and open girl had blushed all the way to her ears in shame. Her body temperature was frighteningly high, and a faint mist of tears clouded her azure eyes.

"Your Highness, I offer you this humble body of mine. I only ask that you show mercy and save everyone in the village."

"Your Highness, I swear to the gods that from this day onward, I will become your loyal maid, obeying your every command, dedicating my entire life to you, washing your clothes and combing your hair."

"Your Highness, please!"

Anlìyà's pleading voice trembled, mixed with sobs. Like a bluebell helplessly swaying in a storm, she longed for even a sliver of shelter from a towering tree.

But he was not a towering tree—only a wild blade of grass drifting away with the wind.

"Anlìyà, calm down," Xian said evenly.

He reached out and gently stroked the girl's long hair, which cascaded down like a golden waterfall, soothing her panicked and uneasy heart.

"I swear upon the kingdom that raised me that I will do everything in my power to help you."

"But my strength is limited. So the condition for my help is that you must also work hard to find a way to resolve your predicament."

"Can you do that, Anlìyà?" Xian asked softly.

Anlìyà nodded, seeming to understand and yet not fully understand.

There were things she did not understand, such as why such an incomparably noble Highness would be so humble. But she understood at least one thing—Xian had decided to help her.

At that thought, the burden weighing on her shoulders like a boulder instantly felt far lighter, and a sweet smile finally appeared on her tear-blurred face.

"Your Highness, according to our agreement, should I take off my clothes myself, or will you do it?"

"It's my first time. Please be gentle," Anlìyà said with a red face, her gaze toward Xian carrying an extra trace of tenderness.

Everyone she depended on could be saved, and her adoptive father, who had always cared for her so attentively, could spend his old age in peace. All she had to do was offer her body and loyalty. This was the best possible ending! Xian: "..."

Silence was tonight's Cambridge.

He suddenly realized just how cruel this world was to commoners. Cruel enough to force a girl in the prime of her youth to feel grateful toward the man she was about to offer her body to.

"No need. We'll talk about it after I've truly succeeded in helping you. And just call me Your Highness."

"Yes, Your Highness. Until that day comes, I will make my preparations." The girl respectfully bowed down and knelt on one knee, her smooth back as flawless as white jade beneath the lamplight.

"I'll look forward to it," Xian said calmly.

He did not reject her outright, just as a doctor might accept a family member's red envelope before a life-or-death surgery to put them at ease.

Though that story was probably made up, he was thinking the same way at that moment.

After all, he did not want to see such a wonderful girl cry again.

Who's still writing until midnight during the New Year holidays? o(╥﹏╥)o Everyone, monthly votes are the most important data during a new book's launch period, so please give me some monthly votes~ I won't ask for follow-up reading, because asking is useless. Those who want to read will naturally keep following, and those who don't won't do so no matter how much I ask.