The Nth Day of Wanting to Chop His Head Off

After returning to the palace, Chu Ning didn't give anything another thought. He went straight to bed!

He'd been busy all day!

The old man was actually pretty interesting.

He'd held a knife to Chu Ning's throat but hadn't dared to kill him. He'd only tried to scare him, afraid Chu Ning would usurp the throne...

But because of Chu Ning's identity, all he could do was try to scare him.

What a joke!

He couldn't even scare his wife, okay?

How could some old geezer scare him?

If he had to say, that ghostly wall trick had made Chu Ning's heart skip a beat.

He'd really thought he'd run into a ghost...

After all, this was the imperial palace. Just imagining the palace maids who'd died unjustly or grown old and died there gave him the creeps!

The next morning, they went about their usual routine of cooking and eating.

Inside Qianqing Palace, the three of them sat together as usual.

But the atmosphere and their behavior were different.

Xiao Bing shoveled down her food without saying a word, determined not to interrupt the two of them, whatever they might say or do. She'd wanted to give Chu Ning a chance, but Her Majesty wouldn't let her leave...

How could Xiao Bing not be clever?

Her Majesty wanted a human shield, afraid she might lose control. Xiao Bing could only apologize to Chu Ning...

"Qinglian, try this. I just made it. Breakfast should be on the lighter side, so go easy on the spicy food..."

"Finished your soup? Want another bowl? You've got a whole day of work ahead, so you can't go hungry..."

After serving the food and saying his piece, Chu Ning did nothing else. He just sat beside Ye Qinglian and watched her eat.

His wife was so beautiful...

Ye Qinglian remained silent, not saying a single word from beginning to end!

She knew Chu Ning was staring at her, but she had no intention of acknowledging him!

But whenever their eyes happened to meet, Ye Qinglian couldn't help blushing, then hurriedly tried to hide it.

It made Chu Ning feel all tingly inside...

But the meal would eventually come to an end.

Once breakfast was over, Xiao Bing cleared away the dishes and left. Only the two of them remained in the bedchamber.

Chu Ning figured his chance had come.

He immediately picked up a little stool and scooted over beside Ye Qinglian.

"Qinglian, how was the food? Was it to your taste?"

As always, Ye Qinglian's face was cold. She didn't even glance at Chu Ning.

That proved she hadn't forgotten what happened yesterday. She had no idea how to face Chu Ning now, or what to say to him.

The palace was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. With only the two of them inside, the atmosphere felt especially strange.

At last, Ye Qinglian couldn't take it anymore and snapped, "Could you stop staring at me? Don't you have anything to do?"

Chu Ning smiled, his eyes narrowing.

"Isn't my only job to take good care of you?"

Ye Qinglian gritted her teeth and said angrily, "Court is about to begin, and you're going too. Why haven't you changed into your Dragon Robe?"

"It's right there, outside. I can put it on in no time."

"Then shouldn't you check whether there's any unfinished business from yesterday, or anything that needs to be added?"

"I finished it all, and even showed it to you. Xiao Bing delivered it to the Cabinet afterward."

Ye Qinglian had nothing to say. She fell silent, her fists clenched tight!

Her flushed face showed that she was out of options.

She was annoyed when Chu Ning ignored her, and even more annoyed when he clung to her!

When he ignored her, she felt empty and lost. When he stuck close, she thought he was unbearably clingy!

And he was still thinking about her. He probably had no intention of letting yesterday's matter drop!

She should've let him kiss her in the first place. She could've just pretended a dog had nipped her!

Now Chu Ning was even more brazen. If she said anything, he'd bring up what happened yesterday and use it to pressure her!

Ye Qinglian tried to get up and leave as quickly as possible. At least if Xiao Bing was with her, she wouldn't have to worry about Chu Ning doing anything inappropriate. But Chu Ning grabbed her.

"Don't rush. It's not time yet. Sit back down..."

Ye Qinglian wasn't falling for that!

"If it's not time for court, then let's go to Mingde Hall!"

Chu Ning grinned, making no effort to hide it.

"If we go to Mingde Hall, it'll still be just the two of us. I'll send Xiao Bing away. You won't be able to escape."

That was right!

Chu Ning and her personal maid, Xiao Bing, had loudly plotted together about how to find an opportunity with her!

He'd even bribed Xiao Bing, the bastard!

Ye Qinglian gave a cold snort and stared at Chu Ning expressionlessly.

"What exactly do you want? Just say it. What's the point of acting like this?"

Chu Ning looked puzzled, as if he didn't understand.

"I want you. Don't you know that by now? I've always made it pretty obvious that I'm interested in you. You couldn't tell?"

Ye Qinglian finally found the key to turning the tables!

"Hah! You made it obvious you were interested in me, so it was all an act. Your real goal is to usurp the throne and seize the country!"

Chu Ning didn't bother to explain. He simply admitted it.

"Right, right, you got me. If I win you over, the whole Great Gan Dynasty will be mine. Once I'm emperor, I can expand the Inner Palace like crazy, and then..."

"You dare!"

Ye Qinglian glared at Chu Ning. "I can ignore it when you spout nonsense in front of me, but how dare you say you're going to find other women right in front of me! Do you realize you're carrying my child?"

Chu Ning smiled and took Ye Qinglian's hand. "You were the one who joked first. Why are you getting so worked up, Your Majesty? If you're this touchy, you won't have many friends..."

Ye Qinglian yanked her hand back and sneered.

"I don't need friends. A ruler is always alone. I am who I am, and no one can control me!"

"Then no more joking. The truth is, I only have eyes for you, Qinglian. Huh? Your belly's bigger again. Let me feel the baby..."

As he spoke, he leaned over and pressed his head against Ye Qinglian's abdomen.

"Mm... I can feel it."

Ye Qinglian, whose thoughts had been in a whirl just a moment ago, immediately looked down at him in confusion.

"I can't feel anything. What can you feel?"

"I can feel how warm and fragrant you are..."

As he spoke, he reached out and rubbed Ye Qinglian's waist.

Ye Qinglian froze for a moment, then kicked Chu Ning away!

"You bastard, get lost!"

"Don't do that again without my permission!"

"So you're saying I could've done it without asking before? You should've said so!"

"Chu Ning, can you stop being so shameless?"

"I haven't even done anything more shameless yet. I'm afraid you'll lose control and kill me. How about you hold back and let me try..."

His longsword suddenly sprang from its sheath!

Ye Qinglian's face flushed as she cursed, "Just try it, and see if you're afraid to die! Believe me, I'll cut it off so you'll never be able to think about that sort of thing again!"

"Don't think I've run out of ways to keep you in line!"

Chu Ning was devastated by her words.

"Wouldn't that ruin your future happiness too? Even if you don't care about me, you should at least think about yourself..."

Ye Qinglian raised her sword and strode toward Chu Ning.

Right now, she really wanted to chop his head off!