"General, a man named Liu Depan wants to confess in exchange for a lighter sentence."
A soldier came over to report.
Xue Pingyuan raised an eyebrow and waved a hand. "Understood. I'll be right there."
"I'll come too."
Everyone present froze. Xue Pingyuan glanced at the Crown Prince and refused. "His Highness hasn't had a proper rest in days because he was searching for you."
So they could leave the interrogation to him and his men. If Shen Yangge really wanted to know, they could have a soldier take notes and report to him afterward.
With that, Xue Pingyuan and the soldier walked away. Shen Yangge only withdrew his gaze once their figures had disappeared.
Before he could speak, Chu Xuanzhen, who stood beside him, picked him up and carried him toward a secluded patch of woods.
At this hour of the night, everything was pitch-black.
Yet Chu Xuanzhen easily avoided the obstacles in their path. He set Shen Yangge down beneath a large tree and gripped his chin.
Bracing one hand above Shen Yangge's small head, Chu Xuanzhen lowered his face. The darkness in his eyes seemed almost tangible, enough to plunge anyone who met his gaze into an icy abyss.
Moonlight filtered through the leaves, faintly falling over their two tall, slender figures. A shaft of light happened to caress Shen Yangge's eyelids.
The genuine emotion in his eyes seemed to spill out beneath the moonlight.
Chu Xuanzhen lifted his chin slightly, pressing a thumb against his eyelid. Shen Yangge's lashes trembled at the touch, then stilled.
Neither spoke first.
But their expressions spoke of the deepest feelings they held for each other.
"Thump, thump, thump..."
A pounding heart, scarlet ears, irrepressible joy-all of it showed in Shen Yangge, as vivid as a world bursting with color.
Chu