"S-sorry, Your Highness... I-I've never been this close to a man before. I'm a little nervous..."
Sang Wen was at a loss, her face full of distress.
Too fast!
This was far too fast!
Less than two hours had passed since they met, and she could already guess what would happen next... The thought made her panic deep down.
Zhou Cheng understood how Sang Wen felt, but he had no intention of accommodating her.
He shook his head.
"Never mind. Since you have no experience, I'll attend to you this time. Watch carefully, learn carefully, and pay attention to how it feels. In the future... you'll be attending to me."
As soon as he finished speaking, he stood, reached out to support her, and pulled her straight into the tub.
Water splashed everywhere, and Sang Wen cried out in surprise.
Before she could react, he caught her lips between his.
Sang Wen's eyes widened.
Though she had grown accustomed to romantic affairs at the Drunken Immortal Residence, she was still untouched and utterly inexperienced. Her mind went blank, and she could only respond awkwardly on instinct.
Her dress, her bodice... one garment after another floated to the surface like scattered petals.
After briefly savoring the moment, Zhou Cheng scooped her into his arms and stepped out of the bath.
Within a few steps, his true qi circulated, instantly evaporating every trace of water from their bodies.
Sang Wen was still dazed, unable to register the change, when Zhou Cheng lifted the gauze curtains and laid her on the bed.
"Y-Your Highness..." Sang Wen's voice trembled.
Then the curtains fell, shutting out the room's candlelight.
Morning sunlight filtered through the carved window lattice, spilling softly into the chamber.
When Zhou Cheng woke, Sang Wen was still deep asleep. Her fresh, youthful face now carried a faint hint of a different charm.
He watched her quietly for a moment before sitting cross-legged and circulating his energy to refine his true qi.
Cultivating true qi was something he genuinely enjoyed.
Every small increase in the strength of his true qi, every slight improvement in his control, filled him with a sense of fulfillment.
About an hour later, Sang Wen slowly awoke.
When she opened her eyes and saw Zhou Cheng beside her, meditating with his eyes closed, then glimpsed the bright daylight outside, she immediately panicked.
She was just hurriedly trying to rise when Zhou Cheng opened his eyes.
"There's no rush. If you're still sleepy, sleep a little longer."
"Forgive me, Your Highness. I overslept..."
"Relax." Zhou Cheng patted her hand. "I told you before: now that you're with me, you can make yourself comfortable in this residence.
"Sleeping a little longer is nothing. As long as you attend to me properly at night, you can spend the rest of your time however you like. I won't make any demands."
Perhaps it was because of their intimacy the night before, or perhaps she truly believed him, but Sang Wen gradually relaxed.
She quietly moved closer, wrapped her arms around his waist from behind, and pressed her warm, soft body against his back.
"You're so good to me, Your Highness."
Zhou Cheng drew a deep breath. He was a young man full of vigor, and that movement instantly stirred his desire again.
"I'm starting to regret that!"
"Huh?"
Before Sang Wen could react, he had turned and pressed her beneath him again.
"I don't just want you attending to me at night. I want it during the day, too-right now!
"Since I gave you a lesson last night, I'll test how much you've learned!"
Sang Wen's face instantly flushed crimson. Memories of the night before flooded her mind, and she obediently tilted her face up, using her little tongue...
Days of indulgence always flew by. In the blink of an eye, a month had passed.
Spring, the fourth year of Qingli.
The small garden in Prince Cheng's residence was quiet and secluded. Several late-blooming cherry trees were in delicate bloom, shedding pink-and-white petals whenever the breeze passed.
Zhou Cheng reclined in a rocking chair, half his body bathed in warm sunlight.
Sang Wen set her pipa aside, picked a grape from a glass platter, and naturally slipped it into his mouth.
As she gazed at his languid expression, her heart melted.
Since entering his residence, she had enjoyed what were probably the most carefree and happiest days of her life in years.
Ever since she had fallen into the pleasure trade, she had lived in something close to constant anxiety.
In the past, she had to rise before dawn to dress and apply her makeup. Every day, she not only practiced the pipa but also studied music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. On top of that, she had to learn how to handle people and please them. The strings of her body and mind had always been stretched taut, with little chance to relax.
Here, however, Zhou Cheng often let her sleep a little longer.
Though that often developed into something else, the tenderness that suffused her body and mind still gave her a sense of security she had not known in a long time.
She loved this easy, carefree life, and she had fallen even more deeply in love with the man who had given it to her.
While she was lost in thought, footsteps suddenly sounded outside the garden gate. Sang Wen immediately straightened herself.
She knew Zhou Cheng never cared about such things, but she always reminded herself not to grow arrogant because of his favor. At the very least, she had to know her place in front of others.
Chen Bao bowed and reported, "Your Highness, the convoy you told us to watch is about to enter the city."
Zhou Cheng opened his eyes.
"Keep watching. If anyone from the palace tries to stop the carriages, send them away before they can. Tell them it's on my orders."
"Yes, Your Highness."
After Chen Bao withdrew, Zhou Cheng slowly rose as well.
The convoy he had told Chen Bao to watch was, naturally, Fan Xian's.
Today, Fan Xian would enter the Capital, and the main storyline of the world of Joy of Life would begin.
"I'm going to the palace. If you feel cooped up here, take some attendants and go out for a stroll. You don't have to stay here all the time," Zhou Cheng told Sang Wen, turning toward her.
"I don't want to go anywhere. I only want to wait here for you to return, Your Highness."
Sang Wen caught the corner of his sleeve, her voice soft and sweet. Both her manner and her tone held a coyness she herself had not noticed.
Zhou Cheng smiled and pinched her cheek.
"All right. Wait for me to come back, then. I'll take you out another day."
He was indeed thoroughly pleased with Sang Wen.
She was obedient, eager to please, and knew exactly how to behave.
If there was one regret, it was that after they crossed that final barrier, she had never provided even the slightest bit of negative emotion again...
Shaking off those stray thoughts, he let Sang Wen straighten his robes.
Sang Wen saw him all the way to the stone steps outside the residence. Only after his carriage disappeared around the corner of the long street did she reluctantly return inside.
Back in her room, she picked up the pipa she normally never let out of her reach, plucked its strings twice, then set it down listlessly.
She stared blankly at the pipa, yet there was no trace of it in her eyes.
The companion she had once regarded as her sole support could no longer find a place in her heart.
Guangxin Palace.
After a female official announced him, Zhou Cheng entered and saw Li Yunrui smiling faintly as she trimmed a potted orchid.
Hearing his footsteps, she dismissed her attendants with a wave without even turning her head.
Then she turned around, sounding distinctly pleased.
"Chengcheng, you've come at just the right time. Fan Xian has reached the city gates. I've made a few arrangements to ruin his reputation. We'll soon have a fine show to watch!
"He'll lose all face and make a laughingstock of himself the moment he reaches the Capital. Let's see how that brat has the nerve to ask for Wan'er's hand after that!"
Zhou Cheng glanced at the orchid and asked casually, "Aunt, did you send palace maids to stop his carriage?"
Li Yunrui's hands paused. "How did you know?" she asked in surprise.
"I had people watching Fan Xian, too," Zhou Cheng said mildly. "My guards should have sent your palace servants back by now. You'll probably see them shortly, Aunt."
"What?!" Li Yunrui's expression changed abruptly. She slammed the pruning shears onto the table with a crack. "Why did you do that? It took me so much effort to come up with that plan! It's one thing not to help, but you actually sabotaged it!"
She trembled with anger.
When Zhou Cheng failed to explain himself immediately, she grabbed the orchid, pot and all, and smashed it onto the floor.
[Negative emotion from Li Yunrui +233!]
Zhou Cheng was pleased inwardly, but his expression remained composed. "I did it for your own good, Aunt."
"For my own good?" Li Yunrui laughed outright in anger.
At the same time, another notification of +666 sounded in Zhou Cheng's ears.
She gritted her teeth.
"For my own good? So you ruined my plan? You know perfectly well what the Imperial Treasury means to me!
"If that bitch's son takes the Imperial Treasury away from me, I won't want to live anymore. Don't blame me if I take you down with me!"
As though to demonstrate her resolve, she viciously ground the ruined flowers beneath her foot, trampling the petals deep into the soil.
Before Zhou Cheng could explain, a eunuch's announcement came from outside the hall.
"His Majesty's verbal decree: the Eldest Princess is to attend him immediately!"
Li Yunrui frowned and could only glare fiercely at Zhou Cheng. "When I get back, you'd better give me a reasonable explanation, or this won't be over!"
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