Xie Wangze was pushed onto the bed and lay there on his side without moving.
Pei Ji, who stood nearby, heard Chu Yunge’s words. He stared intently at Chu Yunge, his jaw clenched tight, the depths of his eyes dark as ink.
So… so they had kissed too.
He was not the only one who had been intimate with the princess.
Xie Wangze had kissed the princess, and she hadn’t refused.
Pei Ji looked at Chu Yunge, fury blazing in his eyes like flames, but it quickly extinguished.
What right did he have to say anything?
But keeping silent did no good—Chu Yunge had already turned to him.
“And you, Pei Ji. I already warned you before about wearing socks, and now you’re afraid I’ll touch Xie Wangze, so you personally come to guard him. Which of your eyes saw me about to touch him?”
“Yes, this morning I teased you a bit and pretended to kiss you, but you were the one who grabbed me first and wouldn’t let go when I told you to. And in the end, I didn’t even kiss you. But now it’s like I’ve outright violated you. Is that supposed to be funny?”
Pei Ji’s brows furrowed. What did she mean, she didn’t kiss him? She clearly had.
Had she not felt it? Or was she doing this on purpose—kissed him and now refused to own up to it?
Maybe she thought he wasn’t as good to kiss as the others?
How could she be like this? She truly had no heart!
She was just like those playboy dandies—heartless, casually teasing girls for a taste of their lips without a care, never minding if it was someone else’s… first kiss.
That had been his first kiss. Even if his words hadn’t been pleasant, it was still his first.
She had stolen his first kiss, yet she refused to acknowledge it, denying it entirely.
Those playboy dandies stopped cherishing a girl once they got her, but she didn’t even cherish him before getting him…
How could she be like this? Was he really that worthless? How did he fall short of them?
His thoughts tumbled into chaos—things he should think and shouldn’t. Pei Ji thought them all, feeling deeply aggrieved. He bit his lip, nearly erupting.
But at that moment, he had no standing to blame Chu Yunge. In front of Xie Wangze, he couldn’t bring himself to say such words anyway.
Just now, he had even pushed the princess toward Xie Wangze. He had no face to accuse anyone.
He had always been straightforward and blunt. His father had once said he would regret it someday, and he hadn’t felt it deeply before. Today, though, he truly hated his own loose tongue.
How could he have spoken without thinking and said those words?
Pei Ji fell silent. Xie Wangze heard Chu Yunge’s words, and his lashes trembled. No wonder Pei Ji had said those things today—it turned out the princess had wanted to kiss him.
She really was busy: teasing Pei Ji with a kiss in the morning, then seeking out Qingchen, Yan Feng in between, and now him at night…
He had seen with his own eyes how she kissed Li Guangi. Turns out she’d kissed Pei Ji too. He was merely the third.
The third…
He had always disliked others touching his things, especially anything that entered his mouth or touched his body closely—like teacups or clothes. Once others had touched them, he discarded them, let alone people.
Yet in the end, he had kissed her—her, who had already kissed two others.
Xie Wangze’s face grew even colder. He said nothing.
The two men fell silent, and Chu Yunge could tell at a glance that she had hit the mark on their thoughts. They still had some shame and didn’t quibble forcefully.
“Given This Princess’s previous behavior, it’s not unreasonable for you to think that way. But that was before. Now This Princess has no interest in you. You don’t need to fear and pass the buck to each other.”
Did they think she was a ball to kick back and forth?
“If it weren’t for detoxifying, I would have… Male concubines galore—who would want you lot?”
She hadn’t even tasted Li Guangi yet, that ice cream-like boy.
Eating ice cream in summer would surely be refreshing.
Chu Yunge looked at Pei Ji. “Tonight, you’re protecting Xie Wangze. You can detoxify together while you’re at it. No need for you to come the day after tomorrow.”
She wanted to find Li Guangi! She was done playing pure love with these guys!
Except for Yan Feng.
Speaking of Yan Feng, Chu Yunge glanced at Pei Ji, who had shrunk into a mushroom-like ball, then at the deeply silent Xie Wangze, who seemed out of place, and then at the empty spot in the middle of the bed. She raised her voice and called out.
“Yan Feng, come in.”
Yan Feng had sharp ears and had long heard the commotion inside. He soon appeared before Chu Yunge.
“Your Highness.”
“Stay in the bedchamber tonight as well.”
Xie Wangze and Pei Ji abruptly looked up at her. “Your Highness?”
The two of them weren’t enough? She wanted to add Yan Feng too?
No matter how big the bed, four people would be cramped with no room left, right?
Chu Yunge acted as if she hadn’t heard their objections. “Since it’s already three people, what’s one more?”
Chu Yunge climbed onto the bed and sat in the middle. “Before, you were always on duty outside. Tonight, stand watch inside the room. You’re responsible for watching This Princess. Aside from the hands for detoxifying, if This Princess’s hands or feet wander onto them, set me straight.”
She glanced at Pei Ji.
“This Princess has poor sleeping posture. Little Marquis Pei criticized me for it before. Watch closely, so This Princess won’t be slandered again for having ulterior motives.”
Pei Ji’s expression changed. “Your Highness, I didn’t mean it that way.”
Yan Feng acted as if he hadn’t heard Pei Ji, responding solemnly. “Yes, Your Highness. This subordinate will definitely keep watch over you.”
“This Princess trusts you, that’s why I’m assigning you this task.” Chu Yunge smiled. Yan Feng might be small and low on emotional intelligence, but he was very dutiful.
“You’ll have a hard night, but don’t just stand there foolishly. Go rest on the couch over there.”
Yan Feng nodded. He could actually sleep standing, but he obeyed the princess.
Yan Feng looked at Xie Wangze and Pei Ji, silently clicking his tongue.
Two strange men who didn’t like the princess but preferred hard, rigid men—kissing the princess just for detox. Disgusting.
Most men from Chen State, Zhao State, and Chu State were like that, unlike the Yan people, who valued one man and one wife.
He had to watch them, lest the princess fell asleep and they secretly consummated to detox.
Yan Feng’s wary, disdainful gaze made them both furious and resentful, but under that look, the two froze.
Did Her Highness feel the same anger upon hearing their words?
Chu Yunge finished her instructions without minding their expressions and lay down between them.
She spread her hands out, paused for a moment, then didn’t move.
“You two handle your own detoxifying.”
She wouldn’t take the initiative to touch them anymore.
Xie Wangze closed his eyes, stiffened for a moment, then lay down at Chu Yunge’s side and gently grasped her wrist.
Pei Ji sat on the inner side of the bed, staring at Xie Wangze holding Chu Yunge’s hand. Moments later, he abruptly lay down and pulled at Chu Yunge’s hand too.
He didn’t grab the wrist—he took her hand.
Chu Yunge disgustedly shook it off. Why pull her hand?
The rejected Pei Ji aggrievedly draped over her wrist instead, his heart full of bewilderment. How had things turned out like this?
He hadn’t meant to pair her with Xie Wangze. He had come today precisely to stop Xie Wangze from scheming her innocence for detox…
Xie Wangze silently practiced writing characters in his mind to calm himself.
But perhaps because he wasn’t actually writing, even after a long time, he still couldn’t settle down.
He shouldn’t be in such a standoff with Her Highness. He had been this close to directly consummating for detox, but Pei Ji ruined it. Future detox sessions would be much harder.
He forced his mind to the proper matter—how to leap over the Chu Emperor’s schemes and return to his country. But his peripheral vision involuntarily drifted to Chu Yunge beside him.
That kiss he shouldn’t recall, shouldn’t hold in his heart, kept flashing in his mind. A rare trace of bewilderment appeared in his eyes.
She kissed this one and that one without a heart. He disliked things touched by others. He should forget it all, even feel disgust. But why was there no disgust in his heart—only irritation, and some indescribable emotion?