Li Guangi only glanced at it once, and his heart jumped fiercely. He hurriedly closed his eyes.
Chu Yunge tilted her head and saw his closed-eyed appearance, chuckling in amusement. “We’ve kissed and hugged already. Why close your eyes now? Take a look. Is it red?”
Li Guangi opened his eyes, but his face heated up again. His gaze carried evasion, not daring to look more.
But the more obedient Li Guangi was, the more this appearance made one want to tease him.
“You’re dodging and weaving like this, not even daring to look. How will you manage from now on? To avoid you fainting, should we cover your eyes first in the future?”
Li Guangi’s face flushed bright red.
Chu Yunge found it quite amusing, though. “I’ll find some suitable fabric later. You’re so fair-skinned; black would be best. Black and white contrast nicely.”
Red would probably work too, but she did not like red.
The only red she could tolerate was Yan Feng’s Forehead Band.
Because it carried a different meaning.
Black was very nice too. She pictured it, her face flushing yellow. She almost wanted to test it right then.
Li Guangi thought of himself blindfolded, at her mercy, and felt like he would explode. He anxiously tugged at her sleeve.
Every moment with the Princess was too stimulating.
Chu Yunge tilted her head for a look. “If you keep tugging my clothes, they’ll come off. Or is that your intention?”
Li Guangi released her as if electrocuted.
Chu Yunge found it even more amusing. “No more teasing. If you don’t look now, how will you help This Princess apply the medicine later?”
She sighed. “You know This Princess has no trusted aides. Du Ruo has vanished without a trace. No one to help apply medicine. Don’t tell me you’re unwilling too?”
Li Guangi shook his head. How could he be unwilling? He just feared being disrespectful to the Princess.
He mustered his courage and bent down. At this sight, he immediately frowned.
The Princess’s skin was like white snow before, but now it was bruised from the collision. Her fairness made the injury stand out even more.
After confirming the situation, he did not look further. He hurriedly and carefully pulled Chu Yunge’s clothes back into place.
It was at this moment that Li Guangi suddenly realized how thin the Princess’s figure was.
He lowered his head and hurriedly wrote two words: summon the imperial physician.
“Fine, summon the imperial physician. Have the imperial physician prescribe some medicine, and you apply it for This Princess later.”
Chu Yunge went to wash up. Only after washing clean could she apply medicine, and take the chance to do some good deeds.
While waiting for the imperial physician, Li Guangi thought for a moment and cooked a bowl of noodles for Chu Yunge.
Very ordinary egg and vegetable noodles, but perfect for Chu Yunge at that moment.
When Chu Yunge saw the noodles, she had the imperial physician wait a bit longer.
“Delicious.”
Chu Yunge ate the noodles. Li Guangi sat opposite her, his gaze lingering on her face for a long time. For an instant, he even had the illusion that they were like an ordinary, happy couple—warm and beautiful.
The imperial physician indeed left behind medicine.
Chu Yunge looked at the medicine and dismissed the others. She went straight back to bed. “You know what to do, right?”
Li Guangi nodded lightly, washed his hands, and walked to Chu Yunge’s side.
“Untie it yourself.”
Chu Yunge’s wicked amusement kept her from doing it herself.
Li Guangi’s expression showed difficulty. Chu Yunge watched leisurely. “The injury isn’t severe. If you won’t apply the medicine, This Princess can’t reach it herself. She can only leave it be.”
Li Guangi grew anxious at once. In the end, he carefully undid her fastenings, exposing her shoulder.
Chu Yunge chuckled lightly. “No trembling hands. Good progress. But remember what the imperial physician said? For a bruise from impact, it’s best to rub it in. Otherwise, the bruising heals slowly.”
Li Guangi nodded, then took a deep breath. Finally, he touched Chu Yunge’s shoulder.
The hand that had just been praised trembled slightly again.
Because he had labored on the farm with his sister for years to be self-sufficient, even if he no longer worked the fields personally later, Li Guangi’s hands still had thin calluses.
His hand was warm, while the medicine was cool. One hot, one cold—Chu Yunge shrank back a little.
Li Guangi’s hand stiffened for an instant before continuing. But Chu Yunge began to hum and haw.
“It hurts…”
Li Guangi’s face turned bright red, his hand growing even hotter. His mind went blank.
At his nose tip, besides the faint medicinal scent, was the Princess’s subtle fragrance. The skin under his hand was incredibly tender. Coupled with her sounds and reactions, it all silently plucked at his heartstrings. He did not want to be distracted, but his heartbeat raced faster and faster. His exhaled breath was hot.
After Chu Yunge cried out in pain again, the air filled with an ambiguous atmosphere, reaching its peak.
Li Guangi’s hand trembled slightly as he moved to pull up her clothes. Chu Yunge tilted her head, glanced at him, and spoke. “Don’t go back tonight.”
Li Guangi’s heart thudded heavily. Before he could react, a sound came from the bedroom door.
It was Pei Ji bumping into the bedroom door.
“Your Highness, what happened?”
He had heard Chu Yunge cry out in pain. Ignoring the obstruction from the palace maids outside, he forced his way in, his face full of anxiety.
He had been held back by the Chu Emperor for talk, then escorted the Emperor back to the palace. The Emperor felt deeply guilty, repeatedly saying he was sorry and insisting Pei Ji stay to drink freely.
The banquet had been laid out, but the Chu Emperor delayed in coming. After waiting a long time, he learned the Chu Emperor had not come because Chu Yunge had met with an accident.
He rushed back at top speed, blaming himself the whole way. He should have followed Chu Yunge.
If he had been there, Chu Yunge would not have had an accident.
Full of guilt, he returned to the Princess Mansion just as he heard her say it hurt. Fearing something had happened to her, he charged in heedlessly to save her.
But everything in the bedroom made his eyes nearly split with rage.
Chu Yunge lay on the bed with her fragrant shoulder half-exposed. Li Guangi knelt at the side, face flushed with desire, hand pulling at her clothes—as if the next instant, he would strip Chu Yunge completely.
The sword in Pei Ji’s hand clattered to the ground.
He had always been a man with his sword, treating it as his second life and never letting go easily. But now he had.
The shock was too great. It stunned Pei Ji into dropping his sword.
Besides shock and fury, deep in Pei Ji’s eyes was a fear he himself did not recognize, as if he had seen some monster.
Pei Ji even suspected he was having a nightmare.
Chu Yunge tilted her head and saw Pei Ji’s appearance, pausing. “Why are you here?”
Pei Ji came back to himself and jerked his gaze away, speaking incoherently.
“I heard you had an accident and rushed back. I regretted not following to protect you the whole way. But you… you…”
He could not continue, looking lost and distraught.
So he had been worried about her.
Though Chu Yunge knew Pei Ji surely prioritized the Chu Emperor—after all, that was his CP—she did not mind him saying he would protect her. Nor did she blame him for bursting in.
“I’m fine now. You can go.” Once he left, she could have her fun.
“How are you fine? You… you’ve been seduced by him.”
Pei Ji picked up his sword, not daring to look at Chu Yunge. He glared fiercely at Li Guangi.
Chu Yunge could not resist temptation to begin with. Pei Ji did not know if Li Guangi had advised against it or not—instead, he put on a pitiful, weak act and seduced Chu Yunge behind their backs.
“Get down!”
Pei Ji stepped forward and yanked Li Guangi down, not even letting him face Chu Yunge directly. “How dare you look upon the Princess’s jade body? No more looking, or I’ll gouge out your eyes!”
Chu Yunge sat up and pulled her clothes closed. “What are you doing? He’s not Xie Wangze or Qingchen. On what grounds do you interfere!”
Preventing Xie Wangze or Qingchen was barely justifiable, but managing Li Guangi made him a lunatic.
“I didn’t even seek you out, yet you overstep. Pei Ji, look at what you’re doing!”
Pei Ji had not wanted to see Li Guangi touch Chu Yunge, so he impulsively pulled him down.
Chu Yunge’s words made him freeze.
“I… I…”
He wanted to speak but did not know what to say. He wanted to find a reason to manage Li Guangi but could not.
He was not even the Prince Consort.
Pei Ji felt lost. Could he only watch helplessly as she favored Li Guangi, or even other male favorites?
No, that would not do.
He could not accept it.
He would cry… No, he would not cry.
A man’s tears are not easily shed. He would not cry.
He was just driven mad with anger. A real man could not tolerate this.