Mingyi: "..."
Such a handsome young man, yet he had to go and open his mouth.
As if her menstrual cycle came from her mouth—his entire household's cycles must come from theirs.
"How could that be? This humble one is merely unclean and feared sullying your garments." After silently cursing him, she covered her lips with a light laugh. "Women are always inconvenienced during their monthly affairs. Please be understanding, my lord. The kitchen has prepared Chicken Marrow Bamboo Shoots and simmered Shredded Deer Tendon for you. Won't you go taste their handiwork?"
Her expression was relaxed, eyes brimming with innocence as she effortlessly glossed over the earlier incident. If he pursued it further now, he'd only appear petty.
Ji Bozhai sat with displeasure etched across his face.
"My lord, do move~ The dishes will grow cold if left too long." She reached out to hook his fingers, swaying them playfully.
He snorted and turned his head away.
Mingyi circled around to face him, blinking: "Is my lord perhaps too tired? This humble one can carry you to the table."
Her delicate frame made this offer nothing more than an empty gesture. Ji Bozhai eyed her for a moment before suddenly rising and pressing his weight onto her back: "Then I'll trouble Yi'er."
Mingyi: "..." Wait—she was just joking! How could he take it seriously? Didn't this long-limbed man know his own weight? Wasn't he afraid of crushing her?
But having made the offer, she could only grit her teeth and bear it. Drawing a deep breath, she hooked her arms under his legs: "One, two, three—up!"
Ji Bozhai narrowed his eyes slightly: "Only dockworkers in Star Yearn City shout like that when hauling cargo."
Hoisting him up, Mingyi staggered toward the Eight Immortals Table in the outer chamber, grinding her teeth as she went: "My lord is... exceedingly precious."
She emphasized the word "precious" heavily, but the man on her back seemed utterly deaf, lounging comfortably against her while toying with her hairpin.
The distance from the inner chamber to the Eight Immortals Table wasn't far—yet somehow felt endless. Mingyi plodded forward step by step, veins bulging on her forehead. Just as they neared the table, Ji Bozhai suddenly declared: "The flowers outside have bloomed. I'd like to see them by the windowsill."
Mingyi: ?
The cemetery flowers were blooming splendidly too—why didn't he want to visit those?
She forced a laugh: "Are your legs unwell, my lord?" If not, get down and walk yourself.
"They are." He sighed dramatically. "Exhausted."
How could he say that with a straight face?
Clenching her jaw, Mingyi changed course toward the windowsill, thinking how fortunate it was she'd trained her physique since childhood. Otherwise, how undignified her entry in future anthologies like "Ode to Beauties" would be—while others died for their country or met tragic fates, hers would read "crushed beneath a mountain."
"I never realized Yi'er was so strong," Ji Bozhai mused leisurely. "I underestimated you."
"Please continue underestimating this humble one," she panted, depositing him onto the Imperial Concubine Couch by the window before collapsing weakly beside him. "Only the fear of dropping you could summon such strength."
With a theatrical "aiyo," she melted bonelessly to the side.
Perspiration glistened through her makeup, unable to conceal the flush on her cheeks. Watching her, he chuckled low, his earlier displeasure mostly dissipated: "Let's dine."
"Many thanks, my lord." Mingyi hurried to have the dishes served.
The prepared dishes had been kept warm and arrived promptly. Standing beside Ji Bozhai, she rolled up her sleeves and began serving him with delicate chopsticks.
Midway through the meal, Ji Bozhai suddenly asked: "Why did you decide to take in Prince Ping's concubine?"
Her heart skipped a beat. Mingyi looked at him in surprise.This man was always off indulging in pleasure—how did he even know about this? She hadn’t even told Granny Xun, and no one had been following her movements.
"There are no walls in this world that don’t leak wind," he said, glancing at her sideways. "Did you really think you could hide it from me?"
Mingyi snapped out of her thoughts and quickly straightened her expression. "My lord mentioned something about harboring a concubine, but this servant doesn’t understand. That residence belongs to Zhang Tai. She wanted to take in her cousin—it has nothing to do with me."
Ji Bozhai chuckled, picking up a piece of deer tendon and feeding it to her as if rewarding her. "You’re so clever."
Harboring a runaway concubine was also a crime. By distancing herself, she was saving him trouble.
Mingyi chewed and swallowed with relish before continuing, "Of course I didn’t intend to hide it, but I never expected my lord to ask about this."
Just a mere concubine—Prince Ping had so many in his household. How did he even know one had escaped?
"Prince Ping doesn’t have many heirs. Right now, he only has three daughters and one son still alive. That concubine took away his eldest illegitimate son—of course people would notice," Ji Bozhai said without directly explaining. "A man like him shouldn’t have descendants in the first place."
Mingyi froze, growing slightly nervous. "That child will take the surname Zhang from now on."
He wouldn’t count as Prince Ping’s descendant anymore.
Ji Bozhai snapped out of his thoughts and looked at her tense expression, baffled. He had merely stated a fact—it wasn’t like he was planning to harm the child.
Still, when Mingyi got nervous, her eyes grew watery, making her look utterly captivating. He couldn’t resist teasing her further. "Even with the surname Zhang, he’s still Prince Ping’s seed. What difference does it make?"
"It’s not the same! Once he changes his surname, he won’t be able to enter the ancestral hall, and Prince Ping’s lineage will be cut off—it’s practically the same as having no descendants," she argued, gesturing emphatically. "As long as no one finds Zhang Liu and her son, they’ll be as good as dead. Why should my lord add more blood to his hands?"
Ji Bozhai hummed, feigning hesitation. "Let me think about it."
"Ah, what’s there to think about? Come, my lord, eat." She quickly climbed onto his lap, one arm looping around his neck while the other picked up a piece of meat to feed him.
He coughed. "Trying to choke me to death?"
"Eat slower, my lord." She handed him a bowl of soup. "Here, wash it down."
Ji Bozhai frowned. "You drink first."
Afraid she’d poison him? Mingyi pouted, tilting her head back to gulp it down until the fish maw and deer velvet at the bottom of the bowl were exposed. Then, with an innocent expression, she handed it back to him. "So delicious! My lord, try it?"
What was left for him to taste after that? Ji Bozhai smirked, watching her barely concealed smugness before abruptly leaning in to capture her lips.
Mingyi startled, trying to pull away, but his arms locked around her tightly, leaving her no room to move.
She frowned, the disgust in her eyes impossible to hide.
Ji Bozhai’s body was actually quite clean, free of any lingering perfumes, but she still found it repulsive.
In the Azure Cloud Realm, most customs demanded women’s chastity, but she had been raised as a man. Her expectations for a partner were no different from a man’s. He could fool around with others, but coming back to her after doing so was unacceptable.
So when Ji Bozhai reluctantly released her and tried to coax her with sweet words, Mingyi swiftly escaped his embrace.
"What’s wrong?" he asked, puzzled.
Mingyi wanted to endure it, but she couldn’t hold back. She turned her head toward the window and— "Ugh—"
Ji Bozhai stared in shock for a moment before his expression darkened. "Do you really find me that repulsive?""No, my lord, please listen to this servant's explanation, ugh—"
Mingyi retched until tears welled up in her eyes, looking utterly pitiful. By the time she finally calmed down, the person sitting beside her had already turned as dark as the bottom of a pot.