The maiden leaned in close, her cheek pressing against his, the moonlight casting a luminous glow on her pale, smooth profile.
It was not a fleeting touch, but a deep, lingering immersion.
Yan Shang: "Mmm..."
He stiffened, not daring to move a muscle, his head resting against the wall as if his mind had exploded. He couldn't think, his thoughts were a blur, uncertain of what was happening.
She was so warm, fragrant, and exquisite. Like sweet syrup flowing into his limbs and bones, seeping into his heart and lungs. It made his breath scalding, his body numb, and his spirit involuntarily exhilarated.
But was this punishment? Wasn't it a reward?
Yan Shang, in a daze and blushing furiously, thought to himself how this could possibly be punishment. He had assumed earlier that he kissed poorly, that she had lost interest in him, that she would never want to kiss him again... Yet such sweetness still surged toward him, and she had returned once more.
It wasn't just a leaning kiss.
As Yan Shang remained rigid, Mu Wan Yao rested her hand on his shoulder. Perhaps finding the leaning posture too tiring, she lifted her skirt and settled onto his lap, nestling into his embrace.
Their breaths mingled in the dimness, her fingers still slightly cool as they pinched his chin. Soft and fragrant, she sat in his arms, lowering her gaze to meet his upturned eyes. She noticed the skin beneath his eyes had flushed crimson, and as her fingers brushed over it, it felt scorching hot.
She could feel his legs stiffen.
For she had never been this intimate with him before.
Mu Wan Yao smiled silently, as if mocking his helplessness.
Trembling under her teasing gaze, Yan Shang parted his lips and offered his tongue. His heart pounded like a drum, unopposed, only yearning to draw closer... Yet as soon as their tongues lightly touched, Mu Wan Yao pulled away.
He leaned in to follow, but she retreated steadily, her vibrant lips refusing to let him touch even a hint.
Yan Shang stared at her in astonishment.
Mu Wan Yao remained seated intimately on his lap, hooking a finger to trace his cheek, her expression half-smiling. "If you move, this becomes a reward, not a punishment."
Yan Shang: "..."
Quick-witted as he was, he understood her meaning instantly upon meeting her mischievously teasing gaze.
Yan Shang murmured, "Only you can take the initiative, and I'm not allowed to respond?"
Mu Wan Yao lazily replied, "Mhm."
Yan Shang frowned, finally realizing her vexing nature. Forbidding him to respond—this was indeed torment... He turned his face away. "Your Highness, have some self-respect."
Mu Wan Yao: "Tsk."
She leaned down to kiss his brow, watching as his eyelashes trembled slightly, and unable to resist, she gently kissed them as well. Yan Shang lifted his head, enduring her gaze, while Mu Wan Yao drawled lazily, "Self-respect? Why didn't you mention it earlier? Only now do you remember?"
He pushed her away, his face flushing red. "I was at fault earlier, but now you..."
Mu Wan Yao had no intention of indulging him. Seeing his lips part as if to utter words she didn't wish to hear, she leaned in once more and kissed his mouth.
Yan Shang tilted his head back, exposing his neck, his Adam's apple bobbing lightly. Mu Wan Yao's cool hand trailed downward from his throat, winding and coiling aimlessly like a small snake, teasing like a feather. It flushed his jade-like skin with a rosy hue, the redness spreading beneath his collar, which could no longer conceal her touch.
Yan Shang's hand instinctively pressed against her waist.
And she feigned innocence once more.
Gazing down at him with a half-smile.Yan Shang's breath was completely ragged. He looked somewhat annoyed at Mu Wan Yao, inwardly cursing his lack of self-control. She was carelessly stoking his fire, coldly observing him in his wretched state... She toyed with him, mocked him, tormented him.
Summoning all his strength, Yan Shang managed to move his hand away from her waist.
Distractedly, he thought he had never properly touched her waist or held any part of her besides her back... Closing his eyes, he calmed his breathing, no longer so urgent and impatient.
He whispered, "Your Highness, please don't be like this."
Mu Wan Yao laughed somewhat indifferently, her eyes bright. Seeing him unable to resist, she couldn't help but grow excited.
Watching the youth who aimed to be a sage reveal such wretched expressions because of her, seeing him repeatedly struggle to respond only for her to stop each time—each pause was a torment to him... Finally, his muscles tensed, his hand on her shoulder as if to push her down.
Mu Wan Yao said, "What do you want to do? This is a prison. Do you want to start with me like this?"
Yan Shang panted, his eyes slightly red: "Then what do you want?"
Mu Wan Yao stared at him: "If you push me, you are overstepping your bounds! My servants are waiting outside. One shout from me, and they will come in to arrest you."
Yan Shang looked at her in disbelief.
Mu Wan Yao leaned down and kissed him again, murmuring against his lips: "If you refuse me, that is also overstepping your bounds. I will have Guard Fang come in and see how you treat the Princess."
Yan Shang: "You... ah."
He suddenly felt utterly ashamed, completely controlled by her. So he once again reflected on whether he was too unrestrained around women, silently reciting "beauty is but a skeleton" and "all is emptiness."
Mu Wan Yao: "..."
Her eyes widened, genuinely somewhat angered by him. The sweat on his face, the dampness at his temples, his tense body—under his strong will, they all seemed to become external matters.
His inability to respond was originally a torment, but now that he controlled himself so... what was left for her to play with?
A corpse?
Mu Wan Yao's eyes lightly circled, and she smiled silently.
Just as Yan Shang was silently reciting to himself not to be influenced by Mu Wan Yao, he suddenly heard her somewhat cool voice: "Chunhua is leaving me."
Yan Shang was startled, his mind calming for a moment. He stopped his reflection and opened his eyes to look at the princess sitting in his lap.
Mu Wan Yao lowered her eyes, speaking indifferently: "I don't know if you're aware, but earlier I had Fang Tong return to the Princess Residence to fetch a miscarriage-preventing medicine—it was for Chunhua. Third Brother is playing dirty with me, wanting me to ally with Fifth Brother and break with the Crown Prince.
"Of course, I refused. So I followed your advice to remove the powerful families. But Chunhua can't come back. Because she is a pawn that must be sacrificed; she must enter Fifth Brother's residence and, to some extent, connect me with Fifth Brother.
"They all planned it well. I counterattacked too; I made their plan fail. They didn't expect me to truly abandon the Zheng family, nor that even though Chunhua entered Fifth Brother's residence, I would still not break with the Crown Prince by sacrificing the powerful families. However, no matter what, I have lost Chunhua."
Yan Shang looked at her.
He raised his arm and held her.He and she were different. Her embraces were teasing, while his were warmth and comfort. His clothes were disheveled, his hair in disarray, yet when he held her tightly in his arms at this moment, Mu Wan Yao still felt his care for her.
Yan Shang whispered softly, "Don't be sad."
Mu Wan Yao buried her face in the crook of his neck, her eyes fixed unblinkingly on his Adam's apple, but her tone was casual, as if making small talk. "Chunhua is pregnant with Fifth Brother's child. She can't come back. She can't marry the one she wanted, nor can she remain my maid anymore."
"Of those who returned from the Black Barbarians, Chunhua was the only maid who survived by my side. Now she's leaving too... I have nothing left."
Yan Shang held her tightly and repeated gently, "Don't be sad."
A faint smile tugged at Mu Wan Yao's lips. This time, when her hand slipped inside his collar, she felt him stiffen momentarily, but he didn't pull away.
Mu Wan Yao chuckled inwardly.
She thought to herself—the saintly Yan Erlang was willing to sacrifice his dignity to comfort her.
As her hand pressed against his abdomen, separated only by a thin layer of inner clothing, Yan Shang grasped her wrist.
His eyes closed, his chin resting on her shoulder, his face was drenched in sweat, his neck and cheeks flushed red.
Trembling, he pleaded, "That's enough... Your Highness, please don't go any further."
Mu Wan Yao paid no heed.
She pressed close to his ear, nibbling it lightly and laughing, "Why are you so resistant? That night when my aunt bullied you, didn't I help you like this?"
Yan Shang's mind went blank.
His eyes snapped open, staring at her. But Mu Wan Yao avoided his gaze, her hand still wandering, her lips still near his ear.
Slowly and deliberately, she described what had happened that night in his ear: "You were lying in the alley back then, but I was the one who brought you back to the Princess Residence. You're such a fool—did you really think a few acupuncture needles from the imperial physician would cure you? Hmph, without me, how could you have recovered?"
Her fragrance coiled around his heart like tendrils of smoke. "You're so silly. I thought you'd remember eventually, but you never even tried to recall. Someone as sharp-minded as you, yet you couldn't figure this out... Isn't it laughable?"
"Yan Shang, Yan Shang... Second Brother Yan," she cooed, kissing him sweetly, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, both laughing and blushing. "Do you never... relieve yourself? That night we shared a bed, you actually said to leave it alone and wait for it to subside on its own. Heavens, Second Brother Yan, how can you be so naive? Do you truly not understand how things work between men and women?"
She tilted her head up, her tongue lightly tracing his chin, smiling radiantly. "Am I the first to kiss you? The first to hold you? The first girl to... do this for you?"
Yan Shang gripped her wrist.
His nerves were nearly shattered, utterly disordered. Ice and fire warred within him—both pleasure and torment. He forced himself not to move, because if he responded even slightly, she would stop.
She was so wicked. Leaving him suspended mid-air, unable to ascend or descend... His eyes squeezed shut, brows furrowed in unbearable distress. "You're too cruel... You can't do this... It's too filthy, too filthy. Stop! Yao Yao!"
But at this point—
Did he really think a single "Yao Yao" would make her stop?She giggled in his embrace, cheeks flushed, hands kneading restlessly. Her eyes darted downward, but Yan Shang pressed her head against him—this was his final line of defense. "Don't look... don't look!"
Fool, Mu Wan Yao thought.
Seeing his discomfort only spurred her to vividly recount the events of that night with even more dramatic flair—
And so, uncontrollably, Yan Shang’s mind began to recall what had truly happened, the memory overlapping with the scene before him.
Only that night, he had lain unconscious on the bed, while this time, she was the one mischievously seated in his lap.
But it was still him.
And it was still her.
She reached out, opened her eyes, her jade-white, slender fingers tracing the sweat on his skin. Like a playful little fish, she wriggled into his embrace…
Suddenly, footsteps echoed, and Yan Shang froze.
In the prison cell, he could even hear voices not far away—
Fang Tong: "What are you doing?"
Jailer: "Forgive me, sir. I’m here to deliver dinner to Yan Erlang."
Fang Tong, suspicious: "Delivering food in the middle of the night? Did you poison it?"
The jailer, nearly in tears: "No, no! Yan Erlang and I agreed on this…"
The voices of the two men drifted over from nearby. Mu Wan Yao was momentarily stunned but noticed Yan Shang’s entire body stiffen. Then, with a muffled groan, he slumped back against the wall.
His eyes were closed, his lashes damp with mist, his face flushed and pale in patches. He coughed twice.
Mu Wan Yao glanced down at her hand and smiled faintly—
Fang Tong led the jailer away, naturally ensuring no one would disturb the princess.
Yet for Yan Shang, the scare had brought everything to an abrupt end.
He coughed, taking a while to recover, his expression growing even more awkward.
He had been marked, and as he opened his eyes and saw Mu Wan Yao’s hand, his face flushed deeper… He wanted to offer her a handkerchief but remembered—where would he find a soft cloth in a prison cell?
Yan Shang, embarrassed: "Your Highness… do you not have a handkerchief?"
Mu Wan Yao shot him a sidelong glance and leisurely retrieved a handkerchief from her sleeve, wiping her hands. Seeing she had one, Yan Shang breathed a sigh of relief.
Mu Wan Yao smirked teasingly: "Why worry about me? My clothes are neat, my hair untouched—not a single mark from head to toe. And you?"
Her gaze drifted downward, skimming below his waist. He awkwardly covered himself with the blanket, and Mu Wan Yao scoffed: "What about the marks on you? How will you explain them? Tomorrow, will you tell people you slept so soundly in this wretched prison that you couldn’t resist having a wet dream?"
Yan Shang flushed with embarrassment, glaring at her slightly.
After a long pause, he said: "I’ll think of something."
Mu Wan Yao studied him closely, noting the sweat beading on his forehead, his tightly pressed lips—yet none of it could hide the traces of her lip rouge staining him.
He acted composed and unruffled, but as she sat on his lap, she could easily feel him stiffen again without even moving.
Mu Wan Yao teased: "What, have I humiliated you? In your eyes, am I like that aunt who disgraced you that night? Do you see me as just as despicable as her?"
His eyes lowered, but he shook his head gently.
Mu Wan Yao was taken aback.
He kept his gaze down, not daring to look at her, his body numb and aching, yet he still spoke softly: "This isn’t humiliation. You are not your aunt."
Mu Wan Yao replied coldly: "Why not? Because I’m younger and prettier than her?"Yan Shang: "Because you are in my heart."
Mu Wan Yao: "..."
He lifted his gaze to look at her.
He said softly: "You're angry that I didn't follow your orders, but you refused to see me for days, wouldn't leave me a single word. My heart has been chilled to the core by you. You shouldn't treat me this way. If I've done something wrong, you should tell me, not leave without a word."
"And now... now you come to tease me like this."
He frowned slightly in confusion: "Can this really make you less angry?"
Mu Wan Yao remained silent.
Could this really make her less angry?
Even at such a moment, he spoke to her so gently. She had clearly told him not to move, and he had restrained himself. He had let her mess around for so long... She had only used Chunhua to express her own discomfort, and though he was initially unwilling, he had ultimately indulged her.
He was such a good person.
While Mu Wan Yao was lost in thought, she noticed him looking at her.
Their sparkling gazes met in mid-air, and belatedly, Mu Wan Yao began to feel shy. As her face reddened, his followed suit, and he averted his eyes.
Mu Wan Yao suppressed a laugh. Seeing him so awkward, her anger toward him instantly dissipated.
Mu Wan Yao chuckled: "This really can make me less angry. I don't blame you for killing the Zheng Family Head anymore."
Yan Shang lowered his head, not daring to meet her eyes, and after a moment said: "...That's good."
Mu Wan Yao hummed in agreement and stood up, no longer sitting on his lap.
She leisurely stepped back two paces. Just as she had said, Yan Shang's clothes were disheveled, while she remained completely untouched by him. While marveling at his self-restraint, Mu Wan Yao also delighted in the mischief she had caused him tonight.
But Mu Wan Yao said: "Everything that happened tonight doesn't mean my attitude toward you has changed."
Yan Shang was slightly taken aback.
He asked: "What... are you still angry with me about?"
Mu Wan Yao meant that his detailed plans for their future still frightened her, but Yan Shang didn't know what exactly she disliked.
To him, she was like a puzzle.
He could never quite guess her thoughts. Every time he made plans for them, she would disrupt them midway, leaving him unsure how to proceed... Now Yan Shang looked at her blankly, completely confused about what their relationship had become.
Mu Wan Yao didn't answer him. After tormenting him for a while, she turned and left the prison, leaving him alone again. Only when she could no longer see Yan Shang did Mu Wan Yao cover her pounding heart, her face flushed, feeling exceptionally happy.
When he was unaware and when he was conscious - they were indeed very different.
She really quite liked it—
Meanwhile, in the Eastern Palace, lamps burned late into the night.
The Crown Prince was still handling official business, while Yang Si sat cross-legged nearby, meticulously polishing a blade.
The Crown Prince said: "I asked you to meet with Lord Liu and get his opinion of Yan Erlang. What did Lord Liu say?"
Yang Si replied casually: "He quite admires Yan Er."
The Crown Prince nodded: "Then when the trial results come out tomorrow, Yan Erlang should be able to leave prison."
Yang Si remained indifferent: "Hmm."
The Crown Prince sat behind his desk, quietly contemplating for a while, then suddenly looked up at Yang Si who was still polishing his blade. He said slowly: "Tomorrow, go personally and invite Yan Suchen to a grand banquet at your residence to celebrate his release from prison."
Yang Si: "Huh?"
He looked up at the Crown Prince.The Crown Prince smiled faintly: "During this period, you've been constantly running around for Yan Erlang's affairs, visiting him daily in the Ministry of Justice prison, fearing someone might mistreat him. Your concern for Yan Suchen—as long as he still wants to remain in officialdom, he will surely feel grateful to you.
"When you host a banquet at your residence, I will come to meet with Yan Erlang. Your actions represent mine; in Yan Erlang's eyes, all this should appear as my care for him..."
Yang Si said coldly: "You mean to win over Yan Erlang's loyalty? You didn't stop my actions these past days just so you could buy his heart?"
The Crown Prince retorted: "Otherwise? Did you think I couldn't see you making a scene daily at the Ministry of Justice? If I hadn't allowed it, could you have gone?"
The Crown Prince continued: "In this matter, I've come to realize something. At the Qujiang Banquet that day, when Yan Suchen claimed he hadn't read many books—whether he truly hadn't read much or was just being perfunctory with me—I truly misjudged him. I thought he only had the skill to coax Luling Grand Princess into changing the Tanhualang. Now I see his single arrow made him famous... I no longer believe he shot that arrow out of mere impulsiveness.
"Such a person, if he cannot be used by me, must be destroyed. Naturally, I don't wish to destroy him, hence my seeking talent."
Yang Si stood up, his gaze cold and sharp: "But he is Yao Yao's retainer. He helps Yao Yao, and Yao Yao helps you—isn't that the same? Why must you take him away from Yao Yao?"
The Crown Prince glanced at Yang Si and smiled: "After all, there's Sixth Sister between us. People's hearts are separated by the belly—one cannot be too cautious.
"Besides, as you said, Lord Liu admires him. Lord Liu is from the Secretariat, where I cannot reach. If I cannot secure an official position for Yan Erlang by my side, he might be snatched away by the Secretariat. The Secretariat is certainly good... but if Yan Suchen is truly devoted to me, then it would be good for him to go there. If he isn't wholly for me, I wouldn't want him entering the Secretariat.
"The Secretariat handles all court affairs; I only want true allies in the Secretariat."
Yang Si stared at the Crown Prince for a long time.
He said: "Tomorrow, I will not host a banquet, will not invite Yan Erlang, and will not help you snatch people from Yao Yao."
The Crown Prince's gaze instantly turned cold as he looked at him.
After a long pause, the Crown Prince's tone softened slightly: "Sanlang, don't be unreasonable."
Yang Si: "Yao Yao has few capable people around her. Whenever someone talented appears, you take them away. Since you intend to use Yao Yao, why always pressure her like this? You speak nicely of recruiting talent and controlling the powerful. When have you ever cared whether the powerful harm the people? You never cared—in your eyes, there's only politics, only what benefits you!
"If it benefits you, you act. If it doesn't, even if refugees storm Chang'an, I doubt you'd bat an eye."
The Crown Prince: "Are you only now realizing this about me?"He smiled sarcastically: 'What, only now finding me disagreeable?""
Locking eyes with Yang Sanlang, the Crown Prince suddenly flew into a rage, sweeping all the memorials and lamps off his desk.The tremendous commotion in the study startled the Crown Princess and her attendants who were bringing midnight snacks outside. They trembled upon hearing the Crown Prince’s furious roar from within: “You despise my methods as underhanded! If not for such tactics, do you think anyone in Chang’an could protect you with your blatant behavior? You act as you please only because I’ve been covering for you… Who do you think granted you such privilege? Could it be the Yang family?! Have the Yangs ever devoted even half the care to you that I’ve lavished upon you?!”
“Now that your wings have hardened, you look down on my ways… How noble and upright you are, Yang Sanlang! Your righteousness exists only because I allow it!”
The Crown Princess shivered uncontrollably outside, while the maids behind her nearly dropped the trays they carried in fright. The Crown Prince seldom lost his temper so violently—and he was actually arguing with Yang Sanlang…
From the study came Yang Si's voice: "I've never looked down on you or said you were bad! Of course I know how difficult it's been for you, of course I know everything I have today is because you've shielded me. So I support whatever you do, I help you with whatever you want... I am the blade in your hand! I would live and die for your ideals!
"But you can't treat Yao Yao like this! Haven't I kept silent about how you've treated Yao Yao before? I just want you not to go too far... At least leave her some means of self-protection, some people she can use! At least if one day you abandon her, she won't become like fish on a chopping block, completely at others' mercy!
"I've always obeyed you! It's just this once I don't want to listen to you!"
The Crown Prince roared: "Get out!"
The next moment, the Crown Princess and others standing outside the study watched in horror as the study door was pulled open. The Crown Princess saw Yang Sanlang storm out, and when he saw her, Yang Si paused briefly. Yang Si seemed to want to greet the Crown Princess, but his lips trembled and he ultimately said nothing, just put on his shoes and left.
The Crown Princess called out: "Sanlang, Sanlang..."
Unable to stop Yang Sanlang, the Crown Princess tremblingly entered the study to check on the Crown Prince. She saw the young man standing in the center of the room, books and papers scattered all over the floor, cups, lamps and candles all overturned. With curtains fluttering, the Crown Prince's expression was extremely grim.
Turning around, the Crown Prince looked at the Crown Princess.
The Crown Princess whispered: "Are you just letting Yang Sanlang leave like this?"
The Crown Prince's face remained expressionless.
The Crown Princess said: "The palace gates are locked. He just left carrying his sword but forgot his waist token. He probably can't get out of the palace...The Crown Prince closed his eyes in patience.
Finally, he said hoarsely: "...Take the waist token to that fool!"—
Only after Yang Si left the Eastern Palace and was heading toward the palace exit did he remember he had forgotten his waist token. But he was still angry and didn't want to go back to face the Crown Prince's cold treatment.
Fortunately, after lingering near the palace gate for just a short while, someone from the Eastern Palace came to deliver his waist token.
Yang Si noticed the eunuch delivering the token seemed to want to say something, but he completely ignored him. Taking the token, he left the palace, leaving the eunuch sighing behind him.
After exiting the palace gates, Yang Si originally intended to return directly to his residence. However, while passing by the Department of State Affairs, he spotted a familiar figure near the prison entrance.
A young woman was being escorted by guards into a carriage, wrapped up very thoroughly.
But how well did Yang Si know her?
He immediately recognized her as Mu Wan Yao.
Yang Si was slightly stunned, wondering why she had come here.
Glancing toward the prison, Yang Si thought to himself: Could she be here to visit Yan Shang?
Hmm... this behavior of hers is quite unusual—
The next day, when the triple tribunal's verdict was announced, Yan Shang was released in court, and everyone in the hall wanted to congratulate him on his freedom.
However, the official sent today from the Court of Judicial Review was an unfamiliar face, not the familiar Yang Sanlang, making Yan Shang wonder what had happened.
After Yan Shang left the Department of State Affairs and exited the imperial city, he was surrounded by waiting Imperial College students and common people.
While dealing with these people, he suddenly spotted a young man in red robes passing by from a corner.
It was Yang Si.
He saw Yang Si approach a carriage parked by the roadside.
Just as Yan Shang was about to go greet him, he saw Yang Si knock on the carriage door. When it opened, it revealed the face of the person inside.
Yan Shang froze. Though it was only a glimpse, he had been tormented by this person just last night... it was Mu Wan Yao.His heart suddenly ached with discomfort.
Was Mu Wan Yao secretly meeting with Yang Si?
Why?—
Mu Wan Yao sat quietly in the carriage, having changed into a maid’s attire to avoid being recognized.
She was waiting here, hoping to catch a glimpse of Yan Shang as he passed by, or perhaps to tease him a little. She was supposed to be at the mountain retreat and shouldn’t be seen here.
But… Yan Shang had been released from prison.
She still wanted to see him as soon as possible.
And to give him a scare.
Resting her chin in her hand inside the carriage, she was lost in thought and chuckled to herself when the carriage wall was tapped twice from outside.
The next moment, the carriage door opened, but instead of the familiar face she expected, Yang Si climbed in.
Mu Wan Yao: “…”
Yang Si closed the carriage door and sat beside her, looking at her with leisurely composure before suddenly teasing, “Why that expression when you see me? What, you were waiting for Yan Shang but got me instead—unhappy?”
He said, “Do you like Yan Shang? Do you want to marry him?”
Mu Wan Yao’s expression cooled, and she averted her gaze. “Are you here to lecture me about not liking him and keeping my distance?”
Yang Si stared at her.
After a long while, he said self-deprecatingly, “Is that how you see me? I only wish for you to have a man you love, someone you want to marry. I only wish for your happiness, Yaoyao.”
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