Chapter 6: Staying in Qinghua Pool

Rong Ruo searched everywhere.

He barged into the hot pool, but saw Chu Yunzheng's cold face.

Frightened, he hurriedly knelt on the ground.

He hadn't even had time to shout, "Emperor, I atone."

Then he heard Chu Yunzheng spit out a single word from his lips: "Get out!"

Although his tone was flat, to the ears of those nearby it sounded like a thunderclap.

Thinking that since the Emperor was present, Wan Tang would surely not dare to break in, for after all colliding with the Emperor meant certain death.

Wan Tang, having been in the palace for ten years, knows these things better than anyone.

Wan Tang, constantly filling her chest with water, now thought in her mind: "Pathetic."

"What about the armed guards? What about the commanders?"

"Within these palace walls, no, in this world, the Emperor's word is final."

Wan Tang's consciousness grew increasingly hazy.

"Huh..."

Her chest felt a bit stuffy.

Wan Tang slowly opened her eyes, meeting Chu Yunzheng's abyss‑black eyes.

Chu Yunzheng's hands rested on her chest, pressing down repeatedly.

Wan Tang's chest and throat were still painfully tight, but this scene made her brain instantly flood with blood.

Instinctively she pushed the Emperor away, like a quail, shrinking to the side.

Only Chu Yunzheng, not wearing a single thread of clothing, had water droplets slowly falling from his young, sturdy chest.

When he shed that dragon robe that kept people at a thousand li's distance, one must admit Chu Yunzheng is indeed handsome.

Wan Tang, both fearful and startled, said: "Your Majesty, I have disturbed Your Majesty; my crime deserves ten thousand deaths."

She hurriedly knelt, her forehead pressed tightly against the cold ground.

A sound of water reached her ears; Chu Yunzheng entered the pool.

His hands rested on the pool's edge, yet his robust form remained faintly visible in the water.

A cold glint flickered in his eyes as he slowly said, "Lift your head!"

Before her stood the Emperor, the number‑one man in the world, also a ladder to heaven within arm's reach!

Wan Tang had once insisted on leaving the palace, but they wouldn't allow it, so… she would live in a way they couldn't provoke.

She obeyed, slowly raising her head.

After being soaked, her hair was a mess.

Yet her face, unadorned with makeup, perfectly displayed a pure, otherworldly beauty.

The women of the Imperial harem, eager to wear heavy makeup and vie for beauty.

Such a clear water white lotus made the Emperor a little flustered.

He said, "You fled last night; why did you come again tonight?"

If it were the past, Wan Tang would still have run.

But now, she wanted to attract the Emperor's attention, to earn his pity.

Wan Tang's hand gripping the hairpin trembled, refusing to loosen.

The bloodied wound from the stab was now bleeding outward.

With a weak, bitter smile, she respectfully kowtowed, "You are the Emperor; I naturally dare not contradict you."

"But I have known since childhood that a woman should be steadfast, devoted to only one lord in her life."

She said it without a hint of hesitation.

Men probably all like it that way!

Shei thought Chu Yunzheng let out a light hum from his nose: "Is that me, delaying you?"

A woman who hasn't even had a first, how can she speak of a single lord?

If she loves herself, why wouldn't there be fallen petals?

Wan Tang's expression remained calm and composed, showing no hint of panic.

She seemed like a night‑blooming flower that blooms at night; even if it dazzles for a fleeting moment, it must bloom alone.

Thus, she smiled with immaculate purity: "Therefore, I would rather die than ever allow anyone to be my husband."

The hairpin Wan Tang held tightened even more.

Chu Yunzheng leaned against the pool's edge, staring at her eyes, too sharp.

"Enough!" Chu Yunzheng said, still leaning on the pool's edge: "If that's the case, return to your palace and serve your Master."

【This is trying to drive Wan Tang away! No, leaving the Emperor means certain death outside.】

【Wan Tang, you must stay; you have to remain by the Emperor's side.】

【If you now claim the first time was given to the Emperor, the Emperor would certainly not believe it.】

【Given Xu Luoyan's current favor and the Xu Family's war merits, even if he knew, the Emperor would turn a blind eye.】

【Indeed, after all, which man could admit he can't even recognize the woman in his own bed?】

【Moreover, there is no evidence. The Emperor and Xu Luoyan have slept together for ten years; how can one prove Xu Luoyan wasn't a first?】

Wan Tang analyzed the Barrage's words, silently scheming in her heart.

She bowed and said, "Emperor, my lord is you."

"As for the fallen petals..."

Wan Tang gave a bitter smile, weaving a lie: "It does add a splash of color to the crabapple."

Chu Yunzheng walked out from the water.

Without Chu Yunzheng's order, Wan Tang dared not lower her head; even though her face was flushed red, she could only keep it raised.

Chu Yunzheng stared intently at that face and asked with keen interest, "Not even the Empress dares to call Zhen 'husband'!"

"I (serving woman) spoke out of turn, saying for a moment what was in my heart." Wan Tang was neither humble nor arrogant.

Chu Yunzheng gave a teasing smile. "Merely spoke out of turn?"

"The Emperor may decide as he pleases; I (serving woman) will heed and obey."

Though Chu Yunzheng's gaze fell lightly, it seemed as though it could pierce right through Wan Tang.

The corners of his mouth were clearly turned upward, yet no smile could be detected.

Instead, there was a chill of having one's heart laid bare to scrutiny.

"You had barely arrived, and Rong Ruo came chasing in right after. Interesting." Chu Yunzheng was rather amused.

He asked, "Do you want to stay?"

Wan Tang bit her lower lip hard and nodded firmly.

Chu Yunzheng's eyes carried a hint of mockery as his fingers tapped gently against the ground.

Those deep, dark eyes were like an abyss, impossible to fathom.

Wan Tang knelt on the ground, her head hanging lower and lower.

Her heart pounded like thunder, her fingers tightening unconsciously.

Before Chu Yunzheng, Wan Tang was like a clown on a stage.

While he simply sat below, a spectator drinking tea and watching the show.

After a long while, he finally stopped tapping, his narrow phoenix eyes lifting slightly.

His tone was plain, yet it carried an invisible pressure: "Zhen can keep you."

"From today on, you will serve at Qinghua Pool."

Then he smiled again. "As for rank and position..."

Chu Yunzheng's smile deepened.

Wan Tang remained composed, her eyes holding feeling: "To be able to stay by the Emperor's side is already a blessing; I ask for nothing more."

A flicker of surprise suddenly flashed through Chu Yunzheng's eyes, then vanished in an instant.

He walked toward the back of the gauze curtains.

Wan Tang took a deep breath, slowly raised her head, watched the stars disappear into dark clouds, and followed him.

The Emperor gave an order: no one was to be summoned, and no one was to enter Qinghua Pool.

The weather grew ever hotter.

The chirping of cicadas was so loud it kept people from sleeping well.

Wan Tang looked at the marks left on the bed, brought over clean water, and scrubbed them away vigorously.

Whether there was blood on the begonia did not matter; what mattered was that the Emperor wanted to keep her.

That night, Chu Yunzheng kept the lamp lit and examined her closely and carefully.

He never asked her name, nor did he ever care which palace she was from.

In every bout of madness, she could feel his intense possessiveness.

As long as Chu Yunzheng did not speak, Wan Tang dared not demand a proper status.

From ancient times to the present, how many palace maids in the Imperial harem had been favored, and how many could rise to the branch?

Wan Tang was still a plaything on the dragon bed.

It was merely a temporary shelter, nothing more.

And this brief peace still depended on Xu Luoyan not knowing she was inside.

Wan Tang was very clear about this.

To remain safe and sound within the Imperial harem, she had to enter the Emperor's heart.

To become the woman in the Emperor's heart.