Chapter 235

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Protagonist:

Xuan Ge

Inside the Astral Express's Observation Car, warm yellow lamplight spilled over the tea table, where Ji Zi's coffee beans still sat.

Welt sat on the sofa, fingertips lightly tapping the sofa armrest, silently waiting with a calm expression.

Light footsteps came from the doorway, accompanied by March 7th's crisp laughter; he raised his eyes and saw March 7th and Xing walk in side by side.

He first swept his gaze over their expressions without betraying anything, his brows twitching imperceptibly.

No injuries, no fatigue — on the contrary, they exuded a lazy ease that spoke of being stuffed full.

So it turned out they just ate their fill at Xuan Huang's place.

"Hehe, Uncle Yang~" March 7th scratched the back of her head, laughing a bit sheepishly, her eyes hiding a touch of guilt.

Welt nodded and said with a light chuckle: "How come Ji Zi didn't come back with you?"

Finished speaking, he raised his eyes again to look at Xing beside him, the corners of his brows lifting slightly: "And Xing, what are you regretting?"

Xing lowered her eyes, pouted her lips, wearing a completely dejected regretful look, raised her hand and spread it out: "The regret is that the one who fell into the Demon King's magic claws wasn't me, but the Hero Ji Zi."

Clearly it was me who took Ji Zi's coffee to assassinate Xuan Ge, so how did it end up dragging Ji Zi-jie into it instead?

"I suspect I was set up by capital." Xing touched her chin, plopped down onto the chair by the tea table, brows knotted into a little lump, sinking into deep thought.

March 7th hurried over, reached out to hold Welt's arm, pressed him back onto the sofa, and said comfortingly with a smile:

"Uncle Yang, don't worry, Ji Zi-jie is that impressive, she'll definitely return safe and sound."

"Now that you put it like that...." Welt let out a light sigh, a trace of helplessness flashing in his eyes, silently adding in his heart:

March, now that you put it like that, I'm even more uneasy.

Ji Zi will definitely return, but when she does, missing who knows what — probably only Xuan Huang and Ji Zi herself will know.

On the other side, in the Shen Wu Huang Gong's garden.

Xing Xiao and Ling Sha stood by the blue-brick wall outside the garden, staring through the hollow cloud-pattern designs on the wall at the two people by the stone table inside.

"Xing Xiao, when it comes down to it, this mess was stirred up by you."

Ling Sha's gaze fell on Ji Zi and Xuan Ge, watching the two sit together talking and laughing, even exchanging cups, then glanced sideways at Xing Xiao beside her who could only stare helplessly.

Xing Xiao turned her head and glared at Ling Sha, indignant: "Ling Sha, don't press me with your legitimate-wife tone! With this many women in the harem, which one is easy to handle?"

What do you mean she stirred it up? It wasn't her who gave Xuan Ge that weird coffee, so why blame her?

"That Little Raccoon couldn't become Xing Fei anyway; even if she really did, Xuan Ge would just give her some other title."

Ling Sha withdrew her gaze, no longer looking at the scene inside the garden, reached out and grabbed Xing Xiao's wrist.

"Besides, however old you are, she's still a Stellar Core~ To put it bluntly, she's not unrelated to you either."

Xing Xiao let out a cold hmph; her position as Xing Fei is publicly recognized, how could she possibly yield it to that Little Raccoon.

She paused, suddenly thought of Xing's chest size, a crafty glint flashing in her eyes, retorted: "Ling Sha, you didn't know, right? Xing is even bigger than you."

Ling Sha's motion of pulling Xing Xiao's wrist froze violently, she turned her head and gave her a white-eye glance: "Being bigger than you is enough for me."

"Everyone knows Xuan Ge actually originally liked older ones, just later developed a preference for good figures too."

She paused, added: "Xing has Kafka watching her, nothing will happen."

"Hehe~ True enough." Xing Xiao's mood was hooked by Ling Sha, attention successfully diverted, a hint of spectator amusement flashing in her eyes.

"When the time comes, I'd really like to see Kafka's expression."

Inside the garden, Xuan Ge's fingertips pinched the wine cup, clearly sensing Ling Sha and Xing Xiao's departing auras, his tensed shoulder lines only then slowly relaxing with a breath of relief.

Beside him, Ji Zi's face was flushed with a faint red, the corners of her eyes tinged with a thin veil of drunkenness, clearly having gotten a bit tipsy on the Shen Wu Huang Gong's wine.

She tilted her head slightly, gaze hazy as she looked at Xuan Ge, voice carrying a few notes of post-drinking charm, said softly:

"Your Majesty~ are you very nervous being with me?"

Xuan Ge looked at Ji Zi's body leaning slightly closer, a trace of amusement rising in his eyes, replied softly: "Ji Zi, you're drunk."

"True enough." Ji Zi's gaze instantly softened, she pursed her lips, a hard-to-detect flash of hurt crossing her eyes.

"I'm old, and a short-lived species, while Your Majesty, though over eight hundred years old, is a long-lived species."

Seeing her show such an expression, Xuan Ge couldn't care about losing face, simply blurted out his preference: "Uh... I just like older ones."

Ji Zi was flustered by Xuan Ge's sudden blunt confession, her face turning even redder, even her ear roots dyed pink, heartbeat involuntarily quickening a few beats.

She straightened up slightly, subconsciously puffed out her chest, eyes carrying a teasing glint, asked softly: "I recall Your Majesty doesn't like this big?"

Xuan Ge's gaze subconsciously swept a glance, then darted away swiftly, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly, exerting all his strength to forcibly pull his gaze back.

"Both are liked...."

He sighed inwardly; his preferences must have been spread around by someone, making them known to all.

"Both are liked~?" Ji Zi let out a low laugh, picked up the wine pot on the table, filled Xuan Ge's cup to the brim, the liquid sliding down the cup wall, splashing tiny wine bubbles.

"Your Majesty is truly greedy, liking the big ones when you meet them, and when they're slightly smaller-chested, you fancy their age~ Hei Ta Lady must have fallen into your hands just like that~"

Xuan Ge smiled and reached out, lightly intercepting Ji Zi's waist, fingertips able to feel the delicate texture at her waist, tone carrying a few notes of teasing:

"If Hei Ta heard, she'd probably explode with rage~"

Ji Zi felt that honest yet probing hand at her waist, cheeks reddening further, glared at him with a spoiled complaint: "Your Majesty, this is knowing the law and breaking it? I didn't agree~"

Xuan Ge lifted the wine cup, took a sip, the ice-cold liquid sliding down his throat, fingertips lightly stroking Ji Zi's waist side, inwardly praising.

Soft and tender, seemingly thin yet not thin, perfectly proportioned.

Ji Zi is like a cup of mellow fine wine, the more you taste the more flavor, truly top-grade.

He set down the wine cup, then raised his hand, using his fingertip to lightly lift Ji Zi's chin, asking with a deep gaze:

"Do you think the Ten Lords Commission dares to arrest me?"

"But doing it this way, aren't you afraid outsiders will criticize the Emperor, saying you're a lustful stallion?"

Ji Zi did not resist, raising her eyes to gaze straight into Xuan Ge's eyes, a hint of seriousness in their depths, waiting for his answer.

Xuan Ge lightly stroked Ji Zi's chin, slowly withdrew his hand, picked up his wine cup again, and Ji Zi very cooperatively picked up the wine pot and filled it for him.

He gently swirled the wine cup, the liquid turning in the cup, his tone calm and firm:

"Lust has never been a fault; the two words 'lust' have been spoken of ambiguously since ancient times."

"If you say it is common, everyone avoids it; if you say it is evil, everyone has it."

"Food and sex, it is nature. Human life: food and drink to continue their life, male and female to propagate their kind."

Ji Zi listened quietly, her gaze gradually growing gentle.

When Xuan Ge paused to drink, she picked up the wine pot again, poured herself a cup as well, raised her hand and lightly clinked her wine cup against Xuan Ge's.

Xuan Ge set down his wine cup, looked at Ji Zi again, a hint of amusement in his eyes, and slowly spoke the final sentence:

"Lustful but not licentious, desirous but not indulgent — thus, lust is not wrong."

"The Emperor is multi-talented, this concubine admires you~"

Ji Zi laughed lightly, leaned softly against Xuan Ge's embrace, raised her hand to lightly rest on his chest, feeling his steady heartbeat.

Xuan Ge raised his hand, lightly caressed Ji Zi's cheek, his tone carrying a touch of self-mockery: "I almost went to flip through the Xian Zhou dictionary to piece together these words."

He paused, then asked: "Tonight, willing to stay?"

"Were all those words the Emperor just spoke just to find a way out?" Ji Zi raised her eyes, looking into his eyes, a hint of cunning amusement at the corner of her mouth.

"Unwilling, you still must be willing." Xuan Ge chuckled low, reached out and scooped Ji Zi up horizontally, his movements gentle yet carrying an unrefusable dominance.

Ji Zi obediently lay in Xuan Ge's arms, her arms lightly encircling his neck, gazing at his face inches away, her eyes full of tenderness.

At this moment, she felt as if she had become several years younger, all worries vanishing like smoke and clouds.

'Sorry, Xing, and March 7th....'