Chapter 614: Sudden Event (Part 1)

Xiao Tianmu said: "Before seeing the Da Yong Emperor, everything is still uncertain; I heard that Princess Anping didn't leave with you?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "She insists on staying at the Rising Imperial Palace; I originally thought she was willing to share weal and woe with us."

Xiao Tianmu said: "Is she trustworthy or not?" The "she" he referred to is naturally Zi Juan.

Hu Xiaotian sighed: "In the past I really didn't take her seriously; I always thought she was just a palace maid wanting to sell out her master, but now it seems this little maid is really not simple."

Xiao Tianmu said: "Have you considered that she is the biggest hidden danger? If something happens to her, all your previous plans and efforts will come to nothing."

Hu Xiaotian said: "She's an accident; I truly didn't expect her to survive."

Xiao Tianmu said: "If she were merely someone trying to seize the opportunity to climb a branch and become a consort above others, that would be easier to say; I fear she has other motives."

Zhou Mo, who had been listening all along, interjected: "You saying that, I also feel that Zi Juan is truly not an ordinary person; observing her conduct, she's practically more genuine than the genuine."

Xiao Tianmu stood up, walked two steps slowly, and resolutely said: "I think you should leave Yongdu before the matter is exposed, saying that the Da Yong side neglected etiquette, so you couldn't swallow this anger and therefore left."

Hu Xiaotian said: "The Emperor's edict for us is that we may leave only after the grand wedding ceremony; leaving now would surely bring blame upon our return, and moreover, Zi Juan's side would not allow us to go."

Xiao Tianmu said: "Although nothing has gone wrong yet, this matter is full of loopholes; any slip in any link would result in failure just short of success, and could even invite deadly disaster."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Others can leave, but only I and Wu Jing Shan must stay."

Zhou Mo said: "If you don't leave, do you think we brothers will abandon you?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "Elder brother. I believe that in any situation I will have a way to escape; what I truly worry about is Long Xi Yue."

Zhou Mo gave a wry smile: "I can't help with this; you should know that if you don't leave, she will certainly not leave."

The night was cool and still. The South Wind Inn fell into a sheet of silent darkness; the breeze coming through the window still carried a slight chill, but for the lovers in the throes of passion, they felt nothing at all. Long Xi Yue leaned in Hu Xiaotian's embrace, like a light boat moored in a safe harbor.

A crescent moon hung high in the night sky, thin as ice, its light like frost. Silvery moonlight fell silently upon this tranquil world. Long Xi Yue whispered softly, as if in a dream: "Do you still remember the scene at Sunken Void Valley?" This was not the first time she had brought up that night in front of Hu Xiaotian.

Hu Xiaotian couldn't help but laugh; Long Xi Yue reached out, grabbed his ear, and chided: "What are you laughing at? Do you find me nagging?"

Hu Xiaotian shook his head, seized her hand, and whispered: "I suppose I'm a masochist; not hearing your nagging makes me feel uneasy."

"Silver-tongued..." Before the sentence finished, her cherry lips were seized by Hu Xiaotian.

After a long kiss, they leaned in Hu Xiaotian's embrace, silently savoring this warmth and steadiness.

"Long Xi Yue, I want you to leave Yongdu first." Hu Xiaotian pondered repeatedly, then still spoke these words.

Long Xi Yue shook her head; her gentle eyes, like stars in the sky, gazed steadily at Hu Xiaotian: "You should know the answer." The answer was that she would absolutely not leave.

Hu Xiaotian said: "The situation is not as optimistic as imagined; your staying in Yongdu will distract me."

Long Xi Yue said: "If I leave, I will surely suffer torment night after night. You needn't bring this up again; whether I live or die, in short, this time I will absolutely not leave—let me be willful just once, okay?"

Hu Xiaotian nodded helplessly; in fact, now Long Xi Yue leaving would be the best opportunity.

The two held hands and sat by the window; Hu Xiaotian closed the lattice window, Long Xi Yue lit a red candle, the candlelight swayed red, making her face appear ever more lovely; only in the dark night did she dare show her true appearance.

Hu Xiaotian said: "You and Zi Juan have grown up together since childhood; do you feel she is different now?"

Long Xi Yue frowned slightly, pondered for a long time before saying: "She has indeed changed a lot, as if she had become another person." Then she sighed: "It's all my fault; if I hadn't let her take the blame for me, she wouldn't have become like this."

Hu Xiaotian said: "That's not what I mean, Long Xi Yue; I always feel that since the Yong River shipwreck, Zi Juan is completely different from before—no matter how capable a person becomes, their eyes cannot deceive others, and I feel her gaze when looking at people is now very strange."

Long Xi Yue thought for a moment, then shook her head: "No way; they are clearly identical, and I just haven't noticed any difference."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Does Zi Juan still have any special marks on her body? Like a birthmark or a mole?"

Long Xi Yue shook her head: "No, there isn't, but..." She seemed somewhat reluctant to speak.

Hu Xiaotian said: "How so?"

"Here it is sunken in."

Hu Xiaotian didn't understand Long Xi Yue's meaning: "What?"

Long Xi Yue pointed at her own chest: "It's one side protruding, the other side indented."

Hu Xiaotian reached out, his big hand completely covering Long Xi Yue's chest; she blushed, wrinkling her nose, and whispered: "Take your hand away."

Hu Xiaotian said: "I just don't understand your meaning; these two are clearly both plump, how can one be protruding and the other indented?"

Long Xi Yue spat: "Annoying, you're pretending to be stupid." She grabbed Hu Xiaotian's wrists with both hands, trying to make him let go.

Hu Xiaotian found the feel so pleasant that he certainly didn't want to let go, and whispered: "How about we go to bed to rest?"

Long Xi Yue whispered: "We haven't yet performed the wedding rites; we cannot share a bed and pillow."

Hu Xiaotian secretly laughed; he hadn't expected the precious princess to be so traditional, but he liked precisely Long Xi Yue's purity and tradition, and whispered softly: "What do you take me for? I'm just holding you to sleep; I won't do anything else."

"Really..."

Hu Xiaotian said: "More genuine than the genuine; when have I ever deceived you?"

In the darkness came the sound of Hu Xiaotian rustling as he took off his clothes; after they got into bed, Hu Xiaotian felt a bit disappointed and said: "Why are you still wearing clothes?"

Long Xi Yue said: "I still don't trust you."

The two embraced each other in the dark; after a while, Long Xi Yue let out a yelp, then Hu Xiaotian made a shushing sound. Long Xi Yue protested in a low voice: "You didn't keep your word; where are your hands?"

After some effort, Hu Xiaotian's big hand finally slipped into her clothing, grasping those two soft mounds; this rascal's right hand pinched the little lotus tip, and he whispered: "I just wanted to ask, is this the part you said was sunken in?"

Long Xi Yue certainly knew this rascal harbored ill intentions; she spat: "Scoundrel, quickly take your hand away, or else..."

"Or else what?"

"Or else I'll never pay attention to you again."

That night Hu Xiaotian didn't sleep soundly; although he had the heart and the gall of a thief, facing the pure and kind Long Xi Yue, at most he only took advantage with his hands and feet, taking no substantive action—loving someone means respecting them. Hu Xiaotian realized his character still had weaknesses; if he were holding Mount Sumeru in his arms, he might have already launched several cannon assaults that night, but with Long Xi Yue, his most excessive move was merely a touch; his thoughts should also have been purified by Long Xi Yue.

Long Xi Yue writhed slightly in Hu Xiaotian's embrace, her hair disheveled, cheeks flushed; after all this time, tonight was still her most peaceful sleep. She quietly opened her eyes, slipped free from Hu Xiaotian's arms, got out of bed, and before dawn she intended to wash up and finish her disguise work. On the road from the Yong River to Yongdu, Long Xi Yue had always worn that human-skin mask—only last night did she finally have the chance to reveal her true face.

Hu Xiaotian slowly opened one eye and saw Long Xi Yue binding her chest with black cloth, using a several-foot-long black strip to tightly wrap her front. Speaking of which, Long Xi Yue's development is truly impressive; without added pressure, she would easily reveal herself.

Long Xi Yue inadvertently turned around, saw Hu Xiaotian already awake, staring at her with wide eyes; frightened, she hastily covered her mouth, while her other hand still guarded her front.

The corner of Hu Xiaotian's mouth twitched as he smiled, and he whispered: "I'm just looking, not touching."

Long Xi Yue whispered: "No looking; close your eyes."

Hu Xiaotian not only failed to close his eyes, but got out of bed; Long Xi Yue turned away, and Hu Xiaotian embraced her from behind, kissing her smooth neck and shoulders. Long Xi Yue gasped coquettishly: "You said you wouldn't bully me."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Saying it means doing it; yesterday when we talked about Zi Juan, you said she had one side protruding and the other side indented, right?"

Long Xi Yue nodded, pressing her hands tighter against her chest. At that moment, a rooster's crow came from outside the window. Hu Xiaotian released her, stretched his arms a bit: "It seems I have to go to the Palace of the Rising Dawn today."

Long Xi Yue said: "You want to go verify that?"

Hu Xiaotian laughed: "Looks like there's no such opportunity."

Long Xi Yue heard him say that and suddenly burst into a soft giggle.

Zi Juan certainly wouldn't give Hu Xiaotian such an opportunity; Hu Xiaotian isn't clairvoyant, and even through his clothes he couldn't tell whether she really was as Long Xi Yue said, but Hu Xiaotian firmly believed there would be an opportunity.

In the early morning, Hu Xiaotian arrived at the Palace of the Rising Dawn, ostensibly to pay respects to Zi Juan, but outside the Palace of the Rising Dawn he was given the cold shoulder; the palace guards, Captain Cao Xi of the Golden Scale Guard leading a contingent of warriors, blocked him and Zhou Mo outside the gate.

Hu Xiaotian said: "Captain Cao, you don't recognize me?"

Cao Xi laughed: "How could I not recognize Sir Hu, the Dakang Minister of Marriage Records? But I don't know why Sir Hu has come so early."

Hu Xiaotian said: "I've come specially to pay respects to the Princess."

Cao Xi said: "Sir Hu, what a coincidence—today the Imperial Needleworks Bureau has sent people to take the Princess's measurements for her wedding attire with the Seventh Prince, so I'm afraid there's no time to see you." Although spoken politely, the meaning was to turn Hu Xiaotian away at the door.

Please vote for the guaranteed monthly ticket! (To be continued~^~)