Perhaps it was the deep moonlight that made the young girl return shortly after stepping outside.The Fourth Prince remained seated in place, watching her from behind a folding screen. She slipped off the black cloak draped over her shoulders, revealing a soft yellow ru skirt beneath.Yinzhen was no stranger to seeing women in Han attire, but no one could wear it with such gentleness and charm as she did.She was, indeed, a woman born of the waterways of Jiangnan—her entire being as tender as if molded from water itself. Though her features were not particularly striking, her eyes were truly beautiful.Except… he lowered his head with a soft chuckle, except that her temper was a bit fierce.Spoiled and adorable, like a pet he had kept as a child.What exactly did she resemble? He turned the jade thumb ring on his thumb, letting his mind wander back.With a clatter, Banxia set a basin of water down hard in front of him, splashing warm water onto his clothes. Yinzhen's brow instinctively furrowed.How dare you!The words were nearly on his lips before he swallowed them back, only lifting his gaze for a cold glance upward.Banxia had been full of complaints, but upon seeing that look, she gave an involuntary shiver, and her words lost their earlier boldness: "Miss said you're injured… you… you can clean yourself up."A silk cloth lay beside the basin. Banxia spoke as she made her way out, not forgetting to lower the crystal bead curtain, separating the inner room from the study. The Fourth Prince withdrew his gaze.He didn't look at the basin, walking quietly outward. The wound on his right leg had healed and torn open again, blood clotted together, yet he seemed not to feel it.He only pushed aside the curtain, heading toward the writing desk.At the desk, the young girl was indeed practicing calligraphy, using Chengxintang paper and holding a purple sable brush. Her posture was impressive, but the writing itself…Yinzhen raised a hand to pinch his brow, unable to suppress a laugh."I thought you were a man of refinement, but it turns out you mock others behind their backs too." Before the desk, Ye Nanyuan gave a light snort, turning her head away without sparing him a glance.Sharp-tongued.Seeing her like this, Yinzhen found it both infuriating and amusing. Even rubbing his brow couldn't ease the headache: "Miss just scolded me for lacking righteousness, and now you say I lack refinement."He said helplessly: "I've probably heard more insults in my entire life than I have today.""You—" The young girl turned around, her ears already flushed red. She wanted to retort but was too flustered to speak, her eyes reddening with urgency.Finally, she left only a few bitter words: "I have nothing more to say to you."A veritable little chili pepper!Seeing her about to turn and leave again, Yinzhen quickly reached out and grabbed her wrist: "Wait." He pointed at the wound on his leg, saying helplessly: "Though it's a bit embarrassing, might I ask for some medicine for external injuries?"His leg bone was sprained. He tried moving it a couple of times—painful, but he could pop it back himself.But the wound on his thigh kept bleeding. If it wasn't stopped, it might become infected.Fortunately, though the young girl disliked him, she was sensible. She gave him a quiet look, then said: "Wait here. I'll go get it."Yinzhen returned to the inner room. There was nowhere to sit but a chair—after all, it was a young lady's boudoir. The girl's bed was adorned with soft pink embroidery of bowl lotus flowers. He glanced at it once and quickly averted his eyes.Not wanting to get too close, he sat on the soft couch and undressed to wipe himself clean.He had been missing for half a day already. He had brought few guards, and more than half of them were wounded. Mount Sanqing's rear mountain was vast, and with wild beasts at night, they wouldn't find him until tomorrow at the earliest.Tonight, it seemed, he would have to sleep here at this young girl's place.As he thought, Yinzhen stuffed a cotton cloth into his mouth, let out a muffled grunt, and snapped his leg bone back into place.Under the extreme pain, his forehead and back were soaked with sweat. Even when footsteps approached him, Yinzhen didn't notice."Your leg bone is injured?"Ye Nanyuan bent down, and in the candlelight, her slender waist looked small enough to encircle with one hand. Yinzhen's gaze flickered.He looked away."Just injured. It's fine now."A trace of mockery seeped from the corners of Ye Nanyuan's lowered eyes, vanishing quickly when she lifted her gaze again. She asked: "Just now you asked me a question. Might I ask you one in return?"She placed the tray in her hands on the rosewood table with a soft clink.Yinzhen turned to look—on the tray sat chicken congee, pickled vegetables, and a jug of wine."The congee is to ease your hunger, and the wine is to ease your pain." She set the medicine from her bosom down as well.Yinzhen didn't even glance at the congee. He raised the wine jug and took a hearty swig."Hey!" Ye Nanyuan reached out but couldn't stop him.The wine entered his mouth—rich, mellow, smooth on the tongue with a sweet aftertaste, carrying the fragrance of pear blossoms. He had drunk pear wine before, but never one this fine."Excellent wine!"Even in his current state of pain, he had to praise it. Seeing Ye Nanyuan move to stop him, he shook his wrist: "What, miss—are you reluctant to part with such fine wine?"Ye Nanyuan let out a soft laugh. "This pear blossom wine was meant to be paired with jadeite cups, but since you're in such a hurry, sir, we'll do without."Yinzhen raised his head and took another sip, then said with certainty, "This wine isn't from the capital."The candle flames on the white jade five-blessing candlestick danced as Ye Nanyuan picked up a pair of scissors to trim the wick.The wick crackled as she turned her head with a smile. "Brought over from the Bright Moon Pavilion.""Who travels by boat tonight on the river, where does longing meet the Bright Moon Pavilion?" the Fourth Prince murmured, his dark lashes trembling slightly. "No wonder they say a jar of wine from Jiangnan's Bright Moon Pavilion is worth a thousand in gold!""It lives up to its reputation."The courtesans of the Spring Breeze Pavilion and the wine of the Bright Moon Pavilion—together they were the finest marvels of Jiangnan.With her skill in brewing flower-dew wine, Ye Nanyuan had built the Bright Moon Pavilion into a roaring success over the years—a single jar worth a thousand in gold, a veritable nest of gold and silver. If it weren't for investigating her elder sister's death…She would never have returned to wade into the whirlpool of the capital.At the thought of her sister, a knife-like pain cut through her heart. The hand holding the scissors clenched for an instant, then quickly relaxed.The deeper her hatred, the more radiant her smile became. "Whether you are friend or foe, sir, remains to be verified."Perhaps it was the intoxicating moonlight, or perhaps the wine was simply too rich, but Yinzhen reclined on the soft couch with genuine amusement at teasing her. "If you have questions, miss, I'll simply answer them.""That Spirit Fox you captured—was it for power and wealth, or out of necessity?""Out of necessity." The Spirit Fox was meant to be offered to the Emperor—that much he could truthfully claim.Ye Nanyuan stood directly before him and bent slightly at the waist. She knew her advantages well—skin so fair and tender that the slightest flush became startlingly alluring.At this moment, she revealed a pair of eyes, shimmering with watery brilliance.Hearing his answer, she narrowed them into crescents like the moon hanging in the sky. "Then I'll trust you this once."All her wariness and displeasure melted away completely, and a hint of lightness crept into her words.He'd thought she was a clever girl—how could she be so easily fooled? The Fourth Prince chuckled inwardly, unable to resist teasing her further. "Setting your heart at ease so quickly? No more questions?"The girl drew close, her lively eyes making no attempt to hide their bold inspection of his face.She looked him over thoroughly, from top to bottom.Yinzhen had never been stared at so brazenly before. In the past, he always kept his back slightly bowed before the Emperor, and others dared not raise their heads to look at him.The women in his household were all proper and demure—none would ever dare look at his face with such unconcealed eyes. He was stunned for a long moment before remembering that this girl had once said his face was quite handsome!Ha… he nearly laughed out loud, if not for fear that the girl would be embarrassed into anger.He raised his hand to cover his mouth with a light cough, only to see the girl's eyes dart around, sly and spirited. "Mm… since you insist I ask, sir, then I shall oblige."She blinked and asked, "Your age, sir?""Twenty-five.""Doesn't look it," she muttered under her breath, then asked, "Do you have a family?"His household was filled with wives and concubines, but all were bestowed by the Emperor. If an ordinary person were to say such a thing, wouldn't it be… Yinzhen's fingers rubbed together as he struggled to answer.Just then, footsteps sounded from the doorway. "Is miss still practicing her calligraphy?" A weathered voice full of affection spoke. "You said you were hungry just now—how is a bowl of sweet soup enough?""Oh no! It's Nanny."Yinzhen watched as the girl's face instantly turned pale. A strange man hiding in a young lady's boudoir—even if nothing had happened, if word got out, it would ruin her reputation.He watched as the girl's eyes reddened with panic.He asked in a low voice, "Is there somewhere to hide? Take me there quickly." Only then did the girl snap back to her senses, frantically pulling him toward the bed."Quick, lie down.""My apologies." There was no time to hesitate. The two of them lay side by side on the bed.In her haste, the girl kicked him right in the wound on his leg."Hiss." A tearing pain shot through his leg. Before he could make a sound, a hand clamped over his lips.The palm was soft as if boneless, white as snow.Her fingertips carried a slight chill as they pressed against his lips, the touch as tender as fresh tofu.Yinzhen lifted his gaze to look at her. Ye Nanyuan lay beside him, her misty eyes red-rimmed, stirring an involuntary pity in one's heart.She couldn't speak, so she shook her head slightly and pressed herself closer.The Fourth Prince took a deep breath, his nose filled with the fragrance of pear blossoms.He nodded obediently. The moment his hand lowered, Nanny Zhou entered. She tended to every detail—carefully tucking in the blankets, snuffing out two of the candles—before she left."Rest well, miss."Only after she was gone did the Fourth Prince let out a breath. Just as he was about to rise, the person beside him sat up.She had already shed her outer gauze dress, leaving only her undergarments—an apricot-yellow skirt as tender as spring buds. Her waist was impossibly slender as she bent forward slightly.Her fingers reached out, then timidly withdrew.Pointing at his leg, which wouldn't stop bleeding, she looked utterly at a loss. "What do we do?""Does it hurt?"She tilted her head up, and the moment her eyes met his, a tear immediately welled up in her misty gaze. It trembled at the corner of her eye before finally sliding down.The hot tear rolled onto the red tear mole at the corner of her eye. Kneeling half beside him, she looked so innocent and fragile that it made one's heart clench.His dark eyes dimmed.Unable to resist, he reached out and gently wiped the tear from the corner of her eye."It doesn't hurt."
Chapter 6
I Became Fourth Prince’s Mistress (Qing Dynasty Time Travel)