Midnight.
A small night lamp flickered in the corner of the bedroom, its faint candlelight insufficient to illuminate the entire room.
The man’s face was shrouded in haze.
In the interplay of light and shadow, his gaze was unfathomably dark.
Like the black sea before a storm, ready to unleash towering waves at any moment, threatening to crush Kan’er to pieces.
But in the dead of night—
To open her eyes and find such a towering man standing before her bed, staring at her with such intensity!
Had she been frail or timid, she might have died of fright, let alone paid attention to what he was saying!
Kan’er couldn’t focus either.
Her body trembled reflexively, a scream nearly escaping her lips before she managed to stifle it.
“Di-Dianxia, why are you…?”
Where were Hansu and Xiao Fuzi, who were on night duty tonight?
Why hadn’t they announced his arrival??
Kan’er glanced fearfully beyond the bed curtains, her voice trembling as she spoke, clearly shaken.
Luo Xun had trained in martial arts since childhood and possessed keen eyesight.
He easily noticed the sweat on her forehead and the tears on her rosy cheeks, prompting a series of cold laughs in his heart.
Asking why he had come?
Hah.
It was fortunate he had!
Had he not come, he would never have known that his newly appointed Zhaoxun, on the very first night after her conferment, was dreaming of his imperial father even in her sleep!
So, what she truly desired was to become his stepmother?!
Fine, fine, fine.
Luo Xun had mastered the art of concealing his emotions since childhood.
Yet now, he felt an urge to laugh—and he did.
He leaned down, one hand gripping Kan’er’s chin, the other pinning her wrist against the pillow, his smile not reaching his eyes.
“Tell me, what did you dream of?”
“Whose name were you calling in your dream?”
Kan’er froze, the weary, wooden face of the Qingzhao Emperor from her dream suddenly overlapping with the one before her.
In the deep night, she struggled to distinguish dream from reality.
But her reaction, in Luo Xun’s eyes, confirmed:
She was indeed thinking of his imperial father! Seeing his imperial father through his face!
A mere palace maid, a Xiao Zhaoxun, was not worth Luo Xun’s anger, nor did she merit his attention.
The palace was filled with women who feigned devotion and hid their true intentions, vying only for power and status.
Luo Xun did not dislike ambitious people and allowed the women in his Back Palace their petty schemes.
But she should never, ever have dared to think of his imperial father while in his Back Palace!
Luo Xun’s face turned completely cold. He released Kan’er, stood up, and strode away.
In that brief moment.
Kan’er realized what he had misunderstood, but before she could explain, he had already swept out of the canopy bed.
Quicker than words could capture, Kan’er threw off the covers and darted after him.
Disregarding all propriety, she rushed forward and tightly wrapped her arms around the Crown Prince’s waist from behind.
Luo Xun hadn’t expected such audacity from her. Caught off guard, he staggered from the impact.
“Audacious!”
Luo Xun rebuked her in a low voice, trying to pry her small hands from his waist.
Kan’er couldn’t let him leave like this—otherwise, it would be just like her past life.
So, even though her body trembled instinctively at the Crown Prince’s angry reprimand, Kan’er gritted her teeth and held on, her arms locked firmly around the man’s waist.
“Your Highness is leaving without even hearing what I have to say? I’ve been wronged!”
Wronged?
Luo Xun was incensed by her actions and amused by her words.
How dare she claim injustice.
He had heard it with his own ears—how could it be false!
Though Kan’er couldn’t precisely discern what was going through the Crown Prince’s mind, she had grasped the crux of the matter.
As her hands were about to be pried away, Kan’er swiftly wrapped her arms around the man’s waist and moved to face him. “This concubine dreamed of Dianxia,” she said, “and it was Dianxia’s name this concubine called…”
Luo Xun gripped her jaw.
“This crown prince is not so foolish as to mistake two words.”
His tone differed little from usual.
Yet the storm brewing in his eyes, the chilling coldness and killing intent in his voice, even the strength in his hand—all revealed his present fury.
An overwhelming pressure from above.
Kan’er was forced to tilt her head back to look at him, her slender white neck arching vulnerably as tears streamed down.
A sob escaped her throat, which she forcibly suppressed.
Kan’er had never seen the Crown Prince like this before.
In her memory, this man had always remained unflustered even if Mount Tai collapsed before him, as though nothing could shake him.
Nor could anyone see through him.
Yet this very man had aged ten years overnight because of her illness, keeping vigil by her bedside every night as she lay dying.
Even in her recent dream, he had gone completely gray-haired for her.
Kan’er didn’t know whether it was merely a random dream or something that had truly happened after her death in her previous life.
She wasn’t naive enough to mistake a dream for evidence that the esteemed emperor was deeply in love with her.
Yet resentment still welled up.
But Kan’er also understood clearly that the person before her now was not the Qingzhao Emperor who had doted on her in every way.
Taking a deep breath, she parted lips that had lost their color from pain: “This concubine called for Your…”
Before she could finish, the grip on her suddenly tightened.
“But this concubine dreamed of Dianxia.”
Kan’er spoke with difficulty, her voice squeezed from her throat, so faint only the two of them could hear.
At first glance, these words might seem unclear.
But someone as astute as Luo Xun immediately understood what she meant to convey, his pupils contracting sharply.
Before he could react, however.
The person before him suddenly released her tight hold on his waist, stood on tiptoe, and instead wrapped her arms around his neck.
The soft fullness of her chest pressed instantly against the man’s firm, broad torso, accompanied by tendrils of subtle fragrance.
Luo Xun’s body stiffened abruptly.
He instinctively wanted to tear this audacious woman away and punish her for overstepping her bounds!
But just as his hand touched her waist.
The young woman.
Began weeping softly in his ear, in a voice only he could hear: “This concubine dreamed that she had offended you by doing wrong, that you would banish this concubine to the cold palace. This concubine is afraid, Dianxia, this concubine is afraid…”
She seemed genuinely terrified.
Her breathing was rapid, her words disjointed.
Luo Xun clearly felt the uncontrollable trembling of the delicate form in his arms, the warm-cool tears falling on his neck.
His hand on her waist tightened.
Anyone familiar with the rules of the Great Jing royal family would know.
Although the Crown Prince’s wives and concubines resided in the palace, they did not fall under the category of imperial consorts. The Crown Prince’s punishments toward them had to follow ancestral precepts, rites, laws, and the emperor’s will.
Moreover, matters concerning the Crown Prince and his wives and concubines were considered internal affairs of the Eastern Palace.
The Eastern Palace had no designated place for confining errant wives or concubines, and there was no such punishment as “banishment to the cold palace” for the Crown Prince’s household.
Kan’er’s words might sound like delirious ramblings from a dream, but in reality, she was subtly explaining herself to the Crown Prince.
Luo Xun understood.
Even though he had long ensured there were no informants from his father, the emperor, in the Eastern Palace, Luo Xun couldn’t help but feel his temples throbbing.
But he had to admit, when he understood the hidden meaning in Xiao Zhaoxun’s words, his blood surged for a moment.
“How dare you!”
The Crown Prince feigned a low reprimand.
He peeled her off his body, lifted Kan’er’s chin, and tried to find any trace of deception in her eyes.
Unfortunately, even with his keen perception, he couldn’t detect the slightest hint of falsehood in Xiao Zhaoxun’s clear, bright eyes.
Naturally, he couldn’t find any.
After all, Kan’er was telling the truth.
However, these words were indeed too treasonous—one misstep could cost her head—so Kan’er didn’t dare say more.
Tears welled up in her eyes.
“I… I know I was wrong, but I didn’t lie. I truly dreamed of Dianxia. I don’t know why…”
Seeing her small face deathly pale, her hands trembling uncontrollably, yet clutching his sleeve so tightly.
Afraid he would blame her, afraid he would leave.
Luo Xun pressed his lips together, his grip on her chin gradually loosening.
“Dianxia, please don’t abandon me…”
Kan’er choked back a sob, gazing at him pitifully.
Luo Xun’s eyes narrowed slightly, unusually at a loss for words.
He felt he must have been driven mad with anger.
Earlier, when he first learned who Zheng Shi intended to push forward to take her place in receiving favor, Hai Shun had immediately investigated this little palace maid named Kan’er inside out.
He knew she had entered the palace at eight years old, and after learning the rules, had been assigned to the clothing workshop in the Guangchu Department—smart, sensible, honest, and dutiful.
Only then had he given his approval.
Just imagine, if she truly harbored ambitions of becoming the Emperor’s woman.
With her looks, she would have made moves long ago while still in the Guangchu Department.
Those in His Majesty’s harem would never have allowed a little palace maid who posed a threat to them to live peacefully.
It could only be that she was content and had no such ambitions, which allowed her to survive unnoticed until now.
Besides, she had only just reached marriageable age.
While the Emperor was nearly sixty…
As the Crown Prince of the Great Jing Dynasty, asking him to bow his head and apologize to a mere Xiao Zhaoxun—Luo Xun felt he couldn’t stomach the humiliation.
But… if he hadn’t acted on a whim and visited her chambers at night.
This whole mess wouldn’t have happened.
Moreover, he was the one who had decided to elevate her status; today should have been her joyous occasion.
Luo Xun lowered his gaze.
His eyes swept over Xiao Zhaoxun’s charming, youthful features, settling on the red marks his fingers had left on her jaw.
After a moment.
He reached out and brushed away the teardrops clinging to her dark lashes.
“Stop crying.”
“I was wrong to suspect you.”