Warm currents slowly coursed through her limbs. Just as Lian Yue began to feel somewhat comfortable, her body grew even hotter. Beads of sweat were forced out by inner force on her forehead, neck, and back, leaving her drenched and thoroughly uncomfortable.
The fire before them danced, casting orange flames that illuminated their profiles. The sound of each other’s breathing made it impossible for either to ignore the other’s presence.
Having maintained the same position for too long, her body grew uncomfortable. Her eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings without opening, her hand clutching Yuan Jing’s sleeve tightly. Her chest heaved violently as she gasped in discomfort.
The man stiffened completely.
After what seemed like a long hesitation, Yuan Jing patted her shoulder reassuringly and said, “I’m using inner force to expel the sweat from your body. The high fever will soon subside. Don’t be afraid, you’ll be fine.”
Lian Yue’s throat was dry and sore, making her miserable. She only wanted to sleep soundly.
Yet while her body felt heavy, her mind remained unusually active.
Still unwell from her illness, the high fever made her too lazy to think carefully, causing her to forget her usual pretense. The young woman’s behavior became exceptionally bold.
She wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning forward to press against Yuan Jing’s chest, sensing his body’s awkward tension.
“Sorry,” Lian Yue spoke hoarsely, “You’re so warm, I couldn’t help myself.”
Yuan Jing remained silent.
She was originally his good friend Lu Xun’s Serving Concubine. In their current position, they had already crossed the line.
Even though Lu Xun had passed away, A Quan had since taken her under his wing. From what he knew of A Quan, the other man undoubtedly had feelings for Lian Yue too.
Though he wasn’t sure when this had developed, Yuan Jing knew he couldn’t be mistaken about this.
Regardless, this was inappropriate.
He lowered his gaze.
While last night could still be considered an accident, could their current intimate position—clearly avoidable—still be called accidental?
Yuan Jing’s gaze fell upon Lian Yue’s slightly parted lips. He stared blankly for a moment before noticing an insect flying toward the corner of her mouth. He reached out to brush it away.
But just as his thumb touched her lips, the insect fell off. The pad of his finger felt the softness of her lips and unconsciously pressed down slightly.
Lian Yue let out a soft “ah,” looking somewhat confused. “Young Master Yuan?”
Yuan Jing snapped back to reality and explained, “There was an insect.”
Lian Yue: “Oh, thank you.”
Looking at her dazed expression, he recalled what Shao Qing had said last night.
Though clearly aware that she was putting on a clumsy performance—similar tactics had been tried on him by other women before—only with her did he feel the desire to watch her continue acting out this delicate, beautiful maiden role.
Yuan Jing’s expression turned cold, his demeanor growing more distant.
Lian Yue then spoke: “I know this isn’t proper between us. I shouldn’t be troubling you like this.”
He glanced at her: “It’s good that you know.”
Lian Yue choked back her words.
Hanging her head, supporting herself with her hands on the ground, she adopted the posture of a weakling and spoke apologetically with meaningless words: “I’m sorry, I’m feeling much better now. We should go outside. I already have no reputation in the eyes of the world. If people see us alone in this broken house, there will surely be more gossip. I’ve already implicated Marquis Gu, I can’t implicate Young Master Yuan as well.”
Yuan Jing countered: “Are you truly afraid of implicating my reputation?”
Lian Yue: “Of course.”
It was false.
He said: “Your body is very weak, the rain hasn’t stopped outside. If you go out now, you’ll be courting death. Moon Consort, if you die, I won’t be able to explain myself to A Quan or the deceased Lu Xun.”
Yes, wasting his inner force to keep her warm and then wasting it again to treat her fever—it was all because of a friend’s request, to give them an explanation, nothing more.
Lian Yue let out an “oh,” then turned to add firewood to the flames.
After sweating it out, her body did feel less heavy, and her clothes were half-dry by now.
Sparks crackled and popped, the firelight flickering in and out, much like her mood.
The young woman stole a glance at Yuan Jing and saw that he had already closed his eyes to rest, the pressure around him intense, as if he were deeply displeased with her earlier presumptuous act.
Yet, despite his anger, he had still spared her some dignity.
Lian Yue blinked, changing the subject: “Speaking of which, the river bandits’ boat rammed into ours and broke it. That chest of treasures Marquis Gu gave me sank to the bottom of the river—what a shame.”
The other fell silent for a long while.
Then he said, “After the bandit suppression is over, I’ll have someone dive down to retrieve it for you.”
Lian Yue: “Bandit suppression?”
Yuan Jing opened his eyes: “Suppressing bandits counts as military merit. Since they’ve crossed paths with me, why would I pass up the chance to earn credit?”
In the final years of the dynasty, powerful ministers and eunuchs threw the government into chaos. The throne was occupied by a toddler not yet three years old, and the central court had lost control over the regions. The feudal lords fought among themselves for territory.
No matter how fiercely the lords battled, they still had to pay lip service to the emperor on the surface; otherwise, they would be branded as rebels and attacked by all.
Mid-year, Lu Xun and Gu Quan had gone to Peng City to discuss the campaign against the imperial in-law Lü Liang.
Last October, under the banner of eliminating treacherous officials, Lü Liang led troops into the imperial city and executed the eunuch Zhang Miao, who had been wreaking havoc in the court.
Afterward, Lü Liang seized control of the government, lavishly rewarded his clansmen, purged dissidents, and allowed his subordinates to burn, kill, and plunder the city’s commoners. He even had the grand princess summoned to his banquet to dance for entertainment, provoking outrage across the land.
Thus, the campaign alliance was formed at that time.
By now, everyone merely watched the campaign against the rebels, too afraid to act, while the feudal lords attacked one another and seized land from the weak. The young emperor was all but forgotten.
Yet, among the noble families, suppressing bandits remained a consensus for accumulating military achievements.
Lian Yue tossed more firewood into the flames, her expression shifting slightly as she said, “Those river bandits have killed countless people—they don’t deserve to live.”
Yuan Jing detected the hatred in her tone and turned his gaze back to her, asking, “You seem to harbor deep resentment toward these bandits.”
“Didn’t Lu Xun tell you where he found me?” Lian Yue tilted her head, meeting his eyes. “Right in a bandit lair.”
He: “Then you…?”
Lian Yue averted her gaze, turning her face away to reveal her slender, pale neck, and quickly cut him off: “I don’t want to talk about it.”
From Yuan Jing’s perspective, he couldn’t see her face, but he could see a tear drop to the ground, dampening the dry ashes.
He said, “I’m sorry.”
A beautiful, vulnerable young woman falling into a bandit lair—it wasn’t hard to imagine what might have happened. As he finished speaking, he dug his fingernails hard into his palm to suppress the rising fury in his heart.
Lian Yue wiped her face, sniffled, and stared out at the curtain of rain before abruptly saying, “Actually, those bandits initially wanted to sell me for money and didn’t do anything to me. Later, when Lu Xun came to suppress them, they planned to destroy the evidence and flee. But they thought killing me outright wasn’t worth it, so the bandit leader dragged me into the mountains to assault me. I killed him with a rock, and then I took the chance to escape.”
Yuan Jing: “…”
Seeing his silence, Lian Yue bit her lip: “You don’t believe me? You think I’m lying?”
Yuan Jing denied it: “No, I believe you.”
She moved closer, straightening up to approach him: “Everything I said is true. When Lu Xun found me, he didn’t believe I hadn’t been violated either. He had a woman examine me, and even after she confirmed my purity, he still didn’t trust it. He thought she took pity on me and covered for me, so he examined me himself. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have become his Serving Concubine.”
Lian Yue blinked and continued: “Besides, if it weren’t for that, Wu Yuru would have long spread this matter about me. With her mentality, she’d only know how to spread rumors about me.”
Yuan Jing lowered his gaze, looking down at her face.
The young woman’s fair face still carried a faint blush. Beneath her long, curled eyelashes were large, dewy eyes.
Even though her words sounded lighthearted, they couldn’t conceal the pain hidden deep in her eyes.
He reached out and patted her head: “So it seems you’re quite strong.”
Lian Yue shook her head: “Normally I can’t even lift a bucket of water. It was a life-or-death situation that awakened my hidden strength.”
She casually returned to the previous topic: “But speaking of which, can women in this world really not practice martial arts? If I could possess inner force and protect myself, wouldn’t that prevent me from nearly being violated?”
Yuan Jing: “…”
So after all this pitiful storytelling, this was her real goal.
Now, how much of what this Moon Consort just said was true and how much was false became worth pondering.
He gave a noncommittal “Hmm” and fell silent.
The young woman indeed moved closer again, her voice soft and appearing pitiful: “Young Master Yuan, what do you think?”
Yuan Jing countered: “About what?”
Lian Yue: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. If I had the ability to protect myself, you wouldn’t need to trouble yourselves watching over me. Wouldn’t that be better?”
Yuan Jing said: “At your current age, starting martial arts training would be very difficult to begin.”
Lian Yue narrowed her eyes: “Are there any faster methods to get started? Like… dual cultivation from those stories…”
Yuan Jing glanced at her sidelong, too lazy to respond further.
By now their clothes had dried, the rain outside had stopped, but the sky had darkened as night approached.
Just as Lian Yue was about to speak again, her vision went black and she collapsed into his arms, completely unconscious.
She had been forcing herself all along – her body had long exceeded its limits.
The young woman’s face, with hair clinging messily to it, carried a languid beauty.
Yuan Jing reached out and shook Lian Yue’s shoulder. Seeing no response, he transferred some inner force into her body, but she showed no reaction at all.
She had truly fainted.
His fingertips brushed her cheek as he recalled their conversation. He understood that regardless of how much truth was in her words, this Moon Consort’s hatred toward the bandits was likely genuine.
After sleeping deeply, sunlight struck her face. Before she even opened her eyes, she felt the glare.
Lian Yue turned over and directly fell off the bed, jolting completely awake.
Rubbing her face, she looked up confusedly to see Shao Qing leaning against the wall with crossed arms, laughing: “I told A Jing you were just dead asleep, but he wouldn’t believe me. He dragged me here to examine you.”
Huh?
Yuan Jing stood on the other side. Only when Lian Yue turned her head did she notice how close he was to her. He could have reached out to steady her and prevent her fall, yet he remained unmoving. Was he avoiding impropriety?
At this moment, his expression remained unreadable, his tone still cold and distant as he spoke to her: “You’ve been unconscious for two days.”
Shao Qing smiled teasingly: “Quite the sleeper.”
Lian Yue had just woken up and hadn’t had time to feign weakness. As she lowered her head, she couldn’t resist rolling her eyes.
She quietly sat up, her tone full of self-reproach: “My apologies to both of you. It’s all because of my poor health that I’ve delayed your journey.”
Yuan Jing twitched the corner of his mouth.
Acting again.
Seeing Yuan Jing’s increasingly distant demeanor, Lian Yue recalled what she had said to him before losing consciousness and instantly froze.
No, what exactly had she done!
Too ashamed to face anyone!