It was time to start work again.
She could only walk slowly up to him. Shen Que gestured for her to sit on his lap.
He positioned her body so she faced him directly and reached for the book in her hands.
She was at the climax of the story and didn’t really want to give it to him, so she tried to coax him, pouting and whining,
“Your Highness~ this concubine worked so hard to find this.”
She deliberately played the victim, “Your Highness knows that this concubine’s mother died early, and my father and Mistress of the Household don’t care about me. Whatever I want, I always have to put in some effort…”
Shen Que’s eyes were deep and inscrutable; she could hardly read his thoughts.
He had grown up on the battlefield, carried an aura of danger, and held high power. Though he restrained himself in front of her, his presence still made it hard to breathe.
“I’ve already instructed the Secondary Consort. If you want anything, go to her directly.”
He snatched the book from her hands. Gu Ningning watched helplessly as her treasured book was confiscated.
Earlier, Shen Que had been too lazy to bother with her. But after one day, he had accidentally seen what she had written in her book—“Madam, you wouldn’t want our affairs to be discovered by your husband, right?”—and from then on, he began to monitor her strictly.
With her only enjoyment gone, Gu Ningning feigned reaching for his collar to cry, hoping to retrieve it, but Shen Que’s face hardened.
“No crying!”
She dared not cry and, in her frustration, even hiccuped a little.
Shen Que felt a headache coming. She was a delicate beauty, and he couldn’t exactly scold her like a soldier.
But Gu Ningning had thick skin, hardened by bosses and clients. As soon as his tone softened, she immediately pushed forward with cheeky persistence.
“Don’t cry. How much of the The Great Learning I sent you a few days ago have you read?”
The book was full of dense traditional characters and classical Chinese. Gu Ningning had glanced at it once and felt her scalp tingle, so she had tossed it aside.
Shen Que, having shared intimacy with her, still wanted a spiritual connection, constantly forcing her to read and write.
If Gu Ningning really wanted to work hard, she wouldn’t be stuck here.
So she took the chance to slack off whenever she could. Shen Que was busy most of the time and could not supervise her. Occasionally, she was caught, and the punishment was just writing exercises.
Seeing that she could no longer avoid it this time, she resorted to her old trick: wrapping her arms around his neck and whining.
“Your Highness~ I can’t even understand this book. Please spare this concubine. I’m just a Maid-Concubine. Looking at books to pass the time is enough.”
She rested her head against his chest, pressed her body against him, and lifted her head to kiss his Adam’s apple.
Shen Que, already slightly agitated, restrained his voice.
“Don’t move.”
Gu Ningning sensed his intent and froze.
Shen Que was determined to fill her mind with ink this time.
“Go fetch that The Great Learning.”
Her beauty tactics failed; she could only sluggishly retrieve the book.
Shen Que glanced at her and instructed,
“I know your mother passed when you were young, and the Prime Minister and his wife neglected your education. Even though you’re only my Maid-Concubine, you cannot truly be without knowledge.”
“You slept too long this afternoon, so now you should be awake. Sit on this chair beside me and read. If you don’t understand, ask me.”
He did not hide his surveillance. Gu Ningning did not care.
After all, the entire Eastern Palace belonged to him, and even the book was written for him. He was the male lead at the center of the world; he could do as he pleased, and she, a cannon fodder, had no say.
She lazily opened the book, forcing herself to read each word, resisting the urge to fall asleep.
The Way of The Great Learning lies in manifesting virtue, renewing the people, and resting in the highest good. Knowing where to stop, one can be determined; determined, one can be calm; calm, one can be at ease; at ease, one can deliberate; deliberation leads to attainment… (Note)
Every word was familiar, yet together they felt foreign.
After struggling for a while, she quietly lifted her foot and rubbed it against Shen Que’s thigh.
He didn’t react.
She glanced at him.
Shen Que held a folded document, brows furrowed, lips pressed thin, restraining his anger.
“…” Gu Ningning dared not move again.
She endured an hour on the chair, the dense classical text making her head ache.
Finally, Shen Que set the document down and stood. She immediately followed, scampering to his side and clinging to his arm, pouting, “Your Highness, are you resting now?”
Feeling her soft body pressed against him, Shen Que’s frown eased slightly.
“Mm,” he replied.
Gu Ningning knew she was free and happily said, “This concubine will serve Your Highness to bed.”
Near the end of work, she was unusually diligent, attending to Shen Que as he washed and changed.
She only wrung out a washcloth and tossed it to him damply; he didn’t mind and wiped his face clean.
She went to untie the straps on his clothes.
The fasteners were unfamiliar; she struggled for a while without success.
Shen Que, used to her ineptitude, took her small hands in his large ones and helped, frowning.
“You might not know the Four Books and Five Classics, but how could you not even manage your own clothing? Even legitimate daughters of other families aren’t this delicate.”
Afraid he would discover her replacement core, Gu Ningning feigned a coquettish complaint, pushing him lightly.
“Your Highness, if you disdain a delicate illegitimate daughter, why not find a legitimate daughter who isn’t delicate? There are plenty in the Eastern Palace.”
She secretly hoped he would. That way he wouldn’t use her. But Shen Que only interpreted it as petty jealousy. Smiling, he lifted her, holding her at his waist.
Gu Ningning struggled, and he deliberately used a little force, tossing her slightly.
Startled, she screamed, her heart racing, wanting to punch him. He tossed her again, and she dared not move, clutching his neck tightly.
Seeing her pale, Shen Que finally placed her on the bed.
Gu Ningning angrily kicked him, but his body was harder than her foot.
Frustrated, she turned to face the wall, refusing to look at him.
Shen Que climbed into bed, possessively wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her face.
“In a few days, the Plum Garden Poetry Gathering at Marquis of Wuan’s Residence will invite Zhaoyi Zhao and Zhaoyi Bai. I’ve told them. You’ll go with them.”
“…” Gu Ningning: why did this dog always say things she didn’t want to hear?
She didn’t even turn around, just let out a small huff.
“Your Highness has no pity for this concubine. Zhaoyi Bai and Zhaoyi Zhao are famous talents. They go to compose poetry, and I’m illiterate. Why would I go along? To embarrass myself?”
In this freezing weather, wouldn’t it be better to stay home? Yet she had to go outside, freeze, write poetry, and deal with palace scheming.
Shen Que turned her to face him and continued,
“Exactly because you lack knowledge, you must go out and learn more.”
Gu Ningning could only whine reluctantly,
“This concubine has no grand ambition. I just want to stay in Chaoyan Courtyard.”
Her face was full of reluctance, like a little scolded squirrel.
Shen Que found her amusing and pinched her cheek.
“Your sister is a renowned talent in Jingcheng, waking every day at the first watch to read and write poetry. Why do you not learn from her?”
She narrowed her eyes, whining, “Sister and I are different.”
Her sister was the female lead; she was just cannon fodder, earning 3,000 a month—did he really expect her to slave away?
Shen Que pressed her into the bed, giving a direct order,
“If you can’t, just think of it as going out to play. I’m going to sleep, and you should sleep early too.”
He fell asleep quickly, breathing even. Gu Ningning, however, tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
She had a terrible guess.