He leaned down, his warm breath brushing against her ear, and said slowly, word by word, “I’m angry with myself.”
Before he could finish speaking, he lifted her chin and kissed her. He lingered over her lips, gently tracing them with his own, his strength neither too light nor too forceful.
Xie Yanzhao pulled back slightly. “Are you angry at how well I’ve taught Yuanyuan? You always think about other people, but why don’t you think about yourself?”
Shen Tinghe’s lips glistened from his kisses. “I never expected Ji Yunzhan to be so bold. Didn’t she ever think about the consequences?”
“Some people, once they go mad, stop caring about anything.”
Xie Yanzhao’s voice turned cold. At the mention of Ji Yunzhan, the chill in his eyes was almost enough to freeze the air.
But Shen Tinghe did not want to continue talking about her.
She did not even ask what had happened to Ji Yunzhan. She knew there were plenty of people who would settle this score on her behalf.
She snuggled deeper into Xie Yanzhao’s arms and spoke in a soft, sweet voice.
“Brother, I’m hungry.”
Looking at her dependent and spoiled little manner, the anger in Xie Yanzhao’s heart was replaced by heartache.
He reached out and gently pinched the tip of her straight, delicate nose.
“You should stay hungry and learn your lesson.”
Shen Tinghe was not afraid at all. She pouted and simply collapsed into his arms.
“If Your Highness can bear to do that, then punish me.”
Xie Yanzhao’s gaze softened, and an indulgent, helpless smile curved his lips.
How could he possibly bear to?
The moment he learned that something had happened to her and that she had fainted, he had wished he could fly straight to her side.
A servant brought over a freshly stewed bowl of lily-and-lotus-seed sweet soup from the kitchen. It had been made with the finest Xiang lotus seeds and slowly simmered over low heat for an entire hour until it practically melted in the mouth.
Shen Tinghe lazily leaned against Xie Yanzhao’s chest.
He sat beside the couch, one arm wrapped around her waist so that she could comfortably rest her head against his arm. With his other hand, he held a white porcelain bowl, scooped up a spoonful of the sweet soup, gently blew on it to cool it, and then brought it to her lips.
Shen Tinghe obediently opened her mouth and took the spoonful of sweet, glutinous soup.
The soft, tender lotus seeds melted on her tongue together with the delicate sweetness of rock sugar.
She narrowed her eyes and let out a satisfied little sigh.
If anyone else had witnessed this scene, they probably would have been left speechless with shock.
Who was Xie Yanzhao?
The Crown Prince of the Great Zhao Dynasty, the future Emperor, a man of incomparably noble status.
In court, he was always dignified and imposing, decisive and ruthless. Even princes, nobles, and high-ranking ministers would instinctively hold their breath and lower their voices in his presence.
Yet in front of Shen Tinghe, he could put aside all of his dignity and willingly do things like feeding her soup and wiping her mouth, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
As he fed her, Xie Yanzhao calmly said, “For the next two months, you’re staying here. Don’t go anywhere.”
Shen Tinghe froze. She lifted her head from his arms and blinked, her clear eyes filled with confusion and a hint of grievance.
“Huh? I…”
Before she could finish, another spoonful of soup was fed into her mouth.
Looking at her puffed-out cheeks, the amusement in his eyes deepened.
“Pouting and throwing a tantrum won’t work this time either. Yuanyuan, this is an order.”
Shen Tinghe simply sat up from his arms and knelt on the couch, tilting her head back to look at him. She tried her best to make her eyes look even more pitiful.
“If I have to stay in the residence for two whole months, I’ll be so bored. When people get bored, they start overthinking. And when they overthink, they get sad. Would Brother really be willing to do that to me?”
She deliberately drew out her words, her voice dripping with coquettishness, while reaching out her little hand to gently tug at his sleeve.
Xie Yanzhao looked at her deliberately obedient and pitiful expression, the smile at the corners of his lips never fading.
He reached out and lightly scratched the tip of her nose.
His voice was teasing. “This brother is still willing to do it.”
Shen Tinghe’s face instantly fell.
Xie Yanzhao acted as though he had not noticed and continued, “For the next two months, you’ll stay peacefully at the residence and wait to marry into the Eastern Palace.”
As soon as she heard that, Shen Tinghe knew that acting cute and obedient was completely useless.
She resentfully withdrew her hand, crossed her arms over her chest, and turned her face away.
“Hmph. I’m going back to the palace residence. Otherwise, Mother will worry.”
There was no need to ask. This was the residence in the western part of the city, the one Xie Yanzhao had purchased in her name.
The two of them were not married yet. As an unmarried young lady, it would be inappropriate for her to keep entering the palace, while Xie Yanzhao could not always visit the Prince’s Residence late at night.
And so, this residence had come into existence.
Looking at her puffed-up expression, Xie Yanzhao found her adorable.
He reached out and pulled her back into his arms. Ignoring her struggles, he held her and lay down with her on the couch.
“I’ve already sent someone to inform Madam Shen. Yuanyuan, stay here and sleep with me for a while.”
Seeing the fatigue on his face, Shen Tinghe felt a pang of heartache.
She had no idea how long this man had been dealing with government affairs again.
Although she was still complaining with her mouth, her arms honestly wrapped around his waist.
“The Crown Prince really knows how to order people around…”
Feeling the movement of the person in his arms, a satisfied and reassured smile appeared at the corners of Xie Yanzhao’s lips.
Only with her by his side could he truly let down all his defenses.
Before nightfall, Xie Yanzhao escorted Shen Tinghe to the back gate of the Prince’s Residence.
Inside the carriage, Xie Yanzhao personally fastened the plain white fox-fur cloak around Shen Tinghe. His movements were careful and gentle as he tied a neat bow at her chest.
“Do you remember everything I told you?”
Shen Tinghe lazily raised her eyes and answered perfunctorily.
“I’m not allowed to leave the residence, I have to take good care of my injury, I’m not allowed to eat spicy food recklessly, and I’m not allowed to stay up late reading medical books.”
As she spoke, she deliberately dragged out her words, mimicking him like a parrot.
Xie Yanzhao looked at her boneless, lazy little form. He picked her up and lightly kissed her soft lips.
“Good girl. Go on.”
Shen Tinghe practically jumped out of the carriage as though fleeing for her life and hurried through the back gate without looking back.
Xie Yanzhao leaned against the carriage, his gaze following her figure closely.
Only after that slender silhouette completely disappeared into the depths of the courtyard did he finally lower the carriage curtain.
Xie Yanzhao withdrew his gaze and unconsciously rubbed his fingertips together, as though the fragrance of her hair still lingered there.
“Such an ungrateful little spoiled darling.”
He murmured softly, his eyes brimming with indulgent affection.
As soon as Shen Tinghe returned to her own courtyard, she kicked off her soft boots and threw herself onto the soft canopy bed.
She grabbed a pillow and began furiously whacking the air with it.
“Stupid Xie Yanzhao! Rotten Xie Yanzhao! I’m not allowed to do this, I’m not allowed to do that. Tyrant!”
At that very moment, outside on the roof, a black figure was silently crouched on the tiles.
He was a shadow guard sent by the Crown Prince to record Shen Tinghe’s daily activities.
When he heard the words “tyrant” from inside the room, the shadow guard’s hand suddenly stopped.
He stiffly maintained his position, his mind going completely blank.
This… this has to be recorded too?
He was new here and had only been assigned to this post a few days ago. When had he ever seen anyone dare to address the Crown Prince like this?
Could he really write this down?
Wouldn’t he die?
The shadow guard’s mind waged an intense internal battle. After scratching his head in distress, he finally wrote in his notebook:
“After Miss Shen returned to her courtyard, she said in her room: ‘Stupid Crown Prince, rotten Crown Prince.’”
After finishing, he stared at that line for a long time.
Then he silently read it over once more before finally letting out a sigh of relief.
“This way… it should sound a little more tactful.”
Little did he know that the four maids serving inside the room Qinglan and the others had long since grown accustomed to this.
Not even the slightest ripple of surprise appeared on their faces.
Forget about saying such things in her own courtyard.
Even in front of the Crown Prince himself, their young lady dared to be this “rebellious.”