Lu Yan suddenly let out a low laugh, seizing her audaciously bold and delicate hand. As he leaned over her, he pinned her down on the imperial bed, looking down at her from above. He pinched her smooth, soft chin.
"What, do you want my life too? Has the little rabbit bared its claws too fiercely? Have you forgotten that your life is held in my hands?"
Lu Mingtang also smiled, swiftly striking toward Lu Yan’s lower body. Lu Yan blocked her move with a sideways sweep of his hand. In just a few breaths, the two were already grappling on the imperial bed.
The sandalwood imperial bed creaked and groaned under the violent shaking, while the bright yellow silk gauze curtains embroidered with dragon patterns swayed and fluttered. Two entangled shadows were cast upon the curtains.
Lu Mingtang twisted Lu Yan’s hands upward, pinning them above his head, while straddling his waist with her legs.
Her waist-length, silky black hair cascaded down with her movements, intertwining with Lu Yan’s own ink-black hair, which was splayed across the bed.
The more ambiguous this scene appeared, the more furious Lu Yan felt at this moment.
Because he had actually lost to Lu Mingtang—and he realized that, since she was still feverish, it had taken her dozens of moves to subdue him.
If she were healthy and full of vigor, with her skills, she would have subdued him within three moves!
How could a delicate young lady, who should be confined to the inner chambers, possess such agile martial prowess?
It seemed this dangerous little rabbit held many secrets.
"I don’t want Your Majesty’s life. On the contrary, as long as Your Majesty behaves obediently, I will clear away all threats to you."
Lu Yan’s dark eyes churned with dangerous malice. "Lu Mingtang…"
Before he could unleash his anger, Lu Mingtang freed one hand and raised her index finger, pressing it against the young man’s slightly parted, pale and cool lips.
"Shh, be good. Your elder sister is very tired now and needs to rest properly. Be quiet and don’t disturb me. When I wake up, I’ll give you candy."
With those words, Lu Mingtang abruptly released her grip. As she rose, her body tilted, and she brazenly lay down on the inner side of the imperial bed, even pulling the brocade quilt over herself.
Closing her eyes and falling asleep—all in one smooth motion. The address "elder sister" caused Lu Yan’s dark eyes to momentarily freeze in surprise. By the time he regained his senses, Lu Mingtang had already shamelessly fallen asleep beside him, clearly treating this place as her own territory.
This audacious little rabbit actually dared to call herself "elder sister"—better to strangle her and be done with it.
Lu Yan’s pale hand hovered just an inch away from her snow-white, fragile neck when Lu Mingtang spoke softly, "I advise Your Majesty to behave. You can’t defeat me. Of course, you could call for help—if you’re not afraid of the story spreading that a young man couldn’t even defeat a young lady."
Lu Yan sneered coldly. "You’re three years older than me, yet you have the nerve to call yourself a young lady?"
"Then how about ‘madam’? Would that satisfy you, young master? But if Your Majesty would call me ‘elder sister,’ I’d be very pleased. And when I’m pleased, I might let you win once."
Lu Yan found this sharp-tongued little rabbit particularly detestable. Strangling her would bring peace and quiet. "In your dreams."
Lu Mingtang yawned, turned over, and faced away from him. "Then I’ll dream. Be good and don’t make noise."
A sinister gaze fixed intently on Lu Mingtang's back, his mind cycling through a hundred ways to kill her, yet in the end, he did not act.
He would tolerate her just this once.
He merely wanted to see what interesting game she would bring him, nothing more.
The next day, as dawn’s haze still lingered, Lu Yan, who had barely slept all night, was in a foul mood. And whenever he was irritable, he felt the urge to torment someone.
Especially upon seeing the woman who had usurped the entire dragon bed, sleeping soundly and carelessly.
The little rabbit slept so comfortably, while he had been restless all night. Indeed, he still preferred seeing the little rabbit struggling desperately in his grasp.
Lu Yan snatched a cushion from the warm couch and approached the dragon bed step by step, a dangerous aura enveloping the still-sleeping woman.
Just as the cushion was about to cover Lu Mingtang’s face, her eyes suddenly snapped open. At the same time, she seized Lu Yan’s wrist and twisted it in the opposite direction.
Her other hand struck at his lower body, each move brimming with lethal intent.
Lu Yan blocked with a sweep of his arm, causing the dragon bed to shake even more violently. Every blow they exchanged was fierce and direct, but Lu Mingtang was even more ruthless.
With a dull thud, Lu Yan’s back slammed against the corridor railing, causing a nearby flower stand to sway violently. The white porcelain vase on the stand tilted and crashed to the floor, shattering into pieces.
The pain from the impact made Lu Yan’s grip falter, and in that moment, Lu Mingtang, driven by a frenzy, twisted his wrist back with a sharp crack, breaking the bone.
"Your Majesty, what has happened? Do you require my assistance?"
The loud commotion inside the hall startled Ling Xiao, the commander of the Palace Guard on duty outside.
Lu Mingtang was jolted awake by the sudden noise, only then realizing that she had sensed danger in her sleep and her body had instinctively reacted with defense and attack.
Coming to her senses, she found Lu Yan pinned against the corridor railing, his wrist bone broken by her bare hands.
The Young Emperor’s dark eyes, gloomy as still water, stared fixedly at her. Beads of cold sweat dotted his forehead from the pain, and his handsome, ink-like features appeared even paler and more fragile.
"Your Majesty, you attacked me first. I was only acting on instinct to defend myself. You can’t blame me for that. I warned you—you can’t beat me, so don’t waste your effort. Shall I set your wrist bone back in place?"
In martial arts, she had always been exceptionally gifted. Coupled with her life-and-death battles on the battlefield in her previous life, she was confident that no one could match her in combat prowess.
After a night’s rest, her fever had subsided and her condition had recovered. How could a half-trained Young Emperor possibly be her match? And to think he dared to ambush her—wasn’t he just asking for trouble?
"Your Majesty, forgive my intrusion. I am coming in?"
Hearing no response from inside the hall, Ling Xiao assumed something was amiss and prepared to enter.
As Lu Mingtang’s grip loosened, Lu Yan kicked out. Seemingly caught off guard, Lu Mingtang was struck and tumbled off the dragon bed. She rolled on the floor like a carp, her hair disheveled, appearing disheveled as she slumped to the ground.
No one could gain the upper hand against him, not even this little rabbit who dared to bare her claws and injure him.
Lu Yan looked down contemptuously at Lu Mingtang, whom he had kicked off the bed, feeling considerably more pleased.
"How did you end up rolling off? It seems you’re not so tough after all, Sister."
The word "Sister" was laced with pure mockery and scorn, along with a heavy dose of malicious delight at his successful retaliation.
What a petty and vindictive child.
Lu Mingtang wasn't angry at all. Instead, she simply sat cross-legged on the floor, her eyes curving into crescents as she raised her hand and shook a waist token dangling between two fingers.
"I've rolled off the bed on my own. Is Your Majesty pleased now? Since you're pleased, lend me this waist token to play with for a couple of days."
Lu Yan touched his waist—his token was gone.
She had taken it when she rolled off the bed earlier, catching him off guard.
To be precise, she had pretended to be kicked off the bed, all to steal his waist token!
What a cunning and infuriating little rabbit!