This was the place.
This was the smell!
A redwood stand sat on the table, covered with gauze cloth. The breeze drifted in through the window, stirring the thin fabric aside to reveal the enormous cake beneath it.
Qi Shen’s eyes lit up instantly.
He had ordered all the palace servants to wait outside. Stepping forward, he lifted the gauze, and the sweet creamy fragrance rushed straight into his nose. His throat bobbed. Never in his life had he seen such a large pastry.
Beside it lay a dagger and a silver fork. Just as Qi Shen picked up the fork, he heard a cat meow behind him.
Only then did he notice the person reclining on the beauty couch.
Jing Xin lay on her side while the breeze from the window fluttered her robes open, exposing glimpses of spring scenery at her collar. She had not yet noticed his arrival. Instead, the little white cat poked its head out from her arms and meowed at him warily, both defensive and frightened, stretching out a paw to scratch at Jing Xin.
She was sleeping deeply and was not awakened by the kitten’s fussing. Her curled lashes trembled faintly, yet her fair, stunning face remained peaceful and serene.
The cat failed to wake Jing Xin, then shrank back into her arms with frightened meows when Qi Shen cast it a cold glance.
Qi Shen let out a mocking laugh. A mere kitten dared try to intimidate him.
He forked up a piece of cake and placed it into his mouth.
The white cream was soft and fluffy, melting instantly on his tongue, leaving behind a delicate sweet milk fragrance. His eyes brightened further as he quickly scooped up another bite of the yellow cake underneath.
The pastry carried the scent of eggs and oranges, unbelievably delicate and soft, layered with jam, lychee, and bits of fruit. He could not even describe the taste properly. Never before had he eaten something this delicious.
There was actually such a delicacy in this world?!!
Seeing the intruder grow increasingly brazen, Yun Juan let out a meow and stomped directly onto Jing Xin’s face.
A soft murmur sounded through the quiet chamber. Jing Xin’s eyelids twitched before slowly opening.
At that exact moment, Qi Shen swiftly tossed away the silver fork.
Jing Xin thought she was seeing things. Her gaze moved from the tall, elegant man before her to the eight inch cake behind him, now reduced to a tiny crescent moon.
Qi Shen has come?
Why had he come?
Had he not said he would never see her again?
“Your Majesty…” Jing Xin rose and bowed.
Qi Shen casually played with the small ornament hanging at his waist and glanced at her indifferently. “Since when did you start keeping a cat?”
“A few days ago. Your Majesty said you would no longer see this concubine, so I feared the loneliness of the deep palace in the future and could only raise an abandoned cat for company.”
The moment Qi Shen heard the word “abandoned,” he glared at her in irritation and embarrassment, though his tone remained cold. “This cat is terribly mischievous. It ate your cake.” He glanced toward the ruined dessert behind him.
Jing Xin froze briefly before her red lips curled into a smile.
She was wearing only a thin gauzy robe for sleeping. As she walked toward him with graceful catlike steps, her slender waist swayed beneath the translucent fabric, alluring beyond measure.
Stopping before Qi Shen, Jing Xin wrapped her arms around his neck and gently wiped the cream from the corner of his lips with her pale fingers.
“Did the cat leave this behind too?”
Her eyes were seductive and her lips enticing.
Qi Shen said nothing. After all, whenever he remained silent, everyone feared him.
But Jing Xin was not afraid.
She had already wrapped both arms around his waist, rubbing her cheek against his chest. “Don’t ignore me anymore.”
Like the kitten earlier, even her voice softened. “Don’t neglect me. I want to become a good person, and I also want to become a good consort. If you stop liking me, I’ll be very sad, because I like you.” She lifted her face toward him. “This concubine admires Your Majesty, admires your status, admires your intelligence, and also likes your handsome face.”
Jing Xin’s hand caressed the man’s face.
When he raised his eyes, they were deep as the night itself, yet the coldness within them had softened beneath moonlight. She froze for a moment, suddenly feeling as though she had been struck by electricity.
That single glance was devastatingly handsome!
If she had not been acting just now, she felt she really could have fallen for Qi Shen’s looks in an instant.
His expression did not change, but the relaxation in his body language told her he was no longer angry. She finally understood that Qi Shen responded better to softness than confrontation. From the original host’s memories, no matter how flirtatious or seductive the original Jing Xin had been while begging for favor, he had never once looked at her this gently.
He caught the hand stroking his brows and eyes. “Will you still dare to pry into my thoughts again?”
“I won’t.” She looked pitiful as she nestled into his arms. “Hold me.”
He lifted a brow slightly, clearly satisfied, and wrapped an arm around her waist.
Jing Xin lightly pressed her red lips together. With her current temperament, this face that originally belonged to the host appeared even more breathtaking when she smiled, gentle yet dazzling enough to steal souls.
Then she asked, “So does the Son of Heaven still dare to secretly eat the pastries in my chambers?”
“The entire world belongs to me. Are you not mine as well?”
Jing Xin desperately suppressed the urge to burst into laughter and buried her face against his neck, pretending to behave sweetly. “I am yours.” Her lips curved uncontrollably with amusement. Was this tyrant really this easy to coax?
Qi Shen said, “That cake even had a smiling face on it…” It had looked too adorable, so he had eaten it.
He was about to ask what kind of pastry it was when a shadow suddenly appeared at the doorway.
Yu Zhu had come to check whether Yun Juan had behaved herself and whether she had touched the birthday cake. The first thing she saw upon entering was the direction of the cake. At first glance, all she saw was a crescent shaped remainder and messy cream smeared everywhere. She stood there dumbfounded.
The cat had eaten her cake. Wuwu, her birthday cake had been eaten by the cat!!!
Her mistress had personally made that birthday cake for her, and all the palace sisters were waiting to cut the cake together tonight. Wuwu, now it is gone!
Tears rolled down instantly. Only after falling into grief did she finally notice the tall, imposing man standing inside the hall.
Her hair was short, so even Qi Shen frowned slightly upon seeing her.
Jing Xin stepped out of his embrace. Seeing Yu Zhu frozen in fear and shock, she quickly reminded her to bow.
“My respects to the Son Son of Heaven.”
Qi Shen grew somewhat displeased. “Why are you crying?”
In the Liang Dynasty, no one cut their hair short unless mourning for the nation or family. Hair cropped to ear length was already highly inauspicious, and he had not even pursued the matter yet, but she still dared stand there with a mournful face.
Yu Zhu was terrified of Qi Shen. Never before had she served him from such close proximity, and for a moment she could not answer.
Qi Shen barked impatiently, “Why are you crying?”
Yu Zhu sniffled miserably. “The cake… the cake was eaten.”
Qi Shen replied, “So what if it was eaten? Did I eat your cake? Get out.”
Jing Xin: You absolutely did eat hers!
She wisely did not say it aloud while he was irritated. After all, emperors always believed they were right.
“Your Majesty, please do not be angry. Would you still like to eat more?”
Naturally, he would not.
Having been caught secretly eating, and after declaring only days ago that he would never see her again, yet now embracing her instead, how could he possibly keep face?
He maintained his cold, composed expression.
Jing Xin stared at him without blinking. “Then will Your Majesty stay the night at Tangcui Palace tonight?”
“In your dreams.” Qi Shen flicked his sleeves and strode out of the sleeping chamber.
Jing Xin burst into laughter the moment she was left sitting alone on the beauty couch.
Her stomach nearly hurt from laughing. Qi Shen seemed to be a proud little tsundere type, which was honestly pretty amusing.
She did not actually want him to stay the night, and she had naturally known he would refuse out of embarrassment after being so thoroughly contradicted by his own actions.
The original host had already served Qi Shen countless times, but for Jing Xin herself, she had never once truly been with him. She had never even been in a relationship before. If she truly could not avoid sleeping with him in the future, then she at least hoped her first time would happen willingly, preferably as something beautiful.
Once she successfully redeemed Qi Shen, she would leave the royal palace and live outside instead. The original host’s private treasury hid plenty of gold and jewels. In the future she could bring her fortune with her, choose a pleasant place to build a residence, hire six or seven servants, and open a dessert and milk tea shop. Would that not be far more carefree than living in the palace while constantly watching Qi Shen’s moods?
Jing Xin went to the small kitchen and made kumquat honey water for Chang Huan to deliver to Qi Shen to relieve the richness. After all, only someone utterly obsessed with sweets could finish that much cream.
Yu Zhu was still heartbroken, so Jing Xin promised to make her another birthday cake another day and even offered her a bracelet as a birthday gift.
The little girl refused the bracelet, pitifully carrying the remaining cake to the side room to share with the palace maids.