Bai Fuxue felt suffocated in the cramped wooden room.
The beautiful girl in her arms kept nuzzling against her neck.
Summoning the last shred of her clarity, Bai Fuxue pushed the person away.
Her entire body burned as if melting with heat. With every pant of white breath she exhaled, the restlessness within her intensified.
Collapsing onto the bed, Bai Fuxue whimpered in discomfort.
So hot, so stifling her clothes felt unbearably cumbersome.
She tore off the excess accessories adorning her body. Pressing her ear to the bed, she could hear approaching footsteps from outside.
Bai Fuxue cursed under her breath and bit her wrist, using the pain to cling to her sanity.
The entire dilapidated palace was filled with a captivating, feminine fragrance.
Just as Bai Fuxue’s rationality hung by a thread, she caught a whiff of an intensely familiar scent.
It was the fragrance of agarwood, Bai Fuxue squinted through hazy eyes and looked up, faintly making out the figure of someone clad in robes embroidered with golden dragons.
She melted weakly into the other’s embrace, her voice hoarse and aggrieved as she murmured, “Your Majesty…”
The delicate, rounded curve of the beauty’s shoulder was laid bare before Xiao Shizhi’s gaze, her disheveled hair cascading over it. Her crimson lips parted slightly, as if awaiting a kiss.
Xiao Shizhi’s eyes darkened. “You’re drunk.”
Bai Fuxue replied, “The wine was drugged. I feel awful.”
Xiao Shizhi’s body still carried the chill of the night breeze from outside, and the cool touch felt incredibly soothing.
The moment Bai Fuxue saw Xiao Shizhi, her heart instinctively settled. Without hesitation, she began to loosen her garments, undressing piece by piece right in front of Xiao Shizhi.
As her clothes fell away, the intoxicating effects of the alcohol turned Bai Fuxue’s skin into an alluring shade of pink.
Bai Fuxue draped herself over Xiao Shizhi, soft and delicate, her breath carrying a sweet fragrance as she whispered:
“Your Majesty, the other consorts in the rear palace accuse me of seducing you with fox-like charms. But I’ve done nothing at all they slander me relentlessly. It’s truly unfair.”
As she spoke, tears shimmered in her beautiful peach-blossom eyes, exuding an indescribable, enchanting allure.
Xiao Shizhi swallowed hard and held her even tighter.
Bai Fuxue smiled coquettishly. “Your Majesty, this time, I truly wish to seduce you. Let me help you relieve this heat.”
She wrapped her arms around Xiao Shizhi’s neck, their snow-white necks brushing against each other.
The shadow guard following Xiao Shizhi discreetly dragged the extra woman out of the room, understanding the situation perfectly.
The shabby palace was now filled with vibrant, sensual energy, the unique fragrance of the woman more intoxicating than aged fine wine.
Xiao Shizhi grunted softly, “Don’t bite my neck.”
Bai Fuxue teased, “Then you bite me.”
Xiao Shizhi did just that, leaving suggestive teeth marks on Bai Fuxue’s swan-like neck.
When Xiao Shizhi returned to the night banquet, the Empress was already clutching a handkerchief, visibly unsettled.
The Empress cautiously inquired, “The wine has flowed freely for three rounds, Your Majesty. Would you like to retire to the rear palace and rest?”
Gently and gracefully, she patted the back of Xiao Shizhi’s hand. “Your Majesty, do not indulge too much in drink.”
Xiao Shizhi asked, “Has the Empress seen Consort Bai?”
Her gaze fell upon the conspicuously empty seat nearby. The banquet was alive with music and dance, yet that vacant spot alone stirred unease in her heart.
Xiao Shizhi lazily narrowed her eyes, clearly looking thoroughly satisfied.
She subtly adjusted her collar upward, concealing the mark where the little beauty had bitten her fiercely.
The queen slightly curved her lips, though her tone was filled with concern: “Perhaps Sister Bai has had too much to drink and is taking a stroll in the garden. If Your Majesty wishes to see her, why not accompany me for a walk to the rear?”
The queen carefully observed whether Xiao Shizhi’s eyes showed any signs of intoxication, while inwardly casting a meaningful glance at Prince Su.
Prince Su glanced at his sister, the queen, who stood high and mighty, and gave an almost imperceptible nod.
He turned his head and looked at Bai Nianyong, who was thoroughly enjoying his drinks, a flicker of murderous intent flashing in his eyes.
The Bai family’s only legitimate daughter had been a favored consort of the late emperor. After the late emperor’s death, she had become part of the current emperor’s harem. It was impossible for the Bai General’s household not to harbor any resentment. If their only daughter were now caught in a drunken scandal in the harem, entangled with an unknown dancer, what would become of the Bai family?
Xiao Shizhi stood up and was led away from the palace by the queen.
The bright moon in the sky was startlingly luminous, casting deep, layered shadows of the trees.
The queen smiled faintly and said, “My younger sister has just reached the age of sixteen and will be eligible to enter the palace in next year’s selection. What does Your Majesty think of this?”
Without missing a beat, the queen added, “My sister has grown up secluded in the inner chambers and has never encountered outsiders. She is as pure as one could be.”
If Xiao Shizhi had been slightly tipsy during the banquet, the cool breeze had now completely sobered her up.
She frowned in displeasure.
The queen’s words were insinuating that Bai Fuxue was no longer pure.
So what if Bai Fuxue had been a consort of the late emperor?
Was a woman not allowed to have past relationships?
What did it mean to have grown up secluded in the inner chambers without encountering outsiders?
How was that any different from a fool with no common sense and an empty head?
Seeing that the empress had not spoken, the queen masked her awkwardness with a dignified and graceful smile.
With numerous palace maids and eunuchs following behind, the queen subtly guided Xiao Shizhi toward the dilapidated palace.
Upon hearing the queen’s arrival, the young palace maid guarding the entrance mimicked a few cat calls.
She quietly unlocked the door.
The queen sneered inwardly, Bai Fuxue, oh Bai Fuxue, a few years ago when you entered the palace, I was still the crown princess, and you were the late emperor’s most beloved consort. Back then, we became fast friends.
I thought that once you became the grand imperial consort, I would treat you with the utmost respect. But alas…
The queen said softly, “This palace has been uninhabited for a long time. Why is there noise inside?”
Before the empress beside her could speak, the queen immediately ordered the palace maids behind her, “Quickly open the door. It must not be some improper palace maid or guard fooling around inside.”
The queen glanced at the “drunken” Xiao Shizhi beside her and said, “Your Majesty, Sister Bai seems to have disappeared. We’ve searched the entire harem but haven’t found her.”
To Xiao Shizhi, the queen’s clumsy acting was utterly childish. She shook off the queen’s supporting hand and walked forward.
The entire palace was empty and desolate. The bedding on the bed had grown moldy and decayed, emitting a foul odor.
On the floor crouched a large, snow-white cat.
Xiao Shizhi half-knelt and picked up Tangyuan.
“Meow!”
Tangyuan let out a long cry, swishing its feather-duster-like tail as it leaped into Xiao Shizhi’s arms.
The queen was so shocked she nearly lost her composure.
She shot a sharp glare at the palace maid beside her.
The maid trembled in fear and immediately knelt on the ground.
Where is Bai Fuxue?!
And the lead dancer?!
Xiao Shizhi stroked the snow-white cat’s head and gently rubbed its large pink paws as it nestled in her arms.
With a faint, ambiguous smile, Xiao Shizhi glanced at the Empress. “Tangyuan slipped in. The sound Her Majesty heard earlier was probably made by him.”
Tangyuan was no longer the scrawny cat from when he first arrived, having now grown into a majestic little lion.
Large and imposing, he let out a roar as if asserting his dominance.
“Rawr”
Xiao Shizhi pinched the fluffy fur around Tangyuan’s neck. “Don’t roar. If Xuexue hears you, she’ll accuse you of deliberately trying to seduce me.”
Tangyuan: ?
Are you people insane?
Inside the Zichen Hall, Bai Fuxue lay flushed on Xiao Shizhi’s bed, clutching the large cat that had dashed over to her.
Tears welled in Bai Fuxue’s eyes from the overwhelming emotions as she pleaded, “Your servant has been framed. Your Majesty must uphold justice for me.”
Xiao Shizhi stood by the bed, pinched the scruff of the large cat’s neck with two fingers, lifted it up, and tossed it outside to Li Dequan.
The delicate beauty on the bed lay weak and limp, the embroidered twin lotus undergarment barely concealing anything.
Xiao Shizhi tightly gripped the string of beads in her hand.
In her heart, she firmly believed that if her girlfriend had an ex-lover or had once shared a fleeting romance with someone else, it was something she could understand and forgive.
She shouldn’t be as rigid and conservative as the people of ancient times.
Yet, as Xiao Shizhi gazed at Bai Fuxue’s charming, innocent appearance, the mere thought of her acting coquettishly with someone else was unbearable.
Xiao Shizhi sat sideways on the edge of the bed, lifted Bai Fuxue’s chin, and whispered softly:
“Fuxue, I helped you out of trouble. How will you repay me?”
Bai Fuxue, still intoxicated, rolled over and exposed her belly, lying on the bed just like the large cat.
She took Xiao Shizhi’s hand and placed it on her soft abdomen.
With a dazed expression, Bai Fuxue murmured, “Let you rub my tummy, okay?”