Chapter 71
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Chapter 71:
A cold hand slipped under Li Chunzhou’s blanket, stroking from her arm to her palm with a gentle yet firm touch, softly asking, "Why aren’t you speaking?"
Li Chunzhou sensed the suppressed displeasure in his voice. The power of the Second Prince was unpredictable. Once Li Chunzhou used his power for her own purposes, but now Jian Hou had turned the tables, using the Second Prince to restrain her.
Li Chunzhou had no organization or power to stand against the Second Prince. She used to rely solely on his connections, but now he wanted them back. Li Chunzhou had no right or ability to resist.
Moreover, with Chihong dead and Li Zhexuan taken away by Jian Hou, Li Chunzhou was not just a trapped bird, but one with both wings broken.
Regardless of Li Chunzhou’s memories, experiences, or the trials her consciousness and soul had endured, she now had to rely on this frail body, afraid of cold and heat, clinging to the Second Prince to nurture her strength.
Ever since Gu Lingfan and Bi Yuansi left, a chain reaction had not stopped. Chihong’s death and the Second Prince’s interference caught Li Chunzhou off guard, disrupting her plans.
Li Chunzhou never intended to involve the Second Prince in her mess with Jian Hou, and now she didn’t want to confront him.
So, she obediently rested her face on his shoulder, showing her glistening eyes, and asked tearfully, "Second Master, please touch my face. I feel unwell… You will forgive me, won’t you?"
Hearing the meaning behind her lowered words, the Second Prince smiled without saying a word. He lowered his head and kissed her mist-covered eyes, lifting Li Chunzhou under her arms as if holding a small fox, and sat her on his lap.
The Second Prince gently opened Li Chunzhou’s collar, his breath blowing on her chest, making Li Chunzhou feel ticklish all over.
"The person who helped put on your shoes was taken away by Jian Hou, aren’t you worried?"
Li Chunzhou was no longer as emotionally intense as when she first heard the news of Chihong’s death. She simply said, "My life belongs to the Second Master, so naturally the child’s life is also… Whether to hit or to kill depends on the Second Master’s decision, isn’t it?"
After staring at each other in such a strange position for a while, Liang Changfeng couldn’t resist and pinched Li Chunzhou’s chin with his fingers and bit her neck forcefully.
He gazed from top to bottom at her youthful face, leaving a small bruise where he bit on Li Chunzhou’s neck. He licked off the sweaty moisture on Li Chunzhou’s chin, using his sharp white teeth to hold it. Li Chunzhou sensed his next move, but before she could struggle, Liang Changfeng held her down and bit down even deeper with that painful mark.
The cold fingers pinched Li Chunzhou’s delicate skin slightly, causing a tingle. She squinted one eye, sucked in a breath of cold air, and without needing to look in the mirror, she knew there must be a deep bite mark on her chin now.
Suddenly, Liang Changfeng held onto Li Chunzhou’s chin with his other hand and forcefully turned her head towards him. The icy fingertips pressing on the bite mark became even more painful, as Liang Changfeng’s soft and slippery tongue teasingly and sensually licked her earlobe. Li Chunzhou felt each moment elongate indefinitely.
Second Prince watched her obedient demeanor for a while, then suddenly said mysteriously, "As long as you obey, there is still a chance to see him…"
At the same time as Second Prince’s voice sounded, Gu Lingfan’s voice also echoed in Li Chunzhou’s mind.
"The most valuable quality of a dog is obedience."
Li Chunzhou closed her eyes tightly, then opened them with a fake smile, holding onto Second Prince’s neck she asked, "What did Jian Hou say to Second Master?"
Li Chunzhou was not a person who was unaware of her beauty, but rather she had grown up enjoying her beauty since she was young. This led to a confidence in her looks and a carefree attitude in her words and actions.
Despite experiencing ten years of time in countless cycles, the years remained frozen on her fifteenth birthday, and so did her appearance.
Second Prince calmly unfastened the button at the collar of Li Chunzhou’s shirt with one hand, "He said that the strange occurrences in the city recently are all caused by the presence of evil spirits causing havoc. Once the source is resolved, Daliang will be able to restore calm."
He effortlessly took off Li Chunzhou’s clothes, unhurriedly and with ease, as if unwrapping a gift that had long belonged to him.
"Did Second Master believe his words?" Li Chunzhou leaned on Liang Changfeng’s shoulder, her smooth back fully exposed to the air, shivering slightly from the cold. Li Chunzhou paid no mind to her naked body but instead stared intently into Second Prince’s dark eyes.
Suddenly, Liang Changfeng chuckled, "No… but Jian Hou has confirmed that ‘Li Zhexuan’ is indeed not a normal human… which is why I ask you, is there anything you want to say?"
Li Chunzhou snuggled up to Second Prince, her clothes partly off while Liang Changfeng’s fancy clothes stayed intact, showing the difference in their status and identity.
Li Chunzhou pressed her naked body against Liang Changfeng’s expensive fabric, whispering, "I’ll be obedient, as long as Second Master doesn’t harm him, I will do anything."
Second Prince placed his hand on Li Chunzhou’s neck, motionless for a while, their bodies very close but their hearts growing distant, unable to see each other’s facial expressions or read each other’s thoughts.
Li Chunzhou’s response was exactly what Second Prince least wanted to hear – the more she bowed to Li Zhexuan for him, the more it showed she cared for Li Zhexuan.
Second Prince would rather she not care about Li Zhexuan’s well-being, but challenge him, than see her bowing down before others in front of him.
"You’re really disappointing." Second Prince casually patted Li Chunzhou’s bottom, seeming to scold her yet also hinting at disappointment.
In the end, he did nothing to the person in his arms, just covered her with a blanket and carried her back to bed.
Second Prince stood by the bedside, looking down at the obedient yet indifferent Li Chunzhou on the bed, suddenly feeling weary in his heart, as if realizing something slipping away bit by bit, but he couldn’t grasp it.
Second Prince turned his head and said, "There are still matters I need to attend to, you rest first, if you need anything, have someone fetch it for you."
After the Second Prince left, two servant girls wearing light-colored clothes came in. They kept their heads down and only looked up when Li Chunzhou asked for clothes.
Li Chunzhou’s clean back was exposed in front of the two servant girls. They dared not look closely and quickly lowered their heads again.
Li Chunzhou let the two servant girls help her put on the complicated clothes without any shame.
Only the lower-ranking person’s body would be stared at. In her relationship with the Second Prince, she might be lower-ranking, but in the relationship between Li Chunzhou and the servant girls, she clearly was not.
The two servant girls had probably been told something and dared not interact with Li Chunzhou freely. They silently followed her, staying neither too close nor too far away from Li Chunzhou wherever she went.
Even though tied to Liang Changfeng, the Second Prince did not stop Li Chunzhou from going anywhere, but did not allow her to leave the mansion.
Many of the servants in the Second Prince’s mansion recognized her. Li Chunzhou avoided the main house where the Second Prince was and wandered around.
In the past hundred cycle, starting from the Oiran Contest, the Emperor’s illness worsened every day. Li Chunzhou had limited contact with the Second Prince during this time, let alone accompanying him around the mansion.
Therefore, Li Chunzhou was surprised to find out for the first time that there were no concubines or maidservants in the Second Prince’s mansion.
It was getting dark at this time, and the royal garden was very quiet. The moss on the cobblestone path gave off a faint scent when the breeze blew. The trees cast moving shadows, and in the distance, the setting sun was reflecting in the clear pond, creating golden ripples like an ancient bronze mirror.
Li Chunzhou’s shadow moved slowly on the water, and there was a hint of flower and soil scents in the air. If there weren’t so many rumors in the capital about Second Prince killing his mother, Li Chunzhou might have been able to appreciate the scene, but now her mind was filled with these troubling thoughts.
No one knew if Second Prince’s disinterest in women was because of his late mother, but if he truly had no interest in women, why did he bring her to the palace…?
Li Chunzhou pondered, first ruling out the possibility of Second Prince actually liking her.
In previous attempts, she had tried to have Li Zhexuan read Second Prince’s memories, but Liang Changfeng had deep defenses, like trying to read Qi Leyuan’s inner memories – Li Zhexuan couldn’t see the past between Second Prince and his late mother either.
Amid the sound of flowing water, there were faint sounds of something unclear. Li Chunzhou turned to ask the servant girl behind her, "Does the palace keep chickens too?"
The servant girl shook her head in confusion, and Li Chunzhou followed the sound of the chicken noises, eventually seeing a familiar figure in a secluded courtyard.
It was Li Li.
A smile appeared on Li Chunzhou’s face for the first time that day as she hurried over, picking up Li Li and asking, "Li Li, why are you here?"
Qi Leyuan glanced at the maid following behind Li Chunzhou, said nothing, and returned to his old way of communicating with her through typing.
Qi Leyuan, "After you were knocked out by the Second Prince’s men, Jian Hou took me away. I managed to sneak out unnoticed to find you."