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The soft kiss gradually increased.

Yaotian was dizzy with the kiss, her blush spreading past her ears. She finally managed to wriggle away from He Xia, her heart anxious to jump out of her chest. She raised a hand and tidied the loosened strands, looking at a distant mirror where she saw that her ears had reddened. She gave He Xia a look of mock resentment and anger, murmuring, "Seriously, Prince Consort. This is the Royal Residence, not the Prince Consort Residence. If the maids saw this, how could I face them?"

He Xia heartily laughed, "Spare me, Princess. He Xia left Yun Chang too long and has dearly missed Princess so he became a little uncontrollable there." He lowered his voice, "Would you like to come tonight to the Prince Consort Residence? The Dong Lin army is currently assembling so I will have to leave for the border in a few days to deal with Chu Beijie. I don't know how long this battle will take and I have no idea when I'll be able to come back to see Princess."

Yaotian's ears were still steaming from his warm breath, and her heart was thumping crazily. She lowered her voice, "Isn't Prince Consort tired? You only returned late last night to the capital and entered the Royal Residence early morning next day. You certainly did not have a good sleep."

Their private room's air suddenly seemed heavy when they heard the slight sound of footsteps from the other side of the curtain.

A silhouette appeared and stopped behind the curtain. Luyi respectfully said, "Report to Princess, the Senior Official would like to see you."

"Welcome him in." Yaotian instructed. She turned to look at He Xia, her smile like honey. A frown was spread on her well-groomed eyebrows. "It's all Prince Consort's fault for making my face so red. What will the Senior Official think now when he sees me?"

"Just let him see you. How could a wise man such as the Senior Official not understand the relationship between a husband and wife?" He Xia gently laughed and went over to her. He whispered, "Princess hasn't replied to Prince Consort whether she will come to the Prince Consort Residence."

"Seriously, you..."

"The pain of longing."

No matter how handsome the man, once they are free, they were monkeys women couldn't deal with.

Yaotian was both angry and amused. She sucked her lip, "Since Prince Consort has returned, then I shall visit Prince Consort's residence with excitement. But what would the officials think of my going since Yaotian is a girl? It seems...that I'd better find two beautiful, personal maids for Prince Consort." She glanced slyly at He Xia.

He Xia's expression did not change as he continued to smile while asking, "Then tonight, shall I prepare alcohol and desserts in the rear courtyard of the Prince Consort Residence?"

Yaotian hid her smile and returned his gaze. She stretched out her white hands, nudging his shoulder softly. "The generals are still waiting to report to Prince Consort. Go see them. Be careful not to bump into the Senior Official or she'll whine on and on to Prince Consort."

He Xia good-naturedly softly pinched her on the cheeks before taking a step back. He adopted a joking expression before he left, half-singing as he posed a bow, "Wish you the best, Princess."

The curtain lifted loudly. Gui Changqing happened to walk in and saw him as he turned onto the porch.

"Prince Consort."

"Senior Official."

They respectfully nodded to each other as the two passed each other. Gui Changqing turned and watched He Xia's back view, full of confidence and strength. He stayed silent before entering through the bead curtains through the innermost section, greeting Yaotian.

"No need for excessive politeness. Please have a seat, Senior Official."

Luyi served up the tea specially prepared for Gui Changqing. Gui Changqing took it and drank a mouthful before raising to look at Yaotian's face that could not conceal the sweet joy she felt. He opened her mouth and laughed, "No wonder all the officials say that one can easily deduct whether the Prince Consort is in the capital from the Princess' expression."

Gui Changqing had been serving for many years and had watched over Yaotian as she grew up. He was like a father to her. Her laugh made her feel indignant, "Even Senior Official is making a joke out of Yaotian?"

Gui Changqing adoringly looked into her eyes and restrained his laughter. He changed it for a serious tone as his voice serious, "Has Princess told Prince Consort yet?"

At this question, the smile suddenly disappeared from Yaotian's face.

"Yes." She slowly sighed, frowning, "He isn't worried about the massive gathering of Dong Lin soldiers at all and has no intention of giving up Bai Pingting to stop the war."

"Princess, if we really do clash with Dong Lin, the opposition will be led by Chu Beijie. Our army will be led by our Prince Consort, resulting in great loss to both sides. There is not the slightest benefit for my Yun Chang."

"What can I do?" Yaotian frowned, "When talking about Dong Lin's army, the Prince Consort didn't even mention Bai Pingting's name, suggesting that he clearly does not plan to settle things peacefully with Chu Beijie."

Gui Changqing didn't say anything. He moved the lid off the teacup and studied the ripples inside. He let Yaotian to rest her gaze on him for a long time before placing the teacup back onto the table with both hands. "Princess fell into Prince Consort's trap. Sending out the main army and adventurously approaching the Dong Lin border was to simply sever Chu Beijie's ties to the Royal House and therefore break them from using Bai Pingting." He paused and looked at Yaotian.

"Please continue, Senior Offical," Yaotian replied.

"Judging from Chu Beijie's lack of grasp on the overall situation and his sudden preparations to attack Yun Chang, it is highly likely that he is no longer working alongside the King of Dong Lin, meaning our goals have been reached. Bai Pingting's value has been lost too. It will do more harm than good for Prince Consort to continue to hold onto Bai Pingting."

"Ss..."

"Princess must not only be careful with the future but also the present." Gui Changqing looked squarely in Yaotian's eyes, lowering his voice, "The Prince Consort has currently arranged Pingting to live at his residence. I heard that in addition to instructing his servants not to let her leave, they were also told to treat her with the etiquette deserving of a mistress."

The pendants on Yaotian's coronet shook slightly. She avoided Gui Changqing's gaze, pondering in silence.

Some time passed before Yaotian faintly replied, "Understood."

As Gui Changqing left, Luyi came in to report, "Lunch has been prepared."

"I'm not hungry; tell them to take it away."

She dismissed Luyi and other maids in the room. She sat in the room alone, head bowed while deeply thinking in silence. Multicoloured lights scattered from the jewel curtains. They swayed with the wind, occasionally knocking into each other and resulting in a clear sound.

Yaotian raised a hand and took off the coronet on her head. She held it in her hand and studied it briefly before putting it on the table. She removed the few remaining ornaments from her hair, letting her jet black hair spill down, covering her shoulders. She looked into the mirror. It seemed that her face had become a little sharper, emphasising her beauty.

She lifted the corners of her mouth to the mirror, testing out various smiles, each pretty in its own way. Yaotian laughed and placed the mirror on the table. "Luyi!" she called.

Luyi hurried from the porch. "I am here, what would Princess like?"

"I want a bath."

"Yes, I will send orders to get it ready."

A hint of relaxation was in Yaotian's voice from behind the curtain. "Sprinkle some fresh petals of the qixiang flowers from the snowy mountains."

"Yes."

As Luyi replied, Yaotian seemed to have another thought, thinking, "What is the name of the rouge that Histographer Houcheng presented me on my birthday last month?"

"Answering Princess, it is known as Fangniang, and is made from the petals of a very rare flower. The powder is very thin and evenly applies onto the face. The official that brought it up said that it could make your skin as soft as a new born child."

Yaotian listened carefully, and replied "Hm". She then instructed, "After the bath, bring the Fangniang so that I may try it."

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