Chapter 458: Chapter 456 It’s My Fault
The stone door of the chamber ahead was tightly shut, with the faint sound of a woman’s soft sobs seeping through.
Huo Mingyan’s face flushed with anger, her fury uncontainable: "How audacious of her, to dare seduce my younger brother! Are all women of the Central Plains this shameless and brazen?!"
"Princess Zhaoning’s behavior is truly outrageous!" Guan Songyuan echoed in shared indignation, brushing his sleeve in disgust. "Compared to the Empress, she truly lacks even the most basic decency!"
Han Sang responded with righteous indignation: "Your Majesty, let me open the door and see how she can possibly explain herself! Caught in the act, even His Majesty would have nothing to say!"
With significant strength, she immediately pushed open the stone door.
Huo Mingyan strode into the chamber with large steps, her voice sharp and commanding: "Shen Yinning, how dare you openly seduce my younger brother?! It’s said that the women of the Central Plains value propriety above all else—have all your manners been fed to the dogs?!"
The bed was surrounded by curtains, draping low.
Faintly, overlapping silhouettes could be seen within.
Huo Mingyan secretly gnashed her teeth, wishing she could immediately deliver Shen Yinning to death, if only to spare Huo Mingxu from being led astray by her.
Unable to restrain herself, she gave the command: "Han Sang, drag her out!"
Han Sang bowed and immediately approached with a predatory gaze.
Just as she reached to lift the curtain, a calloused hand suddenly shot out from within, gripping her wrist through the sleeve with remarkable force.
Han Sang winced in pain, her face contorted: "Young Master!"
Huo Mingyan roared in anger: "Huo Mingxu, are you trying to defy me?!"
Lu Ying abruptly pushed Han Sang aside and pulled up the curtain in one swift motion.
Han Sang stumbled and fell to the ground, staring at him in disbelief: "Your... Your... Your Majesty?!"
Huo Mingyan was also stunned, staggering half a step back: "Cousin?!"
The young man was dressed in a dark robe, adorned with a golden hairpin. His face, usually cool and serene like jade, now bore traces of unresolved passion. His sharp, narrow eyes smoldered with a fiery red anger. Clad only in a black outer garment, his muscular chest was covered with the red scratches of nails. A bead of sweat traced its way along the contours of his muscles, down over his abdomen and disappearing into his trousers.
The sight was enough to spark all manner of suggestive thoughts.
This was a side of Lu Ying that Huo Mingyan had never seen before.
Her face turned increasingly pale, as though all strength had drained from her body: "Cousin... how could it be you?"
Lu Ying’s expression darkened, cold as icy water: "What, did the Empress believe it was Huo Mingxu?"
"I... I... I..."
Huo Mingyan was at a loss for words, her gaze drifting beyond Lu Ying toward the figure behind the curtain.
Concealed behind the young man’s broad and upright frame was a delicate and soft young woman.
She held a smooth, glossy tiger pelt against her chest. Her snow-pale skin gleamed with a radiant glow, her figure supple and enchanting. Her tiny, alluring face was half-veiled by loose, cascading black hair, revealing a sharp, fox-like chin. The crimson at the corners of her phoenix-like eyes extended all the way to her temples, and her mesmerizing gaze pierced over Lu Ying’s shoulder, locking onto Huo Mingyan’s.
Fox.
The first word that surfaced in Huo Mingyan’s mind was "fox."
Many women outside the border enjoyed adorning themselves with animal pelts in winter, yet she had never seen anyone wear a tiger pelt so fittingly as Shen Yinning.
What drew people to Shen Yinning was never purely her looks. She embodied both wildness and nobility; even the flicker of her phoenix eyes carried an aura of nonchalant danger.
She was a deadly allure, whether to men or women alike.
Though she had long known of the affair between Lu Ying and Shen Yinning, witnessing it with her own eyes brought an overwhelming wave of sorrow that nearly crushed Huo Mingyan.
Her eyes reddened, and she offered a shaky bow before stumbling out of the room.
Guan Songyuan and Han Sang dared not linger and quickly followed.
Lu Ying picked up a robe and draped it over Shen Yinning’s shoulders: "It’s alright now—"
Shen Yinning shoved his hand away: "Every problem in my life comes from you!"
Lu Ying lowered his gaze to her: "I may have brought you trouble, but have I not also brought you any benefits, Shen Zhaozhao? One cannot be so selfish."
"You call me selfish?!" Shen Yinning’s eyes filled with tears, her voice sharp. "Who was it that insisted on keeping me imprisoned in the palace? Who poisoned me with a gu curse? Was it me? Lu Ying, do you even know what fairness is?!"
Her voice rose as her anger flared, and she lashed out, her sharp nails tearing into his flesh.
Lu Ying neither dodged nor resisted, allowing the nails to rake through his skin.
Only when her frenzy reached its peak did he seize her wrists: "Between you and me, there’s no sense of fairness left to speak of. All I know is that you are whom I want—that’s all that matters."
As he carried Shen Yinning back to bed, the thought flickered through her clouded mind: One day, she might very well meet her end on Lu Ying’s bed.
But such a death would be far too disgraceful.
Drained and languid, she was so exhausted that even her eyelids refused to lift. Half-asleep, she muttered wearily, "It’s entirely your fault..."
She was light, so light that Lu Ying could carry her in one arm.
He glanced at the fatigue etched on her delicate face and coaxed her gently, "It’s my fault."
Curling into his arms, Shen Yinning, in her dreamy haze, suddenly remembered her Luminous Pearls. Her fingers groped faintly at the air, murmuring as if to remind him, "Don’t forget the Luminous Pearls... I want to win first place..."
A basket filled with Luminous Pearls hung from Lu Ying’s elbow.
These pearls, strategically placed throughout the palace at his command, were ridiculously easy for him to retrieve. Within less than fifteen minutes of leaving the Stone Palace, he had gathered over a dozen, far more than the ones Huo Mingxu had collected for Shen Yinning.
This little fox spirit, in her drowsy state, was still obsessing over the pearls, and even more so about getting first place.
He chuckled. "I’ve got them."
Even if Shen Zhaozhao didn’t win first place, he was more than willing to fulfill her wishes.
So long as she never left him, any wish would do.
The next day.
Shen Yinning woke in Penglai Palace. Nanny Chen brought Shen Jin’an to see her: "His Majesty was in high spirits last night and said that today, the Commandery Princess may spend all day with the Princely Heir."
Shen Yinning teased Shen Jin’an briefly. While rinsing her face, she remarked coolly, "Spending time with Zhuoyu is the most natural thing in the world. Must I feel grateful to him for it?"
Wei Yu entered, signaling for Nanny Chen and the attendants to leave with the child.
After glancing around cautiously, she lowered her voice to a furtive whisper: "Your Grace, I must tell you something! Yesterday, Eunuch Gui came to Penglai Palace and took the bronze key from your dressing box. He returned it only after about an hour! He forbade any of us from mentioning it to you, but I feel this key is of great importance, so I’m secretly informing you..."