Chapter 14

The man’s breath seemed to brush against her ear. In her fluster, Nie Long covered her legs with the book and hurriedly tried to rise to curtsy, only to be restrained by a pair of large hands and pressed back onto the soft couch.

Chu Ji leaned closer to the young girl’s face, near enough to count her long, curled lashes. The girl appeared somewhat panicked, her delicate face flushed crimson, her eyes filled with helpless nervousness.

She resembled a little white rabbit that had stumbled into a beast’s den—utterly lost, innocent, and naive.

Those butterfly-wing-like lashes trembled slightly, sending a tingling itch through his heart.

For a moment, the man forgot his original purpose, entranced as he drew even closer, about to land on her tender, cherry-like lips—

Eunuch An directed a group of palace maids and eunuchs to carry in a large pile of items.

“Your Majesty, the items you requested have been delivered.”

From the angle of the doorway, only the Emperor’s slightly bent back was visible, completely obscuring Nie Long behind his tall figure. Eunuch An remained unaware that he had interrupted His Majesty’s intimate moment.

After bowing for what felt like an eternity without being acknowledged, while the other eunuchs and maids had already set down their items and left, Eunuch An finally lifted his head in confusion—only to meet the dark, deathly glare of his illustrious Emperor.

Eunuch An’s heart skipped a beat. Then, catching sight of the breathtakingly beautiful Empress seated on the couch, one hand firmly clasped in the Emperor’s grip, her lovely face flushed with a spring-like radiance, he realized he had indeed interrupted His Majesty’s romantic pursuit.

His heart plummeted to the ground, shattering into two pieces with a *splat*. Trembling on his noodle-like legs, he dropped to his knees. “Your Majesty, spare this lowly one! I saw nothing, nothing at all! I’ll roll away right now…”

And roll away he did. Under the Emperor’s dissatisfied, murderous gaze, Nie Long curiously watched as the scrawny, malnourished-looking eunuch curled himself into a ball and rolled away in a flash.

Nie Long: “…”

When he reached the threshold and couldn’t roll past it, the little eunuch scrambled up but didn’t dare stand, opting instead to crawl out—only to be roared at by the Emperor: “Roll back here!”

Even Linglong was startled by the shout. She peeked up timidly, noticing the Emperor’s expression—whether from embarrassment or something else—seemed rather gnashed. The eunuch, now even more terrified, actually trembled his way back, rolling as commanded.

Eunuch An’s shattered heart quivered uncontrollably. While others might not know that the Emperor and Empress had yet to consummate their marriage, he was well aware—after all, he was the one who handled such matters for His Majesty, even dismissing the Bureau of Palace Affairs on this account.

Not only did he know about the unconsummated marriage, but Eunuch An also knew that the mighty Emperor was utterly smitten with the Empress.

From the moment the Empress entered the palace, the Emperor had emptied the Private Treasury of all its rare treasures—precious fabrics, exotic trinkets, thousand-year-old ginseng—anything rare was swept straight into the Kunning Palace’s storerooms.

And not as formal gifts, nor with any fanfare to let the Empress know. He simply had them quietly delivered until Kunning Palace’s storerooms were bursting at the seams.

Not to mention the Emperor personally accompanying her for the grand wedding and the bridal return.

Now that His Majesty had finally married—though for some reason hadn’t yet consummated the union—this starving man had just caught a whiff of hope, only for Eunuch An to ruin it… *My life is over!* he thought despairingly.

Trembling, he dared not get too close. After a few more rolls, he stopped at what he deemed a safe distance and knelt. “Your Majesty, whatever you command, this lowly one is at your service.”

Chu Ji glared at him, his expression dark. The earlier atmosphere had been completely ruined by the interruption.  

Though Bao’er wasn’t overly resistant or resentful toward him now, he still didn’t dare act too boldly, afraid that if he pushed too far, she might retreat back into her shell like a frightened turtle.  

Suppressing the frustration in his heart, Chu Ji thought—since he couldn’t take it out on his Bao’er, why should he hold back with a mere eunuch?  

Eunuch An trembled uncontrollably, not daring to raise his head, kneeling on the ground with his head bowed, awaiting his death sentence.  

Then, from above, the Emperor’s voice rang out: “Tomorrow, go sweep the palace gates! Don’t come back until you’ve swept for a full month!”  

Eunuch An’s face twisted in misery, but he hurriedly kowtowed in gratitude, thanking His Majesty for his mercy and vowing to sweep diligently without slacking off.  

Xiao Anzi secretly sighed in relief. Today, thanks to the Empress’s presence, he had escaped a beating. On any other day, he wouldn’t have gotten off so lightly—compared to lying in bed for weeks in agony, sweeping the palace gates was nothing. As long as he wasn’t assigned to empty nightsoil or beaten with a rod, he’d take anything.  

Seeing his pitiful expression, the Emperor scoffed in amusement. “Enough kowtowing. If you ruin your face, it’ll hurt my eyes to look at you. And don’t bother coming back to serve afterward.”  

Eunuch An immediately stopped, terrified that a ruined face might earn him banishment to the frontier.  

Nie Long, watching from the side, couldn’t help but laugh softly, covering her mouth with a delicate hand, her watery eyes crinkling with amusement.  

Chu Ji glanced down at her, and seeing her smile, his mood improved slightly. He patted her shoulder and asked, “Want to know what’s inside these?”  

He pointed at the several large chests nearby, all brought in earlier by Eunuch An’s men.  

Nie Long looked over curiously. The pinewood chests were tightly sealed, giving no hint of their contents.  

Unable to guess the Emperor’s intentions, she answered honestly, “This consort does not know.”  

The Emperor clasped his hands behind his back, his expression unreadable, though his tone carried a hint of pride. “Xiao Anzi, open them for the Empress to see.”  

“As you command.”  

Eunuch An stepped forward, unlocked the chests, and lifted the lids one by one, revealing their contents.  

Nie Long stared at the items, a vague sense of familiarity stirring in her, her eyes flickering with confusion.  

Eunuch An quickly moved aside to give Her Majesty a clearer view.  

Seeing the Emperor standing stiffly, lips pressed tightly together—clearly unwilling to explain further—Eunuch An sighed inwardly. *His Majesty won’t win her heart like this. At crucial moments, it still falls to this humble eunuch to step in.*  

Seizing the opportunity, Xiao Anzi hoped to help the Emperor please the Empress—and if she was happy enough to revoke his earlier punishment, even better.  

With an ingratiating smile, he clasped his hands and said, “Your Majesty, all of these were gathered by His Majesty for you. This chest and that one—they were obtained privately from Duke Nie and Madam Nie. They contain the little trinkets you collected in your maiden days, each one carefully brought here, intact and unharmed.”  

He pointed to another chest. “This one holds curiosities His Majesty ordered us to find in the markets, all chosen according to your tastes. His Majesty feared you might grow bored in the palace and went to great lengths—”  

“Xiao Anzi!”  

The Emperor, silent until now, finally spoke up. His face was stern, though Nie Long, seated on the soft couch and with the man being so tall, didn’t notice the faint reddening of his ears.  

Chu Ji took two steps forward, hands still behind his back.  

Xiao Anzi immediately shut his mouth.

Nie Long blinked her eyes, seeing him like this, she thought he might be displeased—perhaps she hadn’t been enthusiastic enough?  

The chests were placed a bit far away, making it hard to see what was inside clearly. After a moment’s thought, she stood up and took a few steps closer, finally getting a good look at the contents.  

Two chests filled with little trinkets for a lady’s chamber—they did look familiar. Nie Long examined and touched them one by one, her eyes lighting up with delight. She hadn’t expected that the original owner’s fondness for collecting small curios would align so closely with her own, even down to similar tastes.  

Digging through her memories, she recalled that these two large chests indeed contained items the original owner had collected while still unmarried. Doted on at home, she had amassed more of these whimsical little treasures than her younger brother, who was just a few years old.  

Whether it was Nie Fu or her eldest brother, Nie Jue, whenever they came across something amusing outside, they would always send it straight to her room.  

Nie Jue picked up a little clay pig with the words “Bao’er’s Piggy” carved on it, her eyes softening with nostalgia. Her eldest brother, usually so refined and gentlemanly, had a mischievous side to him.  

He had given her this little pig, counting on her not recognizing the words when she was young. Later, when she learned to read, she chased after him in playful retaliation.  

Seeing her happiness, Chu Ji’s slight unease faded away. It was only during the bridal visit that he had recalled his past life.  

In that life, he and Nie Long had just married and were still unfamiliar with each other. Preoccupied with state affairs, he rarely spent time with her and hadn’t even made the customary bridal visit. By the time he wanted to grow closer, the opportunity was already lost.  

Once, when Bao’er fell ill, she lay weakly in his arms, her face pale but her eyes bright. She sighed softly and said, “This concubine remembers her days before marriage with some regret. I loved collecting things back then, thinking that one day I could pass them on to my sons and daughters, preserving the joys of youth. But after entering the palace, I never had the heart for it again…”  

He had suggested retrieving all her belongings from Duke Nie’s Mansion and bringing them to the palace, but Nie Long waved it off, refusing. The joy of those things belonged to that time—trying to reclaim them now would only bring unnecessary melancholy.  

Chu Ji had blamed himself for a long time, never quite letting it go.  

Now, seeing her eyes sparkling with delight—clearly, he had struck the right chord—he felt a quiet relief, his lips curving unconsciously as he stepped closer and boldly wrapped an arm around her.  

“Does Bao’er like them?”  

Nie Long snapped out of her thoughts, feeling the warmth at her shoulder. A faint shyness crept over her, leaving her momentarily at a loss for words. When she finally spoke, all she managed was a soft, “…Thank you.”  

Xiao Anzi had long since discreetly withdrawn.  

Not long after, Chun Feng entered, announcing that the bathwater was ready and asking if Her Highness wished to bathe.  

Nie Long instructed her to have the chests carefully arranged—not to mix them up or store them with the other items in the treasury, as she planned to go through them again the next day.  

Chun Feng acknowledged the order and helped her mistress to the bath.  

Seeing her cherish the gifts so much, Chu Ji felt a sweet warmth in his heart. Alone in the room, his usually stern face broke into an even brighter smile.  

Nie Long was in high spirits as well. Having received several chests of treasures that perfectly suited her tastes, she leaned back in the tub, relaxing as the palace maids massaged her.  

The steam, fragrant with flower petals, gently warmed her face, and every pore in her body seemed to breathe in relief. She was so relaxed she nearly dozed off—until a sudden thought jolted her awake.  

Oh no—that book was still lying on the daybed!

When she hurriedly dressed and stepped into the bedroom, the man was lying on the soft couch where she had previously sat, holding a book in his hand and reading with great interest.