Chapter 16

The candlelight of the night carried a tenderness akin to spring water, like the most delicate gauze draped weightlessly over Yao Huang.

Yao Huang reminisced about the days before the selection for the imperial consort. Her father, a martial man, had treated her like a precious gem. Whatever Yao Huang desired or wished to play with, her father would spare no expense, even if it meant dipping into the hard-earned savings he had secretly stashed away. Her big brother was slightly less indulgent than her father. Despite his sturdy frame, he would often let her climb onto his back, and more frequently, he would play the role of her steed. When she wanted to pluck persimmons from her grandfather’s tree, she would often stand on her brother’s shoulders, steadying herself against the trunk.

Her mother, however, was the strictest with her. When Yao Huang was young and would play outside until dark, her mother, frantic with worry, would grab a fire poker and spank her. Yet, Yao Huang still dared to ignore some of her mother’s commands, sneaking out whenever she pleased. It wasn’t until she gradually grew older and wiser that she became a young lady who understood not to worry her parents.

Such a headstrong girl, once married, found herself obediently following every instruction from her prince husband. The prince neither used a commanding tone nor coaxed her like her parents did when they tried to get her to take medicine. His words were brief, calm, and gentle, yet because of his legs, Yao Huang couldn’t bring herself to refuse.

When the prince told her to move up, Yao Huang slowly inched forward until she reached the headboard. When he told her to lift her left leg, then her right, she complied without protest. When he instructed her to lower her hands, she no longer dared to cover her face, instead tightly closing her eyes and nervously clutching the expensive silk bedsheet. She even played a little trick, deliberately twisting a corner of the sheet into a flower shape, hoping to show him how unbearable this was for her. Surely, if he had any conscience, he wouldn’t torment her further?

A large hand grasped her fist that was clutching the twisted sheet, startling her into loosening her grip, and the “flower” fell apart.

Yao Huang tried to keep her legs tightly together and said in a tearful voice, “Your Highness, what exactly are you trying to do?”

Zhao Sui’s response was the same as before: “You brought this upon yourself.”

For the past two nights, she had been provoking him, and that morning in the courtyard, she had spoken without restraint. The fact that he hadn’t taken her directly to the bamboo courtyard was already a sign of his restraint.

Yao Huang, overwhelmed with fear and unable to endure any longer, curled up like a shrimp, ducking under his arm and wrapping herself around him from behind. She used his body to shield herself, pressing her legs together and tucking them to the side to minimize what he could see. Once hidden, she began to reason with him in a small voice: “It’s true that I was the one who first caught Your Highness’s eye and persuaded you to choose me as your princess consort. But you yourself admitted that you don’t look down on my family’s low official status and that you like my appearance. We’ve been getting along just fine these past few days. I haven’t offended you in any way, so why are you embarrassing me like this?”

Zhao Sui lowered his head, looking at the delicate, pale figure clinging to him like a water snake. “I’m not embarrassing you. I just want to take a closer look at my princess consort.”

Yao Huang: “…But not like this! If Your Highness really wants to look, you can look at my face.”

Zhao Sui: “How do you know other couples don’t look at each other this way?”

Yao Huang truly didn’t know and was about to argue further when the prince raised his right hand. His movement was so natural and effortless that it seemed as if Yao Huang had willingly offered herself up!

Yao Huang stared longingly at the edge of the bed, so close that if she were just a bit braver, she could slip away like an eel.

But could she really abandon the prince, who couldn’t use his legs, and leave him alone on the bed? Could she take advantage of her agility to bully him when he couldn’t move?

Yao Huang couldn’t bring herself to do such a thing. Instead, she grabbed the blanket on his side and pulled it over her head. Let him look all he wanted—as long as she couldn’t see, it didn’t matter.

—

In the side room, Ah Ji had already laid out her bedding. She glanced at the door to the inner chamber, recalling that the last time she was on night duty, the princess consort had called for water after about half an hour. So, she decided to wait in the main hall, sitting on a chair. The sounds the princess consort made were like a cat’s tail tickling her heart—it was better not to listen.

The Prince Hui’s mansion was vast, and the Ming’an Hall was far removed from the neighboring residences. Without the loud noises or barking dogs from the streets, the night was exceptionally quiet.

Even though there was an additional wall separating them, Ah Ji could still faintly hear the princess consort’s voice. Fortunately, it was much softer than when she was in the side room. Ah Ji took out the cotton she had prepared earlier, rolled it into tight balls, and stuffed them into her ears, finally achieving some peace.

The prince’s mansion had many small and convenient water clocks, and Ah Ji had brought one out, placing it on the table.

When there was still a little time left before the half-hour mark, Ah Ji removed the cotton from her ears. Just as she took it out, a rather clear sound came from inside…

Ah Ji stuck out her tongue and quickly stuffed the cotton back into her left ear, leaving her right ear free. She was afraid that the prince and princess consort might be nearing the end, and if she missed the princess consort’s call, the princess consort might not get angry with her, but the prince might not be so forgiving.

Ah Ji waited for another half-hour.

By now, Ah Ji was starting to feel sorry for the princess consort. She didn’t know the specifics of what was happening, but the princess consort’s crying was genuine. Even if it wasn’t painful, it certainly couldn’t be very comfortable, could it?

Ah Ji quietly carried the water clock back to the side room, preparing herself to go in when needed.

Inside the inner chamber, Yao Huang was held tightly in Prince Hui’s arms. By the time she could finally hear the sounds around her again, the prince’s breathing had already returned to normal.

Recalling all her earlier humiliations, Yao Huang couldn’t contain her frustration. She grabbed the prince’s arm and bit down on his wrist.

A muffled laugh came from above her head.

Yao Huang bit down even harder.

Zhao Sui didn’t feel any pain; instead, he found her lips incredibly soft. Suddenly, he realized that at this moment, it wasn’t just her mouth that was holding onto him.

Zhao Sui easily freed his wrist from her grasp, as her grip held little strength.

Yao Huang indeed hadn’t vented enough, but when the prince, in all his dignity, actually offered his fingers to her as a form of punishment, she suddenly felt too embarrassed to continue. She pushed his hand away and huffed, “You didn’t listen to me earlier. What’s the use of pretending to be nice now?”

After hearing her complaint, Zhao Sui continued to offer his fingers to her.

Yao Huang turned her face away in disdain. “It’s too dirty. I won’t bite.” Had he forgotten where that hand had been?

Zhao Sui was willing to clean it for her, but there was no water prepared by the bedside, and even if there were, he couldn’t turn away at this moment.

It was almost May, and Yao Huang was drenched in sweat. Being held by Prince Hui felt like one furnace pressed against another. Just as Yao Huang was about to tell him to move away, she froze in disbelief. “You…”

Zhao Sui said nothing, only tightening his right arm around her. He had his thoughts, but there was no rush. Lying like this was fine; they could rest for a while and continue later.

If Yao Huang had a choice, she would have preferred to clean up and go straight to sleep. But when she remembered that starting tomorrow, the prince wouldn’t be coming over for four consecutive nights, she felt she could endure a little longer.

Ah Ji, who had been standing outside the door for quite some time: “…”

—

By the time Ah Ji finally carried the two buckets of warm water into the inner chamber, it was almost the second watch of the night. When she entered, the heavy curtains of the canopy bed were drawn, and the princess consort wasn’t standing outside as she had been on the first night after the wedding.

The heavy buckets landed on the floor with two dull thuds.

Inside the bed curtains, Yao Huang forced herself to stay alert and told Ah Ji she could leave, instructing her to come back and clean up in the morning.

After Ah Ji left, Yao Huang first put on her undergarments before weakly sitting up. Beside her, Prince Hui was already leaning against the headboard, calmly holding a book he had set aside earlier. His expression was serene, his heart as still as water, as if the past hour hadn’t involved him making her do all those embarrassing things or repeatedly bringing her to tears!

Meanwhile, Yao Huang looked at herself—her hair was a mess, her undergarments were crumpled, and even the innermost layer of clothing had been hastily removed in the heat of the moment…

Yao Huang, fuming, snatched the book from his hand.

Zhao Sui glanced at her, his gaze gradually drifting downward. The sleeping garments of the prince and princess consort were made of the finest silk, lightweight and breathable for summer. The prince’s were mostly white, while the princess consort’s were much more vibrant. Tonight, Yao Huang was wearing a bright red one, with floral embroidery along the collar and sleeves. Yao Huang wasn’t particularly meticulous, thinking she would clean up later, so she had only loosely tied the garment. In her haste to snatch the book, the collar had come undone.

Yao Huang followed the prince’s gaze and looked down, her anger flaring even more. She quickly shoved the book back at him, preferring that he pretend to read rather than look at her.

Making sure the prince wasn’t staring, Yao Huang turned her back to him and put on her pants. It was during this process that she noticed a few places on the silk bedsheet where the threads had frayed, and one spot was damp. Blushing, she examined the area while trying to recall, but she couldn’t quite determine the source.

“What’s wrong?” Zhao Sui asked, noticing her sitting motionless, and set the book aside.

Yao Huang, still facing away, slapped the frayed spot in frustration.

Zhao Sui looked at it, then at her nails. “Next time, I’ll prepare a handkerchief for you to grip.”

Yao Huang: “…If you’d be gentler, I wouldn’t have to.”

Zhao Sui went back to reading.

Yao Huang got out of bed and pointed to the wheelchair. “You get down first. I need to change the bedsheet.”

Zhao Sui glanced at the wheelchair and said, “Let’s make do for tonight. The maid can change it in the morning.”

Yao Huang: “Fine, you sleep on the inside.”

She didn’t seem like the type to be so fussy over a few frayed threads. Zhao Sui inspected the inner part of the sheet and finally noticed the damp spot.

The pampered Prince Hui had no desire to endure such discomfort, nor would he let his princess consort suffer. He said to the book, “You go wash first. We’ll change it after.”

Yao Huang: “I’ll get a towel for you.”

Zhao Sui silently agreed.

After handing him the towel and placing the bucket by the bedside, Yao Huang took the other bucket to the inner chamber.

She took longer to finish, and by the time she came out, Zhao Sui had already tidied up. He was sitting in his wheelchair, wearing his undergarments, which were barely damp with sweat. The bedding had been piled in the corner, and the bedsheet had been pulled off and neatly folded.

Yao Huang muttered under her breath, “The maids in the laundry room are going to wonder what happened…”

Zhao Sui replied, “They’ve all been trained in proper etiquette. They won’t gossip.”

Yao Huang shot him another glare, tossed the bedsheet into the bamboo basket, and fetched a new one from the wardrobe. After spreading it out, she finally turned off the lights and went to sleep.

Yao Huang slept deeply and soundly, but she had an embarrassing dream in which the prince approached her again.

When she suddenly woke up and realized it wasn’t a dream, the prince was already nearly done.

Yao Huang, still drowsy, momentarily forgot her husband’s royal status. She pushed him away while trying to retreat further into the bed.

She managed to escape his weakened legs but couldn’t break free from his strong arms. With a casual pull, Zhao Sui brought his cotton-soft princess consort back into his embrace.

“One last time,” Zhao Sui whispered in her ear.

Yao Huang regained some clarity and squinted at the prince’s shadow in the darkness. Half-resisting, half-yielding, she agreed but set a condition: “Don’t take so long this time.”

The prince agreed.

Then Yao Huang cried until the first rays of morning light filtered through the window paper.

At her most tearful moment, Zhao Sui comforted her, “I won’t come over for the next few nights. You can do whatever you want during that time. I won’t disturb you.”

Yao Huang, dazed and incoherent, mumbled, “Of course you won’t come over… I’m about to die…”

Zhao Sui covered her mouth with his hand.

By the time the sky was fully bright, Zhao Sui tucked the princess consort in tightly, covering her from neck to toe, before calling Qing Ai inside.

As he left the inner chamber in his wheelchair, Zhao Sui addressed the five maids, including Ah Ji, with the second directive he had given them since the wedding: “Unless summoned by the princess consort, no one is to enter and disturb her.”