Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 447 Integration
"Safety."

Li Zhao called out softly, his voice hoarse and deep.

For a moment, Xue Sui's thoughts wandered.

His hand was still on her waist. She could feel the strength of his embrace and sense his restrained love, but she was still not used to such unreserved tenderness.

When her breathing catches up with each other, she always tenses up unconsciously.

It's not disgust, nor is it resistance.

But it's impossible to be completely relaxed.

She felt she wasn't a normal woman.

In matters of love and relationships, she often calmly examines herself, perhaps due to her childhood experiences and the scars covering her body...

When she and Li Zhao were still strangers, she could walk into Youhuang Residence like an emotionless puppet, calmly take off her clothes in that dark room teeming with snakes and insects, letting him see her scars, as calm as a monster without warmth.

But now, their hearts are connected. She clearly enjoys his warmth, her heart swells with tender emotions, yet her body instinctively feels timid, unwilling to let him look closely at the scars, arrow wounds, and poison wounds that represent her dark past...

I both covet and fear...

They wanted to get close, but were also afraid of being seen through.

Unable to remain calm.

Li Zhao did not push his luck; he simply silently tightened his arms around her, holding her even closer and more securely, his chin gently brushing against her short hair on her forehead, his breath soft and tender.

"what happened?"

"Your Highness..."

She slowly raised her eyes to meet his lowered gaze.

His face, so close yet so handsome, was incredibly striking.

His brow bones were high, his eye sockets cast small shadows under the light, and his lips were slightly curved with soft lines, showing no trace of the majesty of the Crown Prince.

"Am I... a spoilsport?" she asked.

"What's the fun about?" Li Zhao looked down at her hand pressed against his chest, gently touched her knuckles, and breathed on her ear.

"I have that much patience. I won't overstep the bounds until our wedding night."

"No." Xue Sui hurriedly shook her head, grabbing his collar. "I didn't mean that... I just..."

She didn't finish her sentence.

It got stuck in my throat again.

Li Zhao stopped what he was doing.

He leaned slightly forward, his gaze intently capturing her eyes, as if investigating, or perhaps judging...

They spent a long time together, facing life-or-death situations side by side, and had many tender and affectionate moments...

She wasn't a coy or pretentious woman. When he was injured, she didn't hesitate to undress him and treat his wounds. When he was sick, she wiped his body to cool him down, without adhering to traditional gender norms. She could even calmly soothe him when he was suffering from the effects of a love spell…

But precisely during tender moments of intimacy, she would subconsciously withdraw, refusing further physical contact...

This appearance is completely different from Xue Ping'an, who could draw his sword and kill enemies without changing his expression.

"It's alright." Li Zhao patted her back and tidied her messy short hair behind her ear.

"Once I have cleansed the court, I will welcome you into the palace with a grand procession of red bridal procession. Then I will slowly teach you to get used to it. We have a long life ahead of us."

"Your Highness, no..."

"Hmm?" Li Zhao was about to ask.

Xue Sui suddenly lifted her waist, using the momentum to get closer, and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck.

She applied force with a sudden, almost desperate determination. In the instant Li Zhao was stunned, she tilted her head back and gently bit his Adam's apple.

A gentle bump, almost reckless and clumsy.

Hearing his muffled, suppressed groan, she slowly released him and instead covered his cool, soft lips with hers.

Li Zhao was clearly taken aback by her sudden initiative. His body stiffened for a moment, but he quickly recovered, pulling her close and taking the initiative. With a tender, long-suppressed passion, he kissed her deeply, forcefully proving to her how strong and real his desire for her was...

Xue Sui closed his eyes.

...She really was more attached to him than anyone imagined.

This feeling is familiar, but it has never been as clear as it is tonight.

My heart was pounding so fast and wildly that it hurt my chest.

My mind wants to escape, but my body tells me otherwise...

In the warm light that filled the room, the chaotic breathing was hot and sticky, the breaths intertwined, a struggle of repression and restraint, like wild beasts fighting, indistinguishable from one another.

He kissed her, slightly out of breath, his voice tinged with laughter.

Why did you suddenly agree?

Xue Sui buried her face in the crook of his neck and responded in a muffled voice.

“I come from the Old Marshland…”

"how?"

"I only know how to survive, not how to love." Her voice lowered. "I learned about the survival of the fittest, how to kill, and how to survive. Relationships between men and women are nothing more than tools for procreation; I never talked about love or tenderness..."

Li Zhao chuckled softly, his lips pressed against her sensitive neck, as if to soothe her, yet also as if a wild beast were marking her, ready to bite through her veins at any moment.

"What a coincidence, so am I. The Crown Prince learned the art of emperors and the strategy of controlling ministers. Romantic love is nothing more than a means to prolong the lineage and consolidate power; I usually can't be bothered with it."

Xue Sui's arm tightened suddenly. He pressed his earlobe against hers, his voice hoarse and barely audible.

"But I am certain that I love Xue Ping'an and everything about you to the extreme."

Simple love words are the most touching.

The heat from his body seeped through his clothes, hotter than his words, pressing against me like a branding iron.

"Snow-white skin and gray hair, radiant like jade. A solitary peace, exquisitely beautiful."

Xue Sui trembled uncontrollably.

She gasped, "Your Highness is lying. I am covered in scars and am not beautiful."

“In my heart, Ping An is unique and unmatched.” Li Zhao smiled and pinched her chin, making her look up at him, his eyes full of seriousness.

"If anyone should be called self-deprecating, it should be me. I rarely see Ping An cry, I seldom see Ping An laugh, I never see a woman's gentle demeanor, and when she does occasionally show a bit of admiration for me, she hides it very well..."

He spoke in a low, slightly hoarse voice, gently kissing the corner of her lips.

"I often wonder how much of Ping An's heart is filled with affection for me, and how much is resignation after weighing the pros and cons?"

The man's voice was deep, tinged with uncertainty and trepidation, like that of a young man experiencing his first love.

He was clearly showing weakness, yet his voice seemed to hook her, lingering in the softest part of her heart...

Xue Sui felt as if she were melting in his warm embrace, her back covered in fine sweat, her heart pounding, and her voice trembling softly as if it had been soaked in a clear spring.

"Your Highness and I share a bond that transcends life and death."

“Yes, we are kindred spirits…” he continued, kissing her, his voice so seductive it made one’s heart tremble, “So, we’re a match made in heaven.”

“…Nonsense.” Xue Sui breathed heavily as she dodged his lips, her cheeks burning. “I am not as ruthless as Your Highness.”

"Mmm." Li Zhao readily agreed, then suddenly chuckled and pinched her waist. "I'm not as soft as Ping An..."

Xue Sui's ears burned, and his cheeks felt as if they were on fire.

"Your Highness is becoming more and more unserious."

Li Zhao's heart pounded even harder.

The woman in his arms, usually decisive and ruthless, was now sensitive and tender. Her eyes were tinged with spring-like color, like fine brocade basking in the sun, making him want to meld her into his very bones and cherish and protect her even more.

only……

The Crown Prince Zhao, in his early twenties, though of noble birth and with extensive knowledge, had never had a concubine or been intimate with any other woman. Although he knew a great deal about the palace, at this moment, he could only rely on his heart to sketch her outline...

"Li Zhao..."

Xue Sui raised his hand and placed it on his shoulder.

It was as if she wanted to push him away, yet also as if she wanted to embrace him more deeply.

"Don't be so good to me."

"Why?" Li Zhao grasped her fingers, brought them to his lips, and gently kissed them. "You deserve it, and I am willing to do so."

"Your Highness, do you know..." Xue Sui's fingertips were numb, and even his toes felt a strange tingling.

“I’ve killed a lot of people…” she said.

The night in the old mausoleum was stained with blood.

The amount of blood on his hands is countless.

"Me too." Li Zhao chuckled and kissed her.

“I still have many more people to kill…” she said again.

“What a coincidence, me too.” Li Zhao lifted her up and gently placed her on the large, sturdy desk behind him, leaning over her and supporting himself on top of her.

The shadows of the two were cast onto the window paper by the lamplight, overlapping closely as if they were one.

"Your Highness..."

"Shh, don't speak..."

He lowered his head, his nose brushing against hers, his tone both doting and threatening.

"If you get distracted again, I might bully you?"

"..."

Xue Sui finally closed his eyes obediently.

He was incredibly patient. He leaned down and gently surveyed her, like a spring breeze and rain, almost completely enveloping her figure and soothing her unease and shyness little by little.

The temperature between breaths is getting higher and higher...

Xue Sui moaned softly, seemingly both intoxicated and tormented. In his tender and lingering kisses, he slowly broke down and melted away the calm and ruthless self he always was, reshaping a new Ping An who dared to hate and love...

When emotions run deep...

Suddenly, Jinshu's soft cough came from outside.

"Young lady, the eldest young master has arrived. Hearing that His Highness is here, he inquires if it would be convenient for him to meet?"

Once I asked if it was convenient, there was no problem.

Xue Sui hurriedly broke free from Li Zhao's embrace, glanced at him, quickly straightened her clothes and hair, and cleared her throat.

"Quickly, please invite the eldest son in."

(End of this chapter)