The prince is more stable

Chapter 905 Getting what you want

He'd been with many women in his life, but Zhao Xiaoqian had never experienced anything like this before.

As for Bai Yueguang, not to mention her terrible acting skills, her act of pretending to be drunk was so stiff that Zhao Xiaoqian didn't know whether he should continue to play along with her.

If I don't play along, I'll be letting her down, and she'll be disappointed in his shy, yearning way of wanting me to take the initiative.

Playing along with her feels like demeaning myself, dragging my intelligence and acting skills down to her level, which would be a disservice to my second chance at life.

Looking at Yelü Nanxian, who was pretending to be drunk and slumped on the table, Zhao Xiaoqian was in a terrible predicament.

Of course, to be honest, the action of lying on the table was quite remarkable; he really didn't move at all, and his exaggerated acting skills had become art.

They're on par with the extras playing corpses in Hengdian.

"Nanxian, Nanxian? Are you really drunk?" Zhao Xiaoqian gently patted her shoulder.

Yelü Nanxian remained motionless, lying face down on the table.

Now, this is called professionalism.

After thinking it over, Zhao Xiaoqian decided to continue acting alongside her.

This woman is aloof and rarely takes the initiative. If she misses out today, she probably won't have the courage to act again next time.

After waiting for a moment, Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly bent down and picked up Yelü Nanxian horizontally.

Yes, the princess was being carried in a princess carry.

After being picked up, Yelü Nanxian trembled slightly, her eyes tightly closed, her long eyelashes trembling slightly, and one hand gripping the hem of her clothes tightly.

Zhao Xiaoqian chuckled softly and carried her to the bed in the bedroom.

He laid her down by the bedside and sighed as he looked at her slightly trembling eyelashes.

"Ahem, you get some rest, I'm leaving." Zhao Xiaoqian said with a wicked smile.

Yelü Nanxian's eyelashes trembled even more violently, clearly indicating that she was experiencing a fierce internal struggle.

Just as Zhao Xiaoqian turned around, as if to leave, he suddenly felt his clothes being tugged.

Turning his head, he saw that Yelü Nanxian had opened her eyes, her cheeks flushed but her gaze fixed on him with unwavering determination.

Her eyes were as deep as ink, containing twinkling stars and him, as bright as the moon.

"Don't go," Yelü Nanxian said, her voice trembling.

Zhao Xiaoqian raised an eyebrow: "Have you thought it through? If you give yourself to me, you will never be able to return to your homeland for the rest of your life."

"...Don't leave."

These two words, more resolute than a confession, represent the courage to risk one's entire life.

Zhao Xiaoqian stopped talking, took off his shoes, and lay down.

A plain-colored veil was lowered, red candles flickered inside the hall, and waves of red and pink danced all night long.

…………

As dawn broke, a palace maid quietly entered the bedchamber. The two people on the bed were still fast asleep. Yelü Nanxian's hair covered her face, and the few parts of her face that were visible looked extremely tired. Her brows were slightly furrowed, and she seemed to be feeling unwell.

The palace maid quietly and tactfully withdrew, a hint of joy appearing on her lips.

Since she began serving the Liao princess, Yelü Nanxian has remained aloof and indifferent. However, the palace maids are secretly worried for her. After all, the emperor has never summoned her to his bedchamber, and many rumors have been circulating in the palace. In the end, everyone regards Yelü Nanxian as an unfavored concubine, as if it is only a matter of time before she is banished to the cold palace.

As a result, the palace maids around her also suffered a lot of scorn and injustice.

The palace has always been a place of fierce struggle and extreme snobbery. Whoever's master is favored, the palace maids around him can walk around looking down on others with their noses in the air.

If a mistress is not summoned to the emperor's bedchamber, it means that she has fallen out of favor, and she and the maids serving her will face great difficulties.

Last night and today, when the palace maid saw the Emperor finally lying in the same bed with her master, she felt a sense of relief and joy, as if a huge weight had been lifted from her heart.

They finally fell asleep!

They're the ones who're having a good time, so why do I feel like crying?
Inside the bedchamber, Yelü Nanxian quietly opened her eyes.

She was a light sleeper and woke up when the palace maid came in. She immediately realized that there was a man lying next to her, and Yelü Nanxian blushed. She thought of all the intimate moments with him last night, all the embarrassing nonsense and knowledge they had shared...

It was now daylight, and her mind, clouded by lust, had finally cleared. Thinking back on the events of the previous night, she just wanted to disappear into the ground or start a new life on another planet…

Suddenly, she heard the sound of a man turning over beside her. Yelü Nanxian trembled with fright and quickly closed her eyes tightly.

After a long silence, Yelü Nanxian was about to open her eyes to take a look when she heard Zhao Xiaoqian's soft laughter.

"Your acting of pretending to be asleep is just as exaggerated as your acting of pretending to be drunk. The deed is done, what are you still pretending for?"

Yelü Nanxian was so startled she almost jumped off the bed. She opened her eyes wide, glaring at him with a mixture of shame and anger: "You, you, you..."

Zhao Xiaoqian was looking at her with a smile when he raised his hand and flicked her on the forehead.

"What do you mean, 'you'? Call me 'sir'."

Yelü Nanxian opened her mouth, but after a long while, blushing, she said in a low voice, "...My lord."

"That's right, you are already my woman... no, I should say, you have already possessed me. At this moment, you should be hiding under the covers and secretly laughing, telling yourself with satisfaction, 'It was worth it for me to sleep with the current emperor in this lifetime!'"

Yelü Nanxianxing's eyes widened even more, staring at him with a look of disbelief.

How could he say such shameless things so confidently, without a trace of a joke on his face? It seemed as if he truly meant what he said, as if that was exactly what he thought.

"you you you……"

With a sharp slap, Zhao Xiaoqian slapped her: "Forgot what to call me again?"

Yelü Nanxian took a deep breath and said in a wronged tone, "...My lord."

Zhao Xiaoqian laughed heartily, then suddenly said, "Last night..."

Yelü Nanxian was startled and quickly covered her head with the quilt, saying shyly, "My lord, please don't mention last night, let's forget about it!"

"That won't do, I remember you last night..."

Before he could finish speaking, a slender hand, carrying a faint fragrance, covered his mouth. Yelü Nanxian's clear, cool yet shy eyes peeked out from under the covers.

"My lord, please don't mention it anymore, okay?" Yelü Nanxian's tone was pleading.

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled: "Alright, let's not go into the details of last night, but I have a question for you to answer."

"You said."

"Our relationship was quite stable before, so why did you suddenly decide to change it and become my woman?"

As long as the embarrassing and shameful incident from last night wasn't mentioned, Yelü Nanxian was willing to answer the other questions.

"I...I'm a little scared."

"What are you afraid of?"

"I am a Liao woman, and I have no one to rely on in the Song Dynasty. The only person I am close to is you. I am afraid that you are too busy and have too many women around you. If you forget me one day, I will really be just a piece of duckweed drifting with the tide in this world."

"I've had enough of living a life where I have no control over my own destiny. If I still can't be free and my life is forever controlled by others, I'd rather die than live such a life."

Zhao Xiaoqian blinked: "What does this have to do with you pledging yourself to me?"

Yelü Nanxian smiled slightly and said, "You are someone I can entrust my life to."

"Why? Because I am the emperor, or because I can sweep across the Liao Kingdom and look down upon the world?"

Yelü Nanxian's smile deepened: "No, I've never cared about those things. Whether you're a hero or a coward, that's how outsiders see you."

"What I admire is your attitude towards your women, your heartfelt respect and care. Sister, Niao Niao, Miao Xian, they all seem so happy, carefree, doing what they love, and their conversations about you are full of admiration."

"I also wish to be like them, a happy and content woman, to live such a life, how fortunate I would be."

Zhao Xiaoqian was slightly moved and couldn't help but hug her tightly.

Yelü Nanxian closed her eyes in his arms and let out a satisfied sigh.

It seems like living like this for the rest of my life wouldn't be so bad.

No, it's actually quite good.

The two lay on the bed, quietly enjoying a cozy moment that belonged only to each other.

After a long silence, Zhao Xiaoqian whispered, "Nanxian..."

"Ok?"

"Ying'er, Niaoniao, and Miaoxian are very happy by my side, but they are also very sensible."

Yelü Nanxian opened her eyes and said earnestly, "I will be sensible too."

Do you know what a truly sensible woman does?

"Sir, please speak."

"A truly sensible woman will take the initiative to sit on her man before he wakes up in the morning, and clean herself up afterwards..."

…………

For an entire day, Zhao Xiaoqian and Yelü Nanxian did not leave their sleeping quarters.

The power of the "white moonlight" (a metaphor for something unattractive or harmful) is too great, at least it's very damaging to the kidneys.

For reasons unknown, perhaps it was the unrequited love he felt in his youth in a past life, or perhaps it was the sense of accomplishment from conquering a cold and aloof woman in this life, Zhao Xiaoqian spent the whole day doing absurd things.

Now he finally understood the true value of "from then on, the emperor no longer held morning court".

I really don't have the energy for the morning court session.

Another day passed in a daze in Yelü Nanxian's bedchamber. The next day, with her reluctant gaze, Zhao Xiaoqian finally hardened his heart and left.

If I don't leave soon, I'll turn into a scumbag.

…………

Because of the emperor's debauchery and tyranny, court was suspended for a day yesterday.

After leaving Yelü Nanxian's bedroom today, Zhao Xiaoqian returned to Funing Palace first.

Zheng Chunhe looked at him with concern and said in a low voice, "Your Majesty has dark circles under your eyes. You must have been working hard on state affairs these past two nights and have had trouble sleeping. Should I summon the imperial physician to take a look at Your Majesty?"

Zhao Xiaoqian waved his hand and refused: "I am indeed too busy with state affairs, so there is no need for the imperial physician. I will be fine after a few days of rest. I will sleep in the Funing Palace for the next few days, and no woman is allowed to come near me."

"Yes, I obey your order."

Zhao Xiaoqian nodded and said, "Summon Zhang Dun, Su Zhe, Cai Bian and others from the Council of State Affairs to the Funing Palace."

Half an hour later, Prime Minister Zhang Dun and others entered the hall to pay their respects.

Today, the expressions of the prime ministers underwent some subtle changes, changes so subtle that those not involved would hardly notice them.

It was a profound sense of awe and an indescribable submission.

At the court assembly that day, Emperor Zhao Xiaoqian issued an imperial edict in vermilion ink, ordering the execution of Zeng Shuli, the prefect of Chenzhou, and more than eighty others involved in the case. The court immediately fell silent.

Those court officials who used to love to talk big, who liked to use benevolence and morality to intimidate others, and who liked to talk about ancestral rules and filial piety, are now as if they have been put under a spell to silence them.

Since Zhao Xiaoqian ascended the throne, he has always been the ultimate victor in the power struggle between the emperor and his ministers.

The ministers' weapons were morality, ancestral rules, the teachings of sages and virtuous men, and the so-called "way of benevolence and righteousness".

Zhao Xiaoqian didn't have many fancy tricks; his weapons were reason, law, imperial power, and the butcher's knife.

The only thing lacking is morality.

That thing has been used by too many people; it's dirty. Zhao Xiaoqian disdains using it.

Whenever court officials invoked the weapon of "morality," Zhao Xiaoqian's expression was always strange, like watching someone lick a used toilet.

Don’t understand, but respect.

(End of this chapter)