Chronicles of the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 311, Section 310: Peach Blossoms and Jade Blossoms (Pure Romance)
The woman was truly worried, her eyes filled with concern.

And during the Qin Dynasty...

She thought about her relationship with Ji Heng—the progress of a romantic relationship between a man and a woman, the bedroom plays a big role, doesn't it?

If things don't go well, she'll have to pretend, which will make things even harder for her.
At this moment, all he could do was pat the red woman's hand: "You're so young, yet you have so many worries—don't worry, you'll have a child sooner or later."

He paused, then added, "My love for Your Majesty is deep, so there's no need for words."

The last sentence was not deliberately lowered in voice, and the servants who were rushing around in the hall paused in their tracks upon hearing it.

Alas! The Queen is good in every way, except that her enthusiasm and boldness are like those of the Chu people, which makes these somewhat upright old Qin people a little uncomfortable.

Before the thought even crossed his mind, the Queen instructed again: "Come, quickly help me take care of these matters—it's inconvenient to take a bath in the manor, so I need to wash and massage my hair properly later."

……

As dusk fell, the brilliant sunlight that filled the Zhangtai Palace had long since faded, and the hall was now illuminated by numerous candles.

All the court officials had left, leaving only Ji Heng reviewing memorials one by one until the layers of bamboo slips on his desk gradually disappeared. He reached out his hand, but did not touch the next scroll.

When they looked again, there was no paper left.

Zhou Ju then seized the opportunity to laugh and said, "Your Majesty, the Queen just returned to the palace today, and she and her attendants were already eagerly expressing their feelings to you in the hall..."

He softened his voice, and when he saw Ji Heng looking over, he said softly, "The Queen said that she and the King are deeply in love and have missed each other very much since they haven't seen each other for many days."

As he said this, Zhou Ju's cheeks flushed slightly—his words were so bold and direct that even the eunuchs hesitated when they came to deliver them, and he was deeply shocked after hearing them.

But looking at the king's expression now—could it be that he has been with the king for so many years and did not know that the other party was most susceptible to this kind of thing?

Ji Heng sighed inwardly.

However, the queen has always been like this; even before she was crowned queen, she openly and sincerely expressed her admiration.

After being sealed off, she showed no fear of people whatsoever, and would try to hug and embrace him in front of the palace, striving to get close to him...

When a woman falls in love, she can be truly obsessed.

The thought crossed his mind, but he had already nimbly stood up and said, "The Queen has worked so hard for my Qin Kingdom, and I really cannot let her feel disheartened—return to Ganquan Palace."

……

Just as Ji Heng had predicted.

When he arrived at Ganquan Palace, the Queen and her entourage were already waiting at the palace gate.

The queen loved cleanliness. She had probably just bathed and changed her clothes. Her fluffy hair was not combed with hair oil, but instead loosely tied with a gold brocade ribbon.

Below the brocade ribbon, a white tassel inlaid with jade hung loosely, causing one to frown upon seeing it.

Wearing a simple white dress, the Queen approached Ji Heng as he alighted from his carriage, her movements as graceful as a pear blossom in the spring breeze.

With a deep smile and bright, unwavering gaze, she grasped Ji Heng's hot, dry, and strong hand.

The soft, delicate, and slightly cool fingertips pressed gently against Ji Heng's palm, as if lightly pressing on his heart, even the voice was soft and gentle:

"Your Majesty, I miss you so much."

As she spoke, her forehead gently touched his arm.

The accompanying attendants all lowered their heads.

Even Zhou Ju remained silent, refusing to follow the Queen's lead at this moment.

Ji Heng paused, feeling a strange soreness in his chest for a moment, but he silently stood there waiting for the Queen to finish her coquettish act before subconsciously taking her hand in his and striding up the steps.

He also comforted her, saying, "Your Majesty, you've worked hard." Qin Shicai would never say that he hadn't worked hard.

She gently shook Ji Heng's hand again before saying, "It must have been very tiring. Is that all Your Majesty is willing to say? I even brought a gift for Your Majesty."

Ji Heng was speechless for a moment, then spoke again after entering the hall: "My private treasury..."

He paused, then remembered that the Queen had already been granted access to the private treasury, so he changed his mind:
"The Queen is skilled in managing people's livelihoods, and in the future, she should recruit more talented people to serve her. Recently, a new coal mine has been opened in Guanzhong, which is not too far from Su Su Village. Let's give it to the Queen as well."

Unexpectedly, there was such a surprise in Qin Shi.

She simply felt that absence makes the heart grow fonder, and therefore wanted to express her feelings more openly and assert her presence.

But since the king seemed to fall for this, she stopped focusing on the coal mine and instead relented, gently putting her arm around Ji Heng's waist and sincerely saying:

"Your Majesty is so kind to me."

It's really great! Although she seemed nonchalant, the Guanzhong open-pit coal mine was already a fairly large mine, and giving it to her now meant a steady stream of money and income.

She's so restrained even when she's just being affectionate, or even just touching foreheads, holding hands, or cuddling... Yet her handsome and wealthy husband gave her a tiny share of his trillion-dollar conglomerate...

OMG!

Qin Shi, who considered himself worldly, was deeply moved.

Ganquan Palace was silent, and the servants served quietly inside, each minimizing their presence.

Seeing that the King and Queen had sat down for a while, many people quietly withdrew, leaving only trusted confidants waiting outside the curtain.

Ji Heng, seeing the Queen so infatuated, surprisingly did not feel annoyed. He simply stared at the tassels in her hair that reached her waist and sighed inwardly.

It is unclear whether he was lamenting the Queen or himself.

For Qin Shi, with the emotional exchange temporarily over, she returned to her business:
"Your Majesty, I have a very important gift to present to you—but I wonder if you could grant me a noble title?"

Title of nobility?

The Qin state now implements a twenty-rank military merit system. Since the Queen has specifically mentioned it, the lowest rank is a mid-level rank, such as the Fifth Rank, or even the highest rank such as Minister, Marquis, or even the Grand Marquis.

In the Qin state, such top-level noble titles could only be bestowed upon those who had made outstanding military achievements.

Now that the six kingdoms have been pacified and the war against the Baiyue has been temporarily suspended, the Xiongnu and Qiangdi are still on guard and there is no military merit to be made for the next year or two.

If a title is conferred for a trivial matter, there will likely be discontent throughout the court and among officials.

But Ji Heng merely frowned and immediately said:

"The Queen's status is second only to mine. If this person has truly rendered meritorious service, send someone to Zhangtai Palace to explain the importance of the matter, and then bestow the reward upon him."

Qin Shi was somewhat surprised by his decisiveness, but at this moment, she simply released his hand again and solemnly promised:

"I will certainly not fail Your Majesty's trust."

Ji Heng looked at her sincere and solemn expression and softened his tone: "Your Majesty has the Great Qin in your heart, and I know that too."

Qin Shi paused, then slowly shook his head, his gaze fixed intently on him, truly sincere:

"Now, in the Queen's heart, the King is more important than the Qin Dynasty."

You gave me a peach, and I reciprocated with a precious jade.

Moreover, what you gave me was precious jade.

　Here they come! The Queen, showered with rich rewards, and the King, with even more rich rewards...

　　(End of this chapter)