The Crazy Emperor's Pampered Cousin

"Coming home an hour late... Jiaojiao, tell me, what should the punishment be, hmm?"

Shen Tinghe's body trembled slightly, even her fingertips were flushed with a soft pink: "This...this isn't considered a punishment?"

Her lips had been sucked and held in his mouth forcefully.

She felt like she was being kissed to death.

Xie Yanzhao's fingertips brushed against the corner of her moist eye: "What do you think?"

Shen Tinghe grabbed his collar, tilted her flushed face up, and spoke in a coquettish tone without realizing it.

"I was late today because I was saving someone, and instead of praising me, my brother is being so fierce..."

Upon hearing this, Xie Yanzhao's eyes suddenly darkened.

He scooped her up in his arms, his hand landing on her buttocks with a crisp sound.

"Putting oneself in danger is what deserves the most severe punishment."

At first, it was indeed intended as a punishment, but the soft, plump touch attracted his palm like a magnet.

He couldn't help but strike a few more times, but the force subtly changed, becoming more of a caress than a beating.

Xie Yanzhao hugged her even tighter, sighing with disappointment.

"Why can't you learn to be a little more unruly and willful? Whether you're spoiled or mischievous, I can cover for you in this vast world. Half of the achievements I've made for this Great Zhao Dynasty belong to Yuan Yuan, and even if historians write their chronicles a thousand years from now, you should be listed alongside me. You don't have to bear any responsibility. Even if you're selfish and lawless, all I want is for you to be safe and happy every day."

The Great Zhao Dynasty lasted for more than sixty years and was ruled by three emperors.

During the more than ten years that Xie Yanzhao took over the government, his civil and military achievements were praised by the people.

In the future, it would be no problem for them to surpass the achievements of the founding emperor.

Shen Tinghe nestled on his shoulder, her nose brushing against his neck, her voice muffled yet revealing a hint of spoiled arrogance.

"My brother pampers me so much, yet I haven't gone astray. That shows how well-behaved I am."

Xie Yanzhao supported her legs and turned to walk towards the bathing pool behind the palace.

"Then let your brother see what you're like when you're naughty."

Shen Tinghe kicked lightly: "Where...where are you going?"

"Take a bath."

He spoke succinctly, his eyes dark: "Jiaojiao is covered in the smell of others right now."

He wanted to wash away all traces of what wasn't his, and then, inch by inch, imprint his own unique mark upon it.

……

……

The warm pool water was misty and swirling, and Shen Tinghe was still trembling slightly in his arms.

Xie Yanzhao held her slender waist, his palms lingering and caressing her smooth skin with satisfaction.

"Why are you still douching? Is it too comfortable to bear?"

Xie Yanzhao kissed the corners of her reddened eyes, his voice hoarse and alluring.

Shen Tinghe's eyes were unfocused.

Every part of her body bore his scent and mark, while his hands continued to slowly roam over her waist and back.

Even so, Shen Tinghe unconsciously shrank into his arms, seeking the most familiar and safe haven.

The hidden fire in Xie Yanzhao's heart burned into a blazing, obsessive passion.

A deep-seated, morbid possessiveness and burning desire surged in his eyes, almost melting and devouring the person in his arms.

"Jiaojiao is so well-behaved..."

He whispered a sigh, and kissed her heavily on her sweaty collarbone.

"How can your brother tolerate this?"

Rippling water reflected their intertwined figures, filling the room with the rich aroma of spring that lingered for a long time.

"Princess, we will soon arrive at the capital of Dazhao."

The maid, Haheye, lifted the side curtain of the carriage, looked out for a moment, and then turned to report softly.

The scenery passing by the car window was completely different from the grassland. The distant mountains were shrouded in mist, and even the air was less pungent and fresh, becoming gentle and unfamiliar.

Geriletu was resting with his eyes closed, leaning against the soft cushion, when he heard the sound and slowly opened his eyes.

She was born with a striking and beautiful appearance.

With deep-set eyes and a high nose bridge, even after a long journey, his face showed no signs of weariness; instead, it glowed with a radiant light as he approached his destination.

"Is that so?"

A slight smile played on her lips as she reached into the brocade box beside her and took out a scroll painting.

The Xuan paper was slowly spread out.

The figure in the painting wears a jade crown, and has a face as clear and stern as a lone moon over a snow-capped mountain, yet his eyes and brows exude a compelling heroic spirit.

It was Xie Yanzhao, the young emperor of the Great Zhao Dynasty.

Geriletu's fingertips traced the eyebrows and eyes of the person in the painting, his voice filled with undisguised admiration.

"Haheye, isn't he really handsome?"

Haheye smiled and said, "The princess's future husband will naturally be the most handsome man in the world."

"Well said!"

Geriletu laughed loudly.

Her gaze lingered on the painting, her eyes burning with a fierce determination to win.

My gaze fell on the painting, but my thoughts drifted back to the grassland a month ago.

At that time, she was still the most carefree jewel of the Monchi family. From a young age, she was determined to marry the best man in the world.

The first warrior of Monchi, Ulunmu, was the one she chose.

She killed Ulunmu's fiancée with ease.

But just days before their wedding, her father suddenly died.

Her brother, Yigule, proposed that she go to Dazhao for a marriage alliance in exchange for Dazhao's support.

Geriletu initially resisted strongly, until she saw the portrait her brother had given her.

She was captivated by the Emperor of the Great Zhao at first sight.

Xie Yanzhao's beauty is different from the rugged and unrestrained beauty of the men of the grasslands.

It was a kind of beauty as fine as jade and as sharp as a sword, yet it was also majestic and heroic.

Later, upon hearing about his achievements in ascending the throne at a young age, pacifying the southern border, and reforming the bureaucracy, Geriletu was even more moved.

That's more like it for her.

She is worthy of being the noblest princess of Monkey.

Compared to him, Ulunmu is nothing.

Geriletu suddenly asked, "What kind of person is the Empress of Dazhao?"

Haheye: "All I know is that she comes from a noble family and seems to have a gentle temperament."

"Wen Wan?"

Geriletu repeated the word with amusement, his smile deepening: "A delicate flower raised by a noble family... indeed, nothing to fear."

She grew up in the royal court of Montgomery and witnessed too many dirty and despicable methods.

If her mother could rise to the position of queen over the corpses of countless concubines, would Geriletu really lose to a woman raised in seclusion who only knows how to compose poems and enjoy the moon?

She lowered her eyes, her gaze returning to the face of the person in the painting, as if she were having a conversation with him.

"If your original wife has unfortunately passed away, you have no one to blame but yourself. Only the most beautiful flower on the grassland is worthy of you."

Meanwhile, another scene, unknown to Geriletu, is slowly unfolding deep within the palace.

The so-called marriage alliance was, from beginning to end, merely wishful thinking on the part of her brother, Yigule, and a brilliant but insignificant move on Xie Yanzhao's chessboard.

King Mengqi died suddenly without leaving a will.

In order to gain external support, the eldest prince Yigule hastily wrote to Da Zhao, using marriage as bait to test Xie Yanzhao's attitude.

Xie Yanzhao's reply was vaguely worded, leaving much room for interpretation.

This ambiguous promise made Yigule overjoyed, and he couldn't wait to put his sister on the carriage to Dazhao.

However, who exactly was Xie Yanzhao?

This young emperor, who led the Great Zhao to its peak, never saw a princess sent for a political marriage, but rather the entire territory and future of Mengqi.