The abstinent prince, practicing Buddhism, is seduced by a voluptuous beauty into breaking his vows.

Shen Qinghe's footsteps were extremely light, the hem of her plain white skirt sweeping across the ground.

Tears still clung to her pale, delicate face, but the fear in her eyes had long since vanished.

The timid pretense has been torn away, leaving only an undisguised scheming and an unwavering determination to win.

She knew all too well how potent this fragrance was.

This is a top-grade aphrodisiac incense personally given by the Empress Dowager. It is colorless and odorless, and when mixed with commonly used sandalwood, even someone with the highest martial arts skills would not be able to detect it at all.

Let alone a man who has been abstinent for years, even the toughest man will turn into a soft, yielding body after a while.

She walked to the desk and looked at the man's tense profile.

Veins bulged on his forehead, his jawline was taut, and his usually cold and aloof phoenix eyes were now bloodshot; even his breath was frighteningly hot.

It has clearly reached its limit.

Shen Qinghe's heart leaped with joy. Her tone remained soft and delicate, yet now it held a more alluring quality.

"Your Highness, are you feeling unwell? May I...may I help you to the inner room to rest?"

As she spoke, she reached out her slender hand to touch Xiao Chenyuan's sweaty clothes.

Before her fingertips could even touch the man's clothes, she was frozen in place by a stern, icy rebuke.

"roll."

Xiao Chenyuan's voice was terribly hoarse, yet it still carried a chilling coldness and killing intent.

He leaned firmly against the desk, his muscles tense, yet he showed no emotion whatsoever towards the person before him.

His fingertips gripped the edge of the table, cracking the hardwood with his pressure, as he suppressed his surging lust with extreme pain.

My mind is filled with Su Yaoyao's face.

It was the way she spoke to him this morning, her arms around his neck, her breath sweet and fragrant.

It was her nestled in his arms, her eyes crinkling with laughter;

It was her beneath him, her eyes red-rimmed, yet still stubbornly flirting with him...

The more I think about it, the more agitated I become.

Even though he was delirious from the fever, he knew clearly that the person in front of him was not her.

His slender figure.

No one but her.

Even if the drug drives him into a mindless beast, he must never touch anyone else, let alone hurt the person he cherishes most.

Shen Qinghe trembled at the murderous intent in his eyes.

But looking at the man's face, which was still breathtakingly handsome even when he lost control,

He gritted his teeth.

"Your Highness, please don't push yourself." Her voice softened further, carrying a deliberate seductive quality.

"The Empress Dowager said that this medicine is very potent, and without a woman to counteract it, it will damage one's health. The Crown Princess is delicate, and seeing you like this, she might harbor resentment. This humble woman... this humble woman is willing to serve Your Highness and would never dare to have the slightest improper thoughts."

As she spoke, she leaned forward, reaching out her hand again, almost touching Xiao Chenyuan.

"You filthy thing! You dare to touch me!"

Xiao Chenyuan's eyes flashed with murderous intent, and he raised his foot, intending to kick the man away.

Just then, the study door creaked open.

A lazy female voice, tinged with a hint of nonchalant mockery, drifted in from the doorway:

"Oh dear, what's going on here? You haven't even warmed the grounds of the Crown Prince's Palace yet, and you're already rushing into my man's arms? Miss Shen, did that old witch from Shou Kang Palace teach you such manners?"

Shen Qinghe froze, then turned around abruptly.

Su Yaoyao leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, wearing only a plain cloak over her moon-white nightgown. Her long hair was loosely tied up, and there was not a trace of anger or exasperation in her eyes.

Instead, he wore a smile that seemed to be enjoying the show, but the cold light in his eyes was like a knife, piercing straight into her.

Ling Feng, standing behind her, had a face as black as the bottom of a pot. His hand was on the hilt of his knife as he looked at Shen Qinghe with murderous intent in his eyes.

Su Yaoyao had already anticipated this.

After explaining things to Chun Tao in the main courtyard, she thought about it over and over again and felt that something was wrong.

In her past life, she had seen too many of these "pure and innocent" tactics in the entertainment industry. When pawns are handed to you, how can you just pretend to be weak and get away with it?

The Empress Dowager went to great lengths to bring this person in, hoping for a fatal blow—nothing could sow discord between her and Xiao Chenyuan more effectively than the Crown Prince having an affair with another woman.

The target has always been Xiao Chenyuan.

So she grabbed her cloak and hurried to the study. As soon as she reached the courtyard gate, she smelled the sweet fragrance mixed with sandalwood.

Shen Qinghe panicked instantly. The confident glint in her eyes vanished without a trace, and she reverted to being a frightened little rabbit. She quickly withdrew her hand, kowtowed repeatedly to Su Yaoyao, and cried, "..."

"Your Highness, you've misunderstood! I only came to deliver soup to His Highness. Seeing that he suddenly felt unwell, I wanted to check on him and see if he was alright. I had absolutely no ill intentions whatsoever!"

"Really?" Su Yaoyao raised an eyebrow, stepped in, her shoes landing on the spilled soup, seemingly unconcerned.

She didn't look at Shen Qinghe kneeling on the ground; her gaze fell on Xiao Chenyuan first.

The moment their eyes met, a light instantly shone in Xiao Chenyuan's scarlet phoenix eyes.

The barely suppressed anger and murderous intent instantly transformed into an overwhelming sense of grievance and obsession the moment he saw her, like a dog that had finally found its owner, its tense body softening slightly.

He reached out his hand to her, his voice hoarse, filled with extreme restraint and longing.

"Yaoyao, come here. Come to me."

Su Yaoyao's heart softened, and she walked straight to his side.

As soon as she stood still, his burning hot hand grabbed her wrist. His palm was frighteningly hot and covered in sweat. The force was so great that it almost crushed her wrist bones, but in the instant she frowned slightly, he subconsciously loosened his grip.

Su Yaoyao raised her eyes, her fingertips deliberately tracing the hot line of his jaw, and whispered in his ear in a voice only the two of them could hear, "

"What's wrong, Your Highness? Weren't you supposed to be reviewing memorials? Why are you burning up, and then a young girl cornered you in your study? Could it be... that when she threw herself into your arms just now, Your Highness was moved?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Chenyuan's eyes turned even redder.

He suddenly pulled her into his arms, wrapping his arms tightly around her waist, burying his face in the crook of her neck, his hot breath spraying onto her skin, biting her earlobe, his voice both aggrieved and obsessive, filled with a strong possessiveness:

"Nonsense. You're the only one in my heart. No one else matters. They're all filthy. Only my Yaoyao is the best."

His whole body was burning hot, like a furnace. He held her with such force that it felt like he wanted to meld her into his very bones, yet he didn't do anything out of line. He just held her tightly, using her scent to suppress the maddening desire within him.

Su Yaoyao's heart melted instantly. She patted his back and soothed his hair. When she turned to look at the person on the ground, the tenderness in her eyes vanished completely, leaving only a chilling coldness.

Her gaze swept over the two old women huddled in the doorway, hesitant to enter, and she sneered, "Stop hiding, come in. You've been eavesdropping for ages, waiting to catch them in the act so you can report the good news to your master at Shou Kang Palace?"

The two old women turned deathly pale instantly. Forcing themselves to enter, they knelt on the ground with a thud. The lead old woman, Zhang, feigned composure: "Your Highness, please forgive us! We came with Miss Shen, fearing she might be unruly and offend His Highness. We had absolutely no other intentions!"

"No other thoughts?" Su Yaoyao raised an eyebrow, broke free from Xiao Chenyuan's embrace slightly, walked to the incense burner, and reached out to stir the half-burnt incense inside, instantly making the sweet fragrance even stronger.

She picked up a piece of incense that hadn't completely burned out, turned around, and threw it in front of the two old women, her voice as cold as ice:

"Miss Shen, you really have some clever tricks up your sleeve."

Su Yaoyao walked up to her, looking down at her. Her fingertips lightly traced her pale cheek, her tone light and airy, yet every word pierced the heart.

"You didn't put the medicine in the soup, but instead put it in the incense, thinking that even if they investigated later, they wouldn't be able to pin it on you? You're much more cunning than your tearful sister."

Shen Qinghe trembled, shrank back abruptly, and knelt on the ground with a thud. Tears welled up instantly again as she hurriedly tried to explain:

"Your Highness, it's not! I didn't do it! It was...it was the Empress Dowager who forced me! I had no choice! Please, Your Highness, spare my life!"

"Unable to control one's own destiny?"

Su Yaoyao raised an eyebrow, bent down, pinched her chin, forcing her to look up at her, and smiled coldly.

"You were forced to do this, and yet you sneaked into my man's study in the dead of night, wearing such a thin dress? You were forced to do this, and yet you calculated the exact time His Highness would be reviewing memorials and lit the aphrodisiac in advance? Shen Qinghe, do you think I'm blind, or that everyone in the Eastern Palace is dead?"

Her gaze was so sharp and fierce that Shen Qinghe felt a chill run down her spine and couldn't utter a single word, even forgetting to cry.

She opened her mouth, about to say something, when she was glared at fiercely by Granny Zhang, the warning in her eyes clear as day.

Su Yaoyao saw this scene clearly, and while she sneered inwardly, she remained outwardly calm.

Just then, Xiao Chenyuan behind him suddenly groaned.

Su Yaoyao turned around and saw him leaning against the desk with his eyes closed. Large beads of sweat were dripping from his forehead, and his whole body was trembling slightly. It was clear that the effects of the medicine had reached their peak, and if he continued, he would probably damage his health.

Her heart tightened, and she no longer had the energy to waste time with this group of people.

"Ling Feng," Su Yaoyao said, her voice crisp and clear.

"Drag her away, lock her in the woodshed, and keep a close watch on her. Don't let her die, and don't let her escape. I still have a use for her."

"Yes!" Ling Feng responded immediately. With a wave of his hand, the guards outside rushed in and quickly tied up the two struggling maids, gagged them, and dragged them out.

Seeing this scene, Shen Qinghe was so frightened that she forgot to cry. She was dragged out by the guards in a daze.

The study fell silent instantly, leaving only the two of them.