Chapter 13: Bathing
Prince Ying stood with his hands behind his back, a look of anger on his face. He said with a fierce tone that made people tremble, “I didn’t know you had so much power now.”
Side Consort Chu was so frightened that she knelt on the ground. She wanted to explain, but she didn’t know how much he had heard.
Prince Ying lowered his eyes, and a look of unfathomable amusement appeared on his handsome face. “Tell me, when did it become your turn to be my master?”
Side Consort Chu’s legs trembled. She suddenly remembered eight months ago, when a war broke out in the north. Prince Ying led his troops, and because she understood medicine, she requested to follow the army.
But when she got to that bitter cold place, she was full of regret.
The war started in the winter, and she had been pampered since she was a child. She had never had frostbite before. At that time, she thought she really shouldn’t have chosen this difficult task just to gain favor.
The Prince’s command of the army had always seemed divinely aided, and she had never seen him get hurt. But only that one time, it was said that the northern forces had colluded with the generals of Yu, and Prince Ying was hit by two arrows after planting the victory flag.
The arrows were lodged in his chest, clearly aimed at taking his life.
Prince Ying was a person of great honor and the Emperor’s own brother, so naturally, no one dared to remove the arrows. If something were to happen, ten heads wouldn’t be enough to pay for it. Just when she didn’t know what to do, Prince Ying personally pulled out the barbed arrows.
The bloody and gruesome scene terrified her. She covered her face and cried, her hands trembling and her legs weak.
The soldiers around her saw that she was truly unable to handle it, so they had to help her to another place.
Before she left, she vaguely saw his immensely disappointed gaze.
It was after that, that he never gave her another chance.
Side Consort Chu was suddenly filled with despair. The look in the Prince’s eyes today had an extra hint of disgust, compared to the disappointment she had seen that day.
Side Consort Chu slumped to the ground, shaking her head continuously, trying to deny something, but she couldn’t say anything.
“From today on, seal Anshan Hall. Within three months, she is not allowed to take a single step out of this courtyard, and no one is allowed to visit. Anyone who dares to come will be punished with her.” He had truly underestimated her.
The news that the Princess Consort was returning to the capital had only arrived this morning, and in just a few hours, she was able to orchestrate such a shameful drama.
Side Consort Chu saw that Prince Ying was truly angry, so she immediately said with a sobbing voice, “I was wrong, Your Highness… My words and actions this time were indeed inappropriate, but it was absolutely not intentional…”
Prince Ying was in a fit of anger and had no intention of saying more to her, so he turned and walked away, flicking his sleeves.
Steward Cao immediately called for a few servants to seal off the courtyard.
Since Steward Cao was going to seal the courtyard, Tang Wu had to come out quickly. She walked carefully behind Prince Ying, afraid that he would look at her again.
When a person of high status is angry, it’s best to walk a different path. Getting close to him now would only lead to trouble.
Sui’an Hall was to the left, and Xitong Courtyard was to the right.
As soon as she saw the fork in the road, Tang Wu quickly sped up and headed to the right.
Just as she was about to breathe a sigh of relief, she heard him call out from the side, “Stop.”
Tang Wu froze, bit her lip, closed her eyes, and muttered “oh my god” under her breath.
After a series of frustrated movements, she turned around and bowed respectfully, “I pay my respects, Your Highness.”
Prince Ying stared directly at Tang Wu. “Are you in such a hurry because you’re avoiding me?”
“How could I dare? I always wait for Your Highness like I’m waiting for the stars and the moon. I miss you in my heart if I don’t see you for a day,” Tang Wu replied almost instinctively.
Prince Ying asked, as if amused, “Is that so?”
His pupils were deep and bright, the authority that had just been in his eyes hadn’t faded yet, but his voice was tinged with a hint of a smile.
Tang Wu nodded repeatedly.
He lightly crooked his finger, signaling for her to walk over.
Seeing this, Tang Wu knew there was no escape, so she moved towards him one step at a time.
“You’re quite good at avoiding trouble,” he said with a half-smile.
Prince Ying rarely saw her so simple and elegant. In his impression, this woman was always as beautiful as a temptress. Even a single look from her was filled with charm. He never expected that after she changed into the skin of a respectable woman, she would still be so captivating.
In the blink of an eye, Tang Wu saw the hidden meaning in his eyes.
Since she had been caught by him, she naturally had to find a way to appease his anger, otherwise she would be the one to suffer.
“Thanks to Your Highness arriving in time, otherwise, I wouldn’t have known how to handle it,” Tang Wu’s charm was always used perfectly. Even if the listener knew her words weren’t sincere, they would still sound pleasant.
He chuckled, pinched her nose, and then said, “I also saw your skill in deflecting a thousand pounds with four ounces.”
Tang Wu heard the teasing. Instead of refuting it, she looked directly at him and said, “Isn’t it all in Your Highness’s heart how much skill I have?”
They say a person’s eyes can talk.
Prince Ying felt as if he saw the shimmering ripples of a lake and a garden full of spring that couldn’t be contained in her pupils.
Prince Ying led her back to Sui’an Hall and specifically asked her to have a meal with him.
To maintain her figure, Tang Wu ate very little at every meal and even had a habit of disliking staple foods. A bowl of fragrant white rice was placed in front of her, but she didn’t touch her chopsticks.
Prince Ying was silent for a moment and asked, “Why do you eat so little?”
Tang Wu put down her teacup, took his hand, and guided it to her waist.
“Isn’t my waist thin?” she said, her voice rising at the end, with a hint of pride.
She saw him frown and nod, so she continued, “So, I naturally can’t eat this rice. In fact, I’ve been like this for so many years, and I’m used to it. If I can’t control my mouth all day, in less than a year, I guarantee I won’t be able to wear my old clothes.”
After she finished, Tang Wu blinked at him as if she had told him a great secret.
“You eat so little just to fit into your clothes?” Prince Ying raised his voice, as if he had heard something unbelievable.
Tang Wu continued to guide his hand, moving it over her body. “Otherwise, Your Highness, do you think I’m naturally skinny? Every woman in the world loves beauty, but to gain anything, you always have to pay a price.”
After saying this, she guided his hand to a few more places and explained, “This is called the ‘butterfly bone,’ this is the ‘beauty dimple,’ and this is the ‘four-finger arm.’ If these places are filled with fat, the names will all change.”
The butterfly bone would become a tiger back, the beauty dimple a potbelly, and the four-finger arm a bat wing.
Tang Wu’s soft, delicate hand held his large palm tightly.
She could feel that with every move she made, his palm became hotter and hotter, until a few visible beads of sweat appeared on his hand. Only then did she hear him scold, “Nonsense.”
The intimate atmosphere in the room instantly vanished with his reprimand.
Tang Wu couldn’t help but shiver.
Tang Wu thought he was going to lecture her on her unseemly behavior, but instead, he picked up his chopsticks and put a large piece of lamb chop in her bowl.
“Eat it all, or you’re not allowed to leave.”
Tang Wu gasped. In her eyes, this was not just rice and lamb chops, but a full dose of guilt.
“Does Your Highness know what would happen if I dared to eat this much before?” Tang Wu asked pitifully.
“Oh, tell me.”
“Two taels of rice would mean ten strokes of the cane. One tael of meat would mean going hungry for two days.” Tang Wu’s expression at this moment looked as if she would cry if she were truly made to eat.
Prince Ying was truly amused by her expression.
He had indeed never met a girl like her. He had heard of people crying because they couldn’t get food, but never of someone crying because they ate too much.
“You have entered the Prince’s Mansion now, and you naturally don’t have to follow those old rules anymore.” This sentence seemed to have nothing special on the surface, but who would have thought it had evolved from “I don’t think you’re fat”?
“Your Highness is a man and naturally doesn’t understand the complex thoughts of us women. Let me say something bold: If I really grew a belly like Granny Wang, would Your Highness still come to my room?” These words were truly audacious, not only was she talking about the nanny sent by Side Consort Chu, but she was also indirectly including Prince Ying in her jokes.
Prince Ying didn’t respond to this statement. He just reached out and put his arm around her shoulders, rubbing her arm in a leisurely manner.
He had never made such an intimate gesture towards her before.
He had always been high and mighty, waiting for her to come and serve him. This was even true when they were doing that. So, because of this action, Tang Wu felt a sudden sense of awkwardness.
His steady breathing spread over her head, and he said as if nonchalantly, “Do you know how to manage a household?”
If there were two words that were most taboo today, they would be “manage a household.” Anyone with eyes could see that Side Consort Chu was afraid of losing her authority to manage the household after the Princess Consort returned.
She couldn’t say how serious his question was, but the intent to test her was already very clear.
The relationship between the Princess Consort and the Prince was not something a newly arrived concubine like her could guess at. Even if she could, an arm couldn’t twist a thigh.
If she dared to take on the role of managing the household at this juncture, Xitong Courtyard would definitely be riddled with holes.
“When I was at the courtyard before, my mama specifically hired a teacher for me from outside. I learned how to play the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting. I even dared to show off a bit with incense and needlework. But this one thing, my mama wouldn’t let me learn, saying I definitely wouldn’t need it in the future,” Tang Wu said bluntly.
These words seemed “pampered and willful,” but they said everything that needed to be said.
She couldn’t discern the emotion on his face, so she continued to play dumb and muttered, “Your Highness always asks me about things I’m not good at. As for what I’m good at, Your Highness always scoffs at it.”
The voice was not loud, but it was just enough to reach his ears.
Hearing this, his eyes filled with a smile.
Tang Wu couldn’t help but sigh. It’s true that the first time is difficult, but the second time is easy. Now, no matter what she says, he knows to think more deeply.
“Then tell me, what are you good at?”
Tang Wu leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his neck. The movement was so significant that the maids nearby quickly lowered the beaded curtains and retreated several steps.
Tang Wu moved her hands up and down, and her soft, moist lips landed on the back of his reddened ear. She said flirtatiously, “Does Your Highness want to bathe?”
His throat was suppressing a heavy breath, and he deliberately said, “Then will you let the water out?”
