Chapter 2: Twenty Thousand Words Omitted Here

Dugu Jin drew a long breath at last, forcing that restless surge back down.

This girl really was…

“From now on, when they say something, you must fight back. Do you think your tears work on everyone?” Dugu Jin said sternly.

Yun Peipei bit her lower lip and murmured, “Your servant understands.”

He carried her all the way back to the Palace of Graceful Silks. With a cold face, Dugu Jin barked at the attendants, “Is this how you serve your mistress? The tea is cold, and you still expect her to drink it? Drag them out and beat them. Du Heng, bring in a new batch of servants.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Yun Peipei remembered that her father had taught her that in the palace, one must never contradict the emperor.

But that servant did seem rather pitiful.

She lightly tugged on Dugu Jin’s sleeve. “Could you... not beat him?”

Everyone froze.

Since the emperor had taken the throne, no one had ever dared defy his words.

So it seemed the Gentle Consort’s good days were over.

Dugu Jin set her down on a chair and caged her on either side with his arms. “You want to plead for him?”

Yun Peipei was truly timid. She had been timid in both her lives.

Then a bold thought, somehow, suddenly flickered through her mind.

She looked up at Dugu Jin, fighting to steady her racing heart. “Mm.”

Dugu Jin lowered his head, and the cold brush of his lips against her ear brought with it an unexpected wave of heat.

“Then tonight, everything is as I say, hmm?”

Yun Peipei’s face flushed red as a cherry.

“Well, i-it was always supposed to be as you say,” she muttered.

He was the emperor; his word was law. Who would dare disobey him?

At any rate, she did not dare.

Then she remembered the remarks she had just seen.

She nervously clutched Dugu Jin’s robe. “Then you must come tonight. An emperor never breaks his word. You cannot go back on it.”

“Ahhh! What has the great villain been reduced to? Don’t think I didn’t notice you secretly curving your lips!”

“This couple is just too easy to ship. The original story was simply too tragic, what a pity.”

“If Peipei can keep the big villain here tonight, maybe there will still be a chance.”

Yun Peipei suddenly found herself just a little bit bolder.

She looked at Dugu Jin and forced down the frantic beating in her chest. “Mm.”

Dugu Jin bent his head and kissed her on the lips. Then, leaving a chill at her mouth and fire in her veins, he murmured, “Then wait for me to return.”

Yun Peipei, mortified, covered her face.

What on earth had she just been saying?

Once Dugu Jin left the Palace of Graceful Silks, his face turned as cold and forbidding as ice, and only Du Heng followed behind him, every step cautious.

When they reached the Hall of Diligent Administration, a little eunuch came to report, “Your Majesty, the Marquis of Peace and Security has acquired a prized stallion and wishes to present it to Your Majesty. He asks that you come to the riding grounds.”

Dugu Jin was just about to agree when he thought of that tearful, lovely, alluring face.

“I have matters tonight. Tomorrow will do.”

At the hour of the dog, after Dugu Jin had finished reviewing all the memorials, he finally realized how late it had become.

Just as he was about to rise, Du Heng approached in small, quick steps.

Bending low, he said in a hushed voice, “Your Majesty, there is movement at the riding grounds. The Marquis of Peace and Security has stationed troops there in ambush. If you truly go to the appointment, I’m afraid…”

Dugu Jin gave a cold snort. “The Marquis of Peace and Security is still too impatient. Summon the men.”

The commander of the imperial guard entered and knelt on one knee. “Your Majesty.”

Dugu Jin ordered, “Send two hundred elite soldiers to surround the Marquis of Peace and Security’s residence. Without my command, no one is to enter or leave.”

“Yes!”

“Prepare my carriage for the Palace of Graceful Silks.”

Dugu Jin’s steps quickened.

If that girl had not repeatedly insisted that he come tonight, then even if he escaped the trap, he would likely still suffer serious injury.

The attendants in the Palace of Graceful Silks all dropped to their knees.

“Greetings, Your Majesty.”

Before the words had even faded, Dugu Jin had already entered the inner chamber.

Yun Peipei had just finished washing up. Her hair still carried a faint mist of moisture, and she looked like a flower just lifted from the water—clean, innocent, and untouched by the world.

“This servant greets…”

Before she could finish, Dugu Jin had already pressed her down onto the bed.

His scorching voice brushed her ear. “Did my beloved consort not say so? Tonight, I shall have my way.”

The next day, as expected, Yun Peipei slept late again.

Fortunately, her body felt dry and refreshed.

She remembered that the emperor had helped her wash up in the night.

Thinking of that, her face reddened even more.

In her previous life in the modern world, she had only lived a little over ten years before dying of illness.

In this life, she had been born with the memories of her past into the Chancellor’s residence, and no one had taught her such things. So she knew even less about matters of that kind.

Cui Zhi and Lan Xin served her wash and dress, and breakfast had already been prepared.

“The emperor said he has already sent someone to inform the empress dowager. Today, Your Ladyship need not go and pay respects,” Lan Xin said.

Yun Peipei remembered that before entering the palace, her father had told her to obey the emperor in everything. Whatever the emperor ordered, she was to do.

She nodded. “Oh, all right.”

Since she did not need to pay respects, her time was free. Yun Peipei went to the desk, picked up a brush, and began to paint.

Ever since childhood, she had not been particularly bright, and though she had not done well in her studies, she possessed a rare talent for painting. The Chancellor had even specially invited many masters to teach her, and by now she had developed a style all her own.

“My lady, are you painting the plum blossoms in the residence?” Cui Zhi asked.

Yun Peipei said, “Mm. They were just about to bloom when I left home. By now, they should look just like this.”

The plum blossoms beneath her brush carried an air of proud elegance, vivid as though alive.

“Consort Plum has arrived!”

Plum Consort had come uninvited. The moment she entered, she made straight for the desk, her disdainful gaze sweeping over the painting.

“Everyone else sends this palace all manner of rare treasures, and yet you bring only a single painting. Are the people of the Chancellor’s residence all so shabby?” Plum Consort said, speaking to herself.

Yun Peipei was baffled. “Does Plum Consort also like this painting? It is a grove of plum trees planted at my home. Now that I am in the palace, I cannot admire the blossoms there, so I could only paint them.”

Plum Consort, imagining herself slighted, flashed with anger. “Gentle Consort! Today is my birthday. Do you not know that?”

Yun Peipei truly did not know. “Then I wish Plum Consort blessings as boundless as the Eastern Sea and longevity equal to the Southern Mountains.”

Plum Consort: “!”

“Are you deliberately mocking me?” That kind of blessing was meant for old people. She was in the flower of her youth!

Yun Peipei remembered Dugu Jin saying that whatever Plum Consort said, she should simply fire back.

So she summoned her courage and said, “This palace had no intention of mocking you. If Plum Consort wishes to slander me, you should at least produce evidence.”

Plum Consort had not expected Yun Peipei to dare answer back.

So the obedient foolishness on the surface was all an act.

How could a noble young lady from the Chancellor’s residence have no shrewdness at all?

“Today is my birthday, and tonight the emperor will hold a banquet in my honor. I came personally to invite you. You would not deny me this small bit of face, would you?”

“I would not.” It was indeed proper to attend when someone had invited her to their birthday celebration.

That night, Yun Peipei brought a gift and went to Plum Consort’s palace. It was a coral bracelet, given to her by her father, and she rather liked it.

Dugu Jin sat inside, and her arrival surprised him as well.

“This servant greets Your Majesty.”

Yun Peipei had only just risen when she heard Dugu Jin ask, “What are you doing here?”