Song Zhao's beautiful eyes stared at Xiao Jingheng in disbelief, fragments of light flickering in her eyes. She gazed at him blankly.
It had to be said, his facial features were exceptionally handsome.
Especially his nose, straight and prominent, extremely heroic.
At this moment, the candlelight in the palace hall was dim and yellow, and the staggered shadows projected on his face highlighted his rugged and chiseled features even more.
The reason why Xiao Jingheng had such good looks was entirely thanks to his birth mother, Yue Noble Consort.
It was said that Yue Noble Consort had an elegant bearing, with the grace of a phoenix, and was the most beautiful woman in the late emperor's harem.
It took her less than ten years to rise from being a Noble Lady to a Noble Consort.
Ten years may seem long, but there were many concubines who entered the palace and never had their ranks change from the time they entered to the time they died.
It was just that Yue Noble Consort was ill-fated and passed away when Xiao Jingheng was fourteen years old.
And Xiao Jingheng did not have a very deep impression of this birth mother.
According to the rules of the palace, only concubines with at least the rank of Consort were allowed to raise their children by their side, while the children of lower-ranked concubines were usually raised under higher-ranked concubines.
When Yue Noble Consort gave birth to Xiao Jingheng, she was still only a Noble Lady. Young Xiao Jingheng had always been raised under the current Empress Dowager, who was Empress Shunyi at the time.
By the time Yue Noble Consort was promoted to the rank of Consort, Xiao Jingheng was already eight years old and had moved from Empress Shunyi’s palace to the Imperial Prince’s residence.
So the mother-son bond between Xiao Jingheng and Yue Noble Consort was very shallow, but he was very filial to the current Empress Dowager.
At that time, Xiao Jingheng stood beside the bathtub, a warm smile lingering at the corners of his lips that softened the emperor's domineering aura around him. Instead, it gave the false impression that he could be relied on and trusted like a gentleman.
He stroked Song Zhao's damp bangs as if soothing a frightened kitten, and said gently,
“You’re right to think I’m only treating you well because of what happened that day.”
As he spoke, his hand moved down from her wet bangs to her porcelain-white and smooth cheeks,
“But that was the real you, so why wouldn’t I want to remember that? You treat me differently from my other consorts, so naturally I would treat you differently from others.”
Xiao Jingheng stared straight at Song Zhao in the water. His gaze made Song Zhao a little shy. Blushing, she covered her chest and whispered softly,
“This concubine understands, it was this concubine overthinking things for a moment.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Xiao Jingheng said lightly as he pinched her cheek. “It shows you were thinking of me. How could I blame you for that?”
Song Zhao smiled coyly. Only then did she dare to raise her head to meet Xiao Jingheng’s burning gaze. She asked,
“Why has Your Majesty come at this time?”
Xiao Jingheng said, “My beloved consort was wronged today. I was thinking of you. When you went to greet the Empress today, did Consort Chen make things difficult for you again?”
Hearing this, Song Zhao's mind turned:
Heard about it?
Who could he have heard this from?
Wouldn’t it have been the Empress who thought Consort Chen deliberately made things difficult for her today and told Xiao Jingheng about it?
The Empress knew that Song Zhao was Xiao Jingheng’s new favorite now, so she would rather have Xiao Jingheng dote on Song Zhao more in order to make indirect accusations about Consort Chen’s wrongdoings in front of Xiao Jingheng.
Seeing them fighting, it was the best time for Song Zhao to reap the rewards of their conflict.
She smiled lightly with an indifferent expression, shook her head and said,
“What happened today was just an accident when Breath of Spring stumbled. Consort Chen has always been very generous. Where is there any talk of her making things difficult for this concubine?”
Xiao Jingheng seemed very satisfied with her reply. He nodded, “Consort Chen is generous, while you are utterly genuine and pure. You should know that the purity and authenticity in you are what I value most.”
Song Zhao smiled shyly, but she sneered in her heart:
Look at His Majesty spouting nonsense with his eyes wide open again!
In terms of purity and innocence, Concubine Hui didn’t even understand matters between men and women. She only knew about eating, drinking and having fun all day long without any sophistication or scheming. Wasn't she more innocent than anyone else? But why didn’t Xiao Jingheng even glance at her?
Ultimately, wasn’t it that he first took a liking to Song Zhao’s looks before digging out her many other good qualities based on her appearance?
As autumn arrived, the weather gradually turned cooler. Hot water had just been added to the bathtub, and steam rose in wisps. The mist gradually filled the space partitioned off by the screen.
Like a thin veil, it was ambiguous and hazy.
Song Zhao looked at Xiao Jingheng. His face was slightly red, his Adam's apple rolled, and his knuckles wandered restlessly over her body...
Song Zhao knew what he was thinking about and how to cater to him too.
Just now when she had turned around suddenly, the splashing water got Xiao Jingheng’s clothes wet.
Song Zhao pretended that she had just noticed. She quickly took the scarf draped over the edge of the bathtub and moved closer to Xiao Jingheng, who was standing at the edge of the tub in the water.
“This concubine accidentally got Your Majesty’s court attire wet. The night wind outside is a little cool. If it's not wiped dry, the chill might seep into the body. This concubine might worry again.”
As she wiped him, she gradually moved lower and lower until she touched a sensitive area before realizing something was off.
Song Zhao’s hand holding the scarf was limp and boneless. It trembled slightly as she tried to move it away, but Xiao Jingheng suddenly grabbed her wrist,
“Since it’s already wet, just let it get completely soaked.”
After he finished speaking, he supported himself on the edge of the tub with one hand and nimbly flipped over into the water, splashing water droplets everywhere.
The bathtub was so small that with two people inside, they were almost shoulder-to-shoulder without any room to evade each other.
Song Zhao was extremely embarrassed. She turned her back against the edge of the bathtub, bit her lip coyly, and said timidly, “Your Majesty, this concubine...”
Before she could get her bashful words out, she suddenly felt a domineering strength wrap around her slender waist, forcing her to turn back and fall into a sturdy embrace.
Xiao Jingheng rested his chin on the tip of her nose. His warm breath blew on her face, making her heart itch unbearably.
Just as she wanted to say something, Xiao Jingheng's lips pressed down, prying open her lips and teeth aggressively to take what he wanted.
