After Spending a Passionate Night with the Eldest Princess - Chapter 18

At that moment, the corridor outside the private rooms on the second floor was completely empty.

Downstairs in the main hall, Tang Er raised his cup and said in a clear voice, “Brothers, you have all worked hard. We will be able to return to the capital tomorrow. Master specially ordered me to reward everyone. Tonight, let us drink from large bowls and eat meat in great mouthfuls. We will not return until we are drunk.”

Afterward, he even took out several bags of silver and distributed them one by one.

Jiang Si set down his wine cup. He kept feeling that something was not right. They had important responsibilities on this journey. They had not yet returned to the capital, yet they were being rewarded in advance.

This did not seem like Master’s usual way of doing things.

But Tang Er had always been valued by Master. He was also the commander of their guards, not someone who did not know the gravity of matters, much less someone who would falsely pass on orders.

After all, Tang Er had once served as a fourth-rank imperial guard with saber before the emperor. His literary and martial abilities were both first-rate. He had been bestowed upon Master by the late emperor before his death as a personal guard, and he had already served by Master’s side for three years.

And Master also trusted Tang Er especially. Not only had she ordered him to command the guards of the Eldest Princess’s residence, but she had also entrusted him with important tasks many times.

As Jiang Si was thinking, Tang Er had already arrived at their table and handed each person an ingot of silver.

Jiang Si accepted the silver and glanced at the bottom of the ingot. The words “Yongsheng” were cast on it. Yongsheng was the reign title from the late emperor’s time, and the new emperor had continued to use it until now. This was official silver, and there seemed to be nothing wrong with it.

No. The problem was precisely that it was official silver.

Jiang Si abruptly tightened his grip on the silver ingot, his eyes turning sharp.

The late emperor had cherished the Eldest Princess like a pearl in his palm. The year the Eldest Princess came of age, he had ordered the Ministry of Works to supervise the construction of her princess residence. He had even made an exception and allowed the Eldest Princess to personally select guards from the imperial guards.

Because Jiang Si had performed exceptionally well, he had been chosen. He was the youngest guard in the guard team, only fifteen years old that year.

In Xidao, women were also considered to have come of age at fifteen. The Eldest Princess was now twenty-five.

Unlike Tang Er, who had entered the princess residence halfway through his service as an imperial guard, Jiang Si had already stayed in the princess residence for ten years. Although the late emperor had been reluctant to let the Eldest Princess leave the palace and kept her there for another three years, Jiang Si had still followed the Eldest Princess for seven full years.

In those seven years, he knew well that Master was dutiful and self-restrained. She never formed factions for personal gain, nor did she secretly accumulate wealth. All silver handled by the princess residence came from the salary silver issued by the Imperial Household Department.

Master had been deeply loved by the late emperor. Her salary silver was ten times that of an ordinary prince, and she did not lack money.

Therefore, past reward silver had always been cast with the words “Imperial Household Department.”

Jiang Si’s gaze darkened, and he rose to walk toward the second floor.

Although he should not suspect Tang Er, the guard commander, he kept feeling uneasy. He wanted to find Master and confirm things. Even if he was punished, he would accept it. At least then, he could feel at ease.

Tang Er noticed his movement. He casually handed the remaining silver to the guard beside him and quickly chased after Jiang Si.

“Jiang Si, why aren’t you drinking with the brothers downstairs?”

At the corner of the staircase, Tang Er caught up with Jiang Si in time and raised a hand to pat his shoulder.

Jiang Si turned around, a trace of discomfort flashing across his face. “I have something to report to Master. Why is Commander Tang not downstairs accompanying the brothers?”

Perhaps because suspicion had already risen in his heart, seeing Tang Er looking even more amiable than usual only made him feel more uneasy.

Tang Er smiled and wrapped an arm around Jiang Si’s shoulders like a close brother, turning him around. “Master does not wish to be disturbed tonight. As guards, we cannot be so tactless. Come, drink a cup with me.”

His arm exerted force, but the person he was holding did not move at all.

Jiang Si pried his hand away and said stiffly, “I will stand guard outside Master’s door.”

At this point, he finally understood what felt wrong. Even if they were being rewarded in advance, a few people should still have been left waiting outside the door.

Instead, there was no one standing guard now. If Master had something to command, would she not have to personally go downstairs to find someone?

By instinct, Jiang Si could almost determine that there was something wrong with Tang Er.

At the same time, that also meant Master’s situation was probably far from good.

Thinking this, he silently gripped the hilt of his saber.

Tang Er seemed not to see his guarded movement at all. His face still carried a smile. “Brother Jiang Si is so dutiful. I am truly ashamed. In that case, hurry and go.”

Jiang Si nodded and turned to leave, but the hand on his saber hilt did not dare relax. His entire body also tensed, yet there was no movement at all behind him.

Jiang Si could not help frowning. Had he been overthinking?

He unconsciously turned back to glance at Tang Er, only to see Tang Er smiling as he stood in place. That smiling face grew larger and larger, until in the end, it even doubled before his eyes.

Bang!

Jiang Si’s eyes widened, and he fell straight to the ground.

The main hall downstairs also sank into an eerie silence. The guards were scattered everywhere, collapsed on the ground or slumped over the tables.

Tang Er glanced downstairs, walked to Jiang Si’s side, and kicked him half a meter away.

“You don’t know whether you live or die. You dare accept any silver handed to you.”

He sneered, stared for a moment at the private room where Miss Qin and Xin Yuan were, then stood outside the door and closed his eyes to rest.

If someone unaware of the situation saw him, they might think he was the picture of loyalty and diligence.

Inside the room opposite, Guo Xiaowu held her breath and tiptoed down to sit on the floor, not daring to make the slightest sound.

Good heavens. What had she seen? The Eldest Princess’s guards seemed to have fallen into internal strife.

Would Xin Yuan and the Eldest Princess be in danger? She was worried, but she dared not do anything. She could only stare through the narrow crack in the door at Tang Er standing outside, anxiously continuing to watch.

And Xin Yuan, whom she was thinking of, was indeed in great danger at that moment.

Because when Miss Qin saw that opening the door was hopeless, she actually took out a dagger from under the pillow and directly cut open her own hand.

Blood flowed like a stream. The intense pain barely allowed her to maintain her reason.

Xin Yuan watched with her heart pounding in fear. For a moment, her mind actually became much clearer.

But that clarity did not last long. Before long, she once again felt her whole body burning hot, as if she had fallen into a furnace.

She involuntarily walked toward Miss Qin, as if the person sitting by the bed were a spring in the desert, giving off a fatal attraction.

Seeing Xin Yuan walk toward her, Miss Qin coldly raised the dagger. “Stop there, or I will kill you.”

Her gaze was sharp, but unfortunately, her wrist was going limp. She nearly could not hold the dagger. Even her voice was soft and weak, carrying no threat at all. It sounded more like a whisper between lovers.

Xin Yuan walked forward, unaware and unthinking, pressing down toward the person sitting on the bed. She stood above her, their breaths mingling.

In the next instant, she felt something cold and stinging at her neck. That dagger mercilessly cut across her skin and became stained with warm blood.

Hiss…

The pain pulled Xin Yuan’s wandering reason back. She hurriedly took two steps back.

“Calm down first. Put the dagger down.” Xin Yuan pressed hard against the bridge of her nose, struggling to organize her words.

This woman was far too ruthless.

She covered the wound on her neck, her eyes heavy as she turned away and let out a turbid breath.

What exactly should they do? How long did they have to endure this?

She did not want to be controlled by that cup of wine and become someone else’s pawn, much less did she want to be stabbed again and become a ghost under the blade.

Miss Qin tightened her grip on the dagger. As her gaze grew unfocused, she cut another wound into her own hand, forcing herself to stay rational. “Stand right there. Do not come over. Once we both calm down, we will think of a way.”

She did not know how long the effects of that cup of wine would continue. The door had been sealed. Although the window was open, she did not dare rashly jump out, and she had also given up shouting for help.

Tang Er definitely could no longer be trusted. The guards had most likely all been sent away as well.

At this point, she did not know what the situation outside was. In her current state, staying in the room was actually the safest option.

After all, inside the room, she only had to face Xin Yuan.

But was facing Xin Yuan alone truly safe?

With a clatter, her fingers trembled weakly. The instant the dagger fell to the floor, it was like some kind of signal.

The string called reason snapped completely.

The surrounding air heated up in an instant, like the blazing sun finally tearing through clouds and mist, carrying waves of heat as it swept recklessly over everything.

The air. Their breathing…

Xin Yuan turned around blankly. Her footsteps followed instinct as she walked toward the only spring that could quench her thirst.

Beneath the white bed curtains, the woman’s cheeks were flushed, her dark brows relaxed, her red lips slightly parted. There was no longer any clarity in her eyes. In its place was deep tenderness and endless temptation.

Miss Qin’s lips curved faintly. When Xin Yuan arrived before her, she reached out with both hands, slightly lifted her head, and took the initiative to wrap her arms around Xin Yuan’s neck.

“Xin Yuan…”

That soft call carried an almost imperceptible smile, gentle and alluring.

Xin Yuan’s gaze was deep and burning. Every inch of her body seemed to be brushed by that call, as though the blazing sun had invaded her body and dried out every drop of moisture, leaving only dryness and barrenness.

The woman in her arms was the only trace of life in the desert. The skin beneath her fingers was cool as water, as if covered in a layer of sweet mist, tempting her to draw closer.

As though as long as she held it between her lips, she could finally be nourished.