The candlelight flickered, making Liang Ye’s features appear indistinct.
“If Bian Rufeng had other motives when entering the palace…” Wang Dian started but didn’t want to continue.
When it came to Bian Rufeng, any objective speculation would be too cruel for Liang Ye. Putting himself in Liang Ye’s shoes, if someone harbored such doubts and malicious speculations about his mother, Wang Dian couldn’t accept it at all.
Liang Ye seemed to be waiting for him to continue.
“But what’s past is past. No matter what assumptions we make, they’re just speculations in the end.” Wang Dian leaned against the table, patted his shoulder, and ended the topic, “It’s getting late, you should rest early.”
Liang Ye stared at him meaningfully for a long while, “Wang Dian, do you think Zhen cares about these things?”
“I care,” Wang Dian replied honestly.
Since Wang Dian was standing, he bent slightly while saying this, looking into Liang Ye’s eyes with focus and tenderness, “My mother is the person who treats me best in this world. I don’t want anyone to make malicious speculations about her.”
Liang Ye’s eyes seemed to understand, but the next second he frowned, “Zhen is the person who treats you best in this world.”
“…” Wang Dian’s mouth twitched, “Stop fooling around.”
Compared to his mother, it only highlighted how terrible Liang Ye’s previous actions were. If they had to set a standard, his mother would be in the clouds, while Liang Ye would have to dig himself a basement.
Perhaps because he had drunk too much white jade soup, Liang Ye sometimes had a weak ability to grasp key points. For instance, now he insisted on competing with Wang Dian’s mother from another world, trying to prove that he held the most weight in Wang Dian’s heart, and gradually demanded that Wang Dian could only have him in his heart.
“…These are completely different types of feelings, they can’t be measured specifically.” Wang Dian was thoroughly annoyed by him and pushed his face away, “Stop being so persistent.”
Liang Ye searched around and finally pulled off his belt, deftly tying his wrists above his head. The two clasps on the belt were cold, feeling particularly strange against his wrists. Wang Dian struggled a bit – Liang Ye hadn’t tied it tight, and it could be broken free with some force, but he only made two symbolic movements before looking at him and saying, “Resorting to force when you can’t win with words, who taught you that?”
“Self-taught,” Liang Ye sat proudly on his stomach, resting his arms on his knees and looking down at him with eyes full of interest, “Wang Dian, you clearly enjoy it very much.”
Wang Dian’s eyebrows twitched slightly, “I can’t beat you anyway, you’re just bullying me with your power.”
“Zhen hasn’t taken much advantage of you either.” Liang Ye recalled with some displeasure, after all, he was usually the one bullying others, but with Wang Dian he always ended up at a disadvantage.
“This is a consensual matter…” Wang Dian’s gaze wandered to the hem of his outer robe and clicked his tongue, “What exactly did you eat?”
Liang Ye looked annoyed, “Feng Lan, that old thing, not young anymore but still has quite a few tricks.”
There were probably quite a few aphrodisiac things mixed in those pastries. He had been busy suppressing it with his internal energy all day, originally thinking it would subside after a while, who knew Wang Dian would keep hovering before his eyes. He barely made it to the evening, just when he wanted to make a move, that dim-witted Xu Xiude had to come and join in the excitement.
He was about to give up, but Wang Dian not only noticed it but deliberately teased him.
“Better hold back.” Wang Dian sighed, “The wound at your waist hasn’t fully healed yet.”
With his hands bound, lying beneath Liang Ye in disheveled but magnificent robes, he advised seriously and properly. Every rebellious bone in Liang Ye’s body was itching to act up.
“It’s much better already, feel it if you don’t believe me,” Liang Ye said with certainty.
Wang Dian shook the belt at his wrists and raised an eyebrow, “How can I feel it?”
Liang Ye stared excitedly at his lips, “Top or bottom, both are fine.”
This fellow’s extremely strong learning ability and execution always seemed to focus on rather improper things.
Wang Dian wasn’t as reckless as him, taking care very thoroughly and appropriately. Looking at his reddened lips, Liang Ye felt the effects of that tainted pastry growing stronger and stronger. He frowned and wanted to pull him to continue.
Wang Dian turned his head away and coughed hard twice, “Keep going and I’ll lose my voice.”
The clasp that had long been broken free scratched his tiger’s mouth slightly, causing a mild pain. In the time it took Wang Dian to rinse his mouth, his hands had lost control again.
“It’s my turn now,” Wang Dian reminded him leisurely.
Liang Ye narrowed his eyes in displeasure, his gaze quickly crossing with his, trying to create the illusion that he hadn’t heard, pressing down hard on his wrists.
“Ziyu, really don’t want to?” Wang Dian let him bite his neck without restraint and said gently, “You clearly enjoy it very much too.”
Wang Dian didn’t like Liang Ye calculating even in bed, using it as a means to appease or control him. He also didn’t want to rack his brains every time to make him submit beneath himself. He preferred when Liang Ye was willing.
Like now.
Perhaps after making a symbolic struggle, or maybe without even struggling at all, Liang Ye gritted his teeth and glared at him as if wanting to kill him. The murderous intent made his eye corners tinge with a faint blush. Because of his movements, his brows furrowed, without making a sound, even his breathing carried restraint.
As an emperor, he always had some inexplicable and pedantic self-esteem. Those imperial guards always hid in places Wang Dian couldn’t see, but Liang Ye knew exactly where they were.
“Where are they all hiding?” Wang Dian asked seriously.
Liang Ye almost bit through his teeth, narrowing his eyes and speaking with displeasure, “Wang Dian, don’t push your luck.”
“Push my luck?” Wang Dian carefully savored these words. “Push like this…or like this… hmm?”
The hand hanging by the bed suddenly gripped tight.
“Ziyu, how much do you want?” Wang Dian asked deliberately, “And how much do you want me to…?”
Even normal words could take on a different meaning in Wang Dian’s mouth. Liang Ye licked his dry lips, staring at Wang Dian’s slightly out-of-control expression, “Zhen… naturally wants all–”
Before he could finish, his ear suddenly twitched, and he covered Wang Dian’s mouth and nose.
Though the footsteps were quite far away, they quickly reached the door. Li Mu’s lowered voice came from outside. “Master, have you retired?”
“What is it?” Liang Ye suppressed his unsteady breathing, his voice slightly hoarse.
“Reporting to Master, we’ve found traces of Baili Cheng’an and the young crown prince. We just received two letters, but there was an eight-day gap between the two letters. This servant guesses…”
Outside, Li Mu’s voice was still analyzing why the two letters arrived at the same time.
Liang Ye frowned while listening, but before he could reply, Wang Dian suddenly showed him an interesting smile. His warning gaze hadn’t been received before he nearly let out a muffled groan the next moment.
His long fingers gripped tightly on Wang Dian’s arm. Liang Ye’s upturned neck showed smooth and beautiful lines. The hand covering Wang Dian’s mouth and nose momentarily lost strength, and Wang Dian pressed down slightly against his palm, kissing his palm.
The feeling of lips touching the back of his hand was strange and unfamiliar. Liang Ye looked at Wang Dian’s smiling eyes, the extreme pleasure and excitement intertwined, making his expression momentarily dazed.
“Master?” Having received no answer to his question for a long time, Li Mu couldn’t help but call out.
Liang Ye suddenly flipped over and pressed Wang Dian beneath him. His expression twisted momentarily from this large movement. He slapped Wang Dian’s face and said in a deep voice, “Zhen understands. Do as you said, make sure to find the crown prince tonight.”
“Yes!” Li Mu responded, “This servant will go handle it right away!”
Only after the footsteps faded did Liang Ye release his hand covering Wang Dian, glaring at him through gritted teeth and scolding in a lowered voice, “You must be tired of living.”
Wang Dian smiled politely and modestly, “Your Majesty, back then in the rockery at the temporary palace, this is what you were thinking of…”
Suddenly being reminded of old accounts, Liang Ye was stunned for a moment before saying unhappily, “Zhen should take the antidote.”
“Aren’t we already–” Wang Dian’s mouth was firmly stuffed with the belt.
Liang Ye wrapped the clasp right around his neck, saying viciously, “Sooner or later Zhen will cut off your tongue.”
****
Whether the Prince of Danyang’s tongue could be cut off, Li Mu didn’t know, but he knew his own head would probably be cut off.
“Chief, you’re really amazing,” a young secret guard said softly, “You actually rushed to the door last night.”
“What?” Li Mu looked at the young secret guard’s meaningful expression and felt something was terribly wrong, but thinking carefully about Master’s commands last night, there was nothing unusual.
The young secret guard was named Jie Gui, the youngest among the new batch of secret guards, so Li Mu took extra care of him, giving him lighter tasks like driving carriages and watching horses. Jie Gui also liked to stay close to him when free.
“The Prince was in Master’s room yesterday,” Jie Gui coughed lightly, “Master wouldn’t even let us enter the courtyard, we were kept far away, and before we could call you, you had already rushed in…”
Li Mu belatedly understood what he was talking about, his face immediately changing colors between green, white, and red. He stammered, “I-I didn’t hear anything last night.”
Master’s voice had been normal, he hadn’t even heard a second person’s breathing.
Jie Gui saw Liang Ye and Wang Dian coming out from the courtyard gate from afar and patted his shoulder, “Just pretend you don’t know anything. If things really go wrong, definitely beg the Prince first, you can do it, Chief.”
After speaking, he jumped up into a tree to pretend to be leaves.
Li Mu steeled himself to go forward, “Master, Prince.”
Liang Ye’s expression was hard to read, lazily yawning. Wang Dian beside him appeared to be in good spirits, gathering his sleeves and smiling at him, “Good morning, Commander Li.”
“Good morning, Prince.” Li Mu kept his head down, not daring to look at him, afraid he might see something he shouldn’t.
Liang Ye raised his hand to pull Wang Dian’s collar at the back, covering the teeth marks that had bled on his neck, and said indifferently, “Have you found the person?”
“Reporting to Master, our people were a step late,” Li Mu said, “The young crown prince seems to be ill, Baili Daren left in a great hurry, and there are several groups of people from unknown sources seeking the young crown prince…”
Liang Ye listened to Li Mu’s report with drooping eyelids, finally speaking slowly, “Last night–”
Li Mu immediately jolted, almost wanting to kneel and swear his innocence, cold sweat covering his body, only to hear Liang Ye continue unhurriedly, “Where are the letters received?”
Li Mu quickly pulled them out from his sleeve to present them.
Liang Ye lifted his eyelids to look at him once but didn’t take them. Li Mu trembled under his gaze and looked to Wang Dian for help.
Wang Dian smilingly took the letters and naturally handed them to Liang Ye, who took them casually, “Alright, go.”
“Yes!” Li Mu immediately felt greatly relieved, gratefully glanced at Wang Dian once, and disappeared into the trees.
Wang Dian leaned close to him to look at the letters and laughed softly, “He didn’t hear anything anyway, why are you shy?”
Liang Ye read the letters with a stern face, “Morning sickness.”
Wang Dian remembered his somewhat excessive words from last night due to over-excitement, cleared his throat uncomfortably, and said stiffly, “The weather is really nice today.”
Liang Ye looked at the gloomy sky and laughed coolly, “What’s this, denying it already?”
