A shadow fell over Jiang Chenbi as Cui Wangshu wrapped an arm around her waist and stepped through the door, closing it behind them.
Jiang Chenbi’s lips curved up. “Why is little Lord Cui back so soon?”
Cui Wangshu released her hold, her gaze landing on the Buddhist beads around Jiang Chenbi’s wrist. She hooked her lips. “It’s already lunchtime.”
Jiang Chenbi blinked and glanced out the window, only then noticing the sun hanging high in the sky.
“Do you still like it?” Cui Wangshu referred to the string of Qingjin Haiyan beads.
Jiang Chenbi lifted her hand and touched the beads, her voice light and cheerful. “A gift from little Lord Cui—of course I like it.”
Cui Wangshu’s lips lifted. “As long as you like it.”
Jiang Chenbi took a step forward, looping one arm around Cui Wangshu’s neck while her other hand traced circles over Cui Wangshu’s chest. She lifted her gaze seductively, her voice soft. “Persian sapphires like these wouldn’t cost less than ten thousand taels of silver. Is little Lord Cui proposing with such an extravagant gift?”
Cui Wangshu stared into Jiang Chenbi’s eyes, lifting her hand so the back of it brushed gently over Jiang Chenbi’s cheek. In a low voice, she said, “No.”
Jiang Chenbi clicked her tongue and pulled back. “Little Lord Cui is so boring. What’s wrong with whispering some sweet nothings between the sheets? I wouldn’t actually believe them anyway.”
Cui Wangshu lowered her gaze and said nothing. Not wanting the mood to turn so frigid, Jiang Chenbi changed the subject. “Is little Lord Cui planning to stay in this yamen office the whole time?”
Cui Wangshu shook her head. “I’ll be here for three months, but today I should move to a nearby residence.”
Jiang Chenbi’s lips curved in mock regret. “What a shame. I live right next door to the yamen office. Flipping over the wall was so convenient before, but now I probably can’t.”
Cui Wangshu knew exactly what she meant by flipping over the wall. “From now on, you can come straight to my residence. No more climbing walls or windows.”
Jiang Chenbi suddenly laughed, grabbing Cui Wangshu’s collar and yanking her close. She stared at those red lips. “But I get the feeling that every time I climb through the window, little Lord Cui gets pretty excited.”
Cui Wangshu removed her hand and straightened her wrinkled collar, as impeccably neat as ever.
“Is that so? I thought I was always excited around Miss Jiang.” Cui Wangshu’s lips held a teasing smile.
Jiang Chenbi narrowed her eyes. “Little Lord Cui, it seems like you really like my body.”
Cui Wangshu’s gaze lingered on her face, trailed downward, then returned to her eyes. “Food and sex, nature itself.”
Jiang Chenbi licked her lips, her voice husky. “Will little Lord Cui like it for a lifetime?”
Cui Wangshu’s eyes darkened, but her words were ruthless. “That depends on Miss Jiang’s abilities.”
Jiang Chenbi stared at Cui Wangshu, her lips quirking up. “In that case, we’ll see how long my interest in little Lord Cui lasts. Who knows? Maybe I’ll take a fancy to someone else in the blink of an eye.”
Cui Wangshu narrowed her eyes, leaned in close to Jiang Chenbi’s ear, and hooked her lips. “Is that so?”
“Unfortunately… we’re both afflicted with the Love Gu. We’re entangled for life after life, Miss Jiang. Don’t dream of other possibilities. As long as I live, you and anyone else are impossible.”
Jiang Chenbi turned her head, dodging the breath Cui Wangshu exhaled against her neck, and looked into her eyes.
Those eyes held obsession and danger—not idle words, but her true belief.
Cui Wangshu didn’t care how Jiang Chenbi took her declaration. To her, this woman was hers, her possession. No one else was allowed to touch.
Even if only for a fleeting moment, it had to be deeply marked with her brand, steeped in her scent.
Cui Wangshu lifted Jiang Chenbi’s chin, forcing her to meet her gaze. Her eyes burned with obsession, her tone icy. “Jiang Chenbi, I warn you—don’t entertain thoughts you shouldn’t. Otherwise, I’ll kill you.”
She bit down hard on that word “kill.”
This was the first time Cui Wangshu had so bluntly laid bare their relationship, the first time she’d revealed her well-hidden obsession and madness before Jiang Chenbi.
Jiang Chenbi stared straight at her, curling her lips into a cold smile. “Remember what you said today, little Lord Cui.”
Jiang Chenbi tilted her head up and bit down hard on Cui Wangshu’s lip. The taste of blood flooded her mouth. Cui Wangshu frowned at the metallic tang but made no move to push her away.
Once Jiang Chenbi had vented enough, Cui Wangshu licked the wound and wiped the blood from Jiang Chenbi’s lips with her hand.
She narrowed her eyes and said in a low voice, “When Miss Jiang can’t take it anymore, feel free to bite me. It’ll excite me more.”
Now Jiang Chenbi’s mood truly grew complicated. She’d already thought Cui Wangshu was a bit off in matters of intimacy, but now it seemed not just off—possibly perverse.
Seeing the odd look in her eyes, Cui Wangshu offered no explanation.
Jiang Chenbi’s expression shifted several times before she said, “Little Lord Cui, you’re truly… beastly.”
Cui Wangshu’s lips curved up as she laughed. “Thank you for the compliment, Miss Jiang.”
Watching Cui Wangshu grow more shameless by the second, Jiang Chenbi suddenly missed the old, feigned-upright Minister Cui.
Cui Wangshu chuckled lightly. “I came back to tell you that I’m not a Luozhou official. From now on, I’ll mostly handle affairs from my residence. If you need anything, come find me directly. Any identity is fine.”
As she turned to business, the beastly aura faded a bit. Only then did Jiang Chenbi ask, “No need to go to the yamen office?”
“I don’t handle Luozhou matters—only the Myriad Nations Conference. So I’m quite free.”
Jiang Chenbi hummed, arched a brow, and grinned mischievously. “I wonder if little Lord Cui’s noble personage needs an extra servant at the residence?”
Cui Wangshu immediately understood but didn’t agree, instead saying meaningfully, “No need to humble yourself like that. For the Myriad Nations Conference, the Palace Lord of Yellow Path Palace, or Miss Qian, and I still have much to discuss.”
“Just… I wonder how to address Miss Jiang then.”
Jiang Chenbi hooked her lips. “Yellow Path Palace’s public Palace Lord is Qian Yuan. Little Lord Cui can just call me Miss Qian.”
Cui Wangshu raised a brow. “Then please have Miss Qian visit my residence often during this time.”
Jiang Chenbi walked to the door, glancing back over her shoulder. “Minister Cui, please take good care of Yellow Path Palace.”
With that, she opened the door and left. Cui Wangshu watched her retreating figure, lips curving.
…
Wang Jin had found Cui Wangshu a grand and luxurious residence. Cui Wangshu never pretended to be frugal or impoverished—her style, and that of the Cui Family, had always been extravagant. She never denied herself comfort.
That afternoon, Cui Wangshu visited Yunyu Fang again. Yesterday had focused on the night market; today, she took time to see the daytime scene.
Daytime Yunyu Fang was completely different from nighttime—more solemn, less free-spirited.
Cui Wangshu mentally mapped out the functions of various areas when her gaze unexpectedly caught a familiar face.
A rare flicker of speechlessness crossed Cui Wangshu’s cool features, mirrored exactly on the other person’s face.
Cui Wangshu: “…”
Jiang Ci: “…”
Jiang Ci glanced around slyly, then winked at Cui Wangshu, gesturing for her to follow inside.
Cui Wangshu looked up at the glaring three characters on the signboard: “Miaoqu Pavilion.”
Cui Wangshu: “…” She shouldn’t have trusted Jiang Ci’s taste. Vulgar to death.
She stepped inside and saw the place running smoothly and orderly. Cui Wangshu raised a brow. Jiang Ci might lack taste, but her business acumen was sharp. In just over a month, she’d developed it this far.
After discussing it with Jiang Ci back then, Cui Wangshu had handed over the funds and paid no further attention. Jiang Ci knew not to report until standards were met, so she hadn’t mentioned it. Who knew they’d run into each other here.
Cui Wangshu had been busy with Myriad Nations Conference matters and cast it from her mind. Before coming to Luozhou, she’d remembered and planned to check, but kept getting delayed or occupied.
Seated at the table with a pot of West Lake Longjing served, Jiang Ci snapped her fan shut and asked, “Why are you only coming now? Weren’t you supposed to come soon?”
Cui Wangshu narrowed her eyes, recalling that day punished by Cui Daoyuan—kneeling under the blazing sun, and what followed.
In truth, Cui Wangshu’s constitution was excellent from years of martial training and careful diet. But perhaps starting from the imperial mausoleum injuries—frequent and internal—she hadn’t fully recovered despite Wang Lao and Jiang Chenbi’s care.
The Tongzhou divination chips incident had damaged her foundation even more. Back home, constant busyness left no time for recuperation. That day, beaten by Cui Daoyuan and forced to kneel in the sun, she fainted and fell gravely ill.
Upon waking, Cui Wangshu resumed court and duties as usual. Though ill, others thought it mere a cold, soon passed.
But illness came like a landslide and left like drawn silk. It dragged on with fevers for a full month, only resolving before she submitted her memorial to the Emperor.
Progress with Li Ji had stabilized, reducing contact frequency—which aided the smooth “reconciliation” with Li Cong this time.
Cui Wangshu hid her illness from Wang Lao, Jiang Ci, and especially Jiang Chenbi, delaying her Luozhou trip until recovered.
During that illness, fevers struck every three days, plagued by nightmares of strange scenes: herself as an infant in a blood pool, or Jiang Chenbi kneeling on a snowy cliff, pierced by an arrow through the heart.
The recurring dreams mimicked illusions woven by the Corpse Fragrance Devil Taro. Cui Wangshu nearly blurred reality and nightmare. In dazed moments, she’d stay in Jiang Chenbi’s former courtyard, easing the nightmares.
This led her to gradually realize her obsession with Jiang Chenbi. Over that month, it sparked other realizations.
But she dared not dwell, brushing past those thoughts to follow her heart: seeking Jiang Chenbi at Qingcang Mountain, gifting the Qingjin Haiyan, speaking those words today.
Cui Wangshu skipped the illness and nightmares, saying only, “Preparations for the Myriad Nations Conference required discussions with the capital and Ministry of Rites. Li Ji’s matters weren’t settled yet, so I stayed longer.”
Jiang Ci stroked her chin, her expression odd. This dictator consulting the Ministry of Rites? Hadn’t it always been her word alone?
Under Jiang Ci’s strange gaze, Cui Wangshu spotted the slip, sipped her Longjing, and said casually, “After the Kang Li incident, I plan to change how I manage the Ministry of Rites.”
Jiang Ci nodded, looking satisfied. “Now that’s more like it.” She’d thought Cui Wangshu couldn’t abandon her dictatorial ways—unless for greater gain or control, adapting her methods.
