The concubine pretends to be obedient, the sinister prince's favorite

"And my cousin! She was one of the most beautiful women in our village. She was supposed to marry the son of the village chief from the neighboring village at the end of the year, but...they kidnapped her and took her to the top of the mountain! She never came back..."

Li Youchuan hadn't expected this gang of bandits to be so rampant. Under the emperor's feet, did they really not care about the law at all?!

"Where's the government office in Changzhou?!"

Prefect Song stood behind the young man with a guilty look on his face. The man, who was over forty, could no longer straighten his back, and his tone was full of vicissitudes of life.

"Everyone is starving, so naturally no one wants to work for the court. The government offices... were disbanded long ago."

The faces of everyone present darkened. They had never expected that what was even more serious than the famine in Changzhou was the rampant bandits on the mountain.

"Don't worry, I will never tolerate this group of bandits!"

Everyone who received the promise smiled happily, and a long-lost hope appeared on their pale and thin faces.

……

Song Mansion,

Jiang Li, Li Jinyuan and Li Youchuan sat around the table with serious expressions. The famine in Changzhou was far more serious than they had expected.

"Third brother, I've fought those bandits before. They just look fierce, but they're just show-offs. They can't withstand two moves from the imperial guards."

Li Youchuan's blood boiled as he spoke, as if he was about to lead his troops to wipe out the bandit's lair in the next second.

Li Jinyuan knocked on the table lightly, with a topographic map of Changzhou spread out in front of him.

"They are untrained and naturally no match for the Imperial Guards. However, in terms of numbers, the Imperial Guards we brought this time are not enough for a direct attack."

Li Youchuan was deflated again. Even if he wanted to kill these bandits immediately to vent his anger, he couldn't use this tactic that would hurt the enemy by a thousand and hurt himself by eight hundred.

Seeing the two brothers discussing seriously, Jiang Li felt a little curious.

It seems that in private, Li Youchuan never calls Li Jinyuan "Royal Brother", but directly calls him "Third Brother"... This seems to be closer.

Furthermore, every time Li Youchuan addressed Li Junlin, he was always awkward and polite, without revealing any brotherly affection.

"Sister-in-law, you said before that you had a way to deal with those wild rabbits. Can you tell me now?!"

The puppy looked at her with its bright eyes, and Jiang Li came back to her senses.

"Oh, of course."

The girl lowered her arm that was supporting her chin and looked serious.

"These hares are small and agile, making them difficult to catch. However, while we humans may not be as fast as them, we are far superior in intelligence!"

"It would be much easier to catch them if we just set some traps..."

Seeing that Li Youchuan was listening attentively, Jiang Li blinked at him while speaking, looking like a scheming little fox. Her eyes moved flexibly, and many clever ideas popped out immediately.

"Tell me in detail!"

When Li Jinyuan saw the two heads put together in front of him, there was a storm in his eyes, and he had the urge to twist Li Youchuan's neck off.

"Wow...who are those blind people who spread rumors that the Empress's wife is a fool? I'm going to rip their mouths apart!"

Jiang Li raised her hand and chin proudly, keeping a low profile.

Li Youchuan also wanted to get closer to the girl to discuss catching rabbits tomorrow.

But before he could lean forward, he felt a sharp pain in the instep of his foot, which almost made him jump out of his chair.

“Ahhh!…”

The innocent puppy dog ​​eyes looked at his royal brother in astonishment. Li Jinyuan straightened his back and drank tea with a calm expression, as if the fatal kick was not made by him.

The exquisite and perfect profile slowly turned around, and the slightly raised eyebrows frightened Li Youchuan so much that he immediately fell silent.

He understood that Third Brother was disgusted with him for being in the way, but he could have just told him directly, and he had been kicked in vain... (っ╥╯﹏╰╥c)

"It's already dark. We'll discuss the rest tomorrow. I won't bother my brother and sister-in-law anymore."

Li Youchuan was a man of insight and stood up from his chair without wasting a moment.

Jiang Li was a little surprised by his sudden departure. Just when she wanted to ask him to stay for a while, the young man who had already walked to the door raised his eyebrows at the two of them, and the teasing meaning in his eyebrows was self-evident.

"Brother and sister-in-law, please rest early. After all... a night of love is worth a thousand gold!"

Jiang Li's cheeks turned red. She didn't expect that this was not a smooth-haired puppy at all, but an evil fox!

Unlike Jiang Li's discomfort, Li Jinyuan had an expression that said, "You've got to know your place."

……

Jiang Li and Li Jinyuan were the only ones left in the not-so-spacious room, and the atmosphere was suddenly eerily quiet.

The ambiguous memories in the hot spring pool last night kept attacking the girl's mind, and she wanted to shrink under the table like a quail.

Just when she was struggling over whether to sleep in bed with the man or on the floor tonight, Li Jinyuan had already walked to the bedside without her knowing.

The man in the ink-black robe sat upright on the edge of the bed, patted the seat next to him with his big hand, his face flawless.

"Lili, don't you want to come and sleep?"

When they were in the Third Prince's Mansion, the two of them had always slept separately. Except for that crazy night, Jiang Li had never slept in the same bed with him while she was awake.

"Uh... ok."

Her body walked towards the man uncontrollably. The closer she got, the faster her heartbeat became.

The way he stared at her, leaning against the bed waiting for her to come, really looked like a concubine seeking favor...

Li Jinyuan's eyes did not move, but his hand fell accurately on his belt.

With long fingers turning it over, the fabric around the waist quickly loosened.

Jiang Li's gaze followed his fingers to the collar, and the ink-colored outer robe fell to the ground, revealing the close-fitting inner garment.

Seeing that he was about to open his clothes, Jiang Li panicked.

Not knowing where to look, she closed her eyes and immediately held down his hand, stopping him from further seducing her.

"Wait...you can't take it off anymore!"

If she takes it off any further, she will see things she shouldn't see...

Li Jinyuan didn't move and let her hold his hand.

The tall body approached inadvertently, and as he smelled the fragrance of the girl's hair, the forbearance in the man's eyes became more and more intense.

"why not?"

"I don't like sleeping with my clothes on."

Hearing that he still had the habit of sleeping naked, Jiang Li became even more determined not to sleep in the same bed with him.

"Or I'll just sleep on the floor! I'll make a bunk on the floor..."

The girl avoided his gaze, broke free from Li Jinyuan's big hand on the back of her hand, and was about to go to Song Zhe to ask for a quilt.

Li Jinyuan's eyebrows jumped. He didn't expect the little fox to do this.

His arms suddenly wrapped around her waist from behind, and his chest followed closely.

Jiang Li was stunned when a strong chin pressed against her neck. The man's aggrieved voice rang in her ears, making her heart skip a beat.

"What are you afraid of, Lili? Are you afraid of what will happen like yesterday..."

Can't help it...

The girl raised her hand to cover the man's unspoken words, and her little face turned red.