cold clothes

Leng Yi admitted that she had planned this all along. Even if she hadn't ended up in prostitution, as a woman, she still needed to rely on men to make a living, and the only thing she could exchange in return was her body.

She always knew.

Having a clear understanding is one thing, but taking action is another.

Being intimate with a man she has no feelings for is worse than death for her, and besides, she was a virgin in her past life, so she harbors a slight, unknown fear about this. Now that she and Yin Jiulang are in love, she should quickly overcome this hurdle.

Compared to Leng Yi's eagerness, Yin Jiu hesitated.

"I think we should save this for the wedding," Yin Jiu said.

Good heavens, he actually thought about getting married! Who knows when they'll die of old age? Maybe they'll have to have a ghost marriage in the underworld.

Leng Yi dared not take the subject, so she had no choice but to force herself on him, becoming a female madwoman for a time.

As the saying goes: Outside the window, wind and rain stealthily enter the night; inside the tent, mandarin ducks dream of being a pair. Chang'e, ashamed to look upon human affairs, still sleeps with the red candle illuminating her pillow.

Before I knew it, the spring night was drawing to a close, the Milky Way seemed about to fall, and the fish bellies were turning white.

Leng Yi, exhausted from a night's sleep, slept soundly, while Yin Jiu woke up not long after. She was still a little dazed when she opened her eyes, but as soon as she turned her head, Leng Yi's magnified sleeping face was right next to her, and she immediately woke up.

The two red candles beside the bed remained burning quietly all night, untrimmed, making it impossible to tell the time, as if time had stopped in the enchanting night.

Yin Jiu sat up, rubbing her forehead, and then couldn't help but carefully examine Leng Yi's peaceful sleeping face, feeling a surge of tenderness in her heart.

So cute, I want to kiss her awake.

Ke Yinjiu restrained himself, unwilling to wake Leng Yi. He longed to watch Leng Yi wake up naturally, just like before at the herbal medicine hall, but now that he had shed his facade as a sickly prince, many eyes were watching him from all sides, leaving him with far less time to steal a moment of peace.

Yin Jiu trimmed the candle wicks, dressed herself neatly, and left reluctantly.

A sliver of dawn light outlined his figure as he walked. He didn't need to hide from the guards at all, because they no longer reported his whereabouts to Mama Hu.

-

At five o'clock sharp, Lingcao woke Lengyi up. As soon as she entered the room, she noticed something strange: the window was open, even though it hadn't gotten wet last night despite the drizzle.

Leng Yi was still half asleep when she tried to sit up in bed, but her lower back felt as hard as a rock, and the soreness seemed to be seeping into her bones.

"..."

If she told Suzuka that she did 100 sets of backbends and straight backs last night, would Suzuka believe her?

"What's wrong, miss? You don't look well."

"My back is so sore from practicing swordsmanship yesterday." Leng Yi mentally gave herself a thumbs up, thankful for her quick thinking.

Upon hearing this, Lingcao immediately offered to rub the medicinal wine on Lengyi, who quickly waved her hand in refusal. Lingcao hesitated for a moment, but how could she disregard Lengyi's safety? She insisted on checking Lengyi's waist. Despite Lengyi's successful defenses several times, Lingcao seized the opportunity and yanked open Lengyi's inner garment.

Two bright red handprints were clearly visible on her fair and slender waist.

Leng Yi's inner thoughts: It's over, I can't think of any words to argue.

Lingcao's eyes widened, and she said, "Young Master Qingyou is so strict with you? Sword practice must be so hard."

Leng Yi nodded quickly: Yes, yes, it was Qing You Nong.

"How have I been harsh?" A cold, deep, and emotionless voice came from the doorway. Leng Yi looked over in alarm and saw Qing You's icy, emotionless face.

Then Qingyou's gaze shifted slightly, looking at Lengyi's waist.

In that instant, Leng Yi had already thought of her epitaph; now it was truly the end.

Lingcao was timid, and Qingyou's arrival terrified her. She stammered and couldn't even finish her greeting. Fortunately, Qingyou didn't care about her. Instead, he stared intently at the mark on Lengyi's waist for a few seconds, and his expression gradually underwent some subtle changes.

"You're saying I left these marks?"

"No, no, I accidentally fell and bumped into some corners." Leng Yi pulled her clothes down, sat up, and waved her hands repeatedly.

Who would believe that a fall could leave such marks? Leng Yi's denial is simply a cover-up, completely smearing Qing You with this false accusation.

Qingyou's face darkened.

Lengyi looked at Qingyou pleadingly, "Okay, Qingyou, just take the blame. Anyway, only she and Lingcao know about this now."

Just as I was thinking this, the two old women arrived and nipped the farce in the bud with a single sentence.

"Miss Ningbi, Madam needs to see you. Please wash up as soon as possible and don't keep Madam waiting too long."

-

Leng Yi put on the red dress that Hu's mother had made for her, and applied a charming makeup. Under the gold powder and vermilion decorations, the girl's innocence was covered up, and she exuded a dazzling beauty.

When Mrs. Hu saw Leng Yi, she paused for a moment, then gave a meaningful look.

"Mom—" Leng Yi didn't bow properly to Hu's mother, but ran to Hu's mother's side, knelt down, grabbed Hu's mother's skirt, and looked up at her with fear and helplessness.

This caused everyone to look puzzled, and Qingyou frowned and then relaxed her brows in confusion.

"Mom—" Leng Yi cried out again with great emotion, but unfortunately her acting skills were still not good enough, and she could not squeeze out a few tears.

Mrs. Hu curled her lips into a smile, looking at Leng Yi with a gentle but mocking expression, and said softly, "What's wrong with Ning Bi? Get up quickly." She made no attempt to help Leng Yi up.

Leng Yi said urgently, "Mom, I was almost attacked by the men from Langxuan Pavilion yesterday... It was so scary! You have to stand up for me, Mom!"

“I already know about this from Qingyou,” Mrs. Hu said, looking at Qingyou. “Didn’t you kill that person? It’s surprising, but it makes sense for you.”

"Because I was so scared at the time, I drew my sword without thinking. I was terrified. I didn't mean to kill him, but he tried to do something indecent to me, so he deserved to die."

"He actually had those kinds of thoughts about me! But I didn't have much interaction with him at all, and I had absolutely no intention of seducing him. The two old ladies can testify for me!"

Leng Yi pointed to the two nannies, Li and Zhang. Although the two nannies did not understand Leng Yi's intention, they still nodded truthfully.

Mrs. Hu's eyes flickered as she looked down at Leng Yi's red dress, which billowed like a poppy on the ground, and her beautiful, alluring face. A smile deepened on her lips. "So you were worried that I would punish you for having an affair with that person? How could I? Don't I know you well enough?"

“I knew Mom was good to me,” Leng Yi said gratefully with a smile. Then, she clutched Hu’s mother’s skirt tightly, looking remorseful. “Mom, I was wrong. I will never be disobedient again. I hope you won’t give up on me.”

"It doesn't feel good to be forced by a man, does it... Ningbi, unfortunately, you should know that I won't tolerate your two-faced behavior forever."

Mrs. Hu's expression and tone remained unchanged. From the beginning, she had seen through Leng Yi's double-dealing; this was a trick Leng Yi was used to.

But she admired Leng Yi for that.

She didn't dislike ambitious subordinates; ambitious people were often more capable. However, she disliked people who disobeyed her and had to climb the ladder of success by following her orders. Leng Yi was still too naive, so she specifically ordered two matrons to suppress Leng Yi, which seemed to have some effect.

Leng Yi felt a chill run down her spine, shrank back, and begged for mercy, "I'll never do it again, Mom..."

“You need to learn to accept things early on. You will meet many different guests in the future, and each guest will have a different temperament and habits. You need to learn to cater to them,” Mrs. Hu said to Leng Yi in a teaching tone.

“No, Mother,” Leng Yi said in a panic, almost crying, “I don’t want this to happen… I will never disobey you again. Let me serve the Third Prince. I will do my best.”

"Mom can't believe your sweet talk now."

"Mom, just tell me what you need me to do, and I'll do it!"

Mrs. Hu had been waiting for these words. Her cold smile vanished in an instant. She said, "You are someone I have raised with a lot of effort, so naturally I don't want to give up on you. Since that's the case, I'll give you another chance. Don't disappoint me again."

-

The task that Madam Hu gave Leng Yi was to seduce Zhou Fengfu, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, at Liu Xia's farewell banquet.

It's important to understand that in recent years, numerous political factions have emerged, and the Emperor's deliberate leniency has allowed them to entangle themselves in mutual attacks, exacerbating the instability of the court. The positions of central ministers are rarely held for long before being impeached by opposing parties; officials rise and fall in rapid succession, with only the Ministry of Personnel showing relative stability. As the head of the Six Ministries, the Ministry of Personnel is sought after by various factions, making its Vice Minister a key target for the Fengxiang Pavilion's efforts to win over.

Originally, Zhou Fengfu was Liu Xia's patron, but Liu Xia was taken by Lin Qiuya, so he was naturally resentful. What Leng Yi wanted to do was to take Liu Xia's place.

It's worth mentioning that Zhou Fengfu is a member of the Wang family. Madam Hu truly dedicated herself to thoroughly infiltrating the Wang family's influence.

"I heard that Ningbi hasn't learned the Hehuan ritual yet. That won't do. We've troubled Qingyou for so long." Madam Hu said softly to Lengyi, but Lengyi could hear the firmness in her voice.

Mother Hu wanted Leng Yi to be obedient and compliant. The more Leng Yi resisted, the more she was made to do things. Mother Hu would not let her go until she completely submitted.

Fortunately, she forced herself on him last night, so now she's not afraid of anything.

So Leng Yi said firmly, "Mom, I will behave well from now on."

At this moment, Qingyou interrupted their conversation, "Langxuan Pavilion is short-staffed right now, and there are no suitable candidates for the young ladies to practice with. I came here to tell Madam about this matter."

"Why are we short-staffed?" Mrs. Hu's brows relaxed almost imperceptibly.

"The Fifth Young Master has issued many tasks, and the situation is urgent. Please forgive me, Madam."

The Fifth Prince is also known as the Fifth Young Master. Although Mama Hu manages the entire Fengxiang Pavilion, she has delegated some authority to the Fifth Prince to independently mobilize the people of Langxuan Pavilion. If the Fifth Prince needs to use people, she can't say anything.

Therefore, Lengyi no longer had to suffer from the torment of the two nannies.

Leng Yi knew that Yin Jiu had kept his promise; except for New Year's Eve four years ago, he had never broken his word.

After the conversation ended, Mrs. Hu sent Leng Yi and Qing You away, then said to the back room, "Did you hear that? I didn't lie to you."

Xia Hua emerged from the back room with a grim expression, her eyes still fixed on the door, trying to catch one last glimpse of that bright red figure.

Ningbi, the summer flowers and the breeze have all changed, but she alone remains in the same place.

Mrs. Hu stepped forward, stroked her head, and comforted her, saying, "You don't need to do these things; you have your own responsibilities."

Xia Hua lowered her eyes, unable to hide her disappointment no matter what her mother-in-law said.

Is her responsibility... merely to become her cousin's concubine and give birth to an heir with Xie family blood? Is that really all she can do?

-

Liu Xia's farewell banquet is in half a month. Leng Yi needs to find Liu Xia to rehearse for a performance, and Qing You takes her there.

Actually, Lingcao had been following Lengyi the whole time. Qingyou didn't need to see her off; she definitely wanted to talk to Lengyi.

Sure enough, when they passed a small pavilion, Qingyou invited Lengyi to sit inside and told Lingcao not to follow.

Qingyou, dressed in white, looked indifferent, which made Lengyi appear even more apprehensive. No matter how charming her makeup was, it couldn't hide her unease.

The two sat side by side, resembling immortals and their attendants.

Qingyou, who was always outspoken and didn't care about other people's feelings, sat down and asked, "Did you and that kid do it last night?"

what?

Leng Yi felt as if she had been struck by lightning, leaving her completely charred and raw.

Although I expected Qingyou to ask, this is too direct, isn't it?

In an instant, Leng Yi blushed from her neck to her ears.

"Mmm." He managed to squeeze out a sound from his throat.

She felt the chill as soon as she posted the message. Actually, she had always regarded Qingyou as a teacher, maintaining a sense of reverence. Moreover, Qingyou and Yinjiu had a senior-junior relationship… so being asked this question made her feel awkward, like being caught in a relationship by an elder, like meeting her future father-in-law. But her relationship with her future father-in-law wasn't exactly pure either, although it wasn't consensual.

Thinking about it carefully... or better yet, it's already twisted enough.

Qingyou fell silent, as if processing the truth. He sat quietly like an ancient snow mountain, his handsome appearance almost saintly, while Lengyi seemed to feel a sense of vicissitude.

When Leng Yi first met Qing You, she thought he looked quite young, like a twenty-year-old. Five years had passed, and Qing You's appearance hadn't changed at all, which made her stop judging his age by his appearance. Furthermore, Leng Yi later learned that Qing You had already been famous throughout the martial arts world for ten years.

Such a man, confined to a place of prostitution, inevitably evokes speculation; even his aloof demeanor is full of intrigue.

"What did he say to you?" Qingyou asked.

"Nothing said."

Qingyou stared intently at Lengyi, whose eyes darted around. "I... I didn't say anything!"

"He didn't say anything. How did you fall for him? You don't even know much about his background. What if he's lying to you?"

Leng Yi paused for a moment, then looked to the left and muttered, "What could he possibly have to lie to me about? Besides, I don't even really like him that much."

"That's exactly what he said; you two seem to be in sync."

"Huh? He said he doesn't like me that much?" Leng Yi was shocked, then her blue eyes darkened slightly as she tentatively asked Qing You, "What did he tell you?"

“What he says doesn’t matter. He’s a man of many faces, and his words are a mixture of truth and falsehood…” Qingyou paused for a moment, then slowly said, “Looking at it this way, you two are indeed a good match. You’re both quite good at acting; you’re kindred spirits.”

"You should know all about Zhao Yin, who is also Yin Jiu's identity."