Even with Pei Liang’s wealth of experience, she couldn’t help admiring the courtesan’s repertoire in a situation like this.
In the past, she had always been the shameless one, deliberately creating thrills and putting others in impossible positions. A situation like this was rare.
Fang Jiu’s expression was alluring and ambiguous, and he was actively using his body to please and pamper her.
For a man in a world ruled by women to behave this way was entirely different from what it would mean in an ordinary society.
And this was ancient times, to boot. Fang Jiu had originally been a noble-born young master. The values instilled in him since childhood, as well as the education he had received, were completely at odds with what he was doing now. That made his actions all the more remarkable.
Pei Liang had never doubted her self-control in this regard. She was someone who always followed her desires.
Yet the more worlds she experienced, the more she felt that she had underestimated herself.
Especially after coming here—she had already been pushed this far, and she still had enough energy left to struggle inwardly.
At this moment, Pei Liang practically felt like a saint.
She shifted backward and pressed down on Fang Jiu’s head, saying hesitantly, “This prince has already been away for quite some time. This isn’t appropriate, is it?”
When Fang Jiu’s head was pressed down, he didn’t struggle. Instead, he rubbed his face against Pei Liang’s hand, softly and silently dissolving her not-particularly-firm refusal.
Sure enough, her hand followed the curve of his chin and began to scratch it. It was a little like petting a cat, but Fang Jiu felt more comfortable than he ever had before.
A sigh even escaped his throat.
He smiled at Pei Liang. “Don’t worry, Your Highness. It won’t take long.”
Pei Liang immediately disliked the sound of that. “Impossible. This prince certainly won’t be finished anytime soon. Forget it.”
Only then did Fang Jiu realize he had misspoken. Why had he said it would be quick?
On the other hand, it also showed that he was almost completely unguarded around Prince Liang, to the point that he could make such a crude verbal blunder.
His voice took on a faintly coquettish lilt. “Your Highness~ This servant doesn’t believe you. I want to find out for myself.”
Who could withstand that?
Seeing him move forward again, Pei Liang hurriedly said, “We’re talking here. Why are you getting handsy?”
“Hey, hey! Let go—my clothes are about to come undone. We have a pure superior-subordinate relationship right now. This time, I must properly lecture you. These tricks aren’t meant for people on the inside.”
Fang Jiu simply assumed that Pei Liang had recently taken a liking to a different sort of game. When he had come out today, he had already made up his mind: he wouldn’t stop until he had gotten his hands on her.
Otherwise, this heartless woman might forget all about him. Naturally, no obstacle would be enough to stop him.
At her words, he even teased her, “Yes, Your Highness. This subordinate will heed your teachings. I have merely learned a few new skills, and I simply must let Your Highness inspect them.”
Pei Liang: “...Next time. The Prince Consort is in the room next door.”
Fang Jiu raised his head and glanced toward the wall separating them from the neighboring room.
The Bamboo Court happened to be just to the left of the private room where Pei Liang and Su Yue had been earlier. Pei Liang had no idea how Fang Jiu had managed to reserve it. Logically speaking, with the Heavenly Fragrance Tower reopening today, there should have been no shortage of high-ranking guests coming to show their support. A choice location like this should never have fallen to someone from Ripple House.
But there was no point investigating Fang Jiu’s methods now. After staring intently at that wall, he turned back to Pei Liang.
Then he said something that made her scalp prickle—
“I heard from Little Ten that the Prince Consort is sitting right beside this wall?”
“Your Highness, would you like to press this servant against the wall and have me right beside the Prince Consort?”
Pei Liang hurriedly covered his face.
Was he suffering from exhaustion lately? It felt as though he was short on nourishment.
But in the very next moment, she felt a damp sensation against her wrist, as though it were being licked.
Pei Liang thought, This little demon won’t let me off today unless he gets what he wants.
How could an ordinary person possibly fight a demon?
It wasn’t that her willpower was weak. Her opponent was simply too ferocious.
Sensing that this wicked woman had finally been stirred into action and had abandoned her hesitation, Fang Jiu hastened his movements.
Meanwhile, Pei Liang’s prolonged absence naturally aroused Su Yue’s suspicion.
The two of them had come out to eat, and they had brought only a few attendants. Su Yue had his personal attendant, Little Sheng, while Pei Liang had brought only her guards Hongxiu and Qingyi.
Hongxiu and Qingyi were both peerless experts, more than capable of protecting Su Yue. Pei Liang could take care of herself, too. Thus, ever since arriving in this world, she had rarely traveled with a grand entourage.
However, although Hongxiu and Qingyi were efficient in handling tasks, they were not necessarily clever or adept at dealing with complicated schemes.
Normally, because Prince Liang’s status was exalted and no one except the emperor could force them to say anything, there was no problem.
But Su Yue was different. He was the master of the prince’s residence, the “male master” to whom their liege had granted real authority and who participated in the decision-making of the entire Prince Liang faction.
Naturally, many matters could not be avoided.
For example, Su Yue casually asked, “Qingyi, do you know that child from earlier?”
Qingyi’s body went rigid at once. Under the Prince Consort’s gaze—which was not particularly aggressive, yet seemed to see through everything—she broke out in a cold sweat.
“This prince noticed that Qingyi seemed rather concerned,” he said, taking a sip of tea. The tea had already begun to cool, showing just how long Pei Liang had been gone. “That child, however, seemed even more concerned with His Highness.”
Qingyi was just about to come up with an excuse when she heard the Prince Consort continue, “Think carefully. Once His Highness returns, do not let your explanation differ from hers.”
Could she withstand this crisis?
Qingyi glanced at Hongxiu, but that wretch was pretending to be dead, sitting with her eyes lowered and her nose aligned with her heart.
They were both in this together, yet she had to bear it alone. Before the wedding, they never could have imagined that things would come to this. Back then, Su Yue had been nothing more than an arrogant prime minister’s son who pretended to be aloof and refused to show proper respect.
Hadn’t their liege taken him for herself all the same?
But things were different now. He was the male master trusted and respected by their liege. Naturally, they had to obey him.
In the end, unable to withstand the pressure of the Prince Consort’s gaze, Qingyi could only grit her teeth and say, “That—that’s my younger brother.”
“Oh? If he is a close relative, why didn’t you greet him earlier? The two of you have been busy running around with His Highness lately and have hardly had time to return home. It is only natural that your younger brother would take this opportunity to visit his elder sister and offer his greetings. His Highness is not so harsh as that.”
Qingyi wanted nothing more than to crawl into a hole. She could only brace herself and say, “He’s young and doesn’t know any better. He disturbed His Highness and the Prince Consort.”
“Once I return, I’ll deal with him.”
Su Yue, however, gave her a faintly mocking smile. “Didn’t this prince already say that His Highness is not petty? Why would I take offense?”
“His Highness likely knew that you would be unable to relax while on duty, and thus personally took it upon herself to comfort her subordinate’s family.”
Good heavens! She was done for. Had the Prince Consort known from the very beginning?
Sure enough, Su Yue stood up and said to the two of them, “Let’s go. Take me to the Bamboo Court as well.”
How could Hongxiu and Qingyi dare move? They wished their mouths could detach themselves from their bodies and fly over to warn their liege that disaster was imminent.
Little Sheng also understood what was going on. He had already felt that the pretty boy was behaving strangely, acting inexplicably toward their prince.
So it really was an outside demon trying to seduce their liege.
He immediately rolled up his sleeves and said furiously, “That little brat is so young and already misbehaving. I’ll tear him apart!”
Little Sheng was the fastest. The moment he left the private room, he made straight for the Bamboo Court, which was only a short distance away.
Little Sheng was, after all, the kind of person who had dared to face a prince with a dagger on her wedding night in order to defend her master’s chastity. Naturally, she had a fiery temper.
In the heat of her fury, she kicked open the door to the Bamboo Court.
Through the wide-open doorway, Su Yue immediately saw the indecent position occupied by the pair inside.
Prince Liang was seated on the couch near the window, while a stunningly beautiful, utterly captivating man knelt between her legs.
He was not the handsome young man from before, but the two looked remarkably alike. It was obvious they were brothers.
But none of that mattered at the moment. Although the two of them did not appear to have actually done anything yet, and their clothes were only slightly disheveled, one look at that shameless woman Pei Liang was enough to tell that she had every intention of going along with it.
Only moments ago, Su Yue had been immersed in an indescribable sweetness, feeling that today’s opportunity was rare.
Now, seeing this scene, it was as though a bolt of lightning had struck him right on the head.
He had rarely lost his composure in all his life, yet at this moment, even his expression had twisted.
Staring at the two of them, he roared furiously, “You shameless creatures!”
Pei Liang realized she had been caught in the act and instinctively began to feel guilty.
She couldn’t really be blamed. In her previous world, Chu Yebai and Gong Ran had pulled this sort of stunt far too many times, to the point that it had become a conditioned response.
She hurriedly rose to her feet. “No, listen to me plead—bah! I mean, explain!”
Su Yue had originally intended to turn around and leave. The two of them were merely partners, after all. His reaction might have seemed perfectly natural to an outsider, but only he knew how unjustified it actually was.
Seeing Pei Liang react this way, Su Yue felt both miserable and faintly hopeful.
Besides, he was not the sort of person who habitually ran from problems. He therefore took advantage of the situation and walked straight into the Bamboo Court.
He sat down on the couch opposite Pei Liang and said with a dark expression, “Go on. I’m listening.”
Only then did Pei Liang realize that there was nothing between her and Su Yue in the first place.
They were not even in a kept-lover arrangement, so naturally she had no obligations to him.
Yet seeing Su Yue in his current state, Pei Liang couldn’t help wondering whether she was looking at things too simplistically.
Although the two of them had no emotional contract to honor, Su Yue’s background and lofty ambitions meant that he cared deeply about his reputation and dignity.
Lately, she had gone to great lengths to help restore his standing, and people had finally begun to forget the fact that he had lost his chastity and married into the prince’s household.
Yet now she had openly cheated on him in front of everyone, completely disregarding his presence. It did seem rather inappropriate.
Fortunately, Qingyi and Hongxiu had enough sense to close the door behind them as soon as they entered, preventing the people outside from watching the spectacle.
At this point, Fang Jiu had also risen to his feet. Pei Liang glanced at him and immediately felt that something was off.
How should she put it? Fang Jiu was standing at her side, and technically, there was nothing wrong with it.
He came from a noble family, so his bearing and manners were naturally impeccable. Even when facing Su Yue’s icy stare, he remained neither servile nor overbearing.
And yet, somehow, he looked exactly like a concubine caught by the principal wife—helplessly awaiting the master’s protection.
His posture was both submissive and silently provocative, causing an icy chill to radiate from Su Yue’s entire body.
Then Su Yue suddenly realized that he was not entirely unfamiliar with the man before him.
No wonder the child from earlier had seemed vaguely familiar. The alluring man before him was none other than the Ninth Young Master Fang from the Fang family.
Fang Jiu was a few years older than his younger brother, and they moved in different circles, so Su Yue had not had much interaction with him.
But he still remembered Fang Jiu’s former brilliance. Had the Fang family not fallen, Fang Jiu would surely have remained one of the most celebrated young masters in the capital.
Thinking of this, Su Yue could not bring himself to make things difficult for him. Instead, he fixed his gaze on Pei Liang and said, “Have you thought of an explanation yet?”
Pei Liang answered immediately, “I have. A piece of pastry fell onto my clothes, and he was helping me get it off.”
Su Yue: “…”
Did this shameless woman take him for an idiot?
To his surprise, Fang Jiu let out a soft laugh at her words. “Exactly. His Highness saw how sweet the dessert in the cup was and became overeager. He ate too hastily and lost his composure. Prince Consort, please don’t take offense.”
Pei Liang: “…”
This was completely uncalled for. She had already indulged him when he tried to take liberties with her, so why was he exposing her now?
Before Pei Liang could smooth things over, however, the situation began to change.
After hearing Fang Jiu’s words, the provocation in them was impossible to miss. Su Yue therefore saw no reason to show mercy.
He looked at Fang Jiu and smiled. “Young Master Fang, it has been several years, yet your elegance remains unchanged.”
Fang Jiu returned his smile and bowed. “I am flattered that Prince Consort still remembers a lowly man like me.”
Su Yue said, “Young Master Fang seems to share a rather close personal relationship with Her Highness.”
Fang Jiu replied, “A mere lowborn servant such as myself could hardly presume to have a personal relationship with a prince. I merely have the honor of receiving Her Highness’s favor. She often visits my Lianyi Pavilion to sit for a while and patronize my business, that is all.”
As an upright married man, Su Yue naturally had no idea what sort of place Lianyi Pavilion was.
He turned to look at Qingyi and Hongxiu. The two of them wished they could slap themselves. Why hadn’t they simply closed the door and stayed outside? Why had they insisted on coming in?
The main reason was that they were afraid someone might scratch their mistress’s face.
They could only brace themselves and explain, “Prince Consort, Lianyi Pavilion is a place in the capital where nobles gather to compose poetry, drink wine, and listen to opera.”
They were only trying to dress it up. With Su Yue’s intelligence, he understood immediately.
His expression changed at once, and he turned to glare at Pei Liang. At the same time, he remembered that Prince Liang’s romantic exploits had long been common knowledge throughout the capital.
Before the wedding, his elder sister had apparently investigated the matter and said that Prince Liang had recently been frequenting brothels.
This should not have surprised him in the slightest. Yet Su Yue found it utterly unbelievable.
When had this shameless woman come to seem so upright in his eyes?
Still, he refused to lose face. Su Yue forced a smile. “When I saw Young Master Fang several years ago, you were aloof and cold as frost. I never imagined that you would become so warmhearted and eager to help others. It truly is an eye-opening transformation.”
The smile on Fang Jiu’s face faded slightly. He replied without yielding, “It is widely rumored that Prince Consort was forced into marriage and spent the days before his wedding in misery. Judging by your appearance now, it seems those rumors were indeed unreliable.”
Their gazes collided in midair, as though sparks were flying between them.
Seeing that the spectacle was about to turn into another battlefield, Pei Liang, the shameless scoundrel that she was, hurriedly said, “We’ve been out for quite some time. The food must be getting cold.”
“We shouldn’t disturb Young Master Fang while he’s dining. Let’s go back.”
Su Yue gave a cold laugh. “Her Highness still has the food on the table in mind? I thought she had already eaten her fill here.”
Fang Jiu added, “If she wants to eat, she should eat. After all, I’ve been serving Her Highness for several years. It’s only natural that she’s become rather busy, running back and forth like this.”
Pei Liang was attacked from both sides and could only lower her head, pretending to be dead.
Su Yue gave Fang Jiu a long, penetrating look and abandoned all hope of this man.
He said, “Young Master Fang, there is no need to say more. Her Highness has been so busy lately that she has grown careless in handling matters.”
At this, Fang Jiu smoothly picked up the thread. “Prince Consort, there is no need to say so much. No one understands Her Highness’s recent achievements better than I do.”
Su Yue’s brows drew together, and a sense of foreboding rose in his heart.
Sure enough, in the next moment, Fang Jiu said, “After all, I was fortunate enough to be entrusted with the matter at Xianluo Mountain.”
Su Yue turned around and stared at Pei Liang in disbelief.
Seeing the utterly unguilty, matter-of-fact look on the other person's face, he simply could not bring himself to accept it.
He did not even remember how he had stumbled out of there.
If Fang Jiu had merely been Prince Liang's paramour who had started keeping company with her before her marriage, he would not have been this upset.
But it was clear now that Fang Jiu shared a far deeper bond with Prince Liang, both in terms of time spent together and emotional ties, and even occupied an irreplaceable position in Prince Liang's network of interests.
That was right, Ninth Young Master Fang had once been a celebrated and renowned young gentleman of the capital, how could all the knowledge and skills he possessed be used for nothing more than pleasing women?
Su Yue was filled with a heavy, unpleasant feeling. On the ride back, he sat in the same carriage as Prince Liang.
Occasionally, he would glance at her face, and all he felt in his heart was utter weariness.
It was no use. They were never fated to be together. The little flutters in his heart he had felt lately were probably nothing more than a sense of belonging brought on by the unusual ease he had enjoyed in the palace and the chance to give full play to his abilities.
If the matter with Consort Zhou could at least be said to be something that had happened right under his nose that he could not ignore, the existence of Fang Jiu had completely shattered Su Yue's illusions.
A woman this free and unrestrained, if he foolishly let his heart fall for her, he would only be asking for trouble.
Su Yue had always been adept at weighing interests, and as he thought things through, his mind calmed down considerably.
Little Sheng, on the other hand, was seething with indignation, glowering at Prince Liang the entire ride.
Prince Liang did not get angry. Instead, she looked rather sheepish.
Su Yue sneered inwardly. Both he and Little Sheng were fools.
But it was hardly surprising. She was so gentle that even Little Sheng, a mere attendant who had once feared and been on high alert around her from the very start, now acted informally and unceremoniously with her.
Yet for all her tenderness, she was also unyielding and decisive when the situation called for ruthlessness.
How could a woman like that ever easily settle down for a man?
Su Yue was in the middle of persuading himself to let go of his feelings, when the carriage suddenly jolted to a halt.
It seemed something had happened outside. The momentum of the sudden stop nearly threw him off his feet, but the next second he was caught in a warm embrace.
Su Yue looked up, and saw that Prince Liang had one hand clutching Little Sheng, who had also nearly toppled over. Her face was now serious.
Su Yue immediately realized what must have happened, and sure enough, the sounds of clashing weapons and fighting drifted in from outside.
"Protect the Prince Consort! Protect the Prince Consort!" Hongxiu's voice rang out.
Judging from the sound of the footsteps outside, the number of assassins was clearly large. They had only brought Qingyi and Hongxiu with them that day, and with the coachman, there were only three of them in total.
No matter how skilled they were at martial arts, they could not fight off so many assailants on their own. Very soon, some of the attackers broke through their defenses and charged straight for the carriage.
A glinting, cold blade sliced through the carriage curtain, but Prince Liang calmly reached out, caught the blade between her fingers, and snapped it clean in two in the blink of an eye. The attacker was sent flying backward with the force of the shock.
But Pei Liang's face did not look at all relieved. In fact, she said in a low voice, "They've really spared no expense for this."
As she spoke, she reached up and snatched an arrow that was shooting in through the carriage window right out of the air.
Su Yue's heart sank. This stretch of road was never this quiet on ordinary days, and Qingyi and Hongxiu had not noticed anything amiss right before the carriage stopped. That could only mean that every single person on this stretch of the road was part of the enemy's forces.
With such a well-laid plan, the traps set both in the open and in secret must be designed to make sure no one could escape alive.
Su Yue glanced at Pei Liang. Rumour had it that Prince Liang's martial arts skills were unmatched, otherwise the immortal master and sect master from Xianshan Mountain would never have been beaten into utter submission by her.
If she had been alone, she could have fought her way out even through thousands of troops. The problem was, he and Little Sheng were the burdens holding her back.
Su Yue was just about to speak, when she beat him to it, calling out to Hongxiu and Qingyi outside, "You two, come back. Escort the Prince Consort back to the manor."
Hongxiu and Qingyi hesitated. They were right outside the carriage, so they could see clearly just how dire the situation was.
They were Prince Liang's people, their honour and lives were entirely in their mistress's hands. The Prince Consort, after all, was only —
But in the midst of their hesitation, a deafening voice that felt like it was exploding right inside their heads boomed out:
"NOW!"
The two of them stopped thinking immediately and instinctively obeyed their mistress's order. They abandoned their defensive positions, launched a fierce assault to force back the people surrounding the carriage, and the moment they saw their Highness leap out of the carriage, they lashed the horses with their whips. The horses yelped in pain and broke into a wild gallop.
The whole sequence of events happened in a flash, and Su Yue did not have time to react.
He reached out instinctively to grab Pei Liang just as she was about to step down from the carriage, but all he managed to tear off was a corner of her sleeve.
The carriage sped off, ramming through several assassins in its path, and Prince Liang's figure grew smaller and smaller in the distance.
Su Yue stared at the receding figure, and his heart, which he had thought he had already steeled to be detached, began to throb with sharp pain again.
The moment Pei Liang hopped off the carriage, she confirmed that the target of this entire assassination attempt was her and her alone.
Those people had no interest in letting Su Yue get away, but they had hoped to hold him hostage to restrain her. However, Hongxiu and Qingyi had acted so decisively that they did not have time to react to stop the carriage.
Pei Liang glanced at her surroundings, then hurled the arrow she was holding towards a certain direction. A figure immediately toppled off the rooftop there.
It was a clear demonstration of just how profound Prince Liang's inner strength was.
A fierce grin spread across her face. "Go on then. Tell me, how do you all want to die?"
The assassins around her were terrified, but they were all dead men who had long since prepared to die for their mission.
Fear only made them more cautious. These assassins were a mysterious, highly trained group that had never appeared in the original Prince Liang's intelligence records.
They moved in perfect coordination, advancing and retreating in lockstep, and were completely unafraid of death.
Even with Pei Liang's formidable skills, the entire group soon realized that the tales of her beating Immortal Master Qiu and Sect Master Fu senseless had not even showcased her true full power.
Even with all their preparations before the mission, they had still underestimated Prince Liang.
The leader of the assassins, seeing that their side had already suffered heavy casualties, launched a ferocious, tricky attack at her.
Pei Liang barely dodged the blow, and her brows furrowed. The longer she fought, the more a vague suspicion began to form in her mind.
It seemed these assassins' top priority was not to kill her, but to injure her.
Of course, it could also just be their fighting style: injure her first, then wear her down slowly until she died, since she was all alone.
But this possibility was worth testing.
Pei Liang struck one attacker hard with her palm, grabbed a handful of blood from the man's wound, then deliberately feigned a careless opening. The leader's blade sliced past her, drawing blood.
The blade was now stained with her blood. The leader immediately backed away, stopped attacking altogether, and fled the scene at top speed.
The moment he left, the rest of the assassins' offensive weakened. What little attacking they did was more like an orderly, organized retreat.
In the end, Pei Liang was left alone on the empty street, and a smile curved at her lips.
She chuckled softly to herself. "Sometimes fools can be quite useful."
Pei Liang did not waste any time. She headed straight for the imperial palace, grabbed a random palace servant, and told him to go to Prince Liang's Manor and send word that she was safe.
She herself then went directly to the palace quarters where the Xianshan Mountain group was staying.
The Xianshan Mountain sect disciples guarding the door tried to stop her, but Pei Liang knocked them out roughly with a single blow.
Then she walked with practiced ease to the room where Fu Xin was recuperating from her injuries and kicked the door open.
More than half a month had passed since the earthquake. Fu Xin's injuries had healed considerably, but she still could not get out of bed without help.
She was lying in bed at that moment, and her younger brother Fu Jue was feeding her medicine.
Seeing Pei Liang walk in, Fu Xin jolted in shock, staring at her as if she had seen a ghost. "How are you here — what are you doing here?"
Pei Liang smiled. "I heard a strange, interesting story today, and I came to ask the Sect Master to confirm if it's true."
Fu Xin's heart was pounding wildly. At this exact time, Pei Liang was supposed to be trapped and surrounded by the men they had arranged for her.
Why on earth had she ended up here? She was now face to face with Prince Liang, and she stood no chance of winning this standoff.
Fu Xin's heart raced with panic. She swallowed with difficulty and stammered, "You... you tell me what you want."
Pei Liang asked, "I heard that the Xianshan Clan practices intermarriage between close relatives for generations, to keep the bloodline of their celestial deities pure."
"For example, this generation of the Xianshan Clan only has you and your brother left. That would make you two not just siblings, but also engaged to be married, wouldn't it?"
Fu Xin let out a quiet breath of relief when she heard him bring up this absurd, nonsensical topic. She said impatiently, "So what if that's true?"
"Our celestial deity bloodline must never be tainted in the slightest. Your Highness Prince Liang, asking such a question just goes to show how little you know of the world."
Then a strange, unreadable smile tugged at Prince Liang's lips. "It's a good thing that's true, then."
He then grabbed Fu Jue and hauled him to his feet, making to drag him right out of the room.
Fu Xin was horrified. She cried out immediately, "What do you think you're doing?"
A more wicked, teasing grin spread across that man's face. "Oh, since Sect Master Fu knows so much about me, you should have known this all along —"
"Prince Liang has a particular preference for people who are already taken."
