The Gilded Cage - Chapter 139

Heartfelt Thoughts – If You Can’t Bear It, Don’t. (1)

In the spring night, the stars were shining brightly, and the grass was lush.

Chu Ning was stunned, then closed her eyes and tilted her head, taking the initiative to kiss him back.

The silver starlight draped over his back. The golden candlelight crept up her dress, silver and gold gradually approaching, slowly mingling together and merging into a brilliant light.

The elbows she was holding were sore and her waist was leaning back, swaying, so he simply grabbed her and gently carried her out of the window.

The skirt swept over the bookcase, sweeping the brush to the floor.

He ignored it and carried her along the long corridor outside the house to the end, sitting down against the side.

She sat quietly beside him, the night breeze blowing over them and sending the green lotus leaf-colored clothes flying in the air.She moved to smooth down the corners of her clothes, but her wrist was suddenly cold. She looked down and saw that a string of crystal-clear red jade beads had been slid on her wrist at some point.

“This is for you.” Xiao Kezhi held her hand and put it in his own palm for a closer look.

The green lotus-colored sleeves slipped down to reveal the white skin of her slender wrist and fingers, and the  round and transparent red jade contrasted it, like white snow against red plums.

“It really suits you.” He was very satisfied and put down her hand. After the sleeve of her Taoist robe was smoothed down, a touch of red could still be seen, “You do not wear the clothing and jewelry this Emperor provided you. You can at least keep this bracelet on you all the time.”

Being in view of others, Chu Ning’s daily outfit consisted of only the daoist robe and nun headpiece. The rest of the bright clothes and jewelry, she could not touch.

He was sorry and lost in his heart. That day he saw a piece of good red jade tribute from the south and immediately thought of her situation, so he ordered someone to make this bracelet.

The red jade worn on the wrist, she should keep it, right?

Chu Ning smiled and subconsciously did not want to disappoint him, so she nodded and said, “Thank you, Your Majesty, for taking the trouble. A’Ning will wear it.”

He hugged her, cupped her cheek, and asked, “How will you thank me?”

These words sounded familiar, and Chu Ning’s cheeks inexplicably burned, so she couldn’t help but gently move her eyes away and gesture in the direction of the house, “Why don’t we give that bowl of cherry milk dessert to Your Majesty as a thank you gift?”

“The dessert should have been mine anyways.” He was obviously not satisfied and turned her cheek again, lowering his head to kiss her ear little by little, “Is my heart worth only this bowl of dessert?”

The delicate touch spread from her ear, causing her to shrink. Her cheeks grew hotter, and the hand on his shoulder tightened quietly, scrunching the originally flat clothing to a crumpled state.

“That bowl of dessert is also A’Ning’s heart…”

Her voice was thin and soft, with an unobtrusive dainty meaning, making his heart flush with a touch of sweetness.

“Then I will go and eat A’Ning’s heart.” He stopped moving, stood up and wrapped his arms around her limp body, and reentered the house.

On the table, the palm-sized celadon bowl was filled with snow-white milk pudding, topped with dripping syrup and a few fresh red cherries, which whetted one’s appetite.

He sat down on the couch, held the bowl in his hand and lifted the spoon, scooped up a piece of pudding and a cherry, but did not put it into his own mouth, rather passing it in front of her eyes.

She looked up at him, then down at the pudding on the spoon, opened her mouth slightly,, and took the dessert into her mouth.

The dense pudding melted in her mouth with a wisp of sweetness, and the cold cherry slid between her lips and teeth, flowing with a slightly sour juice that mixed with the sweetness.

She was about to let go of the spoon, but he smeared the remaining pudding on her lips as if on purpose.

The white spread over the red as she watched his eyes deepen.

“Does it taste good?” He asked in a dumb voice.

Chu Ning nodded with a red face under his gaze and tried to lick away the pudding stained on her lips, but he suddenly came closer and kissed her.

“I will also taste it.”

The tart cherry and the melting soft pudding fused together, sweet and lingering.

The green lotus-colored Taoist robe was removed and fell on the edge of the couch, along with his basalt-colored robe.

The remaining cherries and pudding in the bowl were spooned by him and served elsewhere, and then a little bit was swallowed by him and savored.

“It’s A’Ning’s heart. I can’t live up to it.”

……

East Palace, Guangtian Hall.

Xiao Yu had only just finished discussing what happened next with one of the generals Zhao Lun had quietly sent to Changan from Bozhou to meet with him.

According to his previous idea, the army of Bozhou should take advantage of the month or so before the wedding to train well and prepare enough food and supplies.

Once the marriage with Zhao Yue is completed, he would immediately look for an opportunity to leave Changan. At that time, even if there were a thousand cattle guards and imperial soldiers in the capital area, they wouldn’t be able to catch him for a while, so it could give the army an opportunity to train.

He wanted to follow the method of Xiao Kezhi who led the troops into Changan in disguise to ambush various places near the capital, so that when the main army attacked the city, they could get twice the result with half the effort.

However, he was not good at arranging troops. Although he had this idea, putting it into practice would require a different kind of skill, and this discussion took more than two hours to finish.

After Xu Rong arranged for the general to dress up as an ordinary guard and leave through the main gate of the East Palace, Xiao Yu finally couldn’t help but fall onto the couch, covering his chest and coughing feebly.

“Your Highness!” Xu Rong turned around and instructed the maid to bring him the tonic soup he always took, then watched him drink it all in one gulp and take a ginseng slice in his mouth before he felt relieved, “Even if you are busy and diligent, Your Highness should also take care of yourself.”

Recently, as the wedding date was set, Xiao Yu’s daily court time was getting longer and longer. Not only did he have to deal with the many matters that were already the responsibility of the East Palace, but he also had to think about all the next arrangements. The chamberlain of the East Palace said that for two or three nights, the candlelight in the bedchamber was still burning

Other people didn’t understand, but he can roughly guess that the prince was like this because first, he was indeed busy, but second, Lady Chu was still not around.