The back of Ji Qingwu’s hand was brushed by his scorching lips. She had just started to pull away,

when she heard him say in a muffled voice, "Say it again."

Ji Qingwu’s breath was still unsteady. Panting slightly, she said, "I don’t want to marry Wei Ting."

The coolness of her fingertips, combined with the sincerity in her words, successfully dispelled the foul mood clouding his heart.

Emperor Wu Su tightened his grip on her hand, enclosing it in his own palm.

With moist eyes and glistening lips, Ji Qingwu continued, "I don’t know why Wei Ting suddenly brought up a marriage proposal. I was very surprised, too. When Wei Ting came today, I rejected him to his face."

Emperor Wu Su’s expression shifted.

The secret report from Si Hai had only mentioned their intimate behavior, not that she had personally rejected the match.

"Truly?"

He asked again.

Though his tone was light, the darkness in his eyes had transformed into an irrepressible brilliance.

Ji Qingwu understood why he had been so sullen. It turned out she was the root of the problem.

’Did he see all the embarrassing things I did to win over Wei Ting before?’

’As for that Konghou... I specifically hid by a secluded lake to practice in secret. But I truly have no talent for music. My playing sounded like a complete cacophony.’

’I couldn’t bear to torture Wei Ting’s ears, and I was worried he might dock points from my impression score because of it. So, I never played for him at all.’

’How did Emperor Wu Su find out? Could he have heard my ear-splitting demonic sounds?’

"Why aren’t you speaking?" He saw her lost in thought, her eyes darting about, her expression lively.

Ji Qingwu looked at him and said, "It’s the absolute truth. Does Your Majesty still not believe me?"

He kneaded her hand, saying, "You’re such a little liar."

"What did I lie about?"

As soon as she spoke, a cool breeze rose, sweeping up the fallen leaves and flower buds and sending them swirling at their feet.

Emperor Wu Su pressed her soft hand against his chest.

But Ji Qingwu’s nose suddenly tickled, and she ruined the mood with a sneeze.

「They moved indoors.」

Ji Qingwu sat anxiously on the couch, her hands braced on the edge, her posture ramrod straight. She didn’t look like she was in her own home.

Emperor Wu Su pulled over a chair and sat down near the couch.

Ji Qingwu sat stiffly in the host’s seat, while the Emperor sat below her. But a sovereign’s authority has no need for seating arrangements to be felt.

The Emperor sat facing her, his long legs spread apart, his posture even more relaxed and casual than hers.

He asked calmly, "During the day, how did you say it?"

Emperor Wu Su was keenly interested in the details of her rejection of Wei Ting.

Ji Qingwu said bluntly, "I just said I was unwilling to marry him."

’But Wei Ting doesn’t care about my wishes. Even though I said I was unwilling, he has no intention of letting me go.’

Thinking of this, a thought inexplicably popped into Ji Qingwu’s mind.

’If the Emperor also disregarded my wishes and forced me to enter the palace as a concubine, would I have any way to deal with it?’

’What a terrifying thought.’

Ji Qingwu shook her head, trying to dislodge the idea.

Emperor Wu Su noted that she had repeatedly zoned out in front of him all evening.

He used his spread legs to clamp her knees. Ji Qingwu instantly felt the abundant, masculine strength emanating from those firm, long limbs.

She immediately snapped to her senses, realizing her thoughts had been running wild.

’Forget forcing me into the palace. If he wanted to do something to me right now, I couldn’t escape or avoid it.’

Ji Qingwu pressed her lips together and looked at him.

Tonight, Emperor Wu Su was unusually persistent with his question. "If you don’t want to marry Wei Ting, then who do you want to marry?"

Ji Qingwu already knew the answer.

His grimly furious "You are not allowed to marry," whispered in her ear, was still deeply etched in her mind.

’If I wanted to marry someone else, would the Emperor ever agree?’

’I now seriously suspect that Emperor Wu Su might have had a hand in Princess Qingyun’s earlier interference in my affair with Li Chengxun.’

Ji Qingwu said softly, "Can’t I just not marry anyone?"

Hearing this, Emperor Wu Su frowned. The answer was a world away from what he had expected.

’She doesn’t want to marry anyone. She treats everyone the same. We’re not even on par with Li Chengxun—at least he once made her consider marriage.’

The Emperor retorted, "Don’t you want to marry every man you meet?"

He was clearly trying to bring up old scores. Provoked, Ji Qingwu puffed out her cheeks and shot back, "If that’s the case, then I see Your Majesty the most, and I certainly don’t want to marry Your Majesty."

It was a direct hit to a vital point. Ji Qingwu had struck him exactly where it hurt.

Emperor Wu Su’s expression froze. His gaze landed on her face, deep and penetrating, and only then did a pang of fear strike her.

Having just slapped the tiger’s rear, Ji Qingwu now scrambled to smooth its fur. She hurriedly tried to explain.

"What I mean is, just because I don’t want to marry Wei Ting doesn’t mean I want to marry anyone else."

Then she added weakly, "At least, not right now."

Lumped in with "anyone else," Emperor Wu Su couldn’t help but sigh internally.

At that moment, she was hugging her arms, and her gaze toward him held a new hint of timidity—a clear sign of insecurity.

Although he hadn’t made any greater progress, hearing her say she didn’t want to marry Wei Ting was enough to dispel most of the gloom in his heart.

In any case, it meant Wei Ting wasn’t as important to her as he had feared.

Seeing Emperor Wu Su remain silent,

Ji Qingwu’s mind started racing again.

The lamplight flickered. She had never thought the light in her room could be so brilliant and magnificent.

Her gaze fell upon his long robes. She didn’t know what kind of fabric it was, but it seemed to carry a fine shimmer, so dazzling she didn’t know where to look.

Ji Qingwu’s posture, which had been proper enough, was now all crooked. She didn’t seem to know where to put her hands. She wanted to rest them on her knees, but his thigh was right there beside her.

She could only touch her earlobe one moment and fiddle with her hair the next.

Being in the same room as Emperor Wu Su seemed to have thrown even the rhythm of her breathing into disarray.

Her restlessness did not escape his notice.

"You..."

The Emperor suddenly frowned at her.

He caught the hand she was touching her ear with and asked with concern, "Are you having an allergic reaction?"

Ji Qingwu froze. "I don’t think so. I haven’t eaten anything that would cause one."

A smile touched Emperor Wu Su’s eyes. He said, "Then why is your face all flushed, and why do you keep fidgeting?"

Ji Qingwu tried to pull her hand back, but he used her momentum to pull her toward him instead. He rose slightly, slid his long leg under her knees, and tugged her right onto his lap.

"Let me get a closer look. Are you having an allergic reaction or not?" 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Mortified, Ji Qingwu desperately wanted to bury her face, but all that was before her was his solid chest.

As if sensing her thoughts, he raised a hand to stroke her long hair, then pressed his large palm against the nape of her neck, guiding her into his embrace.

"Ah Wu."

Ji Qingwu tried to lift her head from his chest, but he held her neck fast, refusing to let her move.

He called her name again in a low voice, "Ah Wu."

As Ji Qingwu inhaled the scent of ambergris, warmed by his body, she gradually began to feel at ease. She tried to respond.