Chapter 40

"What are you two discussing?"

Jin Wang's voice came from ahead of them. Before Ye Shu could answer, Yu Yan bowed to him. "I was presenting a gift to the consort."

Jin Wang: "What gift? Open it and let Us see."

"Better not." Yu Yan kept his hand on the brocade box and gave Jin Wang a sideways smile. "There are too many eyes about here — it would be inconvenient. Your Majesty should return to the bedchamber and open it together with the consort."

Jin Wang's eyes shifted. He and Yu Yan held each other's gaze for a moment, and he vaguely sensed something.

After a moment, Jin Wang nodded. "We understand. The Second Prince is very thoughtful."

Yu Yan quickly departed with the envoy party. Jin Wang had an attendant take charge of the brocade box, then scooped Ye Shu up in his arms.

"!" Ye Shu was suddenly airborne and yelped in fright. "What are you doing?!"

"Carrying you to the carriage." Jin Wang looked at him sideways. "Are your legs steady enough now?"

Ye Shu: "…"

The send-off at the city gate had been attended not only by court officials but by a great many common people as well. Jin Wang's gesture was witnessed by everyone.

Ye Shu's ears went faintly pink. He lowered his voice. "So many people are watching."

Jin Wang laughed softly. "Letting them see how much We cherish you — isn't that a good thing?"

"You——"

"All right, settle down." Jin Wang kissed him on the side of his face. Ye Shu shot him a glare and immediately went still.

Jin Wang carried him into the carriage and ordered the attendants to drive back.

As for what the other officials and bystanders thought — His Majesty the sovereign did not care in the slightest.

The carriage reached the palace gate and switched to the imperial palanquin. The palanquin arrived outside Yangxin Hall.

Jin Wang carried Ye Shu out of the palanquin and gave a sideways instruction for the physician to be summoned, then walked into the hall in long strides.

The attendants of Yangxin Hall had had the most idle few days of anyone in the entire palace. Seeing His Majesty carry someone back, they one after another withdrew from the bedchamber, leaving the two of them room.

Jin Wang placed Ye Shu on the bed and reached over to help him remove his court robe.

"I'll do it myself!" Ye Shu clutched his collar and retreated.

The experiences of those three days had left Ye Shu with considerable psychological scarring. Being alone with Jin Wang now made his entire body uncomfortable. But Jin Wang had been having the servants do almost nothing these days and was personally attending to everything himself, under the banner of showing good behavior for Ye Shu to see.

Ye Shu's reluctance wasn't about being close to Jin Wang — on the contrary, not only did he not dislike it, he actually rather… liked it.

Damned kun-sovereign constitution.

Ye Shu's cheeks were burning. He absolutely refused to let Jin Wang touch him, and even went so far as to pull the gauze curtains on either side of the bed to separate them for the changing of clothes.

The two of them changed into their indoor clothes. Ye Shu walked toward the table while tying his sash.

The brocade box Yu Yan had given them was sitting on the table.

Ye Shu knocked on the lid curiously. "What on earth is in here — all that mystery…"

Jin Wang had just removed his hairpiece, and his movements briefly stilled. He said quite naturally: "…Why don't you open it and see?"

"Mm…" Ye Shu murmured and lifted the lid.

The brocade box was a world unto itself, divided into many layers. The topmost layer was covered in porcelain bottles and jars.

"Rouge and powder? What does he want me to do with these?" Ye Shu's brow creased. He moved on to the second layer. The second layer held several beautifully bound books. Ye Shu picked one up. "Secrets of the Spring Night, Eighteen Pleasures of…"

His voice cut off.

What — what — what were these things???!

His gaze moved further down. The bottom layer of the brocade box was packed full of a variety of small objects in all manner of shapes.

Ye Shu took one look at what those small objects were, and his cheeks blazed red.

Seeing that Ye Shu had been silent for quite some time, Jin Wang came over. "What did he give?"

"Snap——!" Ye Shu slammed the box shut. "N— nothing in particular. No need to look."

Jin Wang had already had a fairly good idea of what Yu Yan was up to. Ye Shu's reaction only confirmed it. He suppressed the amusement in his eyes and said deliberately: "The Second Prince's gifts are certainly not ordinary items. Let Us have a look."

"I said no looking!"

Ye Shu grabbed the brocade box and fled. Jin Wang, afraid he would fall, lunged to stop him.

In the middle of their tug of war, an attendant came in to report: "Your Majesty — the physician has arrived."

"Crash——"

Ye Shu's hand jolted. The brocade box hit the floor.

The lid hadn't been properly latched, and the impact sent the contents flying out in all directions, rolling and scattering across the floor.

Imperial Physician Feng was led into the bedchamber by an attendant — and walked in to find a round object rolling to a stop at his feet.

He instinctively picked it up.

It was shaped something like a small bell — delicate and compact, made entirely of silver, with a small movable copper ball inside, dangling on a silver chain.

Imperial Physician Feng, suddenly understanding what it was: "…"

The attendants, seeing what was scattered all over the floor: "…"

A long silence fell over Yangxin Hall. Black spots danced before Ye Shu's eyes. He was very nearly ready to die.

Jin Wang seemed to know what he was thinking and quickly pulled him firmly into his arms. His own expression was reasonably composed. "What are you all standing there for — tidy it up."

"Yes!"

Everyone scrambled about picking things up. Jin Wang half-supported, half-carried Ye Shu to the edge of the small couch.

Ye Shu gripped Jin Wang's sleeve, his expression dazed. "I've never seen so many of…"

Who had.

Jin Wang patted his hand soothingly, and inwardly developed a new level of respect for the Second Prince.

He himself owned the capital's largest pleasure house, and he had never seen this many of these objects in one place.

He had no idea how that man had sourced this many things in such a short time.

Truly a treasure chest.

This person was no simple individual.

Imperial Physician Feng sat beside the small couch and took Ye Shu's pulse. In the distance, attendants were still picking things up one by one.

Ye Shu finally came back to himself, equal parts embarrassed and furious. "Don't pick them up — throw them all out!"

Jin Wang looked somewhat reluctant. "It was a thoughtful gesture on his part…"

Ye Shu's brow twitched. Jin Wang immediately composed his expression. "Didn't you hear what Young Master said? Throw it all out."

Everyone quickly obeyed.

Jin Wang felt a private pang of regret, but didn't dare show it. He pulled Ye Shu into his arms. "All right, don't be angry. If it comes to it, We'll find an occasion to teach him a lesson for you. Don't let it upset your health."

Ye Shu: "Hmph."

Ye Shu said with great emphasis, his ears still red: "I wouldn't use those things anyway."

Jin Wang: "Mm, you wouldn't."

Jin Wang held him and smoothed his back. "We wouldn't let them be used on you either."

Imperial Physician Feng's teeth were aching from listening. After he determined that Ye Shu's constitution had recovered and the baby showed no abnormalities, he hastily excused himself.

As he walked out of Yangxin Hall, a few young attendants were leaving with the brocade box.

"Who knew — His Majesty enjoys these things too."

"Wasn't there talk before about His Majesty having trouble in that department? What else could they do?"

"Ah, poor Young Master. Being favored isn't easy either…"

The following days passed smoothly.

One evening, Jin Wang sat at the table handling official matters.

Ye Shu was propped on the small couch reading, but his gaze kept sneaking up to watch Jin Wang.

The dog emperor was quite imposing when he was focused. His features in the lamplight looked sharp and deep, his handsome brow furrowed slightly as though turning something over in his mind.

Below that, the lean-lined lips were a shade lighter in color, and looked rather unapproachable.

But Ye Shu knew now that those lips were actually quite soft, and the shape they made when the corners curved upward was also rather nice.

As though sensing his gaze, Jin Wang lifted his eyes, and they immediately went soft. "What — are you sleepy?"

"No!" Ye Shu quickly looked away, feeling inexplicably guilty.

He had been zoning out more and more when looking at Jin Wang lately.

In his own mind, those three days of the arousal cycle had been nothing more than resolving a biological need — after all, it was because of Jin Wang that he had been marked in the first place, and Jin Wang's fault the pregnancy had caused the pheromone to spiral out of control.

Once the cycle was over, they were supposed to go back to how they had been before.

Which was… what, originally?

Right — he had been enduring indignity and staying in the palace, playing the role of rear-palace consort, surviving in the hands of this dog emperor and looking for the chance to escape.

That's right. He had originally been planning to escape.

…In any case, after one arousal cycle, everything had gone sideways.

"You've been spacing out all evening. What are you thinking about?"

Jin Wang came over and pressed a kiss to the corner of Ye Shu's lip.

He had just finished his bath, and he still carried a faint trace of moisture. His lips were warm and soft.

Ye Shu came back to himself with a start and looked away. "N— nothing…"

That bewildered look was impossibly endearing. Jin Wang leaned down wanting to kiss him again, but was pushed away. "You're not allowed to take liberties with me anymore!"

The arousal cycle was over — why was this man still addicted to taking liberties!

It was definitely because he kept teasing him for no reason lately that he'd been going so sideways in the head!

Jin Wang smiled. "I can't even kiss my own consort?"

"No." Ye Shu said firmly. "From now on, without my permission, you are not allowed to touch me."

Jin Wang wasn't bothered. He sat up straight, assumed a negotiating posture, and asked patiently: "Then how does one go about getting permission to touch you?"

Ye Shu hesitated, and said without much conviction: "Dep— depends on how you behave."

Jin Wang asked: "How did We perform today?"

Ye Shu thought seriously.

Today Jin Wang had for the first time managed to successfully steam pastries — though he had put in far too much sugar and steamed them too soft, they were just about edible.

He had also read aloud to Ye Shu for half an hour from the most popular story circulating among the common people, taken him to the Imperial Garden to admire the snow, and brought him to pick out the fabric for the Lantern Festival outfits…

Objectively speaking, it had been a good performance.

Ye Shu said: "Adequate."

Jin Wang smiled, bent down, and kissed him.

He pressed Ye Shu into the soft bedding, one arm around his waist, the other braced beside him. The pressure was gentle but undeniable — pulling him completely into the embrace.

A moment later, Jin Wang released him.

Ye Shu was breathing quickly, eyes misted over. Before he could say anything, Jin Wang said first: "You said, as long as my performance was good, you would let me touch you."

"…"

Had he said that?

Ye Shu was still dazed from the kiss and couldn't find any counterargument.

Jin Wang kept his current position. His palm slowly moved downward and settled on Ye Shu's lower belly. His expression grew faintly shadowed. "A Shu — We actually regret it somewhat."

"…If it weren't for this little pup — the two of us wouldn't have to endure all this restraint."

The embryo was stable now and careful intimacy was permissible — but not too frequently. The arousal cycle had been unavoidable, but now that Ye Shu's body had returned to normal, the two of them had to go back to their previous abstinence.

Having had a taste of it, abstinence was even harder to bear than before.

For Jin Wang — and for Ye Shu equally.

Ye Shu was nearly asleep. He was wearing only a thin inner garment, and could clearly feel the scalding warmth of Jin Wang's palm. He shivered slightly and said in a small voice: "I… I have an idea."

Jin Wang: "Mm?"

Ye Shu didn't dare look at him. He hesitated and said: "I… I want to move to Yongshou Palace."

Jin Wang's eyes slowly narrowed.

Since Ye Shu and he had talked openly about the pregnancy, Jin Wang had rarely shown that particular expression of displeasure in front of him.

Ye Shu was still somewhat afraid of that expression, and his voice lost more conviction with every word. "This kun-sovereign constitution isn't something I can control. I can't sleep properly when you're near me, and bad rest is bad for the baby. Even if you don't care about me, you have to think about the little… cough, the little prince in here."

This was the solution Ye Shu had spent an entire night thinking up.

If his kun-sovereign constitution meant he was destined not to be able to resist this man's temptations — then avoid the source entirely.

Once and for all.

Jin Wang looked at him, somewhat amused and helpless. "You're attributing all of your reactions to Us to your kun-sovereign constitution?"

Ye Shu asked: "Isn't that what it is? What else would it be?"

Jin Wang was silent.

The two of them looked at each other in silence for a moment. Jin Wang let out a sigh. "Very well. If you want to go, go."

Yongshou Palace had originally been given to Ye Shu anyway.

It had been the residence of several of the late emperor's empresses, and was the closest to Yangxin Hall of all the palaces. Jin Wang could visit whenever he chose and could also spend nights there. There was nothing wrong with Ye Shu moving in.

Besides, Jin Wang didn't want to keep him shut up in the bedchamber.

If he truly wanted to treat this person well — he should start by returning his freedom.

And there was also the fact that…

Separating a little right now was probably not a bad thing for them. After all… Jin Wang also hadn't had a proper night's sleep in quite a few days.

It was all that little pup's fault.

Jin Wang held Ye Shu as they lay down, and thought this with indignation.