“I underestimated you before,” the yellow-robed woman said, leaning against the bed, her large eyes studying him thoughtfully.
Song Qingshu’s heart skipped, and he replied uneasily, “What do you mean, heroine?”
“I’ve snuck back here a few times these past days, but you were never here,” she said, suspicion growing in her gaze. “Seems you’ve got plenty of secrets.”
Song Qingshu’s heart raced. He’d been focused on getting the antidote for Rouge Drunk from Wanyan Ping, leaving no time to play eunuch. He grinned, improvising, “Heh, I didn’t know you cared so much about me. I’m touched! Growing up, I was always ignored, but now to have a fairy sister’s concern—even if I died right now, it’d be worth it.”
“Who cares about you?” Her brows shot up, cheeks flushing with annoyance at his words.
“Uh…” Song Qingshu feigned confusion. “If you don’t care, why keep ing to check on me?”
“I didn’t want to check on you!” She sat up, irritated. “I only came back because I hadn’t undone the death acupoint I sealed. And stop calling me fairy sister!”
Seeing her cheeks faintly flushed, eyes shimmering, Song Qingshu silently marveled: ‘Truly a divine beauty, naturally radiant.’
Noticing his stare, she grew annoyed again. He quickly said, “No fairy sister, then what should I call you? Not just ‘heroine,’ right?”
She hesitated, then murmured, “My surname’s Yang.”
‘No kidding, I know that!’
Song Qingshu thought, frustrated. He wanted her name, not her surname, but knew women of this era rarely shared their given names with anyone but their closest kin. He had no excuse to press further.
“e here,” she beckoned.
“For what?” He didn’t react at first.
Her brows furrowed. She didn’t know why this little eunuch got under her skin so easily. “If you want to die bleeding from all seven orifices, stay there.”
Song Qingshu remembered he was “afflicted” by her unique acupoint-sealing technique, which would supposedly kill him if not undone. He’d secretly shifted his acupoints to dodge it, but couldn’t reveal that now.
“You really poisoned me like that? I thought you were joking,” he said, feigning shock.
She replied coolly, “If you don’t e over, I don’t mind doing it again.”
“ing, ing!” He scurried to her side, catching a faint, non-floral, non-musky fragrance. A wry thought crossed his mind: ‘Are these women marinated in perfume? Why do they all smell so good?’
Noticing his distraction, she almost laughed. Other men staring at her beauty wasn’t odd, but this eunuch’s wandering mind wasn’t about that. She’d noticed him space out often—a bit of a foolish eunuch.
She tapped a few acupoints on his chest and huffed, “There, you’re safe from bleeding out—for now.”
“Thanks, Miss Yang,” Song Qingshu said, then froze, his smile stiffening. “Wait, what do you mean ‘for now’?”
Seeing his deflated look, she smirked. “Exactly what I said. I undid the previous death acupoint so you won’t die immediately, but I sealed new ones. If I don’t unseal them later, you’ll still bleed out.”
“What?” Song Qingshu face paled dramatically. He grabbed her legs, wailing, “My lady, you can’t toy with me like this!”
“Hey, what are you doing? Let go!” Flustered, she tried to shake him off but couldn’t.
Clinging to her legs, he rubbed his face against them, smearing snot and tears on her skirt, inwardly gloating: ‘Hmph, you keep scaring me. Time to get some payback.’
“Let go, or I won’t be polite!” Growing up, no man had ever touched her so closely. Though he was just a eunuch, her face burned apple-red.
‘She talks tough, but she’s kind at heart. A ruthless one would’ve kicked me away by now,’ Song Qingshu thought. Having had his fun, he released her before she erupted.
The yellow-robed woman’s chest heaved as she glared at him. After a long pause, she quelled her anger. “Any other man who dared touch me like that would be dead by my sword. Since you… hmph, didn’t mean it, I’ll spare your life. But you’ve sinned, so to atone, cut off both hands.”
Song Qingshu gaped. ‘I was just praising her kindness, and now this?’
Seeing his stunned expression, her lips twitched, but she quickly hid it. “Of course, if you do one thing for me, I’ll let it slide.”
“One thing? I’d do ten!” He played terrified, but inwardly wondered, ‘With her martial prowess, what could she need a little eunuch for?’
“Last time, I heard those two eunuchs say you’re favored by the empress?” The yellow-robed woman mentioned casually.
Song Qingshu’s heart jolted, unsure of her intent. “Calling me favored would be a stretch. The empress just calls me for errands sometimes.”
“So you know the way to her chambers?” The yellow-robed woman’s eyes burned into him.
“Uh…” This felt ominous, like she was planning an assassination. Song Qingshu wanted to say no, but that’d be too obvious—she’d seen him being led there before. “I… should know.”
“Know or don’t know—no ‘should’!” The yellow-robed woman snapped at his vague words. “Take me to the empress’s chambers now, and I’ll overlook your rudeness.”
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