Chapter 35

The thick layers of clouds in the sky were blown away by the night wind, and the bright moon slowly emerged from behind them. A faint, silvery moonlight showered down upon thousands of households, some landing on upturned eaves and corners, others slipping quietly through open windows into the study.

The room was silent, yet not entirely devoid of sound; occasionally, faint, wet sounds intertwined with soft whimpers.

This was not the first time Dai Li had kissed Qin Shaozong, but whether it was the last time or this one, her heart raced with trepidation. In this regard, he was truly consistent with his outward persona—dominant and utterly uncompromising.

The back of her neck was fixed in place by his large, tiger-paw-like palm, her waist tightly encircled. Trapped within the cage of his arms, Dai Li was like a white crane that had fallen into a swamp, entangled by vines, unable to break free in the slightest.

His advance was fierce, overwhelming in its force.

He was like an arrogant general who had breached the enemy city gates, determined to patrol every corner of the city, leaving no place for the foe to hide.

Her sensitive palate was repeatedly attended to, a terrifying tingling sensation exploding from her neurons, rushing like wildfire to the crown of her head before madly spreading down her spine and meridians, finally reaching her limbs.

Her fingertips trembled uncontrollably, and her back began to shiver with unbearable tension.

The iron arm trapping her moved around her waist, a long, dark finger marked with scars hooked the corner of her garment's sash and gently loosened it.

Today, Dai Li wore a top and skirt, different from the one-piece deep robe. With this two-piece attire, once the sash was undone, there were many opportunities to exploit.

A sea beast covered in rugged scales invaded the territory. It greedily circled the moist, lustrous white jade, occasionally measuring it with its long tail. The rough scales slid against the white jade, leaving faint red marks.

After circling several times, the insatiable sea beast flicked its tail and swam downward along the white jade.

Dai Li's breath hitched. She immediately pushed against him with all her strength, yet he remained unmoved, continuing to trap her against the hard stone wall. Just as she was about to push again, her pupils constricted sharply. A weak nasal sound escaped her, and her entire body trembled violently, her spine almost curling inward.

Forgetting to push him away, Dai Li hurriedly reached a hand downward.

The black-hearted sea beast was stirring up trouble. It had discovered a precious pearl, adored it exceedingly, teased it with its fins, coiled it with its long tail, now closing it within its twin fins, and mischievously grinding its rough scales harshly against it.

Just then, a delicate, pale net descended from the sky, enveloping the malicious sea beast and attempting to drag it away. However, the latter, relying on its massive size, continued to act as it pleased.

Seeing she couldn't pull him away, Dai Li simply clenched her pearly teeth and bit down hard.

Qin Shaozong didn't utter a sound, only pausing for two breaths before, mingled with the taste of blood, launching an even more ferocious assault.

A short, choked whimper escaped Dai Li's throat. As she prepared to bite him again, he seemed to sense it and finally withdrew his hand, pressing the base of his thumb against her jaw. His broad palm completely enveloped her entire jawline, his index finger and thumb gently pressing between her upper and lower teeth through her skin, blocking her second attempt.

He did not separate from her immediately. Deliberately, he sucked and nibbled at that peach-pink, soft tongue, making wet, noisy sounds before Qin Shaozong finally drew back slightly. A smear of blood-red stained his thin lips, which under the lamplight did not appear weak in the slightest, but rather like a tiger that had just finished a meal.

Dai Li's chest heaved violently. "My son has not yet been found..."

The base of his thumb was still pressed against her jaw, now rubbing forcefully, with an indescribable greed, until the porcelain-white skin flushed a brilliant crimson.

"Finding your son is merely a matter of time. Moreover, since messages have been sent to search for him, naturally there will be arrangements for his safe return." His eyes burned like blazing stars, intensely scorching. "Back at the Jiang residence in Nankang Commandery, Madam repeatedly invited me. I have not forgotten a single word of what you said."

Dai Li furrowed her delicate brows and pushed against him again, but this time she still couldn't get up. "Regarding the previous deception, didn't we agree to let bygones be bygones?"

Qin Shaozong held the woman in his arms tightly, pinning her on his lap. "Settling this debt by debt is too tedious. Has Madam ever considered a permanent solution?"

Dai Li knew exactly what this "permanent solution" referred to. He still brooded over her rejection and had not given up his desire to draw her into his inner courtyard.

"I am a rather peculiar person; I actually prefer complications. Besides, even blood brothers must settle accounts clearly. Some things are better kept distinct." Dai Li turned her head away.

Her words were resolute, but inwardly, Dai Li had no confidence at all, for at this moment, no one understood better than she how stirred he was. So she hurriedly added, "My Lord, you are a pillar of the community, a true gentleman of high principles, who treats his subordinates as brothers. Surely you would not force a mere woman who saved the life of your trusted aide."

Since he had just mentioned never forgetting her words, it was only polite to return the favor. She could also bring up the "debt of life."

Qin Shaozong did not respond to that line. His kisses fell on the side of her face and her glistening, pale ear. "Spend this night with me, Madam, and I promise that no matter how distant or perilous the journey, as long as your son is alive, he will return safely to your side. Furthermore, when he comes of age, I will grant him a sinecure, bestow upon him a grand residence and servants, ensuring his wealth and honor for decades to come..."

The deep, male voice wormed its way into her ear, easily plucking at the strings of Dai Li's heart.

In that moment, he became like the venomous serpent in the Garden of Eden, flicking its crimson forked tongue, cunning beyond measure, each word dripping with immense temptation.

The dark, long finger hooked the sash once more. Just as the loosened garment was about to fall open completely, a soft, pale hand pressed down on the parting robes.

Dai Li whispered, "What you promise, My Lord, seems too distant to me. Zhou Zhou is only nine this year; it will be eleven years before he comes of age. Many vows between lovers prove unreliable, let alone promises between two people who merely chanced upon each other like drifting duckweed. Who can say what will happen eleven years from now?"

A vein throbbed on Qin Shaozong's forehead.

Not to mention after he became the head of the Qin clan and took charge of the family, even in his youth before coming of age, no one had ever dared to question him so repeatedly.

Greed and fury intertwined, like adding oil to a raging fire. Just as this inferno was about to set the entire sky ablaze—

A finger, pink like a flower bud, touched his chest, like a cloud bringing rain from the heavens. "However, the first part of what you said, I find impossible to ignore. Perhaps... I could assist My Lord this once, as full payment for my son's safe return journey."

Dai Li drank an entire pot of millet wine during the evening banquet and later caught the wind in the long corridor. Yet, at this moment, she felt not the slightest hint of drunkenness, but was instead exceptionally clear-headed. She realized it was absolutely impossible for her to retreat tonight without being touched at all.

Whether it was his forceful attitude or the conditions he laid out, she could not avoid them.

Choosing the lesser of two evils, Dai Li decided to help him with her hand, just to get it over with.

Her fingers lightly touched his lapel. Through the fabric, she could feel the firm, lean muscles beneath, now heaving intensely with her movements. "However, I'm in charge this time. You must not move. Can you promise me that, Lord Marquis?"

The clouds in the sky began to rain, quenching the towering flames of anger. Qin Shaozong's Adam's apple bobbed up and down.

He stared at her without speaking, as if weighing his options, or perhaps considering where to start.

Dai Li feigned displeasure. "You can't even grant me such a small request? Fine, if that's the case..."

"My hands and feet will not move. Proceed, my lady." Qin Shaozong cut her off, simultaneously pressing the person who was about to rise back onto himself.

Dai Li secretly frowned.

Hands and feet not moving? What about the rest?

The two, so close they could touch, locked eyes. He understood her doubt, and she saw his unyielding resolve.

This was the furthest he could concede. He could not, and would not, give any more ground.

Dai Li lowered her gaze, her voice soft. "A gentleman's word is as good as gold."

Her jade-white fingertips touched the beast-headed leather belt at his waist. Looking at the tiger's head hidden in shadow, feeling his increasingly heavy breathing, for some reason, she was inexplicably reminded of Pu Songling's tale, "Three Stories of Wolves: The Wolf."

"A butcher returns home late, his load of meat gone, only bones remain. On the road, two wolves follow him a great distance. The butcher, afraid, throws them a bone. One wolf stops for the bone, the other still follows. He throws another bone. The following wolf stops, but the first wolf catches up again. The bones are all gone..."1

"My lady," he urged.

Dai Li's spine stiffened, snapping back from her thoughts. "What's the hurry?"

The room, with only a small casement window open, was hazy with the scent of alcohol. The few remaining honey candles slowly burned down. One honey candle spent, its small flame flickered twice before suddenly extinguishing.

A corner of the study instantly darkened. In the tide of encroaching gloom, the sound of breathing grew more pronounced. Heavy, urgent, like a gale whipping up towering waves, containing astonishing force.

Amidst the interwoven sounds of light and heavy breaths, an unusual noise occasionally surfaced. A wet, sucking sound, like a newborn tiger cub licking or suckling something.

The moon tilted westward, its silvery light crawling further into the room. In the dim interior, two figures could vaguely be seen on the chair behind the long desk.

Mostly a deep black, but with a small part that was a startling white, as if the layer of grey gauze used to veil a bright pearl was no longer tightly secured.

Dai Li had long since shifted from sitting sideways to sitting upright. Her back pressed against the beechwood desk, her legs parted and tightly flanking his long legs. The loosely tied sash from earlier was now completely undone, parting her upper and lower garments to reveal a sliver of flesh, a moist, translucent white like a ripe lychee, faintly visible as if veiled by a layer of holy moonlight.

That sea creature, clad in jagged scales, tried once more to swim through the layered obstructions toward the deeper, luminous white sea wall. But just as it flicked its tail, about to burrow inward, its fish tail was suddenly slapped with a smack.

"Don't move!" Dai Li's breathing was very heavy.

She had withdrawn. The sudden arrival of the cold, empty air became inexplicably unbearable. The veins on the side of Qin Shaozong's neck bulged and then receded. "My lady..."

"A lord's promise is worth a thousand pieces of gold. You agreed to it yourself moments ago." Dai Li's retreating hand immediately returned to its original position. She secretly shook her sore, stiff fingers.

Qin Shaozong's long arm encircling her waist tightened, pressing her against him. He buried his face once more into that milky-cake-like, dazzling white.

Dai Li's back stiffened. The prickly stubble on his jaw made her instinctively lean back, only to be blocked by the iron-like arm around her waist.

A night breeze drifted in from the window, causing the flame on the candlestick to dance. The shallow firelight flickered, faintly illuminating the man's canine teeth gleaming in the dark.

The canine teeth caught a thin strap of her undergarment. As he turned his head, the knot on the strap gradually loosened.

Dai Li gasped in surprise, hurriedly reaching out to grab the precarious knot, taking hold of the thin strap and pulling it back. Quickly retying it, she stacked two simple knots and then directly tied a dead knot over them.

A fierce light flared in Qin Shaozong's eyes. But before he could voice his displeasure, her hand returned to its position, retaliating by giving a hard squeeze.

A muscle on the side of his jaw twitched twice. The fierce light in his eyes dimmed for an instant before suddenly blazing up again, fiercer than before. He abruptly lowered his head, causing havoc wantonly through that obstructive undergarment.

Dai Li's cheeks flushed crimson, a fine sheen of sweat breaking out on her forehead.

After who knows how long, a peculiar scent suddenly spread through the room. It had nothing to do with freshness; instead, it somewhat resembled the April-blooming flowers of the Photinia shrub.

The sky was just beginning to lighten. Right at the moment the city gates opened, five fast horses set out from the Grand Marshal's residence in Ying Prefecture, heading straight for the southern gate. Once outside the city, they continued southward, towards Yangzhou.

A military officer's morning training must not be neglected. Even though last night had been utterly debauched, Mo Yanyun still rose early today, arriving punctually at the temporary training ground set up in the residence.

It was early by common standards, but among the military officers, he was relatively late. By the time he arrived, many were already there, some even nearing the end of their morning drills.

"Mo Yanyun, spar with me."

Suddenly being called out, and by his superior at that, Mo Yanyun's burly frame shuddered, his legs inexplicably going a bit weak.

He initially stood frozen in place, then was called again.

"Come." Qin Shaozong had already walked onto the pre-arranged training ground.

A weapon rack stood to the side of the ground. Qin Shaozong didn't choose a blade, casually picking up a long staff instead. Mo Yanyun hesitated, finally selecting a wooden hook.

The two men stepped onto the platform.

Mo Yanyun swallowed. "Lord Marquis, I beg you to go easy on me."

"On the battlefield, will those charging at you with blades, aiming for your head, listen to your plea of 'go easy on me'?" Qin Shaozong mocked.

Mo Yanyun immediately fell silent.

Qin Shaozong advanced first, wielding the long staff.

Below the platform.

Feng Feng, the Southern Garrison Commander Bai Jianping, and Yan San, among others, stood watching. The first two chatted in low voices as they observed.

"His Lordship seems to be in a good mood today."

"I don't think so. If His Lordship were truly pleased, he wouldn't be fighting like this. Ah, Old Mo seems a bit weak. Looks like he overindulged in pleasure last night."

"You still don't know him. He loves nothing but beauties. This mansion is filled with pretty dancers, and he's like a rat falling into a grain barn—utterly in his element. The Lord surely knows of his dissolute ways and is probably reprimanding him right now. Otherwise, why would the Lord be all smiles with us today, yet only have a sour look for Old Mo?"

"You make a good point. Old Mo definitely deserves a scolding. Speaking of which, if nothing unexpected happens, Master Nalan should arrive in Ying County this afternoon."

"By the way, yesterday the Lord urgently summoned over a dozen carpenters from the county, ordering them to work overtime to build a dragon-bone waterwheel according to the drawings. With everyone's combined effort, it should be finished around noon. Wouldn't that mean Master Nalan can see that irrigation marvel as soon as he arrives at the mansion?"

"That would be excellent."

...

"Clang—"

Following the wooden hook being knocked from his hand and clattering to the ground, Mo Yanyun himself was thrown heavily onto the floor. This fall was hard, making him grimace in pain as he hurriedly begged for mercy, "My Lord, I yield. No more."

Qin Shaozong finished with a flourish of his staff. His breathing was steady, though his whole body steamed with the heat of exertion. "Though there has been no recent battle, training must not slacken."

Mo Yanyun nodded repeatedly, though inwardly he was puzzled.

He hadn't slacked off in his training—hadn't he come for morning practice today? At most, he'd only relaxed last night. Could it be the Lord's anger hasn't subsided yet, and he can't stand to see him so carefree?

Mo Yanyun didn't know, and he didn't dare ask.

When Daili woke up, it was bright outside. Perhaps because half the matter was resolved and it seemed there wouldn't be major obstacles ahead, she had slept exceptionally well last night.

Daili vaguely remembered having a pleasant dream. In the dream, her little one was found. During her absence, Zhou Zhou had been adopted by a kind family. Although their food, clothing, and shelter couldn't compare to before, and the little one had gotten much tanner, he was still as lively and cheerful as ever.

After getting up and washing, Daili had just opened her door when she saw two people standing outside.

Two young women, at most in their early twenties. One tall, one short. The taller one had a small black mole on the tip of her nose. The slightly shorter one had round, cat-like eyes that lent her a somewhat adorable appearance.

Both were dressed simply. Behind them were stacked three identical wooden boxes, their style resembling clothing trunks.

Upon seeing Daili, the two women curtsied and spoke in unison, "Madam, we are here to serve you, as instructed by the noble lord."

Daili didn't need to ask who this "noble lord" was. She frowned. "I have no need for servants. You may return."

The two women looked troubled. The round-eyed maid's eyes even welled up with tears as she immediately knelt down. "Madam, please, have mercy and take us in. If we leave your side, Bipo and I will be sent back to the slave market. That place is a mixed bag, all sorts of people are there. Some masters buy slaves purely to keep them as outlets for their anger... it's a living death..."

The taller Bipo also knelt, even kowtowing. "We beg for your grace, Madam, to take in Nianxia and me. We can do any hard work, and we promise to obey your every word, serving you faithfully to repay your kindness."

Previously, Daili had been determined not to take on maids. She didn't want to form other connections. But seeing the two young women trembling as they knelt before her, she couldn't help but recall last night's beautiful dream.

In the dream, her Zhou Zhou had been adopted by kind people. In reality, if she didn't keep these two, would she become one of those indifferent faces watching her own little one wander helplessly...

"Alright, get up," Daili sighed.

Their faces instantly brightened with smiles. They rose, reported their names, and asked if Daili wished to rename them.

Daili naturally shook her head, telling them to keep their own names.

"These clothing trunks were sent by the noble lord. There are also some jewelry and other items to follow. Madam, Bipo and I will first move these into the room," Nianxia said with a smile.

The clothes Daili was wearing were still the drab, gray dress she had prepared for her escape—the most ordinary color and fabric, with just two sets to alternate between.

She thought it was fine, but last night in the study, someone had been quite disdainful of it.

Bipo and Nianxia were quick and efficient. They moved what needed moving, organized what needed organizing, even meticulously wiped down all the furnishings in the room, and then lit incense in the censer.

In just two short quarters of an hour, the already not-old room seemed to sparkle like new.

"Nianxia, please go to the study and fetch a set of calligraphy tools and a book for me. Any book will do. If anyone asks, say I wish to practice my handwriting," Daili said when Nianxia came to ask for instructions once more.

It's better to rely on oneself than others. She needed to learn brush calligraphy and cursive script. If she ever needed to write a letter one day, she'd have to do it herself.

Nianxia accepted the order and left, returning soon after with the requested items.

Mulberry-bark paper was spread out on the desk, pine-soot ink was ground to a dark hue on the inkstone, and the wolf-hair brush was placed on the rest.

Daili picked up the brush, trying to adjust her grip based on memories of the proper posture. But after holding it a couple of times, it just felt wrong everywhere. She couldn't help but furrow her delicate brows.

The brush felt wrong. Her hand felt wrong.

The former was a matter of sensation; the latter, a matter of state.

In frustration, Daili threw the brush down.