Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Fu Yanheng was exceptionally vigorous tonight, as if he were trying to prove something.

However, he was quite obedient.

When I told him to be gentler, he did as he was told.

Seeing the look of pity and tenderness in his eyes, I couldn’t help but recall how he used to look at the Princess.

He was always cold and harsh toward the other princes, yet his voice would soften whenever he spoke to Song Yunjiao.

Even when she skipped class, she was never severely punished.

It made sense; the Princess was beautiful and kind-hearted.

She deserved everyone’s love.

In a moment of distraction, Fu Yanheng bit my neck.

I let out a muffled groan.

He said darkly, “Why are you spacing out? Who are you thinking about?”

A thick sense of possessiveness swirled in his eyes.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t for me.

With misty eyes, I gave a light laugh.

“Keep going. Are you done already?”

Provoked by my challenge, he flipped me over.

“Lower your waist. Stay still.”

His low, deep voice brushed past my ear.

My whole body went soft.

…

My feelings were complicated right now.

On one hand, I was relieved that the child in my belly might not be a royal grandchild.

On the other hand, I was worried because another difficult man had entered the fray.

I couldn’t afford to offend either of them.

How was I supposed to survive these days?

The Princess had brought Nineteen back.

I was just about to tell her that I didn’t want to play her body double anymore.

It was too exhausting.

I felt like the lives of my entire clan were hanging by a thread every single day.

Just as I was about to knock, the sound of an argument between the Princess and Nineteen drifted from inside.

“Are you going to run away again?”

“Why does it matter? There are so many people in the Princess’s Mansion; you won’t miss one like me.”

“Hmph, don’t try to provoke me. If you dare run away again, I’ll break your legs.”

“Would you have the heart to, Princess? Then again, it doesn’t matter. Without me, there are plenty of others to serve you.”

Nineteen’s beautiful eyes were flushed crimson, making him look both elegant and seductive.

The Princess’s breath hitched at the sight.

She stepped forward and grabbed him. “I thought you wanted to run, but it turns out you’re just jealous?”

“Don’t touch me. You have eighteen men fighting to serve you, why are you still pestering me… mmm…”

The Princess loved it when people played hard to get, so she simply pounced on him.

Through the door, I could only see their shadows intertwining.

The sound of heavy breathing grew louder.

Nineteen gasped, “Don’t pinch…”

The Princess chuckled. “Run again if you’re so capable.”

“…”

I blinked and decided not to go in for now.

If I ruined Song Yunjiao’s fun, she would punish me by not letting me eat meat.

…

The Princess skipped class for a day.

When she returned to the study, the Grand Tutor didn’t scold her; he simply told her to make up for her missed lessons.

Looking at his cold profile, I couldn’t help but remember his past kindness toward me.

There were several times when I had been late, and the Grand Tutor hadn’t made me stand against the wall as punishment. He had only told me to be careful next time.

During my naive teenage years, I had once felt a sense of respect and affection for this frost-cold yet soft-hearted Grand Tutor.

Fortunately, that tiny sprout was crushed before it could ever bloom.

As expected, I had been overthinking things.

How could the Grand Tutor ever look at someone like me?

He was only nice to me for the Princess’s sake.

During calligraphy practice.

Song Yunjiao and Song Qinian, who were sitting in front of me, started bickering again.

It was over a calligraphy brush.

A Purple Jade Wolf Hair Brush, a limited edition piece by a famous craftsman, and worth a fortune.

Song Yunjiao hadn’t managed to get it, but Song Qinian had beaten her to it.

He was showing it off on purpose to annoy her.

Watching them bicker, I no longer saw it as a fight; it was clearly flirting.

The Crown Prince simply enjoyed teasing the Princess.

I lowered my eyes and continued writing.

The brush was suddenly tossed onto my desk.

Song Qinian spoke up just to spite the Princess, “I’m not giving it to you. I’d rather give it to Sister Yao than you. Die of anger!”

The Princess huffed. “Just wait until we get to the polo field. See how I deal with you then.”

Song Qinian didn’t care at all. Instead, he turned to look at me.

“Sister Yao, keep this safe. Don’t give it to anyone, even if they ask. Understand?”

“I understand, Crown Prince.”

I was just a prop in their flirting, so I tactfully tucked away the precious brush.

Actually, things like this happened often.

Following behind the Princess since childhood, I had picked up many leftovers.

Sometimes it was food, sometimes it was trinkets.

Song Qinian stared at me, suddenly frowning.

“What’s wrong with your neck? Why is there a red mark?”

He didn’t lower his voice.

It caused the Grand Tutor to look over as well.

I hurriedly covered my neck.

Fu Yanheng had bitten me there that night.

I had clearly used makeup to cover it and wore a high-collared undergarment.

Perhaps it was because the weather was too hot and the makeup had melted.

“It’s… it’s because the flowers in the courtyard have bloomed recently, and there are more mosquitoes.”

The Princess glanced at me and teased on purpose, “Oh my, it’s so red. I hope it wasn’t some poisonous creature. It would be bad if it left a scar.”

The Crown Prince glared at her and comforted me gently, “Don’t listen to her nonsense. I have medicine that will make sure it doesn’t scar.”

As he spoke, he reached out as if to touch me.

Realizing it was improper, he quickly withdrew his hand.

I looked up and met Fu Yanheng’s chilly gaze. I immediately lowered my head and focused on my writing.

Oh no.

Did I get caught?

I really want to run away.