chapter 5

I helped Pei Qingxuan into the house and applied medicine to his wounds. Pei Shuning sent over clean clothes.

When Pei Qingxuan changed, I saw the taut muscles across his body.

Suddenly, I realized that this was the first time in our three years of marriage that I had seen his body in daylight.

He always dressed impeccably, and even when I teased him during the day, he would either refuse me or only half-undress.

Even at night, during our intimacy, he would not allow a lamp to be lit.

He said he was a musician from Southern Chu, but his strength was remarkable, and he was agile too.

The year I fell into the icy river during the flood season, in the roaring torrent, he managed to save me by himself.

Even my Imperial Guards praised his abilities.

He only said that he was merely a strong swimmer, and that it was nothing worth mentioning.

Almost unconsciously, I reached out to touch his abdomen. It was firm, each muscle clearly defined.

In the past, lost in the pleasure of our bodies, I only ever cared to look at his face. It had never occurred to me to wonder how he came to have such a physique.

“Princess.”

He grasped my hand, breathing low: “This is the Pingnan Prince’s Mansion. Please restrain yourself, Your Highness.

“When we return to the Princess’s Mansion, I will attend to Your Highness as you wish.”

There were calluses on his hands-on his fingers, his palms, and at the base of his thumb.

Those calluses often left my body sore after his touch.

He said they were from playing musical instruments.

I regained my composure and handed him his clothes. “It’s you who’s overthinking. No matter how reckless I may be, I would never act so wantonly in my Brother’s Pingnan Prince’s Mansion.”

He seemed relieved. “It was my imagination, then.”