Chapter 80: Pillow Talk

Lan Wu met his gaze, hesitated slightly, then got off the bed to help him undress. With a distracted expression, she asked, “Your Majesty has returned quite early today. Is the court not busy?”

Chu Mingheng studied her thoughtfully. When had he ever seen her serve him like this? Usually, it was only him helping her undress.

He gave a faint “mm” in response, watching Lan Wu lower her head. Her long hair cascaded down her back, smooth and clinging to her slender spine, swaying enticingly with her movements.

But Lan Wu was unaccustomed to serving others; even undoing Chu Mingheng’s belt was clumsy.

Seeing her flustered from the effort, Chu Mingheng reached out and clasped her wrist. “Don’t fuss over it. Go wait for me on the bed.”

Lan Wu’s fingers paused, tugging at his belt, which drew a faint smile to Chu Mingheng’s lips.

He pinched her cheek and leaned down to kiss her lips. “Go on.”

Lan Wu lay back on the bed, turned over, and slowly retrieved a thumb ring from beneath her pillow.

That day, she had tried to return the thumb ring to Chu Mingheng, but he refused, telling her to keep it for herself.

How could she dare to play with such a thing casually? She had someone fetch a jeweled box to store it in.

Now, opening it again, she examined the thumb ring closely for the first time.

It was gold inlaid with jadeite, a simple design without intricate patterns. The jadeite was of exceptional quality—rich green, translucent, and flawless. However, the ring was too large, barely fitting her thumb.

Lan Wu extended her fingers to compare. Gold paired with jade symbolized nobility and status, likely more suited to someone dignified and steady. But as she looked at it… it still looked beautiful on her hand.

Gently slipping the ring onto her thumb, she spread her hand before her eyes, examining it carefully. Then she turned onto her back, facing the painted ceiling above, growing more and more delighted with the ring.

No, no, no. At a time like this, she should be thinking about how to discuss Yue Zhaorong’s matter with Chu Mingheng. How could she get so carried away?

Lan Wu patted her cheeks, then carefully put the ring away and tucked it back under the pillow by the bed.

Wasn’t it just pillow talk? She knew how to do that.

After waiting a while longer, she finally heard familiar footsteps entering the hall.

Lan Wu sat up in bed, her eyes following Chu Mingheng’s figure, but she said nothing.

“What did you do today?” Chu Mingheng glanced sideways at the chaise longue where Lan Wu usually liked to lounge. Normally, a storybook she was reading would be there, but today he saw none.

“Slept, ate, arranged flowers, practiced calligraphy…” Lan Wu counted off on her fingers, one by one. Seeing no impatience on his face, she stealthily added a few more activities. “Played chess, brewed tea, embroidered…”

Chu Mingheng listened, raising an eyebrow slightly as he gave an indifferent “mm.”

He approached the bed, not rushing to extinguish the candles. Once on the bed, he pulled Lan Wu into his arms, repeating her words with amusement. “Played chess, brewed tea, embroidered… Which of these can you actually do?”

Lan Wu froze, sitting up to glare at him with a displeased look, as if one more truthful word from him would make her ignore him.

“A-Wu can naturally do everything,” Chu Mingheng chuckled, coaxing her to cheer up. “Sew me a pouch another day.”

Lan Wu hesitated slightly. Her needlework wasn’t good—embroidering a pouch would invite ridicule.

“The palace embroiderers sew beautifully. This concubine cannot compare to them.”

Chu Mingheng pressed his forehead against hers, smiling as he said, “Each has their own expertise; why compare yourself to them? Besides, I only want the ones you embroider.”

Well then, since he took her pouch, she would start working her pillow talk.

Lan Wu blinked, wrapping her arms around him and pressing her cheek against the side of his neck. Her long eyelashes cast shadows beneath her eyes as she nestled close, the soft flesh of her cheek gently compressed, her words endearing.

“Then this concubine will embroider a dragon for Your Majesty, alright?” The speaker grew excited first, already pondering in her mind what fabric to choose.

“Embroider whatever you like. Even if it’s just a flower, I’ll cherish it.”

Lan Wu’s eyes curved into crescents, then she seemed to remember something and let out a soft hum. “This afternoon, Yue Zhaorong came to see me and brought me many flowers.”

Her palace attendants went to the Imperial Garden every few days to pick flowers, and this time Yue Zhaorong had brought some along when she visited. This gesture was more effective than sending other gifts; those flowers were now displayed in the main hall.

“I know she came to your palace.” With the Yue family’s affairs currently in turmoil, Lady Yue couldn’t see him and had turned to Lan Wu instead. Though he was surprised, he didn’t find it particularly strange.

What was peculiar was that Lan Wu was willing to help her.

“This concubine knows that the inner court must not interfere in politics, but Yue Zhaorong said she was worried about her family’s safety, which is why she came to me… I have no parents or relatives, so seeing her like that made me feel… perhaps a bit envious…”

Lan Wu wasn’t entirely sure what she felt. She had grown up in the palace’s Music Bureau, where there were many sisters—some good, some bad. From a young age, she was confined to memorizing palace rules, so she never really experienced much joy.

That was why she had fallen for Chu Mingheng—because he was the only one willing to dote on her. Although in her previous life, he had even more rules and was fierce at first, she was both afraid and compelled to seize the opportunity to climb higher. But later, he held birthday banquets for her, showed her favoritism, and though he claimed he would abandon her if she dared to do anything wrong, when she actually tried, he restrained her, scolded her, and then took on the role of the villain himself, cleaning up the mess for her.

His methods were lethal, and over time, the imperial concubines could all see that His Majesty treated her differently.

That made things even more dangerous.

By the time the concubines realized she was the greatest threat—since there was no Imperial Eldest Son yet, a favored concubine like her would inevitably bear a child eventually.

Thinking of this, she sighed and looked at Chu Mingheng with a hint of reproach in her eyes.

He protected her like a delicate flower, but she would have preferred to become a concubine whom everyone feared.

Snapping back to the present, Lan Wu cleared her throat and returned to the main topic. “Yue Zhaorong said she only wishes to request an audience with Your Majesty and asked me to relay the message. I thought that merely passing on a message shouldn’t count as interfering in politics, right? Whether Your Majesty agrees is up to you.”

With that, Lan Wu looked up at Chu Mingheng with pleading eyes.

Chu Mingheng pinched the tip of her chin and gently chided her, “If she comes to you today, and tomorrow He Zhaorong, Chen Zhaorong, or Yang Zhaorong come begging before you, will you agree to help them too?”

“If this goes on, you’ll become the little emperor of the inner court.”

Lan Wu was taken aback for a moment, then quickly reacted with indignation, biting his chin as she said, “Where did you get so many Zhaorongs from! I’m not even a Zhaorong yet!”

Chu Mingheng, bitten by her, instead laughed, holding Lan Wu in his arms as he leaned over and pressed her down on the couch. He shook his head with a mix of helplessness and amusement, saying, “You really are…”