As it happened, Shen Yao Xing had also made up her mind. On the way to the study, she thought of many things to say, but upon seeing her mother’s dark expression, all the prepared words in her mind instantly crumbled, leaving nothing but blankness.

She could only lower her head and accept a round of scolding.

Shen Yao Xing’s fingers tightened again and again. She took a deep breath and suddenly raised her head, loudly interrupting her mother’s reprimand: “I don’t want to study anymore!”

Her mother’s voice paused, her brows furrowing: “What did you say?”

Shen Yao Xing unconsciously scratched at her thigh through her clothes, her gaze darting around nervously, her voice growing weaker: “I… I don’t want to study anymore…”

Her mother looked at her silently for a good while, then put down the bamboo scroll in her hand, her voice lowering slightly: “Do you remember what you promised me?”

“I remember…”

“You said that as long as Nian’er’s marriage didn’t work out, you would marry Gentleman Yin. I agreed. Later, you said if you cancelled your engagement with Gentleman Yin, you would study official matters diligently. I agreed to that too. Now you tell me you don’t want to study.”

“What exactly do you want?”

“…” Shen Yao Xing lowered her eyelids, her mouth opening and closing, unable to speak for a moment.

Looking at this daughter she had watched grow up, her mother felt a sudden surge of emotion. She let out an almost inaudible sigh and said: “It seems I’ve spoiled you too much, resulting in such a guileless nature.”

Shen Yao Xing’s eyes unexpectedly stung with tears. She had always known her mother treated her well, and she was grateful for it.

“I just hope… you can allow me to do some things I like.” Shen Yao Xing carefully observed her mother’s expression. Seeing no obvious anger, she felt more at ease.

The mother and daughter finally sat down and had a good talk. However, her mother still didn’t agree to let her leave the city. Shen Yao Xing stuck close to her, trying to win her over with various acts of flattery, massaging her shoulders and patting her back, before finally getting her mother to relent.

However, she required that she must take Hei Sha and Bai Sha along, and return within a month.

Shen Yao Xing hesitated a bit. After all, Hei Sha and Bai Sha were skilled fighters, and since she could protect herself now, she had them guard her mother. Moreover, the recent poisoning incident hadn’t been fully investigated yet, and there was no guarantee the poisoner wouldn’t strike again while she was away.

After much consideration, Shen Yao Xing decided to leave Hei Sha in the capital. Although Hei Sha had a stutter, she was much more attentive than Bai Sha. Leaving her at the manor to watch over her mother’s food and drink daily would be best.

“Remember, that powder has a detoxifying effect. If you run out, you can go to the palace and ask Imperial Physician Si for more. Every dish my mother eats must be tested first, understand?”

On the eve of her departure, Shen Yao Xing instructed Hei Sha once again.

Hei Sha’s expression was solemn. Hearing this, she nodded vigorously: “This… this… servant… will… not… fail… the… mission!”

Hei Sha had always been reliable, so Shen Yao Xing was at ease.

Late at night, after packing the necessary things for the journey, Shen Yao Xing blew out the candle and prepared to sleep.

The late summer cricket chirps grew louder, like a lullaby, bringing a sense of peace and tranquility.

Tonight’s moon was particularly round. The hazy silver light poured in through the window, illuminating half of the bedroom. A black shadow silently appeared in front of the young girl’s bed.

Under the silver moon, those dark eyes stared fixedly at the person on the bed.

Shen Yao Xing, who had just fallen asleep, rubbed her nose. In her hazy consciousness, she sensed something amiss. She squinted, and upon glimpsing the dark figure by her bed, she was so startled that her eyes flew open. With a stretch of her hand and a kick of her leg, she instantly curled up with her silk quilt in the corner of the bed.

Shen Yao Xing looked at the person by her bed, still shaken: “What… what do you want to do?”

Perhaps he wanted revenge for being injured that day.

The man stared at her silently, his thin lips pressed tightly together, not responding.

Shen Yao Xing curled up into a ball. She noticed that he was no longer wearing his usual white attire, but all black. Yet it wasn’t the tight-fitting style of night-walking clothes, just a loose, thin black robe, its quality appearing even purer in the silver light.

The black made his skin appear even more pale, his beautiful features expressionless, looking like a ghost in the moonlight.

A faint, strange fragrance floated in the air. Shen Yao Xing sniffed lightly but didn’t pay much attention to it. She glared at the man and said: “I’ve already apologized to you for that day, and you were at fault first. If you really want revenge, you could have kicked me back during the day. Why sneak around like this?”

Jiang Ming Yue pressed his lips together without speaking, his gaze greedily roaming over the young girl’s body, finally settling on her chattering lips, the desire in his eyes growing stronger.

After the young girl finished speaking, after a long while, he finally spoke slowly: “Do you… really dislike me that much?”

The man’s voice was slightly hoarse. Shen Yao Xing felt something strange as she listened. She tried her best to suppress that bit of discomfort and answered honestly: “It’s not that I dislike you, it’s just that we really aren’t suitable.”

“How are we not suitable?”

Shen Yao Xing was momentarily at a loss for words. She frowned, thinking for a moment: “You kill people indiscriminately…”

Before she could finish listing her reasons, the man eagerly interrupted her: “If you don’t like it, I won’t kill anymore in the future.”

“…”

Jiang Ming Yue’s chest heaved slightly, his beautiful eyes staring intently at the young girl. His fingers rubbed lightly under his black sleeves as he slowly moved closer.

Seeing the man sit down on the bed, Shen Yao Xing’s heart began to race. She tried to get up to avoid him, but found that for some reason her whole body was weak, even lifting her hand was extremely difficult.

“You…” Shen Yao Xing’s eyes filled with anger, but as she looked up, she found the man’s face right in front of her, causing her eyes to widen in shock.

Their faces were only two fingers apart. Jiang Ming Yue greedily examined the young girl’s features, his eyes full of infatuation. Seeing the girl glare at him, a blush spread across his face. His fingers tightly gripped the quilt beneath him, his gaze shyly averting.

But then he couldn’t help but look back at the young girl’s face. He bit his lower lip hard, gently exhaling fragrant breath: “Zhao Zhao… I really like you…”

He liked her so much that he was willing to put aside his pride and actively come to seduce her.

He even agreed to that thoughtless woman’s invitation, just wanting to see if she would be jealous, even if only a little.

But the young girl’s indifferent reaction made him feel suffocated.

This was the first time someone other than family had called her by her nickname. That alluring tone gave Shen Yao Xing goosebumps. She turned her face away, not wanting to look at him, but the next moment, the man forcefully turned her face back with his hand.

Jiang Ming Yue’s eyes were filled with resentment. His gaze slid down to her lips, unable to control the desire in his heart any longer, he leaned in and pressed his lips to hers.

The man’s technique was terrifyingly clumsy, only knowing how to bite, nibble, and lick, making Shen Yao Xing momentarily think he wanted to eat her.

The room was filled with ambiguous sounds. Shen Yao Xing, unable to escape, could only clench her teeth tightly, closing her eyes and enduring this overwhelming sense of shame.

Feeling his tongue lick her tightly clenched teeth, the man seemed to have found a more wonderful place. His tongue tried to pry open her teeth, attempting for quite a while without success.

He pulled away slightly, panting. His beautiful eyes were misty, looking at the young girl’s tightly closed eyes with slight dissatisfaction. His voice was soft, almost like he was pouting: “Open your mouth…”

Shen Yao Xing’s hand, limp at her side, twitched slightly. Her eyelashes trembled, and she almost ground her teeth to pieces.

When she had the strength, she would definitely smash his dog head!

Just as she thought this, Shen Yao Xing felt her mouth being forcefully pried open. She suddenly opened her eyes wide, only to see the man’s face approaching again.

The more intimate contact made both their bodies tremble. Jiang Ming Yue’s chest pressed tightly against her, his whole body nestling against hers. His aroused body occasionally shuddered, his expression showing an almost crazed infatuation.

“…Mm…” A low moan of pleasure escaped his throat as his tongue entwined with hers.

Their saliva dripped from the corner of her mouth. Shen Yao Xing closed her eyes in despair.

“Young Miss… Young Miss?”

A voice came from afar, gradually getting closer. Shen Yao Xing suddenly opened her eyes and sat up abruptly on the bed, gasping for air, her gaze fixed blankly at the foot of the bed.

Qing Shu stood by the bed, looking at her worriedly: “Young Miss, did you have a nightmare?”

The young girl stared at her blankly, unable to react for a long time.

Nightmare?

Shen Yao Xing raised her hand to her forehead, wiping away the sweat. She spread her palm, clenched it tightly, then opened it again. There was nothing unusual. She sighed in relief. So it was just a dream?

“Young Miss, Miss Meng is already waiting for you outside.”

She looked out the window, only now realizing that it was already bright outside. Not bothering with anything else, she hurriedly got up to wash. As she passed by the dressing table, her footsteps faltered slightly. Shen Yao Xing stared at herself in the bronze mirror, her fingers slowly tracing her lips.

Why… did they look a bit swollen?