"To be honest, I never intended to marry you. If it weren't for the emperor's decree... sigh, I already had a beloved woman. We had been together for several years, and I had planned to marry her. But fate had other plans," I paused and looked at Hong Ling's reaction. Seeing her bewildered expression, I knew my words were having the desired effect. I continued, "When the decree came, I conducted an investigation. I unintentionally discovered that you were in a relationship with the second son of the Deng family in Jiangnan. I also considered rejecting the imperial favor. However, the emperor's words are final, and I couldn't defy them." I put on an expression of anguish, feeling sorry for myself. If the emperor heard me say these things, he would undoubtedly have me dragged to the execution ground.
As I looked at Hong Ling's trembling figure, it seemed better to finish speaking sooner rather than later.
"After hearing about my impending marriage, he actually married someone else on the same day," I couldn't help but recall his handsome appearance on our wedding day, which made it almost impossible for me to find the words. Seeing me so distressed, Hong Ling also remembered the irreparable relationship between her and her cousin. Tears once again welled up in her bright and captivating eyes, bitter for the lost love.
"On the day of our wedding, I accidentally discovered that you were already pregnant. My mood became even more depressed, but I didn't know how to tell you. Ling'er, please forgive me for ruining your marriage." I said with bitterness and immediately grabbed the wine on the table, drinking it down in one gulp.
"Po Jun, don't be like this... I know that you had no choice. It's all the work of fate," Hong Ling snatched the half-empty wine jug from me, shocked to realize that I knew about her pregnancy.
Seeing Hong Ling's confusion, I softly revealed what she wanted to know, "Do you remember almost stumbling on our wedding day? It was when I caught you, and our hands briefly touched your wrist. I discerned it from your pulse."
Hong Ling's face turned pale, and the hand holding the wine jug trembled uncontrollably. Her phoenix eyes widened with fear as she stared at me, and her previously pale red lips turned even paler.
"Ling'er, don't be afraid. I didn't mean to harm you. Since our marriage, we have been avoiding each other. But this is not a solution. Since we have the opportunity to be alone tonight, I might as well explain everything, avoiding the awkwardness in the future." Seeing Hong Ling's uneasy expression, I quickly used words to stabilize her emotions.
"So you knew all along... hehe... hahaha..." Hong Ling's laughter started lightly and grew into wild laughter, causing pain in my heart. How could this fragile woman accept everything so easily? Hong Ling laughed in desolation, tears falling like scattered pearls.
"Ling'er, please take care of yourself and stop crying." I helplessly comforted her, feeling like a heartless person hurting a fragile woman like this.
"I don't blame you. You accepted me, knowing that I was already pregnant. I should be grateful," Hong Ling said, intending to kneel before me.
"Ling'er, what are you doing? Do you see me, Po Jun, as such a person?" I quickly supported Hong Ling's body and made her sit down on a nearby chair.
"Now that I have spoken everything to you and know about your feelings for your cousin, I'm afraid I can't... in the future, when we are alone, let's address each other as siblings. Would that be alright?" I asked the tearful Hong Ling, who gradually stopped crying and looked at me with hope in her eyes.
"Brother, is that really true?" Hong Ling seemed afraid that I would change my mind and anxiously asked.
"Hehe, of course. Unless you despise your big brother, who is a rough martial artist," I saw Hong Ling's forced smiles from before disappear, replaced by a furrowed brow and a melancholic look. I also felt a sense of liberation. But as soon as I relaxed, I immediately felt that something was different, as if a fire was burning inside me.
"Oh no," Hong Ling's face, once filled with joy, turned pale as she saw a crimson color spreading across my face. She shouted in alarm.
I immediately realized that it was too late. I struggled to maintain my composure and asked, "Ling'er, what did you give me to eat?"
"I-I... I don't know. It was given to me by Mother. She said it would be good if you ate it..." Hong Ling nervously stuttered, her voice trailing off into shyness.
I rolled my eyes inwardly, thinking that Hong Ling's mother really had terrible timing. I didn't know if Hong Ling's delicate body could withstand the ravages of someone overwhelmed by desire. The effects of the medicine slowly took hold, and I felt an intense discomfort, realizing that I couldn't stay here any longer.
I walked unsteadily to the window and turned back to instruct, "Ling'er, don't leave the room tomorrow. Wait for me to come back..." But as I spoke, my body trembled, and even the hand resting on the window turned a deep red.
"Brother, are you alright?" Hong Ling asked anxiously.
"I'm fine. Just remember what I said," I struggled to keep my voice steady.
"Oh, I remember now. It's called Bai Mei Xiang."
"Clang!" Just as I was halfway turned, I heard Hong Ling say the name, and I was so scared that I fell to the ground weakly. Oh god, it turned out to be that thing. It seemed that I wouldn't make it through the night. Unless...
I stood up and helplessly asked Hong Ling to close the window. Suppressing the increasingly fierce desire with internal energy, I quickly left the general's residence.
Qing Song Forest
A man leisurely leaned against a tree trunk, the swaying tree shadows obscuring the faint moonlight. His face was not clearly visible, disturbed by something that disrupted his peaceful slumber.
"Come out," a deep and majestic voice sounded clear amidst the silent woods.
As soon as the man spoke, a dark figure silently appeared before him. It was as black as the night itself, making it difficult to distinguish whether it was a real person or not.
"Master," the cold voice made it impossible to determine the speaker's gender.
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
The man with closed eyes remained motionless. His thoughts were calm. "Go back." The deep voice echoed in the forest, but the spot where the man had sat on the tree was now empty.
"Yes," the black shadow silently disappeared, as if it had never been there.
The raging desire consumed me, and all rationality had long been abandoned. Following my instincts, I ran towards the Qing Song Forest, where I knew Qi Yuntian, whom I had known since childhood, would often stay. Along the way, I stumbled multiple times, unable to control the intense and tumultuous waves of desire. I clumsily picked myself up from the ground each time and leaped gracefully, disappearing into the streets.
Tonight, the moonlight was exceptionally bright, as if it sensed something. It gently illuminated the figure running tirelessly, while a faint blue shadow followed closely behind, swaying but persistently chasing after the person ahead.
Mirror Moon Lake, the most beautiful spot in the Qing Song Forest. Surrounded by three sides of a gorge, the clear and emerald-green lake water allowed the swimming fish to be seen. It was a place of tranquility and seclusion, but tonight, peace was nowhere to be found.
"Splash! Splash!" The calm lake water was suddenly disrupted by an unexpected presence.
Consumed by the burning desire, all I knew was that I needed something cool to extinguish the flames. Water was the most effective remedy, and in my desperate haste, I leaped into the water. I dived deep beneath the surface, and the cool sensation helped to clear my mind to some extent. The discomfort caused by the intense heat in my body subsided slightly, and I relaxed as I slowly resurfaced. However, to my surprise, I saw an unexpected person standing by the lake, looking at me with a perplexed expression.
"Why did you come like this?" I exclaimed, but my own voice startled me. It was a seductive and enchanting voice that seemed to have come from me.
"Did you consume something you shouldn't have?" Mie's voice suddenly appeared, cold and composed, as he questioned me with certainty.
"Hehe, do you want to help me?" I replied with a playful smile, counter-questioning the man who had never held any affection for me. I couldn't forget the constant desire to kill me that I saw in his eyes, just like the darkness in his gaze now.
"You're a disaster," Mie's voice sounded cold beside my ear.
"Haha, then why don't you just kill me? That way, I won't have to suffer like this," I said arrogantly, but my tone unexpectedly softened in the second half of the sentence.
Mie's tall figure furrowed his brow even deeper upon hearing my ambiguous words. At that moment, a tantalizing fragrance began to spread. Mie took a step back, sighing with a trace of confusion, and the once emotionless man's gaze turned dark again.
"If you don't want trouble, you'd better stay far away from me." As the fragrance started to spread, the desire within me surged once more, making it unbearable.
"You've been affected by Bai Mei Xiang," Mie's voice held a hint of surprise, unable to believe that someone would administer such a dangerous aphrodisiac to me.
"Now that you know, why don't you leave?" My eyes gradually became hazy, and my consciousness was on the verge of leaving my body. I struggled to maintain a shred of clarity, trying to drive away the person standing by the lake.
"If no one helps you, you'll die here," Mie said coldly, stating a fact that I also understood.
How could I not know what Bai Mei Xiang was? It was a kind of aphrodisiac that inflamed one's desires. Its sweet and tempting fragrance spread within a hundred paces of the affected person. Those who smelled the fragrance would be driven by lust and desire to unite with the one emitting it. If the affected person didn't engage in intercourse within five hours, their Qi and blood would surge and cause death from convulsions. Bai Mei Xiang was undoubtedly the finest aphrodisiac.
"Well, isn't that what you desire?" A difficult moan escaped my lips but was quickly stifled by a bite.
"When did you consume it?"
"About an hour ago." After I finished speaking, I swam towards the center of the lake, not wanting to converse with the wooden figure on the shore. The torment of Bai Mei Xiang made it impossible for me to maintain my composure. At this moment, all I wanted was to stay in this place that held my most beautiful memories.
Mie watched as I swam towards the center of the lake and realized that I didn't want to talk to him anymore. However, he remained standing in place, as if contemplating something. Looking at the rising and falling figure in the lake, his dark gaze held an inexplicable meaning that others couldn't comprehend. The hem of his light blue robe swayed gently, and Mie disappeared from the lakeside.
Prince Qi's Mansion
"Ah, how annoying! The Prince always teases this concubine. I won't stand for it," Mei Niang waved her snow-white delicate wrist while pouting with a shy expression as she looked at her beloved husband.
"Hehe, don't be angry, my beloved concubine. Shall I punish myself with a cup?" Qi Yuntian, sitting comfortably in the grand chair, held his beautiful wife's slender waist with one hand as he coaxed her softly.
Qi Yuntian, who had been smiling, suddenly froze. His magnetic voice sounded calm and slow, "What's the matter?" Mei Niang tilted her head in confusion, her watery eyes wide open, looking at her husband.
"Master," Mie called but didn't continue speaking.
Qi Yuntian lowered his head and smiled, helping Mei Niang to sit on another chair. "I'll be back soon." He patted Mei Niang's small hand as a gesture of comfort.
Mei Niang smiled and nodded, her gaze following the graceful departure of her husband.
As he stepped out of the door, Qi Yuntian saw Mie kneeling on the ground. "What happened to her?" Qi Yuntian asked Mie as if he already knew what was going on.
"Master, she has been affected by Bai Mei Xiang," Mie's expression remained cold, his voice devoid of emotion.
"What?" Qi Yuntian's voice trembled slightly when he heard the name Bai Mei Xiang, but it was not apparent or detectable. Perhaps only he himself understood it deep within his heart.
"Where is she?" Qi Yuntian's gaze changed, and he asked in a low voice.
"Qing Song Forest, Mirror Moon Lake," Mie provided the answer Qi Yuntian wanted, waiting for his next move.
"Tell the Princess that I have something to attend to tonight. Let her rest early!" Before Qi Yuntian finished his words, he had already disappeared without a trace.
"Yes," Mie responded.
Qing Song Forest
"En... Ah... Ya... En..." Intoxicated and enchanting moans escaped my lips incessantly. I was so miserable; I removed all restraints and swam naked in the lake. I continued to roll and tumble in the water, allowing the flowing lake water to caress my skin like an affectionate lover. Yet, it also stirred up dissatisfaction within me. The wild flames of desire within me were about to consume my entire being.
"Ahaha~ Ah~ En," I screamed in frustration, startling the birds that had returned to their nests, causing them to take flight in a frenzy.
Qi Yuntian arrived at the lakeside of Mirror Moon Lake in Qing Song Forest, witnessing this picturesque scene. He looked at the ethereal figure in the water, and the fragrance of Bai Mei Xiang permeated the air. It was alluring beyond compare, but observing Pojun's natural and uncontrived actions, her charm surpassed that of Bai Mei Xiang.
Qi Yuntian didn't realize that he was gradually approaching the water nymph, and when he became aware of it, he had already entered the water and stood in front of Pojun.
I gazed at the man standing before me with a confused expression, thinking that perhaps my prayers had been answered.
"Yun Tian, you've finally come." I didn't know how enchanting my smile was at that moment, nor did I realize how much my voice resembled a seductive melody. All I knew was that the man before me was the one I had been waiting for, and I had given everything for him. Qi Yuntian, the man I desired.
My hands slowly wrapped around his neck, and I gently opened my vermilion lips. "Will you cherish me?" The most enchanting voice uttered the most seductive words, impossible for any man to resist.
"Pojun, you really are a person who cannot be trusted," Qi Yuntian's voice carried a deep sense of affection, but there was also a hint of helplessness between his brows.
Although my thoughts were clouded by desire, I could sense his dilemma clearly. Hehe, Pojun, he's not a man you can have just because you want him. He belongs to someone else, and the thought pained me. Qi Yuntian, I should do this for the best.
Without leaving room for regret, my vermilion lips lightly brushed against the corner of his mouth. My scarlet body entwined around his handsome figure like a water snake. Since I could never forget you in my entire life, leave me with some memories, Yun Tian!