Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 405: Blood Asura's Second Drop of Blood

Zhao Changhe’s expression twitched as he looked at Huangfu Qing on top of him.

She was radiating with the joy of victory, practically glowing, as if making Tang Wanzhuang suffer was the most important thing in her life.

What exactly are you so happy about? We didn’t even go all the way!

You might not be in much pain, but I definitely am!

Without proper foreplay, how are things supposed to work out just by sitting down on me? Who can understand my pain...

Then, he also had a realization.

Why is Tang Wanzhuang so angry? Maybe there’s jealousy involved, but the things she said were clearly a way of helping me, weren’t they? Is she hoping I’d win over an important figure from the Four Idols Cult who’s infiltrated the palace?

Does this count as an imperial mandate now?

Seeing the ecstatic expression on Huangfu Qing’s face, Zhao Changhe finally could not help but say, “Even with her strength, she’s not powerful enough to perceive everything going on in a whole house. Don’t you think she’s just leading you on to have you caught in the act?”

“What do you mean, caught in the act?” Huangfu Qing did not understand but she did not dwell on it either. She giggled and said, “She might not be able to see what’s going on, but the implication is enough. Besides, you didn’t rush out with your pants up in a panic.”

Zhao Changhe said with a blank expression, “But right now, I’m in a hurry.”

Huangfu Qing’s expression stiffened for a moment.

She quickly felt a strong force from beneath her, flipping her over and pinning her down.

When their eyes met, Huangfu Qing suddenly realized something.

She had only intended to provoke Tang Wanzhuang, but that was not how he saw it. He would naturally see it as... If you’re willing to go this far, why not go all the way? Why should we stop here?

And indeed, now that things had gotten to this point, was she really only trying to anger Tang Wanzhuang?

In fact, she had already been willing to go through with it.

If not for the concern about Tang Wanzhuang’s involvement, she would have rewarded him for his success with the Yang Clan, just as agreed upon.

“This is part of the agreement...” Zhao Changhe whispered. “You said I could choose any reward, so you can’t go back on your reward.”

Huangfu Qing’s gaze softened, and after a while, she responded gently: “Is it just a reward?”

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Zhao Changhe’s mind flashed back to the sonorous words she had said to Tang Wanzhuang the other night, “I like him.”

I like him...

That thought echoed in Huangfu Qing’s mind as well.

At this moment, silence spoke louder than words.

With the atmosphere as it was, Huangfu Qing could really not be bothered to think about so many things—whether it was about the cult, her stance, the imperial family, Tang Wanzhuang, Vermillion Bird, or Xia Longyuan.

Did she really need him to prove that the things he was doing were for the Four Idols Cult? As long as there were feelings between them, could he really betray her?

All she wanted was to hear him say something similar.

As if sensing her thoughts, Zhao Changhe whispered, “I like you. Forget about the cult, concubines, the Fire Pig of Shi, the Fire Serpent of Yi, or whether Vermillion Bird agrees to our relationship or not. In the end, I want you.”

Whether Vermillion Bird agrees... As Vermillion Bird, she would not, but as the Fire Serpent of Yi, she would. How was she to reconcile that?

Right now, they wore no masks. She was Huangfu Qing, and he was ZHao Changhe.

Huangfu Qing’s gaze softened, and she whispered back, “By being with you like this... I’m taking on burdens you can’t even imagine... You... must not betray me.”

Zhao Changhe never thought, even for a second, that this was Vermillion Bird, the true leader of the Four Idols Cult. He could never imagine her entrusting herself to someone. He could not fathom what she still had to bear. He still believed that the woman before him was simply a nominal consort. Xia Longyuan did not care, and even if he did, they could face him head-on. He could not let her be tied down for some perverse amusement.

Zhao Changhe said seriously, “I will never betray you.”

Even though Huangfu Qing knew that men would say anything in such moments, words that often meant little, any woman would still want to believe them at that moment.

Huangfu Qing closed her eyes and murmured softly, “This is your reward.”

She had just been questioning whether it was only a reward, and now she was saying that it was.

The hard beak of Vermillion Bird was gently pried open, and as their lips and tongues intertwined, she completely melted.

In a daze, she felt a sharp pain—this time, it was real.

Huangfu Qing opened her eyes, breathless, with a smile that was both tender and indulgent. She gently stroked his head and whispered, “Satisfied?”

Zhao Changhe replied, “I’ll do my best to make sure that the imperial noble consort is even more satisfied.”

* * *

It was a night of tempestuous rain.

Tang Wanzhuang woke up slowly, glancing at the half-empty wine cups on the table through the bed curtains, then at the rain pattering on the leaves of the trees outside the window.

She said lazily, “Baoqin, roll up the curtains.”

Baoqin pouted as she came over to do so, and Tang Wanzhuang asked, “Spring is almost over, how are the fallen flowers outside?”

Baoqin replies, “The crabapple blossoms[1] are still the same.”

“What do you know...” Tang Wanzhuang said faintly. “It should be lush greens and fading reds.”[2]

The corners of Baoqin’s mouth twitched. “Young miss, you should really stop trying to be poetic. That woman isn’t so young anymore; she’s probably savoring the experience, unlike Baoqin.”

Tang Wanzhuang: “?”

Baoqin: “...”

Tang Wanzhuang suddenly felt a bit uncertain. “It can’t be... It should be her first time. I’ve heard the first time is very painful, and he’s so... robust...”

Baoqin blurted out, “Why would it be her first time? She’s already an old lady of twenty-eight or twenty-nine years of age...”

The expression on her young miss’ face became very stiff.

Baoqin suddenly realized her mistake and forced a smile. “Of course, she’s nothing like my young miss. My young miss is pure and untouched, while she’s been married for a while.”

“Her being married is probably just a front, and she likely has never been touched,” Tang Wanzhuang said as she got up, put on a robe, and stood by the window. She gazed at the flowers and trees, her thoughts a mystery.

Baoqin had no idea what was going on in her young miss’ head. The previous night, she had trouble sleeping and needed wine to fall asleep. If her heart ached so much, why did she not fight for him? If she did not fight, he would truly end up in someone else’s arms.

What if the Four Idols Cult really seduces him with beauty, and you end up with nothing?

You’re supposed to be the famed bureau chief of the Demon Suppression Bureau, yet you’re not even as decisive as the little rabbit next door.

Tang Wanzhuang softly muttered, as if trying to convince herself, “I once said that even if I died, he would continue to move toward what was best for the world because he could not bear to see it otherwise. He denied this to give me a reason to live, but in truth, that statement still holds.”

Baoqin: “...”

“As long as he cares for the people, as long as he can’t turn a blind eye, he’ll eventually do what I want to see him do. He has a special relationship with the Four Idols Cult. Just with Xia Chichi, it is already impossible to sever the ties between them. Maybe... Given the precedent with the Blood God Cult, this direction could lead somewhere... I believe in that.”

Baoqin could not help but say, “Young miss, is your heart not burning with jealousy? It must ache terribly, right? So why don’t you just admit it and seek comfort?”

Tang Wanzhuang gritted her teeth. “Are you itching for a beating?”

Baoqin stood her ground and replied, “Even if you beat me, I’ll still say it: when will you fight for yourself?”

Tang Wanzhuang was stunned for a moment, then suddenly smiled and said, “Didn’t you hate him before, saying he was an utterly uncultured, stinky bear?”

“Well, I still hate him, but you like him. I’m just a mere maid, what can I possibly do?”

“Is that so... Do I really like him...” Tang Wanzhuang stared out at the misty rain outside the window, losing herself in thought.

She did not notice Baoqin hesitating, shuffling her small feet on the ground for a long time before muttering, “Besides, he plays the guqin so well now, and he’s not as boorish as before... It’s a pity that he belongs to someone else...”

* * *

In the imperial noble consort’s room, Huangfu Qing leaned against Zhao Changhe’s shoulder, her face flushed with the contentment of extreme satisfaction.

At first, it had been a little painful, but for someone from the jianghu who constantly rolled on the edge of a blade, the pain was no different from a mosquito bite, and after that pain came pure pleasure.

He had said that he would make her feel satisfied, and indeed, she was very satisfied.

His physique and strength were impeccable. His Blood Asura Body made him an unmatched little wolfhound. And with this, the imperial noble consort realized that she had wasted a good number of years by now.

Where is the joy in angering Tang Wanzhuang? The true pleasure is in having something that Tang Wanzhuang could never get!

She indulged so much that she ended up exhausted and, embarrassingly, had to beg for mercy.

She could not figure out how this young man, despite having a lower cultivation than hers, still had so much stamina.

It was not that women were at a disadvantage in such things, it was just that he had an unfair advantage. He knew the Pure Bliss Art, a dual cultivation technique that, in theory, could allow him to keep going indefinitely.

The only reason she had not allowed dual cultivation was that she was afraid; she simply did not dare to do that.

Huangfu Qing secretly opened her eyes, and as if they were on the same wavelength, Zhao Changhe turned to look at her.

Their eyes met, and Zhao Changhe playfully pinched her nose. “Awake?”

Huangfu Qing wrinkled her nose and huffed: “I’m not Cui Yuanyang.”

Zhao Changhe chuckled. “I don’t notice much difference; in the end, you still called me big brother.”

“You’re cheating. If you’re so skilled, don’t use the Pure Bliss Art! With just your basic cultivation, I don’t believe you could manage...”

“I’m curious why you refused dual cultivation. Theoretically, we’re both at the first layer of the Profound Mysteries, and the effects of dual cultivation between us would be particularly good.”

“Good for you, maybe! After all, I still have my vital yin, and who knows which wild woman your vital yang ended up with!” Huangfu Qing pretended to be angry and turned away from him, giving him the cold shoulder.

It was just an excuse to refuse, of course. If he used dual cultivation to probe her, he would instantly know that she was way far from the first Profound Mystery.

If he found out that the one he was diligently working on was Vermillion Bird herself, who knew what his reaction would be?

Zhao Changhe really thought that she was just being petty about the matter of vital yin and yang, so he wrapped his arms around her from behind and tried to appease her with a smile. “Actually, it doesn’t really matter. Dual cultivation requires long-term practice. We can try in the future...”

“You’re already thinking about the next time? As if!” Huangfu Qing huffed and squirmed to get away. “Now that this is over, I’m heading back to the capital to release Wang Daozhong and have him kill you.”

After a whole night, given Wang Daoning and Qin Dingjiang’s speed, they might already be arriving at the capital soon.

Zhao Changhe did not bother thinking about it and grunted, “Plotting to murder your husband? You should be punished for that.”

“Hey, hey, hey...” Huangfu Qing barely had time to react before she felt a familiar sensation. “What the hell, how can you be at it again first thing in the morning? You’re really like a bear...”

“But I’m a pig, remember?”

“Alright, piggy, stop messing around... mmh... I, I need to get up... If I take any longer, Yang Jingxiu will come in to pay his respects... Ah...”

“Alright, alright, I won’t use the Pure Bliss Art...”

Outside, Yang Jingxiu stood, blocked by a group of expressionless palace maids and attendants. “The imperial noble consort is not feeling well. There’s no need for you to pay your respects today.”

Not feeling well? Considering how she crushed the yin qi yesterday, how could she be unwell?

Yang Jingxiu looked up and then glanced over at Zhao Changhe’s courtyard across the road.

The courtyard, once crowded with people, had been empty all night.

The imperial family really is a mess... Old Yang kept his hands inside his sleeves and instructed his attendants, “Later, make sure to add a couple of kidneys to Young Master Zhao’s breakfast.”

1. This is referring to Begonias, though more specifically Chinese flowering crabapples. I think they’re similar? I’m not exactly sure as I’m not really into dendrology. ☜

2. This was a literal translation of the text “绿肥红瘦,” but the phrase also refers to “flourishing leaves and withering flowers” and the scene of late spring. ☜