The scattered snow in the sky seemed to quietly cease falling.

Had Zhao Yān not reminded him, even Wenren Lin himself would not have realized that his seemingly casual words had broken this taboo.

He had been fixated on the past, calculating the present, but never imagining the future.

Yet tonight, he had promised “from now on” and made a covenant for “all four seasons,” as naturally as if it was always meant to be.

Why had the shackles that had bound him for eight years shattered now without a sound?

In that moment of turmoil, he questioned himself inwardly.

The answer he received was simple: because his heart yearned for it, so the shackles broke completely, and he was willingly led by her.

Wenren Lin’s brows furrowed slightly, then quickly relaxed. The ripples in his eyes were light and unrestrained as his smile broke through the ice.

In the study, the warming stove emitted a fragrant aroma.

Wenren Lin swept his sleeve to close the door, then turned to look at the young princess who had buried her chin in her fur collar with a slight smile. In a low voice, he said: “Come here.”

…

…

Zhao Yān stepped forward twice and quietly looked at him.

Wenren Lin’s eyes were very deep, carrying warm affection within their dark currents. First, he lowered his head and kissed away the melting snowflakes on her eyelashes, then her slightly reddened nose tip from the cold. Moving lower, he paused with just a hairsbreadth of distance between them…

Then, lowering his eyelids, he pressed his thin lips against hers, turning and grinding softly.

It seemed like a seizure, yet also like confirmation of something in his heart.

His tall and cold frame, with broad shoulders and a wide chest, could easily envelop a person completely. Zhao Yān opened her eyes slightly wider, as if unable to bear it, and tilted her head back to retreat a step, but was firmly gripped around the waist. Under his assault, there was nowhere to retreat.

Her thoughts were quickly scattered; before her eyes was a hazy glow of the standing palace lamp. The only thing she could be certain of was that this was one of Wenren Lin’s rare instances of initiative.

Zhao Yān’s legs weakened, and her knees hit the edge of the desk, causing her to uncontrollably sit down on the surface.

The man followed, kneeling with one knee between her legs, his ink-black robe like wings holding her captive.

“The books are pressing into me…”

As soon as Zhao Yān parted her lips, she could no longer close them, feeling as if she were drowning and suffocating.

She thought she might lose consciousness, her body leaning back until she collapsed softly onto the desk, sending the brush holder clattering to the floor.

“Your Highness?”

Outside the door came Liu Ying’s concerned inquiry.

Zhao Yān finally regained her senses in the interval of the deep kiss, panting heavily, her face red enough to explode: “It’s nothing, I just… just dropped a brush on the floor…”

Wenren Lin propped himself up with one palm beside her ear, his lips slightly reddened. He gently pressed his fingertips against her luscious lips, causing Zhao Yān to lose the ability to complete her sentences. She gasped and opened her mouth to bite him.

But as her teeth closed, they caught nothing. She grew even more annoyed!

“Enough? Tonight’s lessons are not yet finished…”

Zhao Yān reached out irritably, trying to feel for the book digging into her waist.

“Not enough.”

Wenren Lin raised his hand to intercept hers, his long fingers sliding between hers, interlocking their five fingers through the light, soft pearl hand-coverings, and pinning them above her head.

Zhao Yān was forced to raise both arms, suddenly widening her eyes. This position was truly dangerous!

Wenren Lin lowered his head to kiss her again, his eyelashes half-lowered, his eyes deep enough to devour someone.

Zhao Yān finally understood the source of his unusual behavior, and consciously closed her eyes, returning his kiss forcefully.

Wenren Lin let out an extremely low nasal sigh, somewhat surprised by her “counterattack,” but soon his eyes rippled with exquisite interest, and the handsome tendons on the back of his hand all stood out prominently.

Their lips parted, and warm light filtered through the gap.

Zhao Yān turned her head to catch her breath, speaking intermittently with raised eye corners: “It’s not a big deal… the Grand Tutor… the Grand Tutor has me in his heart, so… I am in his future too.”

Though her wrists were pinned, she still raised the corners of her eyes, looking back at him bravely and gently: “However you look at it, I win, Wenren Shaoyuan.”

“Is that so?”

Wenren Lin smiled as he buried himself in the crook of her neck, uttering those two words in a low, hoarse voice.

Indeed, he wanted her. It had nothing to do with benefit or teaching; he simply wanted, madly, to crush her into his bones and blood, to possess everything, to sacrifice everything.

Zhao Yān also sensed the unusual situation there, and stiffened, swallowing with difficulty before saying: “Do you want to… um, submit?”

She chose a more euphemistic phrase, and Wenren Lin immediately let out a muffled laugh.

She felt the brief breath brush past, and instinctively trembled.

“Your Highness took medicine just ten days ago. Even though its properties are mild, it should not be taken frequently.”

Compared to Zhao Yān’s blushing face, Wenren Lin showed not the slightest hint of embarrassment. He was as neat and cold as a celestial being in the night, saying leisurely, “Your Highness is a princess, with the right to refuse or even rebuke this prince. There is no need to suffer for the sake of pleasing others.”

His voice was low and hoarse, but reliable.

Zhao Yān seemed to understand but not fully, and softly uttered an “Oh.”

Being with Wenren Lin was indeed contradictory. Zhao Yān always felt he was somewhat different from ordinary people. If it were a matter of removing red pearls or enjoying sweet delicacies, a short while would suffice to rest. But if engaged elsewhere, just entering the door would cost one’s life, shattering all etiquette and shame, piecing together a stranger of oneself.

However, she still had many things she wanted to do, and what she aspired to was certainly not just those romantic encounters. Taking medicine was indeed troublesome.

“Then, what about you?”

Zhao Yān blinked her eyelashes, stiff and afraid to move.

Wenren Lin pondered for a moment, then pressed his forehead against hers, their noses touching.

“Don’t move, let this prince hold you for a while.”

He spoke slowly, savoring the joy and pain arising from her like a self-inflicted wound, relishing every bit of it.

Later, Wenren Lin went to the washroom and took a long time to return.

Zhao Yān propped up her still-red cheeks and obediently sat under the lamp, flipping through book scrolls.

The night watchman’s clepsydra had stopped, and the snow had ceased falling.

Zhao Yān grew tired of reading and lay with Wenren Lin on the bed, resting her head on his chest, with one hand on his shoulder, trying to warm his slightly lower body temperature from the beginning of the month.

They did nothing, just leaned on each other quietly like this.

After the midnight hour, Liu Ying, who was on night duty, came in to replace the tea and towels. Circling the screen, she saw her mistress embracing Prince Su, sleeping soundly on the bed behind the moon gate.

Prince Su wore only snow-white undergarments, one arm curled around her mistress’s neck in a half-embrace, while his other hand held one of her mistress’s book scrolls, making annotations with vermilion ink.

The two were in an intimate position, almost embracing foot to foot.

Prince Su cast a sidelong glance, and Liu Ying immediately lowered her head respectfully, stepping forward to gently lower the heavy curtains to completely shield them. Only then did she carry the copper basin of cold water out of the hall, closing the door tightly.

Zhao Yān slept soundly, without dreams all night.

When she was awakened by the sound of snow being swept, the sky had just begun to lighten. Wenren Lin was already neatly dressed, pushing open the door from outside, bringing with him the cold air of snow.

“Awake?”

He sat on the edge of the bed, gently pinching Zhao Yān’s cheeks that were flushed and warm from sleep—a natural, intimate gesture.

Zhao Yān nodded, her voice soft and indistinct as she hadn’t yet taken her voice-changing medicine: “Where did you go? Your body is so cold.”

After speaking, she instinctively covered Wenren Lin’s hand with the blanket, then tugged at his frost-cold sleeve and rubbed it against her cheek to cool down and wake herself up.

“It’s snowing heavily; one should sleep in.”

She frowned and said in a muffled voice, “I don’t want to go to class…”

Wenren Lin’s lips moved slightly, and his hand under the blanket gently pinched her waist as he leaned forward to whisper: “Have you made up your mind? If you don’t want to go, then don’t.”

“No… I haven’t made up my mind yet! I just woke up, and you’re believing my lazy complaints.”

Zhao Yān sat up with a jerk, resting her chin on her knees, blowing hard at her scattered long hair, and looking sideways at Wenren Lin: “If I were truly the Crown Prince, you’d be a bewitching concubine.”

Wenren Lin imperceptibly raised the corner of his eye, grasped her wrist, and pulled: “Get ready. This ‘bewitching concubine’ will escort Your Highness to class.”

Changing clothes and pushing open the door, they saw blue eaves covered with snow, a world dressed in silver, the view particularly bright.

Zhao Yān made a special trip to the plum garden behind Cheng’en Hall, thinking that after a night of wind and snow, those few snow lanterns would surely have disappeared.

Unexpectedly, as soon as she turned around the corridor, she saw the snow lanterns from the previous night arranged in order on the railings in the sheltered area of the corridor. The lamp oil inside had burned out, but the snow lanterns remained intact.

She was surprised and asked the palace servant who was sweeping snow in the courtyard.

The servant bowed with hands at his sides and replied: “In response to the Crown Prince, when this servant woke up to sweep snow, they were already here.”

Zhao Yān remembered Wenren Lin entering the room early in the morning, covered in cold air, and suddenly felt at ease, with some warmth spreading through her.

Having been abandoned to grow wild in Huayang since childhood, she had almost forgotten what it felt like to have someone respond to her every need.

“Were you the one who moved those snow lanterns to the corridor?”

After boarding the carriage, Zhao Yān asked Wenren Lin.

Wenren Lin casually flipped through the documents related to Luozhou, neither confirming nor denying.

Zhao Yān’s eyes curved into a smile, making an “um” sound before saying: “Anyway, they’ll melt sooner or later, why bother with such effort?”

“Your Highness took the trouble to please this prince; for me to move them slightly hardly counts as much effort,”

Wenren Lin replied casually. “If they can remain for a few more days, that’s a good thing.”

After speaking, both felt a slight movement in their hearts.

Frost and snow easily melt, yet can be preserved; then… what about the person one wishes to keep?

The carriage stopped timely at Changqing Gate. Seeing that Wenren Lin remained motionless, Zhao Yān cleared her throat and changed the subject: “Aren’t you coming along?”

Wenren Lin closed the document, “Your Highness should go ahead. This prince still has official business to attend to and will come for the martial arts class later.”

“Very well then.”

Zhao Yān stood up, then turned back and said softly, “Take care of yourself, and don’t work too hard.”

Wenren Lin smiled.

He watched the young princess go into the distance, estimating that she had reached Chongwen Hall before ordering his personal guards in a deep voice: “Return to Prince Su’s residence.”

The carriage wheels crushed the accumulated snow, leaving dark brown ruts.

After the heavy snowfall, wealthy households were keen on piling stone lions at their gates, and various ice lanterns also appeared for the occasion. However, the most tempting sights were the strings of bright red crystal tanghulu (candied haws), particularly eye-catching amid the pure white scenery.

Wenren Lin lifted the carriage curtain to look out and couldn’t help but think of Zhao Yān.

The young princess had fair skin, and red especially made her look radiant and beautiful. Unfortunately, now she could only be wrapped in plain apricot-white robes all day, which was quite bland and pitiful.

Wenren Lin’s expression changed slightly, and taking advantage of the crowded road, he got off the carriage and walked towards a tanghulu vendor.

Tanghulu sold particularly well on snowy days; even if one didn’t like to eat them, holding them brought festivity. Thus, early in the morning, the vendor only had a few strings left on his shoulder, followed by two poor children who couldn’t afford them but were still craving.

Just as the vendor was about to drive these children away, a low, pleasant voice came: “Take two strings, sprinkle more sesame seeds.”

Looking up, the vendor was stunned.

The young man in the ink-colored cloak was extremely tall, exceptionally handsome, with an innate noble aura. Could he be an immortal descended from heaven?

Only when an attendant behind the man handed over a piece of broken silver did the vendor wake up as if from a dream, nervously and humbly rubbing his hands on his clothes, repeatedly saying: “Two tanghulu cost four wen, sir, you don’t need to give so much! I can’t make change…”

“No need for change,” the attendant said.

The vendor was immediately overjoyed, taking all the tanghulu from his straw carrier and wrapping them in clean oiled paper into a bright red bundle, sprinkling sesame seeds and saying: “Then these are all for the noble guest, have a taste!”

Wenren Lin accepted the tanghulu bouquet, intending to pick out the two fullest and beautiful ones for the young princess to try.

As soon as he lowered his head, he met the gaze of three or four children with runny noses and cheeks frozen purple-red and chapped. The group of children stared at the tanghulu in his hands, swallowing repeatedly.

A biting wind swept through, bone-chillingly cold, and all passersby raised their sleeves to avoid it.

From behind the roof ridge came a slight sound of breaking branches and falling snow. Almost simultaneously, Wenren Lin’s eyes turned cold, and the tanghulu in his hand was thrown like arrows.

With two heavy thuds, the assassins hiding behind the neighborhood wall didn’t even have time to make a sound.

Zhang Cang became serious and immediately led two attendants around to the wall to handle the aftermath.

Wenren Lin’s expression remained unchanged. The chaos in Luozhou naturally made some fear his dispatch of troops.

He crouched down and picked out three strings from the oiled paper, distributing them to the group of bewildered children who were staring eagerly.

“I can’t give more.”

Seeing the children still staring at the two remaining strings in his hand, Wenren Lin hid them behind his sleeve and held up one finger to the children: “These are gifts for my wife.”

“Then, we wish big brother and his wife to grow old together, forever in love and never apart!”

The slightly older child made an inappropriate bow before leading the other children away, thoroughly satisfied.

Wenren Lin held the remaining two tanghulu, strolling along the street. When he returned to his carriage, he had acquired a beautiful crystal rabbit ice lantern, kept in a box protected with crushed ice.

He didn’t know when it started, but whenever he saw interesting items, he would think of the young princess and want to buy them to present to her.

This feeling of being led by someone else’s emotions was not bad at all.

Since he couldn’t stop his heart, he might as well accept it openly.

Wenren Lin stood still, raising his head to look at the clear sky after the snow.

A bird flew past, leaving a small dark shadow.

He put his hands behind his back and suddenly said, “Cai Tian.”

“This humble servant is here.” Cai Tian bowed with his hand on his sword.

“Take this prince’s letter to invite Physician Sun out of retirement.”

Wenren Lin slightly narrowed his eyes and said calmly, “Tell the old gentleman that this prince is willing to try his medicine.”

Cai Tian looked up in astonishment, his throat warm with emotion.

He had followed the prince for the longest time and had seen the prince at his most painful and helpless moments, fierce and strong yet utterly alone.

After all these years, this was the first time the prince had shown a desire to live.

Cai Tian choked a little, then immediately said: “Yes! This humble servant will go right away!”