“Morning practice.”

Yao Huang, sleeping very soundly, suddenly felt the slight friction of the silk quilt against her skin.

It was very brief—if she had been wearing undergarments, it would have been difficult to notice. But the Crown Prince had spontaneously become interested in the middle of the night, and afterward, Yao Huang was too exhausted and lazy to even lift her leg. She had the Crown Prince help her clean up simply before falling asleep again. The Crown Prince, afraid of disturbing her good sleep, had not helped her put on undergarments.

In her hazy consciousness, Yao Huang sensed the Crown Prince sit up.

Yao Huang completely woke up and opened her eyes. Inside the curtains it was still dark.

Yao Huang turned over and pressed against the waist of the Crown Prince, who was already sitting at the bedside, from behind. She embraced him and asked, “Does Your Highness need to relieve yourself?”

Zhao Sui: “Morning practice.”

He would certainly relieve himself in passing, but that was not his true purpose for rising early.

Yao Huang was startled and asked in confusion, “Morning practice?”

Zhao Sui grasped the Crown Princess’s hand and lowered his eyes to explain. “My legs have only recovered freedom of movement. To reach the level of martial skill from four years ago, I still need to train anew.”

Excellence in work comes from diligence and is wasted in play—even for martial arts masters, slacking off for long makes it impossible to maintain one’s peak state.

Zhao Sui enjoyed reading and painting, but practicing martial arts was also something he loved.

Yao Huang understood. She kissed him once on his back, wrapped herself in the quilt and lay back on the pillow, saying drowsily, “Then Your Highness practice well. I’ll continue sleeping.”

Zhao Sui stroked the Crown Princess’s hair, dressed properly, and left—to go to the front courtyard to change into practice clothes, get his spear, and relieve himself in passing.

Yao Huang waited until there was complete silence outside before summoning Chun Yan, who had kept watch last night, to come in. She asked, “What hour is it?”

Chun Yan: “Only the second quarter of the hour of the rabbit. There’s no court assembly today either—why did His Highness rise so early?”

Yao Huang smiled. “His Highness is going to practice martial arts.”

Chun Yan immediately showed an expression of admiration.

Yao Huang also admired him greatly. Her brothers at home diligently practiced martial arts to take the military jinshi examination. After taking office, they continued practicing to advance their skills and compete for further promotions. The Crown Prince? Below one person and above ten thousand—with the learning and strategic wisdom in his mind, it was enough to keep him secure in the heir apparent position. Yet this man actually wanted to rise before dawn for morning practice to restore his former accomplishment in both civil and military arts.

After waiting about a quarter hour, Yao Huang also got up, washed her face, changed clothes, and simply pinned up her hair with a hairpin. Without bringing any maids, she quietly went alone to the front courtyard.

The front courtyard was peaceful and quiet, with no sign of the Crown Prince practicing in the yard. At this time, Fei Quan discovered the Crown Princess hiding at the corner of the covered corridor and quickly came to greet her.

Yao Huang asked him, “Where is His Highness?”

Fei Quan smiled. “His Highness went to the deer garden to practice with his spear. That place is spacious and far from here—it won’t disturb Your Ladyship and the young prince’s rest.”

Yao Huang nodded, told him not to make a fuss, and went alone toward the deer garden.

Qing Ai was guarding outside the deer garden gate. As the red sun was about to rise and dawn broke, Qing Ai listened to the successive whooshing sounds of the Crown Prince’s spear practice from within the garden. Unconsciously, he also began practicing a simple set of boxing moves. In the time it took to complete one punch and turn around, he was startled to see the Crown Princess’s figure approaching stealthily from across the way. Qing Ai first got a fright, then his face heated up, and he quickly stood properly—

Yao Huang promptly made a silencing gesture.

Qing Ai: “…”

Drawing closer, Yao Huang said in a low voice, “I’m coming to watch His Highness practice with his spear. Just pretend you don’t know.”

When the Crown Prince practiced his legs, his posture was awkward, so Yao Huang cooperatively did not go peek. But the Crown Prince practicing martial arts would only display heroic vigor, so Yao Huang could not resist coming to appreciate another side of her own husband.

Qing Ai was one of the close attendants beside the Crown Prince. If it were some little palace maid coming to peek at the Crown Prince, Qing Ai could scare her to tears with one glance. But this morning, the one coming to peek was the Crown Princess. Qing Ai immediately fell into a dilemma. To block her? This was the Crown Princess whom the Crown Prince held at the tip of his heart. Not to block? What if the Crown Prince did not want the Crown Princess to see his spear technique, which had not yet recovered to its peak—

Qing Ai looked pleadingly at the Crown Princess, hoping she would not make things difficult for him.

Yao Huang reassured him. “Don’t worry. I guarantee that afterward His Highness won’t blame you.”

Qing Ai could only feel half at ease, because although he believed the Crown Princess had the ability to placate the Crown Prince, he understood better than the Crown Princess what it meant that serving a sovereign was like serving a tiger.

The Crown Prince the Crown Princess saw had always been as gentle and refined as jade. Only close attendants like them knew that even when the Crown Prince secluded himself in the bamboo courtyard with no intention of going out, he could with one light remark dispose of Hua Mei, who had deluded herself into thinking she could sow discord between the Crown Prince couple.

The imperial family’s majesty was inviolable. Perhaps one day when he made some mistake that angered the Crown Prince, the Crown Prince would calculate together with it today’s small error of allowing the Crown Princess to approach and observe without permission.

Unfortunately, though Qing Ai had a cautious heart, he did not dare truly obstruct the Crown Princess. He could only suppress this unease and step aside.

As for Yao Huang, she was simply coming to watch her own husband’s morning practice. Why would she need to worry about so much? If the Crown Prince truly blamed Qing Ai over such a small matter when their relationship was deep, then Yao Huang should also carefully consider how to get along with the Crown Prince in the future.

Bypassing Qing Ai, Yao Huang quietly moved to the wooden gate of the deer garden.

The two wooden gate panels had solid hardwood boards below, while the area level with Yao Huang’s shoulders and neck was carved with openwork patterns. Yao Huang hid behind the solid panel and looked inside through the openwork window.

In the middle of the deer garden was a spacious grassy area. The Crown Prince stood on the small path in the center, holding a zhang-long precious spear. The spear shaft was jet black as ink, and the spearhead showed hidden glints in the dim morning light.

When Yao Huang looked over, the Crown Prince was sideways to her. His footwork was unhurried, matching the gentle spear movements and conforming to the elegant Crown Prince that Yao Huang was accustomed to.

Suddenly, the Crown Prince’s spear tip turned, and his pair of narrow phoenix eyes also shot toward her like a hawk or falcon.

Yao Huang was pinned in place by such an unfamiliar and sharp gaze.

Through the openwork carved window, Zhao Sui recognized that pair of familiar round eyes. His heart was also startled. While softening his expression, he withdrew his spear.

He thought the Crown Princess would push the door and enter, but unexpectedly the Crown Princess retracted her head and hid behind the door.

There was no sound of footsteps leaving. Zhao Sui paused and walked toward the gate.

Pushing open half the door, Zhao Sui did not look at Qing Ai, who appeared in his peripheral vision on the other side. He looked directly toward the Crown Princess standing against the wall on his right.

Yao Huang was still shaken and did not dare look at him.

Only then did Zhao Sui look toward Qing Ai.

Qing Ai understood immediately and hurriedly withdrew to a place where the Crown Prince and Crown Princess absolutely could not see him.

Zhao Sui grasped the Crown Princess’s hand, leading her into the garden, closing the door, then bringing the Crown Princess to the base of a wall on the side. While propping his spear against the wall, he explained, “Just now I didn’t know the person peeking at the gate was you.”

Yao Huang pouted and glanced at him resentfully. “Besides me, who else in the Eastern Palace would have the courage to come peek at Your Highness’s morning practice? Your Highness clearly knew it was me but can’t even tolerate me, so that’s why you were so fierce.”

Zhao Sui pulled her into his embrace and stroked her head. “Don’t talk nonsense. When I left, you clearly looked like you could fall asleep at any moment.”

The Crown Prince’s practice clothes looked flowing but were actually very loose. When Yao Huang embraced him, she could feel the Crown Prince’s lean, powerful waistline especially clearly. She tightened her arms as if unintentionally, then pressed close to the Crown Prince’s chest, which was rising and falling more noticeably having just finished spear practice. She hummed, “I was very sleepy originally, but thinking of Your Highness’s mighty figure practicing with his spear, I was no longer sleepy. I’d rather brave the night to rush over just to admire Your Highness’s magnificent bearing.”

Zhao Sui: “…”

Glancing at the wisp of crimson dawn clouds already appearing on the eastern horizon, Zhao Sui silently accepted the Crown Princess’s claim of braving the night to come. Recalling his several spear moves just now, Zhao Sui said, “I’ve only just become familiar with holding the spear. What magnificent bearing is there?”

Yao Huang looked up at the Crown Prince’s handsome face. “As long as Your Highness stands there, in my eyes you are the most striking magnificent bearing between heaven and earth.”

Zhao Sui covered the Crown Princess’s brilliant eyes.

The corners of the Crown Princess’s mouth turned up high. She asked him, “Will Your Highness be angry at me for peeking?”

Zhao Sui: “No. Next time you want to watch, just come in directly.”

Yao Huang: “Then will Your Highness be angry at Qing Ai for letting me through? Just now he didn’t want to let me pass but didn’t dare block me—his face went pale.”

Zhao Sui: “If he had blocked you, that would have shown he doesn’t understand propriety.”

Yao Huang could not resist standing on tiptoe, holding the Crown Prince’s hand that was still covering her eyes as she drew close to him.

The Crown Princess’s invitation could not be more obvious, and there was no one around. Zhao Sui glanced at a doe in the deer pen that for some reason had approached the fence looking toward them, but ultimately still lowered his head and pressed down on the Crown Princess’s rosy lips.

After kissing for a while, Yao Huang asked, “How much longer does Your Highness need to practice?”

The Crown Prince’s hand moved slightly at the Crown Princess’s waist. He turned his head. “This is only the first day. Practicing to this point is enough.”

Yao Huang: “Don’t! Practice a bit more. I haven’t seen enough.”

Zhao Sui: “Mm.”

There were long benches set up in the deer garden, but it was too dark over there. Yao Huang looked at the top of the wall behind them, which could already catch the morning sunlight, and smiled, asking the Crown Prince to lift her up.

Zhao Sui: “Won’t the top of the wall be too cold?”

Yao Huang glanced at him and nodded. “Stone is certainly cold. How about Your Highness takes off your outer garment to cushion me? Your spear practice movements are large anyway—you won’t get cold without the outer garment.”

The Crown Prince fell silent.

Yao Huang: “My father and brothers always practice martial arts bare-chested at home. I’ve long been accustomed to it.”

Zhao Sui looked into the Crown Princess’s eyes. “Father and brothers are family. Have you seen outside men practice martial arts bare-bodied?”

Yao Huang stopped talking and turned to jump up onto the wall herself.

Zhao Sui pressed down on the Crown Princess’s waist, pinning her against the wall. Clasping her hands, he asked, “Have you?”

Yao Huang’s face reddened, but she said without feeling guilty, “I have! Previously when I went to the martial academy to watch my brothers play polo, a group of young men would take off their upper garments and toss them on the ground whenever they got hot. If I really had to count, I’ve seen if not a thousand then at least a hundred outside men’s chests. But those were all ordinary men. I haven’t seen even one imperial prince practicing martial arts bare-chested. How about Your Highness opens my eyes now?”

Zhao Sui was silent for a moment, then turned the Crown Princess around to continue pinning her against the wall. Looking directly at the rough texture of the wall before him, he said, “Take it off yourself.”

He was pressing so tightly that Yao Huang could not conveniently look up at the Crown Prince’s expression, but since the Crown Prince was asking her to help him undress, Yao Huang was still very happy to oblige.

Suppressing her laughter, Yao Huang raised her arms from both sides and very properly helped the Crown Prince remove his garments.

The Crown Prince’s legs still needed continued practice to recover the strength they had before his injury, but the Crown Prince’s shoulders and chest, after sitting in a wheelchair for nearly four years, were even more solid than before his injury. Directly facing such a fair yet robust body in broad daylight and in the courtyard for the first time, Yao Huang’s heart also beat more powerfully. Her cheeks, shaded from the morning light by the Crown Prince, spontaneously flushed with color.

Gently patting the chest before her, Yao Huang said shyly, “There, Your Highness may go.”

Zhao Sui: “I’ll help you up first.”

Yao Huang cooperatively turned around.

The Crown Prince’s right hand indeed supported her waist, but his left hand covered her mouth without warning.

Yao Huang: “…”

Having seen so many young men’s chests, the Crown Prince who dared to press her under the wall and bully her was definitely the first!