“Marry you?”

As if hearing some joke, Shen Qianyu flicked his two fingers and tossed Qin Zhan’s written agreement away.

This time, no matter how much Qin Rao called after him, he never turned back.

Leaving Wan Xiao behind to await the imperial edict, Shen Qianyu himself hurriedly returned to the palace. After paying respects to Emperor Wenhui, he rushed straight toward Laiyi Pavilion.

Having received news of the Crown Prince’s return to the palace, Song Wan had already been waiting in the courtyard. Though her expression showed nothing, her heart was quite anxious.

She had missed that person for quite some time.

When Shen Qianyu walked in from outside, he saw Song Wan wearing a goose-yellow palace dress, eagerly looking forward to his arrival. Upon seeing him, she merely blushed faintly with a gentle, shallow smile. But just this one smile settled the man’s heart that had been filled with anxiety ever since his departure.

His Wan’er still held affection for him.

Shen Qianyu walked forward, raising his hand wanting to touch Song Wan’s cheek. But just as he extended it before her eyes, he felt it improper.

His Wan’er was thin-skinned and disliked any intimate gestures from him in public most of all.

Just as Shen Qianyu was about to withdraw his hand, Song Wan grasped it.

The young woman’s cheeks flushed crimson as she pressed his hand lightly against her face, brushing past it before quickly releasing it.

Shen Qianyu’s breathing quickened. He felt even his ear tips were about to catch fire.

The man’s voice turned husky as he mumbled: “I’m covered in dust from the road and dirty, otherwise I would hold you.”

His tone carried several traces of imperceptible grievance, making Song Wan’s heart soften and ache for him terribly.

Taking Shen Qianyu’s hand, Song Wan said softly: “I had Heng Zhi prepare water. Would you like to wash up?”

“Wash…”

Coughing lightly, Shen Qianyu pretended to consider for a moment.

But his mouth stretched all the way to his ears, and the expression in his eyes became evasive and uncertain—truly not appearing like someone who needed to hesitate and think.

He would wash up in Wan’er’s bathhouse?

Just thinking of this, Shen Qianyu felt his mind grow dizzy, as if everything before his eyes had been covered with a layer of white gauze, becoming hazy.

Seeing this, Song Wan’s face showed embarrassment, yet she couldn’t help but laugh.

The two held hands and walked into Laiyi Pavilion. Shen Qianyu removed his outer garments and headed toward the bathhouse behind the sleeping chamber.

But just after taking two steps, he turned back and said in a low voice: “Could Wan’er accompany me nearby? I’ve missed you terribly and only wish to look at you.”

Upon hearing this, Song Wan didn’t hesitate and walked forward with a smile on her face.

She still carried in her bosom the letter Shen Qianyu had sent someone to deliver some time ago.

Earlier she had been holding it in her hands reading it again. Though she had already committed every sentence to heart, rereading it still brought eight or nine parts of joy.

Thinking of Shen Qianyu’s veiled criticism of others hidden in the letter, Song Wan found him utterly adorable.

This was probably what they meant by “love me, love my dog.”

When one held affection for that person, everything they did seemed delightful.

Leading Shen Qianyu into the bathhouse, the man bashfully undressed while Song Wan covered her face nearby, smiling endlessly.

Water vapor filled the room, steaming in the summer heat with a somewhat sticky, lingering quality. Song Wan sat on a small wooden stool, her cheeks flushed as she hummed softly with laughter.

The sound of splashing water came to her ears. Shen Qianyu said: “Wan’er, look at me.”

Song Wan raised her eyes and saw the man leaning against the edge of the wooden tub, staring at her with dark, luminous eyes.

She blinked, and the man followed with a foolish smile.

She frowned slightly, and the man anxiously struggled, creating splashes of water everywhere.

The two gazed at each other for a long while until Song Wan, her face and ears completely red, turned her head. Only then did she notice the scar on Shen Qianyu’s shoulder.

She walked forward, extending her finger to repeatedly stroke and examine it.

Shen Qianyu’s body stiffened as he allowed her to move as she pleased.

“Did Your Highness do this yourself?”

Shen Qianyu said: “Wan Xiao did it. He came from being a Torture Superintendent—he’s extremely skilled at such matters.”

“When he wants someone to feel pain they feel pain; when he doesn’t want them to feel pain they don’t feel pain.”

Pressing Song Wan’s palm against his face, Shen Qianyu said: “So it didn’t hurt.”

“Nonsense.”

Song Wan raised her hand, using her fingertips to gently trace his brows and eyes. Her eyes overflowed with tender affection, but she didn’t know where to begin speaking.

Passion surged in Shen Qianyu’s chest, yet he dared not act rashly toward Song Wan, afraid of showing any eager appearance that might cause his Wan’er to feel disgust.

After thinking for a long while, he could only stretch his neck upward, hinting to Song Wan.

The man looked up. Song Wan gazed at his handsome brows and eyes, feeling they clearly and distinctly read the four characters: “Wan’er, kiss me.”

Song Wan smiled softly, supporting his face as she lowered her head for a kiss.

Being treated with such tenderness by the one he loved, Shen Qianyu twisted his body and splashed about in the water. Song Wan took a nearby dry, soft cloth and carefully began drying his hair.

“Your Highness must not do this in the future. You cannot do things that harm your body for Wan’er again.”

Shen Qianyu took Song Wan’s hand, seeming both curious and affectionate as he pinched her fingertips, then gently traced the lines in her palm.

Song Wan’s palm tickled from his antics, yet she still indulgently let him continue.

“It’s not for Wan’er, it’s for myself.”

“It’s that I myself couldn’t stand to look at that thing.”

“Your Highness is lying.”

“I haven’t lied to Wan’er.”

The two bantered back and forth intimately, without any of the unfamiliarity or distance that should come from many days apart.

Shen Qianyu changed his clothes and lay on the couch pillowing his head on Song Wan’s knees, one arm wrapped around her waist, firmly trapping her in his embrace.

The many days of travel had exhausted him terribly, yet upon seeing his Wan’er, he felt exceptionally excited and truly couldn’t rest.

“I just kept dangling Qin Rao along like this all the way, leaving her completely confused.”

“Qin Rao thought she could use Uncle Yan and his daughter to manipulate me. She never imagined I wouldn’t take the bait at all, so she lost her composure.”

“I knew about Nanqing’s internal chaos from the start, so from the very beginning I kept rushing forward, exhausting her until she was dizzy and had no time to think carefully. Plus, I continuously angered her along the way—with Qin Rao’s temperament, she would surely make mistakes from being provoked to fury.”

His fingertips played with the ends of Song Wan’s hair, the man unable to put it down.

Song Wan asked: “Does Your Highness truly not want Feng Commandery?”

Shen Qianyu nodded: “If I have to marry her, forget Feng Commandery—even if they gave me all of Nanqing, I wouldn’t want it.”

“Just looking at her is annoying.”

Acting spoiled, he tightened his arms and hummed: “Besides, Feng Commandery is located in a crucial area of Nanqing. It seems like a juicy piece of meat, but in reality Dongning can’t swallow it at all. To take Feng Commandery in hand would require sending troops to Nanqing.”

“And if I send troops, Qin Zhan will definitely make an issue of it.”

Song Wan nodded: “Even if he doesn’t borrow your momentum, he’ll use this as an excuse to temporarily halt Nanqing’s internal chaos.”

Whether Qin Zhan borrowed their power or Nanqing’s internal chaos paused to catch its breath, neither was a good thing for Dongning.

Offering Feng Commandery both implied a request for help and had the purpose of confusing Dongning so they wouldn’t strike at Nanqing at this time, creating internal and external troubles.

“Though Qin Zhan is cruel and inhumane, his imperial tactics cannot be underestimated.”

Unwilling to hear Song Wan praise others, Shen Qianyu snorted: “This move might work on Emperor Wenhui, but I’m afraid it won’t work well on me.”

“If Your Highness doesn’t accept Feng Commandery, His Majesty’s side will be difficult to explain to.”

“If His Majesty learns of the Feng Commandery matter, he’ll probably want Your Highness to marry the Nanqing Princess as a consort.”

After all, Emperor Wenhui had feared Nanqing’s national power for a long time. If Nanqing showed goodwill, he would certainly accept.

Shen Qianyu said: “I won’t accept Feng Commandery, but I will accept the written agreement. As for Qin Rao, I have a solution.”

Upon hearing this, Song Wan pondered briefly and quickly understood his meaning.

As the two were expressing their hearts in the room, Ji Rong and three young eunuchs carried in a massive chest.

Song Wan asked in confusion: “What is this?”

Shen Qianyu smiled: “These are fine gifts I gathered outside to give to Wan’er.”

Song Wan was somewhat curious when Shen Qianyu suddenly remembered something and sat up: “Wan’er, don’t open it, don’t open it.”