She thought she had misheard and softly asked, “What did Your Highness just say?”

He did not speak again, but only looked down at her, then leaned forward and lifted the dark blue ceremonial robe from the rack, revealing a purple official robe with red embroidery and a red gauze skirt underneath.

The robe featured tiger and mythical beast patterns, the skirt was embroidered with geometric designs, the sleeves adorned with flame patterns, and around the waist was a square gold belt.

The white inner garment was trimmed with fine silver, with brocade ribbons around the front clasp, and a red and white wide sash placed below the knees.

She was stunned.

Looking at this elaborate ceremonial attire, her mind went completely blank.

She had once glimpsed from afar those high ministers in their ornate headdresses and ceremonial robes during the imperial sacrifice ceremony, feeling envious then, yet never knowing how many years it would take before she would be eligible to wear such magnificent clothing.

He stood beside her for a long time, and seeing that she remained silent and motionless, still in a daze, he finally spoke again: “The palace has never made ceremonial attire for female officials before, so there are no knee covers. As for the beaded crown, flowered headband, rhinoceros hairpin, and other items, someone will deliver them to your residence later.”

She gradually came back to her senses, stepped forward, still without speaking, and placed her hand on the purple robe and red skirt. Her fingertips traced the intricate patterns and blue-white emblems. The cool, soft fabric brushed against her palm, and the flame patterns on the sleeves seemed to burn hot, making her increasingly bewildered.

After a long while, she finally said, “What exactly is Your Highness’s intention?”

That night when their lips had entwined in the darkness of the street, the bone-deep tenderness had disordered her mind, making her forget to carefully examine why he was being so good to her.

What did it matter if he gave her that plum-red wooden box? What did it matter if he held her tightly in his arms when she was fearful and trembling? What did it matter if he took her to visit the night market? How could she dare to truly believe that his kindness toward her stemmed from the same feelings she had?

She did not believe it, nor did she dare to hope.

To be able to touch him once, to claim a fraction of his tenderness, was already enough.

He would be the sovereign of the empire, he would establish an empress and take consorts, his thoughts had always been unfathomable to others—how could he disregard protocols so thoroughly for a mere woman like her?

She truly did not understand. Rather than harbor hope, it was better to seek clarity.

But he did not answer her question.

She therefore turned her head, meeting his gaze, and said: “This subject is not an official of the Ministry of Rites and does not know the regulations for ceremonial attire.” She took the square gold belt and said softly: “This subject is merely a fourth-rank official, how could I use this gold belt? The elaborate ceremonial robes are only for senior officials of the third rank and above, how dare I wear such luxurious attire? As for the rhinoceros hairpin and other items, they are also not appropriate for this subject’s rank. I implore Your Highness to reconsider.”

He raised an eyebrow, took the dazzling gold belt from her hand, bent it slightly with both palms, looked down at her figure, then reached out to slowly wrap it around her waist, examining it from left to right, and said: “Perfect fit.”

Caught off guard by his touch, her face instantly flushed. His long fingers lightly pinched both ends of the gold belt, not tying it for her, but just using it to encircle her waist, preventing her from moving.

His eyes gradually became heated. “Don’t you think it looks good?”

Her heart was immediately in chaos. The moment she met his gaze, she could no longer maintain her composure. Her body attempted to step back, but the gold belt around her waist was suddenly pulled by him, and she nearly fell forward against his body. She steadied herself with effort, looked up at him with a hint of anger on her face, and said, “What does Your Highness intend to do?”

Ignoring her expression, he said sternly: “I asked you a question, how dare you not answer?”

She suppressed her anger and raised her face, saying: “It looks good.”

He loosened his grip slightly. “What I bestow upon you, how dare you refuse?”

She shook her head, “I wouldn’t dare.”

She glanced sideways at the various garments on the table. The dark blue ceremonial robe looked imposing, the purple robe soft and gentle, the wide sleeves and fine ribbons intertwined, complementing each other brilliantly.

Yet in her heart, there seemed to be a knot. Since she couldn’t discern his true intentions, she felt as if she were standing at the edge of a precipice, all her boiling blood turned to ice by the cold wind of the chasm. Unable to advance or retreat, she didn’t know what she should do from now on.

She had only wanted to gaze at him a little longer, to be a little closer to him, but now having received a bit of his tenderness, she wanted more.

All her actions were because she loved him.

Even if others misunderstood, misjudged, or criticized her, she could face it with calm composure.

But his reckless promotions and bestowals made her feel insecure.

The carriages and residences could be justified as protection, her exceptional promotion to Right Grand Remonstrator and Direct Scholar of the Longtu Pavilion could be attributed to her merit in Wang Qi’s case, but now he even wanted her to serve as the herald official for his enthronement ceremony—what was his true intention?

Was it because he saw how fearlessly she handled court matters, even dealing harshly with officials of the Eastern Party, so he wanted to elevate her position further, using her already-established reputation as a sycophant to clear obstacles for him?

She withdrew her gaze, silently sighing, “Your Highness knows this subject’s true feelings, yet uses such methods to make me believe Your Highness cares for me. Is it so that I won’t blame Your Highness even if I die in the future?”

His body visibly trembled, his expression suddenly darkening.

She continued: “This subject has been said before—my only wish is to fulfill Your Highness’s wishes. Since Your Highness knows my feelings, you shouldn’t be so kind to me, merely causing me to harbor hopes and expectations I shouldn’t have. Whatever Your Highness wants me to do, I am willing, but the only thing I don’t want is for Your Highness to deceive me.”

The gold belt around her waist slipped as he released his hand.

Before he could speak, she stepped back and to the side, lowering her head and saying: “If Your Highness wants this subject to be the herald official for the ceremony, I will fill that position. If Your Highness wants me to wear these elaborate ceremonial robes, I will wear them. If Your Highness wants me to bear eternal infamy in the future, I would willingly die for it.”

The man before her stood in silence.

She bowed and retreated. When she reached the door, she turned her head, and as she raised her hand to push it open, she heard him call to her in a deep voice: “Meng Tinghui.”

Her fingers suddenly trembled, but she pretended not to hear and pushed straight at the door to leave.

He abruptly shouted in anger: “How dare you!”

Her eardrums lightly shook, her heart startled, hearing the immense anger in his voice. She dared not walk further, only frowning as she withdrew her hand. But before she could turn around, she felt a sharp pain in her shoulder as she was grabbed and spun around by him.

His movement was so swift that she could only stare in shock.

Looking up, she saw his face like cold stone, his eyes filled with anger.

After a moment, she lowered her gaze and said softly: “This subject is presumptuous, and awaits Your Highness’s punishment.” Just as she was about to bow her head, her chin was suddenly seized in a painful grip by three of his fingers, preventing her from moving.

His gaze was like a blade, cutting straight into her eyes. “Meng Tinghui, is your life so worthless?”

She felt pain even in her eyes, unable to bear his harsh tone.

His fingers pressed harder as he continued: “Since I saved you back then, I certainly wouldn’t want to harm you now. In your eyes, am I truly someone who would go to such lengths?”

She knew it was her previous words that had angered him, and she couldn’t help saying: “This subject’s words were too extreme just now, they truly do not reflect my true feelings…”

Before she could finish, he leaned forward and bit her lip, as harshly as possible, his arms suddenly enfolding her, locking her in his embrace.

She was in unbearable pain, a whimper escaping her throat as her body trembled slightly.

Yet he showed no mercy, moving his hand to grip the side of her jaw, forcing her to open her mouth as he continued to bite the soft flesh inside her lip. His teeth clashed as his tongue invaded, completely dominating her.

She tilted her head back, her tongue and teeth unable to withstand his fierce force. The pain in her lips intensified, yet in her heart, it seemed he had set a fire, small flames clustering into a blaze that burned through her entire body. Her nipples, pressed firmly against him, even began to tremble slightly.

Her hands instinctively went to embrace his waist, feeling for his sash to hook onto it.

The hard fingers gripping the side of her face suddenly loosened. Just as she was about to catch her breath, she felt a warmth behind her ear as his lips, teeth, and scorching tongue invaded again, kissing and biting her earlobe.

A tingling sensation traveled down her spine, straight to her lower abdomen.

She couldn’t help but let out a soft cry, a sound like a cat in spring, making her blush at hearing herself. Yet the fire in her heart burned more fiercely as she felt his tongue and teeth becoming bolder. She reached up to embrace his neck.

His body stiffened, his thin lips sliding across her cheek, chin, and throat. He used his teeth to open the collar of her official robe, then precisely took hold of her slender throat. His hand, wrapped around her waist, moved down to grasp her soft buttocks, and with a forceful movement, he lifted her.

She gasped repeatedly, cooperatively wrapping her legs around his waist. She raised her hand to pull open the crimson collar of her official robe, then reached out to touch him, her fingers exploring from the back of his neck into his robe collar, caressing him softly. Soon she felt a certain part of him, trapped between her thighs, growing increasingly hot and hard.

His eyes were filled with intense desire as he stared at her.

She lowered her head slightly, her blood-red lips approaching his ear, and between light pants, she said: “Your Highness…” She twisted her waist slightly, deliberately pressing against that part of him. Seeing him knit his brows and clench his teeth, she then whispered again: “Your Highness.”