Ji Bozai couldn’t help but feel pity for Mingyi as she nestled obediently on his knee. Palace dancers were far from pampered. Most came from poor or enslaved backgrounds, chosen for their beauty to learn dance in the palace. They served as rewards for officials at grand banquets, available for selection. Outside of feasts, they lived modestly.
His little songbird must have endured much hardship before. Understanding dawned on him about her love for wealth – she had known poverty.
With a soft sigh, he stroked her hair. “Is there anything else you want?”
Mingyi looked up, her dark eyes wide. She glanced at the gold chest she hadn’t yet fully embraced, then back at him, suddenly serious. “My Lord, you need to hire an accountant.”
“Oh?” Ji Bozai’s eyebrow quirked. “What for?”
“To manage your household expenses,” she said earnestly, sitting up straight. “Your generosity delights me, but you’re establishing your household. Spending money like water won’t do.”
Ji Bozai raised an eyebrow, then felt a surge of pride. For someone as greedy as Mingyi to say such things meant she truly cared for him.
As expected, no woman could resist falling for him in the end.
With a soft click of his tongue, he pinched her nose. “Then I’ll hire you. I’ll entrust my fortune to you from now on.”
Her eyes lit up with joy and admiration. “Really?”
“I’ll have Matron Xun give you the keys to the treasury when we return.”
“My Lord is too kind to me,” she dabbed at her eyes with a silk handkerchief. “What fortune have I accumulated to receive such favor from you?”
She nestled into his embrace, her fingertips idly tracing his palm.
She was permitting him.
Ji Bozai chuckled softly, his thumb caressing the corner of her mouth suggestively. He turned the carriage around and headed back to his residence.
The moon was full – tonight was perfect.
Women were often easily swayed by sweet talk and gifts, all for a moment of pleasure. He had invested heavily and naturally wanted to see if she was worth it.
Mingyi knew how to please. She had prepared the courtyard meticulously, not only sweeping the room but also hanging red curtains. When he entered, she wore a diaphanous jade-green gown, the misty fabric swirling around her, revealing her slender waist and porcelain neck.
“I’ve heard My Lord can drink like a fish. I’ve prepared wine to enhance the mood.” She lowered her crimson lips, approaching him with a wine cup held delicately between her teeth.
Her small face was exquisite in the candlelight, her full red lips pressed tightly against the cup’s rim. He couldn’t resist leaning in.
He drained the cup, not missing a drop of the lingering wine on the beauty’s lips.
Though he had known countless women, Ji Bozai found this little beauty the sweetest he’d ever tasted. Her mouth was like honey, her skin fine and smooth, her body delicate and sensitive, trembling slightly in his arms, shrinking away at the slightest touch.
He lifted her into his arms and carried her to the silk-covered bed.
The scent of wine mingled with the fragrance of the beauty, filling the entire curtained space. Eventually, he couldn’t distinguish whether it was the woman or the wine that intoxicated him.
The stars wheeled overhead, and the oriole’s song heralded the dawn.
Though Mingyi was inexperienced, her skills were numerous. Ji Bozai hadn’t felt such satisfaction in a long time. For the first time in ages, he kept her in his arms after the night was over.
When he awoke, the beauty’s cheeks were flushed, nestled tightly against his chest, filling his heart.
He looked down at her, suddenly reluctant to rise.
“My Lord,” Matron Xun called from outside. “The beast-drawn carriage from Prince Gong’s mansion has arrived.”
The woman in his arms startled awake, opening her moist eyes and looking at him uncertainly.
Ji Bozai softened his gaze, gently tapping her nose. “I’ll go for a while and come back to keep you company.”
She pouted coquettishly, pulling the silk covers over her head.
He smiled, planting a kiss on her head through the blanket before getting up to dress and striding out the door.
Perhaps due to his satisfaction and good mood, Ji Bozai’s countenance was even more radiant than usual. As soon as he entered, everyone began to tease him: “What extraordinary treasure have you acquired to make you so happy, Lord Ji?”
“You should have seen it. Yesterday, Ji drove his carriage with that beauty – truly a city-toppling beauty.”
“A city-toppling beauty? Could it be that Ji is ready to settle down?”
The gathering consisted of noble relatives from the inner court, young lords used to a life of debauchery. Ji Bozai didn’t put on airs with them. He sat down at the banquet and casually pulled a wine-serving beauty to his side, chuckling, “Just tasting something fresh.”
Prince Gong Qi Zhen shook his head, swirling his cup. “You’re about to become a Grand Priest. You can’t keep fooling around like this.”
Though his tone was joking, everyone at the table paused. Yan Xiao couldn’t help but lean forward to ask, “Has it been decided?”
“The Grand Seer has already issued the order. It just needs to go through the formalities in the internal yamen,” Qi Zhen raised his cup to Ji Bozai. “This feast is my celebration for you.”
“Becoming a Grand Priest right away, Ji’s future is limitless,” everyone raised their cups.
On the surface, the Grand Priest managed the inner court’s sacrificial rites, but everyone knew that those in this position were the Grand Seer’s most favored. They could interfere in clan affairs internally and guide city construction externally, with a status higher than some powerless princes.
Before next year’s Six Cities Conference, the Grand Seer had given him such a reward, clearly showing his high regard.
Ji Bozai raised his wine to return the toast. For some reason, his first thought was that the Grand Priest’s official robes were extremely magnificent, embroidered with gold and silver, tigers and snakes. If he wore them, that little thing at home would surely gape in awe.
Earlier at the banquet, she had been so eager for just a third-rank official’s robes. How much more would she desire these first-rank ceremonial garments?
The corners of his mouth curled up as he drained his cup.
The wine server beside him hurriedly and attentively refilled his cup, deliberately leaning against him. “My Lord can certainly hold his liquor.”
Ji Bozai pulled her onto his lap, looking her over. Her beauty was far inferior to Mingyi’s, but she was younger with a slender waist.
So he held her close and continued chatting with his friends.
“Speaking of the Grand Priest position, Old Qiu’s son was supposed to compete for it. But ever since that incident at the last banquet, the Qiu family has shut their doors tight. Old Qiu even claims illness to avoid court meetings,” Shu Zhonglin said, fanning himself. “They say he was frightened, but that doesn’t seem right. He’s usually so bold, and those murdered old ministers were far from him.”
Mentioning this, Yan Xiao also grew curious. “Haven’t they caught the culprit yet?”
“Not yet. I heard they interrogated several dancers, even beating three or four to death, but got nothing out of them.”
Shu Zhonglin nodded toward Ji Bozai. “It’s thanks to your protection. Otherwise, that little beauty of yours would surely have suffered a brutal beating too.”
“What?” Ji Bozai didn’t understand. “Just for dancing?”
“It’s not the fault of the dancing. Several of the dancers in that batch were from Yuan County. The judge classified all the dancers from Yuan County as having a motive and ordered them all to be severely tortured,” Shu Zhonglin explained. “Your little beauty is also from Yuan County.”