“Your servant, Wu Qing, Senior Court Gentleman of the Ministry of Personnel, pays respects to Princess Pingyang.”

The voice traveled down the corridor and into the firmly closed private room.

Shen Xiao snapped back to full consciousness in an instant, recoiling as though struck by lightning. The hand he had placed on the woman’s shoulder withdrew at once. He gasped for air, his dark eyes burning with fury, and stared coldly at this disheveled princess before him.

The Grand Princess of this dynasty. The current Emperor’s own younger sister. With the title of Kangning. Fond of handsome men, fond of pleasure, fond of using power to trample others…

Shen Xiao recalled it all in rapid succession.

He clenched his right hand tightly. His palm still seemed to carry the sensation of having touched the Grand Princess just now. In truth, it had been quite pleasant — yet to Shen Xiao it felt as though his hand were coated in thick, viscous, foul-smelling venom. He could not help himself; he extended his hand and wiped it forcefully against his official robe.

Shen Xiao felt sick. He found all the princesses of the imperial household equally, identically revolting. Whether it was Princess Pingyang standing outside in the corridor, or Grand Princess Kangning here within this room.

In their eyes, he — a man of humble birth with neither power nor influence — was fit only to be their amusement, their plaything, like a dog at their disposal. He was expected to cast aside his dignity, to fawn and cater, to bend his back.

The chest of Shen Xiao burned with a fire of seething fury — blazing without ceasing since that night three years ago when Li Shu had forced him to attend upon her, burning all the way to this very day. Princess Pingyang Li Shu had shown him how those with power and position could trample another person’s dignity underfoot. Grand Princess Kangning had shown him how those same people could act with utter and unbridled recklessness.

Why? Only because he was a man of common birth!

The rage consumed him from chest to body, mingling with the drug’s potency — yet rather than canceling each other out, the combination produced a scorching heat more violent than anything before. And so the face before him seemed once again to transform into the most beautiful face in the world.

With every ounce of his will, Shen Xiao turned his head away, jaw clenched, and gripped the tea table to force himself to stand.

He could not remain here. If he stayed, he would plunge into a bottomless hell.

But barely had Shen Xiao risen to his feet when Grand Princess Kangning’s voice sounded from behind him. “Where do you think you’re going?”

The voice was sweet as something tangible, winding around him from all sides in an instant, binding him and robbing him of all movement — even forcing the desire within him to surge past reason in that same instant.

Shen Xiao turned slowly back around and looked at Grand Princess Kangning, kneeling on the floor.

Her magnificent outer robe had fallen to her waist, both shoulders bare, the deep crimson peony bodice burning before his eyes.

A force pressed at his back. Shen Xiao walked toward Grand Princess Kangning without thought, without will, and knelt before her.

Grand Princess Kangning laughed softly.

The drug was potent. Of all the men she had played with, not one had been able to resist it. Shen Xiao could not be an exception.

The man before her knelt submissively on the floor, bowing his head, his back curved. Grand Princess Kangning noticed that he had long lashes, dark as wings — which offset somewhat the severity of his features, allowing a thread of lonely vulnerability to show through.

The Grand Princess was moved to a rare flicker of pity. She thought: in the days to come, she would have to treat him with some tenderness. She would bestow some money upon him, and then advance his rank — Wu Qing was first-grade sixth rank; it would be fitting to raise Shen Xiao to first-grade fifth rank, so that he might be bound to her with complete devotion.

Her slender fingers traced across Shen Xiao’s brows and eyes, then slid down along his severe jaw, reaching the neck and slipping inside. The pure white inner garment was pulled open, revealing a broad and powerfully built chest beneath.

Beneath her slender fingers, the rise and fall of that chest grew more rapid than before.

“Come then, my dear Shen…” The sweet, cloying feminine voice breathed in his ear. Shen Xiao suddenly raised his eyes and gazed with an entranced expression upon Grand Princess Kangning’s face — then his gaze shifted slightly, and came to rest upon the swaying jade-and-gold hairpins and ornaments crowning her head.

Shen Xiao smiled. He had always been cold and expressionless, a man who almost never smiled — and this sudden entranced smile, rather than softening him, revealed a thread of cold and ruthless cruelty beneath.

Grand Princess Kangning suddenly felt a prickle of unease. At that very moment, Shen Xiao abruptly raised his hand and yanked one of the ornamental hairpins from Grand Princess Kangning’s head with a sharp, forceful pull.

The golden hairpin trembled between Shen Xiao’s icy eyes, its pointed tip glinting with a sharp and pitiless light, aimed directly at Grand Princess Kangning’s face.

“You… what are you doing?”

Every trace of Grand Princess Kangning’s romantic mood dissolved entirely. Her beautiful eyes went wide in terror as she stared at Shen Xiao. “If you dare to harm me… your entire family will be executed to the ninth degree!”

Her voice had risen to a shrill pitch from sheer fear, sharp and piercing.

Shen Xiao stared at her contorted face with cold revulsion, finding it hideous beyond measure.

The drug surged again. Shen Xiao gasped several harsh breaths. Grand Princess Kangning noticed and hurriedly pressed a smile to her face, attempting to use her beauty to drive Shen Xiao back into mindlessness. “My dear Shen, what has come over you?”

But her features were twisted, and that smile only made her appear more nauseating.

Shen Xiao shoved Grand Princess Kangning aside with a single push and lunged to his feet, knocking over a glass standing floor lamp nearby.

The hairpin was still gripped tightly in his hand. Steeling his heart, Shen Xiao drove the hairpin directly into his own left arm. His teeth clenched shut — yet he found it insufficient. He dragged the hairpin across his arm, carving a bloody line through the flesh.

Blood ran down his sinewy hands and dripped onto the crimson carpet without a sound.

His reason returned completely.

Shen Xiao’s eyes were bloodshot. He cast one cold and merciless glance at Grand Princess Kangning slumped on the floor, then shoved open the door of the private room and charged out without a second thought.

*

“Your servant, Wu Qing, Senior Court Gentleman of the Ministry of Personnel, pays respects to Princess Pingyang.”

Li Shu heard this and cast a cool, haughty glance in Wu Qing’s direction, gave an arrogant hum, and then withdrew her gaze. Without a single word, she walked straight into the Jade and Gold Pavilion.

She had no time to exchange pleasantries right now. She was hungry.

Wu Qing, having earned no favor, could only turn away in disappointment. He looked down the corridor toward the end of the hall. The door of the room was shut, and all was quiet — they were likely still in the midst of things and would need some time yet. He decided to head downstairs first and drink a few cups of wine.

Li Shu entered the Jade and Gold Pavilion and sank lazily back in her chair, stretching her limbs to ease the tension from her body.

She had thoroughly sickened herself of temple vegetarian food today at Qianfu Temple. Her mouth had been tasteless the entire day, and she had just specifically ordered several dishes of meat.

She wanted meat.

The restaurant attendant had just departed when suddenly she heard a rush of footsteps in the corridor outside — urgent and swift. Before Li Shu had time to react, a figure crashed through the room’s door.

He seemed to be enduring tremendous pain. After stumbling through the doorway he collapsed to the floor, clutching his left arm, breathing in ragged, heaving gasps.

Hong Luo, who had been pouring tea in the inner alcove, came running at the sound. She could not help drawing a sharp breath. “Who is it?! Someone come quickly, seize —”

Yet Li Shu remained perfectly calm and raised a hand to stop Hong Luo’s cry.

The person before her was Shen Xiao. She had recognized him.

Even as Shen Xiao lay there with his robes half-undone, his chest exposed; even as his face was flushed with color yet his lips were pale as ash, unmistakably presenting the appearance of a man who had been given an aphrodisiac — Li Shu still recognized him.

Li Shu stared at Shen Xiao lying on the floor. He was plainly fighting against some immense inner struggle, sprawled there drawing deep and labored breaths, his chest heaving violently.

Li Shu’s gaze settled on his exposed chest. She thought to herself: she had not looked carefully three years ago, and had not expected that Master Shen had quite a decent physique. He appeared tall and lean in his daily clothing, but in reality there was some definition and muscle there.

Li Shu rubbed her brow and let her mind wander idly: she truly had come today wanting to eat meat, but the heavens seemed to have misunderstood her meaning. She had not meant this kind of “meat” — the appetizing kind that was Shen Xiao.

At that moment, Grand Princess Kangning’s voice suddenly rang out from the corridor. “Wu Qing? Wu Qing?” Her voice was sharp and shrill, clearly furious beyond measure.

Shen Xiao on the floor heard the Grand Princess’s voice and instantly came back to himself. He struggled up from the floor, and slammed the door of the private room shut with a resounding bang. He leaned against the door, drawing deep and rapid breaths. The blood from his left arm dripped steadily down. Shen Xiao felt his vision beginning to darken at the edges.

“Trying to cover yourself in plain sight — your door slam was far too loud. Grand Princess Kangning certainly heard that.”

A cold, indifferent female voice sounded abruptly in the room, carrying even a note of mockery. Shen Xiao jolted, and his grip on the golden hairpin tightened sharply.

Seated on the other side of the round table, in the seat of honor, was Princess Pingyang — lounging there with perfect, unhurried ease.

Shen Xiao was somewhat dazed. He looked around at the room’s furnishings and belatedly recognized where he was: the Jade and Gold Pavilion. In all the confusion, he had somehow stumbled directly into Princess Pingyang’s territory.

Out of the tiger’s den, straight into the wolf’s lair. That was the first phrase to surface in Shen Xiao’s mind.

“This would be… being forced upon by Grand Princess Kangning? An aphrodisiac was used?” The cold, mocking voice sounded again. She uttered words like “forced upon” or “aphrodisiac” without the slightest pause or hesitation.

Shen Xiao could not make out any deeper meaning behind Princess Pingyang’s words. He could only give a single nod. He leaned against the door, summoning every last bit of his strength to keep himself upright — or rather, to keep from being crushed down by the burning heat raging within his body.

The presence of any woman in this room unnerved him and set his pulse racing. All the more so with Princess Pingyang before him, with whom he had shared physical intimacy years ago.

“Hm…” That cool voice sounded again. “You’d rather die than yield — you have a spine. The Grand Princess has used this method on more than a few people. As far as I know, you are the first to have actually managed to escape.”

At that moment, footsteps sounded on the staircase. Then came Wu Qing’s voice: “Your Highness, what has happened?” A sound like Wu Qing drawing a sharp breath of shock came through the door. “Where is Shen Xiao?”

“He ran!” The Grand Princess ground the words out through clenched teeth. She pointed at the Jade and Gold Pavilion. “Isn’t he in Pingyang’s suite? I heard a sound from there just now — go and ask!”

The exchange in the corridor traveled into the private room. Within, the cool and mocking voice spoke again: “Hm… I withdrew my conclusion too soon. You may not be able to escape after all.”

The footsteps in the corridor drew nearer and nearer. Wu Qing knocked at the door. “This is Wu Qing. I humbly request an audience with Princess Pingyang.”

Shen Xiao’s breath came in labored bursts. Every nerve in his body was pulled taut. He pressed hard against the door and fixed his eyes — black as pitch — upon Li Shu, lounging indolently in the seat of honor.

Unless Li Shu was mistaken, those eyes — ordinarily so cold and deep and expressionless — were at this moment revealing… something that bordered on desperate pleading.

Shen Xiao was coiled tight with tension. What he did not know was that at this moment he was, without question, a most appealing sight. That face of his had always worn an expression of cold detachment that held the world at arm’s length — deeply unapproachable — but now, in equal parts the drug’s effect and the blood he had lost, the flush of heat and the pallor of weakness were interwoven, lending him an air that was especially… pitiful and lost.

Li Shu turned her gaze away and no longer looked at Shen Xiao’s face.

Outside the door, Wu Qing knocked again. “This is Wu Qing. I humbly request an audience with Princess Pingyang.”

The Jade and Gold Pavilion remained silent, with no one answering.

Then heavy footsteps sounded on the staircase — Grand Princess Kangning’s personal bodyguards, ten of them in total. They had been standing outside Xiankelai all along, and had now been summoned and were all coming up.

Grand Princess Kangning was furious. Tonight, she would dig out Shen Xiao even if she had to tear this entire building apart. Not once in her life had any man she set her eyes on dared to run. Not once had any paramour dared to defy her commands.

Grand Princess Kangning composed herself, straightened her garments, and walked down the corridor from the far room until she came to a stop before the doors of the Jade and Gold Pavilion.

Her voice carried the full force of her fury. “Pingyang, open the door. I have lost something, and my guards need to search inside.”

Inside the Jade and Gold Pavilion.

Shen Xiao leaned against the door, the color in his face all but gone.

In the seat of honor, upon hearing Grand Princess Kangning’s words, Princess Pingyang slowly abandoned her languid posture. She rose to her feet and began to walk toward the door.

Shen Xiao’s dark eyes locked onto her and refused to let go. He shook his head slowly in her direction.

This was the first time he had ever shown such an imploring expression.

Shen Xiao opened his mouth, as though he wanted to say something to Li Shu — yet he had parted his lips and found himself at a loss for words.

Should he beg her?

But she had humiliated him years ago. The memory of that night — fawning and performing for her pleasure like a dog — played out in Shen Xiao’s mind with perfect clarity, not a single detail faded even after three years.

He loathed her.

Yet if he did not beg — more than ten years of arduous study, barely attaining the top rank in the examinations, entering the court… so much effort, all of it, about to be reduced to nothing in Grand Princess Kangning’s hands tonight.

Shen Xiao closed his eyes.

His ambition, his hunger for power — they could not be destroyed tonight. Not like this.

He opened his eyes again. They were filled with the desperation of a man placing his last bet.

By this point Li Shu had drawn very close — no more than two arm’s lengths from Shen Xiao.

Shen Xiao stared at her, motionless. And slowly… he dropped to his knees.

In the utter silence of the Jade and Gold Pavilion, the sound of his knees meeting the floor was startlingly loud.

With his head lowered, he said, “Your servant… begs Princess Pingyang.”

He did not speak aloud what he was begging for.

Yet both of them knew what he was asking.

He was begging Li Shu not to open the door — to let him survive this ordeal.

She was Princess Pingyang, the most favored princess in the realm. To hold her own against Grand Princess Kangning on equal terms was something she could do without any difficulty whatsoever.

If only she were willing to help him, she could certainly do it.

But would she be willing…

Li Shu stood in silence before Shen Xiao and looked down at him from above.

“Master Shen,” the cool and mocking voice sounded. “You are blocking the path to the door.”