Chapter 2 — Daytime Succubus

He still wore the exact same pitiful expression of someone who had been bullied by me into utter fluster, capable of doing nothing more than pleading in a soft whisper for the past three whole years! This matter… surely something was amiss, wasn’t it? Shouldn’t he have come aggressively to settle scores with me? Resembling that cold-faced Judge of the Underworld from my dream? While I stood there in a daze, Shen Zhu had already turned and walked over to the table. He picked up two cups of intertwined wedding wine, turned around, and brought one forward to present before me.

Madam, please.

The two words “Madam” fell from his lips with terrifying naturalness. I cast a furtive glance sidelong and accepted the wine cup. Borrowing the candlelight to carefully inspect the insignia carved upon the vessel, I finally linked my arm through his and tilted my head back to drain it dry. Red candles flickered and danced throughout the bedchamber. After setting the wine cup down, Shen Zhu slowly parted his lips. His voice dropped to a profound, hushed register, causing an inexplicable tension to coil within my chest.

This marriage was something I personally begged the Empress Dowager to bestow; your own desires were never consulted.

As the words left his lips, he suddenly crouched down, raising his head to gaze up at me. Within his peach blossom eyes, shimmering like fluid ripples, danced the flickering reflections of the candlelight. Clear yet glistening with a soft moisture, they held a gaze that could easily send a person’s heartbeats tumbling into chaos. Dazed and disoriented, I had no earthly idea how I ought to respond. While my mind was still spinning, I heard him speak once more.

Yet regardless of how it came to be, you once kissed me.

Since you kissed me, you must take responsibility.

A thunderous explosion echoed within the depths of my mind. Every single thought instantly emptied into a void. I suspected my ears had deceived me. I… I had once kissed Shen Zhu? When? That was entirely impossible! Why on earth did I retain not even the faintest impression of such an event? Calm yourself, you must remain calm. I began frantically rummaging through my memories, recalling every single scene of how I had bullied him over the past three years. Each incident stood out with crystal clarity. When on earth had I ever kissed him? My mind descended into a state of chaotic tangled yarn. Subconsciously, I resorted to the tone I always used when speaking to him.

Shen Zhu, what kind of utter nonsense are you spouting?

Has your head been crushed by a slamming door or something…

Before I could even finish my sentence, the figure right before me suddenly leaned in close. Warm breath billowed forward, gently enveloping me entirely. Shen Zhu’s forehead slowly came to rest against my own. His long eyelashes brushed softly across my skin, sending a slight, tickling shiver through me. He parted his lips, his tone carrying the heartbreaking cadence of a desperate plea.

Ning Yu Fei, do you have any inkling of how I have managed to endure this past period of time?

A scorching, blazing temperature radiated through our touching skin, freezing my entire body rigid. Amidst the swirling chaos of my mind, a thought—simultaneously absurd and utterly despairing—suddenly detonated within my consciousness. That damned, accursed Xie Xiao Lou! Could it be that he mistakenly switched the paralyzing potion with a potent aphrodisiac? Raging fury and panic instantly seized every inch of my being. Xie Xiao Lou, you deserve to die a thousand deaths! If I do not pull out every single hair on your head by the roots, my surname is no longer Ning!

6

When I forced my eyes open once more, the morning light was already brilliant and clear. The dragon and phoenix candles had burned down to nothing long ago. I lay nestled within soft brocade blankets, my entire body aching with a profound soreness. The fragmented, hazy memories of the previous night suddenly surged back into my mind. My cheeks instantly blazed with a fiery heat. I jerked upright, sweeping my gaze across the surrounding space. Not a single soul occupied the space beside the bed. The blankets and pillows beside me were completely ice-cold, as though the passionate madness of the night before had never truly transpired. A knot of tension tightened in my chest. I hurriedly draped my robes over my shoulders and bolted out into the outer chamber. Out in the receiving room, seated proper and straight before the study desk, Shen Zhu was deeply engrossed in reading. He wore a light-colored brocade robe, his hair secured with a jade hairpin, his posture slender, refined, and impeccably upright. The pale morning light streamed through the lattice window, falling gracefully across his profile. His exquisite brows carried a cold, detached air, as pale and aloof as a layer of morning frost. Where on earth was there even a trace of the burning, entanglement, and soft-spoken vulnerability he had displayed the night before? Hearing the commotion, he slowly lifted his gaze.

Awoken, have you?

I stared blankly at him. The intensely passionate images from the previous night surged once more within my breast. The hands that had clamped tightly around my waist, the breaths intertwined between our lips—every single detail was scorching hot. Not to mention those lingering, affectionate iterations of the word “madam.” It all felt as though it had merely been a passionate dream born entirely of my own mind. I clenched my robes tightly in my fists, testing the waters as I cautiously opened my mouth:

Shen Zhu, last night…

Before I could finish, he gently interrupted me with a soft murmur.

Last night at the wedding banquet, I partook of far too much wine and my mind was thoroughly muddled; I can recall none of what transpired.

He lowered his gaze, his fingertips gently turning the page of a book. His voice remained detached and serene, devoid of a single flaw through which one might pierce his armor. You remember nothing? I instantly froze right where I stood.

You recall nothing at all? Then those words you uttered about me kissing you and needing to take responsibility for you—have you forgotten those as well?

Shen Zhu’s fingertips paused for a fraction of a second.

They were merely the ramblings of a drunken man; Madam need not take them to heart.

A mere eight light, breezy words utterly wiped away everything that had happened. My chest felt choked, and I nearly died of pure exasperation right then and there. What a fine excuse about drunken rambling! What a splendid claim of not remembering a thing! He was plainly turning his back and refusing to acknowledge what had occurred. Just as I was about to let my fury erupt, I suddenly remembered the matter of my having slipped that aphrodisiac into his drink the night before. The towering rage within my belly instantly dissipated by more than half. This wretched Xie Xiao Lou, could his brain possibly have been kicked by a donkey? How could someone actually mix up a paralyzing drug with an aphrodisiac! I gnashed my teeth together, mentally cursing Xie Xiao Lou from the crown of his head to the soles of his feet. After that, I turned on my heel to wash up and change into fresh garments.

7

Once I had finished my grooming, the imperial decree from the palace arrived precisely at the gates of the Shen residence. It commanded both Shen Zhu and me to enter the palace immediately to express our gratitude for the imperial grace. I followed Shen Zhu up into the carriage. Neither of us spoke a single word along the journey.