The Top Scholar's Wife in an Emperor-Minister Story 09

Xiao Mingting's throat tightened, and he almost instinctively curled his fingers away from the young woman's waist.

Chen Yao quickly came to her senses. Startled, she hastily struggled free from the man's embrace.

The young woman before him kept her head meekly lowered, revealing a stretch of fair, jade-like neck.

A martial artist's eyesight was keen. Xiao Mingting's dark eyes narrowed as he could almost make out a small vermilion mole at the nape of her neck.

Chen Yao could clearly feel the man's gaze resting squarely on her. She bit her lower lip, her small hands unconsciously clenching the embroidered handkerchief in her grip.

Her voice trembled slightly as she hastily performed a curtsey. "This humble woman greets Your Majesty. Thank you for Your Majesty's timely rescue."

Xiao Mingting raised his hand in a token gesture. "Rise."

He almost instinctively wanted to pull the young woman back into his arms, but reason forced him to restrain himself. In the end, he slowly clasped his hands behind his back, his knuckles whitening from the strain.

He inwardly scoffed at himself. Instead of tending to state affairs in the Imperial Study during the day, he'd had the eunuchs move all the memorials to Qingning Pavilion, nestled deep near the Imperial Garden. What thoughts he harbored in his heart, he knew all too well.

"Why are you here at this hour?" Xiao Mingting reined in his wandering thoughts, his handsome face returning to its usual impassive expression as he asked calmly.

"To answer Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager ordered a palace attendant to take me to the imperial kitchen for pastries. But I inadvertently lost sight of the eunuch guiding me and became lost here."

Chen Yao answered truthfully, her voice soft as a spring drizzle.

Xiao Mingting immediately guessed that the Empress Dowager had likely heard something from somewhere and taken it upon herself to arrange this little scene. His expression flickered. Here in the Imperial Garden, with only the two of them, a man and a woman alone...

But the moment he remembered she was already a married woman, wed to his own friend and subject, he forcibly suppressed the improper thoughts that had begun to stir.

"I'll have Dequan send someone to escort you to the imperial kitchen for the pastries, then see you back to your residence. As for the Empress Dowager, I'll speak with her." He said flatly.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Chen Yao kept her eyes lowered, her tone reverent.

It was exactly the deference she should show, yet Xiao Mingting inexplicably felt a twinge of discomfort.

Unbidden, his mind drifted back to the wedding night at the Shen residence, when he'd seen her—

Bathed in the flickering candlelight, dressed in a red wedding gown, the delicate, beautiful young woman had blushed as she called Shen Yunxiu "husband" in a soft, tender voice.

Recalling it now, he only felt an indescribable irritation settle deeper into his chest.

As if grasping at small talk, a few steps later, Xiao Mingting spoke again. "The qin piece you played during the day—I don't believe I've heard it before."

Chen Yao lifted her eyes in slight surprise. So the emperor really had come to the Imperial Garden earlier, and had happened to hear her playing.

But since he was asking now, she answered softly, "The piece is called 'Qingxin Pushan Zhou.' I came across it in a fragment of a qin score."

Xiao Mingting only gave a faint acknowledgment. "Mm, well played."

"Thank you for Your Majesty's praise." Chen Yao blinked, a little perplexed.

Then Xiao Mingting fell silent again, and so the two continued walking quietly.

As they passed beneath a drooping branch of catalpa blossoms, Chen Yao suddenly felt a slight tug at her hair and stopped in her tracks.

She was inwardly dismayed: Oh no, it can't be?

Xiao Mingting's attention had been on the young woman all along, so he naturally noticed her reaction right away.

He also halted, turning slightly to ask, "What's wrong?"

Chen Yao was just wondering what to do. She was completely ignorant of ancient hairstyles, so she could only frantically raise her hand to feel around in her hair, trying to untangle the catalpa branch that had snagged her tresses, but to no avail.

Finally, she lowered her hand and said with a bashful bite of her lip, "A branch caught on my hair bun."

Xiao Mingting turned to face her fully. Looking at the young woman whose small face was flushed red, her eyes welling with anxious tears, he walked forward slowly, not waiting for her to refuse. "Let me help you."

Chen Yao looked up, only to see the man's chest standing close before her, and quickly averted her gaze.

He was far too near, beyond the distance that should exist between a man and a woman.

She unconsciously held her breath, forcing her attention entirely onto the hair bun atop her head.

The man gradually leaned in closer, his warm, unfamiliar breath seeming to fall faintly on her forehead. Chen Yao soon felt a gentle tug on her hair.

Xiao Mingting kept his eyes lowered as his fingers carefully pinched the thin twig tangled in the young woman's hair, loosening it bit by bit. His movements were deliberately gentle, as if afraid of hurting her.

"All set."

Before long, the man's low voice came from above her head.

Chen Yao had just let out a breath of relief, about to step back and politely thank him with a curtsey.

Then she watched in disbelief as the man raised his hand again and, as naturally as could be, tucked a stray strand of hair falling from her temple behind her ear with an intimate gesture.

Xiao Mingting froze as well once he realized what he'd done.

He looked up at the young woman before him. Her fair little face was utterly crimson, even her ears tinged with a light blush, her long lashes fluttering rapidly like butterfly wings.

They remained standing far too close, nearly within arm's reach for him to simply pull her into an embrace.

But in the end, he silently stepped back, his jaw tightening. Then he turned. "Let's go."

Chen Yao pursed her lips slightly, and could only pretend nothing had happened, quietly continuing to follow behind him.

"They say one of life's three great illusions is thinking he likes me. But..." Chen Yao confirmed with System 04 in her mind. "The male lead really doesn't have any improper intentions toward me, right?"

System 04 clearly shared the same suspicion, but after a moment's hesitation, it still felt they couldn't jump to conclusions so hastily.

So it said flatly, "Anyway, like you said, host, just stick to your character and the plot. The male and female leads aren't something we can control. Don't overthink it."

"Oh System, why do you sound like you've given up? Don't be so pessimistic. Think positive. Maybe the male lead... hmm, maybe he's taking care of me for the female lead's sake, or maybe he's just a person without a sense of boundaries."

Chen Yao said things even she didn't believe to System 04, and finally shook her head with a soft sigh.

"Whatever. We'll take it one step at a time. As long as I secure my character points and follow the plot line, there's nothing else I can do."

Qingning Pavilion was nearby anyway, so with Xiao Mingting leading the way, they arrived soon enough.

He then instructed Eunuch De to personally escort Chen Yao to the imperial kitchen to retrieve the pastries prepared by the Empress Dowager, and arranged for a palanquin to take her back to the Shen residence.