Dongfang Liren was secretly anxious. When her leg touched Ye Jingtang's cheek, she could clearly feel that his face was getting hotter and hotter. His hand patted her leg twice again.
If Ye Jingtang passed out from holding his breath, he would definitely float out beside her. She couldn't possibly step on him and drown him.
Dongfang Liren gritted her teeth and made up her mind. She raised her eyes and looked behind the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager, without any precautions, turned her head following her gaze.
Dongfang Liren immediately raised her hand, intending to do something unthinkable and knock the Empress Dowager unconscious!
Fortunately, her sister wasn't too unreliable. Finally, a sound came from outside:
"Empress Dowager, His Majesty said he won't come. He has just obtained several good poems and requests that the Empress Dowager and Your Highness move to Yongle Palace to appreciate them."
Dongfang Liren quickly withdrew her hand that was about to do something improper and felt greatly relieved.
The Empress Dowager turned her face back and looked a bit confused:
"What's going on?"
Dongfang Liren smiled and said, "It's nothing. I just had a momentary illusion. Empress Dowager, you go ahead first. I'll come over after my hair dries."
Seeing this, the Empress Dowager didn't stay any longer. She stood up and left Canyang Pool with the palace maids...
Tap, tap, tap...
The sound of footsteps gradually faded away. The palace maid who came in to help Prince Jing get dressed was driven out again.
Dongfang Liren's face turned red and white alternately. Before she could calm down her mood, she noticed some movement from the man she was pressing with her leg. It seemed that he was instinctively trying to surface.
Dongfang Liren was also afraid of suffocating Ye Jingtang to death. She quickly leaped out of the hot spring pool, picked up a thin blanket and wrapped herself in it, making herself look like a caterpillar.
Dongfang Liren wanted to stand upright and pose as a majestic and superior princess, but she didn't know if it was because she had soaked in the water for too long. She couldn't stand steadily, so she sat on the imperial concubine's couch.
Seeing that there was no response in the water, Dongfang Liren flicked her finger and threw out a chess piece.
Plop——
When Ye Jingtang didn't come out, she threw another one in.
Plop——
Whoosh...
Soon, Ye Jingtang emerged from the water and took a big breath:
"Huff... Huff..."
After looking around a few times and seeing that she was sitting on the imperial concubine's couch, he then leaped onto the shore:
"I..."
"Come here, now!"
Dongfang Liren tightly wrapped herself in the thin blanket, even covering her toes. Her face was flushed, and her slender eyebrows were raised in anger.
Ye Jingtang wiped the water off his face and tried his best to maintain a calm appearance as he came to the front of the beauty's couch:
"Your Highness, I definitely didn't do it on purpose..."
"Does it make a difference?!"
Dongfang Liren gritted her silver teeth but didn't dare to look directly at Ye Jingtang. She turned her head aside:
"You spied on me while I was taking a bath and made me... in front of the Empress Dowager. If it weren't for the fact that you saved me once, I would have had you cut into pieces alive!"
Ye Jingtang felt quite innocent, but at this moment, he could only offer a sincere apology:
"Please forgive me, Your Highness."
Dongfang Liren glanced at Ye Jingtang, was slightly silent, then looked away again, her lips moving as if she didn't know what to say.
Ye Jingtang saw that there were water stains all over Prince Jing's face. He turned around, took a towel from the table, and handed it to her.
Dongfang Liren originally wanted to reach out to take it, but as soon as her hand moved, her chest felt a chill, and a large white expanse was exposed. She quickly hugged the thin blanket tighter:
"What are you still doing here? Are you waiting to watch me get dressed?"
Ye Jingtang motioned outside: "Didn't Your Highness say there are secret sentries outside? Can I go out now?"
"..."
Dongfang Liren was at a loss for words.
With her here, the secret sentries would definitely be on guard around Canyang Pool. To leave without being noticed, she had to leave first.
Dongfang Liren thought for a moment, stood up, and like a hopping zombie, bounced behind the screen, preparing to get dressed by herself.
Tap, tap, tap——
The scene was rather funny, but Ye Jingtang was almost about to be sent to the eunuch's chamber, so he didn't dare to laugh. He just turned his back.
Dongfang Liren peeked through the semi-transparent screen and saw that Ye Jingtang was very conscious. Only then did she secretly heave a sigh of relief:
"You were supposed to patrol the imperial city, but look at what happened. You peeked at me taking a bath on the first day you entered the palace. You really have great abilities!"
Ye Jingtang also thought that the palace was very strange. He explained helplessly:
"It was really an accident. From now on, I'll patrol on the city wall, and this kind of thing will never happen again. Hmm... Why did Your Highness come here? I thought there wouldn't be anyone here in the middle of the night..."
Dongfang Liren couldn't very well say that she was tricked here by her unscrupulous sister. She said coldly:
"I was sweating all over after practicing my swordsmanship, so of course I came here to take a bath. You... Forget it. You don't need to patrol the palace anymore. If I let you act recklessly again, you might even offend the Empress Dowager tomorrow..."
"..."
Ye Jingtang felt that he had probably lost the Minglong Painting, but since Benben didn't seem to want to punish him, it was already a great relief. He immediately replied:
"Okay. I won't step into the imperial city without Your Highness's permission from now on. Hmm... I will definitely atone for my sin with my merits for what happened today..."
"Atoning for your sin with merits... Fine. From now on, you'll be the Deputy Commander of the Black Yamen. Be honest and work for me..."
?!
Ye Jingtang quickly turned around to stop her:
"Your Highness, you can't..."
When he turned his head, he found a tall and beautiful woman, all in white, standing behind the semi-transparent screen.
Although it was through the thin gauze screen, he couldn't see as directly as when he was underwater. When he was underwater, there was no light, so he couldn't see clearly.
At this moment, the candlestick was right beside Dongfang Liren. Under the illumination of the light, her figure as smooth as mutton fat jade was clearly visible. The curve of her lower back was like a half-moon, full of tension. The red cherry on the peak even had crystal-clear water droplets hanging on it...
(⊙_⊙)!!
Ye Jingtang's expression froze, and his words stopped abruptly.
"You!"
Dongfang Liren had just let down her guard, and Ye Jingtang turned his head and took a good look. She was so angry that her eyebrows stood up. She quickly hugged the thin blanket in front of her like embracing the moon.
Ye Jingtang quickly turned back and changed the subject:
"Um... Well... It's my bounden duty to share Your Highness's worries. But I only know martial arts. I can do some hard and tiring work, but I really can't take on an official position. Moreover, I've just arrived in the capital not long ago. If I'm suddenly assigned such a high-ranking official position, no one in the Black Yamen will believe that there's no special relationship between me and Your Highness. As a man, if I want to pursue an official career, I should rely on my real achievements so that I can convince others."
Dongfang Liren hugged herself. After making sure that Ye Jingtang wouldn't turn back nervously, she let out a sigh of relief:
"Fine. Then you can take on cases tomorrow to accumulate merits. If you dare to be lazy..."
Ye Jingtang felt that Prince Jing seemed a bit confused and incoherent. He didn't dare to refuse directly but said euphemistically:
"No problem. But I still need to take care of some things at home. Is it okay to start next month?"
Dongfang Liren didn't respond. She put on a clean white robe, covering her delicate figure, and felt more at ease. She walked slowly out from behind the screen:
"Alright."
Ye Jingtang turned around and took a look. Seeing that Prince Jing had finally put on her clothes, he felt relieved and came forward:
"Regarding my offense today..."
"Don't say anything. Let's just leave it at that."
Dongfang Liren raised her hand to interrupt him and regained her usual noble and aloof posture as a princess:
"If you dare to spread this matter, I'll send you to the palace to be the Grand Eunuch!"
Ye Jingtang felt a chill in a certain place and nodded slightly:
"Your Highness, don't worry. I will definitely keep my mouth shut."
Dongfang Liren's demeanor was majestic and noble, but her face, like a red apple, couldn't hide her emotions. In order not to show an expression that was beneath her status, she found something to say:
"You protected me, so in the eyes of the green bandits, you're one of mine. They will definitely try to attack you when they have the opportunity. Be careful of your safety when you're out."
"Thank you for Your Highness's concern."
It took Dongfang Liren a long time to calm down the turbulent emotions in her heart. She turned around and walked towards the door.
"Your Highness..."
Dongfang Liren stopped in her tracks. She thought Ye Jingtang was going to say something ridiculous like "I will take responsibility for Your Highness." Her body stiffened slightly, and she didn't dare to turn around. She said coldly:
"Do you have something else to say?"
"Am I still going to Jingfu Palace later to teach Your Highness swordsmanship?"
?
Dongfang Liren took a deep breath, causing her lapel to rise. She didn't respond and walked out of the door with heavy steps...