Chapter 386: Unrelieved Agitation, Serving the "Nation

She didn’t need to do a thing; it was already enough.

It was as if a fire raged within him, and pressed against his body was this soft, graceful beauty.

Zhao Mingyan couldn’t control the heat flaring up from within, and he panted a few more times.

Ji Qingwu stopped, seeing his expression—a mixture of pain and pleasure.

This was her first time doing something like this, and not knowing if she was doing it right, she pulled her hand back.

Zhao Mingyan regained some clarity and called out, "Ah Wu..."

His tone was thick with dissatisfaction and simmering heat.

Ji Qingwu noticed a fine sheen of sweat on his forehead. She picked up a nearby handkerchief and dabbed it away for him.

Zhao Mingyan raised an arm, pressed it against the nape of her neck, and pulled her down, kissing the lips that were already reddened from before.

His other hand enveloped her delicate one.

Her breath was stolen away, and she could only gasp for air in the brief moments she had.

Her own body began to burn, and the feeling of swelling heat was slightly uncomfortable.

She secretly brushed against his thigh, thinking he wouldn’t notice, but in the next instant, he flipped her over and pinned her to the couch.

She had willingly started this, but now she was powerless to stop it.

This time, however, the light in Ji Qingwu’s eyes flickered. Stirred by passion, she took the initiative, wrapping her arms around his neck and giving him her most honest response.

A clamor arose from the courtyard outside.

Ji Qingwu let go, barely managing to recover a sliver of her senses. "It... it sounds like my father."

She wasn’t mistaken. The shouting outside grew louder.

"I request an audience with His Majesty!"

Li Yuzong’s coaxing voice also carried in.

"Oh, Mr. Ji, His Majesty is inside right now! You can’t just force your way in."

Ji Bo Lian’s face was flushed, with a hint of blue, from having run all the way from Shou’an Hall.

Mrs. Qiao had already told them that Xiao Wu had given birth to twins.

Ji Bo Lian’s heart was a tangle of complex emotions. He declared, "I shall wait here at the door for His Majesty to emerge!"

Li Yuzong knew how stubborn Mr. Ji could be. Once his mind was made up, not even a team of wild horses could change it.

Inside the room, the heated atmosphere came to a halt.

The moment Ji Qingwu heard her father’s voice, all amorous thoughts vanished.

Ji Qingwu recalled Mrs. Qiao’s description of her father and guessed what was happening. ’He must have learned that I’m to become the Empress. He probably sees it as a service to the state and is so overjoyed he wants to have a chat with Emperor Wu Su.’

Zhao Mingyan’s brow furrowed. He stopped, his breathing ragged, and shot a terrifying glare through the window toward the courtyard gate.

Any man would be displeased by such an interruption, to say nothing of an emperor who tolerated no defiance.

She pushed him gently. "Someone is waiting at the door to see Your Majesty."

Zhao Mingyan buried his head sullenly, nibbling her earlobe. "I won’t see him."

"That’s my father," Ji Qingwu reminded him.

Zhao Mingyan gently scraped her earlobe with the tip of his teeth, making Ji Qingwu shudder.

"How can I see anyone looking like this?" he said.

Ji Qingwu offered, "I can help Your Majesty get dressed."

Zhao Mingyan looked up, his gaze sweeping down from her face. "You should get yourself dressed first. Don’t cause me more trouble."

’How am I causing trouble?’ Ji Qingwu thought. ’Your Majesty the Emperor is truly difficult to serve.’

She picked up her crumpled outer skirt, got up, and went to the wardrobe to find her clothes, already breaking into a small, nervous sweat about her future life in the palace.

A woman’s attire was more complicated to put on. By the time Ji Qingwu emerged from behind the screen, Zhao Mingyan was already sitting neatly at the table, sipping cold tea.

Ji Qingwu’s eyes scanned him from head to toe. She had no idea what material the Emperor’s robes were made of.

After all their fooling around just now, they were still smooth and sleek, without a single wrinkle.

Aside from the deeper red of his thin lips, Zhao Mingyan looked no different from his usual cold, aloof self on the throne.

Ji Qingwu carefully lowered the beaded curtain between the inner and outer rooms to hide the mess on the couch.

When Ji Bo Lian entered the room, he saw the Emperor and Xiao Wu sitting opposite each other at a round table, drinking tea.

He finally relaxed, cursing himself for the inappropriate thoughts he’d had while waiting at the door.

"Your servant pays his respects to Your Majesty."

Zhao Mingyan stopped him from fully bowing. "Mr. Ji, there’s no need for such empty formalities. We are not in the palace, so there is no distinction between sovereign and subject, only that between a father-in-law and his son-in-law."

But if they were truly to act as father- and son-in-law, Ji Bo Lian would have to take the seat of honor. He wasn’t so foolish as to take the Emperor’s polite words at face value.

Ji Bo Lian insisted on completing the bow before rising. Only after Ji Qingwu’s urging did he finally take a seat.

"Mr. Ji, what brings you here?"

Ji Bo Lian glanced at his daughter.

Back in the old madam’s room, Ji Qingwu’s reaction had shown she was unaware that Emperor Wu Su intended to make her his empress.

It finally dawned on him. The Emperor’s words and actions during this visit, though they seemed casual, were actually calculated to apply pressure at every turn.

He had also deliberately flown into a rage, first feigning punishment. At that moment, Ji Bo Lian had truly believed his family was about to be ruined.

But in the end, he had bestowed upon the Ji Family the greatest of favors.

It silenced everyone. The entire family, including Xiao Wu, could do nothing but offer a thousand thanks. How could they dare to have any objections?

Ji Bo Lian felt relieved that Beili had a monarch so adept at political maneuvering, but at the same time, his heart ached with worry.

He thought of how Xiao Wu had raised Jiu Jiu alone all these years. Why had the mother and daughter been left to wander on their own?

After returning to Lin’an, she had caused so much trouble and was almost snatched away by that little bastard from the Wei Family.

’What are the Emperor’s true intentions? How much of it is genuine?’

An unusual bitterness filled Ji Bo Lian’s heart. He hadn’t felt this pained even when Ji Qingrong was married off.

He had only met Xiao Wu a few times, and now some scoundrel had appeared to steal his daughter away...

But unfortunately, this man was the Emperor.

Ji Bo Lian wanted to probe the situation before the imperial edict was officially announced to the public.

"Your Majesty, I do indeed have something I wish to discuss with you."

Zhao Mingyan nodded, waiting for him to continue.

Ji Bo Lian lowered his head. "Qingwu is fortunate to receive Your Majesty’s favor. However, appointing an empress is not just Your Majesty’s personal affair; it concerns the very foundation of the state. And... Qingwu was once involved in a marriage with the Wei Family. Although my Ji Family does not recognize it, there will surely be no shortage of gossip and rumors."

Zhao Mingyan said, "Mr. Ji, you need not worry. I will handle this matter properly."

Ji Bo Lian nodded. It was for the best if the Emperor could resolve this himself. He didn’t want Xiao Wu to face criticism from outsiders because of it.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your thorough consideration. There is one more thing..." Ji Bo Lian’s head drooped even lower.

Zhao Mingyan could already tell from his expression what he wanted to say.

"Please speak, Mr. Ji."

Ji Bo Lian said, "My Xiao Wu... this child is honest to a fault. Sometimes, she doesn’t know how to be flexible and insists on following one path to the bitter end. I know that this temperament is not suited for the palace."

Ji Qingwu raised her eyebrows in surprise, astonished to hear such words from her own father.

She nodded repeatedly in agreement.

’He’s... actually quite right...’

And then she received a displeased glare from a certain someone.