Chapter 453: Honey-Coated Coptis, Can’t Swallow, Can’t Spit Out

If she really said it out loud, it wouldn’t be about broadening his horizons, but an absurd, horrifying, and shocking tale.

Ji Qingwu wasn’t ready to lay all her cards on the table for him just yet.

But her previous actions indeed lacked a reasonable explanation.

Gazing at the face before her, Ji Qingwu felt as if she had a bitter pill coated in honey lodged in her throat. The sweet and the bitter were intertwined, impossible to swallow and impossible to spit out.

Zhao Mingyan placed his hands on either side of the heated seat, leaning down and trapping her.

Ji Qingwu tried to retreat but ended up falling back into her seat. Now shorter than him, her imposing air vanished completely.

She was the first to look away, her gaze falling to her own fidgeting fingers.

His deep voice, mingling with the dripping of the clepsydra, made her ears ring.

"Ah Wu, what have you been hiding from me?"

Ji Qingwu’s brow twitched. Worried he was truly angry, she looked up to meet his eyes, only to find them deep, dark, and intimidating, filled with a depth she couldn’t comprehend.

She said, "I’ve run out of the secret medicine I used, so I have no way to show you."

Zhao Mingyan said, "Is that really so?"

Ji Qingwu had already exchanged all the points from the childbirth system. She didn’t even know if the system could be activated again, so she truly had no way to show him.

Seeing Ji Qingwu nod, Zhao Mingyan let out a soft laugh. His fingertips brushed over her neck where the kiss mark had completely faded. His warm breath grazed her earlobe, and she clenched the corner of her robe.

He whispered, "Then I won’t ask."

"But there are some other matters. I might as well ask Ah Wu for a clear answer today."

Ji Qingwu breathed a sigh of relief. ’As long as he doesn’t keep pestering me about the secret medicine and the system, it’s fine.’

She said, "What do you want to ask?"

Zhao Mingyan looked at her face, even more beautiful than it was five years ago, and lifted a lock of her hair with his long, lightly calloused fingers.

"Ah Wu, why did you force your way into my campaign tent back then?"

When the words "campaign tent" rolled off his lips, Ji Qingwu’s face instantly paled again.

The silky black strands slipped through his fingers one by one, falling back against her chest.

"After that one night, why did you leave the military camp, Ah Wu?"

Zhao Mingyan gazed at his empty palm, then slowly closed his hand.

It was as if he were savoring the memory of her soft hair, or perhaps recalling how he felt five years ago as he watched Ji Qingwu’s retreating figure.

In a low, measured tone, Zhao Mingyan asked his final question.

"You became pregnant after you left. Why were you willing to give birth to the child, and how could you bear to be separated from him, to send Yuan Heng back to my side?"

Ji Qingwu’s expression had frozen at the first question. As she listened to one question after another, her mind seemed to grind to a halt.

Lies couldn’t hide the truth, especially not from Emperor Wu Su.

The light in Ji Qingwu’s watery eyes abruptly vanished, her expression filled with obvious bewilderment.

He waited with immense patience for her to speak. Finally, she parted her lips.

"If I tell you, will Your Majesty believe me?"

There were three things Zhao Mingyan detested most in life: people bargaining with him, people repeatedly testing him, and people hiding things from him. Ji Qingwu had crossed those lines multiple times, yet he had tolerated it each time.

They had reached such a point of deep affection, yet she still lacked trust in him.

When Zhao Mingyan spoke again, his voice had turned cold and grave. "If you want to earn trust, you must first show sincerity. Ah Wu, you either make all sorts of excuses or refuse to speak at all. How am I supposed to believe you?"

His tone could be described as severe.

The hem of his robe, embroidered with dark gold thread, brushed against her smooth, exposed legs.

A pang of pain shot through Ji Qingwu’s heart. She always felt completely exposed before him.

But in that instant, she suddenly understood what the Emperor wanted.

She had thought it was enough that she loved him, but now she saw it was far from enough. ’He can cast aside his dignity as the Emperor and his pride as a man to kneel and apply medicine for me, to wipe my body clean. He has a greater desire for control over my body than I do myself. He sees me as a part of him, and because of that, his demands are incredibly high. He wants me to open myself up to him completely, with no hidden corners left. Not just my body, but my heart as well.’

Zhao Mingyan did not back down, his gaze burning as he stared at her, determined to get an answer today.

Ji Qingwu’s brow furrowed so deeply it seemed to be in knots.

For her, even though she understood his intentions, to bare herself so completely, leaving no room for retreat, was no easy task.

Just then, a short, urgent horn blast sounded from outside the tent, signaling a military emergency.

A sharp glint flashed in Zhao Mingyan’s eyes. It seemed the task he had just assigned the Hidden Guard had borne fruit.

His Adam’s apple bobbed. He looked at her fair face and said, "Ah Wu, think it over carefully. When I return, you will explain everything to me."

Not wanting him to go into battle with a heavy heart, Ji Qingwu nodded.

Watching the man’s back as he lifted the tent flap and left, Ji Qingwu remained in the bathing chamber. A sudden chill washed over her, and she hurriedly put on her clothes.

Ji Qingwu couldn’t help but follow him to the outer chamber, where she saw he had already taken off his outer robe. Clad only in his middle layer, he was about to don his battle armor.

She took a few steps forward and picked up the Xuan Armor from the rack. When Zhao Mingyan saw this, he naturally spread his arms.

With her head lowered, Ji Qingwu silently dressed him. As she was fitting the pauldron into the hollow of his shoulder blade, he suddenly seized her wrist.

Zhao Mingyan frowned. The hard rhinoceros leather lining of the Xuan Armor had scraped against her sleeve, leaving a fresh red mark on her delicate, glowing wrist.

Even though he now knew her body had strong self-healing abilities and the mark would soon disappear, he still couldn’t bear to see her suffer even the slightest injury.

Zhao Mingyan reminded her, "These plates have been soaked in tung oil three times. Be careful not to get scratched."

She didn’t respond, merely lowering her gaze to tighten the crossed cords on his chest plate. But her fingers suddenly snagged on something hidden inside.

Ji Qingwu saw the edge of a five-color silk thread, and her hand trembled.

’So he’s kept it with him all this time.’

’Thinking back, I’ve given him so very little.’

Ji Qingwu tucked the five-color thread back inside. Her voice was muffled in her throat, no longer clear and pleasant as usual, but raspy.

"Lift your elbow."

Then, she stood on her toes to put on his arm restraints and tie the straps for his shin armor.

Next, she picked up the Great Cloak, which was scented with cedar and had a scarlet, gold-woven lining. Zhao Mingyan let her drape the cloak over his broad shoulders.

Outside the tent, a horse neighed.

As Ji Qingwu’s fingers, fumbling with the ties, slipped for the third time, Zhao Mingyan suddenly leaned down and bit the trembling bead of her upper lip.

Her upper lip stung with pain. At the thought of being separated again, her eyes began to redden.

Something stirred in Ji Qingwu’s heart. Instead of pushing him away, she wrapped her arms around his neck and responded with even more fervor.

She was rarely so proactive. Zhao Mingyan lifted her by the waist. Through the cold, hard armor, Ji Qingwu hugged him tightly, the soft skin of her palms taking the impression of the Xuan Armor’s scales.

All their unspoken words melted into the chaotic mingling of their breaths.

The reluctance in Ji Qingwu’s heart was stronger than ever before, and a sheen of tears veiled her eyes.

From outside the campaign tent came Li Yuzong’s sharp voice.

"Holy Emperor, the warhorses are ready!"