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A/N: OK so I totally didn't forget to update >.>

"Wangye, Tang'er can explain!" Long Tang's voice was shrill.

Long Xu Le threw her a look and that was enough to pin her to her spot. Her Highness threw all the parchments to her face. The little princess couldn't breathe and even her thoughts froze. It was as if a mountain pressed down on her.

"Think about all the things you need to say." These few words could mean a lot. The mountain pressing on the Junzhu seemed to double.

As Wan Li Wang turned around, she saw the fragile man still attempting to stand up. He was probably on the last vestige of his consciousness, moving only through sheer will.

Her brows furrowed and decisively brought the man into her arms. He seemed to have grown lighter the last time she carried him.

From the corner of her eyes, she saw a lotus incense burner still dispensing thin tendrils of smoke.

One sweep at the whole room and she roughly understood what happened. Long Xu Le let out a soft sigh.

"Cover yourself well," Her order was soft.

Feng Yanyan felt a hand on his lower back. The fabric of the cloak touched the stinging marks. He trembled as there was wave after wave of pain.

The person holding him must have heard his small gasp. She paused and adjusted her grip on his waist so as not to touch the wounds. The injuries were mainly there as Feng Yanyan was desperate to dodge despite the drugs crippling his body.

Carrying someone like this was more difficult than normal. The side of his face rested on her chest before. Now, he was lifted to her neck level. All just to avoid aggravating the injuries.

Feng Yanyan was afraid to fall when he was hoisted up but he was powerless to clutch anything.

His long hair scattered on his back and he hissed, only to feel cold fingers sweeping them to the side.

Long Xu Le had always been even-tempered. Not one leak of emotion showed on her visage but the action of doing everything personally left a deep impression.

The more experienced servants wondered what would happen to Tianmi's master. One should know the King never stepped into the management of the palace. It was always the chief eunuch or Junwang doing this for her.

Her Highness could order someone to bring a plank of wood and transport the person using that but didn't do so. This showed the importance of the matter.

Although the servants and officials of Zhongqing courtyard didn't know who was inside the bundle of fabric, there was a high chance that it was one of the mei ren from Tanglin.

Those who had even a small understanding of the powers at play feared this might be the spark that could start a war with the Empress who sent these beauties.

Chief Eunuch Cheng felt the time wangye entered and exited the courtyard was too quick. But when he raised his eyes, he was flabbergasted.

Her Highness... the King was carrying someone!

Just as the cloak fell slightly, Cheng Gong only glimpsed a clean side profile before he felt a fleeting look from Long Xu Le. So he hurriedly looked away.

That was when he knew... he wouldn't escape the storm too. He breathed deeply.

"This servant will have someone to call the Imperial Physician. We'll also escort Junzhu to Zhongqing courtyard."

Cheng Gong only heard a hum of assent. He didn't need to say anything about the servants of Tianmi courtyard. It was only natural that he should handle the cleaning up.

This was a disgrace that the outside world should never know.

Feng Yanyan really thought that he would be whipped to death tonight. It was an exaggeration.

At the back of his mind, he knew the psycho Long Tang used a whip that was more tailored to be used in the bedroom than the ones they used in the dungeons. If it was barbed, he would have committed suicide already. Nevertheless, he was whipped to the point of shedding blood.

The sick kid started painting and then suddenly said it would be better if she shed some blood for the art to be more beautiful.

It took all of his self-control and preservation not to beg for Junzhu to stop. He felt that if he did, it would only bring satisfaction to this twisted little princess.

It hurts! It really f*cking hurts!

Even now, he just wanted to pass out but the pain gripped his consciousness tighter than ever. His limbs were still soft and his anxiety from the violence he went under was diminished by the effects of the tranquilizer.

His thoughts were sluggish and he couldn't process most things except the pain.

Long Xu Le was uncomfortable from the slow but rough breaths fanning her neck. She knew the man was feverish. Long Tang's wicked and licentious visage flashed in her mind.

She walked in on her adopted daughter whipping someone. It was clear the young Junzhu was used to this kind of affair and enjoyed it. Long Xu Le could compare that expression on her face to someone smoking opium for a long time.

If Long Tang could get sexual pleasure by hurting someone, it went without saying the servants under her were miserable.

Wan Li Wang's face dimmed. She didn't know what to make of this adopted daughter. People always said the King was unfeeling. It was true.

Aside from Long Sangyu's safety, she didn't care about anything else. This girl was entrusted to her by her deputy general before he died.

Her exact words to him were, "Ben dian will give her a name and will provide for her all her life. Aside from that, ben dian has nothing else to give. Do you agree with this?"

>本殿 - Běn diàn - this palace/palace hall<

Deputy General Jin laughed weakly at her cruel words, blood still dripping from his lips. This was his Commander through and through. His last word was, "Good."

Knowing King Wan Li, these two things: name and provision, were already generous of her. Providing for Jin Tang all her life. It meant that even if the King suddenly perished, Jin Tang would pass her days in abundance. It was an oath of its own.

Long Xu Le sensed chaotic footsteps behind her so she turned. It was the servant girl that asked for justice earlier. It looked like she wiped away her tears and hurriedly fetched a lamp for her master.

"Wangye, this servant will light the way." The girl still had a shaky pace but she was determined.

"To Zhongqing." Long Xu Le spoke in her faint voice.

Wan Li Wang didn't show it on her face but she casually nodded in approval. The wangfu still had reliable people. It seemed that the future wasn't so bleak. If all the workers of the palace were like the people in Tianmi courtyard, then there was no reason for them to stay.

She would have to replace every single person from top to bottom. All these years, she rarely stayed in the palace for long.

It was her neglect.

If she was often here, Long Tang's mind might not turn out to be so evil. And the servants under her wouldn't dare to follow their master's ways.

How the wangfu was run was a reflection of the master's character. Sloppy people meant a careless master. Servants who lived with an abundant amount of bribes meant a lousy and wicked master.

Order and peace must govern the household while justice and discipline would be upheld on the battlefield. These were Long Xu Le's ideals but it was clear she failed in her own palace.

When they arrived at Zhongqing courtyard, an Imperial Physician was already waiting in one of the guest rooms of the West wing. Feng Yanyan's other two servant girls were also there.

This was chief eunuch Cheng's lightning-quick arrangement.

The Imperial Physician's eyebrows jumped when he saw wangye. He didn't know the ins and outs of what happened but he wasn't brave enough to jump to conclusions.

This formidable Wan Li Wang cautiously put a person on the simple canopy bed. It seemed to be a man...

Long Xu Le had noticed that he fainted. His frail body couldn't take this kind of wound and the drugs combined. And even if he could, his mind was still weak to pain. The pain exceeded the effects of the tranquilizer.

She made him lie on his side so the physician has better access to the injuries. Her eyes unintentionally traveled to his ashen face.

When she looked up again, the three servant girls saw her displeasure. Thinking that the King was upset with having to carry a stranger, they subconsciously lowered their bodies more.

"Give medicine for relieving pain, ointment for wounds and scars. If his state of mind isn't right... just prescribe a calming tonic either way." She spoke to the Imperial Physician with fine articulation then glanced at the trio.

"Serve well."

There was a chorus of "This servant obeys."

With that, Wan Li Wang strode across the room and left.

Only then could the people concentrate on their jobs. The guest room was situated on the far end northwest side of the Zhongqing courtyard.

The movements here would not disturb wangye. There was a small exit to get food from the kitchen or supplies from the storage. If one didn't know of their existence, the room could easily be forgotten.

The girls' leader, JuZi, understood Chief Eunuch Cheng's arrangement and warning.

Focus on recuperation and do not seek her Highness impulsively.

These three had always been perceptive. There was no need for actual words. Tonight, wangye was generous enough to have Beauty Feng treated.

If they were shortsighted and wanted more, the King wouldn't hesitate to just let Feng Yanyan die accidentally. Especially, he witnessed a scandal of Junzhu firsthand.

If it was another master, Beauty Feng along with his servants would have to disappear before sunrise. But wangye gave the grace of life.

Right now, nothing was more important than to nurse their young master Feng. Then go back to their courtyard and try to minimize their presence.

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A/N: Man, I'm tired of putting italics. I'll just not do it anymore maybe, idk. Anyway, what do you think of the photos I attach every beginning of the chapter? I make it so that I'll have one every chapter to set the ambience, I guess.

Also, Chapter 11 is now dedicated to keysce_kise Thank you for reading Beauty Feng~

Edited: Feb. 13, 2023