Chapter 34
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Whether in the Great Qin or the Northern Desert, banquet guests would all try to show their festive spirit by getting their friends drunk. Everyone saw that Xia Yujin was doing his best to stop his wife from drinking, and all came up with bad intentions. One after the other, they came up for a toast, drinking until Xia Yujin grew dizzy and muddle-headed and didn’t even remember anyone’s name or reputation.
After the banquet, Ye Zhao had to help him away.
When Xia Yujin woke up, he was already in the wobbly sedan chair, Ye Zhao was dozing off at his side and, to his great humiliation, he was leaning against her shoulder. In his intoxication, his manly indignation reared up — how could a great and dignified man lean on a woman to sleep?
This was a disgrace!
So he resolutely moved away, leaning against the wooden side of the chair, and used the fact that Ye Zhao was asleep to tilt her head against his shoulder. Only then, nodding in satisfaction, did he go back to sleep.
When she felt no response from her surroundings, Ye Zhao secretly opened one eye, glanced around to appraise the situation, smelled the fragrant perfume of incense on his body and, getting nearer, seized the rare opportunity to grope him.
“Hands off!” Xia Yujin protested in his sleep. “I’m the one on top!”
“Alright, alright, you’re on top,” Ye Zhao said soothingly.
“Good! I’ll leave you if you don’t obey!” Xia Yujin proudly bared his teeth. “Hey… big girl… slender waist, long legs… fuck! Stop grabbing me!”
Ye Zhao racked her brain for a while, but she couldn’t figure out what he was dreaming of.
The next time Xia Yujin woke up, with a splitting headache, Ye Zhao stood, clothes all in order, by the side of his bed, very virtuously holding out a bowl of hangover-curing soup to him. He took two sips of the soup, sitting there in a daze, then checked his clothes and hurriedly jumped up from the bed. “Last night,” he asked, “did you and I sleep together? You… that… nothing happened, right?”
Ye Zhao’s face looked very righteous. “Am I the kind of person who takes advantage of people like this?”
Xia Yujin breathed a sigh of relief, finished the soup, and lay back down on the bed.
Ye Zhao took the bowl back, threw it to the maid, and strode out.
It took Xia Yujin a long time to reflect on their conversation. It… It really did fucking look like a criminal sleeping with a young woman from a good family after having drunk too much! No, no! Where was the similitude? That was just the wrong impression! No overthinking it! He covered his head with the quilt, brushing those improper thoughts from his head, and told Gutou to give a message to Chief Lao Yang: “I will be absent from work today. Let him decide as he wants for everything.”
Gutou, familiar with the task, went to find the poor man.
Having finally calmed down, Xia Yujin stepped outside and saw Xuan’er carrying a small bundle, on her way to visit her family.
Xuan’er couldn’t hold back the words in her heart. Seeing him in high spirits, she hesitated a while, but in the end she could not control the curiosity whose head had reared up inside her. “Your Highness,” she quietly said, “the general changed your clothes and bathed you last night, then looked after you all night long. She was so good to you! You were… gentle with her, right?”
Xia Yujin choked on his spit.
Who was the damn idiot who let her convince him she wasn’t the kind of person who took advantage of people?
In a rush, Xia Yujin grabbed his attendant Xishuai, and asked, “What happened last night?”
“You were so drunk that you kept throwing up,” Xishuai said. “The general took you back to your room, asked for a basin of water, and took care of you all night. Nothing else.”
“She didn’t… No, I didn’t do anything to her?” Xia Yujin asked again.
“I didn’t hear any sign of struggle, so probably not.”
Xia Yujin let out a long sigh and patted his shoulder. “Right, drunkenly taking advantage of a woman is the most intolerable thing you can do!” he lectured. “Your master would never do such a despicable thing!”
Everyone smiled and repeatedly agreed.
After the Great Welcome banquet, the Eastern Xia delegation lay low. Almost nothing else happened, apart from attending festivities.
It seemed that Ye Zhao did not take that night’s events to heart, but she got even busier. Every morning, she went to court; then, she was busy in the military camp. When she came back, she almost immediately lay down to sleep. She even cut her daily inflexible training routine by half a shichen.
She’d stayed up all night, took care of his throwing up, and although he’d accused her of taking advantage of him, it really was hard work. Xia Yujin felt that he should talk to her, and had wanted several times to seek her out to say his thanks, but he couldn’t find Ye Zhao here during the day, nor there at night… Since he’d taken the city censor’s office, the number of invitations to go out he received from his friends had increased, and he really had no time to spare. In any case, Ye Zhao was the one who came back late, so it wasn’t his fault. After a few days, the matter slipped his mind.
That evening, his dubious friends once again invited him out, saying that a folk tunes singer had come to Yu House on the Qin riverbank. Named Xiaoyu’er, she was talented, had charming eyes and a soft and warm voice, as pleasant as the mind could imagine. He eagerly ran out to listen to her. But Prince Qi, unexpectedly one step ahead, was already standing around Yu House. Not only was he entertaining his friends, he had also invited the prince of Eastern Xia for an evening of pleasure.
Xia Yujin was so disgusted to be in the same place as his uncle and to have stumbled across a saboteur that his mood got gloomy.
Yinuo saw him and immediately greeted him, his sun-tanned face open and honest. Turning around, he said, “The people of the Great Qin say that an appointment doesn’t hold a candle to an accidental meeting. You drink well, Your Highness, so why don’t you come in and have a drink or two with your friend?”
Xia Yujin was guarded against the scheming way he looked, so he refused, citing an appointment with a friend to go to Xinghua House across from Yu House, where he called a few singers and had a roaring time. But from time to time, he looked at the party across the street from the corner of his eyes. He had a bad feeling.
“Hey! Your wife is here!” one of his drinking buddies called out. “And she’s talking to Prince Yinuo.”
“How’s that possible? She doesn’t like my uncle either, and she never pretends, why would she go to their party?” Xia Yujin’s hunch had come true. Shocked, he rubbed his eyes, needing to take a second look. “She told me not to approach this cut-sleeve prince, so why would she go up to him herself?”
But no matter how hard he rubbed his eyes, Ye Zhao didn’t leave Prince Yinuo by an inch. The two of them kept on chatting. Even when they invited the prince to come over for a drink, they didn’t stop speaking. From time to time, Prince Yinuo would break out into hearty laughter, which even Xinghua House across the street could hear loud and clear. Soon, Prince Yinuo left his seat, followed by Ye Zhao, and the two of them stood on the riverbank of the Qin, chatting and laughing. Just from the back, they were of matching height and weight, a truly beautiful pair. But no one knew what kind of vile things they were speaking about.
Xia Yujin stared until his eyes started burning. He took a deep breath and started comforting himself. “Warriors will be warriors. They’ve found common ground, it’s normal if they drink on it.”
“Right, they know each other after all. It’s no big deal. It’s better than going out with five hundred men to drink in the company of courtesans,” the drinking buddy pleasantly said in a low voice. “Careful, Your Highness, your wine’s overflowing.”
“Shut up!” Xia Yujin forcefully threw his wine cup away, his hatred of old surging up in his heart. What was overflowing was his anger!
Hanging onto an old acquaintance in front of all these people! Ye Zhao really wasn’t sparing him any humiliation!
He pulled off his sumptuous ivory-colored robes, exchanging it for one of his friends’ navy blue ones, and told them to stay there to have fun, while he quietly left the table. He slipped into the noisy crowd of the Qin riverbank and soundlessly reached the underside of a bridge, not far from Ye Zhao and the others. He bent down, inspecting his surroundings, and greeted the dirty beggar sleeping off to the side, throwing him two pieces of silver and making him deliberately go begging near Prince Yinuo. His stench would force the party to come on the bridge, so he could eavesdrop on whatever sweet nonsense words of love they were saying!
The beggar accepted the order and quickly handled it.
When Prince Yinuo and Ye Zhao walked to the bridge, his height enabled him to catch sight of Xia Yujin. He nonchalantly lowered his head as he walked, but the corners of his mouth pulled up to reveal a scheming smile.
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Whether in the Great Qin or the Northern Desert, banquet guests would all try to show their festive spirit by getting their friends drunk. Everyone saw that Xia Yujin was doing his best to stop his wife from drinking, and all came up with bad intentions. One after the other, they came up for a toast, drinking until Xia Yujin grew dizzy and muddle-headed and didn’t even remember anyone’s name or reputation.
After the banquet, Ye Zhao had to help him away.
When Xia Yujin woke up, he was already in the wobbly sedan chair, Ye Zhao was dozing off at his side and, to his great humiliation, he was leaning against her shoulder. In his intoxication, his manly indignation reared up — how could a great and dignified man lean on a woman to sleep?
This was a disgrace!
So he resolutely moved away, leaning against the wooden side of the chair, and used the fact that Ye Zhao was asleep to tilt her head against his shoulder. Only then, nodding in satisfaction, did he go back to sleep.
When she felt no response from her surroundings, Ye Zhao secretly opened one eye, glanced around to appraise the situation, smelled the fragrant perfume of incense on his body and, getting nearer, seized the rare opportunity to grope him.
“Hands off!” Xia Yujin protested in his sleep. “I’m the one on top!”
“Alright, alright, you’re on top,” Ye Zhao said soothingly.
“Good! I’ll leave you if you don’t obey!” Xia Yujin proudly bared his teeth. “Hey… big girl… slender waist, long legs… fuck! Stop grabbing me!”
Ye Zhao racked her brain for a while, but she couldn’t figure out what he was dreaming of.
The next time Xia Yujin woke up, with a splitting headache, Ye Zhao stood, clothes all in order, by the side of his bed, very virtuously holding out a bowl of hangover-curing soup to him. He took two sips of the soup, sitting there in a daze, then checked his clothes and hurriedly jumped up from the bed. “Last night,” he asked, “did you and I sleep together? You… that… nothing happened, right?”
Ye Zhao’s face looked very righteous. “Am I the kind of person who takes advantage of people like this?”
Xia Yujin breathed a sigh of relief, finished the soup, and lay back down on the bed.
Ye Zhao took the bowl back, threw it to the maid, and strode out.
It took Xia Yujin a long time to reflect on their conversation. It… It really did fucking look like a criminal sleeping with a young woman from a good family after having drunk too much! No, no! Where was the similitude? That was just the wrong impression! No overthinking it! He covered his head with the quilt, brushing those improper thoughts from his head, and told Gutou to give a message to Chief Lao Yang: “I will be absent from work today. Let him decide as he wants for everything.”
Gutou, familiar with the task, went to find the poor man.
Having finally calmed down, Xia Yujin stepped outside and saw Xuan’er carrying a small bundle, on her way to visit her family.
Xuan’er couldn’t hold back the words in her heart. Seeing him in high spirits, she hesitated a while, but in the end she could not control the curiosity whose head had reared up inside her. “Your Highness,” she quietly said, “the general changed your clothes and bathed you last night, then looked after you all night long. She was so good to you! You were… gentle with her, right?”
Xia Yujin choked on his spit.
Who was the damn idiot who let her convince him she wasn’t the kind of person who took advantage of people?
In a rush, Xia Yujin grabbed his attendant Xishuai, and asked, “What happened last night?”
“You were so drunk that you kept throwing up,” Xishuai said. “The general took you back to your room, asked for a basin of water, and took care of you all night. Nothing else.”
“She didn’t… No, I didn’t do anything to her?” Xia Yujin asked again.
“I didn’t hear any sign of struggle, so probably not.”
Xia Yujin let out a long sigh and patted his shoulder. “Right, drunkenly taking advantage of a woman is the most intolerable thing you can do!” he lectured. “Your master would never do such a despicable thing!”
Everyone smiled and repeatedly agreed.
After the Great Welcome banquet, the Eastern Xia delegation lay low. Almost nothing else happened, apart from attending festivities.
It seemed that Ye Zhao did not take that night’s events to heart, but she got even busier. Every morning, she went to court; then, she was busy in the military camp. When she came back, she almost immediately lay down to sleep. She even cut her daily inflexible training routine by half a shichen.
She’d stayed up all night, took care of his throwing up, and although he’d accused her of taking advantage of him, it really was hard work. Xia Yujin felt that he should talk to her, and had wanted several times to seek her out to say his thanks, but he couldn’t find Ye Zhao here during the day, nor there at night… Since he’d taken the city censor’s office, the number of invitations to go out he received from his friends had increased, and he really had no time to spare. In any case, Ye Zhao was the one who came back late, so it wasn’t his fault. After a few days, the matter slipped his mind.
That evening, his dubious friends once again invited him out, saying that a folk tunes singer had come to Yu House on the Qin riverbank. Named Xiaoyu’er, she was talented, had charming eyes and a soft and warm voice, as pleasant as the mind could imagine. He eagerly ran out to listen to her. But Prince Qi, unexpectedly one step ahead, was already standing around Yu House. Not only was he entertaining his friends, he had also invited the prince of Eastern Xia for an evening of pleasure.
Xia Yujin was so disgusted to be in the same place as his uncle and to have stumbled across a saboteur that his mood got gloomy.
Yinuo saw him and immediately greeted him, his sun-tanned face open and honest. Turning around, he said, “The people of the Great Qin say that an appointment doesn’t hold a candle to an accidental meeting. You drink well, Your Highness, so why don’t you come in and have a drink or two with your friend?”
Xia Yujin was guarded against the scheming way he looked, so he refused, citing an appointment with a friend to go to Xinghua House across from Yu House, where he called a few singers and had a roaring time. But from time to time, he looked at the party across the street from the corner of his eyes. He had a bad feeling.
“Hey! Your wife is here!” one of his drinking buddies called out. “And she’s talking to Prince Yinuo.”
“How’s that possible? She doesn’t like my uncle either, and she never pretends, why would she go to their party?” Xia Yujin’s hunch had come true. Shocked, he rubbed his eyes, needing to take a second look. “She told me not to approach this cut-sleeve prince, so why would she go up to him herself?”
But no matter how hard he rubbed his eyes, Ye Zhao didn’t leave Prince Yinuo by an inch. The two of them kept on chatting. Even when they invited the prince to come over for a drink, they didn’t stop speaking. From time to time, Prince Yinuo would break out into hearty laughter, which even Xinghua House across the street could hear loud and clear. Soon, Prince Yinuo left his seat, followed by Ye Zhao, and the two of them stood on the riverbank of the Qin, chatting and laughing. Just from the back, they were of matching height and weight, a truly beautiful pair. But no one knew what kind of vile things they were speaking about.
Xia Yujin stared until his eyes started burning. He took a deep breath and started comforting himself. “Warriors will be warriors. They’ve found common ground, it’s normal if they drink on it.”
“Right, they know each other after all. It’s no big deal. It’s better than going out with five hundred men to drink in the company of courtesans,” the drinking buddy pleasantly said in a low voice. “Careful, Your Highness, your wine’s overflowing.”
“Shut up!” Xia Yujin forcefully threw his wine cup away, his hatred of old surging up in his heart. What was overflowing was his anger!
Hanging onto an old acquaintance in front of all these people! Ye Zhao really wasn’t sparing him any humiliation!
He pulled off his sumptuous ivory-colored robes, exchanging it for one of his friends’ navy blue ones, and told them to stay there to have fun, while he quietly left the table. He slipped into the noisy crowd of the Qin riverbank and soundlessly reached the underside of a bridge, not far from Ye Zhao and the others. He bent down, inspecting his surroundings, and greeted the dirty beggar sleeping off to the side, throwing him two pieces of silver and making him deliberately go begging near Prince Yinuo. His stench would force the party to come on the bridge, so he could eavesdrop on whatever sweet nonsense words of love they were saying!
The beggar accepted the order and quickly handled it.
When Prince Yinuo and Ye Zhao walked to the bridge, his height enabled him to catch sight of Xia Yujin. He nonchalantly lowered his head as he walked, but the corners of his mouth pulled up to reveal a scheming smile.
Whether in the Great Qin or the Northern Desert, banquet guests would all try to show their festive spirit by getting their friends drunk. Everyone saw that Xia Yujin was doing his best to stop his wife from drinking, and all came up with bad intentions. One after the other, they came up for a toast, drinking until Xia Yujin grew dizzy and muddle-headed and didn't even remember anyone's name or reputation.After the banquet, Ye Zhao had to help him away.When Xia Yujin woke up, he was already in the wobbly sedan chair, Ye Zhao was dozing off at his side and, to his great humiliation, he was leaning against her shoulder. In his intoxication, his manly indignation reared up how could a great and dignified man lean on a woman to sleep?This was a disgrace!So he resolutely moved away, leaning against the wooden side of the chair, and used the fact that Ye Zhao was asleep to tilt her head against his shoulder. Only then, nodding in satisfaction, did he go back to sleep.When she felt no response from her surroundings, Ye Zhao secretly opened one eye, glanced around to appraise the situation, smelled the fragrant perfume of incense on his body and, getting nearer, seized the rare opportunity to grope him.Hands off! Xia Yujin protested in his sleep. I'm the one on top!Alright, alright, you're on top, Ye Zhao said soothingly.Good! I'll leave you if you don't obey! Xia Yujin proudly bared his teeth. Hey big girl slender waist, long legs fuck! Stop grabbing me!Ye Zhao racked her brain for a while, but she couldn't figure out what he was dreaming of.The next time Xia Yujin woke up, with a splitting headache, Ye Zhao stood, clothes all in order, by the side of his bed, very virtuously holding out a bowl of hangover-curing soup to him. He took two sips of the soup, sitting there in a daze, then checked his clothes and hurriedly jumped up from the bed. Last night, he asked, did you and I sleep together? You that nothing happened, right?Ye Zhao's face looked very righteous. Am I the kind of person who takes advantage of people like this?Xia Yujin breathed a sigh of relief, finished the soup, and lay back down on the bed.Ye Zhao took the bowl back, threw it to the maid, and strode out.It took Xia Yujin a long time to reflect on their conversation. It It really did fucking look like a criminal sleeping with a young woman from a good family after having drunk too much! No, no! Where was the similitude? That was just the wrong impression! No overthinking it! He covered his head with the quilt, brushing those improper thoughts from his head, and told Gutou to give a message to Chief Lao Yang: I will be absent from work today. Let him decide as he wants for everything.Gutou, familiar with the task, went to find the poor man.Having finally calmed down, Xia Yujin stepped outside and saw Xuan'er carrying a small bundle, on her way to visit her family.Xuan'er couldn't hold back the words in her heart. Seeing him in high spirits, she hesitated a while, but in the end she could not control the curiosity whose head had reared up inside her. Your Highness, she quietly said, the general changed your clothes and bathed you last night, then looked after you all night long. She was so good to you! You were gentle with her, right?Xia Yujin choked on his spit.Who was the damn idiot who let her convince him she wasn't the kind of person who took advantage of people?In a rush, Xia Yujin grabbed his attendant Xishuai, and asked, What happened last night?You were so drunk that you kept throwing up, Xishuai said. The general took you back to your room, asked for a basin of water, and took care of you all night. Nothing else.She didn't No, I didn't do anything to her? Xia Yujin asked again.I didn't hear any sign of struggle, so probably not.Xia Yujin let out a long sigh and patted his shoulder. Right, drunkenly taking advantage of a woman is the most intolerable thing you can do! he lectured. Your master would never do such a despicable thing!Everyone smiled and repeatedly agreed.After the Great Welcome banquet, the Eastern Xia delegation lay low. Almost nothing else happened, apart from attending festivities.It seemed that Ye Zhao did not take that night's events to heart, but she got even busier. Every morning, she went to court; then, she was busy in the military camp. When she came back, she almost immediately lay down to sleep. She even cut her daily inflexible training routine by half ashichen.She'd stayed up all night, took care of his throwing up, and although he'd accused her of taking advantage of him, it really was hard work. Xia Yujin felt that he should talk to her, and had wanted several times to seek her out to say his thanks, but he couldn't find Ye Zhao here during the day, nor there at night Since he'd taken the city censor's office, the number of invitations to go out he received from his friends had increased, and he really had no time to spare. In any case, Ye Zhao was the one who came back late, so it wasn't his fault. After a few days, the matter slipped his mind.That evening, his dubious friends once again invited him out, saying that a folk tunes singer had come to Yu House on the Qin riverbank. Named Xiaoyu'er, she was talented, had charming eyes and a soft and warm voice, as pleasant as the mind could imagine. He eagerly ran out to listen to her. But Prince Qi, unexpectedly one step ahead, was already standing around Yu House. Not only was he entertaining his friends, he had also invited the prince of Eastern Xia for an evening of pleasure.Xia Yujin was so disgusted to be in the same place as his uncle and to have stumbled across a saboteur that his mood got gloomy.Yinuo saw him and immediately greeted him, his sun-tanned face open and honest. Turning around, he said, The people of the Great Qin say that an appointment doesn't hold a candle to an accidental meeting. You drink well, Your Highness, so why don't you come in and have a drink or two with your friend?Xia Yujin was guarded against the scheming way he looked, so he refused, citing an appointment with a friend to go to Xinghua House across from Yu House, where he called a few singers and had a roaring time. But from time to time, he looked at the party across the street from the corner of his eyes. He had a bad feeling.Hey! Your wife is here! one of his drinking buddies called out. And she's talking to Prince Yinuo.How's that possible? She doesn't like my uncle either, and she never pretends, why would she go to their party? Xia Yujin's hunch had come true. Shocked, he rubbed his eyes, needing to take a second look. She told me not to approach this cut-sleeve prince, so why would she go up to him herself?But no matter how hard he rubbed his eyes, Ye Zhao didn't leave Prince Yinuo by an inch. The two of them kept on chatting. Even when they invited the prince to come over for a drink, they didn't stop speaking. From time to time, Prince Yinuo would break out into hearty laughter, which even Xinghua House across the street could hear loud and clear. Soon, Prince Yinuo left his seat, followed by Ye Zhao, and the two of them stood on the riverbank of the Qin, chatting and laughing. Just from the back, they were of matching height and weight, a truly beautiful pair. But no one knew what kind of vile things they were speaking about.Xia Yujin stared until his eyes started burning. He took a deep breath and started comforting himself. Warriors will be warriors. They've found common ground, it's normal if they drink on it.Right, they know each other after all. It's no big deal. It's better than going out with five hundred men to drink in the company of courtesans, the drinking buddy pleasantly said in a low voice. Careful, Your Highness, your wine's overflowing.Shut up! Xia Yujin forcefully threw his wine cup away, his hatred of old surging up in his heart. What was overflowing was his anger!Hanging onto an old acquaintance in front of all these people! Ye Zhao really wasn't sparing him any humiliation!He pulled off his sumptuous ivory-colored robes, exchanging it for one of his friends' navy blue ones, and told them to stay there to have fun, while he quietly left the table. He slipped into the noisy crowd of the Qin riverbank and soundlessly reached the underside of a bridge, not far from Ye Zhao and the others. He bent down, inspecting his surroundings, and greeted the dirty beggar sleeping off to the side, throwing him two pieces of silver and making him deliberately go begging near Prince Yinuo. His stench would force the party to come on the bridge, so he could eavesdrop on whatever sweet nonsense words of love they were saying!The beggar accepted the order and quickly handled it.When Prince Yinuo and Ye Zhao walked to the bridge, his height enabled him to catch sight of Xia Yujin. He nonchalantly lowered his head as he walked, but the corners of his mouth pulled up to reveal a scheming smile.
