Shocking! The actress was dragged to the regent's bedchamber every night.

Chapter 236 They're outside

Upon hearing this, Su Wuli's body instantly froze.

Yu Chen was still on top of her.

She tried to push it, but it wouldn't budge.

"Don't--"

Su Wuli lowered her voice nervously and gave it another push.

This time he used force, raising his body slightly as he looked down at her.

A hint of displeasure flashed in his eyes, as if his good deed had been interrupted.

Chuhe's voice rang out, lowered slightly, "Don't go, the prince is still here."

Qiaosheng's voice paused for a moment, then went even lower.

"The prince hasn't left yet?"

"Mmm," Chuhe responded, and then said nothing more.

It was quiet outside, but the footsteps lingered.

The two are still there.

Su Wuli's heart was pounding so fast that she felt the sound was about to burst out of her chest and leap out in front of the two people outside.

She anxiously pushed Yu Chen's shoulder, her voice extremely low.

"Get up."

He remained completely still.

"They're out there—"

Su Wuli's voice stopped abruptly; she opened her mouth to utter a half-sound before hurriedly stopping herself.

Although she shut her mouth in time, it was exceptionally clear in the quiet morning.

She quickly covered her mouth.

She stared wide-eyed at Yu Chen.

He covered his mouth with his fingers, afraid to let go, lest he make another sound.

There was no sound outside. Chuhe and Qiaosheng were both silent, and there wasn't even a sound of footsteps.

Su Wuli didn't know if they were still there.

She raised her hand and punched the man's chest, not hard, but very quickly, one punch after another.

Her eyes reddened, but she wasn't about to cry.

It was a mixture of anxiety and embarrassment.

Yu Chen endured her punches without flinching.

She pounded it several times until her hand got sore and fell to her side.

"you--"

Su Wuli opened her mouth to scold him, but no words came out.

The complaints remained unspoken.

She bit her lip tightly, leaving a white mark.

He pressed his thumb against her lips and pried open her bitten lower lip.

His lips were slightly parted, revealing gaps between his teeth.

The sound leaked out from between his teeth again, even more frequently than before.

She closed her eyes, her eyelashes trembling violently.

"They're still...outside..."

"Yes." Yu Chen's gaze was intense.

Su Wuli met his gaze and knew that there was no turning back now.

She could only turn her head and bury her face in the pillow.

The pillow was soft, and her voice was muffled inside, becoming much softer.

His hand tightened around her waist, then moved closer to her ear.

"They're gone."

"You're lying to me..." Su Wuli shook her head, refusing to believe it.

"I heard you," Yu Chen coaxed softly. "Don't be afraid of getting bored."

"No..." Su Wuli still refused.

"If you don't have this kind of keen eye when working in this prince's mansion, you won't last long."

Upon hearing this, Su Wuli was taken aback, realizing that what he said made sense.

He gently turned her face away from the pillow and kissed her lips, coaxing her.

"I swear," Yu Chen said in a low voice, "I won't lie to you."

Her voice finally escaped from under the pillow.

The morning light outside the window slowly moved, from the table legs to the chair legs, and from the chair legs to the corner of the wall.

………………

The doors to the council chamber were open.

Yu Chen sat in the main seat, holding a cup of tea in his hand. He lowered his head and took a sip.

There were three people sitting opposite me.

Zhou Jingchuan, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue; Chen Shaoping, Principal of the Ministry of Works; and Gu Mingyuan, Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

All three of them were summoned today for the purpose of allocating food supplies to the northern border.

Zhou Jingchuan sat on the far left.

Holding the folding book in her hand, she was about to speak when her gaze fell on Yu Chen's face.

Then move it down and stop on his chin.

There was a tooth mark there.

Zhou Jingchuan's words stuck in his throat, and he forgot to put down the folding book he was holding in mid-air.

Chen Shaoping, who was standing nearby, waited for a while but didn't hear anything.

She looked up at Zhou Jingchuan and followed his gaze.

He was stunned when he saw it.

Gu Mingyuan sat on the far right, his back very straight.

When her gaze swept across Yu Chen's face and landed on the teeth mark, she couldn't help but pause for a moment.

He then silently withdrew his gaze, his expression unchanged.

Yu Chen placed the teacup on the table, the bottom of the cup touching the surface.

"When will the supplies for the North arrive?"

Zhou Jingchuan snapped out of his daze and put the folding book down.

He cleared his throat. "Your Highness, the Ministry of Revenue has already allocated grain from three granaries, and it should arrive in the Northern Border in as little as half a month."

As he said this, his gaze drifted to Yu Chen's chin for a moment, then quickly returned to his own.

"Half a month is too long."

Yu Chen leaned back in his chair and tapped his fingers lightly on the edge of the table.

"The provisions must arrive within ten days."

Zhou Jingchuan hesitated upon hearing this.

He thought that half a month was the fastest it could go; any faster and grain would have to be transferred from other states, which would involve complicated procedures and wouldn't be able to get there in time.

But looking at Yu Chen's expressionless face, he swallowed his words.

His gaze drifted back to the tooth mark.

He couldn't help but think to himself that everyone in the court knew that this ruthless regent was not interested in women.

There was no princess, no concubines, not even a maidservant in the mansion.

Someone once gifted a beautiful woman to someone, but she was returned untouched.

No, it's not exactly unchanged either.

No one has ever seen him with a woman in all these years.

Now there's a tooth mark on his chin.

Judging by the size, it is clearly a woman's lips and teeth.

Regardless of gender, who in the world today dares to bite Yu Chen...

The conclusion is no, absolutely no.

But the teeth marks were clearly visible in front of me.

Chen Shaoping was also secretly observing.

He works for the Ministry of Works.

The matter of provisions had little to do with him; he was just called in to sit in on the proceedings today.

He was sitting in the middle, looking at Zhou Jingchuan on his left and Gu Mingyuan on his right.

Their gazes finally settled on Yu Chen's chin.

Looking at the teeth mark, he wondered if the prince had a woman.

But he dared not ask, nor dared he look any longer.

He glanced at it only once before turning his gaze back to the table in front of him.

Gu Mingyuan's voice was a little louder than Yu Chen's earlier.

He sat up straight and looked at Yu Chen, his face expressionless, but his fingers twirled slightly inside his sleeve.

"Your Highness," Gu Mingyuan said, "besides provisions, is there anything else we need to handle in the Northern Border?"

Yu Chen looked at him and spoke in a deep voice.

"At the Ministry of Works, has the bridge over the Blackwater River been repaired yet?"

He asked Chen Shaoping, however.

Chen Shaoping was taken aback for a moment, then quickly nodded.

"Your Highness, the bridge has been repaired and inspected at the end of last month. It is now safe for heavy vehicles to pass."

"Hmm." Yu Chen responded, then looked at Zhou Jingchuan.

"The matter of supplies must be resolved within ten days. If it cannot be resolved, you will personally go to the northern border to deliver them."

Zhou Jingchuan's face turned pale instantly. "Yes."

Gu Mingyuan leaned back in his chair, his fingers fidgeting inside his sleeve.

Looking at the teeth mark on Yu Chen's chin, he understood what was going on.

"Is there anything else?" Yu Chen asked, glancing at the three of them.

All three of them said no.

Yu Chen stood up, turned around, and left.

There was a moment of silence in the council chamber.

Zhou Jingchuan let out a long breath and pulled a handkerchief from his sleeve to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

Chen Shaoping stood up, walked to the door, but suddenly stopped.

She glanced back at Gu Mingyuan.

Gu Mingyuan was still sitting in the chair, holding the cup of tea that had gone cold.

I don't know what she's thinking.

"Lord Gu, aren't you leaving?" Chen Shaoping asked.

Gu Mingyuan stood up and put the teacup down.

"Walk."

He walked to the door and left the council hall with Chen Shaoping.

Zhou Jingchuan followed behind, still clutching the handkerchief in his hand.

No one spoke the entire way.

When they reached the fork in the road, Zhou Jingchuan turned first, and Chen Shaoping followed.

Only Gu Mingyuan remained standing there.

He stood there for a while, looking up at the trees above him.

The leaves fluttered in the wind.

He glanced at it for a few seconds, then looked away and continued walking.