The Prince Has No Milk to Drink?
Chapter 221 I'm willing to go through fire and water.
When the first ray of morning light pierced through the window lattice and dappled her face, Su Qing's long eyelashes fluttered, and she slowly awoke.
Still groggy, she drowsily opened her eyes, and the first thing that greeted her was a handsome, smiling face.
Shen Yulou was lying on his side beside her, propping his head with one hand, watching her with keen interest.
His gaze was like that of someone admiring a peerless work of art.
Boom!
Memories of last night flooded back like a tide, and Su Qing's cheeks instantly burned crimson.
She instinctively gasped, abruptly sat up, and clutched her chest tightly with both hands.
Looking down, her clothes were perfectly intact, not even a single wrinkle, just... a little loose, it seemed.
She finally breathed a sigh of relief, and then, a strange warmth surged in her heart.
When she looked at Shen Yulou again, her eyes, besides shock, now held a hint of admiration and shyness.
This man... he really didn't do anything!
Under circumstances of a lone man and woman, sleeping in the same bed, even having had skin-to-skin contact, he managed to remain unperturbed.
This... this was a true gentleman, a magnificent hero!
Compared to her own County Magistrate, who only thought with his lower body...
One was a divine dragon in the heavens, the other a stinking maggot in an outhouse.
"You... you're awake?"
Su Qing's face was red, her voice as faint as a mosquito's hum, she didn't even know what she was saying.
Shen Yulou nodded; a beauty waking up was always a pleasant sight.
Outside, the sounds of the officers' search still hadn't ceased, but rather intensified.
Her heart tightened again, and she asked with a worried expression,
"What do we do now? There are people everywhere looking for you outside."
"No matter."
Shen Yulou, however, looked unperturbed, slowly sat up, stretched his limbs, and let out a few crisp cracks.
He looked out the window, his eyes carrying a hint of world-weariness and determination unsuited to his age.
"I'll just force my way out.
A man born between heaven and earth, why fear life and death?
A head lost is just a scar the size of a bowl; eighteen years later, I'll be a good man again!"
He spoke lightly, as if life and death were as simple as drinking a cup of tea.
And these words were something Su Qing had never heard before, making Shen Yulou instantly grow much taller in her heart.
"You're crazy!"
Su Qing panicked and grabbed his arm.
"Those two or three thousand men outside aren't just for show!
They were all trained by that brute Wang Zhi, fearless of death!
How could you possibly break out?!"
A desolate smile appeared on Shen Yulou's face.
"If I can't break out, then it's fate."
After speaking, he suddenly turned around and, to Su Qing's stunned gaze, pulled her tightly into his embrace.
Before Su Qing could react, a domineering kiss was fiercely pressed upon her lips.
Shen Yulou tightened his hold around her waist and gently lifted her.
Su Qing immediately lost her balance, with only her mouth remaining as a point of support.
Su Qing's mind instantly went blank.
This kiss was full of aggression, making it impossible for her to resist; she could only let him have his way.
After a long while, their lips parted.
Su Qing gasped for air.
Shen Yulou, meanwhile, rested his forehead against hers.
His eyes were filled with tenderness, and a hint of regret.
"It's a pity, though, that I, Swear Not to Return, having roamed my entire life and seen countless faces, never encountered a soulmate who could make me pause."
He raised his hand and gently caressed Su Qing's swollen lips with his thumb, his voice hoarse and magnetic.
"Fortunately... I met you before I die.
Perhaps, this is the best arrangement fate could have made for me."
After this series of bold moves, Su Qing completely gave in.
She felt her heart being squeezed by an invisible hand, both sore and swollen.
Her eyes welled up, and tears streamed down uncontrollably.
What County Magistrate's wife, what moral principles—all were cast to the winds at this moment.
Only one thought remained in her mind.
She couldn't let him die!
Absolutely not!
She looked at Shen Yulou, her originally cool eyes now as soft as water, her gaze seductive.
"No... you mustn't die!"
Su Qing desperately clutched his clothes, crying like a pear blossom bathed in rain.
"Tell me, is there any way to save you? I'll beg my husband, I'll beg him to let you go!"
"It's no use."
Shen Yulou shook his head.
"He sees me as his sworn enemy and is determined to eliminate me. If you beg him, it will only make him more certain that there's something between us."
He paused, then changed the subject, a flicker of hesitation in his eyes.
"Unless..."
Shen Yulou stopped mid-sentence, looking as if he wanted to speak but was torn.
"Unless what?!"
Su Qing, as if grasping at a last straw, eagerly pressed him.
"Tell me quickly! As long as it can save you, even if I have to climb a mountain of knives or descend into a sea of fire, I'm willing!"
"Alas..."
Shen Yulou sighed heavily, leaned close to her ear, and whispered a few words in a voice only they could hear.
After listening, the color drained completely from Su Qing's face.
She bit her lower lip with her pearly teeth, a hint of hesitation in her eyes.
But when she looked up and saw Shen Yulou's profound gaze...
Her last line of defense in her heart was completely broken.
"Alright..."
She nodded heavily, her voice incredibly firm.
"For you, I am willing."
...Outside the County Magistrate's yamen hall.
Commander Wang Zhi was pacing like an ant on a hot pan, scratching his head in frustration.
County Magistrate Liu had given a death order: if Swear Not to Return wasn't found today, he would twist his head off and kick it like a ball.
But damn it, he had searched every nook and cranny of this yamen, even the rat holes, three times over, and still no sign of him.
Now, only the County Magistrate's wife's and concubine's bedrooms remained unsearched.
Even with a hundred times his courage, he wouldn't dare to search their rooms.
No matter how formidable Swear Not to Return was, he couldn't possibly be hiding in the madam's bed, could he?
"Damn it, this is truly seeing a ghost!"
Wang Zhi cursed under his breath, just as he was preparing to brace himself and try his luck at the madam's courtyard.
Just then, a graceful figure suddenly emerged from the courtyard gate.
It was none other than the County Magistrate's wife, Su Qing.
She carried a basin of water, her lotus steps light, and walked to the flowerbed in the courtyard, bending to pour out the water.
Just that one movement.
Wang Zhi's eyes instantly went wide, his mouth unconsciously agape, nearly drooling.
Su Qing was only wearing a thin, cicada-wing-like pink gauze dress, loosely hanging on her body.
As she bent, her graceful curves were outlined vividly.
The snowy expanse of her chest was even more tantalizingly visible, making one's eyes want to fall right in.
The neckline of the gauze dress was cut extremely low, and with her movements, a shoulder strap inadvertently slipped down.
Revealing half of a rounded, fragrant shoulder, gleaming with an ivory-like luster in the morning light.
Gulp.
Wang Zhi swallowed hard, feeling all the blood in his body rush to one place.
After pouring the water, Su Qing straightened up, as if only just noticing Wang Zhi.
She feigned surprise with an "Oh!", quickly pulled up the slipped shoulder strap, and a charming blush bloomed on her cheeks.
That coy, shy, and alluring demeanor made Wang Zhi's heart burn with desire, his soul nearly flying away.
"Commander... Commander Wang, why are you here?