Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The Ninth Prince's tone was so natural that Gao Zhen didn't even have a chance to think anything improper.

Soon, a belt appeared on the square table, followed by underpants. The robe was draped over Gao Zhen's shoulders, and after he called out "Your Highness," he slowly pulled it over himself, clutching it to his chest. The hem of the robe brushed against his knees, tickling him slightly.

The heat from the charcoal had turned half of his body pink, making the ubiquitous bruises on his back, arms, legs, and waist even more glaring.

Zhou Yunning took one look and couldn't help but curse, "Those damned eunuchs."

"Bear with it."

Zhou Yunning carefully laid a hot, soaked cloth over Gao Zhen's back. The wet cloth clearly revealed the bruises beneath. He scooped up a ladle of hot water, holding it in one hand while gently sprinkling it with the other, continuously dousing the cloth to prevent the person beneath from catching a chill. After sprinkling three times, he carefully pressed his fingertips against the bruises, immediately sensing the slight tremble of the body beneath.

"If it hurts, you can cry out."

"Ugh!" Gao Zhen shook his head vigorously, biting down on the bundle of clothes in his arms. For the first time, he realized that when bruises are opened up by heat, it feels like countless tiny wounds suddenly bursting open. Though the pain only lasts a moment, it's enough to make one suffer.

This fellow's constitution is truly unusual!

The Ninth Prince frowned slightly, applying hot compresses to Gao Zhen ten full times before finally picking up the ointment to apply it. He scooped out a portion with his finger but paused just as he was about to touch Gao Zhen's skin.

He took a careful look at his own hands, scarred and rough, with not one presentable finger among the ten. He could only shake his head helplessly and say, "Wait a moment."

Then, with long strides, he walked over to the table where the medicinal herbs were kept, found a well-rounded stone pestle, applied the ointment to its smooth end, and began spreading it on Gao Zhen's back.

The Ninth Prince started standing... then half-squatting... and finally crouching on the ground to apply the ointment to the wounds on the back of Gao Zhen's calves.

Gao Zhen remained stiff throughout. He could feel the Ninth Prince's breath against his skin and the slight sway of his body hair from the exhales. At times like this, he could only hold his breath, stay silent, and fear making any strange sounds that might betray his secret.

If yesterday's events were too blurry to judge, today, Gao Zhen was fully aware and thus had a deeper understanding of the Ninth Prince's self-control. He was almost certain that the Ninth Prince truly had no improper intentions. Even when faced with the Gao family's second son, whom the original work described as an "alluring beauty," the Ninth Prince was solely focused on applying the medicine.

Not only did he show no improper thoughts, but he also didn't take advantage of the situation. He even went out of his way to fetch a stone pestle to avoid touching Gao Zhen directly.

Gao Zhen took a deep breath, unsure what to make of these feelings.

Gao Zhen felt that the Ninth Prince couldn't be pretending. Perhaps he was truly this ascetic, or maybe he was naturally uninterested in males of this type?

That shouldn't be the case—the original work clearly established that the two had a child together.

Could it be that because he had transmigrated, the Ninth Prince had undergone a change...

"Apply the front yourself."

Zhou Yunning pressed the ointment into Gao Zhen's hands, then picked up the other half-bucket of warm water and left.

Gao Zhen gripped the bamboo jar of ointment, his fingers tightening. A hard-to-define feeling, definitely not relief.

He felt somewhat displeased.

……

Zhou Yunning carried half a bucket of hot water to the clearing south of the eastern wing. Leaning against the wall, he breathed heavily, his mouth, nose, and chest once again filled with the intense scent of peony flowers. It had dissipated this morning—how could it have returned?

Closing his eyes, he saw that person's back; opening them, it was still there.

Zhou Yunning undid his hair tie, took off his robe, lifted the bucket, and poured the water over himself from head to toe. The cool evening breeze blew, finally clearing his mind. Leaning against the wall, he breathed heavily. After what felt like an eternity, he began reciting the Mind-Calming Mantra as he dressed.

It wasn't until fifteen minutes later that he finally returned to normal.

When he returned with the bucket, Gao Zhen had already dressed. He still kept his head down, avoiding eye contact, but there was a slight difference in his demeanor.

"What's wrong?" the Ninth Prince asked.

Gao Zhen was standing in front of the water basin, studying his reflection. It was indeed the "alluring beauty" described in the original work, with enchanting charm radiating from the corners of his eyes and brows. Unfortunately, it had no effect on the Ninth Prince.

Hearing the Ninth Prince's question, he still didn't look up, only saying, "Your Highness, you instructed me earlier to spread the ointment like this on the wound on my neck. Am I doing it correctly?"

Zhou Yunning approached but didn't get too close, standing half a meter away. Seeing that the wound on Gao Zhen's neck had almost healed, he said with relief, "Last night, to detoxify you, I sucked a lot of blood from this wound. The white cloth was almost not enough to wrap it. I didn’t expect it to heal so quickly. It seems you’re recovering well."

So that's how it was. That blood had come from here.

"Thank you for saving my life, Your Highness." Gao Zhen turned to bow deeply, but Zhou Yunning quickly stepped forward to stop him.

Their figures were reflected together on the water's surface—one delicate and lovely as a lotus blossom, the other with half his face scarred like a fearsome deity. At this moment, the fierce deity's hand supported the lotus's elbow, his gaze gentle, creating an unexpectedly harmonious scene. But with a slight ripple, the water surface trembled, and the image shattered.

Through Zhou Yunning's words, Gao Zhen had pieced together a rough truth from last night's fragmented memories. Earlier, he had searched through the original host's memories and learned about the peril of losing all reason during the heat cycle of someone like him.

At this moment, Gao Zhen was filled with gratitude, wanting only to repay him with a massage as a gesture of thanks.

He was truly grateful that the person he encountered yesterday was Zhou Yunning. Had it been anyone else, he would likely have been reduced to a plaything by now.

Gao Zhen said, "Your Highness, it's almost dark. I'm afraid I might press the wrong pressure points if I can't see clearly later."

"Alright." Zhou Yunning released Gao Zhen, turned, and walked toward the main room, saying, "Then come with me."

He had been busy taking care of him all day, and Gao Zhen didn't want to accept it without giving anything in return. He wanted to repay him by helping him ease his muscle tension.

Gao Zhen lowered his eyelashes, pushing down these confusing emotions in his heart, and followed the Ninth Prince into the northern room.

The Ninth Prince tossed his outer robe onto a chair, turned over on the bed, and lay face down.

Gao Zhen also took off his shoes and climbed onto the bed. He straddled the Ninth Prince's waist, his soft hands feeling the meridians on either side of his spine. He first rubbed, then kneaded until the skin grew slightly warm, switching to using his thenar eminence to push, and finally applying pressure and tapping.

He tapped rapidly. Gao Zhen used all his strength, his entire body trembling with effort, and Zhou Yunning shook along with him. The bed creaked noisily with their movements.

Gao Zhen was fully focused and serious. As he applied pressure and tapped the points, he unconsciously slid backward, eventually sitting on the only most padded area of the Ninth Prince's body—yielding and comfortable to sit on. Once seated, Gao Zhen stayed put and began pushing the skin. It was only then that he realized how tall the Ninth Prince truly was and how short his own upper body was. To cover the entire length of his spine, he had to stretch forward considerably.

His hair slipped down unnoticed from Gao Zhen's shoulders onto the Ninth Prince's back, and wherever it brushed, the muscles twitched slightly.

So ticklish!

Zhou Yunning closed his eyes.

After enduring it for some time, he couldn't take it anymore and said, "A Zhen, that's enough. It's already dark. Let's rest."

Gao Zhen's hands paused. "Alright. How was that, Your Highness?" He slid off Zhou Yunning and stood by the bed to put on his shoes.

"Very good—Huh? Where are you going?" Zhou Yunning frowned, staring at the shoes in Gao Zhen's hand.

Gao Zhen said in surprise, "To the western wing..."

Zhou Yunning grabbed his arm and pulled him back onto the bed. "What western wing? There's not even a bed there. How are you supposed to sleep?"

Night had fallen, darkness filling the room.

Gao Zhen let Zhou Yunning's arm remain draped over his shoulder, rolled over, and whispered, "Mm. Thank you, Your Highness."

Zhou Yunning sat up, reached for the quilt at the foot of the bed, and covered both of them, saying, "This is my only quilt."

Gao Zhen: ?

Then why’d you tell me to sleep in the west wing earlier? Were you trying to freeze me?

No, that’s not right, he thought.

On second thought, given the kind of person Zhou Yunning is, he would probably have given up the quilt for me and chosen to endure the cold himself. So, what made him change his mind?

In the darkness, his beautiful peach-blossom eyes curved into crescents.

Who cares what it is!

He wasn’t about to waste energy pondering such things!

However,

That nagging irritation in his heart since earlier had also dissipated.

The next morning, when Gao Zhen opened his eyes, he found himself snug against the Ninth Prince’s chest, and the bedding was warm. Gao Zhen quietly glanced up at Zhou Yunning’s face, but after just one look, he quickly averted his gaze.

Half angel, half monster—he thought with a heavy sigh.

He asked the system: Can you help heal the Ninth Prince’s face?

Unsurprisingly, the system gave him no response.

Feeling restless, Gao Zhen closed his eyes to check the system data. To his surprise, things were looking up—the Ninth Prince had provided him with another 156 Favorability Points. Yesterday, he had noticed that a faint red glow flickered in the back of his mind whenever he was near the Ninth Prince. He knew it was Favorability Points increasing, but he hadn’t expected it to be this much. Checking the mission, he saw: "Expand Plot [Warm His Heart] Progress: 5%."

Seeing that the progress was only 5%, Gao Zhen immediately realized that just doing chores for the Ninth Prince and giving him massages was far from enough. The Ninth Prince had endured too much unimaginable suffering in this dark and frigid palace, and the scars deep within his heart were not so easily reached.

Even if they could be touched, what then?

Gao Zhen didn’t think he had the courage to face the cruelty that had been inflicted on the Ninth Prince, just as he didn’t dare to look at his half-scarred face.

Still, even if Gao Zhen was timid, his desire to do something for the Ninth Prince was genuine.

Why not start by making him breakfast?

With that thought, his mood lifted. He quietly slipped out of bed, shoved his feet into his shoes, and headed to the east hall.

On the way, he spent 150 Favorability Points to increase his Karma Points.

His Karma Points rose from 10 to 25, while his Favorability Points dropped to just 6. It seemed he needed to earn more Favorability Points. So, he decided to make the breakfast as delicious as possible.

Before entering the room, Gao Zhen was feeling confident. But once inside, he was puzzled—where’d all the firewood go? He distinctly remembered stacking it by the wall next to the stove pit yesterday, so why was it all missing today?

Gao Zhen searched the east room but found nothing to burn, so he went outside to look. The wood that had been moved from the west wing yesterday, as Gao Zhen had asked the Ninth Prince, was set aside for building a bed, so he left it alone and searched elsewhere.

But after circling the courtyard three times, he still couldn’t find a single piece of firewood. There was plenty of charcoal, neatly stacked in the windbreak room in the southeast corner. Gao Zhen was frustrated—was his "Warmth Plan" going to fail again?

Just as he was at a loss, the door of the north room swung open with a loud clatter. The anxiety on the Ninth Prince’s face vanished the moment he saw him.

"What are you looking for?" he asked.