Zheng Yuheng was pulled into the quilt, surrounded by the scent of incense on her body and in the bedroom. His ears were numb, and he felt the heat along his hearing, as if it had drilled into the gaps between his bones and into his mind.
　　Dong Lingjiu raised his hand and touched the back of his ear with his fingertips.
　　"You..." Zheng Yuheng said a word, paused, and whispered, "You knew I was back?"
　　Dong Lingjiu closed her eyes and replied, "I guessed, I'm not sure."
　　"Not sure? You're not sure and you're waiting for me?" Zheng Yuheng caught the point, leaned over to kiss her sweetly, and whispered to her while nuzzling her, "You're just too reserved. You don't say anything directly. It doesn't matter. Even if Tan Niang doesn't say it, I know that Tan Niang is special to me. You like me."
　　Dong Lingjiu smiled, hooked her fingers on his collar, and said, "You're still so dishonest even though you're locked up? You lustful flower thief."
　　Before Zheng Yuheng could answer, her hand touched the other's wrist. The wrist bone had been rubbed red by the cold chain. Her fingers turned slightly, stroking along the inside of the pulse, and touched the bright red tender flesh that was rubbed.
　　Zheng Yuheng hissed softly, and then held back and didn't make a sound.
　　Dong Lingjiu's hand stopped on his broken skin wound, thinking: "If this goes on... If the interrogation takes too long, your hand will probably suffer again." His
　　hands often suffer. The last time he was in charge of the transportation of grain and grass to the northern border, he was first rubbed by the reins and then assassinated. It took an unknown amount of time for his hands to recover after returning to the palace. The newly grown skin and flesh were delicate and tender. This time, it happened again.
　　Zheng Yuheng said: "It's okay, I'm fine... I, I miss you so much that I can't sleep."
　　He said aggrievedly and pitifully.
　　Dong Lingjiu knew he would say that. She said: "Well... I know, you are good in everything else, but you are useless in this one."
　　Zheng Yuheng grabbed her fingers, put them to his lips and kissed them. His soft lips pressed against her fingertips. He didn't refute her words, but stretched out his tongue and licked them in small sips.
　　Dong Lingjiu pressed his tongue, stroking the small fangs on one side of her neat teeth, and said softly: "It seems that it's all my fault. What kind of habit have I cultivated in you?"
　　Zheng Yuheng had licked her too many times. Dong Lingjiu was like a sweet cake with a fragrant smell in front of him. He used this action to suppress the fluctuating desire in his heart, just like a small animal biting her with its canine teeth to win her attention and pity.
　　Dong Lingjiu pulled her hand back, but he held her wrist.
　　"Tan Niang is not wrong." He said, then turned over, with his arms on both sides, not pressing on her, but his breath was very close, "It's all my fault, but... We have to make do with the emergency, time is urgent, let's start." Dong Lingjiu
　　blinked and asked knowingly: "What do you mean, let's start?"
　　Zheng Yuheng didn't believe that she didn't understand, and acted coquettishly with her a little anxiously. Seeing that Dong Lingjiu was indifferent, he suddenly got under the quilt and bit the loose belt tied in front of her.
　　The nightgown was loose, and the belt was a slipknot that was easy to untie. It was so dark, yet he was able to untie the belt.
　　The clothes rustled, and Dong Lingjiu didn't understand why at first, but then her body suddenly tensed up, and she reached out to grab his hair. His hairpin was knocked aside, and her fingers went through his hair, which was originally loose, but then suddenly stretched and clenched.
　　Dong Lingjiu lowered her voice and said, "...Don't mess around. If you lick me again, I'll kick you."
　　The fabric of the bed curtains rustled, and Little Zheng climbed out of the dark bed, spread his arms to hug her, and looked over with an innocent look on his face.
　　Dong Lingjiu then let go of her hand.
　　"I can't control you anymore." She sighed and said helplessly, "I thought you came to the Cining Palace in the middle of the night to discuss the current predicament with me, but I didn't expect you to come here to die. I have spoiled you for too long. In the past few years, I have been holding you in my hands for fear of breaking you, and holding you in my mouth for fear of melting you. You haven't even lost a single hair."
　　Zheng Yuheng said, "I'm not disobedient." Dong
　　Lingjiu glanced at his lips and said, "You are just disobedient."
　　Little Master Zheng muttered, "It's not like there has never been a time before..."
　　"Huh?"
　　"...Of course it's all my fault," he quickly changed the words, grabbed her hand and placed it on his face. After being stroked a few times, he closed his eyes comfortably, took a deep breath, and then said, "Your Majesty didn't let me see you...That Xing Wenchang, he was still showing off to me, I'm so pitiful."
　　Dong Lingjiu said, "Didn't you listen when I told you not to come?"
　　Zheng Yuheng said embarrassedly, "I'll only stay for a while, very short time."
　　Dong Lingjiu didn't expose him. She sorted out her thoughts and said to him, "I've already instructed Jiang Yunhe, he will treat you properly. Although there will be other jurors and audience, it won't be a problem. As long as you don't get irritated by them and say anything you shouldn't say, this matter will naturally be resolved."
　　Zheng Yuheng nodded.
　　Dong Lingjiu continued, "If you want to avoid being manipulated, you must have the power to avoid being manipulated. One day, you will replace a prime minister in the court and make a show of force in the government hall of Great Yin. By then, no one will threaten or challenge you with the matter between you and me. They dare not."
　　Zheng Yuheng hugged her tightly, he exhaled, and said softly, "I know... I know."
　　"You know everything, but you act like a child in front of me." Dong Lingjiu laughed and said gently, "Go pour me a cup of tea."
　　"Okay."
　　Zheng Yuheng climbed up, he retracted the chain, got up and lit the lamp.
　　The light was on, reflecting his white wrist, which had been rubbed with a deep red scar by the handcuffs. Zheng Yuheng did not pay attention, but poured the still warm water in the teapot into the cup, and turned back to the couch.
　　Every step he took would sound the symphony of chains, the sound of breaking was cold and dull. Zheng Yuheng looked up and saw Dong Lingjiu leaning on the bed with long hair, looking over.
　　Under a small lamp, the warm yellow firelight shone through the veil, reflecting between her soft eyebrows and eyes. The moment their eyes met, it was as if they were in a hazy, old scroll of ancient painting. She sat under the lamp and in the painting, and was startled by his sight.
　　Zheng Yuheng's heart seemed to be gently tapped, filled with water waves, rippling circles after circles.
　　If this wasn't in the deep palace... how great it would be.
　　Zheng Yuheng came to his senses and handed her the teacup. The two sat quietly for a while, and the only sound around them was Dong Lingjiu drinking tea leisurely. Then, the teacup was put down, and her eyes stayed on Zheng Yuheng's wrist, and she didn't move for a long time.
　　"Tan Niang..."
　　"Yeah." She withdrew her eyes and responded, "Okay, come on."
　　"Come...?" Zheng Yuheng was stunned for a moment.
　　"Don't you only stay for a while?" She asked back, "Time is tight?"
　　Zheng Yuheng's face suddenly became hot. He turned his head to look at the sky, sat down at the end of the bed and sighed, "I can't bear to leave again. It's already late. Go to sleep. I'll go back after you've fallen asleep."
　　Dong Lingjiu said, "So good?" Zheng
　　Yuheng rubbed against her and said, "I've always been very good."
　　Dong Lingjiu looked at him and smiled, saying nothing. But her eyes reflected on Zheng Yuheng, which was full of infinite tenderness, making people's hearts beat.
　　Zheng Yuheng's Adam's apple moved slightly, he covered his heart and rubbed it, exhaled slowly, and said to himself: "Zheng Yuheng, Zheng Yuheng, you have to control yourself, don't be so infatuated, this is really useless."
　　Before he finished admonishing himself, Dong Lingjiu closed his eyes, raised his hand and stroked the back of his hand, and whispered: "Okay, good boy, good night."
　　Zheng Yuheng swallowed his saliva and said, "Good night..."
　　He turned his head abruptly, silently muttering in his heart: Control yourself, I am so gentlemanly, calm down... But she said I am very good, who can bear to leave her side...
　　Unfortunately, at this time, the infatuated little Zheng had forgotten his instructions before he came in.
　　Even if Zheng Yuheng's self-control ability is insufficient, Aunt Yuewan's self-control is much stronger. When it was just dawn, she dragged the flower thief away from the empress on time, taught him a lesson expressionlessly, and then asked someone to follow Zheng Yuheng to send him back.
　　He was really thoughtful and conscientious.
　　…
　　On the 18th day of the twelfth lunar month, the interrogation of Zheng Junzhi had lasted for several days.
　　With Dong Lingjiu's instructions, Jiang Yunhe naturally would not embarrass him. Wei Que, sent by the Ministry of Justice, also turned a blind eye. There was actually no progress in this matter. Only the Censorate kept asking questions, and even stopped collecting testimony. Instead, they became mainly torturing his spirit.
　　After all, it was not very pleasant to serve in office while serving a crime and being interrogated every day.
　　Many times, it was just asking again and again what had been explained, and holding on to the vague parts of the matter... This was actually a different kind of forced confession, but because the procedure was legal and reasonable, even Jiang Yunhe had no way to stop it, and only shortened the interrogation time each time.
　　On that day, it snowed heavily.
　　The snow fell heavily, and the red walls and green tiles of the palace were white, looking clean. Meng Cheng sent someone to bring Zheng Yuheng back from the Qilin Guard Prison. He didn't ask him to bow, but just let him sit down and rest.
　　The interrogation on the other side also stopped temporarily with the intervention of the emperor.
　　Zheng Yuheng sat below the little emperor, holding the teacup in silence, moistening his dry and thirsty lips and tongue, and didn't speak for a long time.
　　Meng Cheng ignored him at first and continued to review memorials. When his hands were tired from reviewing, he stood in front of the window to relax his muscles and bones, and found that Zheng Yuheng still didn't say a word. He suddenly felt that this was not a solution. He frowned and turned to look at him: "Are you stupid?"
　　Zheng Yuheng lowered his head to drink water and said silently: "Almost..."
　　Meng Cheng was not angry. He glanced at the layers of white bandages wrapped around his wrist and said: "Is your hand not healed yet?"
　　"It hurts more and more." Zheng Yuheng said in a low voice, a little listless, "It's okay..."
　　"Usually you can quarrel with me eight hundred times a day, but now you can't quarrel once in eight days. It's really fresh." Meng Cheng said, "Can you write? Draft an edict for me." Zheng Yuheng
　　didn't move at all. He slumped down with his head pressed on his arm and said: "...Kill me."
　　Meng Cheng was speechless and choked. After a while, he asked: "Does the queen mother know about you like this?"
　　Zheng Yuheng said resentfully: "I haven't seen her for five days."
　　"Oh..." The little emperor stretched out the words, thinking while looking at the snow, and then wondered, "No, why do I feel that my mother has become more and more unhappy these days? When I go to her place, even breathing loudly feels wrong."
　　Zheng Yuheng was listless and silent.
　　The little emperor muttered to himself: "Mr. Wei is too unkind. He even makes things difficult for me so obviously. How can this go on... You are so listless and can't say a few words. I feel a little uncomfortable with the quietness when I review memorials."
　　Zheng Yuheng kept pretending to be dead.
　　Meng Cheng muttered to himself for a long time before turning around and saw that Zheng Yuheng was so tired that he was about to fall asleep. He pinched the bridge of his nose, and was about to ask Ziwei Guard to take their boss back to sleep, when a little eunuch suddenly came in a hurry and knelt down outside the threshold with a plop. The hanging door was a little high: "Your Majesty, Xuan Duzhi of Cining Palace has sent a message that the Queen Mother has left the palace--"
　　Meng Cheng was stunned for a moment, and Zheng Yuheng, who was half dead just now, stood up suddenly and stared at the little eunuch outside the door.
　　"The Queen Mother went to the National Temple to burn incense and pray for blessings, and said she would visit the women of Doctor Wei's family on the way. Madam Wei celebrated her 70th birthday the day before yesterday, and wrote to the inner court, asking for a title for her grandson's wife."
　　"Got it, you can leave."
　　Meng Cheng said in a serious tone, turned his head and glanced at Zheng Yuheng, and said, "Why do I feel..."
　　"...It's not on the way..." Zheng Yuheng murmured.
　　The author has something to say:
　　Don't want to lick it all the time, Xiao Zheng!