Chapter 32
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Jiang Juan blinked his eyes.
A token…
When Marquis Anping mentioned it earlier, he hadn’t thought about it. Now His Highness was also talking about this token.
What was it again?
Jiang Juan fell into deep thought.
Ah, it was that jade pendant!
After thinking for a while, Jiang Juan finally remembered. When he first entered the book, the Father Minister had thrown a jade pendant at him, saying something about the engagement being annulled and that the pendant was no longer needed.
Whether the engagement was annulled or not wasn’t important; what mattered was that the jade pendant was too beautiful. Jiang Juan couldn’t bear to see it shattered, so he kept it.
Jiang Juan explained honestly, “I just thought the jade pendant was nice. It was almost smashed at the time, and I thought it was a pity, so I kept it.”
Since entering the book, his schedule had been too full. After receiving the pendant, he was sent to Prince Li Residence, where he gave the pendant to Lan Ting to store. Soon after, Jiang Juan went to the country manor, and the pendant was completely forgotten.
Upon hearing this, Xue Fangli said nothing, but his expression softened considerably.
Jiang Juan thought for a moment. The jade pendant symbolized his engagement with Marquis Anping, and keeping it wasn’t appropriate. So, he asked Xue Fangli, “Your Highness, when we return to the residence, how about I find the jade pendant and have someone pawn it for me?”
Xue Fangli: “…”
His eyebrows twitched as he slowly spoke, “There’s no need for that.”
“Why not?”
Jiang Juan knew the value of the jade pendant. Although it was small, it could fetch a seven-figure sum in the era he came from. With a bright smile, he said, “Your Highness, I’ll use the Marquis’s jade pendant to support you.”
Xue Fangli: “…”
The youth looked at him with sparkling eyes, and all of Xue Fangli’s displeasure and growing darkness dissipated. After a moment, he also smiled slightly and said casually.
“It’s a pity to break it, and there’s no need to pawn it. Let’s just store it in the residence treasury.”
“Sure.”
Jiang Juan agreed readily. Xue Fangli removed the veil from his head and, without looking up, ordered, “We’re not going to the country manor. Return to the residence.”
Jiang Juan: “?”
Why were they returning to the residence? Weren’t they going to the country manor?
Jiang Juan looked up in confusion, and Xue Fangli glanced at him, speaking in a calm tone, “It’s getting hot, and the country manor is too noisy.”
True, there were many insects in the mountains, and when it got hot, their incessant noise was quite disturbing. His Highness was a light sleeper, and the residence was indeed quieter in comparison. Jiang Juan believed him, “I see.”
Since His Highness brought up summer, Jiang Juan, already worried about the heat and the lack of air conditioning, quickly asked, “Your Highness, what do you do in the summer?”
“Hmm?”
“Does it get very hot?”
Jiang Juan said worriedly, “I’m really afraid of the heat.”
Xue Fangli glanced at Jiang Juan, whose brows were furrowed in concern. Leisurely, Xue Fangli said, “There will be ice for you to use. If you wish to go to a mountain manor… that can also be arranged.”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Juan, who had been worried about the oppressive heat of summer, finally felt at ease. No longer fearing he’d be roasted alive, he cheerfully said, “Then I’m all set.”
Steward Gao: “…”
He had been about to speak, his hand already lifting a corner of the curtain. But upon hearing the conversation inside, he quickly withdrew his hand.
Ice was manageable; His Highness had plenty of it. But a mountain manor…
That would require asking the Emperor for permission.
Steward Gao felt a pang of apprehension.
While he was pondering this, a calm male voice sounded from inside the carriage, “Gao De, find some time to visit the palace tonight.”
Steward Gao: “…”
Sigh, he had to endure it.
Working for Prince Li was taxing. The salary was the highest, and His Highness often rewarded him generously. It really was… just too much.
When they arrived at the palace, Lan Ting was not around, so Jiang Juan had to rummage through his own things to find the jade pendant. After a while, he finally retrieved it.
“Your Highness, here you go.”
The jade pendant was of excellent quality, but Jiang Juan didn’t feel particularly attached to it. As soon as he handed over the pendant, he collapsed on the soft couch like a boneless creature. Xue Fangli held the jade pendant in his hand, but didn’t even glance at it, instead looking towards Steward Gao.
“Your Highness, should I store it in the warehouse?”
Xue Fangli glanced at him with a faint smile. “Yes, store it away.”
Steward Gao was momentarily stunned and tentatively asked, “Should I store it away, Your Highness?”
The residence’s warehouse wasn’t a place for just any miscellaneous item, and Xue Fangli simply responded with a “hm,” which Steward Gao understood immediately, smiling broadly.
This is quite a treasure!
Steward Gao eagerly took the jade pendant. He couldn’t resist giving it a couple of kisses before he even left. He hadn’t even warmed it up yet, but he had already decided how to handle this jade pendant.
These days at the county manor, he hadn’t had time to visit the Hongxiu Pavillion. Hong Yu was sure to pick a fight with him again. Sending this jade pendant would surely extinguish a great deal of her anger.
Steward Gao grinned widely, thinking that the Royal Consort was truly a living bodhisattva. Since he had arrived at the residence, His Highness had become less angry and more generous.
Happy as he was, Steward Gao was also perceptive. If His Highness said to store it in the warehouse, he would make it look authentic. So, Steward Gao hurriedly said, “This servant will store it away.”
He bowed and hastily left the room.
Jiang Juan lazily sprawled on the soft couch, glancing up to see Steward Gao leave. He kicked off his shoes and socks, stretching out comfortably.
Xue Fangli glanced at him, then paused briefly, absently rubbing the small sandalwood rosary on his wrist as if lost in thought.
Jiang Juan asked curiously, “Your Highness, what’s wrong?”
Xue Fangli remained silent. Jiang Juan sat up on his own and glanced down at his feet.
“There are so many scars.”
Having scars wasn’t a big deal, but Jiang Juan had fair skin, and these scars were too dark in color, making them quite noticeable.
However, Xue Fangli was looking not at those scars, but at the red mark on Jiang Juan’s ankle.
His skin was fair, his ankles delicate, almost like porcelain, yet touched with a hint of color, like the glow of the setting sun on a snow-capped mountain, breathtakingly beautiful.
“You should apply some ointment.”
After Xue Fangli finished speaking, he asked again, “How did you get that red mark on your ankle?”
Jiang Juan absentmindedly replied, “I probably scraped it. It should be fine in a while.”
He was too lazy to even bother taking off his shoes and socks. He had rubbed against the edge of the soft couch, which had caused the red mark on his ankle.
Xue Fangli nodded, but still didn’t move his gaze away. He had been looking for a while, causing Jiang Juan to lift his head in confusion. “Your Highness?”
This time, Xue Fangli didn’t respond verbally. Instead, he removed something from his wrist and placed it on Jiang Juan’s ankle.
It was a smooth rosary, still warm from his touch, with a deep brown color tinged with a hint of purple.
Jiang Juan played with the rosary for a moment and asked, “Your Highness, why did you put your bracelet on me?”
Xue Fangli lowered his eyes. The color of the small sandalwood rosary was very deep, contrasting vividly against Jiang Juan’s fair ankle, as if it had been painted with thick ink without any restraint.
The beads were also somewhat large, not quite matching the slender ankle of Jiang Juan, but precisely because of their size, they carried an additional meaning.
—It was deliberately placed on the young man’s ankle.
“Give you.”
It took a long time before Xue Fangli responded in this way.
Jiang Juan was confused. “Huh?”
Xue Fangli said calmly, “You gave me a jade pendant, and this sandalwood rosary will serve as compensation.”
Jiang Juan felt there was no need for compensation, after all, His Highness had also given him quite a few things. He pondered how to respond, subconsciously leaned back on the soft cushion, and immediately sucked in a breath.
“… It hurts.”
Jiang Juan was forced to sit upright, his hand reaching behind his back where he felt intense pain. He couldn’t care less about the rosary now, and said to Xue Fangli, “Your Highness, please help me take a look.”
After the acupuncture yesterday, his back had started hurting. Jiang Juan turned his back to Xue Fangli and began unbuttoning his shirt.
Unbeknownst to them, the sky had already grown dark.
The maids silently lit the lamps. Under the dim yellow light, Jiang Juan’s clothes were partially removed, revealing his shoulders and back. His skin was fair and smooth like porcelain, and his prominent shoulder blades were remarkably beautiful, marred only by a bruise.
Watching intently, Xue Fangli reached out.
“Your Highness, how is it?”
Jiang Juan asked through the pain. Xue Fangli replied, “The bruise is still there. We need to apply a hot compress.”
Jiang Juan nodded. Xue Fangli instructed, “Bring a basin of hot water.”
The maidservant hurried to prepare the hot water, and Xue Fangli said to Jiang Juan, “Lie down properly.”
Jiang Juan looked back at him. “Your Highness, will you help me apply it?”
“Yes.”
Jiang Juan hesitated for a moment, then obediently lay down. Soon, the maidservant returned with the basin of hot water. She placed it down and handed a cloth to Xue Fangli.
The cloth was not very soft and had been soaked in hot water. It was both hot and painful when applied to his back. Besides hot compresses, massaging would also help disperse the bruising. So Xue Fangli gently massaged Jiang Juan’s back.
“Your Highness…”
“Endure it for a moment.”
Jiang Juan was extremely sensitive to pain and couldn’t bear it. He was so uncomfortable that he wanted to bite his hand. Xue Fangli glanced at him and offered his other hand to Jiang Juan.
“Don’t bite yourself.”
Jiang Juan shook his head weakly, intending to push Xue Fangli’s hand away, but their fingertips just touched. Xue Fangli continued to massage his back, and Jiang Juan instinctively held onto his hand.
He was tender-skinned and delicate, and even though Xue Fangli used the lightest touch, Jiang Juan still found it unbearable. However, this time, Jiang Juan didn’t cry out in embarrassment; his eyelashes were just moist with tears.
His back was really hurting, so when Xue Fangli massaged it again, Jiang Juan raised his fair neck slightly.
A few strands of black hair were damp and stuck to his neck. He breathed gently, his fingers tightly intertwined with Xue Fangli’s, holding on tightly.
Xue Fangli lowered his eyes, and then his movements paused for a moment.
Jiang Juan was in pain, and not only were his fingers clenched tightly, but his round toes also curled up.
And on his fair ankle, the dark small sandalwood Buddha beads kept swaying.
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