Drunk on Madness - Chapter 79

In the Shaoyang Courtyard, Zhou Mingxuan’s eyes were dazed, his cheeks flushed, as he watched a familiar figure slowly approach him.

In his delirium, Zhou Mingxuan mistook her for Li Xiang, the one who occupied his thoughts day and night. His gaze locked intently on the “her” before him, as if the entire world had come to a standstill.

“Is it… really you?” Zhou Mingxuan murmured softly, a trace of uncertainty in his voice. He slowly reached out, wanting to touch that familiar yet distant face.

Seizing the opportunity, Yu Shu threw herself into his embrace, pressing against his chest. She suppressed the excitement in her heart.

Gazing closely at the one she had longed for day and night, Yu Shu’s face flushed with shyness. Unable to resist, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed the object of her yearning.

Her lips lightly brushed his as her hands fumbled with the clothing at his waist. Rising onto her toes, she whispered seductively into his ear, her voice tinged with flattery. “Your Highness, it’s me.”

The strong, pungent scent of osmanthus flowers, like an invisible hand, rudely tore through his dream, jolting him awake from his slumber.

He frowned, covering his nose and mouth with his hand, trying to ward off the unpleasant odor. With a forceful shove, he pushed Yu Shu away.

After scanning his surroundings, his eyes suddenly fell upon a tightly shut window. He rose and strode to the window, pushing it open abruptly.

As he passed the golden beast-shaped incense burner, he realized it wasn’t the usual sandalwood scent and immediately sensed something amiss. He kicked the golden beast burner, sending it clattering to the floor. Zhou Mingxuan’s face turned ashen as he glared furiously at Yu Shu, whom he had pushed to the ground, the culprit behind it all.

A faint, dark red flame seemed to ignite in Zhou Mingxuan’s black eyes. “How dare you drug me? Who gave you the audacity?”

He recalled how he had fallen into Chen Minying’s trap in a similar manner before, forcing him to marry her and causing his separation from Xiangxiang. The combination of fresh resentment and old hatred made his gaze icy cold.

Seeing Zhou Mingxuan’s intense rage, Yu Shu’s eyes filled with terror, and her body trembled as she pleaded for mercy: “Your Highness, Yu Shu knows her status is lowly and unworthy of standing by your side.”

“This servant saw that Your Highness was pining away from longing and could not bear it. If Your Highness does not reject me, this servant is willing to offer her body, content to be the shadow of the consort, and stay by your side forever.” After speaking, her face flushed with embarrassment, and she began to remove her clothes.

Just then, guards, hearing the commotion, rushed in. Seeing the scene, they were at a loss, quickly turning their faces away and preparing to leave.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Mingxuan walked up to one of the guards, drew the sword from his waist, and advanced toward Yu Shu.

Zhou Mingxuan’s lips were pressed tightly together, his eyes exuding a chilling coldness. His originally aloof demeanor suddenly turned sinister and ruthless. “You are nothing like her.” With those words, he thrust the sword forward.

Yu Shu grasped the blade, her eyes filled with resentment, and collapsed to the ground.

At that moment, a terrified scream pierced the silence of the night.

Zhou Mingxuan looked in the direction of the sound, it was Chen Minying and her maid, Qiaoyin. Their eyes were wide with shock, their faces etched with disbelief and fear.

Chen Minying instinctively covered her mouth, but the gaps between her fingers betrayed the panic in her heart. Qiaoyin hurriedly supported Chen Minying, and the two trembled as they backed away, desperate to flee the scene.

But the guards immediately surrounded them and brought them before Zhou Mingxuan.

Crown Princess Chen Minying, having witnessed Zhou Mingxuan commit murder, was terrified by his fearsome appearance. Her body went weak, her face pale as if drained of all blood, and she clung feebly to Qiaoyin for support.

Zhou Mingxuan watched her reaction, a cruel smile curling at the corners of his lips. He turned and yanked the blood-stained sword from Yu Shu’s corpse, the warm blood splattering unintentionally across his cheek like a demon emerging from hell. Terrified, Chen Minying hid behind Qiaoyin, not daring to lift her head.

“Crown Princess, why so frightened?”

He wiped the blade against Chen Minying’s body with its cold tip. “You should feel a sense of familiarity, Crown Princess. After all, you once used such a lowly method to force me into marrying you. It’s a pity Yu Shu lacked your family’s prestige, her death is of little consequence.”

Fear gripped Chen Minying’s heart as she watched the blade sway before her, her mind in chaos, unable to focus.

Her throat dry, she spoke with a tremor, “Your Highness, I was wrong. I was blinded by obsession back then. Please spare me, I’ll never dare again.” Tears welled up and rolled down her cheeks one by one.

Zhou Mingxuan narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze sharp as a blade. “Do you regret it now?”

“I regret it too, but what use is regret? Some things can never be undone.” His eyes, deep as an abyss, were filled with endless darkness and murderous intent, as if they could devour all life, sending chills down one’s spine.

Fueled by alcohol, Zhou Mingxuan contemplated killing her to end it all.

Chen Minying, terrified to her core, pleaded, “I beg you, don’t kill me. Nothing happened between us. I never touched you. Your Highness, please spare me.”

The tip of Zhou Mingxuan’s sword suddenly stilled, his body stiffening slightly, his expression fierce and intimidating. “What do you mean? Say it again.”

Relieved that the blade was no longer pointed at her, Chen Minying let out a sigh and revealed the whole story.

It turned out that although she had lit the aphrodisiac incense that day, being a sheltered young lady, she knew little about intimate matters between men and women. After undressing them both, she had only kissed him innocently, and nothing further had occurred.

Later, after becoming the Crown Princess and seeing the ancestral fertility diagrams in the palace, she finally understood the difference.