The Aloof Prime Minister is Pregnant with the Rival General’s Child - Chapter 7

“If it is not a woman, yet someone who can cause you such misery, then it must be Shi Hanshang, right?” Qin Zhen patted him with an air of realization. “Sigh, that man is used to being haughty and arrogant. He finds fault with everyone, but he is even worse with you. You two have been fighting for so many years; have you not adapted yet? Why the long face?”

“Ugh,” Sheng Yuli pushed his hand away again, his sword-like brows furrowed deeply. “This time is different! I told you, you would not understand.”

“Fine, fine, I do not understand. But I do know how to make you happy!” Qin Zhen was not offended. He gave Sheng Yuli a wicked grin. “Come on, follow me to Xiangsi Lei and let me open your eyes!”

“The women there have skin like congealed cream and bodies like white jade. They have slender waists and elegant hair, with hands as soft as young grass. I guarantee that once you have had a taste, you will never forget the sensation!”

“And that is not all; those women can sing and dance, they have voices like heaven, and they are masters of the zither.”

Qin Zhen continued his vivid description, but as the words fell into Sheng Yuli’s ears, every single sentence began to overlap with certain images in his memory.

Skin like congealed cream, body like white jade, slender waist, soft hands; with every phrase he heard, the figure that surfaced in his mind was clearly that of Shi Hanshang.

As the memories delved deeper, they finally came to a grinding halt at a specific point. Sheng Yuli finally spoke with great difficulty. “Hey, Qin Zhen, I have a question for you.”

Qin Zhen was not annoyed at being interrupted. He patted his shoulder. “Sigh, why be polite with me? Ask away.”

Sheng Yuli’s expression was quite unsightly; his face shifted between flushed red and pale white. After hesitating for a long while, he stammered, “The first time doing that, does it always hurt a lot?”

“Huh?” Qin Zhen had not expected this question. He thought about it and nodded. “For the most part, I suppose so. The first union brings blood; of course it hurts. But the pain varies from person to person. If the movements are gentle enough, it might not hurt at all.”

“Then,” Sheng Yuli felt a lump in his throat. “Does it also hurt in the back?”

“The back?” This actually stumped Qin Zhen. Though he was a bit confused, there were plenty of playboys in the capital with such preferences. Without overthinking it, he rubbed his chin and pondered for a moment. “Hiss, it should be the same as the front, I imagine.”

Sheng Yuli’s face turned white as he listened.

It was bad. Two nights ago, he had been so dead drunk that his words and actions were beyond his control. Naturally, he would not have had the presence of mind to be gentle. Furthermore, since he had no experience in these matters, he likely had not known how to show any tenderness.

No wonder Shi Hanshang’s walking posture was so strange today. It seemed he must be in quite some discomfort.

Sheng Yuli slapped his forehead in frustration. With a heart as heavy as dead ashes, he asked Zi Mo, “Did you bring a weapon?”

“Ah?” Suddenly addressed, Zi Mo was stunned for a moment. Coming to his senses, he hurriedly patted the scabbard at his waist. “I brought one! How could I not carry such a self-defense tool at all times?”

“It is good that you brought it, very good.” Sheng Yuli patted Zi Mo’s shoulder with a profound, mysterious look. “Make sure to remember to bring it from now on.”

Otherwise, he was truly afraid that one day on the way back to his manor, he would be suddenly hacked to death by Shi Hanshang’s sword!

After saying this, Sheng Yuli looked at Qin Zhen again and asked with a pale face, “How many days until it gets better?”

“What do you mean, how many days?” Qin Zhen was bewildered by these fragmented, random questions. It took him a good while to realize Sheng Yuli was following up on the earlier conversation about how long it takes for a woman to heal after her first time.

Seeing Sheng Yuli’s serious expression, Qin Zhen felt a bit awkward and had to speak the truth. “That depends on the person. If someone is physically strong, they will naturally heal faster. Conversely, if they are frail, it will be slower. However, people in the trade at places like Xiangsi Lei usually have their own secret medicines to speed up the healing process.”

“Really?” Sheng Yuli’s eyes lit up.

He thought that perhaps he could still do something to make amends.

“Why would I lie to you?” Qin Zhen’s eyes widened as well. “But why are you suddenly asking this?”

Sheng Yuli avoided answering. Instead, he pushed Qin Zhen toward the palace exit, saying excitedly, “Let us go!”

“Eh? Where are we going?” Qin Zhen followed Sheng Yuli, completely confused.

“Did you not say you wanted to go to Xiangsi Lei? Quick, quick! If we are late, the stock will be, no, I mean, it will be closed!”

“Huh? Did you not say you were not going?” Qin Zhen looked suspicious.

“Oh, that was then, this is now! Can I not change my mind? Let us go, let us go!”

“Hey, hey, what is the rush? It has not even opened yet!”

The next day after the morning court session, Sheng Yuli’s eyes never left that tall figure for even a moment.

Passing by countless officials, Sheng Yuli was terrified of losing him again. When Shi Hanshang turned right, Sheng Yuli turned right; when Shi Hanshang quickened his pace, Sheng Yuli hurriedly followed in lockstep!

Once they had exited the palace gates and reached a quiet, deserted corner, Shi Hanshang, having been followed the entire way, finally lost his patience. He whipped his sleeve around and turned, shouting in rage, “Sheng Yuli! Just what do you want?!”

Sheng Yuli had not expected Shi Hanshang to lash out so suddenly. Unable to dodge in time, he was struck squarely by the fluttering sleeve! He rubbed his aching head and muttered, “I did not want to do anything. Why are you so angry?”

“Then why have you been following me so closely?!” Shi Hanshang felt a surge of fury just looking at Sheng Yuli.

He had been standing all morning, and his waist and back were already aching. Right now, he only wanted to return to his manor to rest. Yet, this person had to persist in annoying him here. It was truly loathsome!

A flash of guilt crossed Sheng Yuli’s eyes. He awkwardly rubbed the tip of his nose. Noticing no one was around, he carefully took an object from his sleeve and held it out to Shi Hanshang. “Here, this is for you.”

Shi Hanshang took a wary step back before looking down.

Lying in Sheng Yuli’s broad palm was a round silver box that looked like a mooncake, though it was decorated with blue and green enamel patterns, making it look rather exquisite.

A faint fragrance wafted from the silver box. Before Shi Hanshang could identify the scent, he instinctively stepped back again, covering his nose with his sleeve. He said coldly, “Poison?!”

Sheng Yuli’s eyes widened in disbelief. “What poison?! This is medicine for injuries!”

At that moment, A Sheng, who had been searching for his master, noticed the dispute. Before he could even feel happy about finding him, he ran over, fearing his master would be mistreated. He happened to catch Sheng Yuli’s last few words and asked in shock, “Medicine? What medicine? Young Master, are you injured?”

Shi Hanshang also seemed to find it inexplicable. He did not lower his sleeve; instead, the coldness in his eyes intensified. His light eyes shimmered with a piercing, defensive chill as he glared at Sheng Yuli.

Sheng Yuli felt helpless. He wondered why on earth Shi Hanshang harbored such immense hostility toward him.

But with someone else present, he really could not speak plainly. He could only tilt his chin meaningfully, his gaze moving from Shi Hanshang’s slender neck down to a certain spot three inches below the waist sash. He said pointedly, “It is to be applied there.”

As soon as those words were uttered, Shi Hanshang’s elegant, ethereal face froze for a moment. As he slowly realized the meaning, his pupils shrank violently. He stepped forward in a rage, swinging his sleeve. “You!”

“Whoa, whoa! You cannot start a fight in front of the Emperor’s gate!” This time it was Sheng Yuli’s turn to retreat. Zi Mo was not by his side, and he had nothing for self-defense. He was truly afraid that Shi Hanshang would suddenly pull something out from A Sheng’s person and leave him bloodied on the spot!

Fortunately, Shi Hanshang did not.

He watched as a wave of overwhelming fury surged through Shi Hanshang’s frost-like eyes. An imperceptible flush of red flashed across Shi Hanshang’s face, which finally, in the next second, slowly returned to a calm state.

He did not know that it was only by nearly crushing his own finger bones that Shi Hanshang managed to suppress his murderous intent.

A certain place behind him was still throbbing with pain, and the red marks on his neck had not completely faded; he had to use his clothing to hide them so others would not notice. He was restless and unable to eat or drink properly. Every time he recalled the memories of that night, he wanted to tear Sheng Yuli into ten thousand pieces!

As anger welled up again, Shi Hanshang snapped his eyes shut and took a deep breath.

But not only could he not do that, he still had to work day and night with the culprit. Seeing that annoying face every day made him almost lose his grip on his jade tablet and hurl it at him several times!

He had suppressed the fire in his heart countless times, thinking he would just treat it as being bitten by a stray dog and let it pass, pretending nothing had happened.

Yet, this tactless fool Sheng Yuli dared to provoke him, constantly reminding him of what had transpired between them!

And the worried questioning from A Sheng by his ear made him even more ashamed and humiliated beyond words.

Rage fueled by shame finally became unbearable. Shi Hanshang no longer wanted to endure it. He forcefully knocked the silver box to the ground, lunged forward, and grabbed Sheng Yuli’s collar, hissing through gritted teeth, “Sheng Yuli!”

The round box hit the ground with a thud!

“Hey, what are you doing?!” Sheng Yuli raised his hands in fear, looking at Shi Hanshang in shock. “Calm down! We are still at the palace gates. If others see this and it reaches the Emperor’s ears, do you still want your dignity as the Prime Minister?!”

He saw Shi Hanshang’s thin chest heaving violently, his eyes full of irrepressible resentment. He pointed at Sheng Yuli fiercely. “Sheng Yuli, I do not need your hypocritical charity! Listen to me: I am treating that day’s incident as nothing more than being bitten by a rabid dog! From now on, you and I shall go our separate ways. You manage your army, and I shall lead the officials and state affairs! If you ever dare to mention it again, then do not blame me for being merciless!”

With that, Shi Hanshang gave Sheng Yuli a violent shove! As if seeing him for even one more second was agonizing, he turned and climbed into his carriage without giving Sheng Yuli a chance to rebut. He shouted angrily, “A Sheng, back to the manor!”

“Ah? Oh, oh, yes!” A Sheng, who still did not understand the situation, scrambled onto the carriage, stealing a glance at the stunned Sheng Yuli in his confusion.

Sheng Yuli’s face was splattered with black mud kicked up by the horse’s hooves. He watched the carriage gallop away until it disappeared at the end of the palace gate. Only then did he snap out of it, and a surge of anger rose in him.

“Hey! Shi Hanshang! What do you mean bitten by a rabid dog? Who is the dog? Get back here and explain yourself! Hey! Shi Hanshang!”

Hearing his General’s voice, Zi Mo hurriedly sought him out. He saw the veins bulging on Sheng Yuli’s forehead from anger. “What about Shi Hanshang? Where is he?!”

Then, seeing his General in such a disheveled state, he asked in astonishment, “General? Who made you look like this?”

Sheng Yuli’s face was as dark as deep water. He wiped the mud from his face and threw it to the ground, saying crossly, “A wild cat!”

Zi Mo was confused. “A wild cat? Where is there a wild cat?”

Sheng Yuli also spoke through gritted teeth, “It is gone! Back to the manor!”

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