The Eldest Princess' Substitute Husband (Transmigration) - Chapter 28

“On your face and on your hand, they are both marks left by me.”

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“I… I… why me?” Song Jinsheng was so flustered by the two of them staring at her that she couldn’t speak clearly.

No, is it too late for me to run now? I should have known better than to chase after a cat with this princess…

“Oh, stop it. You’re the Consort, and Sister is your wife. Don’t be so reluctant.” Wei Qingwan lost her patience. She pulled Song Jinsheng’s sleeve and walked her toward the screen. Standing in front of the bathing room door, she frowned, put her ear to the door, and called out, “Sister? Are you alright?… Sister?”

There was still no answer.

“Her not answering doesn’t necessarily mean something’s wrong. It’s just a cat… Maybe she’s not making a sound because nothing’s wrong?” Song Jinsheng was held by the sleeve by the little princess, who was a head shorter than her. She couldn’t leave even if she wanted to.

Hearing this, Wei Qingwan turned and glared at her, saying angrily, “And you call yourself a Consort? How can you not be worried at all?”

“I…” Song Jinsheng was at a loss for words.

“Enough talk. Go in now.” Wei Qingwan didn’t want to waste any more words. She pushed open the wooden door and shoved Song Jinsheng inside. She whispered, “That cat loves to hide. Maybe it’s hidden and didn’t disturb Sister. Be careful not to scare it, or it might get hurt.”

Song Jinsheng was already halfway inside the bathing room. She looked back at Wei Qingwan with a blank expression, about to say something, but the wooden door “clanged” shut, startling her.

Song Jinsheng grumbled under her breath before she came back to her senses. She lightened her steps and walked deeper into the bathing room.

The bathing room was large, and there was another screen inside blocking the view. Song Jinsheng stopped before she even got there.

She looked around but couldn’t see any trace of the black cat. She wondered if it had really run into the bath area.

Wait a minute, if that’s the case, why would Wei Luoyi be so quiet? Chunyue and Wei Qingwan were yelling so loudly, there’s no way she couldn’t have heard them…

Could it be… that she’s fallen asleep like last time?

With this thought in mind, Song Jinsheng held her breath and continued to walk closer.

The bathing room was silent. There was no sound of Wei Luoyi in the water, nor the faint cries of a black cat. The only thing she could hear was her own muffled footsteps and…

…the pounding of her heart, which felt like it was about to burst out of her chest.

With every step, her nervousness increased.

She didn’t understand. She was a woman, and so was Wei Luoyi. What was the big deal about seeing her…

But it was one thing to say that and another to face it. In a situation like this, she really wanted to turn around and flee.

Do not look at what is inappropriate to see!

Song Jinsheng stopped in front of the last screen before the bath. Her throat was very dry, but she couldn’t help but swallow. She couldn’t stop herself from imagining the scene inside, and her face flushed with her jumbled thoughts…

“Your… Your Highness?” Song Jinsheng called out softly. This was her last desperate attempt before she stepped inside.

As expected, Wei Luoyi still didn’t answer.

Song Jinsheng’s hands, hidden in her wide sleeves, unconsciously clenched into fists. She took a deep breath and cautiously peeked inside—

But the scene inside was not as sensual as she had imagined. Instead, the surface of the water was calm. Not only was there no black cat, but there was no sign of Wei Luoyi either.

Wait, where is she?

Song Jinsheng’s expression froze. She suddenly realized something was wrong and quickly walked toward the bath, frowning as she called out, “Your Highness?”

As soon as her voice fell, she shifted her gaze and saw Wei Luoyi naked, submerged in the clear water. Her limbs were floating, and her long hair, like a splash of ink, fanned out around her. Her face, as white as a sheet, was facing the surface of the water. Her eyes were closed, and her expression was serene.

This is…

Song Jinsheng was so shocked by the sight that she instinctively took a step back, her eyes filled with panic. She no longer had any thoughts of beauty or seduction.

After a moment of shock, she came to her senses. She immediately took off her outer robe, not caring about the rules of etiquette, and wrapped it around her body before reaching into the bath to cover her. Then, she lifted her out of the water.

“Nnngh…” Wei Luoyi was suddenly lifted up. When she opened her eyes, she was startled and caught off guard. When she saw that the person was Song Jinsheng, the murderous intent in her heart subsided. But she still raised her hand in shame and anger and slapped her across the face—

“Are you crazy!”

Song Jinsheng was stunned by the slap. Her eyes widened, and she was in a daze for a moment.

She was a woman with delicate skin. The slap felt both painful and stinging, followed by a ringing in her ears that hummed, so she couldn’t even clearly hear what Wei Luoyi had cursed her with.

When Wei Luoyi saw the unsightly red mark on Song Jinsheng’s fair face, she couldn’t help but frown. The anger in her eyes faded a little. She wanted to say something, but in the end, she said nothing at all.

She glanced down and saw her body was tightly wrapped in Song Jinsheng’s robe. She was completely nestled in her arms. Wei Luoyi tried to push Song Jinsheng away, but she found that Song Jinsheng was holding her so tightly.

“You…” Wei Luoyi saw that Song Jinsheng was silent for a long time. She also realized something was wrong. Her anger gradually faded, but she still couldn’t shake off the shame. She turned her head, her face flushed, and pretended to ask her in a cold voice, “Why did you barge in without permission? Aren’t you afraid I’ll punish you?”

Song Jinsheng lowered her head and took a deep breath, swallowing all the complicated emotions in her heart—a mix of grievance, anger, and a little bit of unexplained sourness.

She looked directly at Wei Luoyi, her expression as solemn as Wei Luoyi had ever seen it. “If you want to punish me, then punish me. But when you barged in last time, why did you act so recklessly?”

“Am I not a person? Don’t I deserve respect? Or do you see me as nothing more than an object without any human rights?”

After I just helped her out of kindness, she slaps me without a word. For a split second, I really wanted to let go. I wouldn’t have cared if Wei Luoyi wanted to die.

When Song Jinsheng said this, the person in her arms was immediately taken aback.

Wei Luoyi was very surprised. She didn’t know why Song Jinsheng would suddenly bring this up. But before she could think about it, she heard Song Jinsheng continue. “I’m crazy? What about you? What were you doing just now? Why didn’t you answer when the Princess and Chunyue called out to you from outside? And when I came in and called you, you still didn’t make a sound?”

“You were fine just now… you…” Thinking of the sight of Wei Luoyi submerged in the water, as if lifeless, Song Jinsheng’s voice broke. Her nose stung, and tears welled up without her knowing. She choked, gritting her teeth as she asked, “What were you… trying to do? Kill yourself?”

“Kill myself?” Wei Luoyi’s eyebrows shot up in confusion at the two words.

“Are you saying… I was trying to kill myself just now?”

Seeing the bewildered look on Wei Luoyi’s face, Song Jinsheng was also stunned. The words she hadn’t yet vented were choked back.

She frowned and looked away, thinking for a moment before looking back at Wei Luoyi. Her voice was much softer now. “Weren’t you? Then why was your entire body in the water…”

Wei Luoyi shook her head, her eyes fixed on her very seriously. “Whenever I take a bath and my mind is on something, I do that. It’s a habit, so I won’t drown.”

“Besides, I don’t do foolish things like that.”

After her explanation, Song Jinsheng was completely dumbfounded.

Her lips opened and closed several times, but she couldn’t form a single word.

She looked at Wei Luoyi, and Wei Luoyi also looked at her.

For some reason, at this moment, she felt that Wei Luoyi’s expression was a little pitiful. Perhaps it was because she had just gotten out of the bath. Her beautiful eyes were like water, her cheeks were flushed, and her full lips were slightly parted.

“Coming out of the clear water like a lotus” was the perfect description.

Song Jinsheng just now realized how… intimate she and Wei Luoyi’s position was. If it weren’t for her robe covering her, Wei Luoyi would be naked…

Thinking of this, Song Jinsheng’s gaze unconsciously dropped to Wei Luoyi’s slender neck. She saw a drop of water slide down the vein on her neck, all the way down, to the depths of the robe…

Song Jinsheng quickly looked away. Her face instantly flushed with crimson as she thought of something, and her breathing became unsteady, her chest rising and falling.

She was about to let go, but when she turned her head, Wei Luoyi’s hand had already moved up and was stroking her left cheek.

Song Jinsheng froze again, letting the tingling sensation on her face spread.

She lowered her gaze and saw Wei Luoyi’s lips part. She murmured, “Does it hurt?”

“…Not very much…” Song Jinsheng’s heart was pounding. She turned her head away again, not daring to look at the person in her arms.

It actually hurt a lot, but the moment Wei Luoyi’s hand touched her, the lingering pain surprisingly disappeared.

“How could it not hurt… It left a mark… Did your hand get a mark last time, too?” Wei Luoyi’s thumb caressed her face, her eyes deep, as if she was admiring something, and they held an emotion even she wasn’t aware of.

She regretted it. Such a fair face now had an ugly palm print. It was a sight she found truly unpleasant.

But then she remembered that the palm print was her own. A sudden feeling was pulled from the depths of her heart… Was it happiness?

On your face and on your hand, they are both marks left by me.

My person should only have my marks on her body.

Hearing her suddenly bring up what happened before, Song Jinsheng was speechless. She wanted to say that Wei Luoyi still remembered, but she felt that asking that would sound too sentimental and… it would show that she cared too much.

“Why aren’t you speaking?” Wei Luoyi saw her silence and got a little annoyed. She held Song Jinsheng’s chin and, just like Song Jinsheng had done to her in the bathing room last time, she forced her face back, making her look at her directly. Her other hand grabbed the front of her robe and pulled her down.

The distance between them was instantly closed.

Song Jinsheng was so panicked that she didn’t even dare to breathe properly. She could feel Wei Luoyi’s soft lips opening slightly, and her breath landed on the tip of her nose as she spoke…

She said, “You were afraid I would die… Are you afraid of me dying?”

“Do you care about me? Didn’t you want to get a divorce from me? Why do you care about me so much?”

“If I had really died… wouldn’t that have been exactly what you wanted?”

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[Author’s Note]

The Princess’s feelings for Little Song are slowly changing~

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