Seven Unfortunate Lifetimes, All Thanks to a Single Moment of Impulse

Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Though Chu Kong was blushing, he didn’t hide away. Instead, he slowly began to walk towards us. I drank a cup of wine while observing everyone’s expression. Xinyun leaned closer to me, her face full of panic. Chu Yi was more nervous than I was. Quietly, he went over to Xinyun’s side as if he was afraid that when Chu Kong got here, he’d kill her. The expressions of the maids behind Chu Kong were resentful. Only Chu Kong seemed indifferent. With a raised chin, he stood proudly before me. His face was a bit pale. The pregnancy must’ve weakened his body’s health.

I stroked my chin. Under such circumstances, how should the dialogue of the princess and the general go? I agonized over it without result. Chu Kong took the initiative and sat down beside me. He pointed at Xinyun’s hand, which was holding mine, and said, “Let go.”

Her voice wasn’t loud, but her tone was arrogant and left no room for disobedience.

Fire seemed to have caught on Xinyun’s hand. With a “putong” sound, she immediately knelt down. Tears were in her eyes as she looked at me. It was a display worthy of pity.

At this point, I still hadn’t figured out how General Chu would react, so I continued to act all mean, serious, and general-like with an inscrutable look on my face. And I kept drinking. Naturally, I was waiting for Chu Kong to clean up this mess.

Chu Kong also picked up a cup and poured himself some wine. The maid behind him immediately said, “Princess, you’re pregnant. You shouldn’t drink.”

Chu Kong quietly played with his cup of wine for a while. Then, he placed the cup on the table and pushed it over to Xinyun.

“I’ve forgotten that I was pregnant. That being the case, Lady Xinyun can drink this cup of wine on bengong’s [1. 本宫 (Běn gōng): means I. When someone from the court excluding the emperor refer to him/herself they’ll use ben before their title like ben wang, ben fei, ben jiangjun and ben gong.] behalf.”

Xinyun shivered. Her eyes were frightened. I suddenly remembered that this was no different from getting wine from the royal family2. But I also know that, although Chu Kong was arrogant, he wouldn’t just casually murder someone. This wine must be because he wanted to tease her...

When an emperor or someone from the royal family wants to give you a cup of wine, mostly it’s poison
So, I also opened my eyes and excitedly looked at Xinyun.

“General…”

Chu Yi was more impatient than I. I waved to shut him up. Xinyun looked over to me, asking for help with her eyes. I also stared at her. She seemed to know that I wouldn’t open my mouth to save her, so she gritted her teeth, grabbed the cup of wine, raised it, and drank it all in one go. Xinyun closed her eyes and waited in fear for a long while. But...nothing happened. More horrified than she was before, she opened her eyes and quickly glanced at Chu Kong.

“Princess Qingling, you...”

“What about bengong?”

Chu Kong smiled.

“What about bengong, you can only endure it.”

Xinyun hung her head. Her fists were clenched. The surroundings turned dead silent. Chu Kong’s finger was tapping on the table. His head was bent, so I didn’t know what he was thinking. I felt that staying silent like this was also not the answer, so I let Chu Yi send Xinyun off. Chu Kong and I sat for a while, and then she let the maids wait outside.

After everyone left, I raised my thumbs: “You performed very much like a princess. That arrogant look, cheche... Forcing a woman like that, don’t you feel guilty?”