[BL] Eternal Spring ✔️

第四十一章

A/N  finished 1/3 diplomas!! :ppp a step closer to freedom XD

Liu Qingyuan glanced briefly at the iron bars in front of him. It seemed that after the last incident, they weren't taking any chances even if this underground prison was meant for prisoners who'd committed far more heinous crimes. Liu Qingyuan looked down, a wry smile gracing his lips. Treason counted as a serious crime, didn't it? He didn't have the energy to think about the details.

His hands had been shackled, the chains attached to the ceiling and deliberately raised to a height where the most comfortable position, besides standing, was kneeling on the straw-covered ground. The wound on his stomach had already recovered from the blow from that guard, but that unsettling feeling in his meridians hadn't abated, rather, it had gotten worse. These past few days, he felt increasingly antsy.

Liu Qingyuan closed his eyes, sweat beading at his temples. That strange sliding feeling appeared again, the feather-shaped mark repeatedly flaring with a pain that matched the tempo of his heartbeats.

In the midst of suppressing his addled senses, he heard the faint squeak of the door being unlocked and opened. He glanced up, turning his head away uninterested when he saw who it was. Xiu Ying, lifting the cloak from her head, caught his indifference, an ugly expression momentarily surfacing on her face. Despite her displeasure, she sneered in her heart. We'll see if you're still so arrogant later! She turned to the prison guard at her side. "You can go. Let us talk."

"Noble consort, I can't do that...The rules are strict." The guards here were different, aware that if something happened, there would be no forgiveness, only consequences. Xiu Ying turned back impatient.

"What? If I tell you to leave, just leave!" The guard stiffened, placing a hand on the hilt of his sword.

"Forgive me, Noble Consort, but rules are rules. You being here is already...pushing it."

"You-!" The guard's mouth twitched, swallowing a few choice words. Were all those in the palace so arrogant?

"I'll give you five minutes." His tone brokered no negotiation and Xiu Ying could only glare at his retreating back. He didn't go far either, only stepping a little out of earshot.

Hearing a soft snort, Xiu Ying whipped back around. "You dare laugh at me?!"

Liu Qingyuan finally looked up at her, unconcealed contempt turning the corner of his mouth up. This time, he didn't bother to hide his expression, his eyes as cold as the snow falling outside. "Nobel Consort Xiu, let's not keep up pretenses. What brought you here from the cold palace?" His words were deliberate.

"You, you, you-!" Consumed with rage, Xiu Ying could only repeat that one word. However, she wasn't inexperienced with biting words and quickly collected herself. She scoffed, schooling her expression and reached into her sleeve. A jade bottle fell to the ground, rolling and stopping at Liu Qingyuan's knees. "Well? How about it? I'm offering you a way out." Liu Qingyuan looked slowly at the bottle, nearly laughing in disbelief.

"Noble Consort Xiu wants me to kill myself?"

Xiu Ying looked at him like he was dumb for asking. "A mere servant like you; this is already good. Your corpse could be desecrated in the back mountain, eaten by a pack of wolves." Liu Qingyuan leaned back slightly.

"And if I refuse?"

"You dare refuse? Don't forget your place!"

"Of course," Liu Qingyuan drawled, "I dare laugh at you."

"You-!" She wanted to step forward and give this arrogant guard a good slap! But the wolfish look in his eyes made her hesitate. She was a pampered woman and he was a man who'd trained and fought; the disparity between their strength was only slightly offset by their circumstances right now. She couldn't amidst that she didn't dare, because she really didn't dare.