CH 22

When Pei Zheng strode into the hall, Qi Yirou couldn’t help but straighten her back. For some reason, when she met Pei Zheng’s gaze, she felt that he could see through all her thoughts.

The Emperor sent Qi Yirou back to her palace to rest. He was going to talk serious business with Pei Zheng.

Although Qi Yirou was reluctant, she wiped her tears and returned to her residence.

The only ones left in the hall were Pei Zheng and the Emperor. He asked, “What brings Pei-aiqing1 here so late?”

Pei Zheng stroked his sleeves, “Responding to the Emperor, the spy from the southwest barbarian tribe sends a report. The barbarian leader has agreed to the proposal of a marriage alliance, and intends to send envoys to the court2.”

The Emperor’s face visibly brightened. “Good, very good, this way we can recover the borderlands without any bloodshed!”

Pei Zheng’s eyes shifted, and he hesitated, “It’s just…”

The Emperor immediately asked, “What is it? There’s no harm in saying it. Aiqing has put forth great effort in regards to this matter, so I will definitely listen to your advice.”

Pei Zheng walked to the Emperor’s side and whispered in his ear, and the Emperor’s face immediately became strange.

“Is this true?”

Pei Zheng took a few steps back and lowered his head respectfully. “Of course.”

The Emperor sighed. “Since this is the case, in Pei-aiqing‘s opinion, is there a suitable candidate?”

Pei Zheng raised his head. The emotions in his eyes were masked by darkness.

…

The Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Office of Careful Punishment.

Torture weapons of all shapes and sizes lined the walls, looking eerie and terrifying. It was said that there were 72 different types of torture, each one uniquely cruel. No matter how tightly shut one’s mouth was, there was definitely something here that could pry it open.

After Qi Changyi’s hands and feet were bound, he was thrown to the ground. Although he was still considered a prince, without the Emperor’s favor he was inferior to a chief eunuch.

What’s more, he had offended the third princess. He definitely wouldn’t be able to leave this hellhole without at least having his skin torn off.

Qi Changyi was truly terrified. There were bloodstains on the floor and walls, on the tables and chairs next to him, and the entire room carried an iron stench.

He wasn’t really going to die here, was he?

The door was suddenly pushed open, and two tall figures walked inside. They were the guards in charge of the torture, and they looked devilish and ready to kill.

One of the guards stepped forward, picking up Qi Changyi as if he were a little rabbit, tying him to the wooden crucifix3. When he saw that Qi Changyi was only dressed in his underclothes, he smiled evilly.

“Second brother, everybody says that His Highness is an alluring beauty4, but a few of our brothers still don’t believe it. Seeing him today, he really lives up to the rumors.”

“Second brother” took advantage of the fact he was tying the rope around Qi Changyi’s wrists; he reached out and groped Qi Changyi’s white, jade-like fingers.

“This beauty, it’s a pity he’s a man, and his mother is a fool. Pei5, how unlucky.”

“Hey, you can’t say that.” The other man leaned forward and whispered something into “second brother”‘s ear, and they both laughed, looking Qi Changyi up and down.

“Third brother, you’ve got big balls hahaha! If you actually dare do something to the prince, I’ll call you ‘second brother’ instead!”

That “third brother” stared at Qi Changyi, his jade-smooth white face, his bright red lips, and the messy black hair that was stuck to his cheeks. He resembled a beautiful demon6 who had just sucked up a human spirit.

This little demon’s eyes were red, but his refusal to admit defeat only aroused others’ desire to conquer him.

“Third brother”‘s head was muddled by lust, and his huge, rough hands unceremoniously attached themselves to Qi Changyi’s waist, rubbing it twice.

“Anyway, he’s a fool. Would be a pity to torture him to death before letting me7 have some fun with him!”

Notes

1: 爱卿: This is how Emperors referred to their ministers.

2: 天朝: Another name for the Imperial Court, but used when talking to foreign tribes.

3: During punishments, people were tied to wooden crosses, called 十字架.

4: 倾城: Someone so beautiful they can overthrow cities (the same qingcheng as in the title!)

5: 呸: Bah!

6. 妖精: usually refers to a female demon.

7. 老子: Not really sure how to explain it, it’s a way to refer to oneself as well, kind of like ‘old man’.