novelSusiti Chapter 465 Moon Goddess: Qin Mu hasn't come to see me for so long, have I lost my charm?
Chapter 465 Moon Goddess: Qin Mu hasn't come to see me for so long, have I lost my charm?
Qin Mu gently stroked Xu Fenghua's lower abdomen twice, then withdrew his hand, put his arm around her waist, and picked her up horizontally.
Xu Fenghua's body was slightly suspended in the air, and she subconsciously reached out to wrap her arms around his neck.
Her face was burning hot, as red as if it had been dyed with rouge, the heat spreading from her cheeks all the way to her ears and into the depths of her collar.
She didn't struggle; she simply buried her face in his chest, her eyelashes trembling slightly.
Qin Mu carried her to the bedside and gently placed her on the brocade quilt.
The brocade quilt was soft and cool, and spread out beneath her like a body of water soaked in moonlight.
Xu Fenghua lay there, her long hair scattered on the pillow, her flushed face peeking out from between her black hair.
She looked at Qin Mu, at him standing by the bed, looking down at her, with that familiar, ambiguous smile on his lips.
The candlelight flickered behind him, casting a pale golden halo over his silhouette.
I don't know why,
Xu Fenghua felt that she was actually somewhat... looking forward to it?
Qin Mu leaned down, placing his hands on either side of her, enveloping her entirely in his shadow.
His face was getting closer and closer to Xu Fenghua's.
then,
He kissed her again.
This time it was deeper and heavier than before, carrying an undeniable domineering force.
Xu Fenghua closed her eyes and put her hand on his shoulder.
The bed curtains slowly slid down, obscuring the view inside.
The night breeze seeped in through the cracks in the window, causing the candlelight to flicker gently, sometimes bright and sometimes dim.
Qin Mu leaned back on the soft couch, his fingers gently caressing Xu Fenghua's waist, about to say something.
At this time,
A series of very light footsteps came from outside the hall. A palace maid walked in quickly, knelt three steps in front of the soft couch, touched the ground with her forehead, and spoke softly and respectfully.
"Your Majesty, the Prime Minister requests an audience."
Qin Mu didn't even lift his eyelids, and his voice was indifferent.
"Let him wait."
The palace maid lowered her head. "Yes."
She stood up and quickly left the bedchamber.
Xu Fenghua leaned against him, her eyelashes trembling slightly.
The prime minister's request for an audience late at night must mean something important.
If she knew, it would definitely be helpful to the North...
But she dared not speak or move, she just leaned there quietly, like a docile cat.
Qin Mu's fingers circled her waist twice more, his voice tinged with amusement.
"What's wrong? Are you scared?"
Xu Fenghua shook her head, her voice very soft.
"No. Your Majesty, I just felt that the Prime Minister must have something important to discuss with me so late at night. Your Majesty need not delay your important business because of me."
Qin Mu smiled and gently pinched her waist with his fingers.
"Nothing is more important than spending time with my beloved consort."
Xu Fenghua blushed slightly, buried her face in his chest, and stopped talking.
Her heart was pounding, whether from his actions or from his words, "Nothing is more important than spending time with my beloved consort."
Was this statement sincere or insincere?
She couldn't tell them apart, and she didn't dare to.
........
Outside the hall, at the end of the corridor.
A palace maid walked quickly through the corridor, her footsteps light, her skirt trailing on the ground with a soft rustling sound.
She walked to the entrance of the side hall, stopped, lowered her head, and gently knocked on the door.
"Your Excellency, His Majesty requests your presence in a moment."
Inside the hall, Li Si sat in a round-backed chair, holding a cup of tea in his hands, but he did not drink it.
His brows were furrowed, and his gaze was deep.
Upon hearing the palace maid's words, he raised his head, his lips slightly parted as if he wanted to say something, but then he closed them again.
He nodded, his voice hoarse.
"understood."
The palace maid bowed and withdrew, her footsteps gradually fading into the distance.
Li Si leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and felt extremely anxious, as if a thousand ants were crawling on his heart, making him restless and uncomfortable all over.
The lists he held in his hands, the names of the officials who secretly colluded with the North, every single one of them made his heart pound and felt like a thorn in his side!
He must present this list to His Majesty as soon as possible, and let His Majesty know that the tentacles of the North have reached every corner of the court.
If this continues unchecked, the consequences will be unimaginable.
But he couldn't urge them, dared not urge them, and dared not take any risks.
His Majesty is in high spirits. If he were to disturb him at this time, not only would he not be able to help Han Zhong, but he himself might also get into trouble.
He could only wait.
Waiting for His Majesty's summons.
In the side hall, candles burned quietly.
Inside the distant palace gates, candlelight flickered and bed curtains swayed gently.
Length of night.
Some waited anxiously, while others lingered in tender affection.
Some people were distraught.
........
A side hall of the imperial palace.
Moonlight seeped in through the cracks in the window, spreading a thin layer of silver frost on the ground.
Yun Suxin sat cross-legged by the window, her eyes slightly closed, her hands folded on her knees, palms facing up.
The moonlight fell on her, illuminating her stunningly beautiful face with exceptional clarity. Her eyebrows resembled distant mountains, her eyes were like autumn waters, her nose was high and straight, and her lips were pale and elegant.
Her breathing was long and even, each breath carrying a faint rhythm, as if she were trying to squeeze out every last bit of true energy from her meridians.
However, his dantian was completely empty, like a dried-up well that had been drained, without even an echo.
She tried again and again.
She had lost count of how many times she had failed—a hundred times? Two hundred times? Or five hundred times?
Every time I close my eyes with hope, every time I open them in despair.
She opened her eyes, which were filled with exhaustion and dejection.
It failed again.
Xu Fenghua leaned against the wall, closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled.
She recalled everything that had happened these past few days as if it were a bizarre nightmare.
She always thought she had just fallen into the hands of a spoiled brat, that as long as she regained her strength she could slap him to death, and that the capital was her other battlefield where she could bewitch ministers, assassinate the emperor, and fulfill the cult leader's last wish.
As a result, she remained completely unaware that she was in Qin Mu's palm the whole time.
She thought she was enduring humiliation and waiting for an opportunity, believing that one day she would turn the tables.
But that person, the man she hated to the core, was none other than the Emperor of Qin himself.
She found it all incredibly laughable when she recalled how she had once planned to develop her followers, control the court officials, and bring down the tyrannical emperor after arriving in the capital.
Like an ant crawling on the back of an elephant's foot, thinking it is conquering a mountain.
A self-deprecating smile curved her lips, carrying a deep-seated sorrow.
She even had an urge to give up on herself.
Since there's no way to escape anyway, and I can't regain my strength anyway, I might as well just leave it at that.
Being an ordinary person, a plaything, a bird kept in a gilded cage—at least you don't have to struggle anymore.
But she is, after all, the moon goddess.
She crawled out of the ruins of the Taiyin Holy Sect and gritted her teeth to become the Moon Goddess she is today.
The moon goddess who crawled through the snow all night, knocked on the door of that old couple, and survived by using her last bit of strength.
She cannot give up, nor is she willing to give up.
Yun Suxin took a deep breath, gradually suppressing the surging dejection and self-abandonment.
She sat up straight again, closed her eyes, and continued practicing her exercises.
True Qi originates from the Dantian, flows along the meridians through the limbs and bones, and then returns to the Dantian.
Once, twice, three times...
The dantian remained empty, and the meridians remained lifeless.
She gritted her teeth and tried for the hundredth time.
I opened my eyes, but there was still nothing there.
Yun Suxin's hands were trembling slightly, and her lips were quivering.
Is she really destined to remain an ordinary mortal for the rest of her life, a plaything for Qin Mu?
When Yun Suxin thought of this, she felt weak all over, as if she couldn't breathe.
She leaned against the wall and closed her eyes.
She decided to take a break first.
Yun Suxin was afraid that if she continued like this, she would go mad, become a monster that she wouldn't even recognize herself.
She opened her eyes and pushed open the window.
A night breeze swept in, carrying the chill of early winter, and ruffled the stray hairs at her temples.
She gazed at the deep night outside the window, at the cold, bright moon, her heart a tangled mess she couldn't untangle.
She couldn't help but think of Qin Mu.
The man she hated to the core, the man who dragged her down from the clouds to the mud, the man who turned her from a high and mighty moon goddess into a plaything.
He was the person she had the most contact with during this period, and she couldn't forget him even if she wanted to.
Every image is etched into her mind, impossible to erase.
His smile, his eyes, his hands, his understated yet irresistible commands.
As she pondered, Yun Suxin suddenly thought of a question.
Why hasn't he come to see me during this time?
Qin Mu has not visited her since she was brought to this palace.
One day, two days, three days... She didn't know how many days had passed, only that the moon waxed and waned, waned and waxed again.
Has she lost her charm? Is that why Qin Mu is no longer interested?
The moment this thought crossed Yun Suxin's mind, a wave of indescribable bitterness and loss washed over her.
Like a once-favored concubine who has suddenly fallen out of favor, she is filled with anxiety and cannot sleep at night.
Yun Suxin was suddenly startled!
She shook her head violently, banishing the absurd thought from her mind.
How could she think that? Has she gone mad?
She is the Moon Goddess, the Moon Goddess who is high above and controls hundreds of thousands of believers. She is not Qin Mu's concubine, not his plaything, and not an appendage of any man!
How could she feel disappointed because he didn't come to see her?
She should be grateful, she should be happy, she should wish he would never appear in front of her again.
Ke Yun Suxin felt that her heart was still empty, as if a piece of it had been ripped out, and cold wind was blowing in.
She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and suppressed that damned, inappropriate emotion.
She can't go on like this anymore.
Since we cannot restore our cultivation level, we must find a breakthrough elsewhere.
But how do I find it?
She was trapped in the palace, guarded by imperial guards in silver armor, with palace maids on duty day and night at the gate; not even a fly could get out.
She considered countless possibilities, but rejected each one halfway through.
Without power, without influence, without outside help, she is nothing.
Just as she was feeling distressed and at her wit's end, the palace doors were pushed open.
A figure walked in from outside the door, her footsteps very light, her skirt trailing on the ground, making a soft rustling sound, like a cloud being blown by the wind.
Yun Suxin turned her head and saw an absolutely beautiful face.
She wore a moon-white dress and had a long sword hanging at her waist. The scabbard was snow-white and inlaid with pale blue gemstones.
His face was aloof, his temperament frosty, and his eyes held no warmth whatsoever.
Zhao Qingxue.
She walked to the center of the hall, stopped, and looked at Yun Suxin's face with a faint smile on her lips.
"Miss Yun, His Majesty sent me to tell you that Han Zhong will be executed tomorrow at noon. You will come with us to watch."
Yun Suxin was slightly taken aback, and her brows furrowed even more.
Han Zhong? That General Zhennan? That Han Zhong who besieged the Moon Goddess Cult and suffered a crushing defeat?
A complex emotion suddenly welled up in her heart.
I can't quite put my finger on it, but I just feel a tightness in my chest.
She didn't say anything, she just nodded.
Zhao Qingxue looked at her, and the smile on her lips deepened.
"Also, His Majesty said you should get some rest. He'll come to see you in a couple of days."
Yun Suxin's heart skipped a beat.
Her face suddenly felt hot, as if she was expecting something.
Yun Suxin quickly lowered her head, not wanting Zhao Qingxue to see her expression.
Her voice was very soft, with a slight, barely suppressed tremor.
"understood."
Zhao Qingxue didn't say anything more, turned around, and walked towards the door.
He took two steps, then stopped without looking back.
"Miss Yun, His Majesty has been very attentive to you. You should know that."
Hearing this sentence,
Yun Suxin looked at Zhao Qingxue, her lips slightly parted, her voice carrying a hint of probing.
"You must be Empress Zhao Qingxue of Liyang?"