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Jingrui must have fainted for a very long time after the kiss. When she woke up again, there was an uproar outside of her chamber which was rare within the quiet Palace.

She clutched her head as she walked out into the veranda, just to run into Yuansong.

Yuansong grumbled as he crossed his arms. "What happened to you? Why did you pass out again? The Prince had to carry you back here like he was your servant."

Jingrui massaged her dizzy head. "I ran out of breath."

"Well, I don't know how you could possibly run out of breath, but it's good that you're awake." Yuansong sighed and rubbed his hand over his face. "His Highness is mad after returning from the Emperor's audience. It had happened like this in the past, but usually he was more collected than this. You should go check on him."

Jingrui was snapped awake, and she pointed a finger to herself. "Me? No way. Why don't you go? You're His Highness's most trusted person."

Yuansong shuddered. "I'd be mad if I go in there."

Jingrui crossed her arms. "Well, I'd also be mad if I go in there. If he's angry, I'd just be walking in there to get myself killed."

"I told you to go in there, so just go! His Highness is more lenient on you than me, for god's sake." Yuansong placed a hand on his waist and pointed his dictating finger towards Prince Zhanying's quarters.

Jingrui seethed at Yuansong. "Fine!" She spun around, infuriated. Yuansong was really out there to ruin her mood right when she woke up. "What's so scary about Prince Zhanying? And what if he is mad? You're just a coward that's all!" she grumbled under her breath as she slid the door of his quarters open and stormed inside.

Her anger immediately faded, and her heart sank with just one gaze at the Prince. She slid the door closed behind her as she took tentative steps towards him. But when his eyes shot into hers, her steps recoiled.

Like the ragged man she had saved on her first night at the Palace, Prince Zhanying slumped on the ground with a jug of alcohol. A flimsy and thin gown hung over his shoulder, exposing his scarred muscles.

He coughed hard, choking on the alcohol. "Come here."

Jingrui straightened her spine and lifted her chin before obeying him. Once she was within his reach, he pulled her down to his level. His touch was rough and unrestrained.

"Don't stand over me." He cocked his head to the side, holding up the alcohol. "Do you want some?"

The thick scent wafted into her face, and she shook her head. Her throat was blocked from forming words, suffocated by his smoldering presence.

He coughed sickly, and looked up at her with a tempting smile. "Does Bao Bao think I should revolt?" He chucked more alcohol down his throat and pointed his shaky finger at her. "I've never really thought about it myself. Tell me. Should I? I will do as you wish."

Do as she wished? Jingrui shuddered and shook her head. "I . . . I don't know of political affairs."

Prince Zhanying dropped his finger to his side and lay back with a laugh. "That's right. You shouldn't know about it. I don't want my pure Bao Bao to be involved in dirty things." He looked up at her, his messy strands of hair cast menacing shadows over his face, and his smile faded. "Do you know how I've lived all these years? How low I have stooped?"

His bitter words hung in the air as he sat up and reached for her. His cold hands cupped against her cheeks. "Will you hate me if I tell you what these hands that touch you right now have done in the past?"

Jingrui's heart thumped against her chest, and she shook her head.

Prince Zhanying brought his lips towards her ears, pricking warmth against her earlobe. "Once, Yihuai told me to kill a dozen maids, saying that they were just animals he wanted as offerings," he whispered into her ear, and a devilish smile came over him. "I was blind, but of course I knew they were living little things. Yet, what can I do, when I too, must survive within this slaughterhouse."

Jingrui went pale, and she gulped.

He nibbled her ears, mumbling faintly, "Are you scared of me?" His voice somewhat held a sad tone. "Don't be scared of me. I will never hurt you."

He pulled himself away from her and frowned. "I am not that selfish anymore, so Yihuai has all the opportunities in the world to punish me." He lifted his gaze up, knowing that his reasoning didn't justify his ruthless past. "But Bao Bao, I got my karma too."

Prince Zhanying's eyes wavered, and they looked as if there were tears in them. He coughed and poured alcohol down his throat. Tilting his head back, he sighed. "My magic is cold in nature. I can't stand heated things. Yihuai likes to bully me. He would pour doses of heated poison just for me to drink. What a son of a bitch."

Jingrui's heart dropped at his words, and she looked up at him. "D-Does he like hurting you?"

Prince Zhanying croaked out a wrenching chuckle. He grabbed her hand and brought her fingers towards his chest, trailing it across his severe scars. "Physical pain can't hurt me. They just left scars." He squeezed her hand for a moment as if it were his only source of comfort, before letting go. He looked away from her, and his voice lowered. "What hurt me most is losing what I have left. The last ashes of my mother are no more . . . I don't want to lose anyone anymore, Bao Bao, I don't want to lose you."

Her heart quenched at his words, and she felt tears brimming in her eyes. "You will never lose me," she breathed as her quivering fingers reached towards his chest and trailed down his scars gently. The uneven surface pricked her skin and reflected its story. "How did you get this?"

"Thunder strike," he said nonchalantly.

She trailed her finger down his defined muscles. "And this?"

"Lash."

Raw pain filled her as if she had experienced it first hand. "This?"

"Assassin's stab."

"This?"

"Don't remember."

"And this—"

She was cut short when he seized her wrist. Once she looked down at where her hand was trailing down towards, her face flushed red. She scoffed hard, trying to move her hand away, but his grip was firm.

A taunting smile came over him. "I like bold Bao Bao."

"I-I didn't mean to—"

"You never mean to." He tilted his head to the side, his voice was hoarse. "And you never know what you are doing to me."

Jingrui bit her lips. She glanced up at his eyes, which was that of an untamed beast ready to be unleashed.

"You are going to be the death of me." He ran her finger over his lips. "I told you, didn't I, I can't take heated little things?"

He caressed her small fingers in his large palm as he kissed them softly. "Today, I visited Yihuai, and he made me drink heated, poisoned tea. He provoked me so terribly that my veins convulsed with fire. In such fury, I forgot about my health so I drank some wine upon my return to the Floating Abyss." He looked up at her as he pulled her onto his chest. "If you keep on acting so bold, I will really die because of you."

Jingrui's breath hitched in her throat. His every word made her knees turn into jelly, and her heart weak. Although she was tempted to melt into his arms and let him take her to reverie, she snapped out of her trance. She pushed him to stand up and surprisingly, he didn't have any strength to stop her. His demeanor was decaying as if he were not kidding about him dying.

Worries took over her burning desires, and she furrowed her brows. "How can you just neglect yourself like that?" She shook her head, scanning over his frazzled state. "I-I'll go prepare you a cold bath, wait here."