At the Noble Consort’s Feet

, but bowed his hands and said in a deep voice, “I just paid my respects to the Empress Dowager and passed by here.
The Empress Dowager is still waiting for Your Highness in the Chang’an Hall.
The princess should not waste time.”

Li Ling Yue looked at Pei Ji’s distant and cold face with a trace of anger.
Feeling anxious, she wanted to approach him to ask about the matter of the hand cream, but her words turned into a panicked explanation.
“Cousin, I didn’t mean it just now.
It was…she…she spoke first, and then I pushed her…”

She was aware that Pei Ji always carried himself with dignity and etiquette, and she feared that her previous arrogant and bullying behavior would make him repulsed.

Pei Ji maintained his reserved demeanor and kept his distance, stepping back two paces and evading the hand that reached towards his sleeve.
“The Empress is still waiting for the Princess in the hall.” 

Li Ling Yue’s hand froze for a moment, and her heart was filled with grievance, but she had no outlet for it.
She glared fiercely at Pei Ji, her eyes red, and then turned around to head towards Chang’an Hall.

As soon as the group had vanished from sight, Pei Ji turned around with a cold expression and faced the woman standing beside him.

Li Zhi stood beneath the shelter of a tree, her almond-shaped eyes meeting his gaze with a gentle smile playing at her lips.
“General Pei,” she spoke in a warm voice, “I want to thank you for your assistance just now.”

Pei Ji sneered at her, “Don’t thank me.
If it weren’t for your intentional provocation, the princess wouldn’t have lost her temper.”

Pei Ji was familiar with the princess’s temperament, and judging from her behavior earlier, she was undoubtedly egged on to bully this woman.
But the princess’s bullying was intended to send her to the Shangyi Bureau for punishment.
It was likely that the woman had said something that angered the princess, leading to the sudden push.

Pei Ji was not surprised.
After all, she dared to flirt with him so brazenly.
What wouldn’t she dare to do?

Li Zhi was taken aback and looked at him as if he wanted to speak up for the princess, and a hint of suspicion arose in her heart.

Did Pei Ji really not have any interest in Li Ling Yue?

However, she quickly dismissed this idea.

She remembered vividly that in her dream, Li Ling Yue had used some underhanded tactics to force Pei Ji to marry her.

Pei Ji had no choice but to agree to marry this obstinate princess.

Li Ling Yue had thought that she had achieved her goal, but on the night of their wedding, Pei Ji had separated from her and moved to a different residence.

From then on, no matter how much she begged for forgiveness or acted willfully and caused trouble, Pei Ji never gave in.

Two years had passed since their wedding day, yet the couple lived as if they were strangers.
They resided in different places, with one in the Princess’s palace and the other in the Duke of Yanguo’s mansion.
Despite being married, they were distant and indifferent to each other.

If Pei Ji truly had feelings for the Princess, how could their relationship have deteriorated to such a degree?

After some contemplation, Li Zhi suddenly burst out laughing.
Unconcerned with being caught, she gazed calmly at Pei Ji and asked, “General, do you know what I said to the Princess earlier?”

Pei Ji’s brows furrowed slightly in response.

“I told her that you had already set your sights on another woman,” Li Zhi approached him, her voice soft and low, “and that you even accepted gifts from her!”

On a summer day beneath the cool shade of the trees, the woman stood three steps away, her stunning features lightly dusted with blush from the heat.
Her captivating eyes gazed directly into his, and her plump, alluring lips moved as she asked, “General, am I wrong?”

Pei Ji seemed to catch a whiff of the delicate coral peony fragrance wafting through the air.

He shifted his gaze away in silence, but his adam’s apple bobbed slightly, and his fingers coiled around each other.

“It was just a misunderstanding on my mother’s part.
There is nothing to it,” he replied in a stoic tone.

Li Zhi scrutinized him for a beat, but saw no sign of weakness in his resolute features.

She lowered her gaze with disappointment and remarked, “Oh, I see.
I thought you came here to help me because you cared for me…”

Although she appeared casual, her words were intended to reveal that he had been on her mind for the past few days.

Pei Ji’s throat tightened at her words, and his heart began to stir with a growing sense of restlessness.

However, in the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of her right hand, delicately exposed from the folds of her sleeve.

That little hand had once tenderly caressed his palm and face, so gentle and soft, but now, near the base of her palm, he could see a small cut from the rough gravel on the ground, seeping blood slowly.

She frowned slightly, perhaps silently enduring the pain.

His restless heart was extinguished like a sudden dousing of cold water.

“My lady is His Majesty’s favored one, why bother getting entangled with me? If you have any needs, you should ask His Majesty for help.
As for me, Pei Ji, I regard His Majesty as my lord and brother, and would never do anything that disrespects him.
I hope you understand.”

Li Zhi remained silent, her expression calm and collected.

Pei Ji was momentarily unsure whether the words he had just spoken were meant for her ears or for himself.

Not far away, the palace path was bustling with the sounds of people passing by.

Li Zhi went back to the big rock under the dense shade, her head bowed, and said, “My knees still hurt, and I need to rest for a while.
If the general has other duties to attend to, please go ahead.”

Pei Ji was stunned for a moment, then said, “My lady, please remember to apply medicine to your wound when you return,” before turning and departing.