With her delicate face and slender waist, the royal uncle lost control.

His fingertips were stained with a bit of translucent, emerald-green ointment, slightly cool, and gleaming lustrous in the candlelight.

He gently touched the scar on her neck with his fingertips.

The moment the ointment touched the wound, it brought a cool, stinging pain, and Yun Nian couldn't help but shrink her neck.

"Don't move."

Qin Jiuchen said in a low voice, his other hand lightly pressing on her other intact shoulder.

His fingertips began to gently rub along the wound.

The movements were gentle and careful.

But his scent, and his profile so close to hers, made Yun Nian's heart skip a beat and then start beating wildly.

A fine, unsettling itch brushed against the most delicate skin on the side of her neck.

She wanted to hide, but was afraid of aggravating her wound, so she could only remain stiff, while her cheeks slowly flushed uncontrollably.

Qin Jiuchen's gaze seemed focused on the wound, but his peripheral vision took in all her subtle reactions.

His fingertips were initially just wandering around the wound.

Whether intentionally or unintentionally, it slowly moved upwards.

It gently brushed across the soft lines of her jawline, then across her burning cheeks, finally stopping below her sensitive earlobe.

The distance suddenly shortened.

His warm breath brushed against her earlobe, and his deep, magnetic voice touched her heart.

"Miss Yun, why are you blushing?"

Yun Nian trembled, as if burned by the sudden intimacy.

Even though she harbored ulterior motives, when this aloof and cold man spoke to her at such close range in such an ambiguous tone, all her carefully practiced tactics crumbled instantly, leaving her flustered, embarrassed, and at a loss.

Her face, already as red as a sunset, was now so red it looked like it was about to bleed.

"Your Highness, please have some self-respect."

She turned her head away, trying to avoid his overly scorching breath and gaze.

Qin Jiuchen did not back away, but chuckled softly.

"Are all women this temperamental?"

Mentioning this brought up Yun Nian's grievances and resentment again.

She reached out and lightly pressed against his firm chest, pretending to push him away.

Qin Jiuchen cooperated and moved back half an inch following her force.

But her deep phoenix eyes remained fixed on her.

"The prince wields immense power and influence; life and death are decided with a mere nod."

She pouted and complained coquettishly, "When has a god-like person like the Prince ever been misunderstood or wronged? It's only a weak girl like Nian'er, who is unloved by her parents, who suffers such injustice and has to swallow her pride and blood after being beaten."

Qin Jiuchen looked at her puffed-up cheeks and a smile played on his lips. "You're quite resentful."

He braced himself against the bedpost beside her ear with one hand, trapping her in a small space, his breath close to hers again: "Then what will it take for you to stop being angry?"

Yun Nian's heart pounded like a drum as he gazed at her so closely.

She met his gaze. "Does Your Highness grant any request Nian'er makes?"

Qin Jiuchen raised an eyebrow, neither confirming nor denying.

Yun Nian's eyes darted around, as if she was thinking seriously.

After a moment, she said softly, "I like the rare copy of 'Travels in the Nine Provinces' in the Prince's study. I hope the Prince can give it to me."

She had glimpsed that set of books by chance when she last visited the study. It was written by a famous scholar from the previous dynasty who traveled all over the country, and it recorded many strange tales and local customs. It had long been out of print.

Qin Jiuchen was clearly surprised, a hint of astonishment flashing in his eyes: "That's it?"

"Yes, that's it."

Yun Nian nodded, her expression becoming serious. "I've loved reading these travelogues and miscellaneous books since I was a child. Mountains and rivers, exotic customs—just looking at the words makes me feel vast and free."

"Unfortunately, my father always said that a woman's virtue lies in her lack of talent, and that reading these miscellaneous books would change her temperament. Knowing too much is not necessarily a good thing, so he never allowed me to read them."

Her voice lowered, and a faint trace of loneliness flashed in her eyes.

Qin Jiuchen stared at her for a moment.

He hummed in agreement. "I'll have Chensha bring it to you later."

"real?"

Yun Nian's eyes lit up, as if she had fallen into a sea of ​​stars.

Her originally pale and sickly face now radiated an amazing glow.

Her lips curled up uncontrollably, revealing a gentle and childlike smile.

Her sincere smile, like the first melting of spring snow and the first bloom of spring flowers, carried a gentle and beautiful innocence that even made Qin Jiuchen, who was used to seeing all the ways of the world, momentarily lose his composure.

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Her voice became a little lighter as she looked up at him, "Your Highness, have you been to many places? Is the 'lone smoke rises straight from the desert, the setting sun sinks round over the long river' in that book true? Is the sandstorm on the frontier really as painful as described in the book? And the Ten Thousand Mountains in the southern border..."

She seemed to have opened a floodgate of words, and a series of questions came out, filled with an infinite longing for the vast world.

Seeing her suddenly become lively, Qin Jiuchen did not answer immediately.

Yun Nian thought he didn't want to say more, and her petty temper flared up again.

She feigned anger and turned her face away: "Your Highness just asked me how to stop me from being angry, but now you won't even listen to my stories about the outside world. Oh well, this apology doesn't seem very sincere."

Qin Jiuchen chuckled softly this time, a slight vibration emanating from his chest: "I never said I wanted to apologize."

"Yes, yes, yes."

Yun Nian pouted, her tone exaggerated, "What kind of person is the Prince? How could he possibly do anything wrong? All the mistakes are naturally Nian'er's fault. It's Nian'er's fault for letting the Prince misunderstand and needlessly upsetting him."

Yun Nian felt increasingly aggrieved as she spoke, and turned her head away sullenly, leaving him with only a pouty profile.

The room fell silent, save for the occasional soft crackling of the candle flame.

Yun Nian waited for a while, but didn't hear any movement behind her.

She felt a little uneasy, wondering if she had overacted just now.