Keep your voice down. Are you trying to look glamorous dressed as a forced lover?

Song Qinian told himself that this was the norm.

"That should be fine, right?"

Li Qingyan, unaware of anything amiss, released him, saying, "Let's continue studying."

"Okay." He coughed lightly, his hands clenching silently.

After sitting down together, they both took deep breaths to relax when the other wasn't looking.

Sannoye saw all of this.

He looked puzzled, not understanding what they were playing, and decided to continue watching.

More than an hour passed before Li Qingyan finally felt sleepy.

She looked at Song Qinian, remembering that she had just said it was the last hug, and then turned her gaze to his hand.

The two essentials for a first date are hugging and holding hands.

She pinched herself to clear her head.

Everyone was getting sleepy, and Sannoye, who was dozing off on a tree branch, was immediately woken up by being pinched.

Sannoye was silent: Pain, pain, pain, pain, pain...

He looked at Li Qingyan expressionlessly; this was the fifth time he had pinched him today.

He's been in pain all day, the pain is constant.

He didn't understand why she would keep pinching him, even though she knew it hurt him the most when she pinched him.

Li Qingyan was completely unaware of this. She looked at Song Qinian and said:

"Song Consort, I'm feeling sleepy again. I still need your help."

Song Qinian knew that Li Qingyan wasn't acting, but upon hearing this, he still stiffened and looked puzzled: "Your Highness, this..."

"I know you can't understand, but that's the reality right now. Only by being close to you can I stop this inexplicable drowsiness from creeping in."

"I'm sure you can tell I'm not acting, so please play along, Consort Song."

Li Qingyan was not making a request, but demanding one.

Song Qinian is now her concubine, and she has the right to touch him and hug him.

Song Qinian understood her subtext and fell silent.

Li Qingyan wanted to study a little longer, and after she hugged him, her mind seemed clearer and more focused; she could understand everything he taught her as soon as she heard it.

Indeed, after the hug, Li Qingyan felt that knowledge was easier to digest and absorb.

The feeling of mental fog clearing, clear thinking, and enhanced memory is truly wonderful.

"Song Cejun, you're like a wake-up call right now! I need this kind of clarity and intelligence, so from now on I can only continue to be absurd while studying."

Song Qinian: "...Studying while engaging in absurd behavior?"

How absurd could she possibly be?

She regained consciousness, but after he was hugged, his mind was in a daze.

Li Qingyan wished she could sit on Song Qinian's lap and study, but considering that Song Qinian was allergic, and that she hadn't cultivated to that level, she set her sights on his hands instead.

"I need Song Cejun's hand."

Song Qinian's fingers were as long and slender as ever, and Li Qingyan grabbed them without hesitation.

Under Song Qinian's astonished gaze, she mustered all her strength and slowly slipped her fingers between his, interlocking them.

Song Qinian felt a tingling sensation in his palm, which then traveled up his arm and into his heart.

His voice was somewhat strained: "Is this a new idea Your Highness came up with?"

They no longer hug, but their fingers are intertwined?

"Mmm." Li Qingyan nodded, feeling an intense tingling sensation in her palms, and even wanted to let go immediately.

But that won't work.

She forced herself to calm down.

She finally understood why holding hands was something only lovers did.

It's truly amazing how something like a hand can evoke such a powerful feeling.

She slightly increased the pressure to drive away the tingling sensation, but her eyes couldn't help but glance at it.

Song Qinian's technique is truly superb, and the feel of his touch is also excellent.

It has a masculine strength and firmness, and is smooth, warm, and dry. Only a few parts have calluses from years of writing, making them slightly rough to the touch.

Noticing her gaze, Song Qinian's fingers twitched slightly.

Perhaps it was because Song Qinian's expression was so unnatural, and even his substitute was acting somewhat improperly, that the innocent girl from one second started having all sorts of wild thoughts the next:

This hand would definitely be great for handicrafts...

Stop!

Li Qingyan's face was pale, but her spirits lifted again.

"Song, let's continue."

Song Qinian's somewhat uncontrollable strangeness disappeared with this sentence.

Sannoye sensed those strange things, his eyes filled with confusion.

It was just a hug, just holding hands, why did she react so strongly?

What is this?

Sannoye watched the two resume their studies and left expressionlessly.

Li Qingyan absorbed the knowledge and rules of this world like a sponge, completely unaware of her arrival.

Although what she just said was somewhat offensive.

However... after holding hands, her mind cleared up again, and her intelligence was boosted once more, proving that what she said was true.

She even had a wild idea: if she encounters some difficult problems in the future, could she solve them while kissing and thinking, or even while doing *that*?

Would her IQ be off the charts back then?

She thought it was possible. Thinking about it carefully, it seemed that the wise king always ate a lot and then became smart.

The previous comparison between her and the wise king led those unaware of the situation to believe that the wise king was naturally intelligent, but it turns out he just developed a brain from eating too much meat.

If the wise king can do it, then she certainly can too!

For ordinary people like her, what they envy and desire most is the brain of intelligent people.

There was no way around it before, as one's intelligence was basically determined at birth, but now she has a smarter way.

Li Qingyan turned her head to look at Song Qinian; she had to try everything.

While others might experience kidney deficiency from repeated use, she only gains intelligence.

It's a win-win situation: you can eat well and improve your intelligence at the same time.

Song Qinian sensed something was wrong from her gaze, but before he could speak, Li Qingyan's question came at him.

All of these were things that Li Qingyan had just figured out. A look of surprise flashed across Song Qinian's face. These extended viewpoints and in-depth thinking were things he had planned to teach her later, but he hadn't expected that Li Qingyan would come up with them on her own.

Some of the viewpoints, ideas, and perspectives were even unexpected by him.

He got serious, and the two of them began to teach and discuss back and forth.

Because she was holding Song Qinian's hand the whole time, she didn't doze off again and spent the whole day with him. They ate lunch and dinner together and then ate like crazy to make up for it.

Throughout the entire day, except for meals or bathroom breaks, Li Qingyan never let go of her hands.

This was something Song Qinian had never experienced before.

At first, I felt extremely uncomfortable with her holding my hand. I don't know if it was an allergy, but my palms even felt hot and itchy. However, because her questions quickly diverted my attention, I eventually got used to it.

Everyone in Ninghuili, from initial shock to snickering, and eventually to getting used to seeing them so inseparable.

Habits are truly terrifying.

Even though it was late at night, Li Qingyan still hadn't let up.

The servants all say that His Highness and Consort Song will definitely consummate their marriage tonight. Although Consort Song is only one of the consorts, everyone assumes that he is the first consort and the most likely candidate to become the principal husband.

After all, it's impossible for Consort Sang to be from the Southern Frontier, and it's also impossible for Consort Ji to be disabled; only their young master is the most suitable.

Song Qinian was incredibly perceptive and quickly realized this idea.

Seeing the gleam in Li Qingyan's eyes, he also thought she would stay.

He was so clever and perceptive that he could tell from her current state that the closer they were, the better it would be. She clearly liked this feeling and showed signs of addiction.

In this situation, having already hugged and held hands, she will inevitably want more and try to make herself seem smarter by consummating the marriage.