Hearing Song Qingshu deliberately emphasize the words “take good care,” Empress Pei man outside the wall curled her lips in disdain. ‘A mere eunuch, yet so boastful. Even if you wanted to “dote,” you’re physically incapable, aren’t you? Hmph, unless you use that thing I gave you…’ Thinking of its size, a strange smile flickered across her face. ‘Those two inexperienced girls will probably only know pain.’
Of course, Empress Pei man wasn’t worried about the girls inside. In fact, she hoped they’d suffer as much as possible—the louder they screamed, the sooner she could step in and arrange the next phase of her plan, sparing herself from freezing outside any longer.
Song Qingshu guided the two girls onto the phoenix bed and drew the surrounding curtains closed. The playful smirk on his face vanished instantly, replaced by solemnity.
The two girls, hearts pounding with nervousness and shame, were taken aback by his sudden change in demeanor.
“I’ll make this quick. Answer two questions for me—quietly,” Song Qingshu whispered.
“As you command, Your Majesty,” the girls replied timidly, still under the impression that he was the Emperor of the Jin Dynasty, fearing they had somehow displeased him.
Song Qingshu noticed their misunderstanding but didn’t correct them—it worked in his favor. “Do you know a woman named Zhao Fujin?”
After a brief hesitation, they answered cautiously, “She’s our fifth sister. Has she offended Your Majesty? Please, for our sake, spare her.”
Suppressing a chuckle at their anxiety, he pressed on, “What’s the name of your nineteenth sister?”
“Nineteenth sister?” The girls exchanged blank looks before Zhao Hu’er finally spoke up. “Fifth Sister once mentioned that our nineteenth sister was rescued by a mysterious man during the march north. Her name… she told us, but it’s been so long, I can’t recall.”
“You can’t remember?” Song Qingshu frowned. He had to be cautious—though the previous encounter with the Yellow-Skirted Maiden had confirmed much, the palace was fraught with danger. If these girls were imposters planted by Empress Pei man, everything would fall apart.
“I remember!” Zhao Yuanyuan suddenly brightened. “I was there too. Her name was Ying… Ying-something?”
“Yingluo?” Zhao Hu’er blurted out as it came back to her.
Relieved to confirm their identities, Song Qingshu spoke quickly, “Listen, I’m a friend of your fifth and nineteenth sisters. I’m here to rescue you.”
“Friend?” The girls paled. “But… aren’t you the Emperor?”
Their confusion was understandable. No matter how imaginative they were, they couldn’t fathom why the Jin Emperor would claim to be their sisters’ friend—or why he’d want to save them.
“I’m not the Emperor. To put it simply, Empress Pei man wants to ruin your chastity, and I’ve gained her trust to carry out the task—but my real goal is to help you.”
The girls gasped, on the verge of screaming, but Song Qingshu clamped his hands over their mouths, muffling their cries. ‘Thank the heavens for TV dramas teaching me this move, or these two would’ve doomed me.’
“You’re princesses, not village girls. Use your brains—screaming now would ruin everything. Blink if you understand, and I’ll let go. But if you scream, don’t expect mercy.”
Their wide, tearful eyes blinked rapidly, their pitiful expressions melting his irritation. ‘Humans really are visual creatures—it’s hard to stay angry at pretty faces.’
Once released, they didn’t scream but instead clutched the brocade quilt to cover themselves.
Song Qingshu scoffed. “You didn’t act so modest when you thought I was the Jin Emperor. Now that you know I’m a friend, you’re suddenly shy?”
Though he sympathized with their plight as fallen royalty, he couldn’t ignore their past cowardice. Thousands of noblewomen had been captured, yet only a handful chose death over dishonor. The rest endured humiliation to survive.
Remembering the “Chaste Woman of Jingkang” monument in the palace, his anger flared. He yanked the quilt away. “Why cover up now? The Jin Emperor saw everything—yet you hide from a fellow Han?”
Tears welled in their eyes. “You misunderstand, hero. We only… submitted to the Emperor in hopes of persuading him to spare our sisters. They’re about to be sent to brothels. We had no choice!”
Song Qingshu stiffened. He knew about the Jin Dynasty’s cruelty—Zhao Fujin had suffered the same fate.
“Fine, cover up if you must. But don’t dress yet—Empress Pei man will inspect you.” He tossed the quilt back.
Huddling under the covers, they whispered, “Hero… how do you know our nineteenth sister? Why risk your life for us?”
Though naive, they weren’t fools. Their fifth sister had been trapped in the Laundry Court for years—only their long-lost nineteenth sister could have sent help. Yet they’d learned not to trust easily.
Seeing their suspicion, Song Qingshu lied smoothly, “I’m your nineteenth sister’s husband. Yingluo pestered me to save you, so here I am.” Trust was crucial—and Empress Pei man’s eavesdropping meant time was short.
“Nineteenth brother-in-law?” Their eyes lit up before reddening. “But if you’re our brother-in-law… you shouldn’t have looked at us like that!”
‘Are you serious right now?’ Song Qingshu wanted to tear his hair out. “Who cares if I looked? It’s not like you lost flesh! And isn’t it better than the Jin Emperor seeing you?”
“Of course!” they cried in unison, then flushed, realizing how that sounded.
“Enough nonsense,” he cut in. “Empress Pei man expects me to deflower you, so we must deceive her.”
Zhao Hu’er bit her lip. “Brother-in-law… this feels like an excuse to take advantage of us.”
He rolled his eyes. “If I wanted that, I wouldn’t have revealed myself earlier. You’d have thrown yourselves at me willingly.”
Zhao Yuanyuan bowed her head. “Sorry, brother-in-law. We… we’d rather give ourselves to you than the Emperor. Go ahead.” She tilted her chin up, offering herself.
Song Qingshu nearly choked. “I never said I wanted you! I just need to fool Empress Pei man!”
Zhao Yuanyuan squeaked and hid under the covers again.
Zhao Hu’er stifled a giggle. “Then how, brother-in-law?”
“Simple,” he said. “She won’t inspect you ‘that’ thoroughly—she’ll just check for bloodstains. If you fake the reactions and cries of losing your v!rginity, she’ll believe it.”
‘Thank all those ridiculous TV dramas for this idea.’
“But…” Zhao Hu’er raised a timid hand. “How do we fake… ‘that’?”
Song Qingshu stared. “‘Seriously’? You need me to explain?”
“We really don’t know!” she whined.
Zhao Yuanyuan peeked out, equally clueless.
Song Qingshu massaged his temples. “‘Unbelievable’. Fine. Since you’re so innocent, your brother-in-law will teach you—’personally’.”