Chapter 121: A Strange Focus of Attention
Long Chen and Di Luoxi rode their horses back to the palace, with Di Yuwei and Di Xingwan following behind.
Di Yuwei urged her horse forward and looked at Long Chen admiringly. “Long Cheng’en, you must have planned everything out perfectly today, right?”
Di Xingwan caught up as well and said, “Jingtian Lie suffered a loss for the first time, and a heavy one at that.”
Long Chen chuckled softly. “Princesses, you flatter me. There was no planning involved; I was simply forced into it.”
Di Xingwan’s eyes burned with intensity as she stared at Long Chen. “Forced? I didn’t see it that way. Everything that happened just now seemed so orchestrated.”
Di Yuwei glanced at Di Luoxi. “Fourth sister, this eunuch of yours is a real treasure. How about lending him to me for two days?”
Long Chen felt a thrill inside. Lending the great treasure to the eldest princess for two days? Absolutely no problem! Three days would be fine too!
Di Luoxi looked possessive, frowning. “Don’t even think about it. He’s mine!”
She grasped the reins of Long Chen’s horse and sped towards the West Palace, leaving Di Yuwei and Di Xingwan behind.
Zhang Qian and the others awkwardly smiled and bowed. “Eldest Princess, Second Princess, forgive us.”
The three quickened their pace to catch up.
Watching Long Chen’s receding figure, Di Yuwei sighed regretfully. “The castration chamber has sent me over two hundred eunuchs, but not one compares to Long Cheng’en.”
Di Xingwan was surprised. “Aren’t there only a few eunuchs in the eldest sister’s palace?”
Di Yuwei waved her hand dismissively. “Those who weren’t satisfactory were all executed. The few left are new arrivals.”
Di Xingwan suddenly understood. “Oh, same here.”
Over the past year, the castration chamber had sent hundreds of eunuchs to serve Di Yuwei and Di Xingwan, but nearly all were killed for being unsatisfactory.
Back at the West Palace, Xiang Ning and the maidservants Xiao E and Xiao Daiyu were anxiously waiting at the gate, like young wives awaiting their husbands’ return.
The moment they saw Long Chen, the maids screamed excitedly.
“Chief Steward is back!”
“Brother Long is back!”
Di Luoxi frowned and scolded sharply, “Be gone!”
Fearing Di Luoxi, the maids hurried away.
After dismounting, Zhang Qian took the horses, and Long Chen headed straight to Qiu Xing Hall.
Di Luoxi grabbed Long Chen’s arm. “Come with me.”
She pulled him into the bedchamber where a plump woman in her early thirties awaited.
“Yourong pays respects to Her Highness, the Princess,” the woman said.
This woman was Su Yourong, the palace supervisor of the West Palace. Long Chen had met her on his first day here, but she had gone home to mourn her mother and only recently returned by Di Luoxi’s grace.
Now, Su Yourong was slightly slimmer than over a year ago, but true to her name, she was ample—much more so than Zhang Qian.
Zhang Qian was a young girl, but Su Yourong exuded the mature allure of a woman in her prime, dressed in palace robes that revealed a deep cleavage.
Long Chen thought to himself: This is what mature beauty looks like.
“You’re back? Perfect timing. Come with me.”
Di Luoxi led Long Chen onto the kang platform in the bedroom, with Su Yourong following.
“Strip him!” Di Luoxi commanded.
Su Yourong was taken aback. “Strip him?”
Di Luoxi spread her arms, and Xuan Yi and Qing Yue helped remove Long Chen’s clothes and hung them on a rack.
Qing Yue smiled. “Auntie, you heard right—strip everything off!”
It was Su Yourong’s second time seeing Long Chen, and now she was asked to strip him. She felt a bit embarrassed.
The last time she saw him, he was a young eunuch just admitted to the palace and locked in a dark room.
In just over a year, he had transformed into the Chief Steward of the Ministry.
“This... I apologize,” Su Yourong said gently as she slowly removed Long Chen’s coat and set his shoes and pants aside.
“Chief Steward has such a strong physique.”
As Su Yourong removed his undergarments, she was amazed by Long Chen’s build.
He was strong like a sculpture, nothing like the frail and delicate eunuchs she had known.
“Yourong auntie has a good figure too,” Long Chen replied.
He was taller than Su Yourong and looked down at her, catching a faint scent of mature feminine fragrance that was utterly captivating.
Su Yourong glanced down at herself and hastily tried to gather her clothes to cover her ample chest, but the fabric was insufficient.
“You flatter me, sir.”
Though in her early thirties, Su Yourong had remained in the palace, only returning home during mourning, during which she saw no one except female relatives. It was the palace’s rule.
Therefore, she had never seen a true man before, and Long Chen stirred her heart.
Di Luoxi grew impatient at Su Yourong’s hesitation. “Yourong, stop wasting time. Bring the silver needles!”
Su Yourong quickly fetched the box of needles.
Long Chen climbed onto the kang, and Di Luoxi carefully examined his meridians, surprised. “Better than I thought. The injuries aren’t as severe.”
Qing Yue was startled. “I thought the injury was only on the arm?”
She assumed Long Chen’s arm was the only part hurt.
Di Luoxi shook her head. “You think Jingtian Lie is useless? His cultivation is second only to the Empress.”
“You took a punch from him and only have these minor injuries? That’s a miracle!”
Di Luoxi admired Long Chen’s strength. Even she would have been seriously hurt by such a blow.
Su Yourong asked in surprise, “Chief Steward was hit by Jingtian Lie?”
Long Chen smiled. “You can’t fool the princess. I dispersed the force, so it only looked like my arm was injured, but actually, my whole body was hurt.”
The shadow cultivation method he learned in the dark room dispersed the yang energy throughout his body. Combined with the Hundred Birds Facing the Phoenix technique, he developed a way to spread the impact across his entire body.
When Jingtian Lie’s fist came crashing down, Long Chen spread the force, so although the injury seemed minor, the damage was spread throughout.
“Bring a blanket.”
Xuan Yi immediately laid a white blanket on the kang.
Di Luoxi said, “Lie down. Yourong will perform acupuncture. Qing Yue, prepare the medicinal bath.”
Qing Yue and the maids went to boil herbs.
Long Chen lay on the blanket as Su Yourong opened the acupuncture box filled with silver needles.
“Chief Steward, I will begin acupuncture now.”
Su Yourong removed her outer garment, rolled up her sleeves, and began.
As the needles pierced the skin, dark bruising appeared.
The acupuncture lasted a long time, with every key acupoint treated. Su Yourong worked up a sweat.
Outside, Xiang Ning came to report, “Ying Feng has arrived.”
Soon, Ying Feng entered and saw Long Chen lying on the kang with Su Yourong treating him.
“Nice figure... no, it’s clear he’s injured,” Ying Feng said awkwardly.
Coming in and seeing Long Chen lying there with blood from the acupuncture on his skin, but still showing perfect muscle lines, Ying Feng couldn’t help but blurt out.
Long Chen was speechless. Were all the women in the harem just tinder waiting for a flame? At a time like this, they only cared about his muscles?
Di Luoxi asked, “Did the Empress send you?”
Ying Feng took out a small vial. “Princess, the Emperor anticipated Lord Long would be injured and sent this medicine.”