Rising Phoenix

Somehow, the naked man was not a whit embarrassed and casually pulled her close while leisurely talking with Ning Cheng.

“Where have you been?”

Ning Cheng was unapologetic as he replied: “On my way to Your Highness, I received news that the Fifth Prince had gone missing.”

Ning Yi stiffened as Feng Zhiwei’s head jerked up — the Fifth Prince had escaped from his house arrest? No wonder the Chang Family was moving… they were ready to rebel!

No wonder Ning Cheng choose to abandon Ning Yi and personally dealt with this matter, but even so this bodyguard of Ning Yi’s was so unfettered, leaving Ning Yi without a word. Ning Yi clearly ruled his subordinates with a strict hand, but he treated this bodyguard differently — what was so special about Ning Cheng?

“Where is he now?” Ning Yi replied without anger, his voice heavy and serious.

“After finally finding them, I followed their route. They just passed the southern border of Longxi.” Ning Cheng replied. “If it weren’t for your message, I could have killed him.”

Feng Zhiwei’s eyebrows flew — the group the Chang Family had sent to rescue the Fifth Prince was surely composed only of peak experts traveling with the utmost secrecy. How had Ning Cheng discovered them so easily, and why was he so confident that he could kill the Fifth Prince? Was he truly that extraordinary?

She thought about Ning Yi’s tolerance for the man’s behavior and how Young Master Gu had not simply kicked Ning Cheng off the crossbeam, and Feng Zhiwei finally understood.

When Ning Cheng finished speaking, he peered down teasingly and commented: “Great Prince, the water is getting cold, you should hurry.”

“You can get lost.”

Ning Chen disappeared, leaving only a hole in the roof. Feng Zhiwei sighed and asked: “Have you played enough?”

Ning Yi leaned over and breathed on her neck, leaning his elbow on her shoulder. His hot breath brushed against her ear as he whispered: “Zhiwei… do we really need to go back to how we were before the mountain? If so, let me be childish one last time… after tonight, you can return to your endless climb as Wei Zhi, and I will return to my endless struggles… Old Five has run; our trip to Minnan is destined to blood… Zhiwei, Zhiwei… this road, neither of us know whether we will walk closer or farther apart… tonight… can you… will you… will you be by my side one time…”

Will you be by my side this once?

Feng Zhiwei had never imagined that a cold, hard hearted man like Ning Yi would one day softly beg her.

Had the poison weakened him? Or did he see something in the future that made him act this way?

She froze, and the water slowly cooling around her, her body grew hotter and hotter. His body was so close and only her thin layer of clothes separated them; his smell was everywhere and soaking into her, and she felt as if little jolts of lightning were dancing insider her as her heart pounded.

With his chin on her shoulder, they both felt the softness; the softness of the water, of their skin, of his breath… in the fading steam, she was his and he was hers, all tangled up in body and emotion… Feng Zhiwei turned her head aside, but all that achieved was his lips brushing her cheek, and like a hot wind over a rippling lake, everything only became more intense.

She clung to her calm and collected mask as waves surged within her. She trembled uncontrollably, and though she wanted to speak, she felt soft and powerless. The body around her seemed to be sinking into her rational mind, lying down like a blanket over her will, shunting aside all clarity and perception. No words made their way through her lips as she breathed heavily, the sound sending an even deeper blush through her neck. She had no hope of speaking now, for his lips waited beside hers.

His lips brushed gently against hers, and then he pressed forward like a powerful storm sweeping in and claiming its domain, his tongue plunging in and overturning every inch of her ground.

In that instant, the unfamiliar intimacy merged with her pounding heart and she lapsed into a daze. She could not think; she could not speak; and he had never been waiting for her answer. His words had been a proclamation, and his arm looped down and around her waist.

Her waist so so delicate and smooth, and he almost felt that a single hand could encircle it. Pausing for a moment, he dragged his fingers lovingly over her, worshiping the grace that the creator had bestowed on her, but then he shifted his body and his fingers slowly slipped aside.

Feng Zhiwei’s mind thundered and the daze over her dispelled.

A heavy breathing Ning Yi stood, holding her as he sloshed through the water, turning to step out of the tub.

“Your Highness.” She breathed unsteadily, stumbling over the words as she slowly regained her composure. Bit by bit, her voice returned to that infernally lovable calmness: “Don’t you want to hear my reply?”

The two of them stood in the tub facing each other, a long back sword held between them.

Water rolled down Ning Yi’s naked body, his skin shining like jade. As his deep, clean, masculine breath filled her nose, Feng Zhiwei stared determinedly at her sword.

“Your answer is this.” Ning Yi replied calmly, stepping into the sword.

And as he expected, Feng Zhiwei pulled her blade back.

“See.” Ning Yi declared with a confident smile, “You will not hurt me.”

He reached out a hand and touched Feng Zhiwei’s wet lashes, his face complicated and tender as he spoke: “You are always hiding from yourself, controlling yourself, forcing yourself… you also have passion, why do you not let it free one time?”

“I won’t hurt you, that is all.” Feng Zhiwei replied before falling silent. She looked down and her lips quirked before she continued: “And is it not said, Your Highness, that when a maiden has her first touch, as long as the man she is with is not one she hates, she will certainly have some reaction. I do not think Your Highness is as special as you believe.”

Ning Yi fell silent for a moment and then snorted.

“Your eyes are not well right now so you did not notice,” Feng Zhiwei explained. “But the tip of this sword does not face towards you… it is pointed at me.”

Ning Yi’s face fell.

“When you step forward, the sword will press back and stab into me.” Feng Zhiwei calmly continued, “I don’t know what you are thinking, but I know that I am not ready to give my body and my heart right now. I apologize, Your Highness, but this is my threat.”