Chapter 68
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 68
Chapter Title: Strange Rumors
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She rubbed her face against Cheonwi's chest. Hot blood coursed through her frozen veins. It was a pleasure like being high on drugs.
"Shall we begin the real treatment now?"
Cheonwi scooped Snowflower up in his arms and headed for the bed.
The cold bedsheets warmed instantly under Cheonwi's heat.
"Are you ready, Princess? This treatment's going to be a bit hot."
"I don't care... Deeper... Melt me completely inside..."
Snowflower spread her legs and wrapped them around Cheonwi's waist.
Cheonwi hesitated no longer. It was time to unleash his overflowing yang energy.
"Ngh!"
The moment he entered her, Snowflower's head snapped back.
Pain and pleasure crashed over her, along with the sensation of her icy inner walls forcibly melting under the hot intruder. It hammered her brain.
"Too... too hot! I feel like I'm burning up...!"
Snowflower screamed.
Inside her body, cold and heat collided, swirling into tremendous energy. Cheonwi ignored it and thrust fiercely.
It felt like grilling frozen meat over an intense flame.
"Endure it. I won't stop until you're fully melted."
"Ahh! Brother! There, that's too...!"
The room's temperature shot up.
Water droplets formed on the frozen windows and trickled down. Sweat dripping from Cheonwi's back fell onto Snowflower's cold belly.
"Haa, haa... Saving it up really makes you taste even better, Princess."
Cheonwi joked as he redoubled his hip movements.
Snowflower had no mind left to reply. She simply surrendered to the pleasure Cheonwi gave her, melting like ice cream.
"Hotter... Make it even hotter... Burn me up...!"
The room, once filled with chill, now brimmed with the couple's ragged breaths, the slap of flesh on flesh, and scorching heat.
After the storm passed.
The room's chill had vanished completely, replaced by a cozy warmth. No—humid heat, even.
On the bed, Snowflower lay sprawled beneath Cheonwi, soaked in sweat and fluids.
Her eyes were half-lidded, a satisfied smile on her lips. Her limbs hung limp, utterly powerless. She had truly "melted."
"I'm... not cold anymore..."
Snowflower murmured drowsily. Her fingers weakly trailed across Cheonwi's chest.
"Without you, Brother, I'd really freeze to death. So... you have to be my heater forever."
Cheonwi brushed the sweat-damp hair from her forehead and grinned.
Having poured out his yang energy, his mind cleared, and his body felt lighter.
"Don't worry. I won't let the Princess freeze. Just say the word whenever you're cold. I'll warm you right up."
"Hehe... Promise?"
Snowflower burrowed into Cheonwi's embrace and drifted off again. This time, it would be sweet sleep, free of nightmares or cold.
Cheonwi gazed at her sleeping form for a moment, then rose.
Morning assembly was approaching. He dressed quickly and opened the door, greeted by cool outer air on his face.
The eunuchs waiting outside bowed hastily.
But their ears perked up. The annex's poor soundproofing left little to the imagination about what had happened inside.
As Cheonwi vanished down the corridor, Eunuch A nudged Eunuch B.
"Hear that? The noises from the Princess's room..."
"Shh! You'll get us killed. Quiet."
Eunuch B whispered, glancing around.
"But... Lord Cheonwi's something else. Yesterday it was the Empress's quarters all night, now the Princess."
"That's not human stamina. A monster. Rumor says he's a walking yang energy tank he can't contain."
"Jealous... We got nothing, but he's overflowing."
The two eunuchs sighed and shook their heads.
The Imperial Palace's mornings were always bustling, but the laundry yard held the most secretive, scandalous gossip.
Thwack, thwack, thwack!
Amid the lively pounding of wet clothes, rumors bubbled thicker than soap suds. Palace maids wrung out garments, glancing around.
"Hey, you hear?"
Maid A paused her pounding and poked her seated colleague. Her eyes sparkled with curiosity.
"What? Another scandal?"
"Yesterday at Concubine Jo's quarters. Someone saw Lord Cheonwi leaving at dawn."
"What? Lord Cheonwi?"
Maid B's eyes widened; she lowered her voice.
"Shh! Quiet. What if someone hears?"
"Come on, eunuchs visiting the rear palace isn't new. Probably an errand."
"Maybe. Maid Sohee came out with him, they say. But the vibe was weird. Rumors of beastly howls—or muffled moans—from her quarters all night. And when Lord Cheonwi left, his face was..."
Maid A blushed and trailed off. Maid C, rinsing clothes, chimed in.
"Oh, you felt it too? Not just me."
"Felt what?"
"Lord Cheonwi. That aura whenever he passes. Eunuchs should reek of yin energy, limp and listless, right? But he's different. Standing near him makes my body... heat up."
Maid C clutched her cheeks and squirmed.
"Yes! His eyes aren't ordinary either. No way a eunuch has that feral gaze. Maybe... he didn't get cut?"
"Nah, impossible. They check thoroughly at entry."
"Still. A man that tall and vibrant as a eunuch? National loss."
The maids giggled, glancing at each other. Their banter sounded like jokes, but underneath lurked primal curiosity and vague anticipation about Cheonwi.
These whispers, like soap suds in rinse water, spread on spring breezes beyond the walls, throughout the palace in moments.
The Emperor's office, Seojeong Hall.
The air hung heavy, silence so thick even breaths felt labored.
Tension like walking on thin ice.
At its center sat Emperor Hyeonjong on the throne, legs jittering.
Beside him stood sly old fox Jo Chief Eunuch, bowing, eyes slyly peeking—like a tattletale.
"Cheonwi, I heard."
Cheonwi entered, feigning ignorance, bowing politely.
"Your Majesty summoned me? Apologies for the late morning greeting."
Hyeonjong scanned Cheonwi from head to toe—face, chest, lower body... right there—without replying.
His eyes wavered. Jealousy, doubt, inferiority.
Primal male instincts swirled in the Emperor's gaze.
"Er... yes. Sit, Cheonwi."
Hyeonjong's voice was dry.
Cheonwi sat calmly in his spot, faking concern.
"Your countenance is dark. Did worries keep you up? Your pallor suggests frailty; it pains me."
Hyeonjong's brow twitched.
He'd spent the night sleepless, unable to enjoy his VR game from anxiety, while the suspect glowed with oily vigor. Infuriating.
Hyeonjong toyed with his teacup, stalling.
Clink, clink.
The sound mirrored his unease. He glanced at Jo Chief Eunuch, then spoke resolutely.
"Cheonwi."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"There's... a very strange rumor going around."
"Rumor, sire?"
Hyeonjong swallowed dryly. Embarrassing for imperial dignity, but curiosity won.
"That you're... not a eunuch."
Direct hit.
A normal eunuch would've paled, kowtowing in protest. But Cheonwi differed.
He widened his eyes briefly, then burst out laughing, clutching his belly.
"Puhahaha!"
His booming laugh shook Seojeong Hall.
Hyeonjong and Jo Chief Eunuch exchanged stunned glances.
"Y-Your Majesty! Forgive me. It was so absurd, I couldn't help..."
Cheonwi wiped fake tears from his eyes.
"Sire, you believe such street gossip? If I weren't castrated, why stand here in this stiff office instead of hiding in the Empress's or rear palace bedchambers? Real men seek flower fields, no?"
Cheonwi parried exaggeratedly, slyly.
His brazenness twisted Hyeonjong's face. 'Well, true...'
Then Jo Chief Eunuch interjected.
"But my lord, rumors have basis. Witnesses saw you leave Concubine Jo's quarters at dawn last night. A eunuch lingering in rear palace rooms till late defies protocol."
Jo's gaze was sharp, clinging doggedly.
Hyeonjong's eyes gleamed with renewed suspicion.
"Right! Explain that. What were you doing in my woman's room at night?"
Cheonwi shrugged.
"Oh, that? Nothing much. Concubine Jo suffers insomnia lately, so I gave her a 'massage.'"
"M-Massage?"
"Yes. You know my skills, sire. Loosened her knotted meridians, circulated her qi—she snored away. Couldn't leave her sleeping soundly, so Sohee and I stayed. That's all."
Cheonwi snapped his fingers in the air, mimicking deft handwork.
Hyeonjong seemed tempted by the gestures but lingered on doubt. Massage? All night, man and woman alone?
Hyeonjong's voice trembled.
"Just... massage? You didn't touch my women?"
The Emperor's inferiority complex erupted.
Imagining this man fondling women he couldn't fully enjoy due to his weak loins made his blood boil.
Cheonwi decided to drive the nail home.
Weakness invites predation. Strength makes types like Hyeonjong back down.
Cheonwi's face hardened suddenly.
Playfulness vanished; chilling aura spread.
"Your Majesty."
His low tone made Hyeonjong flinch.
"I am Your Majesty's shadow. Would a shadow covet its master's possessions? Utterly outrageous."
Cheonwi shot to his feet and prostrated flat on the floor.
"If you doubt my loyalty, I'll prove it right now."
Swish.
Cheonwi's hand went to his waist sash.