In front of her, there was the scent of crabapple flowers. Behind her, there was the expansive warmth from the man hugging her. She had to admit that she did feel something.
Wei Luo's ear felt itchy and she shrugged her shoulders. To avoid disturbing Yang Zhen and Zhao Liuli who weren't far away, her voice was quiet when she asked, "Why are you going to Shanxi?"
The little girl's mouth always rejected him, but her heart truly cared for him. Zhao Jie hugged her waist a little tighter, buried his face in her neck to breath in her scent, "There's a drought there. The extent of the disaster is very serious. Imperial father commanded me there for disaster relief. I have to leave the day after tomorrow." He paused for a moment, kissed her neck, and continued saying, "Don't worry. This prince will come back very quickly."
Her body had a simple and elegant scent. It wasn't strong. He could only smell it when he was very close. It didn't seem like it was from a satchel bag filled with common spices. Instead, the soft and alluring scent seemed like it was coming from her bones. In the end, he couldn't help sighing, "Little one, what perfume did you put on your body? It smells really good. Why hasn't this prince smelled it before?"
Wei Luo's ears were blushing. Before, he had presented himself as a proper and considerate big brother and had never hugged her this closely. Now, he easily hugged her without even asking for her permission.
She had learned to make this scent from Han-shi. It was made from blending musk, rose, two types of jasmine, and four other flowers. A bamboo basket filled with these closely packed flowers would only yield enough perfume to fill a small, white porcelain bottle. Wei Luo was reluctant to use this and would only sprinkle a few drops in her bath water every day. Even with only this amount, her body would exude a faint fragrance after bathing. She had started doing this since she was eight years old. After five years, it would be strange if she didn’t smell fragrant.
Wei Luo broke away from his hands and escaped from his embrace. Her lowered voice still showed her displeasure, "Big brother, say what you want to say, but don't casually touch me. What if someone else sees?"
Zhao Jie felt rather regretful that she had suddenly left his arms. Hearing her words, he curved his thin lips into a smile, "If someone sees, then you'll have to marry me. Wouldn't that be the best?"
Wei Luo suddenly stilled.
Behind the crabapple tree, Zhao Liuli and Yang Zhen probably hadn't separated yet. The sound of their close relationship intermittently traveled to her ears. Her charming face turned red. Fortunately, it was already late and the moon's light was dim and hazy. Her expression couldn't be clearly seen.
Since she wasn't answering, he asked her again, "Ah Luo, after this prince returns from Shanxi, will you marry me?"
She looked up and slowly said, "I have to carefully think about this."
Marriage wasn't a trifling matter. He had suddenly put this forward and she wasn't the slightest bit prepared. She had originally decided to end her engagement with Song Hui and hadn't thought about the person she would marry. At the current moment, she was already engaged, but he was in a hurry to marry her. Marriage was such an important matter. Of course, she had to carefully consider.
However, Wei Luo suddenly remembered that when they were at Jing He Villa, he had stood in front of her and asked her what type of person she wanted to marry. She had said a person that treated her very, very well. He had also asked, "The way this prince treats you very well?"
At the time, she had thought he was joking and had easily dismissed his words. Now, she realized that wasn’t the case. So, at that time, he already held wicked intentions towards her!
After having suddenly realized this, she surprisingly didn't feel angry. Instead, there was an indescribable feeling fermenting in her heart. The feeling rose until it filled her entire heart. She lifted her eyelashes up and directly looked at Zhao Jie's unfathomable, dark eyes without moving. Then, she suddenly said, "Big brother."
Zhao Jie stroked her little head as he gently said, "En, we'll do what you say. But, I can't wait too long. When this prince returns for Shanxi, I want your answer."
This time she didn't avoid his touch. She looked straight at him. Her dark, watery, almond eyes were bright and dazzling, "But, I have a condition."
Zhao Jie’s hand stopped moving.
There was still a condition? He promised her that he would give her time to consider. It was already pretty good that he wasn't asking anything from her in return. This little one actually dared to ask something from him?
He lowered his head, involuntarily laughed, and said, "Tell me."
The little girl looked completely serious. Her big eyes blinked. "Before I finish thinking this through, you can't kiss me."
The smile on Zhao Jie's face froze. He suddenly didn't feel like laughing.
But, that little mouth didn't understanding his thoughts. She continued, "And you can't casually touch me either."
Wei Luo's thoughts were very simple. She was an unmarried, innocent virginal girl. How could she continue to be constantly hugged and cuddled by him? If the hugging and cuddling wasn't bad enough, he kept kissing her without even greeting her first. Right now, no one had seen yet. If someone saw, her reputation would be completely ruined.
Zhao Jie carefully thought this over. He would be leaving soon and would be gone for two months. He wouldn't be able to kiss or hug her during this time anyways. After he came back from Shanxi, she would be almost done considering and this condition would have expired. He nodded and scratched her pretty, little nose. "Okay, this prince will promise you this."
She retreated a step back and covered her nose. Her eyes stared at him. "Big brother, you just said you wouldn't casually touch me. How could you go back on your word so quickly?"
Zhao Jie held his hands up, "..."
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This evening, Zhao Jie was very well behaved when he brought Wei Luo back to Duke Ying's residence. The two of them sat inside the carriage and he could only look at her. He wanted to hug her delicate and soft body, but he wasn't allowed.
Contrarily, Wei Luo was in a good mood. After returning home, she went to main room to tell Wei Kun she had returned, then she went to look for Chang Hong to say a few words with him.
Before she had returned, Wei Kun and Chang Hong had been worried. If they didn’t know she had gone to the palace, they would have definitely sent people to look for her. Now, seeing that she had safely returned, they both set down their worries and had separately asked her why she came back so late.