Chapter 9: Can We Still Reconcile…?

“Scared now?” Luo Shangyu looked down at Qin Yu.

“I surrender, I surrender!” The sword tip reflected the light from the glowstick, and the bright flash made Qin Yu feel a bit flustered.

“You’ll come back with me now, right?”

Luo Shangyu’s tone was incredibly gentle, like a caring older sister, but Qin Yu couldn’t help but feel her hair stand on end. 

She felt that something bad was about to happen.

“Why are you so scared?” Luo Shangyu squatted down and looked at Qin Yu, who was hunching her shoulders. 

“You slept in the same bed as me yesterday. What’s there to be afraid of coming back with me now?”

Luo Shangyu had a smile on her face, but Qin Yu read a hint of coldness in her eyes.

Qin Yu recalled Luo Shangyu’s previous words: “Come back with me obediently, and you can avoid physical suffering.”

‘Is that really true?’

“Are you… are you going to punish me?” Qin Yu asked cautiously.

“What else? I warned you. You’re only being punished because you refused to come back. You brought this on yourself, so you deserve it.”

“Can we… reconcile…?” Qin Yu asked humbly. 

She didn’t dare imagine how depraved Luo Shangyu’s punishment methods might be.

“Does Qin Yu, the Crown Prince of the Chengji Empire, not even have the courage to pay for his actions?” Luo Shangyu spoke with a face full of mockery.

From the battle declaration earlier, Luo Shangyu could see that not only was Qin Yu stubborn, but even after becoming a prisoner and changing genders, she was still trying to maintain her nearly lost, pitiful dignity.

Since that was the case, she would use those two points to “interrogate” Qin Yu properly.

Seeing that Luo Shangyu had mentioned her identity, Qin Yu could only drop her begging posture. 

“Pun — punishment then! Wh — what’s there to be afraid of!”

Seeing the tactic work, Luo Shangyu’s smile deepened.

“Very well. Then I’ll give you a good punishment. After all, ‘what’s there to be afraid of,’ right?”

“Eh?” Qin Yu hadn’t expected her own words to be turned into a sword against her. 

She was stunned and decided not to say another word.

But things had already come to this. 

Qin Yu could only grit her teeth and swallow the bitter fruit of her own pride. 

She whispered to Luo Shangyu, “I’ll go back with you.”

“Let’s go!” Luo Shangyu reached out and pulled up Qin Yu, who was lying on the ground.

She waved her staff. 

A wild wind swept through the forest, making the leaves rustle and the raindrops fly.

‘Atmospheric Element Magic that controls the wind…’ Qin Yu was shocked by Luo Shangyu’s affinity for the atmospheric elements. 

‘Is this the power of a Seventh-rank Quasi-god…?’

The gale carried Qin Yu and Luo Shangyu into the air, flying rapidly along the path back to the Kingdom of Yiyong’s military camp.

Qin Yu stepped on the void. 

To her surprise, walking on air felt as solid as walking on flat ground.

Although Luo Shangyu’s flying speed was fast, it still took some time to reach the camp.

Qin Yu’s exhausted stamina was reaching its limit. 

She nearly fell several times.

Luo Shangyu pulled Qin Yu into her arms and asked, “You’re starving, aren’t you?”

Qin Yu nodded.

Luo Shangyu patted her head while picking out the thick mud from her hair. 

“You ran out without bringing any food?”

“I forgot…” Qin Yu said sheepishly.

Luo Shangyu’s clothes were also soaked, but her body heat radiated through the wet fabric onto Qin Yu. 

Even though it was faint, it provided some warmth to Qin Yu’s nearly frozen body.

***

Qin Yu was so exhausted that she lay in Luo Shangyu’s arms in a daze. 

It felt like no time had passed at all, and by the time she was fully awake again, she had returned to Luo Shangyu’s Central Army tent.

She was sitting on the floor, and Luo Shangyu was nearby, stripping off her dirty, wet clothes.

Seeing Qin Yu wake up, Luo Shangyu said, “Take off your clothes. Do it right by the entrance, or you’ll get the inside dirty.”

Qin Yu nodded and quickly stripped. 

The wet clothes, combined with her half-dried sweat, emitted a strange smell that almost made her gag.

She looked down at her outdoor boots. 

The outside was covered in mud and dried clumps of dirt, but the feet wrapped inside were free of mud and even rainwater.

A rich, long-lasting, mellow, and unique scent drifted from Qin Yu’s boots. 

Qin Yu awkwardly tied the laces tight, but the smell still lingered in the air.

She lowered her head and sniffed curiously, only to find that the scent on her feet was even more mellow than what was in her boots.

After running for most of the day, dark sweat stains appeared on the socks on the soles of Qin Yu’s feet…

‘Cotton socks do absorb some sweat…’ Qin Yu thought awkwardly as she pulled off the socks and tossed them aside.

“Are you done?” Luo Shangyu had already finished and was standing nearby.

“Finished, finished.” 

Qin Yu took off her white short-sleeved shirt and asked,  “Don’t I need to take off my undergarments?”

“No need,” Luo Shangyu said, “I only had you do this to keep the mud from getting everywhere.”

Luo Shangyu, wearing only her undergarments, took Qin Yu’s hand and led her toward the bathroom.

Qin Yu stepped into her slippers and followed Luo Shangyu, stumbling into the bathroom.

Inside the bathroom, a tub of steaming hot bathwater was already prepared.

Luo Shangyu couldn’t wait any longer. 

She stripped off her remaining undergarments and stepped into the tub.

“You come, too!” Luo Shangyu called out to Qin Yu.

‘Bathing with Luo Shangyu?’ Qin Yu hesitated.

“It saves time,” Luo Shangyu said.

She looked at Luo Shangyu’s naked body; the entire spring scene was laid bare before Qin Yu’s eyes.

The well-proportioned body and perfectly placed curves made Luo Shangyu’s figure look enchanting.

Seeing that Luo Shangyu hadn’t brought any tools for punishment, Qin Yu finally walked into the tub boldly.

The tub wasn’t large. 

Qin Yu sat with her back against Luo Shangyu, pulled into her embrace.

“Luo Shangyu…” Qin Yu was still struggling, but it was a weak struggle, looking more like a game of hard-to-get.

“Relax. Let me help you wash,” Luo Shangyu said.

“Alright!” Hearing that someone would wash her without her having to lift a finger, Qin Yu immediately slumped into Luo Shangyu’s arms, enjoying her technique.

Luo Shangyu’s hands were covered in body wash. 

As she dipped them into the water, bubbles blossomed.

Her technique was gentle, almost like a massage. 

Qin Yu felt her entire body and mind relax.

Luo Shangyu’s hands were smooth. 

Although she was a general, there wasn’t a single callus.

“Luo Shangyu, you take such good care of your hands. They don’t look like the hands of a general at all.”

“I only became a general by chance a few years ago,” Luo Shangyu replied.

“I see…” Qin Yu’s mind began to race.

Under the current circumstances, escaping directly like before was basically impossible. 

The only way was to convince Luo Shangyu to let her go or to call for help.

Luo Shangyu hadn’t always been a general, which meant… 

There might be a breakthrough here.

While she was thinking, Luo Shangyu’s hand slid toward the base of Qin Yu’s thigh.

“What are you doing?” Qin Yu’s thoughts were interrupted.

An unfamiliar sensation washed over her — a feeling Qin Yu had never experienced before.

“Helping you bathe, of course?” Luo Shangyu looked innocent.

“You’d better just be scrubbing!” Qin Yu reached back and pinched Luo Shangyu’s thigh.

“Still thinking of resisting?” Luo Shangyu whispered, lightly biting Qin Yu’s earlobe. 

“You ran away in secret — did you really think you’d escape punishment?”

“I…” Qin Yu was speechless. 

She hadn’t expected Luo Shangyu’s punishment to come so quickly.

“So pale!” Luo Shangyu teased.

Qin Yu, who was already shy about bathing with Luo Shangyu, became even more embarrassed. 

She couldn’t help but wonder if Luo Shangyu’s motives were pure. 

Where was her attention focused?!

“Aren’t you the same?” Qin Yu retorted, recalling the scene from earlier.

“Hehe~ You really were looking closely!” Luo Shangyu chuckled. 

“Don’t worry. Tonight, there will be plenty of opportunities…”