Five Years After My Death, the Mad Emperor Still Summons My Spirit

"Where is she? Yuan Niang?"

After coming in and not finding anyone, Ming Chengyu went to the back courtyard, but he still couldn’t find any sign of Ming Lingyi.

"Didn’t Ming Yue say she was in the back courtyard?" Ming Chengyu muttered to himself, unable to understand how she could have just vanished.

However, he recalled that quite a few people had been looking for Ming Lingyi earlier. Perhaps she had gone off to discuss business with Feng Shuyu and the others again, so he didn’t dwell on it.

But the thought of having failed to find Ming Lingyi, and of having to face that group of friends who had suddenly become exceptionally interested in the judge, made Ming Chengyu’s head ache.

Of course, Ming Lingyi had no idea her brother was looking for her. She was currently sitting in Li Yun’s carriage, glaring at him with a puffy-cheeked, indignant expression.

Ming Lingyi wished her gaze could turn into a pair of daggers and stab right into Li Yun.

Unfortunately, the person on the receiving end of these daggers paid them no mind. He even leisurely took the secured teapot from the small, built-in table in the carriage and poured two cups of fine white tea.

"Won’t you have some? Still angry?" Li Yun asked, looking at Ming Lingyi.

Ming Lingyi retorted, "Shouldn’t I be? You liar!"

"What did I lie to you about?"

Ming Lingyi said, "You didn’t say we were going to the palace before."

Li Yun put on a look of utter innocence. He looked at her with a hint of exasperation. "I asked if you wanted to go back with me. I never said we were just going to the courtyard next door."

Although the private residence next door was already under his name, Li Yun didn’t like the place.

’Besides, ’to go back’ naturally means ’to go home.’ How could a place like the one next door be considered their home?’

’Their home, of course, had to be the palace.’

’It held the traces of their life together; every corner was filled with shared memories.’

’Moreover, the private residence was far too small—so small he couldn’t even soak in a pool with her.’

’The palace was still better, of course.’

Ming Lingyi was left speechless by Li Yun’s explanation, completely at a loss for words.

"...You snake!"

After a moment, Ming Lingyi indignantly spat out two words.

Li Yun placed the teacup in Ming Lingyi’s hands. "Have some water. Don’t want you getting thirsty from all the scolding."

Ming Lingyi was speechless.

’He’s insane!’

But the tea’s aroma was so fragrant that she couldn’t help but lift the cup and take a sip.

Anything that appeared in Li Yun’s presence was, of course, of the highest quality.

The flavor of this white tea was exquisite. At first sniff, it was just a faint, clean fragrance. Upon tasting it, however, she discovered a blend of delicate and fresh aromas that carried the purity of a mountain valley. As the initial freshness and mellowness slowly subsided, it felt as if a secluded vale had blossomed in her mouth, transforming into a serene channel of sweet aftertaste.

It seemed simple, but its aftertaste was endlessly fascinating. It was a truly exceptional white tea.

Ming Lingyi quickly finished her cup, then held it out directly to Li Yun. Her meaning was obvious.

’Well, I’ve already been tricked into this carriage by Li Yun. What’s wrong with making him do a little something for me?’

Seeing this, Li Yun didn’t find anything amiss. He smilingly took the cup from Ming Lingyi’s hand and poured her another.

"Feeling better now?" he asked.

Ming Lingyi didn’t say a word, simply drinking another cup of tea.

Once they arrived at the palace, Li Yun led Ming Lingyi to the bathing pools.

The place where the Emperor bathed was, naturally, no mere bathtub.

It was a large pool constructed from white jade, with steam rising from it like a spring mist. The walls of the pool were embedded with Luminous Pearls from the deep sea, casting a soft, shimmering glow. Even with the doors and windows shut and the gauze curtains drawn, the room was far from dim.

Fresh peonies and white orchids drifted gently on the water’s surface, their faint fragrance wafting through the air. On a rosewood stand by the pool, a silver ewer with gold-inlaid cloud patterns held warm orchid-infused water, waiting for its master.

WITH A SPLASH, Li Yun slipped into the water.

He looked at Ming Lingyi, who was still standing motionless on the edge, a look of confusion and bewilderment on his face. "What are you still standing there for? Aren’t you coming in?"

Ming Lingyi’s expression now looked even more flustered and annoyed than it had in the carriage.

She hadn’t expected that after bringing her to the palace, the very first place Li Yun would take her was the bathing pools.

’This man is simply...’

’His intentions couldn’t be more obvious!’

"You are so shameless."

Ming Lingyi glanced at the sky outside. The sun hadn’t even set, yet this man’s mind was already on *that* sort of thing! ’If this wasn’t shameless, what was?’

Li Yun replied, "Every time I leave the palace and return, I take a bath. Is there a problem with that? You’ve been busy at the restaurant all day. Don’t you bathe when you get home?"

Li Yun knew exactly what kind of person Ming Lingyi was. She loved being clean and couldn’t stand the slightest feeling of stickiness on her skin. The last time, they had restrained themselves to avoid making too much noise at the residence, but the sweat had been unavoidable.

Ming Lingyi was so cautious that she was worried about him even being seen in her back courtyard, let alone calling for a maid to tidy the room and bring hot water after their tryst.

So, in the end, Li Yun had been the one to handle all the cleanup himself.

Without anyone noticing, he had carried hot water into the room and attended to his little highness before finally pulling her into his arms and falling back asleep.

’In all these years, when had Li Yun ever done such chores? Even back on the border, it wasn’t as if the household lacked servant women for rough labor. When would it ever have been his turn to do such a thing personally?’

’But who would have thought that after he became the ruler of a nation, with an imposing and formidable aura, there would come a time when he would have to personally fetch hot water for his wife.’

Recalling the situation that day, Li Yun couldn’t help but feel utterly frustrated.

This was, in part, why he had brought Ming Lingyi back to the palace today.

Ming Lingyi was speechless.

She, of course, bathed every day when she returned to her courtyard to rest.

’But that’s just a simple bath, isn’t it? This is completely different.’

Ming Lingyi highly doubted the man before her was only interested in getting himself clean.

Seeing Ming Lingyi still standing there, not getting in, Li Yun sighed, turned around, and swam toward the far side of the pool.

’If his Yuan Niang was feeling shy, he could move a little farther away to let her be more comfortable.’

Ming Lingyi was indeed feeling quite abashed. Li Yun was a shameless sort who had stripped off his clothes right in front of her without the slightest hesitation. She certainly didn’t think she was brazen enough to undress in front of him.

The Emperor’s bathing pool was as large as the entire Ming’s Restaurant, and that wasn’t even including the surrounding area on the bank.

The water in the pool was all piped in from a hot spring outside the city, so it was constantly flowing.

The chamber was shrouded in mist year-round, making it look like a celestial paradise.

As the sound of splashing water reached Ming Lingyi’s ears and she watched Li Yun’s figure gradually disappear into the white mist before her, she breathed a sigh of relief. Only then did she reach for the ties of her blouse and begin to undo them.