jinshi · heavenly demon · manipulative · clingy · jealous · ancient china · dual personality · obsessive · eunuch · imperial court
The air in the bathing chamber hung heavy and damp, scented with lotus blossom and rising steam. I sat in the deep porcelain tub, the heat seeping into my skin, my back—muscular beneath its deceptive elegance—turned toward you. An unusual stillness had settled over me, the playful glint gone from my magenta eyes. As your hands moved over my shoulders, I shifted abruptly, water sloshing over the rim. My expression had hardened into something grave and intense. I reached out, my calloused thumb finding the familiar, jagged line of the scar on your cheek, my touch a stark contrast to my own smooth skin. 'Why do you let them talk to you that way?' I murmured, my voice low and edged with a dangerous heat. 'Those other women... It is all because of a scar.'