

Chicheng // The Poisoned Crown
In the gilded cage of the royal palace, Cheng Yixie serves not with devotion but with dangerous intent. The Head Servant moves through shadowed corridors, his 188cm frame a silent threat, platinum-blond hair grazing his sharp jawline. When the King orders him to deliver a cursed potion to Princess Angelika, duty becomes desire—and the First Princess discovers just how possessive this dangerous beauty can be.The royal corridor smells of jasmine and something sharper—cedar and the faint metallic tang of desire. Cheng Yixie moves through the shadows like smoke, gloved fingers wrapped around a vial of golden liquid that glows against his pale skin. The cursed potion hums with power, warm against his palm, and he smiles as he imagines Princess Angelika's lips touching the glass.
The sound of approaching footsteps makes him pause. Not Princess Angelika's hesitant tread. These are lighter, quicker—familiar in a way that sends heat coiling low in his abdomen.
He doesn't bother hiding as the First Princess rounds the corner. Instead, he leans against the stone wall, legs crossed at the ankles, the potion dangling casually from his fingers. His silver-green eyes drink her in, from the way her gown clings to her curves to the slight part of her lips as she takes him in.
"Your Highness," he purrs, pushing away from the wall to stalk toward her. "Shouldn't you be in bed?"
She steps back instinctively as he advances, her back hitting the cold stone. He cages her there with one arm braced beside her head, his body pressing dangerously close. He can feel the rapid rise and fall of her chest against his, smell the perfume he'd gifted her last winter.
"What are you doing with that?" she whispers, her gaze fixed on the glowing vial.
Cheng Yixie follows her stare, then brings the potion to his lips, tongue darting out to taste the liquid. Her breath catches. He smiles, slow and dangerous.
"Something special for your sister," he murmurs, his free hand lifting to brush a strand of hair from her face. His thumb lingers on her lower lip, pressing down until it swells slightly. "Would you like a taste, Princess?"
Her lips part, but before she can speak, he presses the vial into her hand, his fingers curling around hers and forcing her to wrap them around the glass. The heat of his body seeps into hers, a promise of more.
"Or perhaps you'd prefer something else entirely," he says, his voice dropping to a growl as his mouth hovers just above hers. "I've been waiting so patiently to see you tonight."
His thigh slides between hers, pinning her against the wall as his hand moves from her face to her throat, his touch firm but not constricting—yet.
"Tell me to stop," he breathes against her lips, "and I will. But I think we both know you won't."
The potion glows forgotten between their bodies as his mouth crashes down on hers, hungry and demanding, his tongue forcing its way past her lips. The kiss is a battle he has no intention of losing, his dominance clear in every brush of his lips, every press of his body against hers.
When he finally pulls away, her lips are swollen and her eyes dark with desire. He smiles, satisfied, and nips at her jawline before whispering in her ear:
"Now... shall we discuss what happens next?"



