Chapter 36 Why can't I be the one available at the tavern?

On the day Xie Yuan and Xun Shuheng left Yongdu, Chen Liangyu went out of the city to see them off.

The Xun family members only escorted them to the city gate; going any further would be against the rules.

Xun Xian did not appear in the crowd. Xun Shuheng bid farewell to her mother, brother and sister. Seeing that her family was about to turn back, she appeared extremely uneasy.

The farthest she ever traveled in her life was Yueyang Tower, a short drive from her home. Lady Xun cherished her like a precious jewel, accompanying her almost constantly. Now, after leaving her parents, she was about to travel six hundred miles away.

She was not even familiar with her new husband.

Xianyu and several maids who had served her since childhood returned to her side, but this was far from enough to dispel her fear.

She clung tightly to her mother's sleeve, her eyes filled with helplessness and pleading. Lady Xun also held her hand, unwilling to let go for a long time.

The eunuch sent by the palace to see them off was urging them to hurry.

It was ostensibly a farewell, but in reality, it was surveillance.

They were sent by Emperor Xuanyuan to confirm that Xie Yuan and his wife had left Yongdu. Only after they left could they return to the palace to report back.

Lady Xun hardened her heart, broke free from her daughter's hand, and as if she had made a tremendous decision, turned around and walked back without looking back.

"Mother."

Xun Shuheng's voice became tinged with sobs.

Lady Xun pressed her handkerchief to the corner of her eye, but still couldn't shake her worry, and turned away. "Heng'er, if you really miss home, send a letter back."

It's fortunate that Xun Xian wasn't there, otherwise she, a woman, wouldn't be able to say such things.

Xie Yuan was expelled from Yongdu because of his dealings with the Xun family. Now that he's gone, how can he still exchange letters with Yongdu? Qiu Renshan, the Minister of Personnel, was also demoted again, from a high-ranking official in the Six Ministries to a county magistrate in the eastern Baiyue region.

With Xun Shuheng gone, the day when the mother and daughter would meet again was far off.

Chen Liangyu said, "Madam, I'll go see Aheng off."

Madam Xun was pleased and grateful, and squeezed her hand, saying, "Good child, thank you."

Chen Liangyu handed Hongzong to one of Xie Yuan's personal attendants and rode in a sedan chair with Xun Shuheng, while Xie Yuan rode ahead on horseback. At first, Hongzong was unwilling to let outsiders touch its reins and lead it. Only when Chen Liangyu's hand landed solidly on its head did it stop howling and slowly follow the carriage.

After traveling for several dozen miles, the terrain gradually rose, and looking back, Yongdu City could no longer be seen.

Xun Shuheng didn't say a word the whole way, but just held her wrist as if it were the last straw, and held it all the way.

The sun had already slowly sunk below the horizon in the west when she finally let go of Chen Liangyu's hand, revealing a patch of red on her wrist.

"Liangyu, it's getting late. Although you can ride a horse faster, the road is difficult to travel in the dark. I'll leave you here!"

Chen Liangyu nodded and said, "Then I'll go back. Take care. Be well."

"The same to you."

The procession stopped, and Chen Liangyu emerged from the sedan chair, took the red-maned horse, spurred his horse to the front of the procession, and bid farewell to Xie Yuan.

"Your Highness, please take care on your journey. I will not see you off further."

Xie Yuan wanted to say something more to her, but she interrupted him. Among the procession heading to their fiefdoms, there were countless eyes from the palace.

"Your Highness need not say more. Since there is nothing that can be done now, then let us do nothing and wait for another day."

Chen Liangyu rode his horse back home.

Xie Yuan and Xun Shuheng's entourage also set off, winding their way forward.

She ran alone along the way she had come, passing through a small town she had once traveled. She leaped to a high place and watched the procession of hundreds of people disappear into the horizon with the last rays of the setting sun, turning into wriggling insects in her field of vision.

Darkness swallowed the last glimmer of light.

Lanterns were lit in front of an inn in town.

This small town, located dozens of miles from Yongdu, has no curfew; even at 3 a.m., there are still pedestrians on the road.

A makeshift liquor stall was erected in front of the inn, selling homemade liquor. The tables and chairs were quite old, with peeling paint on the corners and legs, and a layer of greasy grime on the tabletops.

Business was slow; she was the only customer sitting in the pub.

The wine was cloudy and its taste was inferior to the fine wines of the Marquis's mansion.

One sip reveals a hint of grain flavor remaining in the liquor, giving it a unique taste.

She doesn't like drinking strong liquor; the liquor burns her heart, liver, spleen, and lungs as it passes through her intestines.

He drank one cup after another, and tears welled up in his eyes.

She vaguely remembered telling someone that the person she could use was the one she loved.

Are there still capable people available?

She was surrounded by large wine jars, but she didn't get drunk much, whether the wine at the inn wasn't strong enough or she had developed a high tolerance for alcohol from drinking Xun Shuheng's fruit wine.

After drinking two more bowls, I realized I was drunk.

Intoxication easily leads to illusions, and Xie Wenjun's face appeared before her eyes.

I closed my eyes to clear my head for a moment, then opened them again, and the person was still there.

She didn't even wait for me to invite her, and sat down on the bench opposite me. She seemed a little uncomfortable sitting there, and shifted slightly to adjust her posture.

Chen Liangyu looked around and saw that the inn was surrounded by the Eastern Palace Guards, who were wearing black iron armor and carrying horn bows and ring-pommel swords.

The innkeeper and his wife seemed to know that the visitors were important figures, so they stood inconspicuously, praying that the group of people wouldn't start a fight in their little tavern.

"Useful people..."

Chen Liangyu muttered to himself, picked up the wine jar, and took a big gulp.

Xie Wenjun followed suit, opening a jar of wine and drinking with her.

Yuan Rong tried to stop her, "Princess, the food outside is not clean, be careful what you eat."

“She drank so much but didn’t die, she’s fine,” Xie Wenjun said.

Chen Liangyu didn't ask her why she was here at this hour. She was hiding here trying to drown her sorrows in alcohol. The woman opposite her also seemed to be troubled, and judging from her expression, she was very unhappy.

"It's bad for your health, drink less," she advised.

Xie Wenjun said, "Then what are you doing? If I hadn't come, were you planning to drink all of this?"

There were at least five or six unopened jars of wine on the table.

"I only bought this much; it's not like I have to finish it all," Chen Liangyu said.

My head is spinning, but my mind is still clear.

"Then drink to your heart's content, and I'll drink with you."

Xie Wenjun ordered everyone to open the remaining wine jars. The two of them, as if competing with each other, would fill one jar with wine as soon as it was empty.

After the two jars were empty, Chen Liangyu worried that Xie Wenjun's delicate stomach couldn't handle it and might get sick from drinking too much. He gestured to stop, asked the innkeeper to open two superior rooms, and added, "Your wine isn't strong enough."

Even in the best rooms in a poor, remote town, Xie Wenjun might not be able to get used to living there.

She had just stood up when suddenly the world spun around her and she fell forward uncontrollably.

Just as she was about to get covered in dust, she hurriedly reached out to steady herself on the table, but to her dismay, her limbs and bones wouldn't obey her commands. She grabbed nothing and fell to her knees with a thud, making up for the grand gesture she should have given to Xie Wenjun.

Yuan Rong and Dai Qing bit their lips, trying their best to suppress the upward curve of their mouths and not let themselves laugh out loud. They helped Xie Wenjun up, supporting her arms on either side.

"Princess, shall we rest here?" Daiqing asked, somewhat uncertain, finding the inn dilapidated.

But it was already late, and it was not advisable to continue the journey.

"Give me the person!"

Xie Wenjun took Chen Liangyu from him, lifted one of her arms and put it on his shoulder, and wrapped his other arm around her waist to keep her in place.

“Princess, let’s help General Chen up,” Yuan Rong said.

"We don't need you."

Chen Liangyu was completely drunk and slumped against Xie Wenjun, making it difficult for her to move. The upper room was upstairs, requiring climbing steps, so Xie Wenjun carried Chen Liangyu up the stairs in a way that was neither quite carrying nor quite holding her.

Despite being called an upper-class room, it was extremely simple and cramped, containing nothing more than a table, four chairs, and a simple wooden bed against the wall, with curtains hanging from it.

Xie Wenjun helped Chen Liangyu to the bed, placed a pillow under her lower back, and carefully guided her to sit down. He instructed Yuanrong and Daiqing to prepare warm water, then dismissed the others and told them to stand guard outside the door.

She was unwilling to entrust Chen Liangyu with tasks such as washing her face and undressing her.

Chen Liangyu was dizzy and lay down, unwilling to move.

A pair of hands supported her shoulders, helping her sit up against the headboard, and a warm wipe was applied to her face. She opened her eyes slightly, and just like the day she applied medicine to her, Xie Wenjun's movements were delicate and meticulous.

She raised her hand to snatch the damp cloth from the towel used to wipe her face. This kind of servant's work was not something a princess should be doing.

Unfortunately, my head was spinning, and my arms and legs seemed to be spinning too. When I stretched out my hand, the thing in my palm didn't feel like silk.

After the dizziness subsided, she realized that the hand she was holding onto was Xie Wenjun's.

Xie Wenjun had just been helping her wash up, and they were already very close. With her grab and pull, she placed that hand on her chest.

Even through the fabric, I could feel the vibrations of my heartbeat.

Her eyes were half-open, glazed over with drunkenness, and anyone who saw her would think she was completely unconscious.

It seems we should loosen the reins.

As she thought this, her grip naturally loosened.

Afraid that her unruly hands might grab something she shouldn't, she dared not move again, thinking: Fine, let her do as she pleases.

Chen Liangyu sat crookedly, propping herself up on her elbows, and closed her eyes to relieve the dryness.

Xie Wenjun made no further move. A moment later, she felt the warmth of a hand on her cheek.

Her delicate palms caressed her right cheek as she heard Xie Wenjun's voice.

"Why can't I be the one who is capable?"

"Even if my third brother ascends the throne, will he be able to keep his promises to you? Once he becomes the emperor, what reason will he have to achieve your wish at the cost of a devastated country? At that time, will he turn against the entire court to fulfill the world you envision, or will he betray you to consolidate his power?"

How could she not have thought about these things? But throughout history, there has been no precedent for her to refer to or consider.

She couldn't predict the outcome of each step precisely, and she wasn't even sure if she could take the next step.

"Ah Li, look at me!"

Chen Liangyu indeed opened his eyes and looked at the person in front of him.

A sliver of clarity appeared in the chaotic consciousness.

It was as if she were alone and lost in the boundless yellow sand and fog, not knowing where she was going, when someone plucked a star from the sky, held it in their hands, and guided her.

Her drunken eyes reflected the candlelight as she gazed at Xie Wenjun for a long time.

Just as she was about to speak, the stinging sensation in her eyes welled up again, so she quickly closed her eyes to relieve it.

Xie Wenjun turned her face away. Before she could figure out what was going on, Xie Wenjun leaned in close, his thin lips lightly brushing across the corner of her mouth, and then kissing the tip of her nose.

Chen Liangyu's mind went blank, his drunkenness vanished, and his senses returned in an instant.

She kept her eyes closed and didn't dare to open them.

My mind raced, and I couldn't seem to find any way to deal with the awkward and... somewhat abnormal scene that followed her opening her eyes.

After thinking it over for a long time, she decided to take a nap and forget about it.

So, fueled by the remaining effects of the alcohol, she fell asleep.

This wine has a slow but intense aftereffect.

Before she could even fall down, Xie Wenjun seemed to be even less able to hold his liquor. As the alcohol took effect, his arms, which had been supporting him on the couch, loosened, and he ended up lying on top of her.

The hand that had been on her right cheek went limp and slipped down to rest on her neck and shoulder.

Having failed in her attempt to feign death, Chen Liangyu tried to call for Yuanrong and Daiqing outside the door to come in and help Xie Wenjun settle down for the night, but her voice was stuck in her throat and she didn't know how to make a sound.

The way the two of them are currently in their positions is simply too unusual.

Chen Liangyu calculated the date and concluded that it should be the anniversary of Empress Huixian's death recently. Therefore, Xie Wenjun must have left the palace to go to the imperial mausoleum and then appeared here.

But this explanation seems a bit far-fetched, as the imperial mausoleum is located in a different area from this town, unless she was going from the mausoleum to Taihuang Temple to copy scriptures and pray for Empress Huixian.

That still doesn't seem to make sense.

If she were to travel from the Imperial Mausoleum to the Taihuang Temple, she would need to stay overnight outside, and would certainly take the shortest official road, accompanied and received by officials, with food and lodging arranged according to the standards for a princess's travels.

After much deliberation, Xie Wenjun realized that she shouldn't have brought the Eastern Palace Guard to this remote town.

Unless she specifically sought her out.

The corners of my mouth and the tip of my nose still felt like they had been touched.

The touch was so light, like the tip of a feather brushing against the skin, as if it were just an accidental brush.

Perhaps she was overthinking it, she thought to herself.

She tried to push her away, but the person clinging to her seemed to be sleeping restlessly. With a little force, Xie Wenjun frowned and her breathing became heavier.

Never mind, let's take off her cloak first; she can't sleep well wearing that.

Chen Liangyu felt the knot of the cloak, pulled it, and took off the heavy garment, holding it in her hand. But there was nowhere to hang it; the only wooden clothes rack in the room was on one side of the door, and she couldn't reach it.

Just as she was in a dilemma, Yuan Rong borrowed the kitchen from the innkeeper and brewed some hangover tea. She then pushed open the door, dragging a tray with two Gu worms on it. Upon seeing the scene before her, she quickly turned her back, placed the tray on the round table in the middle of the room, and then lowered her eyes to look at the ground, asking, "Princess, General Chen, would you like some more hangover tea?"

The most important thing when working in the palace is to be composed. No matter when, where, what you see, or what you hear, you must not lose your composure. This is what the palace maids who taught you manners taught you when you first entered the palace.

Hugging, snuggling.

Chen Liangyu was still holding the cloak that she had just taken off Xie Wenjun.

This is a huge misunderstanding.

In this situation, it's best not to offer any explanation; doing so will only make things worse.

"No need, just have someone serve the princess to rest."

She put her arm around Xie Wenjun's shoulder, got up, hugged her, laid her flat in the middle of the bed, and hurriedly fled.

Although she was conscious, she was still drunk and staggered. Daiqing helped her up and took her to the next room.

She was restless and couldn't sleep all night.

Author's note: Thank you for reading this far!