Chapter 122 The Fifth Princess Wen Xian's Joy and Worry

"Wen Xian is going to marry Dorji?" Ke Jing was very surprised when she heard the news. "She actually wants to go to Mobei? I don't understand."

Xiu Yu smiled and said, "If you don't like him, does that mean others won't like him? Dorji is the young prince of Mobei, who might become a regional overlord in the future. Besides, he's quite handsome, so it's not surprising that Wen Xian took a liking to him."

"Will Concubine De's mother allow Wen Xian to marry in Mobei?" Ke Jing frowned. "That's Mobei. If she really marries there, she probably won't have the chance to return to the Forbidden City. I don't think Concubine De's mother would want Wen Xian to marry there."

Xiu Yu asked, "Do you think De Fei will listen to Wen Xian, or will Wen Xian listen to De Fei?"

"What does mother mean by this?" Ke Jing was a little confused. "Empress Defei is unhappy and is crying, making a scene, and even threatening to commit suicide. How can fifth sister not obey?"

"De Fei, you wouldn't cry, make a scene, or even commit suicide. If Wen Xian really married and moved to Mobei, do you think your father would view Yonghe Palace differently?"

Ke Jing was a little surprised. "Mother, are you saying that Concubine De will rely on my fifth sister to win Father's favor?"

"Well, that's probably not entirely true. After all, Wen Xian was raised by Concubine De, and he's very different from the Fourth Prince. Concubine De has feelings for Wen Xian, so she'd probably be reluctant to let him go."

***

At this moment in Yonghe Palace, Concubine De was in a stalemate with Wen Xian. Concubine De sat on the couch, not even glancing at Wen Xian, her face gloomy, her right hand tightly clutched.

Wen Xian sat on the armchair beside him and hesitated for a long time before saying, "Mother, my departure for Mobei is a foregone conclusion. Perhaps it won't be long before I leave. Time is short. Do you really have to face your daughter with such a bitter face?"

"Why did you go to Mobei?" Concubine De finally asked the question. "Your father never sent your portrait to Dorji. As long as you didn't stand out at the horse race, Dorji would never think of marrying you as his princess. Wen Xian, that's Mobei! It's a bitter and cold place that Kejing would never want to go to. Why do you have to go there and suffer?"

Wen Xian hesitated for a moment, then stood up, walked over to Concubine De, and sat down. "Mother, I don't think Mobei is a cold and bitter place. On the contrary, perhaps Mobei is a place that I can truly call home. That place is something I can never reach in the capital, so I'm going there."

Concubine De was puzzled. "Your father certainly prefers Kejing, but he treats you well, much better than the other princesses. In the future, he will definitely arrange a good marriage for you. Right now, your fourteenth brother is very much favored by your father, and when he grows up, he can be your support."

Wen Xian smiled bitterly: "Mother, do you think you are living a good life? Do you still want your daughter to follow your old path?"

"I..." Defei couldn't understand why Wen Xian would ask herself such a question, "Your father is very good to me..."

"My father treated you very well indeed. But, Imperial Noble Consort, Consort Hui, and Consort Rong, he treated them all very well." Wen Xian knew it was cruel to say such words to her mother. Her emotions were boiling over, but she felt very uncomfortable if she didn't say it out loud. "Mother, I don't want to live like you. I want a different life."

"Then let's go to a cold and bitter place like Mobei!" Defei thought she understood Wen Xian, but today, she saw a completely different daughter: "Wen Xian, you are the fifth princess of the Qing Dynasty. If you say no now, I will go and beg your father to stop him from issuing that decree."

Wen Xian shook her head. "Mother, I can see that Dorji really likes me, and I like him too. So, I am willing to marry him to Mobei, without any other thoughts."

"Once you marry me, you'll never come back!" De Fei's eyes were red. She had always been gentle, especially towards her son and daughter. But this time, she practically yelled, "You'll never see your father and mother again, and you'll never see your fourteenth brother again. Aren't you sad?"

"Mother, I'm naturally sad that I can't see you. But I'd rather go to Mobei and see if I can make a name for myself there." Wen Xian hesitated, then took Concubine De's hand and said, "Fourth brother was indeed raised by the Imperial Noble Concubine, but he is your biological child after all. Don't be too partial to Fourteenth Brother."

"You are leaving soon, and you don't need to care about my affairs anymore." Concubine De became awkward and refused to say a single nice word.

Wen Xian smiled and said, "I know that mother is only gentle in front of father. You are the same as me, but you have to be father's confidant. Now that fourteenth brother is at your side, I feel relieved. As for fourth brother, it has come to this point, I am afraid it will be difficult to turn things around. Forget it..."

Concubine De looked at Wen Xian's eyes, which looked very much like her own, and finally hugged her daughter in her arms: "You have made up your mind, and mother can't stop you. If you go to Mobei and find that it is not what you imagined, or if Dorji treats you badly, you must come back and stay with mother in Yonghe Palace for the rest of your life."

"Okay." Wen Xian gently touched Concubine De's back: "Don't worry, mother. I believe I am a blessed person. I will do well in the palace."

***

Before the arranged marriage, Xuanye acted like a good guy and ran back to Yonghe Palace from Changchun Garden to talk about the matter with Defei. He repeatedly assured her that the northern part of the desert was bitterly cold, so he would build the princess mansion for Wen Xian in the southern part of the desert, which was a good place... Seeing that Defei had no objection to arranging Wen Xian's marriage to Dorji, he felt relieved and got on the carriage back to Changchun Garden.

Xiu Yu originally thought that Xuanye would rest in Yonghe Palace, or at least would not go back and forth in one day. However, he left in a hurry and came back in a hurry. Xiu Yu, who was lying on the couch reading a book, was so shocked that he didn't say anything for a long time.

"Are you stupid?" Xuanye waved his right hand in front of Xiuyu's eyes. "Did you think I wouldn't come back today?"

Xiu Yu smiled and sat up, saying, "It's really rude for you to see me in such an indecent state."

"Do you still feel you've been disrespectful in front of me?" Xuanye sat down next to Xiuyu. "Defei has agreed, and I've already issued an edict. I'll tell you in person when I get back so you can rest assured."

"Did Concubine De agree?" Judging from the time Xuanye took to go back and forth, Concubine De probably agreed very readily. Although Xiu Yu knew Concubine De a little, this matter concerned Wen Xian after all, who was Concubine De's biological daughter and was raised by her.

Xuanye nodded. "After all, Concubine De is sensible. Wen Xian and Dorji are in love with each other, and as their mother, it's not her place to break them up."

"Really?" Xiu Yu put down the book in her hand and said, "She must be feeling bad."

"When I arrived at Yonghe Palace, Wen Xian and Yin Zhen were both with her." Xuanye leaned back, stretching his legs on the couch. "I see how loving and filial they are, so I don't want to disturb them. Let's ask them to spend more time together."

Xiu Yu's face changed. She always felt that Xuanye was actually a man who understood the ways of the world. He could handle the harem with ease, and even more so around her. He simply shouldn't know too much about what women in the world were thinking.

Seeing Xiu Yu's pensive expression, Xuanye smiled and said, "I am only one person, and I can't be in two places at once. If I were to accompany Concubine De in Yonghe Palace, I wouldn't be able to return to Changchun Garden to accompany you. You, in fact, are not generous at all, so I don't bother to get angry with you. To avoid having to go through all kinds of ways to make you happy, it's better not to make you angry."

Hearing what Xuanye said, Xiu Yu was speechless: "I wonder how much Concubine De hates me in her heart."

"No." Xuanye felt that he knew Concubine De very well. "In the harem, she has the best temper. How could she bear a grudge against you?"

Xiu Yu forced a smile and said nothing more.

***

After the decree that Wen Xian was going to marry to Mobei was announced from the Forbidden City, Ke Jing, as her elder sister, still made an appointment with her, and the venue was chosen to be the first restaurant opened by Xiu Yu in the capital.

"Concubine Yi's mother is indeed different from my mother." Sitting in the private room on the second floor, looking at the layout of the room, Wen Xian couldn't help but sigh.

Ke Jing poured Wen Xian a cup of tea and gave her a piece of lotus cake before saying, "Actually, when I was little, I felt that my mother was different from the concubines beside my father. I don't mean in terms of being favored."

Wen Xian smiled and said, "Perhaps it is precisely because of Concubine Yi's mother's difference that she is more favored by Father."

"Who knows?" Ke Jing clasped his hands together and placed them on the table. "I asked you out today because I wanted to ask you..."

"Ask me why I'm going to Mobei?" Wen Xian took a sip of tea, his expression indifferent: "Fourth sister, I think you missed a very good person."

"Oh?" Ke Jing looked at Wen Xian with a smile. "It seems that during the time I was sick, a lot of stories happened between you and Dorji, and they were beautiful stories, too."

"It's not very beautiful." Wen Xian thought of Dorji, and a smile gradually appeared on his face. "It's just that I feel that Dorji is really a good Mongolian prince. Being with him, I feel a kind of freedom and happiness that I have never felt before. I think that although the desert north is bitter and cold, there really is a kind of freedom waiting for me that I will never have in the Forbidden City."

"So that's what you think." Ke Jing picked up a piece of lotus cake and took a bite. "Try it! This is my mother's exclusive secret recipe. You can't get it anywhere else except my mother's shop."

"Fourth sister, I think we could have been very good sisters, right?"

"We used to be very good sisters." Ke Jing looked at the pastry on her fingers and stretched out her right hand to Wen Xian: "Can you lend me your handkerchief?"

Wen Xian was stunned for a moment, then used his handkerchief to wipe the pastry off Ke Jing's hands. "Fourth sister, I know why you asked me to come for tea today. Don't worry, I'm willing to go to Mobei. Besides, my father promised to build a princess's mansion for me in Monan. I hope you won't envy me in the future, fourth sister."

"Maybe I really envy you." Ke Jing gently held Wen Xian's right hand, which was holding the handkerchief. "Fifth sister, Fourth sister will bless you in the capital. You must live a good life."

"Fourth sister, you should also find a good husband." Wen Xian sincerely wished Ke Jing well: "However, with a special mother like Concubine Yi, Fourth sister should be able to live well no matter where she is. And..."

Seeing Wen Xian's hesitation, Ke Jing asked with a smile, "You're about to leave, is there anything else you can't say?"

Wen Xian said, "Between my fourth brother and my fourteenth brother... that's all. As for the affairs of Yonghe Palace, I'm afraid you, fourth sister, can't intervene."