Chapter 82 End of the story She is the girl I fell in love with at first sight...
Ever since the quarrel that day, neither of them was willing to give in first. At night, one slept in the bedroom and the other in the study. After sleeping in separate rooms like this for five days, Shen Youran finally lost his patience.
She now wished she could count the days she could spend with him. His health had deteriorated after the last cold. Their good days were getting shorter day by day, so how could they waste them on something like a cold war?
Well, considering that he was poisoned, she would be the one to bow her head first.
So that night, Shen Youran prepared herself well, bathed herself in flower petals, and knocked on the door of the study.
Pei Huaijin opened the door, and the person outside had half-tied black hair, a crystal-clear face, and a jade-like figure, like a fairy walking on the moon, so beautiful that it took one's breath away.
He smelled the fragrance of her freshly bathed body, damp with a floral scent. She must have sprinkled flower petals on her bath tonight.
Obviously well prepared.
His Adam's apple moved, and Pei Huaijin was stunned for a moment before he said, "Why are you here so late?"
"Since you didn't come to find me, I had no choice but to come to find you." Shen Youran blinked at him, her dark, almond-shaped eyes showing a hint of charm and a rare tenderness. "Let me in, it's cold outside."
She was wearing a not-so-thin cloak, but she still felt cold?
Pei Huaijin hurriedly let the person in and took her hand, which was indeed cool.
Subconsciously, he wanted to hold her in his arms to keep her warm, but when he thought of the purpose of deliberately ignoring her these days, he suppressed the impulse.
He let go of her hand and sat back behind the desk: "Are you here to persuade me to change my mind?"
In fact, his previous words about agreeing to let his seventh brother marry Meng Wanxin were not sincere.
A few days ago, he went to his grandmother's Chunxuan Hall and sat for a while. It was not to persuade his grandmother, but just to accompany her to drink tea and talk for a while.
Grandmother has already found out that Meng Wanxin deliberately fell into the water, but it caused Shen Youran and her seventh brother to suffer damage to their reputations. Now she is asking her mother to send her away as soon as possible.
However, Pei Huaijin did not tell Shen Youran about these things. He originally planned to gradually wear down her good impression of him, but he did not expect that she would take the initiative to come to him tonight.
Her legs softened and she sat in his arms.
Her two fragrant and soft arms moved around his neck, and she skillfully acted coquettishly in his arms: "Let's not ignore each other anymore, okay? If you apologize to me, I will forgive you, and then we can live happily like before, okay?"
His voice was so soft that it seemed like water could be squeezed out of it, but he was still asking for an apology.
Pei Huaijin certainly knew that what he did was wrong, whether it was about his seventh brother or hurting her feelings by using the incident of her being kidnapped. After he said that, her disappointed and hurt eyes were all in his mind for the past few nights, making him toss and turn at night, and he wanted to sit up and slap himself twice.
But he said that just to hurt her feelings.
Although he knew that she would not agree to leave him because of this incident, this incident was just the beginning, and he would do more things to disappoint her in the future.
Love grows over time, but it can also grow apart over time. Aren't feelings worn away by little things like this? When there are more disappointments in the future, the feelings will fade, and she will naturally leave him.
So even if she came to him and took the initiative to show her goodwill, Pei Huaijin still suppressed the urge to hug her tightly, hardened his heart, and continued to be the person who disappointed her: "I am also thinking about your reputation, why should I apologize to you?"
"Don't think I can't guess. Why did you deliberately quarrel with me?" After the quarrel that day, Shen Youran was indeed very angry, but after thinking about it, he felt that something was wrong. He was clearly not a selfish person.
If he was selfish, why would he keep urging her to divorce and remarry after learning that she was poisoned, and even choose the person she would remarry?
Then I thought about it, I rarely heard him mention divorce in recent days. Could it be that he changed his strategy, and since the soft approach didn't work, he took a hard approach with her?
The more I think about it, the more I feel that this is true. Otherwise, how could such a gentleman suddenly change his personality?
In order to verify her guess, Shen Youran even went to Chunxuan Hall when he was away during the day. She learned from the old lady that he did not persuade his grandmother to agree to the marriage between Pei Huaian and Meng Wanxin, and she knew that her guess was right.
He was indeed deliberately trying to anger her and make her hate him.
"Let me tell you, I'm no longer the Shen Youran you tricked last year. The one standing before you now is the incredibly intelligent Shen Youran!"
When they got married last year, in order to force her to agree to a marriage swap, he also put the blame of the bride kidnapping on her head.
She was so stupid at that time and was really frightened by him. Even though she was unwilling in her heart, she agreed to the marriage exchange with tears in her eyes.
If she were to be blamed by Duinian now, she would never accept it: not to mention that Lu Yi's attempt to snatch her bride was not for her, even if someone loved her enough to snatch her bride, what did it have to do with her? It wasn't her who asked for the wedding to be snatched away.
But since he scared her at that time, he had to be responsible for her.
Now he is trying every possible way to get rid of her, but she refuses to leave and insists on sticking to him and asking him to take responsibility.
Although Pei Huaijin tried his best to remain indifferent, he almost broke down when he heard her words.
He said that the person standing in front of him was the extremely intelligent Shen Youran. He couldn't help laughing and said, "Then why don't you stand up from my legs first..."
Shen Youran keenly sensed that his defenses were beginning to relax, so she took advantage of the situation, stepped off his legs, stood in front of him, and asked him again: "Can you apologize to me now?"
Pei Huaijin retracted the smile that had just appeared involuntarily, and a layer of indifference appeared on his face again: "No."
"You still don't want to apologize, right?" Shen Youran pinched the edge of his cloak with both hands, a sly look flashing across his eyes. "Then I'm going to use my ultimate move!"
Seeing that she was not annoyed but rather looked confident of victory, Pei Huaijin couldn't help but look forward to it. What was her so-called ultimate move?
He looked at her leisurely, and saw her blink her black eyelashes, and then her cloak suddenly opened.
Under the thick cloak, there was a piece of gauze as thin as a cicada's wing, which could not cover the honey-colored dress underneath and the skin as smooth as fat.
Pei Huaijin was dazzled, and before she could take a closer look, the cloak closed again, covering her tightly from neck to ankles.
Her cheeks flushed, but her aura remained strong: "Apologize or not?"
Even though he had seen her body many times before, this time, even with the extra layer of gauze, it made him want to explore more.
"I didn't see it clearly. Look again." His throat suddenly became very dry. He had been staying in the study for five days in a row and could not taste her smooth and tender body. He was suddenly tempted by her. No matter how calm and steady he was usually, he couldn't control himself at this moment.
Seeing that he had really taken the bait, Shen Youran raised the corner of his lips: “Apologize to me and I’ll show you.”
Pei Huaijin's heart was beating fast, and he exhaled a hot breath: "Be good, let me look at you again."
Not only did Shen Youran not show him, she also pulled her cloak tighter and swayed her waist proudly: "You big pervert, apologize to me now."
Pei Huaijin stood up suddenly, Shen Youran didn't care, and subconsciously took a step back.
However, every time she took a step back, he took a step forward, until he pushed her against the wall, with no way to retreat. He raised his arms to trap her, and the fragrance of agarwood on his body also covered her.
"Do you want to take it off yourself, or should I help you?"
"You, you haven't apologized to me yet?" Shen Youran raised her head and looked at him stubbornly.
"If you take it off, I'll apologize."
"real?"
"Um."
"Then please move aside. This dress looks better under the light."
There was a glass lamp in the study. Shen Youran walked under the lamp and slowly took off her cloak under his unblinking gaze.
The light flowed down, making the veil almost transparent, and gently enveloped her like a mist, making the person with icy skin look like a bright pearl with a halo, and flowers and trees covered with snow.
She lowered her eyelashes slightly, the candlelight hooked at the corners of her eyes, and smiled at him, and Pei Huaijin lost his mind.
"Apologize," she said.
Pei Huaijin walked towards the glowing pearl and said, "I'm sorry, I was wrong that day."
"What's wrong?"
"It's all wrong."
"Then do you admit that you said that just to force me to leave?"
Pei Huaijin stopped: He couldn't admit it, otherwise all his efforts would be in vain.
Seeing that he was silent again, Shen Youran raised her hand to her waist and pulled off the ties of her small clothes.
The person opposite him gave a fierce look.
She continued to move upwards, and the tie at the back of her neck was also pulled off.
The honey-colored dress fell to the ground.
The person opposite him suddenly started breathing unsteadily.
Shen Youran looked at him straight in the eyes: “Admit it, you said that just to force me to leave?”
The spring scenery was intoxicating, and the last bit of calmness and restraint in Pei Huaijin's mind faded away like a thread. He exhaled fiercely, pinched her waist, and carried her to the table: "You win, Shen Youran!"
He kissed her hard, softening her body, and then lifted her legs: "Be good, don't even think about sleeping tonight..."
*
After this incident, the two of them lived in perfect harmony for a while. Later, when he occasionally tried to use his old tricks, Shen Youran would ask him to go plain for a few days, and then prepare a set of sexy clothes and wave them in front of him, and his rationality would be completely shattered.
As summer approached, he accidentally ate something unclean and contracted dysentery, remaining ill for more than ten days.
Shen Youran could feel that these minor illnesses and disasters were no less devastating to his body than a serious illness in an ordinary person's life.
He was more cautious about food, clothing, housing and transportation. After summer came, he wore one more layer of clothes than everyone else, but his figure became thinner.
During this period, Pei Huaian did not marry Meng Wanxin due to his grandmother's opposition.
Meng Wanxin became increasingly embarrassed in the mansion. Seeing that this marriage was hopeless, Zhu found another man from a lower social status and married him off to her.
After Pei Huaian went to study at the Imperial College, he could only come back two or three days a month. The rumors about the drowning that day were gradually forgotten, and people started to talk about fresher and more bizarre things. After all, there were many nobles in the capital, and this was the one thing they had the most.
Not long after my elder sister entered the Forbidden City, she was promoted from the ninth rank Zixiapei to Sizi and was highly valued.
Xie Heng studied in the palace, but due to his lack of merit, he wasn't even given the title of prince. He didn't care, running outside the palace whenever he had a free moment. When he couldn't see his sister, he'd visit Pei's home, bringing gifts he'd collected from the palace, showing filial piety to the elders who had once doted on him, and then visiting Yunzhi Courtyard to engage in a bit of banter with her. Sometimes he'd run into Pei Huaian, who was on his ten-day holiday, and the real and fake Pei Huaian would sit down together for tea, exchanging compliments.
"I heard from my sister earlier that His Majesty was going to grant you a marriage, so why hasn't there been any follow-up?"
Xie Heng smiled and said, "Ask your second brother."
"What's going on with Second Brother?"
"My grandfather wanted to introduce me to a young lady from the Imperial Censor's family. But last year, during the archery ceremony at the Southern Imperial Courtyard, your second brother made a name for himself, and the young lady fell in love with him..."
"It's that lady from the Jiang family." When Shen Youran returned to her parents' home, she did hear that there was a young lady from the Jiang family who often dressed as a man and asked her second brother to go out for fun. She didn't expect that the young lady was the one that His Majesty wanted to arrange a marriage for Xie Heng.
"Since she can't marry you, didn't your royal grandfather point out another wife for you?"
"No."
"What about you and my sister? Will you still be together?"
"Your sister is so obsessed with her official duties right now that she has no time for love," Xie Heng snorted, "I seem to have been fooled by her again..."
At that time, they said that the temporary separation was for a better relationship in the future. Well, after the separation, she lived a prosperous life, but it was hard for him. He had been buried for more than half a year, and the number of times he had been able to use the needle could be counted on two hands.
It was a rare moment of tenderness, so the next day she put on her official robes and told him to leave quickly. Sometimes when they met in the palace, she pretended not to know him well and walked around him.
Make him angry.
"I heard from my husband that Lord Xiao is also getting engaged," Shen Youran held her face and sighed, "Actually, I think Lord Xiao and my sister are quite a good match. I don't understand why my sister rejected him?"
When Xie Heng heard this, he was so angry that his eyes widened. "Are we on better terms, or is Lord Xiao on better terms with you? Have you ever considered my feelings when you say this?"
"You are my ex-brother-in-law, so naturally we have a good relationship."
"Take out the word 'former', I'm still your brother-in-law!"
"Okay, as long as you're happy."
"I'm not happy. Say something nice to cheer me up."
"So what do you want to hear?"
"I want to hear you praise me for being better than Xiao Ci."
"I haven't lied in a long time."
"Is there no part of my body that can compare to Xiao Ci?"
"That's true. You are more handsome than Master Xiao."
"Obviously." Xie Heng raised his chin slightly, "What else?"
"You are younger than him..."
"Talk about the advantages."
"You are thicker-skinned than him."
“…What kind of advantage is this?”
"That's your strength..."
*
In the palace.
Shen Yunshu was ordered to deliver a document to His Majesty.
With her current rank, she is actually not qualified to meet the emperor, but for some reason she was specifically asked to deliver the documents this time.
Even when she moved into the palace as Xie Heng's wife last year, she didn't have many opportunities to meet the emperor.
This is the second time today.
After the eunuch in the imperial study passed the message, he opened the door of the study for her.
Shen Yunshu suppressed her expression, held her breath, bowed her head deeply, and walked in respectfully.
The man in the imperial study, wearing a dragon robe embroidered with gold thread and dragons, was over fifty years old and had been on the throne for many years. He had an aura of a king that was majestic without even being angry.
Fortunately, his loose eyelids covered most of his sharpness, and when he looked up at her, he seemed to have a bit of kindness.
Shen Yunshu presented the document with great trepidation and was about to bow and leave when she was stopped.
The emperor, who was already well-aged, spoke in a voice that sounded a bit vicissitudes of life: "Girl Yunshu, do you blame me for breaking up you and Heng'er?"
Shen Yunshu hurriedly said that she had never complained and it was a great honor for her to be able to pass the examination and become a female official.
"It would be good for you to be a female official for a few years to gain some experience. If Heng'er has a promising future, you will be a very good internal assistant..."
Nei Liangzuo?
That was the praise given to the queen by the emperor of the previous dynasty.
Shen Yunshu trembled and knelt down...
*
After coming out of the imperial study, Shen Yunshu couldn't calm down for a long time.
His Majesty finally accepted her. Even though she was now a female official and could not be Xie Heng's wife, Xie Heng was far from being able to get involved in politics. As his wife, she would naturally not interfere in state affairs through him. She was now serving His Majesty.
If Xie Heng can one day really grow up to be what His Majesty expects him to be, the knowledge and skills that Shen Yunshu has gained through her experience as a female official will not be wasted. She will be his good internal assistant, and help the king to be wise and his descendants to prosper the country.
Shen Yunshu looked up at the palaces around her with their high eaves, red railings and colorful windows, feeling the sunlight surging in but splashing silently on the ground, and felt that this moment was bright and comfortable.
Before leaving the palace, she went to the Imperial Hospital again.
This time, Doctor Chen found a way to cure Pei Huaijin's poison from a newly compiled medical book.
However, it is a dangerous method of fighting poison with poison, with only a 40% chance of success. Once it fails, it may cause damage to the body at best and loss of life at worst, so it must be considered carefully.
After Shen Yunshu left the palace, she told this method to Shen Youran and Pei Huaijin.
"Doctor Chen said that since the decoction is no longer able to break the toxins in your body, we can introduce another poison. Using this poison as a weapon and the decoction as a rein, there might be a chance of a turnaround..."
After hearing this, Shen Youran was very happy, but when her sister changed the subject and said that the possibility of success of this method was less than 50%, and if it failed, the worst case scenario was that Pei Huaijin would die immediately, Shen Youran hesitated again.
She didn't dare take the risk.
Even if the poison in Pei Huaijin's body cannot be cured, he can still live for a few years. If his body collapses in the future, it is not impossible for him to live for another ten or eight years by using medicine.
This method of fighting poison with poison is nothing but gambling. No one knows whether he will die or suffer from other more serious sequelae in the 60% chance of failure.
After thinking it over for several days, Shen Youran discussed with Pei Huaijin and decided not to take the risk. They should wait a little longer. Perhaps there would be a safer and more effective way to remove the poison from his body in the future.
Pei Huaijin agreed to her: "Okay, I'll listen to you and wait a little longer."
Shen Youran thought he had really given up on this method, so he didn't mention it again.
Not long after that, Pei Huaijin told her that he was going to Yuzhou. The Right Censor-in-Chief of Yuzhou had made great contributions in suppressing the rebellion, and he was ordered to bring rewards as a token of the country's grace.
Shen Youran asked him when he could return.
"If everything goes well, I'll be back within half a month. If not..."
Shen Youran covered his mouth: "Don't say anything unlucky, it's just a reward, how could it not go smoothly?"
He took her hand and kissed it: "I said, what if, what if things don't go well, and I get into trouble like last time, or even worse than last time, you should not be sad for too long, and don't be a widow for me. Remarry when you should. Liang Xu hasn't even proposed marriage yet..."
Shen Youran hated it most when he said this, so she bumped into his arms and hugged him: “If you say this again, I won’t let you leave.”
"Okay, I won't say anymore." He rubbed his chin against the top of her head. Where she couldn't see, his dark eyes were filled with nostalgia.
After he left with Qing Jian, Shen Youran counted on her fingers, waiting for him to come back.
Half a month later, he didn't come back, and Shen Youran began to suffer from insomnia.
A month later, he didn't come back, and Shen Youran had nightmares again and again.
Three months later, he didn't return, and Shen Youran already knew what was going on.
She went to her sister and asked, crying, "Sister, did he choose that method of detoxification? Is he dead?"
Shen Yunshu did not hide it from her: "He is not dead, and the poison in his body has been cured. He just had some problems and needs time to recover."
"Where is he?"
"In the capital..."
Pei Huaijin was indeed ordered to go to Yuzhou, but he returned after only ten days. He took a long vacation, but did not go home. Instead, he rented a house in the east of the city and asked Doctor Chen to detoxify him.
He used the method of fighting poison with poison for seven days. The two poisons fought each other in his body and both were injured. He was tortured to the point of being on the verge of death.
Fortunately, the poison was removed and his life was saved, but his body was seriously damaged and he was in a coma for several days. He only woke up half a month ago. He could not move and his brain was blank. He could not remember anyone or anything.
Xie Heng eventually found out about this matter and felt extremely guilty. He took Doctor Chen out of the palace every day to treat him. He temporarily stopped his studies and stayed by his side every day, telling him about the things he had forgotten.
Fortunately, Pei Huaijin's condition is getting better day by day. He has regained consciousness and can get out of bed and walk. His memory has also returned to the time when he was in office in Lingzhou. I think in a few days, all his memories will be back.
Therefore, even if the third sister didn't come to find her, Shen Yunshu planned to find the third sister and tell her the good news.
Shen Youran cried with joy when she heard this, and couldn’t wait to see him.
*
In late summer and early autumn, four-gilled sea bass and water shield are at their plumpest.
Xie Heng asked the chef in the imperial study to prepare a dish with these two ingredients and sent it to his eldest brother for him to taste.
The not-so-big house was decorated by Xie Heng to be quiet and elegant. Pei Huaijin sat under the eaves to appreciate the flowers. The edges of the petals of the flowers blooming in summer were already stained with a faint autumn color, and they swayed slightly when the wind blew.
His eyes were on the flowers, admiring the autumn scenery, but the memory that had just returned to his mind was of the spring when the willows were just beginning to turn green. On the rainbow bridge built by giant trees, there was a graceful and elegant girl standing in the wind.
The surface of the water is slightly wrinkled, and the quiet and dignified girl is like a delicate flower reflected in the water, so quiet and beautiful that it is beyond description.
The fresh smell of food interrupted his recollection.
Xie Heng came over with a food box in his hand: "Brother, guess what delicious food I brought you today?"
Pei Huaijin took a closer look and said, "Steamed sea bass and water shield soup."
"You guessed right. It seems his sense of smell has returned." Xie Heng placed the food box on the table inside the house. "It's still warm. Come in quickly, big brother."
Pei Huaijin picked up the bamboo stick beside him, stood up, and walked into the house.
He had been in a coma for too long and his legs were still a little weak, but Doctor Chen told him not to worry and that as long as he exercised regularly, he would be back to normal in no time.
Just as I stepped over the threshold, I heard hurried footsteps coming from outside the moon-shaped door.
It seemed like someone was running towards this side.
Pei Huaijin looked back.
A young woman in a golden rose-colored folded skirt appeared in his sight. She ran very fast, as if she was walking on the wind, and the hem of her skirt drew a light arc in the air, just like a blooming trumpet creeper...
She ran into the yard, saw him, and finally stopped, her eyes filled with tears.
Xie Heng came out from behind him and asked him with a mischievous smile: "Brother, do you know who she is?"
"I know," his heartbeat suddenly quickened in his chest, telling him, "She's the girl I fell in love with at first sight..."
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The author has something to say: Ahhh, I finally finished writing the main text!
Serializing from mid-July to early October, I stayed up countless late nights and finally waited for this day!
Thank you to all the babies who have accompanied me all the way. I will give you red envelopes in this chapter to express my gratitude.
In addition, I will pin a comment to the top to solicit submissions for extra chapters. You can tell me what extra chapters you want to see so that I can get more inspiration.
Love you all! Heart to heart! Kiss everyone! [Red Heart]
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