21 Awkward
◎In your eyes, I am still a gentleman◎
Rong Qianyu and Wen Xiaqing were at loggerheads with each other. They were not on the same page and were staring at each other, as if they were about to curse at each other.
Xue Ji happened to enter the room at this moment, walked up to them leisurely, and asked without any expression, "What are you two talking about?" Seeing that the two did not move, his deep eyes slowly turned to Rong Qianyu and said, "It's been a while since we last met. You must have a lot to talk about, right?"
These words put an end to the lightning-fast competition between the two people, but the atmosphere was still very tense.
Rong Qianyu waved her hand and sat aside, "Nothing happened."
Xue Ji looked at Wen Xiaqing and saw that he was becoming more and more reserved. He stood far away and scratched his head from time to time. Rong Qianyu was also fidgeting, obviously interrupted before she could finish her words.
As a man, he naturally wanted to be a good person to the end. He walked around leisurely and said to Rong Qianyu, "It doesn't matter if there is something. I will step aside. Your Majesty will talk to Lord Wen."
"We're fine." Rong Qianyu was furious and shouted at him in an urgent tone.
"Forget it. I'll go out and wait for another stick of incense. Your Majesty, we're meeting again." He said this deliberately for Rong Qianyu to hear. He knew about their past interactions and deliberately raised his voice, "It's okay. It's normal to have something to say."
Xue Ji saw the two of them staring at each other in silence, so he decided to bring up something else entirely. "I heard that Lord Wen and the Xiao family's fourth young lady are engaged. When are they planning on getting married?"
This Fourth Miss Xiao was the youngest daughter of Xiao Jue, a veteran general of the Rong State. She was a few years younger than Wen Xiaqing and had always been infatuated with him. No matter how her parents tried to find a good man for her, she wouldn't even look at them and only liked Wen Xiaqing.
Rong Qianyu didn't know about this news until Xue Ji told her today. He investigated it carefully and wanted to find out the names of Wen Xiaqing's ancestors and all his new and old friends.
Just as things were starting to get settled, Wen Xiaqing was exposed as being engaged. She tried desperately to distance herself from the matter, but it was indeed not finalized. "No! No engagement. My parents are pushing me hard, but I'm not going to marry her. Qian... Madam, you know I won't."
He wanted to explain, but it only made things worse. On the one hand, he was discussing marriage with others, while on the other hand, he was pretending to be sympathetic and concealing the truth. Rong Qianyu was very unhappy, "Will you have nothing to do with me anymore?"
"Qian'er, why are you so stubborn? I came here just for you! You're clearly living..."
Seeing that the two were angry, Xue Ji tactfully left the room, leaving Rong Qianyu and Wen Xiaqing looking at each other.
Rong Qianyu had been busy lately, nursing her baby during the day and serving the emperor at night. She was constantly being bullied, too busy to handle the situation, yet she had nowhere to vent. Thinking of all this, coupled with Wen Xiaqing's nagging, and just learning about her childhood sweetheart's marriage, she was furious. Her eyes were red, and her face was twisted in a hideous way as she questioned him:
"Where were you before? Now you're here for me. Why do you always talk to yourself and never consider the situation? You're already talking about marriage, why are you still messing with me?!"
Hearing her ask this, Wen Xiaqing was stunned. Everyone could say that to him, but Rong Qianyu was the only one he couldn't do that to. He did all this, took the initiative to be an envoy, and gave up Miss Xiao Si because of Rong Qianyu. Now she asked why he still came to provoke her.
He didn't dare look up at her eyes, complaining and aggrieved in his heart, tears streaming down unconsciously, "It's because I can't let you go that I..."
But she didn't care at all and just yelled at him to shut up.
"Xue Ji! Xue Ji!" Rong Qianyu didn't understand why he was so stubborn. Since they were not on the same page, she kept calling Xue Ji's name.
Upon hearing the news, he hurried in to listen to the instructions, "What's the matter, Madam?"
"Return to the palace!"
Xue Ji was listening intently outside the door. Such a lively atmosphere was rare, and he was still reluctant to move, wanting to hear more secrets. "Why don't we wait for the palace banquet and then go back together?"
"Leave now, don't you understand?" she shouted.
"yes."
"Crown Princess!" Wen Xiaqing hurriedly called him, "I have a letter for you."
Rong Qianyu looked him up and down, took the letter and left without looking back.
In the carriage back to the palace, neither of them spoke and the atmosphere was extremely depressing. Xue Ji saw that she was worried and said, "Your Majesty, if you feel sad, you can cry."
"I didn't cry." Rong Qianyu said, suppressing her grievance.
Xue Ji continued to test the waters, patted her shoulder, and jokingly said with a playful smile: "I can lend you my shoulder and let you cry on it."
"I said I wasn't crying!"
"How does the Empress feel now? Are you feeling comfortable?" He felt jealous when he saw her talking to Wen Xiaqing today. Even though he knew that she was feeling depressed, he still spoke in a bad mood, with a hint of provocation.
Rong Qianyu didn't look at him. She sat alone in the carriage and turned her head away. "It's so comfortable, so comfortable, so comfortable!"
Xue Ji knew that she was unhappy, so he said, "Your Majesty, there is no need to be sarcastic. I am just concerned about you. I would not care about Concubine Cui, right?"
The two of them were sulking all the way back to the palace. Rong Qianyu was barely able to relax when Nanny Fang came in with the pregnancy-maintaining medicine. "Your Majesty, take the medicine."
Rong Qianyu said angrily: "No!"
Nanny Fang received the Crown Prince's order, insisting she do her duty. "Your Majesty, I have to report this to His Royal Highness. This medicine is a gift from His Royal Highness, and I can't let him down. The envoy from Rong is still here, and the relationship between our two countries is a big deal. Please don't be so petty."
Hearing her words, Rong Qianyu's face immediately darkened, her brows furrowed, her body trembling unconsciously. She slammed the table and scolded her, "Whose slave are you anyway? You're my dowry nanny. I told you not to drink, don't you understand?!"
Nanny Fang, who used chicken feathers as a token of authority, pretended to be very embarrassed. She spread her hands and frowned and said, "If you want to do this, I can only go and explain to His Highness."
Rong Qianyu stood up, took two steps forward, snatched the medicine from Nanny Fang's hand, and slammed it heavily to the ground. The medicine bowl shattered with a clang. The force was so great that the broken pieces cut her hand. The blood covered the pain, and the dripping sound was unusually clear.
"You'd better go now, you little bastard, and show the Rong Kingdom masters what a wicked slave you are! The door is open now, so hurry up and go! I'm not a three-year-old child anymore, who are you trying to scare, old bitch! I won't drink it, but you're forcing me to drink it!"
Rong Pan came in upon hearing the noise and saw the mess on the ground. Rong Qianyu's hand was also cut with a big gash. "Madam Fang, let me do it. You go down and rest."
"What happened to the princess? I'll go bandage her. Why are you so upset after coming back? What did Lord Wen say to you?"
Her hands couldn't help but tremble due to the injury she had just suffered. Tears kept flowing as she murmured to herself, "They're forcing me, they're forcing me. I've had enough. Why are they forcing me..."
Her face was as pale as paper, sweat dripped from her forehead, and her breathing became more and more rapid. Her emotions were like a huge rock pressing on his heart, making him unable to suppress it.
Seeing her so anxious, Pan Ye didn't know why. "Princess, don't think about it. It's over now. Don't worry about it and hurt yourself."
She sobbed and asked, "What do you mean by Xue Ji today, at the banquet?"
The whole day ended in bad mood. At the banquet, Xue Ji was also beating around the bush to test him, "I heard that Master Wen is going to be engaged to Master Xiao's daughter. Congratulations in advance. This glass of wine is to toast Master Wen for finding his true love!"
Wen Xiaqing's eyes slightly avoided, and he said, "My father hasn't decided yet, and his fate hasn't even been decided yet."
"Lord Wen is a talented and romantic scholar from Rong State, and Miss Xiao is also from a military family. I heard that Miss Xiao was once the second princess's study partner. They were childhood sweethearts back then. Isn't this a fate sent by heaven?"
Rong Qianyu found these words harsh and piercing. She no longer had any feelings for Fu Hua, but she couldn't explain what she felt towards Wen Xiaqing. She wanted to let go. She didn't trust Fu Hua, but Wen Xiaqing was not a good man for her either, so she felt a little unwilling.
Upon hearing this, Fu Kang also said, "I didn't know Xia Qing had such a wonderful relationship. That's really great! When they get married, my Great Zhou will definitely send someone to congratulate them!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty. I still have some unfinished business and will let you know when the time comes." He bowed to thank Fu Kang, but lowered his eyes to look in the direction of Rong Qianyu.
Bai Yi interrupted, "My Lord Xiao Wen is sorry, Your Majesty, please do not ask any more questions!"
When his memory came back, what Xue Ji said was nothing more than a warning. He had investigated Wen Xiaqing and didn't know what this damn eunuch was going to do. It seemed that he had been having a hard time with her recently.
"What is his intention?" Rong Qianyu asked worriedly.
Rong Pan noticed her worry, stroked her shoulder, and said in a gentle tone, "Lord Xue won't mean any harm, Princess, go to sleep first and don't think too much."
Thinking about all these things made her anxious and restless, becoming more and more sensitive. She lowered her head and said, "Please leave. I want to be alone for a while."
"How about this servant bring the princess a bowl of calming soup so she can drink it and sleep more comfortably."
The more Rong Pan said this, the more anxious Rong Qianyu became.
"Nothing," she said.
Seeing that she really had no interest, Rong Pan could only withdraw. "Then Princess, you should get some rest early. There are also some pregnancy-maintaining medicines. Since you and His Royal Highness are already married, you still need to take them to recuperate. Only by giving birth to a prince soon will your position as princess be secure."
"Pan'er... actually..." She finally mustered up the courage to tell what happened a few days ago, but when the words came to her lips, she didn't know how to start.
She couldn't tell Rong Pan that she had never consummated her marriage, and that the so-called pregnancy-preserving medicine was deliberately given to her by Fu Hua to humiliate her. The dignity of a princess was trampled upon so easily, and she really couldn't speak.
"What's wrong?" Rong Pan asked.
She smiled, forcing a sad smile on her bitter face, "It's nothing, go and rest."
Being alone in the room, she then remembered the letter Wen Xiaqing had written to her. She opened the letter and saw a familiar and graceful handwriting.
It was indeed written by Wen Xiaqing himself. The paper was a little yellowed. It was probably completed a long time ago and he never had the chance to take it out.
To my old friend Qianyu: Seeing your letter is like seeing you in person, and reading this letter brings joy to your face. I hope you're doing well after not seeing you for so many months. I know I was once weak and indecisive, unworthy of a beautiful woman. I'm deeply saddened to learn of your recent situation, so...
After days of suffering humiliation, Rong Qianyu finally couldn't hold back the bitterness she'd been pent up in. Seeing these words, she felt a surge of warmth in her heart. Tears of excitement filled her eyes once again, and they fell drop by drop. She held the letter, unwilling to wipe away her tears, unable to hold back her tears any longer.
"Why are you doing all this? Isn't it ridiculous?" Wen Xiaqing's feelings for her were real, but they were so pale and powerless, and it was too late.
Rong Qianyu was unhappy after returning to the palace, but Xue Ji was busy running around for her. Ever since Wen Xiaqing's arrival, he seemed to be particularly concerned about this childhood sweetheart. "Did you find out? What does that Wen want to do?"
Qingyun hesitated and said, "I did find out, but..."
"What are you hesitating about?"
Qingyun was a little embarrassed. "Isn't it ungentlemanly for you to investigate these things?"
Xue Ji didn't expect him to ask this. His sarcasm was unexpectedly pleasant, "Am I still a gentleman in your eyes?"
“…”
"Stop talking nonsense, what are you writing about?"
"I know I was weak and indecisive in the past, and I'm not worthy of you. I'm heartbroken to know your current situation..."
Looking at this big news, a foreign envoy who paid tribute to the Great Zhou, a talented and romantic scholar of Rong State, and an old friend of the Crown Princess, actually wanted to elope with the Crown Princess. It was truly a strange story in the world.
Xue Ji looked at the letter in deep thought, and a vague idea came to his mind: how could he elope?
"What does your Excellency plan to do?" Qingyun asked.
He couldn't help laughing. He had wanted to do this for a long time. "What to do? Break up the couple, of course!"
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