78 Enlightenment
◎Sister-in-law, is this for me or for yourself◎
"For yourself." Rong Qianyu said.
"For me?" Fu Tao was in a low mood, but still very wary of everyone around him.
Rong Qianyu was urged to come over again and again, and everyone was very anxious. Fu Tao refused to eat or drink for several days.
The palace maids discussed her privately, feeling sorry for her. She had been a pampered and beloved princess, always innocent and cheerful. But in recent days, her lively self had vanished. She had become gloomy and depressed, not even smiling.
It was not her turn to marry, but His Majesty was unwilling to help her.
Logically speaking, although the relationship between the brother and sister cannot be said to be very close, they are brothers from the same mother after all. Why would he be so heartless as to push his own sister out to fool others?
But they are all servants after all. Whether they sympathize or feel sorry for each other, the decision is not theirs after all. They want to help but they lack the energy and willingness to do so.
Rong Qianyu is in the same situation as them.
She set the table again, including Fu Tao's favorite pastries and hot dishes, and said, "We share the same suffering. I came here because of you."
Fu Tao was slightly startled. "Sister-in-law, is this for me or for yourself?"
"What?"
Rong Qianyu never thought that she would say such words. In her opinion, she was still a fifteen-year-old girl, smart and naive.
For myself.
It seemed true. Fu Tao today was just like her former self, her heartache tinged with more emotion than others. She didn't want such a lively girl to fall into the endless sorrow she had, alone in a foreign country.
Everyone says that the princess who married into a foreign country was a noble person, sacrificing her life to bring peace to the country. But when praising these great achievements, who really thought about the princess's situation?
Far away from home, a homeland she could never return to, he sent a concubine to protect the country. It sounded good, saying that the two countries would be united forever without a single soldier. In reality, it was bullying the weak and fearing the strong. Only by sacrificing a woman could peace be achieved. She had been calculated into the game, and she could not stand by and watch Fu Tao being calculated as well.
Fu Tao's attitude softened, but he was still in a low mood. From time to time, his eyes filled with tears and he choked up several times. "We are in the same boat. In fact, my sister-in-law is also thinking of me."
These words really stung Rong Qianyu, "I am also a princess who was married to a foreign country, I..."
"My sister-in-law said I wouldn't." She choked.
Rong Qianyu sat beside her, hesitant to speak, not knowing how to answer her. After a long time, she finally thought of what to say, "I can't make the decision for your brother. We all care about you, you have to understand."
Fu Tao's heart ached like it had been struck by a heavy hammer. She felt helpless and hopeless, her emotions reaching their limit in an instant. It felt as if a mountain was pressing down on her chest, making it hard for her to breathe for days. Waves of sadness would come from time to time, and she would cry for no apparent reason.
No one had ever said these words to her before. She was the legitimate princess and was very favored. In the past, she didn't have to understand anything and could do whatever she wanted.
These words undoubtedly hurt her beyond words. Tears welled up in her eyes. She frowned and trembled, pinching the back of her hand with one hand, trying to control herself, but eventually she burst into tears.
She couldn't bear this kind of grievance, she felt helpless and heartbroken, tears flowed unconsciously.
She yelled at Rong Qianyu and smashed the food she had just put aside for her. "Why should I understand? I understand that you all say you're doing this for my own good, but no one has ever really thought about me. I'm a human being. I have my own thoughts and emotions. Why should I be a puppet at their mercy? Why?"
Rong Qianyu couldn't answer. Women in the imperial family seemed to be manipulated their entire lives. From who they married to who they bore children, every step was calculated. She couldn't empathize with the rulers, but she couldn't escape this square cage either. Living a stable life in the palace seemed like a luxury.
"Born in the royal family, these are inevitable."
This is really funny.
Fu Tao obviously couldn't listen anymore and continued to cry hysterically to Rong Qianyu. It seemed that the years of favor he had shown her had turned him into a laughing stock in the palace in an instant.
"Father, the Emperor, can find a husband for Fu Nian. Since she is a concubine's daughter, she may have to marry off to another country in the future. Father will make plans for them as long as he has a breath left. But what about me? I am the legitimate princess, the only eldest princess. Now they want to send me off to marry off, and no one will speak for me!"
"I am also a legitimate child." Rong Qianyu said somewhat weakly.
If she couldn't even convince herself, how could she convince others? What was inevitable for the woman became the man's reluctance.
Women in the royal family have been taught since childhood that they should sacrifice themselves for the sake of the country, marry into other countries, and live a happy and comfortable life.
Men are born to have children, so they can bully a palace maid casually and expect her to be grateful, thus ruining her originally comfortable life.
"But you said I'm different from you. How are we different?"
"Tao'er..." Rong Qianyu was speechless.
She shook her head helplessly, forcing a bitter smile.
"When my mother dies, my father dies. My mother and my father were childhood sweethearts, and they promised to be together forever. Later, when my father ascended the throne, my mother gradually fell out of favor. With the new man by her side, my mother died in childbirth, and even my younger brother was not spared."
"Why should I, why should I..."
Every question Fu Tao asked made her at a loss for words. She would rather Fu Tao was the illegitimate child that made her father anxious, than become the stone for her brother's selfishness.
"Master Wen," Rong Qianyu asked, "do you know that he was my childhood sweetheart in Rong Kingdom? In fact, I promised him that we would elope in Rong Kingdom, and perhaps all the things that happened later wouldn't have happened."
She omitted some other details and just said that she had planned to elope with Wen Xiaqing when she was in Rongguo.
What would have happened if she had eloped with him at that time? She didn't know and didn't dare to imagine it. With Wen Xiaqing's character, she didn't want to take the gamble again.
"Do you still like him?" Fu Tao listened to her story and managed to calm down.
Rong Qianyu shook her head. The price of eloping was very high. Wen Xiaqing was not a person who would take risks. Some people might be worth it, but some people were not trustworthy.
"But I did like him at the time," she added, "He's a very good person, talented and filial, but we were just not meant to be together."
If she liked someone once, she would have liked him. She would not slander him just because they are separated now. She has always been clear-headed. Some people are only temporary. Since it ended without a trace, they truly liked each other back then. Why should they hate each other just because they couldn't be husband and wife?
"Do you blame him?" Fu Tao asked.
"There's nothing to complain about. It was bad luck that they couldn't be together, but he already found someone more suitable for him who can accompany him to the end. We are just parting ways, not enemies."
Rong Qianyu had once asked herself if she still hated Wen Xiaqing. Perhaps she did, but more often than not, she just felt they weren't meant to be. But since she already had someone close to her, there was no need to dwell on it.
"Sister-in-law, are you content to live in this palace? Are you living comfortably?"
These words hurt Rong Qianyu's heart again. How could she feel at ease?
She had been married to the Great Zhou for two years. She had been framed, confined, and bullied, but she still had to play the role of a crown princess and a queen.
She always insisted that if they couldn't be husband and wife, they would be king and subject, so she gradually began to not care about Fu Hua's thoughts.
She was indeed living an unhappy life, but she couldn't think that the whole world should be unhappy with her just because of her own misfortune.
She still wanted to persuade Fu Tao.
"Tao'er, I've met the wrong person, so logically I have no right to tell you this. But you should know that not everyone is so unfortunate. Your father and mother had a very good relationship, didn't they? If Cui were the empress today, she and your brother would also be deeply in love."
Fu Tao seemed to be lost in thought. He picked up a piece of cake that had just been knocked over on the table and started eating it.
"I don't want to share it with other women. Sister-in-law, you don't care because you don't love my brother. As for the Queen Mother, she loves my father, but she was the Queen first. No woman can accept that a man she loves has children with another woman. It's like having sex with a man in Wushan."
Rong Qianyu was a bit dazed when she heard this. This was exactly what Xue Ji had said to her a year ago, and at that time she had thought it was alarmist. She didn't want to let this little girl see through the obstacles that she had been unable to figure out. She really couldn't persuade her anymore.
"You've really grown up. You've already thought it through very thoroughly. It's unnecessary for me to advise you."
"Here is a letter. Please find a way to give it to Xinwei." Fu Tao took out a letter and handed it to Rong Qianyu.
"Do you have a plan?" Rong Qianyu asked.
Fu Tao nodded, "Just a little bit of thought."
Rong Qianyu guessed what she was thinking and was extremely worried, fearing she had made an impulsive decision without considering the consequences. "Don't do anything stupid. The Queen Mother and I both want you to be happy and we both disapprove of you marrying him, but we don't want you to do it this way."
She didn't know much about Huang Song, but based on her experience, she was afraid that Huang Song was also untrustworthy, and that if the news of their elopement spread, Fu Tao would never be able to hold his head up high again.
But Fu Tao didn't care. She had grown up and understood that Rong Qianyu was doing this for her own good. She consoled him, "Sister-in-law, you're wrong again. If Xinwei can come, he doesn't care and I don't care either. So why should I care about what unrelated people think?"
Hearing her say this, Rong Qianyu felt much more relieved. "I'll deliver this letter to you. I won't tell your royal brother. Just pretend I don't know. As for whether he can come, I think you have to think clearly about the consequences."
"Thank you, sister-in-law."
"Are the people around you trustworthy?"
"It's natural."
Before leaving, she gave him a special warning, fearing that something might go wrong. "I don't have any more advice to give you. Just be careful."
If something goes wrong in this matter, she would be most worried about the worst.
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