Chapter 17
Chapter Summary: A Chance Encounter.
"Does Your Majesty wish to ride in a sedan chair?" Ayu asked from the side.
"No, let's go for a walk," Yu Jing replied.
"yes."
Since she wasn't in a hurry to return to Cining Palace, Yu Jing didn't explore the palace grounds and wandered aimlessly. The more she walked, the more she realized how vast the palace truly was. Steps, corridors, passageways, palaces, and walls stretched endlessly, seemingly without end.
Upon hearing the exhilarating shouts, Yu Jing looked in the direction of the sound with some curiosity. She saw that the city walls were high and the buildings were different from those elsewhere. She turned her head and asked A Yu, "What place is that?"
Ayu glanced at it and replied, "Your Majesty, that is the training ground where the palace soldiers and guards practice."
"Let's go take a look," Yu Jing said, a sly glint in her eyes, before running toward the corridor beyond the high wall.
"Your Majesty, this... is probably against the rules." Before Ayu could finish speaking, she saw Yu Jing running off in that direction, sighed helplessly, and quickly followed after her.
Since the assassination attempt, Sheng Hua seems to find everything new and exciting. Although she has become more lively, A Yu doesn't know how to deal with it anymore.
The soldiers in the camp didn't need to be waited on, and they were all training. Seeing that there was no one in the corridor, Yu Jing ran around even more recklessly. After becoming Sheng Hua, she had suppressed her temper and walked, spoke, and ate carefully. Now that she finally had a chance to be unrestrained, she naturally couldn't let it go.
"Xie Xuan, you finally have a day off today, and you still come to the training ground. Isn't that a bit too much?" Han Qingzhou said to Xie Xuan while wiping his sweat with a towel.
Xie Xuan, panting slightly, took off his armor and placed it on the bench, replying, "I'm much more relaxed now that I'm serving at Cining Palace. But on the frontier, I can't relax for even a moment."
Hearing Xie Xuan say this, Han Qingzhou smiled and said, "The job in the capital is incomparable to guarding the frontier. You suffered so much on the frontier before, now that you're back in the capital, you should enjoy yourself."
"Diligence leads to mastery, while idleness leads to ruin. If the barbarians on the border invade one day, we will both have to go to the battlefield..." Xie Xuan was interrupted by Han Qingzhou before he could finish speaking.
"Hey, hey, don't talk nonsense. I want to stay in the capital for a few more years. Going to the battlefield is really not suitable for me," Han Qingzhou shouted.
Xie Xuan sat down beside Han Qingzhou, who casually handed him a bamboo tube. Xie Xuan opened it and took a large gulp of water. Han Qingzhou twirled the handkerchief in his hand, his eyes narrowed as he watched the soldiers drilling in the distance. Suddenly remembering something, he said, "His Majesty has been coughing badly at court lately. I heard from several officials that medicine hasn't helped. I wonder what's wrong."
Han Qingzhou looked genuinely worried, and even sighed softly as she spoke.
Xie Xuan was silent for a moment before replying, "My father said it's just a cold. I also caught a cold once when I was on the frontier, and I had a high fever, but I pulled through. His Majesty is in good health and has so many imperial physicians attending to him, so it shouldn't be anything serious."
Hearing Xie Xuan say this, Han Qingzhou smiled and turned to look at him: "Let's not talk about this anymore. How have you been lately? Are you happy serving in Cining Palace?"
"It's alright," Xie Xuan replied, looking at the city wall in the distance.
"Really?" Han Qingzhou asked, still somewhat skeptical.
"Why would I lie to you?" Xie Xuan smiled, stood up, and said, "Alright, it's getting late. I'm going back to my residence for lunch. You should go back early too."
Seeing that Xie Xuan was about to leave, Han Qingzhou quickly got up and rushed to his side, saying, "Hey, wait for me!"
As soon as he stepped out of the side gate of the training ground, he heard the sound of women laughing nearby. Xie Xuan stopped and turned his head to look, somewhat surprised to see Sheng Hua here.
Her pine-green hair was elegant and delicate, the pine and cypress embroidered with silver thread as pure and crisp as falling snow. Her makeup was light, yet it couldn't conceal her radiance. Her hair was styled in the swallow-and-sparrow bun, which was fashionable in the capital a while back, and she wore a simple jade pine needle hairpin. A carefree smile graced her face, and under the sunlight, she possessed an indescribable radiance and liveliness.
Han Qingzhou also did not expect to run into Sheng Hua here, and he always felt that the current Sheng Hua was somewhat different from the one he had met before.
Yu Jing was having a great time with A Yu when she noticed Xie Xuan and Han Qingzhou beside him, and she froze for a moment. Then she stopped smiling, stood up awkwardly, cleared her throat, and didn't know where to look.
Everyone else is fine, but why Xie Xuan of all people?
Xie Xuan also noticed Yu Jing's actions; it was the first time he had ever seen her act like this.
Xie Xuan turned and walked towards Yu Jing. Han Qingzhou gently tugged at Xie Xuan's sleeve and whispered, "Where are you going?"
"Greetings." Xie Xuan responded, then strode towards Yu Jing.
Yu Jing caught a glimpse of Xie Xuan and his entourage approaching out of the corner of her eye. She wanted to leave but couldn't, so she could only look at them from the side.
"Your humble servant greets Your Majesty the Empress Dowager," Xie Xuan and Han Qingzhou bowed to Yu Jing and paid their respects.
Yu Jingman, still feeling awkward from what had just happened, chuckled sheepishly and replied, "Get up."
Xie Xuan and the people around him looked like they had just finished training. They wore cloaks draped over their hands and were dressed very lightly. Today, he was wearing casual clothes, not scarlet, but a plain plum-green robe, which added a touch of elegance compared to his usual scarlet attire. There was a thin layer of sweat on his forehead, which clung to his slightly messy hair, and he was still breathing heavily.
"Thank you, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager." The two of them stood up at the same time.
Yu Jing didn't want to talk to them anymore, after all, she had already lost face. She said, "It's getting late, and I'm tired from walking around. I'll go back to the palace first. You should go back early too."
"Yes," Xie Xuan replied, pursing his lips.
After Yu Jing left, Han Qingzhou stared at her retreating figure in disbelief for a long time. Xie Xuan nudged his elbow: "What are you looking at?"
"That's not right," Han Qingzhou murmured.
"What's wrong?" Xie Xuan asked back.
"I was once ordered to temporarily take over the guard duty of Cining Palace. The Empress Dowager I met then had sharp eyes and was as cold as ice. She was extremely strict with her subordinates. She is completely different from how she is now." Han Qingzhou said, while tugging at Xie Xuan's sleeve.
"Xie Xuan, I was publicly flogged by the Empress Dowager for a trivial matter. There is absolutely no way I could have misremembered this."
"Hey, I didn't believe you when I heard you say that the Empress Dowager had changed her mind. Now I do."
Hearing Han Qingzhou say this, Xie Xuan also looked up at Sheng Hua's retreating figure. He had actually heard many people say similar things in private. Although he didn't know the reasons, it was still a good thing; some things, if you can't figure them out, you shouldn't think about them anymore.
Back at Cining Palace, Yu Jing finally breathed a sigh of relief, but the scene from earlier still kept replaying in her mind. She had worked so hard to maintain her facade in Cining Palace, yet she had been seen through so easily.
Yu Jing sighed deeply, shook her head, and said with emotion, "This is truly a huge embarrassment."
To calm her mind, Yu Jing picked up a military treatise from the shelf. She wasn't good at understanding military texts to begin with, and the more she read, the more agitated she became. In the end, she abandoned it and switched to a book of poetry. However, Yu Jing then thought that when Xie Xuan returned to Heaven, he would drink Laozi's celestial water to erase his memories of the mortal world. He wouldn't remember anything; what was there to be ashamed of?
He breathed a sigh of relief the moment he figured it out and called Ah Yu to serve the meal.
After nightfall, Ayu brought in bird's nest from outside the palace. Yu Jing could hear the whistling wind outside and clearly feel the cool air seeping in through the cracks.
"Is it very windy outside?" Yu Jing asked as she watched A Yu walk towards her.
Before she could finish speaking, Yu Jing saw A Yu approach and noticed the snow on her clothes. A Yu carefully placed the bird's nest in her hand in front of Yu Jing and replied, "Yes, it snowed last night, and the wind and snow are quite strong now."
"It's probably going to be terribly cold tonight. Her Majesty the Empress Dowager is always sensitive to the cold. I'll go out and give the order so that the servants won't be careless in their duties at night." As she spoke, Ayu turned and left.
Yu Jing picked up a spoon and scooped some bird's nest from the bowl. Looking at A Yu's back, she shook her head with a slightly helpless smile.
Ayu went out and quickly instructed, "It's cold tonight. Xiao Guizi, go to the storeroom and get some silver charcoal to prepare. Xiao Ting, go with me and get that white bear skin rug. Also, Aci, tell the kitchen to keep warm water on hand at all times. The charcoal fire is strong at night, and people get thirsty easily."
"yes."
The others had barely responded and gone downstairs when they heard a commotion at the door. Ayu frowned slightly, grabbed her umbrella, opened it, and headed towards the door. The wind and snow were heavy, and it took Ayu a while to walk that short distance. As she reached the door, the noise gradually became clearer.
"This servant is from the Jade Lotus Palace, and has come to deliver a message on the orders of Her Majesty the Empress!"
The guard hesitated for a moment, then said, "Her Majesty the Empress Dowager has already retired for the night. We can discuss this tomorrow."
"This concerns His Majesty; please inform him!"
What's all the noise about?
Everyone turned around and saw that it was Ayu. The guard politely greeted her, "Aunt Ayu."
"Aunt Ayu!" the person called out excitedly, as if seeing a lifeline.
"What is it?" Ayu walked up to him.
"His Majesty has had a high fever since last night. The Empress has already summoned several imperial physicians, but she is still undecided and would like to ask the Empress Dowager to step in and take charge."
Upon hearing this, Ayu panicked and turned to walk towards the bedroom without even taking her umbrella.
"Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."
Yu Jing heard A Yu's voice at the door. Just as she was about to respond, she heard A Yu continue speaking.
"Her Majesty the Empress sent someone to invite him, saying that His Majesty's high fever persisted into the night and the imperial physician has already been summoned."
Yu Jing paused in her eating of bird's nest, put the spoon in her hand into the bowl, and said towards the door, "Come in and serve."
In times like these, it's crucial not to panic. Qi Jin's death is definitely not now, because the Old Man of the Moon had previously mentioned to her that she would have a lovely grandson, while Qi Jin currently has no children. However, Yu Jing had never consulted the Book of Fate. Although the fates of mortals are predetermined, she was a celestial being descended to earth and had already altered Sheng Hua's fate. Whether the fates of others would change accordingly, everything... remains unknown.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
