Chapter 24 Chapter 24 Does Concubine Hui know she is wrong?
Qiao Tang thought he had calmed down, and felt relieved. They could take a bath together, but he couldn't eat her.
It turned out that Qiao Tang had thought too simply. Pei Chengjue had endless ways to take advantage of her. After Pei Chengjue put on her pajamas and carried her to the bed, she just wanted to fall asleep and never see him again!
Pei Chengjue didn't give up. He gently lifted her right foot with one hand. "Sister, this is the second time you've carried me out of the palace. If I don't punish you, there will definitely be a third time."
Qiao Tang screamed, "Your Majesty has already punished me!"
Pei Chengjue looked over innocently, "Sister, you are wrong. Now comes the punishment. And—"
"If this happens again, I will send guards to follow you closely."
Qiao Tang couldn't believe it. Pei Chengjue was actually confining her and depriving her of her freedom.
She was about to beg for mercy when Pei Chengjue stroked her feet with his fingers, which suddenly made her feel itchy.
This was what she couldn't stand the most. Moti's heart and body felt like they were being scratched. Her eyes immediately turned red and tears fell. "Your Majesty."
I felt pity for her, she was so charming and touching. Pei Chengjue smiled and said with pity, "Sister, you gave up so quickly——"
He lifted her up in his arms and let her sit on his lap. He smiled softly, a little maliciously, "But I've only just begun."
The night was still long, and Qiao Tang finally realized how terrifying Pei Chengjue was, and secretly vowed that she would never sneak out of the palace again.
The next morning, she lay limp and powerless, but Nanny Wang sat happily beneath the bed, saying, "Your Majesty really didn't get angry with the young lady. It turns out that Your Majesty is the one who pampers the young lady the most."
Qiao Tang wanted to cry but had no tears. He just hugged his pillow silently. He really suffered a loss this time. He had no words to express his pain and felt very depressed.
So throughout the day, whenever Pei Chengjue sent someone to invite her, she would say she was not feeling well and she would not go. Pei Chengjue did not get angry and indulged her to have a good rest.
By the evening, she could no longer hide, and Pei Chengjue carried her to eat dinner together. "Sister, you should have some strength after a day's rest. Since you really want to go out, I will take you out."
Only after Qiao Tang got into the carriage did he realize that Pei Chengjue was still angry.
Thinking about last night's punishment, she didn't know what Pei Chengjue would do. She bit her lip, determined to admit defeat first, and said with a smile, "I was just taking a casual walk last night. I will accompany Your Majesty to play whatever he likes later."
Pei Chengjue remained unmoved and played with her fingers, "Then let's walk again along the path that Sister walked last night."
Qiao Tang thought to himself, this guy is too hard to coax. It’s uncommon for him to still be angry after a whole night. It’s better not to provoke him in the future.
On second thought, Pei Chengjue had given her limited freedom before and had not sent any guards to follow her. He really didn't know what she did last night. Later, she would just take Pei Chengjue for a walk.
When she got off the car and stepped into the bustling night street, she wanted to walk in front of Pei Chengjue, but Pei Chengjue put his arms around her waist to protect her from being squeezed by others.
Qiao Tang pursed her lips and glanced at Pei Chengjue. Seeing that he had a smile on his face and his eyes were looking around, she felt inexplicably depressed.
Pei Chengjue probably rarely has the opportunity to go out, and it would be boring to be trapped in the palace all day. Tonight must be a time for him to take time out from his busy government affairs, so why not let him have some fun.
Qiao Tang's eyes wandered, and he caught sight of the mask stall. He took Pei Chengjue's hand and walked over, smiling, "Whichever one you like, I'll give it to you..."
Pei Chengjue's gaze was full of coercion, "Call me husband."
Qiao Tang's heart skipped a beat and she lowered her voice, "I'll buy it for my husband."
As soon as he finished speaking, Pei Chengjue's grip on her hand suddenly tightened, the corners of his lips curled up, and he actually looked at the masks hanging on the rack, carefully examining them one by one. After a moment, he raised his brows and smiled, "I want Guan Gong."
Guan Gong, always Guan Gong.
You can’t live without Guan Gong, right, Qiao Tang thought silently, then I’ll buy you an extra one.
She bought two at once and handed them all to Pei Chengjue.
Pei Chengjue took it, put one of them on her, held the other in his own hand, and walked forward holding her hand.
As they walked through the bustling crowd with clasped hands, Qiao Tang lagged behind him, looking up at his back, a warmth spreading from the palms of her hands to her heart.
Suddenly Pei Chengjue turned around, his eyebrows and eyes were full of passion, and his smile was so wide that everything around him lost its luster. "Where will you take me next, Madam?"
Qiao Tang stared at his smile in a daze, as if her mind was absorbed. Fortunately, at this moment, a burst of intense cheering came. She hurriedly came back to her senses, said "oh" hesitantly, and looked towards the source of the cheering. It turned out that they were having a martial arts competition.
Pei Chengjue probably liked this. She pointed to the arena and said, "Go there."
Pei Chengjue followed his gaze and saw two men fighting shirtless on the stage. His smile vanished instantly. He moved closer, blocking Qiao Tang's view, leaned forward, and said unhappily, "Madam, have you forgotten your oath so quickly?"
Qiao Tang cried out in his heart, that oath was just a word spoken in bed, how could he remember it so clearly!
Seeing that he was already angry and didn't know how to punish her, Qiao Tang hurriedly coaxed him, "I didn't look at it last night. I just thought you would like it, so I asked you to look at it."
"I don't like it!" Pei Chengjue held her and walked forward.
She looked around, trying to divert Pei Chengjue's attention, when suddenly her arm was gently pulled and she came to a jewelry shop.
They were just some hairpins and the like, not worth much, nothing compared to the priceless items in the palace.
But Pei Chengjue still stopped here, with a young couple standing on his left.
The husband was carefully inserting a hairpin for his wife. After the hairpin was inserted, the two looked at each other and smiled, then slowly walked away.
Pei Chengjue looked at Qiao Tang with eagerness in his eyes, as if he really wanted to emulate the couple just now.
Qiao Tang's cheeks flushed, and he hastily pointed to one of the hairpins, "I like this one."
Pei Chengjue bought it, held it in his hand, and looked at her steadily, "Madam, come closer."
She slowly leaned forward, lowered her brows and gaze, and let Pei Chengjue insert the hairpin into her hair.
The two were so close to each other that it was unclear whose breathing quickened first, but slowly, both of them began to breathe faster.
Qiao Tang exhaled quietly. A large, swaying sleeve flashed before her eyes. The pattern woven with gold thread was very beautiful. She stretched out her fingers and pressed it, not allowing the sleeve to move any further.
Pei Chengjue's movements were restrained, and he whispered, "Let go."
Qiao Tang let go, and he then calmly put the hairpin back in place, picked up a small mirror from the stall, and handed it to Qiao Tang, "Madam, take a look at it, how about it?"
Qiao Tang hummed, grabbed Pei Chengjue's wrist, turned it, turned the mirror towards himself, glanced at it quickly, and said, "Okay." He walked forward.
Pei Chengjue followed slowly, his eyes locked on Qiao Tang. Qiao Tang felt the burning gaze behind him and thought to himself that he should not hug her and act silly at this time.
She quickened her pace and reached the bridge. Beneath the bridge, water gurgled, and a few small boats floated by. Pei Chengjue soon caught up with her and asked with a half-smile, "Madam, why are you running?"
Qiao Tang retorted guiltily, "Where did I run away?"
Just walk fast.
Suddenly Pei Chengjue came closer, stood behind her, and touched her eyes with his fingers, "Madam, you are lying."
Qiao Tang felt a little anxious and wanted to slap his finger away, but the finger was withdrawn in an instant. "Look up."
Qiao Tang looked up in confusion, and suddenly the sky banged several times, and brilliant fireworks exploded, falling into his wide-open eyes.
Suddenly there were cries of surprise all around, and the noise broke through the sky. It was just an ordinary summer night, why did the government set off fireworks!
The sound of discussion reached Qiao Tang's ears, and Qiao Tang immediately understood and looked back at Pei Chengjue.
Pei Chengjue lowered his gaze, hugged her gently, and whispered softly, "Sister, do you like it?"
As bursts of fireworks bloomed and fell, Qiao Tang's eyes seemed to still have a bright color, and he murmured, "I like it."
But her heart was beating so fast that she felt uncomfortable. She struggled to break free from Pei Chengjue's arms and forced herself to ignore the sound of her heartbeat.
She heard her own voice pretending to be calm, "So what does my husband like?"
Pei Chengjue stood shoulder to shoulder with her, gazing at the dazzling fireworks on the sky. After a moment, he shook his head and said, "I didn't like anything before."
He was trained as the crown prince since he was young, and all he learned were the ways to govern the country. As for personal matters, there was hardly anything that suited his taste.
Moreover, if it were in the past, he would not only not do such an act to please the girl, but he would probably despise it!
But at this moment, his rapidly beating heart was filled with joy, all given to him by Qiao Tang beside him. He subconsciously leaned over and kissed the hairpin in Qiao Tang's hair, "Now I like you, sister. I like you the most."
This kiss made Qiao Tang tremble inwardly. She stood there motionless in a daze, and was then carried back to the carriage by Pei Chengjue. Her consciousness seemed to still be in the scene of fireworks on the bridge, and she held Pei Chengjue's hands in a daze.
Pei Chengjue thought she was tired and held her in his arms, "Sister, go to sleep. I will stay with you."
Qiao Tang closed her eyes, her heart was in turmoil, especially the heartbeat tonight, which made her unbearable. She forced herself to fall asleep quickly.
Pei Chengjue found a comfortable position for her, then took out a stack of documents from the small table and began to read them by candlelight.
Not long after, he raised his neck and breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that it was terrible and he couldn't concentrate on watching it at all. He just wanted to hug his sister and kiss her.
He carefully lifted Qiao Tang's hand, placed it on his lips and kissed it, sighing in his heart.
How could there be someone in this world who pleases him as much as his sister?
I like it so much that I kiss it every day but still feel unsatisfied.
I like him so much that I want to keep him by my side all the time. I hope my sister won’t be annoyed by him being so clingy.
He was worrying too much, because Qiao Tang was used to it and didn't care whether she was annoyed or not. She just stayed with him all the time.
When he woke up the next day, Qiao Tang was by Pei Chengjue's side as usual.
It would have been fine if she had just been asked to accompany him, but unfortunately Pei Chengjue was handling government affairs in the main hall that day, and he set up an easel and asked her to paint a small portrait of himself, which made her very distressed.
She thought her painting skills were just average, but Pei Chengjue didn't let her go, occasionally giving her pointers. Finally, he lamented, "Madame Wang only remembers what my sister looked like after she came of age."
"Yes, Madam is old and her memory is not very good." Qiao Tang agreed guiltily.
In fact, although Nanny Wang had a poor memory, she remembered everything about Qiao Tang very clearly and still remembered what Qiao Tang looked like when he was young.
After Qiao Tang's repeated hints, she finally lied, "Oh, I can't remember anything before my Jigui birthday. I only found out about Jigui later."
So Qiao Tang used this excuse to shut Pei Chengjue up, and was able to paint for fewer years, starting only from the age of fifteen.
Having finally finished a painting, she put down her brush nonchalantly and stood up to rest.
Pei Chengjue stood up from behind the imperial desk and came over to stand in front of the easel. He looked at it and said, "Sister, you haven't learned the zither for a while. I have summoned Wei Qing, and he will be here soon."
Qiao Tang hadn't expected this. He pulled Pei Chengjue's sleeve in a weak gesture. Before he could say anything, Pei Chengjue already knew what she meant. His expression straightened, "Sister, how can you give up halfway through learning something?"
Qiao Tang was helpless with his concentration and seriousness in doing things, so he swallowed the words that were about to come out of his mouth, sat down in front of the piano stand, and waited for Wei Qingyan to come over.
Pei Chengjue stared at the portrait. It was the fifteen-year-old Qiao Tang, wearing a light green dress. There was a hint of childishness between her eyebrows and eyes, and her cheeks were rounder, making her look gentle and cute.
Pei Chengjue couldn't help but stroke the portrait with his hand. Qiao Tang turned his head and glanced at it inadvertently. His heart skipped a beat and he turned his eyes away. Suddenly, he saw an official's sleeve flash by the palace door. It was Wei Qingyan.
Wei Qingyan is currently working as an editor in the Hanlin Academy. Without the numerous government affairs of the Censorate, he has a lot more free time and his time comes much faster than before.
Pei Chengjue let him into the hall and signaled him to teach Qiao Tang. He stood two steps away from the zither stand, spoke in a low voice, and occasionally tapped the strings in the air.
Qiao Tang lowered his eyes. Since he had said that night that he would no longer have anything to do with Wei Qingyan, he had to keep his promise. His mind instantly became clear, without any distractions, and he focused only on learning the piano.
The clear sound of the piano rang out in the hall.
Wei Qingyan adhered to his identity and stood quietly, but his fingers were curled tightly in his sleeves and he lowered his eyes to hide the pain.
It turns out that when I stand beside Tangtang, Tangtang's heart is no longer confused. Doesn't she have me in her heart?
Pei Chengjue listened to the sound of the piano and glanced sideways in surprise. Although his sister said she was unhappy, she was much more focused and serious in learning than before. He didn't know why his sister was so dishonest.
He listened for a while, and when he saw Qiao Tang stopped playing, as if he was tired, he shook his head and laughed. It turned out that he was just lazy and didn't like to be tired.
"Sister, take a rest if you are tired."
Pei Chengjue gestured for the palace servants to come and serve Qiao Tang. He glanced at Wei Qingyan and saw that he was looking directly at the portrait. Suddenly, the corners of his lips drooped and his expression darkened. "Mr. Wei, please withdraw."
He moved closer to the easel and covered the portrait tightly. Wei Qingyan lowered his head and his eyes flickered. It was the fifteen-year-old Tangtang.
Fifteen-year-old Qiao Tang is about to reach marriage...
He had seen it before, and it was much more vivid and lively than in the painting. Even the light green skirt looked a little more delicate than in the painting.
That year he was studying in the academy, sitting by the window. The teacher was lecturing in front of him. He was listening attentively, but he glanced towards the window inadvertently.
The wind blew outside, making the passers-by's sleeves flutter. A veil of light veil flashed across his eyes, followed by the girl's smile, lively and beautiful.
He suddenly closed his eyes to suppress his rapid heartbeat, and opened them again quickly. Unfortunately, the girl had gone far away, and he could only catch a glimpse of the corner of her light green skirt blown by the wind.
An unprecedented anxiety swept over him, causing him to lose his composure in an instant and stand up suddenly, startling the teacher and students who were lecturing.
The teacher got angry and made him stand for a whole day. The young man in the front seat secretly turned around and teased him in a low voice, "It's worth standing for three days just to have a glimpse of the Qiao family girl."
He had a cold face and said nothing, thinking that it was Miss Qiao.
The teacher told Wen's parents about this matter. When his parents found out, they were so angry that they beat him half to death that night.
He was tied up in the woodshed, his body aching from the whip wounds. The smiling face under the window flashed through his mind again and again, the look he had given it without any regret.
If he had known then that looking at the portrait of fifteen-year-old Qiao Tang any longer would cause the emperor's displeasure, he would have seen enough and would have been beaten to death.
Unfortunately, there is no turning back. He can no longer take a good look at Qiao Tang. All he can do is listen to Qiao Tang, settle down, cover up the past, bow and say, "I will take my leave."
As he stepped out of the hall, he glanced sideways and saw Pei Chengjue gazing down at the portrait. He curled his lips in revenge, and a faint smile appeared on his frosty face.
Oh, Your Majesty, have you ever seen Qiao Tang at fifteen, sixteen... or even nineteen? No, Your Majesty can only look at the portrait for some comfort.
Qiao Tang married him at the age of sixteen and had been his wife for three years. At that moment, the jealousy in his heart subsided and a pitiful and secret sense of satisfaction arose.
Wei Qingyan's figure went away. Qiao Tang withdrew his gaze and frowned. He felt that Wei Qingyan had changed a little, but he was obviously very well behaved and as cold and solemn as before. Perhaps he had been wrong.
Qiao Tang lowered his head and ate some snacks, thinking that it was really not appropriate to meet Wei Qingyan again, and he could no longer learn to play the zither in the future.
The hall was silent for a long time, and there was no movement from Pei Chengjue. She looked over in confusion.
Pei Chengjue was still standing in front of the portrait, as if he couldn't get enough of it. She took the snacks and walked over to Pei Chengjue, then put the snacks into his mouth.
Pei Chengjue ate it very cleanly and was about to swallow her finger, so she was so anxious that she quickly pulled it back.
Pei Chengjue pursed his lips in dissatisfaction. Qiao Tang thought he was not serious during the day. Turning to leave, he suddenly heard him say with regret, "So many people in Jizhou have seen a fifteen-year-old sister, but I have never seen one."
Qiao Tang's heart suddenly felt swollen and sour, and he didn't know whether he was happy or sad. He turned back and hugged Pei Chengjue.
"Your Majesty, I am right here. Why are you bothering yourself with a portrait? Do you dislike me now?"
"No, sister, don't think too much. I just sighed when I saw the portrait." Pei Chengjue took her hand and walked away from the portrait. "I won't look at it anymore. I'll have some snacks with you."
After they had some snacks, Qiao Tang looked at the zither stand and said, "Your Majesty, I really don't want to learn the zither anymore."
She had thought Pei Chengjue would disagree and would have to spend more time persuading her, but unexpectedly, Pei Chengjue paused for a moment and then indulged her, saying, "Okay."
Qiao Tang was delighted and turned her head to kiss his cheek. Pei Chengjue smiled, but she was stunned. The kiss was too fast and too natural, and she didn't even think about it.
How could she kiss Pei Chengjue so skillfully?
After she realized what was happening, she was so confused that she stood up in a panic, "Your Majesty, I'm tired and want to take a rest."
Pei Chengjue didn't allow her to leave the main hall. He picked her up and carried her to the inner hall. He put her on the couch and signaled her to rest there.
How could Qiao Tang sleep? She only felt that Pei Chengjue in front of her was really annoying. "Your Majesty, please go and do your work."
Pei Chengjue went out reluctantly. She got out of bed, wandered around the room for a long time, and finally came to a conclusion.
This was just her subconscious behavior. It was all because Pei Chengjue asked her to kiss him too many times, which became a habit.
Qiao Tang breathed a sigh of relief for a moment. It was nothing. He just had to be careful in the future.
After a while, she paid special attention and indeed stopped her habit of actively kissing Pei Chengjue. She just honestly painted the small portrait in the hall.
She no longer saw Wei Qingyan. While Pei Chengjue was away, she put the small portrait and the zither into the box she had brought into the palace, and asked Nanny Wang to put them away, as if all the past had been gone with the wind.
The hot summer passed day by day.
Qiao Tang also moved back to the imperial palace from the temporary palace. With her status, she should have her own palace, but Pei Chengjue would not allow her to move out and forced her to continue living in the Taiji Palace.
The Queen Mother did not make any other move after hearing this. Qiao Tang just felt that something was wrong. The Queen Mother had previously asked her to bring Gu Yuqing in front of Pei Chengjue, but now she didn't mention Gu Yuqing anymore.
She was feeling a little uneasy and was about to go to the Cining Palace to pay a visit to the Empress Dowager and test her intentions when Aunt Sulan came over first and said that the Empress Dowager wanted to see her.
Qiao Tang took the opportunity and went there. When he arrived at the main hall of the Cining Palace and paid his respects to the empress dowager, he saw a girl standing next to the seat below the empress dowager, and doubts arose in his heart.
The girl had a calm demeanor, with delicate eyebrows. She looked about eighteen years old. She stood up and bowed to Qiao Tang. "Jingyi greets Noble Concubine Hui."
Qiao Tang smiled slightly, and understood. She had heard Nanny Wang mention some royal relatives, including Pei Chengjue's only living uncle, Prince Xiang. The Princess Jingyi in front of her was Prince Xiang's beloved daughter.
The Queen Mother then said, "Jingyi has been accompanying me in the palace recently. I was afraid she would be bored and didn't want to restrict her. When I heard she wanted to study, I thought of finding a good reader from the Hanlin Academy to teach her."
Qiao Tang felt a sense of unease, and then he heard the Queen Mother say, "I heard that Wei, the editor of the Hanlin Academy, is a good scholar and was last year's top scorer. I've asked him to give a lecture in the Wenhua Hall. If Concubine Hui has nothing to do, she can go and listen."
Qiao Tang agreed with a slight smile on his face, but he was distressed in his heart. He originally wanted to stay away from Wei Qingyan, but now he would have to see him again?
After leaving Cining Palace and on the way back to Taiji Palace, she told Wang Ma about this.
Nanny Wang pondered, "This study is probably just a pretext. Perhaps this princess has taken a fancy to Lord Wei and is using the pretext of studying to get close to him. She's afraid of being criticized, so she's asking the young lady to go too. Perhaps there will be other young ladies there too."
So that's how it was. Qiao Tang suddenly realized and was speechless for a moment. Nanny Wang glanced at her expression and said softly, "Young lady, we all have to move forward. You have His Majesty, and Lord Wei will naturally have someone else."
Qiao Tang laughed, "Madam, what are you thinking about? Ever since I explained everything to him that night, I haven't thought about him anymore. Don't worry, Madam. Now I am only thinking about..."
Pei Chengjue just wanted to leave the palace because he was tired of her. These words rolled around in his lips, but somehow, he felt depressed and quietly buried them in his heart.
Suddenly, a doubt arose in her mind. If there were other girls present and Princess Jingyi had already avoided suspicion, why did the Queen Mother want her to go and listen with Princess Jingyi?
Qiao Tang frowned, thinking that less trouble is better than more. Besides, Wei Qingyan was giving a lecture, so it would be better not to go.
Unexpectedly, the next morning, Aunt Sulan came to urge her with the Queen Mother's words, saying that Princess Jingyi had already gone to Wenhua Palace, so she could go and listen.
Qiao Tang was helpless. She turned her eyes away and ordered the palace servants to send Aunt Sulan away. After waiting for a while, she saw Eunuch Li coming to invite her.
She pretended to be embarrassed and asked Eunuch Li to pass on a message, "I will go to Wenhua Palace first and then see His Majesty later."
Eunuch Li did not dare to delay and went quickly. She deliberately took some time before going out and walked slowly on the road.
The autumn wind is suddenly cool, the branches of flowers have withered, and only the chrysanthemums are blooming brilliantly, with yellow, white and pink clusters together, instantly attracting the eye.
She paused, pretending to admire the flowers, and looked at them for a long time. The autumn wind grew stronger, and she had just shivered her shoulders when a wide robe was draped over her.
"Sister, what are you doing at Wenhua Hall?"
Pei Chengjue fastened her collar from behind and tidied her hair that was messed up by the wind, which reminded her of Nanny Wang for a moment.
Nanny Wang was also so considerate and thoughtful in taking care of her. She couldn't help but look back and smile, "Your Majesty is always caring for people. He doesn't seem like he is two years younger than me, but more like my brother."
Pei Chengjue raised his sleeve and blocked her lips with his warm fingertips, "Noble Concubine Hui, you'd better shut up."
Qiao Tang blinked and said calmly, "Brother, right? Then I'll call you husband and let you hear it."
Qiao Tang blushed suddenly, "Your Majesty, please be serious!"
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