Chapter 52 Sweet Porridge "Give me a child."...
"Why are you barefoot? You're not even wearing shoes?"
The moon hung high in the sky, and the eaves of Chonghua Palace seemed to be covered with a layer of elegant white frost. The sturdy paulownia tree by the well swayed its branches slightly as Ning Xian arrived, and in an instant, golden leaves fell one after another in the courtyard.
Autumn has arrived recently, and the weather is gradually getting cooler. Since it was late at night, Eunuch Liang thoughtfully brought Ning Xian a cloak. He saw Ruan Yang sitting dejectedly by the door, her thin nightgown revealing her slender shoulder blades, and even her embroidered shoes had slipped off when she stepped onto the stairs.
Ning Xian glanced at the girl's red, frozen toes under her skirt, then turned around and placed the embroidered shoes she had left on the steps in her palm. She chuckled and sighed, "You really don't learn your lesson. Your period is almost here, isn't it? You'll catch a cold and start complaining of stomach aches again."
After speaking, he squatted down beside Ruan Yang, brushed the dust off her shoes, and gently held her feet to put the embroidered shoes on her.
Perhaps due to lack of sleep and exposure to the wind, Ruan Yang felt drowsy. At first, she maintained a resistant posture, but she had no strength left and could only watch Ning Xian touch her feet with a mixture of anger and helplessness.
She leaned against the door, her mind still replaying the image of Jinlian's death, the woman's tears and blood soaking into the bed. When she met Ning Xian's cold and overly composed attitude, Ruan Yang's vision blurred.
When love first blossomed, he chose to protect Jinlian and abandon her, his pitiful former lover. Later, he was willing to give Jinlian all the honor and favor. Even when Jinlian became arrogant because of this favor, he turned a blind eye and let her disregard human life. But when this favor faded, he could be so resolute.
Just like I did for her back then.
She vaguely remembered that stormy day when he was on his way to the capital on official business. Knowing that she was timid and afraid of thunder, he rode his horse at breakneck speed through several cities overnight to return to the little bamboo house to be with her.
When Ruan Yang held him to sleep, she touched the dampness on Ning Xian's back and belatedly realized that he had had a big fight with his family and had been beaten badly. The injuries on his back were swollen and some parts were even bleeding.
The man lay quietly asleep in her arms. After the candle went out, she heard him sobbing softly. She didn't disturb him, but gently stroked his face with her warm lips.
In the cold winter with rain and snow, two lonely hearts nestled together, and their hearts began to warm, as if the wind and rain outside would never blow them apart.
Even during the three years he endured exile and humiliation in Lizhou, he never abandoned her.
She was afraid of the cold, and her hands would inevitably get chilblains in winter. So he would fight with those fierce criminals and steal firewood from them to boil water for her and make hot water bottles to warm her hands. He would always save the braised pork that he managed to steal for her to eat.
Over the years, Ruan Yang had long lost the ability to distinguish whether this man had been feigning affection or genuinely caring for her.
Ning Xian was like a sweet porridge mixed with shards of glass to her; it tasted sweet at first, but once she lowered her guard and swallowed it, it pierced her, causing her to bleed profusely and feel excruciating pain.
The soles of her feet were burning hot from the person in front of her, but the lies of the past had frozen her heart.
Ruan Yang will never forget that the root of all this pain is the man in front of her.
They can never go back.
Ruan Yang stared at Ning Xian: "Aren't you sad?"
"sad?"
Ning Xian helped Ruan Yang straighten her skirt. He thought for a moment and snorted, "It's heartbreaking. It's heartbreaking that you've fallen for someone else. You used to kiss and hug me first, but now even if I beg you, you won't let me anymore."
That's not what I meant.
"What is that? Golden Lotus?" Ning Xian sighed, "I'm heartbroken over her, aren't you jealous?"
"........"
Ruan Yang was speechless and choked with emotion: "Forget it, I can't explain it to you. I need to rest. Do as you please."
She got up from the ground, but after taking only a few steps, her body was suspended in mid-air.
Ruan Yang was stunned for a moment. After struggling for a while, she realized that Ning Xian was going to throw her directly to the ground. She became uneasy again and almost forgot that she couldn't bump into anything right now.
Ruan Yang had no choice but to cling tightly to Ning Xian's neck, pleading, "Don't throw me..."
Ning Xian gave a smug hum, then lifted the person up and continued walking into the house.
In the blink of an eye, they were on the couch. Ruan Yang saw Ning Xian begin to undress. Soon, his strong and broad chest was exposed inside the loose collar, rising and falling slightly with his breathing.
Ruan Yang was on the verge of tears, shrank into a corner, stood at attention, and said in a serious tone, "Today is a day of mourning, don't do anything rash."
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
Ning Xian paused, then, realizing what she meant, suddenly sneered: "You said I could do as I please."
Ruan Yang vaguely knew that it was not allowed for the first three months, and given his past lack of discretion, she didn't know what would happen if she agreed. Besides, she had already remarried and would never do anything to betray Lu Wenjin.
"Really, it won't work. Let's talk about this later, okay?"
Ning Xian raised an eyebrow and began to scare her: "I have to do it now. We've been sleeping in the same bed for the past few days, so you can probably tell that I've been holding back for a long time."
That's true. He's twenty-five this year, the prime of his life, and the harem is just a facade to silence gossip.
Ruan Yang remained silent, still pondering how to refuse him.
Ning Xian sat down next to her and, without any desire, took the girl's hand and said, "Actually, my life is very dull and boring. I'm not even thirty yet, but I'm already old-fashioned. Eunuch Liang said it's probably because I lack the vitality of people around me."
"I just thought, if only one day I could have a child by my side."
He looked at Ruan Yang's profile and said with a nonchalant smile, "How about you give me a little princess to play with?"
After hearing this, Ruan Yang watched him withdraw his hand and said indifferently, "You gave birth and then threw it away?"
"Don't make yourself sound so pitiful. Didn't you say you wanted to throw your child into a mass grave?"
Ning Xian explained, "You think that child is pitiful?"
“If it weren’t for its muddle-headed mother, it wouldn’t have ended up like this. It’s not that I didn’t give Jinlian a chance, but she secretly got pregnant with someone else’s child and even tried to drug her, making me raise her and her lover’s child for nothing.”
"Ruan Yang, tell me, what man in this world would willingly watch his wife or concubine commit adultery? If you were carrying my child now, I doubt Lu Wenjin would treat it well either, would he?"
Ruan Yang choked on his words, feeling so guilty that a layer of sweat seeped out from his back.
Ning Xian felt a pang of sadness in his heart. He buried his face in Ruan Yang's neck and said what had been hidden in his heart: "In the years you were gone, I haven't touched anyone else. I'm very clean."
"I have been waiting for you to be my empress. As long as you agree, the Ministry of Rites will proceed immediately. It is the perfect time of year in October, and the weather is just right. You will feel neither cold nor hot in your phoenix robe."
Ruan Yang had no interest in listening to what he was saying; she only felt that the buzzing in her ears was very noisy, and she was even afraid that his hand would untie her skirt the next second.
She pushed away Ning Xian, whose eyes were glistening with tears, deliberately ruining the atmosphere so that she would have an excuse to refuse to be intimate with him.
Ruan Yang said, "Even if what you say is true, you could have given her a bowl of abortifacient medicine as soon as you knew, why did you wait until she was so far along, causing her to bleed to death?"
"Ning Xian, you are not worthy of having your own offspring."
Ning Xian was taken aback, thinking to himself that this woman was far too clueless about romance. Under the flowers and the moon, he just wanted to have a heart-to-heart talk with her, so why did she have to keep bringing up Jinlian?
"You blame me?"
"If it weren't for avenging you, why would I tolerate my concubine having an affair with someone else? If she died so easily, how can you repay the grievances you suffered at her hands before?"
Ruan Yang said, "Without your tacit approval, how could she have the ability to make me suffer?"
Ning Xian felt that this woman was clearly being unreasonable. He stood in front of Ruan Yang and helplessly rubbed his forehead, saying, "If I had acquiesced, Jinlian would not have caused trouble and spent three days and three nights searching for you after you fell off the cliff."
"What happened five years ago was a complete misunderstanding!"
“That time I heard from Lan Rong that you were pregnant, so I rushed back to see you with great joy. But as soon as I opened the door, you inexplicably slapped me twice, and you wouldn’t listen to my explanation.”
Do you know how heartbroken I was that day?!
Realizing she was in the wrong, Ruan Yang pretended to cry: "But when Jinlian kissed your face and held your hand, why didn't you dodge? Did Jinlian force you to say such hurtful things?"
"Also, I'll handle my own affairs from now on; you don't need to make decisions for me!"
Ning Xian was stunned and didn't know what to say. She just paced back and forth by the couch with her hands on her hips.
Since you won't listen to a polite toast, then you might as well drink the penalty shot.
He picked up his outer robe from the side, deftly tied his waistband, and said dismissively, "Fine, then I'll take care of it myself."
The candlelight flickered violently a few times, and the purple jade beaded curtain crackled and popped. Seeing Ning Xian leave in a huff, Ruan Yang didn't understand what he meant at first, but soon, waves of heat and tingling sensations washed over her.
Ruan Yang thought back to the moment when she realized that she had been careless and had only drunk the tea that Ning Xian had casually handed her.
She got up and ran to the door, grabbed Ning Xian's sleeve, and said urgently, "You bastard, what did you give me to drink?!"
The moonlight shone on Ning Xian's pale face. It seemed that his mischievous idea had succeeded. The more anxious the girl in front of him was, the calmer he became. So he pinched Ruan Yang's cheek and said shamelessly with a smirk, "I originally wanted to coax you to be better than letting that aphrodisiac harm your body, but who told you to be so disobedient?"
He actually drugged her?
Ruan Yang bit her lip, slapped Ning Xian's smiling face, and said breathlessly, "I thought you still had some conscience, but now it seems I was just being delusional. You only take advantage of me and disgust me time and time again!"
The slap was very forceful; Ruan Yang's sharp nails left him bruised.
Ning Xian wiped away the bloodstains, lowered her head and kissed Ruan Yang's red palm: "If you still want to see Lu Wenjin alive, it's not too late to beg me."
Ruan Yang was so angry that her vision blurred. She slumped down by the door, biting the back of her hand with her teeth, hoping that the pain would divert the effects of the aphrodisiac.
Seeing her cowering in the corner, clearly furious yet helpless, Ning Xian felt a surge of joy at successfully taming his fierce pet.
The girl's eyes were unfocused, indicating she was indeed severely poisoned. Her fluffy little face was pale with a rosy tinge, and her collar was still slowly rising and falling.
She wasn't exactly plump, but she was very cute.
Ning Xian picked her up and put her back on the bed. When he saw Ruan Yang running away, he grabbed the girl's arm and pushed her back onto the bed without breaking a sweat.
To save some effort, Ning Xian gently pulled off Ruan Yang's skirt sash and quickly tied her wrists behind her back.
Ruan Yang spat at him: "If you come any closer, I'll bite my tongue and kill myself."
"If you resist again, I'll make Lu Wenjin pay."
Ning Xian thought helplessly, "It's fine if Ruan Yang doesn't love him, but she can't bear to abandon her own flesh and blood."
He didn't ask for anything more; all he wanted now was a child that could keep her.
As the candlelight gradually died down at dawn, the fragrance of agarwood rose gently. Ning Xian knelt on one knee on the couch, wrapped her palm around Ruan Yang's ankle, and pushed her white dress up onto her thigh.
He kissed her lips and said, "Give me a child, and I'll let you go."
Ruan Yang stared at the ceiling with a dazed look in her eyes. Perhaps it was the effect of the drug, or perhaps she was tired, but she gradually stopped resisting. She hooked her arms around Ning Xian's neck, covered the back of the man's head in her palm, and pinched his burning ear between two fingers.
"Come closer..."
Ruan Yang's action was a pleasant surprise. Ning Xian responded and happily unbuttoned the girl's clothes, then gently returned her kiss.
"Wenjin..."
Ning Xian froze: "What did you call me?"
Ruan Yang called out again in a sweet, affectionate voice, "Wenjin."
The name Lu Wenjin pierced Ning Xian's heart like a needle.
This clearly reminded him of how loving and tender they were when they made love.
Ning Xian lost all interest. His breathing became even, and he propped himself up to look at the innocent Ruan Yang, chuckling, "Lying beneath me, thinking of someone else?"
He released Ruan Yang: "Alright, you don't need to force yourself like this. I'll wait in the side hall and see how long you can keep up this stubbornness."
Seeing the man turn and leave, Ruan Yang stared blankly at the ceiling. She clutched the fabric in front of her lower abdomen and then shed two lines of clear tears.
She didn't want to die, nor was she willing to compromise her principles.
Footsteps came from outside the tent. Through the hazy gauze curtain, Ruan Yang recognized the young man as Ning Xian's little follower. He had probably come to the room to gather information, sent by Ning Xian.
Ruan Yang bit her lip, hesitated for a long time, and then called out to him, "Stop right there."
The young man stopped and asked respectfully, "What are your orders, Madam?"
"Come here."
The boy was taken aback, then silently walked to Ruan Yang's side.
How old are you?
"After today, I will be seventeen."
"What's your name?"
“My name is Fu Ling.”
Ruan Yang frowned, then turned her head blankly to the side. She grabbed the boy's wrist and, while he was still surprised, quickly pulled him into the tent.
This young man is exceptionally talented. On the surface, he is an ordinary attendant of the emperor, but in reality, Ning Xian has finally acquired a strategist, and he would never be willing to harm him in the slightest.
Ruan Yang closed her eyes and stroked the unfamiliar, youthful boy in front of her.
Fu Ling trembled. Only when the woman's slender, cool fingertips slid across his Adam's apple did he realize something was wrong, and he began to struggle to break free from the woman's soft embrace.
Ruan Yang then pressed the boy's pressure points, and when he was unable to move, she poured every last drop of the tea she had just drunk into his mouth.
Although this approach would result in a lose-lose situation, it would be quite satisfying if it could annoy Ning Xian.
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