Chapter 30 Agreeing to Beg and Plead
The next morning, Xie Mengjun was awakened by the chirping of birds in the woods surrounding Taihua Palace.
She yawned lazily, her hair disheveled. The first thing she did after getting up was to look at the little trinkets she and her aunt had made the day before.
Xie Mengjun is a girl who is good at entertaining herself. Last night before going to bed, she used those straw woven items to come up with a story, which she planned to tell her aunt when she saw her today. But when she got to the table, she found that only her and Hongrui's handicrafts were left, and none of the items her aunt had woven were left.
"Red stamen! Red stamen!"
Xie Mengjun called out urgently, "Hongrui, have you seen the things your aunt made?"
Hongrui glanced at the table, looking bewildered. "Miss put them all here last night..."
"Could it be that the wind was too strong and blew it away?" Xie Mengjun is afraid of the heat, so she left the window half-open when she went to sleep at night. There was a little breeze, but it shouldn't be enough to blow everything away, right?
Hongrui pondered, "Could it be that the birds or squirrels in the woods secretly came in and took the nests?"
This is quite common in the wild. Yesterday afternoon, several bold birds tried to peck away the pastries on the table right in front of them. In the end, Madam Wen broke off two pieces and crushed them for the birds, placing them on the open ground.
The lady is kind and gentle, which makes her popular not only with small animals but also with people...
Hongrui thought that none of the maids serving in the Xie family disliked Madam Wen. Whenever they had the chance to serve Madam Wen, they would receive a gentle smile and a heartfelt thank you from her.
Despite her noble birth, she disliked being called servants and treated people with kindness and friendliness. She was simply the best mistress in the world!
"That's possible!"
Xie Mengjun preferred this guess to the idea that the birds were blown away by the wind: "They must have seen that my aunt's weaving was better than mine, so they all picked out my aunt's work."
Hongrui smiled and said, "Miss, your weaving is also very beautiful!"
Xie Mengjun, with the air of a little adult, said, "Only pretty things are coveted by birds and squirrels!"
While Hongrui was helping Xie Mengjun get up and wash, at the Summer Palace, Cheng Yingwei Ying Yi, who was finishing his night watch and preparing to relieve his colleagues, silently slipped past and met Ying Er the moment he landed.
The two are about 70-80% similar in height and build, and with the same black mask on, they look exactly alike when they stand together.
Shadow Two lowered his voice, "Did the master give you a mission last night? Was it exciting? Did you get hurt?"
Yingyi lowered her eyes. "Don't inquire about the master's affairs."
“I know, I know,” Shadow Two drawled, “Judging from your attitude, I know the mission isn’t exciting! Okay, you go and rest, I’ll keep watch.”
Ying nodded, and in the blink of an eye, her figure vanished.
Last night, the master did assign him a task, but it wasn't as difficult or exciting as Shadow Two and the others had imagined. It was just a bit unexpected—even Shadow One couldn't help but pause for a second when he first heard the emperor's order, after all…
Having been established for so many years, Chengying Guard should not have needed to sneak into a young girl's courtyard in the middle of the night to steal the straw-woven items that Madam Wen made by hand.
I think he should be the first one!
As for the straw-woven items that Lady Wen had handled, they had already been wrapped in soft bright yellow silk and placed deep inside a wooden box, which was then sent to the palace by a palace attendant in advance.
All of this happened in the dead of night, a secret hidden by the twilight, revealing in the darkness and silence the astonishing, intense, and even somewhat eerie possessiveness that Emperor Qian Yuan had for Wen Miao.
Only Cheng Yingwei became a witness to this event.
...
Inside the Summer Palace, Wen Miao got up and washed up. She had just sat down in front of the bronze mirror when Emperor Qian Yuan came uninvited and said he wanted to continue combing her hair.
Wen Miao was too lazy to argue with this person, so she nodded in agreement. Shi Cui and Wan Bi, whose "tasks" had been taken over, exchanged a helpless glance and could only retreat outside the hall for the time being. Emperor Qian Yuan carefully gathered Wen Miao's long hair, trying to show her the improvement in his skills.
After Wen Miao finished dressing up, Emperor Qian Yuan held up a small bronze mirror in front of her, a slight smile in his eyes, and asked, "How do you feel?"
Wen Miao looked up and went inside.
In the mirror, she still wore the same hairstyle as the day before, but her skills were clearly more refined. The stray hairs at her temples were not as loose as before, and even the hairpins were perfectly chosen.
Through the bronze mirror, Wen Miao met the emperor's gaze. With a smile on her lips, she said softly, "Your Majesty's cooking is quite good today."
Emperor Qianyuan nodded, accepting Wen Miao's praise with great generosity. He became even more attentive to the matter of combing hair, hoping that he could learn other skills in the future so that he could comb his wife's hair in the same way.
After the two changed their clothes, they sat together inside the Summer Palace.
Xu Sheng waved his hand, and the palace servants served the imperial food in turn. After eating until they were about 70% full, Emperor Qian Yuan, accompanied by Wen Miao, slowly walked towards another part of the Taihua Palace, holding the jade lion that had just been named the day before.
The snow-white horse was intelligent and recognized its master. It seemed to know that Wen Miao was the one who gave it its name. When the emperor was leading it by the reins, it always tried to turn its head to Wen Miao's side.
Seeing the jade lion walking like that, Wen Miao worried that it might be uncomfortable for the lion's neck and body, so he offered, "Your Majesty, let me lead it."
Emperor Qianyuan handed over the reins and whispered a warning to Wen Miao to be careful not to get hurt by the wild horse.
The jade lion, nicknamed "Fierce Horse," snorted unhappily.
Wen Miao nodded: "Okay, I'll be careful, and..."
She chuckled softly, "I think the Jade Lion really likes me."
This time, the jade lion snorted happily and rubbed its head against Wen Miao's hand, making Emperor Qian Yuan's fingers itch. He just wanted to pull this shameless horse out of his wife's arms and rub it against her instead.
The lady treats the horse with far more tenderness than she treats him.
Having spent the previous day together, Wen Miao felt that she had developed feelings for the jade lion. After she took the reins, the white horse, which had been tilting its head and staring at her intently, quieted down, carefully approached, and took the initiative to lower its head and rub against Wen Miao's cheek, showing great affection.
The emperor crossed his arms and quietly watched Wen Miao, who was smiling and stroking the white horse. Only when she noticed his gaze and turned away somewhat embarrassedly did he slowly say, "Even the horse prefers you, Madam."
"Your Majesty is very powerful, so it's understandable that it fears you."
Emperor Qianyuan paused, "Am I that scary?"
Wen Miao pondered for a moment, then, while leading the horse, she turned her head and looked at Emperor Qian Yuan's figure with her bright, starry eyes, staring intently at him. This made the usually composed emperor feel somewhat uneasy.
Most of the time—even in his dreams for many years—Emperor Qian Yuan would gaze at Wen Miao with such focused attention and detail. From his childhood to his adolescence and then to his adulthood, one of the things Emperor Qian Yuan was most accustomed to was looking up at the goddess he longed for.
But at this moment, the goddess high above turned her gaze to him.
There was no shame or annoyance, but rather a gentle and tender gaze—not looking at the emperor, but as if he were only looking at Ji Huan.
The emperor subconsciously nodded, avoiding his gaze, but his fingers tugged at his sleeve and smoothed the sachet and jade pendant at his waist. He then coughed lightly and said in a low voice, "Why are you looking at me like that?"
Wen Miao never expected that the emperor, who was always so demanding, would have such a pure side. She looked at him again and again before slowly saying, "Is Your Majesty scary?"
"...What does the lady think?"
Wen Miao thought for a moment and said, "I was a little scared when we first met, and I still felt a little scared after spending time together. As for now..."
Seeing that Emperor Qianyuan's expression darkened inch by inch because of her words, Wen Miao gently curled her lips, "You don't seem as afraid as before now."
But there is still a little bit.
However, Wen Miao did not complete these words.
Seeing Wen Miao's smile, the emperor felt relieved, but couldn't help but tense up at her words, "The time we first met in the outskirts of the capital?"
That was what Wen Miao thought was their first meeting, but it wasn't the real first meeting between Emperor Qian Yuan and her. In fact, the emperor had thought about it for a long time before coming up with the meeting scene. He had tried his best to appear gentle and polite, but he still managed to frighten his wife.
If he hadn't pinched her so hard that her palms were covered in red marks, he probably would have rushed to his wife and, like a lecherous man, pulled her tightly into his arms that time in the outskirts of Beijing...
That was the first time he had seen Wen Miaodong fully conscious after she recovered from her illness. How could he not miss her?
Wen Miao nodded, "At that time, I glanced at His Majesty through the carriage and felt that His Majesty had a fierce aura, as if he could devour me like prey in the blink of an eye."
Especially at that time, she was often plagued by nightmares. In her dreams, there was always a tall, imposing, and dangerous man wearing a black mask. In one dream, he even bit her calf while wearing the mask...
Wen Miao paused, a very blurry image flashing through her mind.
She suddenly looked up at the emperor: "Didn't we meet before, in the outskirts of the capital?"
As soon as he said this, Emperor Qian Yuan's heart skipped a beat.
He asked, "Why does Madam ask that?"
"For a period of time, I kept having dreams."
"Is the emperor in your dreams?"
Seeing the smile on Emperor Qian Yuan's face, Wen Miao nodded, though she was unwilling to admit it, and added, "It may not be Your Majesty, but I just think it looks somewhat like him."
Similar physique and aura, and the possessiveness that awaits her step by step.
"If my lady is dreaming, then the other person in her dream can only be me."
Wen Miao: "How can you be so domineering?"
"My wife and I are destined to be together. My dreams are filled with her, and in her dreams..." The emperor's eyes smiled, "it should also be me."
A warm breeze rustled the stray hairs at Wenmiao's temples as she gently stroked the mane on the jade lion's neck. Her starry eyes reflected the emperor's incomparably handsome face.
At the same time, in Wen Miao's blank memory, several fragments flashed by intermittently, all of them blurry scenes, indistinct faces, and noisy commotion.
They passed by so quickly that Wenmiao couldn't catch a glimpse of them, and could only return to silence, as if they had never flickered at all.
She tilted her head slightly and suddenly asked, "If I don't respond, how much time does Your Majesty intend to give me?"
Half a year has passed since their first meeting. On the one hand, Wen Miao felt that Emperor Qian Yuan was enjoying the current gradual way of getting along, but on the other hand, she also noticed that he seemed to be in a hurry.
— Eager to transform their relationship into a more solid, worldly one, such as husband and wife, or even... an emperor and empress.
The emperor paused slightly, "...before winter this year."
According to Physician Fang, Wen Miao's amnesia caused by her injury could very likely be triggered by a familiar environment that would allow her to regain her memories. Emperor Qian Yuan saw the unconscious Wen Miao in winter, and if there were no external stimuli, then the opportunity for her to regain her memories would most likely be this winter.
The world was covered in silver and white snow, perfectly mirroring the scene on the day Wen Miao lost her memory.
Although Emperor Qianyuan knew that day would come sooner or later, he still couldn't help but feel a tightness in his chest and shortness of breath when he thought about it. Once his wife regained her memory, would she still look at him with such gentleness and a slight smile?
Wen Miao was unaware of the emperor's thoughts. She withdrew her gaze and looked aimlessly at the distant palace.
The trees in the mountains and forests swayed and twisted, partially obscuring the Taihua Palace. She pondered her entire experience since awakening from amnesia, ultimately concluding that her future was already predetermined.
Even if she managed to break free from the royal power, there was still the Xie family, her maternal grandfather, and Mengjun in the capital, so she couldn't just ignore them.
Among the choices Wen Miao currently has, she is very clear that although she cannot say she likes or loves Emperor Qian Yuan, she at least does not dislike him.
A man she doesn't dislike, who possesses extraordinary power, and who now seems to like her very much.
This seems to be her only option at the moment.
Moreover, although those verbal promises were vague and uncertain, Emperor Qian Yuan had indeed spoken of it—that she would be the only woman in the harem, and that she would not need to bear children or be a wife and mother…
A promise made by an emperor should be worth a thousand pieces of gold.
"What is Madam thinking about?"
The emperor's voice interrupted Wen Miao's thoughts. She turned her head, raised her hand to brush aside a strand of hair from her temple, and looked at Emperor Qian Yuan again, asking, "Is Your Majesty able to fulfill all the promises you made before?"
All the promises from the past?
At that moment, Emperor Qianyuan's heartstrings trembled violently.
His gaze toward Wen Miao was intensely passionate, reaching an astonishingly scorching intensity. It was an extreme excitement, an excitement that even the former Emperor Qian Yuan, who had fought on the battlefield and slain enemy soldiers, could not match, even when he was immersed in blood and drank strong liquor.
The reins that were just in Wen Miao's hand suddenly slipped from her grasp. After she let out a soft gasp, Emperor Qian Yuan grabbed her waist and lifted her to sit sideways on the saddle of the Jade Lion.
The jade lion stood firmly in place, only snorting softly.
The man standing on the ground tilted his head back, his pupils contracted, and his smile was completely undisguised. He stared intently at Wen Miao on the white horse, like a wild beast that had suddenly spotted its prey.
He said in a hoarse voice:
"It's possible."
"My lady, I... Ji Huan can do it."
It was like a vicious dog wagging its tail and begging for mercy from its owner.
Wen Miao was somewhat frightened by Emperor Qian Yuan's overly excited emotions. She pursed her lips and looked down at the Emperor of Great Chu before her—
The other person was tall and upright with broad shoulders and a narrow waist. His face, which was originally extremely cold and stern, was now slightly distorted with excitement. Even the area around his narrow eyes was covered with a thin layer of red, making him look like a greedy beast, fierce yet extremely protective of his master.
Wen Miao could never understand where Emperor Qian Yuan's obsession and infatuation with her came from. Was it lust at first sight or love at first glance? But deep down, Wen Miao found it hard to believe in such a romantic and unfounded reason, so much so that she always felt like she was walking on thin ice, as if she were shrouded in a fog.
But reason told Wen Miao that she had to get through this thick fog.
She didn't like him yet.
But he seemed to really, really like her.
Seeing that the person on horseback did not speak, Emperor Qian Yuan became a little anxious. He couldn't help but lower his head and kiss the other person's knee through the hem of her skirt, but he dared not urge her, for fear of disturbing his wife's thoughts.
Wen Miao's cheeks and ears were burning hot, even her knees were incredibly hot. She lowered her eyes, her eyelashes trembling, not daring to look into Emperor Qian Yuan's overly emotional eyes. She carefully hid her true thoughts, her voice soft and trembling—
"If Your Majesty can do it..."
I agree.
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Author's Note: Beep, we're about to enter the "marriage of convenience" phase [rose emoji]
His Majesty was both happy and afraid. He was happy that Miao Miao had finally agreed to his request, but he was afraid that in the future, when Miao Miao regained her memory and remembered her deceased husband, she would want to break off their relationship.
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