Chapter 98 Running with the Ball
As the carriage turned, Song Zijin lifted the curtain and took a last look in the direction of the palace.
Her fingertips trembled slightly, making a slight sound on the window frame.
Fu Yue sat beside her, hugging the bundle tightly, his eyes full of worry.
"Miss, are we really leaving? If you're reluctant, let's go back. The prince... will definitely protect you!"
Song Zijin did not answer, but just clenched the purse around her waist that Xiao Linyuan had embroidered with his own hands to coax her.
His figure kept appearing in her mind, and those images were like knives, cutting into her heart.
"Let's go." She finally spoke, her voice so hoarse that it was almost inaudible.
The carriage slowly drove out of the city gate, and the wheels made a creaking sound as they rolled over the gravel.
Tears dripped onto the back of her hand, splashing tiny water droplets.
The June snow petals all over the sky looked like heavy snow in winter, and the breeze blew a piece of them into the car.
Song Zijin reached out to take it, remembering that Xiao Linyuan once said that he would take her to see the most beautiful flowers on Jinyue Mountain.
Now, all of this has come to nothing.
——
The Poria cocos cake he made yesterday was a failure. In order to please Zijin, after receiving the imperial edict, Xiao Linyuan went to the imperial kitchen and asked the imperial chef to make a pot of pine nut and lily pastry.
He was busy for a long time before coming back and missed lunch time. He didn't know if his wife was angry.
After entering the palace gate, Xiao Linyuan noticed that the atmosphere was not right.
He had been busy dealing with the mess these days and his nerves were a little tense. He hurriedly ran back to Ruifengyuan with the lunch box, fearing that his mother had bullied Zijin again.
In the yard, Luo Zipei was squatting on the ground crying, and Chunsheng was comforting her.
"Your Majesty!"
Xiao Linyuan's expression froze. He ignored Chunsheng who tried to stop him and strode into the main house.
The house was empty. He searched from the inner room to the second ear room, but did not see any trace of Song Zijin.
Finally, I saw a thin letter on the table.
In an instant, a feeling of suffocation surged into his heart, making him unable to utter a sound.
He grabbed the letter with shaking hands, almost crushing the paper with his fingers.
The letter contained only a few lines:
"Your Majesty,
It’s a pleasure to write to you and see you in person. I’m leaving now.
Life is like dew, gathering and dispersing are impermanent and cannot be forced by human power.
I have received your kindness for two months, and the moonlight under the parasol tree can testify to it, but it is a pity that it is like a flash in the pan.
I hope you will be kind to the people and be an umbrella for all the people.
Zipei has reached the age of marriage, and the elders have returned, hoping that the prince will have mercy on her and take care of her.
If God has mercy on us and we meet again one day, I only hope that you will let go of the past grudges and no longer hold grudges against each other.
Zi Jin said goodbye. "
The veins on Xiao Linyuan's forehead bulged, he was breathing heavily, and the letter paper squeaked as he squeezed it.
Chunsheng followed in and knelt on the ground with a plop. "Your Highness, it was our incompetence that we didn't notice when the young lady left Ruifeng Courtyard... I had arranged for someone to look for her, but when they reached the door, Nanny Jiang got out of the carriage and told us that the young lady had left two hours earlier... This letter was also given to us by Nanny Jiang."
Since the old princess is secretly helping, it may be difficult to find one.
In two hours, if we were riding a fast horse, we would have reached Anzhou.
The capital city is well connected, and the patrols at the city gates happened to be withdrawn today. It is impossible to determine which exit Miss Song took, which is like looking for a needle in a haystack.
"Find her! Find her for me!" He growled, crumpling the letter in his hand. "The ferry, and the city gate... Even if I have to search all of Dali, I will find her for me!"
Chunsheng retreated tremblingly, leaving Xiao Linyuan standing there alone, not moving for a long time.
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The silence around him turned into a sharp blade, attacking him, and he felt a swelling pain in his chest.
How could she leave without saying goodbye?
Didn't you promise to give it a try with him?
They were clearly still affectionate with each other in the morning, but less than four hours later, she abandoned him and ran off without even notifying him...
Why don't you wait for him?
He has already obtained the imperial edict. The next step is to wait for Xu to return to Beijing. He will definitely handle this matter without moving a single soldier.
It was his fault. He shouldn't have locked her up in the palace, thinking that she wouldn't be hurt if she didn't hear what was happening outside.
Tears kept dripping onto the letter paper, staining the handwriting, which showed Xiao Linyuan's panic and helplessness.
With a loud bang——
Suddenly, lightning and thunder began outside, followed by raindrops as big as beans falling.
Xiao Linyuan's pupils widened, he put down the letter and ran out.
He had to go find his wife in person. According to the date, she was going to have her period today. If she got cold, she would have a stomachache.
"Your Highness, you are wearing a straw raincoat!" Chunsheng chased after him.
Xiao Linyuan acted as if he didn't hear it. He untied Tayun's reins and rushed out.
He chased out of the city along the main road, and every time he caught up with a carriage, he would insist on lifting the curtain.
The rain whipped people's faces so hard that it hurt, and mud splashed on the official road.
His handsome face was covered with water marks, and it was hard to tell whether they were rain or tears.
——
Emperor Guangxi issued an abdication edict, and the ten-year-old Crown Prince Xuanyuan Ming inherited the throne.
In Dali, royal princes, provincial governors and provincial governors from all over the country will attend the coronation ceremony of the new emperor.
For a time, control on official roads became strict again.
Song Zijin's period did not come, so she took her own pulse. The pulse was very shallow, but it was definitely a slippery pulse.
She touched her belly and smiled bitterly. She had thought that Xiao Linyuan would not be able to conceive within three months after waking up, so she had not taken any contraceptive measures. Unexpectedly, she still got pregnant.
Baby, you came at a very bad time.
Because she was pregnant, she didn't dare to rush on the road anymore, but asked Changfeng and Changshun to choose a clean inn.
When she went to the toilet at night, someone suddenly came up from behind and patted her on the shoulder.
Song Zijin was so scared that she didn't dare to turn around, fearing that it was someone she knew.
"Zijin, don't you recognize your mother-in-law?"
Mother-in-law...
Song Zijin turned around suddenly and saw Xu Zihan dressed in a playful outfit.
I'm afraid there is only one person like Dali who is over 40 and still dresses so playfully.
She has taken very good care of herself, and those who don't know her well mistake her for a girl in her twenties.
"Mother-in-law..." No, she had inquired on the way that the new emperor would ascend the throne next month, which meant that Emperor Guangxi was defeated. According to what Nanny Jiang said, she and Xiao Jin should have broken off their engagement by now.
"Auntie, long time no see."
The smile on Xu Zihan's face froze. "You don't call me mother-in-law anymore, so you and Jin'er have divorced?"
"I guess so."
Song Zijin felt a little ashamed. Xu treated her very well, but with Xiao Jin in the middle, she didn't know how to face Xu.
When she first married into the Xiao family, she was thinking about giving birth to a child for Xiao Jin as soon as possible to repay his kindness.
But Xiao Jin never came to her yard, so she had to put on more revealing clothes and go to the study to find him.
When Mrs. Xu saw this, she grabbed her hand and said earnestly, "Women, don't lower yourself too much. You use your beauty to please men, but when your beauty fades, love fades. You're a smart child, don't follow the path of those foolish women."
Knowing that she was living in poverty, before leaving, Xu gave her 1,000 taels of silver to support her.
Unfortunately, Xiao Jin found out about it and took the money away in various ways, saying that his family needed the money.
No matter what Xiao Jin was like, Xu treated her very well.
It’s a pity that for some unknown reason, the mother and son had a big fight and never met again.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
