Chapter 23 Happy Birthday The man before her was her husband…
Gu Xi looked towards the gate of Weiyang Palace and saw Xiao Heng walking towards her, with Zhao Fuquan following behind, carrying a wooden box in his hand.
The playful sounds of bamboo and flowers abruptly ceased.
"This servant greets Your Majesty."
Gu Xi was somewhat surprised; she hadn't expected Xiao Heng to come today, and she quickly put down her needlework.
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects..." Gu Xi rose and was about to perform the proper curtsy when she suddenly remembered what he had said last night. She quickly stopped and asked, "Why has Your Majesty come today?"
Xiao Heng noticed Gu Xi's movement as she withdrew, a smile playing on his lips, and pulled Gu Xi to sit down.
"Bring it here," Xiao Heng said to Zhao Fuquan.
Zhao Fuquan placed the wooden box in his hand on the table in front of the two men, and then stepped back behind Xiao Heng.
"Open it and take a look."
Gu Xi looked at Xiao Heng with a puzzled expression, but he didn't say anything. He just pushed the wooden box towards Gu Xi.
Gu Xi had no choice but to open the wooden box as instructed. Inside were two books. When Gu Xi picked them up, she discovered that they were the qin score "Xian Ya Ji" that she had been longing for all along. The box contained two volumes.
In the state of Sheng, there was a qin player named Shen Zhiwei. Her compositions were widely circulated among the people, and she was known as the "Qin Immortal." Legend has it that this book, "Xian Ya Ji," was composed by her for her lover. Only her friends were fortunate enough to hear a few pieces. Later, upon hearing of her lover's passing, she gave the score to a destined person so that she would no longer be reminded of him by the sight of the score. Since then, the score has been lost to history.
Gu Xi opened the sheet music and flipped through a few pages, confirming that this was the "Elegant Collection of Strings" she had been searching for all along, and she could not hide her excitement.
She carefully placed the sheet music back into the box, then asked, "Your Majesty, what is this?" Her voice held a hint of barely suppressed excitement.
"A birthday gift," Xiao Heng said casually.
"Um?"
"This is for you."
Gu Xi was taken aback upon hearing this, and the smile on her lips froze on her face.
A birthday gift for her? This is the birthday gift he gave her?
Judging by the dates, her birthday seems to be coming soon, but it shouldn't be today, but rather two days from now.
"The Qi envoy will arrive at our court tomorrow, and I'm afraid I won't be able to come over for the next few days," Xiao Heng explained, as if he had heard what she was thinking.
Gu Xi opened her mouth, but said nothing. Her feelings were complicated. She hadn't expected Xiao Heng to remember her birthday, let alone prepare a birthday gift for her. He even sent the gift in advance because he was worried that he would miss her birthday due to political affairs.
She always knew that he treated her differently, perhaps because she had saved him, perhaps because she seemed to have some interest in him, or perhaps for some other reason she didn't know.
But she didn't expect him to care about her so much, and he even specially found her something she liked.
"Do you still like it?"
Gu Xi stared blankly at Xiao Heng, and it took her a while to find her voice: "I like it... I like it very much, thank you, Your Majesty."
Xiao Heng hummed in response, without showing much emotion.
She couldn't remember what Xiao Heng said after that, only that not long after, he left Weiyang Palace with Zhao Fuquan.
"Your Majesty, the Emperor treats you so well!" Hua Yue couldn't help but say happily after Xiao Heng left.
Hua Yue is right, he treats her very well, but why does her fear increase the better he treats her?
Zhu Yin and Cai Lian noticed that Gu Xi's expression was off and looked worried.
*
Two days later, on Gu Xi's birthday.
"Miss, guess what we're having for breakfast today?"
Early in the morning, Zhu Yin presented her with the breakfast she had prepared, all of which were her favorite foods.
The palace is not like home. Normally, the imperial kitchen sends you whatever you eat, and you can't choose what you want. This meal is clearly made by Zhu Yin according to her own preferences, and I wonder how long she spent preparing it.
Gu Xi was moved.
Next, Cailian and Huayue gave her an embroidered sachet. One side of the sachet was embroidered crookedly, clearly Huayue's work, while the other side, embroidered by Cailian, was much neater and more delicate.
Gu Xi liked it very much.
On this day, Zhu Yin, Cai Lianhua, and Yue took turns trying to make Gu Xi happy. This was her first birthday in the palace. Although her parents and brother were not by her side, Gu Xi felt very content with them.
I wonder how my brother is doing now. I haven't heard from him since he entered the palace, and I don't know if he has returned to the capital.
At night, Gu Xi lit a lamp and pondered the "Elegant Collection of Strings" that Xiao Heng had given her, thinking about the melody and fingering.
Gu Xi was engrossed in reading when she suddenly noticed a shadow cast on the page. Looking up, she realized that Xiao Heng had been standing in front of her without her noticing.
She quickly put down the sheet music in her hand, and instinctively reached for a bow, but then remembered something and stopped herself, instead asking, "Your Majesty, what brings you here? Weren't you supposed to be here today...?"
Gu Xi wanted to ask, "Isn't he supposed to be receiving envoys today? How come he has time to come over?"
"I've come to see you."
After Xiao Heng finished speaking, he pulled Gu Xi to sit down at the dining table.
"Bring the things up."
Gu Xi then noticed Zhao Fuquan standing at the doorway with two boxes in his hands.
He picked up one of the boxes, opened it, and carefully took out the contents.
"White Jade Dumplings!" Gu Xi exclaimed in surprise, turning to look at Xiao Heng with her eyes sparkling with joy.
Gu Xi never expected to be able to eat this today. Zhu Yin said that she originally wanted to make it for her today, but the imperial kitchen could not get the ingredients, so she had to give up. She didn't expect Xiao Heng to bring it for her.
Zhao Fuquan handed Gu Xi a pair of chopsticks.
"Eat quickly." Xiao Heng couldn't help but laugh when he saw Gu Xi staring at him longingly, yet too embarrassed to pick up her chopsticks.
Gu Xi obeyed and ate in small bites.
Seeing the smile on her face as she ate, Xiao Heng felt much of his gloom dissipate.
Today, the envoy from Qi actually demanded that Sheng pay half of its annual border taxes to Qi, otherwise the current stability of Sheng's borders might be jeopardized. The implication is that if Sheng doesn't agree, Qi will continue to incite smaller border states to wage war against Sheng—this is utterly arrogant!
He discussed countermeasures with his ministers in the Qianqing Palace, but to no avail. Frustrated, he suddenly remembered that it was her birthday, so he came over.
Gu Xi was halfway through her meal when, as if suddenly remembering something, she looked up and asked, "Your Majesty...would you like some?"
It took her a while to realize that she had been so focused on eating that she had forgotten about Xiao Heng. She remembered that when Zhu Yin made it for her last time, he said it tasted good.
"I won't eat it," Xiao Heng refused. In fact, he didn't like sweets. He had only wanted an excuse to spend more time with her that day.
Gu Xi didn't force him, and continued to finish eating the rest, finally wiping her mouth with a satisfied look on her face.
Thinking that Xiao Heng had been watching her finish eating, she glanced at him somewhat shyly, then lowered her eyes.
"Happy birthday," Xiao Heng suddenly said softly, his eyes filled with an unprecedented tenderness.
Gu Xi suddenly looked up, staring blankly at Xiao Heng.
Her eyelashes trembled slightly, and her eyes seemed to be veiled in mist. Then, the mist was gently lifted, revealing a ripple of light, and the light in her eyes flickered slightly with the changing light of the lamp.
"Your Majesty..." she wanted to ask, did he come here specifically to wish her a happy birthday?
"Hmm?" Xiao Heng responded.
Gu Xi opened her mouth, but ultimately didn't ask.
She looked at Xiao Heng, and Xiao Heng looked back at her. She felt as if she was about to drown in his eyes, and her heart felt as if it had been gently bumped by something.
The man before her was her husband.
What woman in this world doesn't wish to live in harmony with her husband, growing old together in love?
But if this person were the current emperor, could she still hope for such a thing?
Gu Xi was lost in her own thoughts and didn't even know when Xiao Heng left.
When she came to her senses, she realized that the place where he had been sitting was empty, and she was the only one left in the room.
Before leaving, he seemed to say something like, "I have important matters to attend to." He came in a hurry and left in a hurry; she didn't even remember to say "Thank you, Your Majesty."
*
On the eve of the Empress Dowager's birthday, inside the Cining Palace.
"You've been by the Emperor's side for some time now. Have you made any discoveries lately?" the Empress Dowager asked a young eunuch.
"Your Majesty, I have noticed that, in addition to Consort Li's visit, His Majesty has also been frequently visiting Consort Gu's residence in Weiyang Palace recently."
"Consort Gu?" The Empress Dowager was slightly surprised.
"Yes, Your Majesty, Consort Gu and Consort Li entered the palace together. They were quite close in Chuxiu Garden before, but they don't see each other often now."
The Empress Dowager turned to look at a young woman dressed as a palace maid beside her. The woman was beautiful and had a temperament unlike that of an ordinary palace maid. Upon closer inspection, she even bore a resemblance to the Empress Dowager in her features.
"Wanyu, have you heard of this Consort Gu before?"
"Your Majesty, this Consort Gu is the daughter of Scholar Gu of the Hanlin Academy. I have heard that she is mediocre in both talent and appearance. If it weren't for the Imperial Concubine's desire to spite Consort Wan, she might not have been able to be conferred this title."
The eunuch, having overheard Qin Wanyu's words, inwardly broke out in a cold sweat. Only Miss Qin would dare to say such a thing. Qin Wanyu was the Empress Dowager's niece. Although she was a palace maid, because of her relationship with the Empress Dowager, all the eunuchs and maids respectfully addressed her as Miss Qin.
"What does the Emperor usually do with Consort Gu? How does he treat her differently from the other concubines?" Qin Wanyu asked.
"It's strange, really. The Emperor treats Consort Gu differently. Even after he's chosen her, he never stays overnight in Weiyang Palace. He just plays chess with her or goes to Weiyang Palace for a short while before leaving. He never stays for long."
"So, this Consort Gu has never served the emperor?" Qin Wanyu and the Empress Dowager exchanged a glance and continued to ask.
"That's true."
"Understood. You may leave now. Continue to stay by the Emperor's side and report back immediately if you notice anything amiss," Qin Wanyu instructed.
"Yes," the young eunuch replied.
After the young eunuch left, Liu, the old nanny beside the Empress Dowager, said, "Your Majesty, what do you think the Emperor means by this? Could it be that he truly loves the house because of the person he loves, and because Consort Li was once on good terms with Consort Gu, he's showing favoritism towards her..."
"Wanyu, what do you think?" The Empress Dowager interrupted Liu Mama's speculation.
"This servant doesn't think it's necessarily related to Consort Li. Perhaps there's something special about Consort Gu that attracted the Emperor's attention."
"That's what I think too. You all secretly investigate the Emperor and this Consort Gu," the Empress Dowager said solemnly. "Also, you all keep a close eye on tomorrow's birthday banquet. I'm afraid the Emperor has already made plans and is waiting for me tomorrow."
She hasn't celebrated her birthday in the palace for many years, partly to provoke speculation about her relationship with the emperor and confirm rumors that his ascension to the throne was illegitimate, and partly to prevent Xiao Heng from setting a trap for her during her birthday celebrations.
He might not have dared to do so two years ago, but now that he has gained more power, some people in the court have begun to side with him, and she has to be on guard.
"Yes," Qin Wanyu and Granny Liu replied in unison.
A note from the author:
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The male lead is gradually winning her over, but... [evil grin]
Thank you so much, Tu Jin, for the free tickets and nutrient solution! [starry-eyed]
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