Chapter 68 He still left. "I have no regrets."
After a while, it started to get cold. Gu Xi rubbed her palms together and decided to return to Weiyang Palace.
On her way back, she passed by the plum garden, where the winter plum blossoms were in full bloom, and she couldn't help but stop and linger.
As they walked deeper into the valley, they suddenly encountered two other people admiring the plum blossoms, with several palace servants standing guard in the distance.
Xiao Heng and Lu Mengli turned around one after the other upon hearing the noise.
Gu Xi's eyes lit up at first, but when she saw Lu Mengli behind Xiao Heng and recalled what she had just heard by the river, her eyes gradually darkened.
She opened her mouth to call out to them, but when she looked into Xiao Heng's as cold and distant eyes as ever, her heart suddenly ached as if it had been cut by a knife, and the words got stuck in her throat.
Unconsciously, she gripped the hem of her skirt beneath the cloak, turned stiffly, and fled in panic.
Watching Gu Xi stagger away, Lu Mengli asked, "Won't the Emperor explain things to her?"
Xiao Heng casually brushed the snow off a branch, a faint, mocking smile curving his lips. "She doesn't need it."
Lu Mengli turned back to continue admiring the winter plum blossoms before her, "I hope His Majesty will not regret this in the future."
Xiao Heng paused, a strange sense of panic crossing his heart, but he still said firmly, "I have never regretted it."
Lu Mengli smiled and said no more.
Gu Xi returned to Weiyang Palace with a pale face. The floor heating in the room still had some warmth, so Zhu Yin quickly lit a charcoal fire, which made her complexion ease a little.
Looking at Gu Xi, who was sitting on the stool with a blank stare, Zhu Yin felt a pang of heartache. She slowly walked to Gu Xi and let her lean against her chest, comforting her, "Miss, it's okay to cry if you want to."
Upon hearing this, Gu Xi could no longer suppress her sadness, and tears welled up in her eyes. She hugged Zhu Yin tightly, her sobs muffled by the fabric of her clothes, making soft, whimpering sounds.
Zhu Yin raised her hand and gently stroked the top of her head. The tears quickly soaked her clothes and her eyes also became wet.
At this moment, she was filled with rage at the Emperor. Her mistress had no desire to accept his affections, but he had insisted on seducing her, causing her to fall deeply into the trap. He had flattered and pampered her when he couldn't have her, but now that he had her, he discarded her like trash.
The young lady almost lost her life because of him on several occasions, yet she receives no pity whatsoever.
No wonder people often say that the imperial family is the most ruthless.
After an unknown amount of time, Gu Xi finally calmed down. Just as she wiped away her tears, a voice suddenly came from outside the door: "The Empress Dowager Xu has arrived!"
Gu Xi was startled and immediately stood up, opened the door to greet her, and exclaimed in surprise, "Xu..." She subconsciously wanted to call her aunt, but suddenly felt it was inappropriate, so she quickly bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to the Empress Dowager."
Consort Xu quickly stepped forward and took her hand, saying with a smile, "Child, there's no need for such formalities. Just call me Aunt Xu."
She lived in the imperial palace year-round, and every time she returned to the capital, she would visit the Gu family. That's what Gu Xi called her back then. She went to the Gu family for two reasons: first, to see her sworn sister Su Jinhe, and second, for Xiao Che. She knew that Xiao Che had liked Gu Xi since childhood and had originally wanted to help him get married, but unfortunately, the two children were destined to be apart and had now become uncle and sister-in-law.
Gu Xi stood up and called out sweetly, "Aunt Xu." Her voice was slightly nasal from crying.
Consort Xu smiled and agreed. When she looked up, she finally saw Gu Xi's face clearly. She was shocked. Gu Xi always disguised herself in the past. Only today did she see her true face. No wonder Xiao Che couldn't let go of her.
The news of Gu Xi's fall from favor spread like wildfire throughout the palace, with everyone saying that the emperor had completely abandoned her. Xiao Che, knowing this, was worried about Gu Xi and specially asked her to come and see her.
Consort Xu pulled Gu Xi to sit down, and Gu Xi said apologetically, "Aunt Xu, I should have come to see you sooner."
Consort Xu patted Gu Xi's hand and comforted her, "Silly child, I understand your concerns. You did the right thing. This palace is a place of right and wrong."
Now that she is the emperor's concubine, it would likely cause controversy if people knew about her close relationship with Xiao Che.
She looked at Gu Xi's slightly red eyes, which clearly showed she had been crying, and tentatively asked, "What exactly happened between you and the Emperor?"
Upon hearing this, Gu Xi's smile froze instantly. She lowered her eyes to conceal her expression, and after a long while, she finally managed to utter a few words: "It's nothing..." in a low voice.
Seeing her expression, Consort Xu sighed inwardly.
She hadn't originally planned to return to the capital so soon; it was only after Xiao Che heard that Gu Xi had returned to the palace that he insisted on coming back. She wasn't a conservative person; she knew that Xiao Che was deeply in love with her, even drinking himself into obscurity every night. Originally, she thought that if the emperor truly abandoned her completely this time, she would risk her reputation to beg the emperor to bring Gu Xi back, to fight for her child's future, especially since she also liked Gu Xi.
But now it seems that Gu Xi is completely trapped, and her A-Che has no chance.
She advised, "Child, you must never give your heart away too easily in this palace..."
Gu Xi hummed in agreement, not wanting to dwell on the sadness any longer, and quickly changed the subject, "Aunt Xu, how is Brother Che doing lately?" She hadn't seen him for a long time.
"He's doing well. He'd be happy to know you still care about him," Consort Xu said with a kind smile.
Gu Xi suddenly remembered something, "Aunt Xu, did you visit the Gu family this time when you returned to Beijing?" Her voice was slightly urgent.
"Not yet, but is there something you need me to convey?"
Gu Xi was very worried about her master and senior brother. There had been no news of them for so long, and she had originally wanted to ask if her family had mentioned them. She hesitated for a moment and then asked, "Does Aunt Xu know why my mother dislikes my master?" Her mother had grown up with her since childhood, just like she and Yao Yao, so perhaps she knew something.
Consort Xu pondered for a moment: "This is related to an old matter of the Su family. The Su family kept it a secret, and I don't know the details of the matter."
As soon as she finished speaking, she suddenly stared at Gu Xi. Only after Gu Xi mentioned it did she realize that she looked a bit like someone after her appearance was restored!
Gu Xi lowered her eyes in thought, unaware of her gaze, and after a moment continued, "Aunt Xu, I would like to ask you for a favor."
Gu Xi wrote two letters. She entrusted Consort Xu to deliver one to Gu Chengzhong, telling him that her medicine was running out and asking him to go to the Medicine Valley to find her master and senior brother. If he found them, he was to find a way to inform her.
Another letter was entrusted to Xiao Che to deliver to Gu Xiao, telling him that his heart ailment had flared up again, and that if he returned to the capital, he should go to the Medicine Valley to find his master and see if a cure could be found.
She dared not mention her poisoning in the letter, nor did she dare mention the Empress Dowager, as the matter involved the assassination of the Emperor. If the letter were to fall into the wrong hands, it might bring disaster upon her.
She had originally wanted to ask Yao Yao for help last time, but seeing how much he was doing for Bai Xingzhi, she didn't dare to trouble her again.
Consort Xu granted Gu Xi's request and gave her some careful instructions before leaving before returning to her palace.
As soon as I stepped into the front hall, I saw Xiao Che pacing back and forth, looking anxious.
Upon seeing Consort Xu, Xiao Che immediately went to greet her, his voice urgent, "Mother, how is Xiao Xi?"
Consort Xu shook her head. "You don't seem to be in good spirits, and you've lost weight." She said with a worried expression, "A-Che, what are your thoughts about Gu Xi now? Listen to your mother, stop thinking about her, and treat her like a younger sister, okay?"
Xiao Che's eyes darkened. "Mother, I understand." He then left, clenching his fists tightly.
Empress Dowager Xu watched Xiao Che's departing figure and sighed helplessly.
In a corner tower in a corner of the palace wall.
Xiao Che sat down against the cold brick wall, with several wine jars beside him. He reeked of alcohol and looked like he had been drinking for a while.
He casually picked up a jar, tilted his head back, and gulped it down. The liquor choked him, causing him to cough violently. He raised his sleeve and wiped the drops of liquor from his chin, his eyes reddening.
younger sister?
She wasn't his sister; he never treated her like one.
She is the person he has been thinking about for eighteen years, the person he has always wanted to marry, the person he wants to grow old with. How can she just be a younger sister?
He had just put the wine jar down when suddenly a series of light footsteps approached. Without looking up, he snapped in a hoarse voice, "I told you not to bother me!"
The man did not back down, and said in a high-pitched voice, "Your Highness, my master requests to meet you in three days. He has something important to tell you, which concerns Consort Xi."
Xiao Che's eyes were blurry with drunkenness, the smell of alcohol churning in his throat, and his head was spinning. When he finally realized what he had said, he looked up abruptly, only to find that the person was gone, leaving only a letter on the ground.
*
After Consort Xu left, Zhu Yin began preparing lunch, but the food was getting cold and Hua Yue still hadn't returned.
Just now in the Imperial Garden, she noticed that Gu Xi was unhappy, so she said she would go to the Imperial Kitchen to ask for some delicious snacks to cheer Gu Xi up. But it has been so long, she should be back by now.
Gu Xiyue grew increasingly anxious as she waited, so she put on her cloak and hurried with Zhu Yin toward the imperial kitchen.
As she approached the moon gate of the Imperial Garden, she saw a palace maid squatting in a corner, being pushed around by two or three eunuchs.
"You blind fool! You almost spilled the snacks that the Emperor bestowed upon Consort Shu. Can you afford to pay for it?" one of the eunuchs grumbled.
That palace maid was none other than Hua Yue!
Gu Xixin shrank back suddenly, rushed over and hugged Hua Yue tightly, using her back to block the others.
At this moment, she had only one thought in her mind: she must protect Huayue. She had already lost Cailian, and she could not afford to lose any of them!
She shielded Huayue tightly, her voice choked with sobs as she screamed, "You're not allowed to touch her!"
"Your Majesty, please get up..." Hua Yue sobbed in her arms, her voice trembling. She was afraid that Gu Xi would get hurt, as her health was already poor.
The eunuchs were caught off guard by the sudden appearance of someone and lost their balance, resulting in Gu Xi taking several solid blows to the back.
Before the dull pain had subsided, a scream suddenly rang in my ears: "Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!"
Gu Xi looked up and realized that Xiao Heng had appeared at some point, kicking the eunuchs viciously with a violent look in his eyes.
Gu Xi was still in a daze when suddenly her body felt light as Xiao Heng bent down and picked her up in his arms. Gu Xi's eyelashes trembled slightly, and she instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck.
Her still-painful back was enveloped by the warmth emanating from his body, which brought tears to her eyes.
"If I don't protect you, you won't protect yourself, will you?" His deep voice came from above.
She didn't say anything, but just snuggled against him affectionately.
She missed him so much.
Xiao Heng carried her all the way back to Weiyang Palace and placed her on the edge of the bed.
Before she could even sit down properly, he turned to walk towards the door. Gu Xi panicked and immediately reached out to hug him tightly from behind.
She pressed her face against his back and whispered, "Aheng, don't go..."
But he still left.
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Author's Note: Countdown to heartbreak [laughing and crying emoji] It reminds me of when I used to read "Cremation Scene," I didn't want the female lead to forgive the male lead at all; I just wanted the second male lead to take her place. I didn't expect to have the same mindset when writing this [laughing and crying emoji].
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