Chapter 108: After testing, I found out that he was the Sanlang in my dream.
The next morning's court session was very lively, with thunderclaps occurring one after another.
One faction, consisting of the King of Ying, the Wang family, and Kang Huayu, accused Xie Xuanlan of colluding with the Western Tartars and tended to shift the blame onto Prime Minister Xie. The other faction consisted of Xie's disciples, who cried out for injustice, shouting that it was all a frame-up.
After arguing for a long time with no clear winner, Emperor Feng Qi rubbed his throbbing forehead and asked, "Where is Han Zhongcheng? What does the Censorate think of this matter?"
Han Sui, the Han Zhongcheng, stepped out of the line and quickly glanced in the direction of Prince Jin.
He already had the ironic nickname of "the non-stick pan of the Great Zhou Dynasty". After receiving a few warnings from the King of Jin yesterday, he knew that all his shameful secrets were in the hands of others, so he dared not speak carelessly at this time.
He simply replied, "Wang Zhaoshen and Xie Xuanlan were already at odds, so his memorial cannot be fully trusted. Magistrate Kang hadn't seen it, so his words are questionable. Everything depends on Your Majesty's wise decision. The Censorate dares not make any undue judgments until the facts are fully ascertained."
Someone from the Wang family jumped out and said, "Kang Huayu is a disciple of Prime Minister Xie. If he wasn't speaking for justice, why would he come out and accuse our master's son for no reason? He's loyal, yet you're saying he's biased?"
Han Sui: "That's not what I meant."
"What do you mean?"
The other side caught Han Sui and was determined to force him to take sides and tell them everything.
Seeing Han Sui wiping his sweat repeatedly, Prince Jin pinched the "Petition" in his sleeve and was about to come forward to speak, but someone stepped forward faster than him.
"Your Majesty, I have something to report."
It’s Wei Ji.
He stepped forward from the end of the line of courtiers, holding an account book in his hand. He knelt before the jade steps and presented it: "I would like to report that the prefect, Kang Huayu Kang, colluded with border generals to embezzle military funds, bribed relatives, and deceived His Majesty with evil intentions!"
He read aloud the contents of the account book, showing how much money Kang Huayu bribed the King of England and his relatives on which year, month and day.
After reading more than twenty items, the King of England's face gradually turned pale. He stood up, swore to the sky, and denied them repeatedly. Kang Huayu was even more furious. He ignored the court etiquette and tried to tear Wei Ji apart and snatch the account book from his hand.
The chief eunuch Xue Huanjin shouted at him for being insolent and ordered the palace guards to hold Kang Huayu down.
Xie Xiang watched with a smile.
There was a lively performance of various kinds of opera in the court.
This excitement even exceeded King Jin's expectations. He didn't expect Wei Ji to jump out over Han Sui, and not to step on Xie San, but to turn around and attack Kang Huayu.
Does Han Sui know that his subordinate is so capable?
Prince Jin looked at Princess Chun'an, who shook her head slightly, meaning that this matter was not arranged by her.
King Jin thought of another person who might be able to persuade Wei Ji as well. He thought that Wei Ji didn't take his advice to heart at all, so he couldn't help but sigh helplessly in his heart.
…
After the court meeting, Prince Jin set out for his palace. As soon as he got off his sedan chair at the ceremonial gate, he heard that Cong Ying had arrived.
Chen Cheng said, "Madam Jiang went to Guanxiyuan as soon as she arrived. She should be in the study now. It's not easy for me to stop her."
Prince Jin nodded: "Understood, everyone please leave."
He changed out of his court robes and went to the study to look for her. He pushed the door open but heard no one speak. He walked around the screen and saw a figure crouching between the rose armchair and the broad sandalwood desk. Her high bun was pressed down by her jade-colored sleeves, revealing a slender neck facing him.
I don’t know how long I was there, but I just fell asleep lying down like that.
Prince Jin took out a cloak, shook it open, walked over, and carefully put it on her. He found that there was a book next to her hand, with three words written on the cover: Firefly Collection.
The movement of his hands couldn't help but pause.
How did she find this book?
The author of this book was none other than the King of Jin. More precisely, he compiled the exquisite annotations left by Cong Ying in various classics, histories, and collections of literature, sorted them into a book titled "Firefly Collection."
He had done this in his previous life. When he couldn't sleep at night, he would read through the book and it was as if he saw her in front of him.
Sometimes he would pick up his pen to annotate her poems, trying to complete the next line of her ingenious half-line. Unfortunately, his talent and learning were far superior to hers - in fact, among the new dynasty's Jinshi and other outstanding scholars, there were very few who could match her in writing poems.
After fifteen years of racking my brains, I finally came up with a few words that satisfied me. I always wanted to ask her to taste them, but I didn't have the chance in my previous life, and in this life I was afraid that she would notice the clues, so I kept them hidden and never let her see them.
Unexpectedly, she found it out by herself.
Prince Jin gently pulled out "Firefly Collection" and confirmed again and again that it was indeed the one he had hidden in the secret box.
He turned to look at the antique display cabinet. Behind the vase at an angle was a compass with the ten heavenly stems and twelve earthly branches. It had to be adjusted in the correct order for the secret box to pop out.
Prince Jin stared at the empty secret box in deep thought. He couldn't understand why she came to look for it, nor could he understand how she guessed the arrangement of the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches.
"It's my birth chart, not that hard to guess."
I don't know when Cong Ying woke up, but she was still resting her head on my arm, and her voice was lazy, giving people the illusion of an unrestrained closeness.
Prince Jin turned around and looked at her, his eyes inquiring.
Cong Ying suddenly frowned and said, "Sorry, my legs are numb..."
The Prince of Jin walked over to her, rolled up his sleeves, and half-knelt, lifting her calves to massage her calves. He first grasped her ankles, pushing upward with his thumbs and forearms to the knee, repeatedly stroking the tendons. Then, he bent his index and middle fingers together and pressed them against the softest part of her calves, rubbing them back and forth to help blood flow.
He was focused and his movements were skillful. During this time, Congying was observing him.
Look at his pale forehead, the delicate contours of his eyebrows and eyes, his smooth, shiny, and pampered slender fingers.
If you ask if they resembled each other, they truly didn't. One was a snow-covered pine tree, the other a blazing red lotus. But if you ask if it felt like that... Cong Ying was certain that if she closed her eyes, she wouldn't be able to tell who was massaging her legs and abdomen. She couldn't tell if it was Prince Jin, San Lang... or even the San Lang in her dream.
In her dream, she married into the Xie family. Because Sanlang was still the commander of the twenty-four guards, he often went out on night patrols and returned late at night.
Occasionally, she would wait for him to come back and accidentally fall asleep at her desk. When he woke her up, she would feel her calves were numb and cold. Sanlang would squat in front of her and massage her like he was doing now until all her discomfort disappeared.
Even the movements were exactly the same, and after pushing her, he would remind her——
"If you are tired, just go to the small couch and rest. Why go through all this trouble just to save a few steps?" said the King of Jin.
Even the words are exactly the same, almost word for word.
Cong Ying stared at Prince Jin in a daze.
In fact, her legs were not numb, she just wanted to try some guesses. Now that it was as she expected, she didn't dare to ask.
He bit his lips, wanting to say something but stopping himself several times.
Prince Jin released her legs, stood up, walked to the Eight Immortals Table, poured a glass of water, and put down the Firefly Collection. Without looking at her, he said, "Ask whatever you want to ask."
In fact, he never deliberately hid things from her. There were some things he was afraid she would know, but he also secretly hoped she would discover them.
Both of their eyes fell on the book "Firefly Collection".
Cong Ying pondered for a long time, then asked, "Your Highness is attending a court meeting today. I wonder what the court's decision is on Sanlang's matter?"
Prince Jin was startled and his expression darkened for a moment.
Why ask another one?
Yes... She came here today for Xie San, not for him.
Although I knew the fact, I couldn't help but feel hopeful when I saw her find the book. Now that her hope was dashed, I couldn't suppress the unwillingness no matter what, like a fishbone stuck in my throat.
He picked up the Firefly Collection and shook it, then asked Cong Ying, "Is there anything you want to know about this book?"
Cong Ying said, "Actually, I've probably already guessed it."
King Jin: "What did you guess? Tell me."
His pupils were as dark as ink, yet as bright as a bronze mirror, reflecting her and a myriad of emotions. Looking into those eyes, Zong Ying felt her heart ignite. She had to look away so she could feign calmness and speak to him.
She said, "I've guessed that the wealthy young man who was sponsoring Wenqutang under the guise of copying books is none other than Your Highness. Your Highness took the trouble to compile and simplify the annotations I wrote for the classics into a book. This... also makes me understand Your Highness's sincere love for me."
The King of Jin asked, "Is that all?"
Cong Ying nodded hesitantly. "Actually, I haven't read this book carefully yet. I just wanted to find something to pass the time while waiting for His Highness to return. But I fell asleep before I had turned a few pages... I was so sleepy last night."
The King of Jin could not hide the disappointment in his eyes.
She is lying.
Her sleeves were covered in uneven embroidery and rice beads, and if she slept with them pressed against her, they would definitely leave a row of marks on her face. But at this moment, her profile was very smooth, and it was clear that she had heard the sound of him pushing the door open and then fell asleep on the sandalwood table.
She couldn't sleep... She was worried about Xie San and couldn't sleep anyway.
She must have flipped through the book, but deliberately did not put it back, leaving it by her side to test him.
She was just testing the waters, but she didn't have the courage to break the window paper. What was she afraid of? She was simply afraid that if she asked some questions and got the answers, she would no longer be able to be with Xie San in this life with peace of mind, and she would no longer be able to abandon him without a clear conscience.
It seems that she has made a choice between him and Xie San...
Even though she knew the truth, she still didn't choose him.
Prince Jin walked up to Congying step by step. The heavy emotion in his eyes was frightening. Congying subconsciously stepped back and leaned his back against the antique shelf.
"Is that all?" Prince Jin raised his hand to cover her eyes, his cool breath close to her: "Not enough, you need to experience it more carefully."
Cong Ying felt a cool touch at the corner of her lips. He pecked her lips slowly and slowly, and the light kiss gradually turned into a lingering one. His teeth were sharp, but his tongue was soft. Cong Ying intuitively felt that he wanted to bite her all the time, but he could not bear to do it, and finally it turned into licking again and again.
Their lips met, and between breaths, he asked, "Did you dream about this, huh?"
Cong Ying couldn't see his expression, but she knew that her expression was obvious. She didn't dare to respond and bit her tongue without saying a word.
Soon the teeth were pried open again. He stopped asking questions, but the kiss took on a fierce meaning, like revenge.
Cong Ying lay on her back, bearing it, thinking that he should hate her.
Maybe the love in her heart is hard to tell, but the choices she made always favored Sanlang more often and pitied him less, and it is the same now.
...But she also has her concerns and difficulties.
After a long time, King Jin slowly let her go, but Cong Ying still had her arms around his neck, leaning her head against his arms.
Her voice vibrated directly into his heart. She said, "Once upon a time, I had a white cat with beautiful blue eyes. Later, it got lost. Many days later, I finally found it by the river. It became a little afraid of me, but I still loved it and treated it well, feeding it, playing with it. Gradually, it became as dependent on me as before... no, it became even more attached to me than before."
"A long time later, one morning, another white cat with blue eyes was found. I then realized that I had found the wrong cat before. This was the white cat that belonged to me."
"I want to make it up to the white cat that truly belongs to me. I treated it so well that I neglected the one I mistakenly took away. I often forgot to give it food and water, and I no longer took time to play with it. It didn't know there was another one, that it was the white cat that belonged to me. It only knew that I didn't love it anymore. It lost my love and the value of its existence. It was driven away by the real white cat and died outside for a long, long time without me noticing."
"Your Highness... I certainly owed the real white cat, but the other one was so innocent. I truly loved it and didn't want to see it end up like this."
Prince Jin knew that she had never raised a white cat.
He is her white cat.
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