Chapter 114: Ying, do you remember everything?
The night was dark, the lights were dim, the guests had dispersed, but Guanxi Garden was still bustling with activity, and everywhere was a scene of brilliant embroidery.
Sitting in the bridal chamber, Cong Ying could hear the bridesmaids outside gushing joyfully with auspicious words. She glanced around several times, inquiring about the time. The bridesmaids smiled and said, "With such a beautiful princess minding him, His Highness will surely not miss the auspicious time. It seems the guests' eagerness has held him up."
Who dares to stop His Royal Highness Prince Jin today?
Cong Ying said nothing, but lowered his head and thought about his own thoughts.
Fifteen years after that dream, she had mixed feelings towards Prince Jin and had always wanted to spend some time with him. However, with their wedding approaching, he avoided her and she still had no chance.
However, Zi Su mentioned vaguely that the Prince of Jin would come to Suyuan to welcome her in person today. Although he appeared to be warm and friendly on the surface, he had soldiers with him secretly. If Cong Ying changed her mind, he might try to force her into the sedan chair. It would be very dangerous.
After hearing this, Cong Ying pondered: What kind of person does he think he is? Perhaps all the things that happened in the past must have made him resent her for being so heartless.
She asked the matchmaker to help her take off the pearl crown, and then she leaned on the pillow with her clothes on to take a nap. During this short while, she dreamed of Xie Xuanlan committing suicide. He was lying on the ground in a pool of blood, and he gave her a faint smile of revenge.
"Saburo!"
Cong Ying woke up in shock, his forehead covered in cold sweat.
A hand holding a handkerchief stopped in front of her. Seeing that she woke up, it paused slightly, then put it back as if nothing had happened.
Cong Ying's face showed panic, and he looked up at the owner of the hand. He was still wearing the groom's wedding clothes and had drunk some wine before. His complexion looked gentle, but his eyes were calm and deep, without any confusion.
He said, "It's easy to get nightmares if you fall asleep. It's getting late. Send someone to come in, wash and change clothes, and go to sleep on the couch. Before you go to sleep, add some calming incense to the Boshan stove."
Just when he entered the room, the bridesmaids lit the dragon and phoenix candles and lowered the golden gauze curtains, and were about to wake up the princess, but he stopped them. Du Xin smiled and closed the door and left. At this time, only he and Cong Ying were left in the bridal chamber.
Cong Ying suddenly leaned over and hugged him, leaning in his arms, without saying a word for a long time.
Prince Jin sensed her uneasiness and gently stroked her back, saying, "Did you have a nightmare?"
Cong Ying nodded and snuggled deeper into his arms.
The King of Jin said, "It's not likely that anything will happen to him. Don't be afraid. If there is any news from Xizhou, I will tell you as soon as possible."
This was not what Cong Ying dreamed of. Although she was indeed worried about Sanlang, the person in front of her made her even more worried.
Today, when she visited the princess, she saw him hiding a handkerchief stained with blood from coughing up blood, and knew his health was indeed not good. She also recalled the rumors circulating in the court recently about him, saying he was ruthless and ruthless in his pursuit of power, and that he was willing to do anything to unite with his own people and suppress dissidents. It was as if he knew his time was running out, so he was desperate to leave her something.
She held Prince Jin tightly, refusing to let go. Thinking she felt the answer was perfunctory, he sighed softly and said, "I am his reincarnation. His life is closely tied to mine. As long as I live, it means he will be fine. So you don't have to worry about him these days."
"What about you?" Cong Ying asked, "As long as he's alive, you'll be fine, right?"
The King of Jin said, "I don't know."
Cong Ying asked again: "Does he know of your existence?"
King Jin: "I don't know how much he has guessed, but given his temperament, whether he knows my origins or not doesn't affect his attitude towards me. Perhaps if he knew who I am, he would want me dead even more."
He didn't want to discuss another Xie Xuanlan on his wedding night, so he gently pushed Cong Ying away and stood up: "Okay, you're sweating, I'll call someone to help you wash up."
Maids filed in, carrying basins of water and nightgown. Some untied her hair, others removed her makeup, and still others knelt at her feet to tend to her nails. Cong Ying wasn't used to being served like this, but since it was her first day as Princess Jin, she didn't want to upset the rules so soon, fearing it would seem she wasn't appreciative. So she endured it and let them do whatever they wanted.
When she came out of the room after bathing, she could not see the Prince of Jin. A young maid hesitated and whispered, "His Highness just got up and walked out."
Cong Ying, with her hair half-dried and her clogs on, chased after him. Seeing Prince Jin walking out slowly with his jade staff, she quickly called out, "Your Highness!"
Prince Jin paused and turned to look at her.
The moon was waning that night, but its brilliance remained undimmed. Its cold, clear light, like water and silk, cast a hazy halo around him. This halo accentuated his cool and handsome beauty, and also made him seem out of place among the vibrant crowds in the courtyard, unlike any other human being.
Cong Ying stared at the scene in a daze, and recalled the scene in her dream. Suddenly, her heart tightened. Regardless of the cold winter weather, she ran over and hugged him in her thin undershirt.
King Jin was surprised and frowned: "Wearing so little, are you trying to get sick?"
Looking down, he saw that she was wearing wooden clogs. He picked her up and walked back, straight into the spring-filled bedroom before placing her next to the Arhat couch.
Cong Ying held his wrist tightly and asked him, "Why are you leaving?"
The King of Jin asked her, "Why are you chasing me?"
"Tonight...is our wedding night."
"So, you really want me to stay?"
Cong Yingwei was silent for a moment. Given his current physical condition, she wasn't sure if he still had the energy to be fully present with her. She worried he wouldn't be able to handle it, but if she wanted to be frank, she was afraid it would embarrass him.
Her hesitation was misunderstood by King Jin as not being truly willing.
After all, she had just woken up from a dream, and what she was thinking about was still another Sanlang.
Prince Jin brushed away Congying's hand and said to her, "I'm forced to be your Princess because of circumstances, but I don't have to do things in the boudoir. If you're willing to remain a virgin for him, I won't force you. I promised you that before."
Cong Ying was a little surprised when she heard this: "Just because of this?"
King Jin smiled and said, "You seem quite unconcerned."
Cong Ying's hand was brushed away, and she held his wrist again, put her arms around his waist from behind, and leaned her head against his butterfly bone.
Her voice was gentle and melancholic: "Your Highness, look at me. Since you married me as your princess, do you really have no selfish motives at all?"
Prince Jin's body visibly stiffened.
After a long moment, I heard his slightly hoarse voice and a wry smile as he said, "Of course I have selfish motives. They are far more sinister and vicious than you can imagine. I just don't dare to indulge them... Ah Ying, I've already forced you once, and I don't want to hurt you a second time."
In both her past and present lives, Cong Ying was forced to marry him due to circumstances, but it was different for Xie Xuanlan. It was her happy plan and her heartfelt wish.
Compared to him, he felt ashamed of himself as a clown, and he really didn't want to shamelessly force her to become his real husband and wife as he did on their wedding night in his previous life.
At this moment, he heard Ying sigh and said, "What if I am willing, Your Highness?"
Prince Jin seemed to think he had misheard, so he turned around and looked at her, wanting to say something but stopping himself.
Cong Ying held his hand and touched her face, her long eyelashes drooping, casting a gentle silhouette on her cheek.
She said, "I am not heartless towards you. You married me to make me the Princess of Jin, but I did not marry you for that. I am willing to be your real husband and wife and grow old with you, no matter if you are the Prince of Jin or the Sanlang in my dreams."
The King of Jin's gaze darkened instantly, as if he heard an imperial edict, and felt a constant ringing in his eardrums.
He pinched her shoulders and approached her, but stopped abruptly when he was about to touch her lips, and asked her in a low voice: "Why?"
Putting aside pure affection and love, he knew she had a sense of responsibility and concern for Xie Xuanlan in this life. She always pitied the poor and the weak, so she was often partial. The King of Jin felt uncomfortable and unfair, but could not bear to blame her for her mercy.
Why now? Is it because he is dying that we feel more pity for him?
Congying didn't answer, but put her arms around his neck and kissed him on the lips.
The fragrance of plum-red lip balm lingered, and her gentleness was tempered by a tenacity. She changed from sitting to kneeling, leaning towards him, like a trap trapped in tenderness, making it impossible for him to struggle free for a moment.
Maybe he couldn't struggle free, or maybe he never had the will to struggle against her.
The indulgence he showed out of caution was more like a temptation. He let her soft lips caress and fit against his, and gradually tried to probe into her tongue, kissing her more seriously and deeply.
His hand was loosely protecting her waist, and although he didn't touch her, veins were already visible on the pale back of his hand.
Until he heard a soft "click" sound, which was the sound of the jade belt around his waist being untied. This soft sound seemed to have cut the heavy silk thread tied to his heart. His arms suddenly pressed her firmly in his arms and deepened the lingering kiss.
The Luohan couch is used for drinking tea and sitting for a while. There are several plates of longan and peanuts on the small table in the middle, all of which are swept onto the couch.
It took Cong Ying a while to catch her breath. She watched as the Prince of Jin rose and undressed, his slender fingers unbuttoning the buttons, shedding layer after layer of the intricate ceremonial attire. As he undressed, his gaze remained fixed on her. Cong Ying sensed a fiery heat in his quiet, jade-like gaze, and felt a little embarrassed, so she gently averted her eyes.
The Prince of Jin, wearing only his inner garments, lifted her from the Arhat couch, walked into the screen, opened the wedding curtain woven with gold and jade, decorated with dragons and phoenixes, and placed her on the layers of soft brocade quilts.
At this time, he still asked her cautiously: "If he knew about this in the future, would you regret getting close to me today?"
Cong Ying said, "He is Saburo, and you are also Saburo. You never blamed me, and I believe he won't blame me either."
Prince Jin leaned over and kissed her, whispering in her ear, "A thousand mistakes, a thousand mistakes... It's his fault, it's my fault, I should never have made things difficult for you."
Knowing that she would not feel guilty, Prince Jin no longer hesitated, removed the last barrier, and hugged her tightly in the quilt.
Cong Ying gritted her teeth and clutched the silk quilt beneath her in impatience.
But the discomfort only lasted for a moment, and was quickly replaced by other feelings in his delicate kisses. Dripping with sweat, Cong Ying looked at him reluctantly, her fingertips lingering repeatedly between his eyebrows.
Although his appearance had changed, the feeling he gave her was the same as in her dream.
Perhaps it was because he had suffered too many blows from swords and spears, and the layers of scabs that had formed on him wrapped him up, making him more calm and introverted than Sanlang in this life, more cautious and restrained. Even at this time, he did not lose his composure and rush forward recklessly. All his strength was used to hold her tightly, wrapping her like a warm stream of water.
The way he looked at her made her heart feel hot and painful.
Being trapped by that gaze, it feels like being swept up in a silent fate, leaving no way to escape. How can one not indulge in it willingly?
Zui Ying's sweaty fingertips slid down from the corners of his crimson eyes, tracing the shape of his lips, and then touched his wet kiss, and fell on his slender neck with bulging blue veins.
Suddenly, tears rolled down her blurry eyes, and she whispered softly, "Does it hurt?"
Prince Jin paused and kissed her tear marks, his eyes filled with caution. "Did I hurt you?"
Cong Ying shook her head slightly, and only then did she confide in him the worries that had been weighing on her mind for some time, making it difficult for her to breathe and causing her to be frightened in her dreams.
She said, "I dreamed of you hanging up spirit-calling banners and asking Taoist priests for elixirs. I dreamed of you being drowsy during the day and tossing and turning at night. I dreamed of you kowtowed before the statues of the Three Pure Ones all night long, and then using a knife... to commit suicide..."
Her voice went from trembling slightly to sobbing. In the hazy light of tears, everything in the tent became blurry, only his eyes still looked clearly into her heart.
"I've always wanted to ask you, does it hurt..."
Her hand that was on King Jin's neck was grabbed, and his strength was so great that it almost broke her wrist bone.
The gentle smile that always lingered in his eyes faded, leaving only a heavy silence and a burning flame that could not be distinguished between love and hate.
"Aying, do you remember everything?"
"Then I want to ask you, if I hadn't done this, and hadn't received this opportunity in this life, how would you have planned to fulfill the fifteen-year promise you made to me?"
Cong Ying was speechless.
The King of Jin turned her face over and wiped the tears from her eyes, leaving her no room for evasion. He gritted his teeth and asked her, "You lied to me, huh?"
"Do you know how I've survived these past fifteen years? You were so kind to Xie Xuanlan in this life, but why are you so cruel to me?"
From Ying: "..."
He seemed to have found his enemy and the bitter hatred accumulated over fifteen years broke free from the cage, releasing the beast that had been locked up for a long time, and his lust also burst out like a mountain torrent.
The tempo suddenly changed.
He questioned one question after another, grinding deeper and deeper.
Cong Ying gasped and curled up, but was then forced to unfold by him.
Deep down, he is Xie Xuanlan, who is fifteen years older than Sanlang in this life. Cong Ying thought that Sanlang was already frivolous enough when he couldn't help himself, but unexpectedly, this man who had experienced fifteen years of battlefield killings and government strife was even more violent and difficult to withstand.
She regretted being deceived by his affectionate appearance and told him her true feelings on the couch.
She was almost overwhelmed by the overwhelming waves of love. She wanted to admit her mistakes and beg for forgiveness, but her voice was broken in her throat. Only a few gasps could be heard occasionally, floating up and down like floating flowers and waves.
It was unknown how long it took for the pain to subside. In a trance, Cong Ying only remembered being soaked in warm water and then being tucked into the quilt. Someone supported her and fed her water. Cong Ying grabbed his wrist and wanted to say something, but no sound came out for a long time.
She wanted to say sorry.
I want to say, Sanlang, I am indeed ashamed of you.
The calming incense in the Boshan furnace was indeed effective, and she felt like she was about to fall asleep.
A light kiss fell on her ear, and she heard the voice of King Jin, as if coming from a dream.
He said: I found you and I forgive you.
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