Chapter 63: Past Life (Part 3)
The weather was sultry in the afternoon, and the cicadas outside the window chirped one after another, making people feel annoyed.
The maid raised her hand and yawned, her eyes half-closed and half-open, her palm-leaf fan still for a long moment. The next moment, a sudden, loud noise rang out beside her ears, and the maid, startled awake, opened her eyes, and saw that a book had been swept off the table.
Concubine Song, who was always quiet and never quarrelsome, was now holding her forehead, staring into the distance with empty eyes and crying.
She put down the palm-leaf fan in her hand, walked over, picked up all the books on the ground, and put them back neatly on the table.
"Why are you doing this?" She sighed softly, looking at the beauty before her with a hint of pity in her eyes. "I've heard that His Majesty has been summoning Your Highness frequently to discuss matters lately. I'm sure Your Highness is busy with government affairs and hasn't had time to see you. Don't worry, the Princess doesn't see as many people as we do."
Chanzhen ignored her words. Ever since returning from the hot spring palace that night, His Majesty summoned her every day or two, forcing her to do the same thing. Day after day passed, and her initial fear and anxiety gradually waned to numbness. She no longer cried as she had at first, and even when the going got tough, she gritted her teeth and refused to utter a single sound.
No one could save her. The guards who came to pick her up turned a blind eye to her tears every time. Her personal maids were sent away with various excuses. The only person who could save her, the prince, was so busy that he could not see her every day.
What should she do to end this unbearable relationship with His Majesty?
Just as I was lost in thought, I suddenly heard a voice that I hadn't heard for a long time.
"What's wrong? Did someone bully you again? Why are you crying so hard?"
Zenzhen blinked and slowly turned his head. When he saw the man clearly, the light finally came back in his eyes.
"Your Highness..."
She could no longer bear the grievance in her heart, so she threw herself into his arms, hugged his waist tightly with both hands, and tears fell.
Chen Yunyi felt a little guilty. He had indeed been busy these days and neglected her.
"Don't cry, I came to see you first after I finished my work." He patted her shoulder gently to coax her.
He knew that she was gentle and not good at arguing, so he was always willing to protect her as much as he could.
He had come to the palace this time, despite pressure from his mother, hoping to take her out for some relaxation. However, he hadn't expected his father to change his ways and frequently summon him, assigning him numerous errands. While he was delighted to be valued by his father, he also felt guilty for not being able to visit her more often. So, when he finally had some free time after finishing his work today, he rushed over without even having lunch.
Zen Zhen raised his head from his arms, with a thousand words in his heart that he wanted to express, but in the end he could only ask with tears in his eyes: "Your Highness, can you stay with me for a while longer?"
With His Highness here, His Majesty shouldn't dare to summon her so blatantly again, right?
She knew that she was of humble status and the only thing she could rely on was His Highness's pity. Therefore, after entering the palace, she had always been law-abiding and had never asked His Highness for anything. This was the first time.
Sure enough, His Highness just frowned but did not refuse her request.
During the night's lovemaking, her body was trembling. Chen Yunyi thought she was a little nervous because she hadn't been in his presence for a long time, but he didn't realize that when she looked at his face, another, more mature face appeared before her eyes.
When his kiss fell, she finally couldn't help but turn her face away, and tears poured out like a dam breaking.
What should she do? After what she had done with His Majesty, how could she have the nerve to see His Highness again?
"What's wrong?" Chen Yunyi stopped and gently wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes with his thumb.
Chan Zhen took a few deep breaths before she lost control and blurted out everything. She tried her best to hold back her tears and gave him a timid look.
"It's okay, I'm just a little too excited after not seeing His Highness for so long."
Chen Yunyi laughed and gently brushed her hair away from her forehead: "Then I will spend more time with you in the future."
The tasks his father had entrusted to him only needed to be completed, and it wouldn't take much time. Once everything was finished, he could take advantage of his achievements and ask his father to grant her an official title.
He liked her and didn't want her to stay in the position of a concubine and be bullied by others. Even if she was given the position of a lady, as long as she was included in the royal jade list, others would treat her more carefully in the future.
"Your Highness..." Zen Zhen looked at his gentle eyes and hesitated to speak.
Chen Yunyi raised his eyebrows. In the dim light of the bed curtains, his outline was even more similar to that man.
Zenzhen tried to open his mouth several times but in the end no sound came out and he could only close his eyes weakly.
How could she tell His Highness that His Highness's father coveted her and had taken her body without His Highness's knowledge?
Even if His Highness knew the truth, His Majesty was so powerful and influential, would His Highness really rebel against Him for her? Would she be the only victim in the end?
A ridiculous night.
She closed her eyes and kept telling herself that the man in front of her was His Highness, her legitimate husband, and not the man who had disregarded ethics and seized her by force. That was why she reluctantly did not show any abnormality in front of His Highness.
The next day, just as His Highness left, the people sent by His Majesty arrived as expected.
On the way to Minguang Palace, Chanzhen sat in the sedan chair and thought absentmindedly that she had had sex with the prince despite his warnings. When he knew about it, he would probably be furious again and almost want to strangle her to death.
That was fine, she would bury this shameful experience underground, at least she could leave with a clean slate.
"Miss, please."
The sedan chair landed and Chan Zhen walked out of it. He looked up at the magnificent palace in front of him with a smile of fearlessness on his face.
The atmosphere in the hall was extremely oppressive. Her Majesty sat high up in the center seat, unable to hear a single sound. She could only feel the gazes surging towards her like a tide, as if to drown her.
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you." She was indifferent to his gaze and knelt down to salute him with an expressionless face.
After a long time, she heard the sound of approaching footsteps. A tall figure came in front of her, and then a strong force pinched her chin, forcing her to look up, but she still lowered her eyes, unwilling to meet his gaze.
"Look at me!" The man's suppressed angry growl sounded in her ears.
Zenzhen raised his eyes and looked at him calmly.
The usually confident and calm man now had a gloomy expression on his face, his eyes bloodshot, as if he had not slept all night.
"How dare you treat me like this?" He gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with deep hatred.
Zen Zhen looked at him coldly with an expressionless face and did not reply.
"I told you that since you've become mine, I won't allow anyone to touch you again. And you've turned a deaf ear to my words?"
He remembered that after finishing his government affairs last night, he heard the attendant come to report that Prince Jin was staying overnight at her place. He was shocked and angry, and the blood in his chest surged up and he almost couldn't control it and burst out.
He picked up the sword hanging on the wall and immediately wanted to go to the house and catch the adulterer, but Guo Kai held his legs and tried to stop him.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, you must not do this!"
After hearing Guo Kai's advice, he gradually regained consciousness, and then sat back in his original seat dejectedly.
What was his status to catch an adulterer? She was Yun Yi's legitimate concubine, so even if he was to catch an adulterer, he should be the one. If he made a big fuss, it would only ruin her reputation. Even if he took her into the palace later, it would be difficult for him to put her in that position again.
So he could only endure it, endure watching her make love with others, endure her crying under another man, endure her heart still thinking about another man.
How could he possibly bear it?
"You can't treat me like this." He obviously liked her so much, so much so that he wanted to take her into his arms regardless of her status and his own reputation. How could she ignore his sincerity?
A sneer slowly appeared on Zen Zhen's lips, and there was mockery in his eyes as he looked at him.
It was clearly him who forced her, but it seemed as if she had done something wrong to him.
The next moment, Zen Zhen was pushed to the ground by him. The pain from the back of her head made her frown.
The man's eyes were slightly crazy. He pulled her clothes and asked her, "Where did Yun Yi touch you?"
Zen really hated doing this with him and tried to push his hand away but he held it firmly.
"Am I not better to you than Yun Yi?" He saw the resistance and disgust in her eyes, and suddenly stopped moving, replacing it with a gentle expression. "I will not pursue the past anymore. As long as you agree to follow me, I can even offer you the position of Queen with both hands."
Zen Zhen met his gentle gaze in a daze, and turned away after a while: "Your Majesty, why do you have to do this? There is absolutely no possibility for me to be with you in this life."
She was the concubine of His Majesty the Prince of Jin. Although she wasn't his legitimate daughter-in-law, this ethical relationship was unbreakable. She couldn't accept it, and the world couldn't accept it either. Once the affair between her and His Majesty was exposed, the people's spit would drown her.
"I am the Son of Heaven," he said, his eyes dark. "Only what I say counts. If I say you are my man, then you will definitely become my man."
"Your Majesty, have you ever thought about how the people of the world will view us if this matter is exposed?" Chan Zhen finally broke down in emotion, tears streaming down his face.
His Majesty was the supreme ruler, the emperor. People would at most call him a playboy and amorous, but what about her? She inevitably bore the stigma of being a beauty who brings disaster. Of all the favored concubines of previous dynasties, how many met a good end? When the emperor loved her, he would cherish her recklessly, but when he didn't, he couldn't wait to push her out to defend against the accusations.
His Majesty seems to love her deeply now, but such love is like a mirage, which may disappear one day. Then, where can she go when she becomes infamous?
"I'm not afraid. When I decided to have you, I had already considered all the consequences." He lifted her from the ground and held her in his arms, his voice firm. "Even if you curse me to death, I will never abandon you. I will stand before you and block all attacks for you."
"Your Majesty..." Zen Zhen's voice was dry, "I already have a prince..."
"I know," he said, his voice barely concealing the pain, "I was a step too late. I know I'm sorry for Yun Yi, but I will never let go."
At this moment, they suddenly heard footsteps outside the palace, accompanied by Guo Kai's anxious persuasion: "Your Highness, Your Highness cannot go in!"
The door was pushed open with a creaky sound, and the dim palace was suddenly illuminated by light. Zen Zhen wanted to turn back in panic, but His Majesty pressed him tighter in his arms.
"Yun Yi." She heard His Majesty's voice calmly and without a trace of guilt.
But another voice suddenly made her heart completely cool down.
"Father."
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