Chapter 92 Strong Like Wine (Part 4) Taking advantage of the alcohol, I acted shamelessly once. ...
The moonlight was like a ribbon, and the small pavilion in the East Palace was bathed in silvery light. The water in the pond rippled gently, and the night breeze made people's clothes flutter.
Wei Yuanzhan slowly loosened his clenched fist. He had drunk quite a bit that evening, and a hint of heat lingered in his eyes. Zhi Rou noticed him staring at her; his eyes were bright, sometimes dangerous, yet beneath that deep, calm gaze lay a tenderness.
Having never seen him drunk, Zhi Rou couldn't tell if he was sober, but after drinking, he became less talkative and always looked at her with a somewhat aggressive gaze.
The maid stood silently outside the pavilion, her back always turned. As Wei Mingying's confidante, she naturally knew what she should and shouldn't see.
Zhi Rou was about to speak when Wei Yuanzhan suddenly took a step forward. His tall stature cast a shadow that gradually rose from the hem of her skirt. When he reached her neckline, he stopped, his gaze shifting from the edge of her neck to the edge of the pond before asking, "Why have you come to the East Mansion?"
Now that you've left the palace, shouldn't you return to the Song family? Wei Yuanzhan asked out of curiosity, but as soon as he finished speaking, he felt it was no longer important.
Zhi Rou listened to his question, her thoughts drifting back to the afternoon.
From the moment she entered the palace, the Empress's gaze rarely left her, and all her inquiries were about Luozhou.
Clearly, her life wasn't limited to those nine years in Luozhou, yet in the Empress's eyes, it seemed as if she only had those nine years of history. Even if she was slow to realize it, she could guess that her identity was indeed questionable.
As for her mother's injury, Zhi Rou heard the Empress mention the fortune teller's prophecy and cursed him in her heart for spreading falsehoods. However, when she heard the end of the story, her tightly furrowed brows stiffened, and she vaguely thought that her mother's hand was broken by herself.
In a single day, Zhi Rou learned too many stories, and as she got closer to a certain place, she became increasingly agitated.
Her gaze fell on the water, and she took a deep breath before replying, "Her Majesty the Empress intended for me to stay overnight in the palace, but it was Sister Wei who brought me here."
"Do you want to leave?" Wei Yuanzhan asked.
Zhi Rou turned her head: "Where are we going?"
He did not answer that question, but simply said, "My carriage is outside."
His tone seemed to hold an invitation, his gaze reflecting the deep, calm waters of the pool as he looked at her.
She was someone he had watched grow up year by year; he had known her since her first day in the capital. He didn't know when it had happened, but that childish playmate had grown into such a captivating woman; once he saw her, he couldn't take his eyes off her.
Zhi Rou then realized that when Wei Yuanzhan said "leave," he meant leave the East Palace. She thought to herself that he must really be drunk, otherwise why would he make such a suggestion, putting Sister Wei in a difficult position?
She took two steps to the railing, her back against the pillar: "Forget it. I'm already at the East Palace; leaving now would seem strange."
She glanced at Wei Yuanzhan as she spoke, "And you, why are you here, and... have you drunk so much?"
The wine on the table couldn't possibly have been finished by one person.
Wei Yuanzhan subtly surveyed his surroundings, finding only the maidservant. Seeing that Zhi Rou refused to leave, he simply stopped standing, adjusted his robe, and sat down on the platform.
His face was half-hidden in the dim light, making his expression impossible to discern.
"The Emperor is old and his energy is waning. His Highness the Crown Prince is kind and generous to his subjects. I have come here to stay in the capital."
There was a hint of sarcasm in her tone; Zhi Rou was perceptive, and suspicion began to surface in her mind.
Today, the Crown Prince met Wei Yuanzhan because he recommended him to the Crown Prince, who then recommended him to the Emperor, allowing Wei Yuanzhan to lead a contingent of imperial guards.
Wei Yuanzhan did not appreciate this excessive pampering. Rather than focusing his attention on him, he hoped that the Crown Prince would take good care of his sister.
There was already a conflict between them, and Wei Yuanzhan's attitude towards the Crown Prince was not exactly respectful. If it weren't for Wei Mingying's sake, the Crown Prince would have already punished him.
Right there in this pavilion, the Crown Prince looked at Wei Yuanzhan with no warmth in his eyes: "This is what your sister wants. She doesn't want you to be away from home guarding the frontier."
Moonlight streamed in along the railing, giving the lacquered surface a subtle sheen. Zhi Rou bent her leg and landed on the seat, but moved a little further away from Wei Yuanzhan, maintaining a distance that stirred her heart.
"Wouldn't it be better to stay in the capital?" she asked, turning to look at him.
“It’s not that it’s bad…” Wei Yuanzhan’s voice was low, his gaze piercing through the mottled floor tiles, as if a lump was stuck in his throat.
He didn't know when it started, but he seemed to have gotten used to not being by his parents' side, and he often felt homesick. But after returning to the capital this time, he gradually realized that he didn't want anyone's arrangements, whether it was his father or the Crown Prince.
He disliked any feeling of being restricted.
Wei Yuanzhan thought to himself, then turned to Zhirou. Looking at her, he felt she should understand. Even before they parted, she often spoke of the world outside the capital, that feeling of freedom and unrestraint—who wouldn't yearn for it?
Zhi Rou's thoughts haven't changed, but after growing up in a foreign country for three years, she has a deeper understanding of what home is.
She has no home in Beili.
Life seemed peaceful on the surface, but it was actually turbulent beneath. She had to deal with too many people and things every day, and a moment's carelessness could cost her her life. That feeling of constant anxiety was unbearable; she was utterly exhausted, yet dared not stop.
Zhi Rou's eyes gradually dimmed as she turned her head to look at the pool.
Flowing and changing, as soft as silk, yet containing the sharpness of a sword.
“Xiao Ling…” she murmured. Was Sister Wei naming her with this in mind?
Thinking of this, Zhi Rou felt a pang of sadness, as if she were in Wei Yuanzhan's shoes, thinking of Wei Mingying.
She said gently, "If I can protect the person I care about, it doesn't matter if it's the capital or anywhere else, I am willing to stay without regret."
Wei Yuanzhan heard both of her sentences, paused for a moment, and then remained silent.
After remaining silent for too long, Zhi Rou noticed and glanced at his face, disliking his sullenness. She already felt indebted to him and Sister Wei today, and she had to repay them, so she called out, "Wei Yuanzhan."
He turned his face away and saw her adding unnecessary details to her already stunning appearance, making a "funny face" at him.
It's not scary at all.
Wei Yuanzhan couldn't help but smile with his eyes lowered, pressing his hands on his knees to suppress the urge to knead her cheeks.
Seeing his smiling face, Zhi Rou stopped what she was doing with satisfaction.
Strangely, she could still feel so relaxed in the Eastern Palace. Tonight should be the most comfortable moment she has felt since returning; she doesn't need to be wary of anyone, nor does she need to uncover secrets.
Having opened a channel, Zhi Rou could easily pour out her thoughts to Wei Yuanzhan, things she would find difficult to say to others.
"Today, for the first time, I met someone who frightens me."
When she spoke, there was no timid look on her face. She seemed to be pondering something. Finally, her eyes fell on Wei Yuanzhan, like sparks that ignited in his heart.
Zhi Rou had never been to the palace. As a child, although she was curious, she knew that the royal family was unattainable. Her father feared that she would be improper and offend the nobles, so she could only ask her second brother about the palace. She loved houses and would always observe her surroundings wherever she went.
The second brother, however, liked to observe people. He had just started talking about the Crown Prince of the Eastern Dynasty when he veered off-topic and went on to talk about Wei Yuanzhan: "To be honest, the Crown Prince Wei is no different from the people in the palace."
When Zhi Rou heard this, she assumed that most members of the royal family were like that. She had been used to Wei Yuanzhan's arrogance since she was a child, and if you put a very gentle and well-mannered person in front of her and said that he was a nobleman in the palace, she would think that he was pretending.
The prejudices she held in her youth were shattered the moment she saw Her Majesty the Empress in the palace.
The Empress's nobility was indescribable. She was neither unruly nor domineering. Her voice was like sweet dew, gentle yet cold. Each word she spoke flowed into your ears. Although her tone was particularly kind, Zhi Rou instinctively felt a sense of fear during her confrontation with Wei Mingying.
This feeling was different from what Su Du and the others gave her. The aura the Empress brought was oppressive, as if a huge prison had descended and sealed her off, and no one could resist it.
Compared to Wei Yuanzhan, she suddenly found his imposing presence quite approachable. To her, whether in childhood or now, he was truly like a paper tiger—fierce-looking but soft-hearted, sometimes even less ruthless than Chang Huai.
She left her sentence unfinished, and Wei Yuanzhan listened intently, watching and waiting for her, before finally raising an eyebrow: "So?"
Zhi Rou pouted, "That's how I realized you really are..."
In the end, she couldn't find the right words, but Wei Yuanzhan, judging from her tone, inexplicably understood something. His laughter carried a hint of unruliness as he stared straight at her: "You think I have no authority?"
His eyes were deep and dark, as if something overflowed and patted onto her.
Zhi Rou was taken aback for a moment, then quickly said, "That's absolutely not what I meant."
She stepped back slightly as she responded, and the breeze from the pool touched her neck, making it feel slightly cool.
"Song Zhirou." Wei Yuanzhan took in her movements. Perhaps because he had been drinking, he called her name slightly differently than usual; it sounded very pleasant.
His next words, however, carried a hint of amusement. He curled his lips into a smile, appreciating her expression with a touch of smugness. "Right now, you're not on guard against me, are you?"
Zhi Rou did not respond immediately.
Whether her retreat was an instinctive act of caution or something else, she herself was unsure.
But following his gaze, she stared at him for a moment, then smiled, as if to say he was overthinking it. At first, she simply disliked the smell of the wine, and had kept her distance from him to avoid being exposed to it.
Before he could finish speaking, Wei Yuanzhan's eyes held a deep burning and a hint of longing, as if he were both unaware of something and yet it was innate. He looked at her and said, "It's not wrong for you to be wary of me."
In an instant, Zhi Rou's heart stopped beating, her lips parted slightly, as if she wanted to say something but then stopped.
No matter how passionate Wei Yuanzhan's heart was, he always maintained a noble and dignified demeanor. Zhi Rou couldn't see through his facade, only feeling inexplicably oppressed.
As if to prove her earlier statement, Zhi Rou stood up and said casually, "I didn't." She glanced outside and then asked him, "Are you going back?"
Wei Yuanzhan stood up, stared at her intently, his brows slightly furrowed.
She lied again.
Wei Yuanzhan suddenly pulled Zhi Rou's arm, pulling her close to his chest, his palm pressing against her soft waist, wanting to ask her again: You didn't.
The sudden turn of events startled Zhi Rou. Whether from nervousness or fear, in the stillness, her heart pounded like a drum.
The rich aroma of the liquor instantly filled the surroundings, spreading out in a beautiful and enchanting way.
Zhi Rou slightly raised her face. The seemingly indistinct distance between them caused her eyelashes to tremble slightly, but her eyes remained bright as she met his gaze.
Wei Yuanzhan was standing close to her, and for a moment he was stunned and didn't move.
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