Chapter 14 Wumeng Manor (4) A fleeting kiss. ...
Gu Congxing's face turned pale and his eyes widened in disbelief.
No! No!
Anyone can appear here, but it shouldn’t be Xiao Wangyou!
Because as soon as he appears, a tragic fate will begin——
No! That's not right! Xiao Wangyou is the crown prince. I've known him for a long time. How could there be such a tragic fate?
What on earth is going on?!
"Ugh...!" Gu Congxing's head began to feel the pain of being cut by a blunt knife again, and the tinnitus that had been suppressed for a long time sounded again.
drop--
Didi——
What a noisy sound! Stop it! Stop moving!
Gu Congxing was instantly covered in cold sweat. He hugged his head with his arms, bent over in pain, and a painful whimper escaped from his tightly bitten lips.
"……Hello?"
Xiao Wangyou was originally waiting for Gu Congxing to admit his mistake and beg for forgiveness, but he never expected that he would act as if he had seen a ghost.
I didn't expect him to look so painful.
"Gu Congxing, what the hell are you doing? Don't think you can get away with offending others by doing this."
As Xiao Wangyou said this, he unconsciously stretched out his arms and gently hugged the trembling Gu Congxing.
Gu Congxing still had his head down, and from Xiao Wangyou's perspective, he could only see a section of his slender white neck trembling slightly, like a poplar in a storm.
What's going on? He seems to be unable to hold on any longer...
Xiao Wangyou made a "tsk" sound and was about to call the imperial physician, but the person in his arms was snatched away as soon as he turned around.
The warmth in his arms suddenly disappeared, Xiao Wangyou's face darkened, and when he turned around, he saw an even colder face.
Lan Jue embraced Gu Congxing with his long arms and held him in his arms, while his other hand gently stroked his cheek. His movements were extremely gentle, but the strength he used in the embrace was quite strong, and the two bodies were tightly pressed together without any gap.
The voice that was usually as gentle as a spring breeze now seemed to have been cooled by ice: "Your Highness, please calm down."
He was clearly asking people to calm down, but he didn't look sincere at all and his eyes were gloomy.
"Hmph, why are you not taking charge of the Qionghua Banquet and secretly keeping an eye on this place?"
A mocking expression appeared on Xiao Wangyou's handsome face. "If you care so much, why did you pretend not to notice just now?"
He seemed unaware of Gu Congxing's burning gaze and chatted and laughed with others.
Lan Jue narrowed his eyes and retorted sarcastically, "I didn't realize that Your Highness and Cong Xing have already made peace and even stood up for him."
Xiao Wangyou frowned when he heard this. Just as he was about to speak, he heard an anxious call.
"Gu Congxing!"
The person who came was Mei Ci.
He ran over with his clothes lifted up, and only realized that the prince was there when he got closer. He bowed hastily and reached out to Gu Congxing's wrist.
Lan Jue grabbed Mei Ci's hand and frowned, "What are you doing again?"
"Lan Jue? Are you crazy? I'm a medical officer! He's almost fainted from the pain!"
Hearing Mei Ci's scolding, Lan Jue let go of his hand as if waking up from a dream, and silently let Mei Ci do what she wanted.
He had never had any contact with Mei Ci before, and when he saw this person before, he found him and Cong Xing together.
That's right, Mei Ci is the youngest medical officer in the Forbidden City, a descendant of the renowned medical master Mei Mu. But why did he have no memory of her?
Lan Jue frowned slightly.
Mei Ci diagnosed, "Perhaps it's a recurrence of an old head injury. We need to take him to the room first. I'll give him acupuncture to suppress it."
"This place is close to the East Palace. In that case, why not go directly to my side hall?" Xiao Wangyou responded very quickly.
Lan Jue glanced at him silently, then adjusted his posture and picked up Gu Congxing by the waist. The person in his arms was already unconscious, his face was pale, and even his lips were bloodless.
He was about to step towards the side hall when he heard a servant hurriedly say, "Lord Lan! You can't leave your seat..."
Lan Jue paused, then said in a deep voice, "What if I don't want to?"
The attendant was stunned by the question and looked at the prince for help.
Xiao Wangyou snorted coldly, and walked quickly towards the side hall with Lan Jue and Mei Ci.
***
"Um... what am I doing?"
When Gu Congxing woke up again, he found himself in a completely unfamiliar room. The decoration here was elegant and expensive, showing extraordinary nobility everywhere. It was obviously not his own residence.
He blinked in confusion, then realized that his hand was being held tightly, providing him with warmth.
Gu Congxing looked in the direction of the bony hand and saw Lan Jue lying on the edge of the bed, his head resting on his arm, revealing a handsome profile.
The morning light shone all over his body, making him look even clearer and smoother, as if he were carved from white jade.
Gu Congxing's heart moved slightly, and he reached out his hand involuntarily and rubbed his eyelashes with his knuckles.
It was the same when the top scholar was paraded that day. Lan Jue, dressed in a red brocade robe, was bathed in the brilliant sunlight, as if the heaven and earth were crowning him.
What did you want to do at that time?
It seems to be just like now, standing side by side with him and holding his hand tightly.
"...From the stars?"
Unexpectedly, a very light movement awakened Lan Jue. His eyes opened instantly, and his gaze was cold. But when he saw Gu Congxing, the coldness faded and became gentle again.
"Is your head still hurting? How do you feel?" Lan Jue sat up and asked softly.
"I'm much better now, don't worry."
Gu Congxing no longer feels the headache and feels relaxed all over.
But for some reason, away from the pain of being awake, in this comfortable and cozy situation, there was a feeling of unease in his heart.
The illusion of being on a cliff suspension bridge a few days ago came back to him, making him frown.
Actually, this extremely severe headache started right after I met Xiao Wangyou. Furthermore, I seemed to have thought of something at the time, but when I think about it now, I have no idea at all.
It was as if... my memory was being gradually erased.
Thinking of this, Gu Congxing was shocked and cold sweat broke out on his back.
"Cong Xing?" Lan Jue reached out his hand worriedly and touched his face. "But you feel unwell again?"
Gu Congxing slowly shook his head. He scanned the room, making sure no one else was around before speaking carefully: "Lan Jue, do you ever... feel strange sometimes?"
Seeing Lan Jue's eyes flash, Gu Congxing was about to continue, but he felt the air around him getting colder again. The shadows of the trees outside the house swayed, casting irregular black shadows on the window lattice, like countless dark eyes.
He paused for a moment, leaned forward, put his lips close to Lan Jue's left ear, and breathed quietly.
"Especially... something related to memory?"
Hearing this, Lan Jue's pupils shrank and he looked up suddenly. Gu Congxing had not expected his action and before he could retract his body, his soft lips brushed against Lan Jue's cheek, leaving a fleeting kiss.
Lan Jue felt the warm softness on his face, and his movements froze, as if he was petrified.
The two looked into each other's eyes silently for a moment before suddenly coming back to their senses, their cheeks flushed.
"...I'm sorry." Lan Jue cleared his throat, his eyes unconsciously looking at Gu Congxing's lips, looking at the red spot without any makeup, and for some reason he suddenly thought of the phrase "a feast for the eyes".
He abruptly looked away, his ears flushed. Yu Guangzhong and Gu Congxing also silently looked away. Lan Jue let out a sigh and returned to the previous topic.
"I agree with what you said."
The two of them tacitly stopped talking. They looked at each other, and with just a nod, they knew what the other was thinking.
——This scene is indeed different.
The two were lost in their own thoughts when they heard a powerful voice shout, "His Majesty the Emperor and His Royal Highness the Empress have arrived!"
Gu Congxing and Lan Jue looked at each other in astonishment, and both nodded lightly and quickly restored their expressions to a relaxed look, quickly tidying up their clothes.
A pair of gold-plated boots had already stepped into the threshold. Lan Jue helped Gu Congxing get out of bed, and both of them bowed their heads in greeting.
"Your Majesty, Your Highness, may all be blessed."
"Haha, no need to be so polite, just stand up."
The man was solemn yet dignified, yet his tone was kind.
Gu Congxing and Lan Jue stood up and looked up at the two people in front of them.
The current Xiangguo Emperor, Xiao Chujun, was observing them with a smile. He was tall and slender, even a bit thin for a middle-aged man. He looked more like a scholar than a member of a royal family.
The person next to him was wearing a gorgeous black robe, with a moon-white shark veil lightly covering his eyes. His face was extremely delicate and noble, and there was even a beauty that was difficult to tell whether it was male or female.
But when he spoke, it was a soft male voice: "Cong Xing is still sick, lie down and rest quickly."
Gu Congxing responded immediately, but he did not dare to lie down in front of the emperor in a disrespectful manner. He waited until the emperor and empress took their seats before sitting down with Lan Jue.
Speaking of which, there was a reason why these two noble men were so kind to him.
The current Duke of Zhenguo, General Gu, was the late emperor's adopted son and brother-in-law. To some extent, he could shamelessly call the emperor his cousin.
More than thirty years ago, the late emperor and his trusted minister Gu Yuan once shared a crisis. Gu Yuan cut off his own flesh and blood to serve the emperor, saving the emperor's life with his flesh and blood.
But when the crisis was resolved, the late emperor's reward was not enough for Gu Yuan. Gu Yuan was a simple and loyal man, so he did not ask for reward and just lived in seclusion in the mountains with his mother.
If it ended here, it would just be an ordinary story of a king and his subjects. Unfortunately...
Gu Congxing thought about the past and sighed secretly in his heart.
Later, the late emperor discovered that Gu Yuan had left a letter of resignation and left. Filled with regret, he led his men to his secluded place hoping that he would come out of retirement to serve as an official again, but he could not find him anywhere.
The late emperor was so eager to find the culprit that he listened to Guo's slander and set fire to the mountain in an attempt to force Gu Yuan out.
But what they waited for were only the charred bodies of Gu Yuan and his mother.
——It turned out that Gu Yuan's mother had a leg disease, and it was impossible for her to get down the mountain in such a short time! This mother and son were burned to death!
The late emperor was filled with grief and indignation, and immediately ordered the execution of Guo, who had offered the advice, and exiled all his family members as slaves.
The only person he brought with him was Gu Yuan’s adopted son, the current Duke of Zhenguo Gu Yu.
At that time, Gu Yu went down the mountain to buy some goods and escaped the disaster. The late emperor brought the young Gu Yu back to the palace and, for the first time in history, adopted him as his son and doted on him.
Unfortunately, after coming of age, Gu Yu learned about the late emperor's actions and found it difficult for him to continue to serve the emperor. Therefore, he asked to guard the border and did not return to the capital for many years.
After Gu Congxing was born, Gu Yu stayed in the capital for a few extra years. However, the struggle for the throne soon followed, and after helping her elder brother ascend the throne, Gu Yu returned to the border.
His eldest brother is the current emperor.
When Gu Congxing grew up to be a mature man, the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo also followed her husband to the border to resist foreign enemies. In the past, there was General Jiang in Xiang Kingdom who was like a god. He led his troops to attack the city with great momentum, but when he was about to capture the enemy leader, he was injured and fell off a deep cliff. His life and death were unknown.
From then on, the heavy responsibility of national defense was mostly borne by the Duke of Zhenguo and his wife, and they rarely returned to Beijing.
Gu Congxing was raised by several grandmothers and gradually became the little bully he is today.
By the way, he often came to the palace when he was young. After all, his cousin, the Emperor, treated him very kindly, so he sometimes just stayed in the Qianyuan Hall.
Of course, I also met Xiao Wangyou many times.
The two hadn't gotten along since they were little. The reason was funny, it was just a childish competition for favor.
Gu Congxing and Xiao Wangyou are of similar age. Sometimes they go together to find the emperor and empress. They treat Gu Congxing with affection and kindness, but are always strict with Xiao Wangyou.
After all, apart from the eldest princess, they only have this one prince, so naturally he is being trained and taught as the crown prince.
But for the young Xiao Wangyou, it was this wild child-like cousin Gu Congxing who stole the love of his father and mother.
Therefore, whenever they met, they would always quarrel or even fight. Sometimes they would even pretend to want to compete in martial arts, but in reality they would attack without restraint, often ending in a loss for both, which made the palace maids on the side terrified.
It was not until the two of them grew up and entered the Imperial College that Gu Congxing began to restrain himself a little.
——Don’t hit the prince directly, hit the prince’s companion.
...It can be considered as restraint.
Gu Congxing thought so and wiped the non-existent beads of sweat with a guilty conscience.
"How is Cong Xing's health? Is he alright now?"
The Queen turned towards this side with her face covered by shark veil, with a gentle smile on the corner of her lips.
"Your Highness, there is nothing wrong now."
Perhaps it was because he had not often come to the palace since he entered the Imperial College. When facing the emperor and empress who were very familiar to him in his memory, Gu Congxing did not feel very close to them.
Instead, there is a sense of strangeness and alienation.
"You don't have to be so polite in front of us," the emperor said, stroking his beard.
"Cong Xing has grown up now, so naturally she won't act like a spoiled brat like before. Your Majesty should get used to it."
The Queen was joking, and when she saw the blush rising on Gu Congxing's cheeks, she smiled triumphantly, which was as captivating as the blooming of a nightshade.
"Haha, that's right. You're right."
The emperor followed his lover's lead, and when he looked at Lan Jue, he changed the subject: "It's said that you two were very close when you were young, which Wangyou always envied. I still remember that Congxing always asked Lan Jue to hold her."
"This...! No way, Your Majesty, did you remember it wrong?" Gu Congxing's face turned even redder.
"Cong Xing, don't be shy. When you were little, you always followed Lan Jue around. Whenever you made progress in your studies, you would pester him to hold you."
The Queen's smile widened. "Back then, Congxing, you always liked to ruffle Lan Jue's hair, and Lan Jue would pinch your ears. You two were only five or six years apart in age, but you were quite amusing together."
The emperor also laughed happily.
Gu Congxing almost wanted to shrink into the ground. His memories emerged with the Queen's words, and the heat on his face was about to dissipate.
He glanced at Lan Jue standing beside him. He was also silent. Perhaps he was as shy as himself... ?
However, the moment he saw Lan Jue, Gu Congxing's heart was suddenly poured with a bucket of cold water, and his embarrassed aura disappeared completely.
Lan Jue lowered his head seemingly shyly, but his eyes were filled with a cold light!
Only when I get this close can I see that his expression is different!
That’s right! That’s right! That’s the correct response!
I did remember that I had acted coquettishly and sought someone to hug me, but that person had clearly only used a crimson headband to hold their hair together, not Lan Jue's white jade crown with dragon patterns! Otherwise, how could I have messed up that person's hair?
Who is it?
Who is the person whose memory was erased and replaced? !
Gu Congxing didn't show it on his face, but his thoughts were already churning. However, at this moment, the Queen's words made him feel like he was falling into an icy cave, unable to move.
"By the way, Lan Jue, what do you think about the princess's marriage?"
The author has something to say:
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The story between Gu Yuan and the late emperor was adapted from the story of Jie Zitui.
During the Spring and Autumn Period, when Duke Wen of Jin fled, his son, Chong'er, fled with him. Jie Zitui followed him and even cut off his own flesh to feed him. After Duke Wen returned, he rewarded those who had followed him in exile, but not Jie Zitui. Jie Zitui did not actively seek reward, and soon after, he took his mother and hid in the mountains.
Later, Duke Wen of Jin wanted to find Jie Zitui to reward him, but the mountains and valleys were so deep and forested that he could not find him. Duke Wen, desperate to find Jie Zitui, listened to the advice of a villain and ordered the mountain to be burned on three sides. However, Jie Zitui never came down the mountain.
Later, someone found the remains of the mother and child under a dead willow tree. Duke Wen of Jin was extremely sad. He only saw a poem written on a bloodstained collar in the tree hole:
"I sacrifice my flesh and blood to serve you with all my heart, hoping that you will always be clear-minded. To be a ghost under the willow tree and never see you is better than to serve you as an advisor. If you have me in your heart, please reflect on yourself when you think of me. I have no regrets in my grave, and I will continue to be clear-minded and diligent."
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