Chapter 65
On the way back in the carriage, Gu Yanling was so sleepy that he couldn't open his eyes and fell asleep in Xiao Xinghan's arms. Seeing this, Xiao Xinghan didn't call him and carried him all the way back to the bedroom.
Gu Yanling took a nap and woke up when it was dark outside. He got up and the servant who was guarding him in the room hurriedly lit the candle and helped him get up and wash.
"Where is His Highness?"
Gu Yanling wiped her face with a hot towel and felt strange when she saw that Li Youfu was not there either.
"Someone's coming from the palace. The emperor has summoned His Highness. His Highness has returned to the palace."
Gu Yanling: "Did you say anything?"
"I don't know."
Gu Yanling asked again: "How long has Your Highness been in the palace?"
"About an hour."
After the servants returned, they began to bring dinner to the table. Gu Yanling did not ask anyone to serve him and ate his meal slowly. Even after he had bathed and washed up, Xiao Xinghan still had not returned.
Gu Yanling waited boredly, and finally she was too bored, so she went to the study room and looked around, but couldn't find any books to pass the time.
The wind started to blow outside and it soon began to rain.
Gu Yanling felt a little annoyed when listening to the sound of rain. Thinking that it was raining and it was so late, Xiao Xinghan should not come back, so she was about to rest.
Xiao Xinghan is back.
Gu Yanling heard the noise, pulled aside the bed curtains and quickly got out of bed. She walked over to him and saw that his robe was wet with rain and he was cold from outside. "Why didn't you stay in the palace for one night?"
Xiao Xinghan let Gu Yanling take off his outer robe: "I left in a hurry, I was afraid you would worry."
"It's so late, just send someone over to tell me."
The servant brought hot water, and Gu Yanling wrung out the hot handkerchief. It was late at night and the dew was heavy, and the air was chilly. However, Xiao Xinghan was a martial artist, and the temperature of his hands was even hotter than Gu Yanling's. Xiao Xinghan saw Gu Yanling wiping his hands, and the candlelight reflected Gu Yanling's beautiful face like jade, casting a soft light on him. Xiao Xinghan felt an indescribable heat in his heart, and he couldn't help but hug Gu Yanling and was about to kiss him.
Gu Yanling snorted: "What are you doing? After you finish wiping, go take a shower quickly, otherwise you will catch a cold."
Xiao Xinghan didn't say anything, but just kissed him eagerly. Gu Yanling's lips and tongue were sucked by Xiao Xinghan, and her body softened in a short while.
After an unknown amount of time, the candlelight flickered for a moment, and Gu Yanling finally caught her breath: "What's wrong with you?"
Xiao Xinghan stared at him with burning eyes: "Father wants to see you tomorrow."
“…”
Gu Yanling thought she had misheard: "See me? Why do you want to see me?!"
Xiao Xinghan held him and sat on the couch beside him. His big hands touched Gu Yanling's body through the thin clothes. "My father found out that I took you to the hunting ground today, so he sent someone to summon me back to the palace to ask what happened."
Xiao Xinghan has not returned to the Eastern Palace recently, but has been staying in the Prince's Mansion. He has not thought about hiding it, so Emperor Xiao naturally heard about it. In addition, he took Gu Yanling to the hunting ground today, and the two behaved intimately and rode the same horse.
Gu Yanling was so scared that she stuttered: "You, what did you say?"
Xiao Xinghan: "Why are you so nervous? I didn't mean to hide anything, so I told you the truth. My father wanted to see you after hearing it."
These words were said lightly, naturally saving Emperor Xiao from being furious when he heard that Xiao Xinghan insisted on marrying a man as the Crown Princess. However, Xiao Xinghan was firm in his attitude and told Emperor Xiao that he would not marry anyone other than Gu Yanling and that he only wanted him in this life. After a stalemate between the two, Emperor Xiao finally gave in and asked him to bring Gu Yanling into the palace tomorrow so that he could have a look first.
Gu Yanling almost jumped up from his lap when she heard this. She was terrified. "Oh no, oh no! Will your father hold a Hongmen Feast for me tomorrow? If he does, he'll just find a pretext and I'll have my head chopped off. Woo woo woo."
Xiao Xinghan pinched his waist and hugged him in his arms: "What nonsense are you talking about? You will be fine as long as I am here. It's good for father to know. I was planning to bring this up after his birthday next month."
Gu Yanling: "What nonsense! Do you dare to say that His Majesty didn't lose his temper or get angry after hearing what you said?"
If Xiao Xinghan was not the prince and did not have this noble status, but was just an ordinary man, after Gu Yanling fell in love with him, she would go home and tell Gu Qifu that she wanted to marry him. Gu Yanling could be sure that his father would overturn the eight-immortal table at home, and then give her a beating of the family rules, so that he would not dare to talk nonsense again.
Xiao Xinghan: "..."
Gu Yanling: "Your father didn't beat you, did he?"
Xiao Xinghan: "No, don't be nervous or worried, nothing will happen."
How could Gu Yanling not be nervous and worried? He was scared to death. He was afraid that tomorrow might be a Hongmen Banquet.
"If something happens to me tomorrow, you must remember the bond between us and protect the Gu family no matter what. This matter has nothing to do with them. I will bear the responsibility alone."
Xiao Xinghan heard him as if he was explaining his last wishes: "..."
Gu Yanling's mind was full of the Hongmen Banquet tomorrow. Xiao Xinghan tried to comfort her for a long time but it was of no use. He was convinced that he would never come back tomorrow. He was heartbroken and cried for a long time.
Finally, he asked someone to bring him pen, ink, paper and inkstone so that he could write a suicide note.
Xiao Xinghan felt both angry and amused. He pulled him into his arms and wiped his tears. "If you're scared, don't go."
Gu Yanling cried, "Don't think I don't know. The emperor's order is hard to disobey. His Majesty wants to see me, and if I don't go, that would be disobeying the order, and my head would be in danger."
Seeing him so scared, Xiao Xinghan felt a little distressed and said softly, "Okay, stop crying. Watch your eyes carefully. You won't be in danger. I'm here for you."
Gu Yanling said with reason: "You are just a prince, and even a prince has to obey the emperor."
Xiao Xinghan could only follow his words: "What should I do? If His Majesty really wants to take your head, then I will accompany you. I don't want my head either. I won't live alone if you die."
Gu Yanling sniffed: "You say it's nice, are you willing to give it up?"
Xiao Xinghan: "Hmm?"
Gu Yanling didn't say anything.
Xiao Xinghan patiently comforted her, "It'll be alright. I'll take care of everything. Father and I have made our hearts clear. I won't marry anyone else but you. The Crown Princess can only be yours. We've also mentioned the issue of offspring. In the future, we'll select some children from the royal family and send them to the palace for training."
After hearing what he said, Gu Yanling looked up at him, tears still hanging on her eyelashes: "Did you really say that?"
Xiao Xinghan kissed his forehead and said, "When have I ever lied to you? If you don't believe me, you can ask His Majesty tomorrow if I ever said that."
Gu Yanling was in a mess and grabbed his sleeve tightly.
Xiao Xinghan: "I promise you that you will be able to leave the palace safely tomorrow."
Only then did Gu Yanling nod.
Xiao Xinghan wiped his tear-stained cheeks with a hot handkerchief and said, "You are so brave."
Gu Yanling heard him laugh at her and slapped him in dissatisfaction, "That's the emperor, in charge of the power of life and death. If you're not careful, your head will be gone!"
Xiao Xinghan: "Your Majesty is a benevolent ruler. He won't chop off people's heads at will. What you are talking about is a tyrant."
Gu Yanling quickly covered his mouth: "Be careful, there are ears on the other side of the wall! How dare you say such outrageous words!"
Xiao Xinghan was amused by him and kissed his palm, but Gu Yanling suddenly withdrew her hand.
"Take a bath with me."
Gu Yanling thought he was going to act again and said unhappily, "Don't you have to go to the palace tomorrow?"
Xiao Xinghan touched his little hand, which was cold. "Nothing to do. Just soak in the pool for a while to cool down. This way you won't have to think about random things in the room."
Gu Yanling felt that what he said made sense, so she tied a cloak over her inner clothes and followed him to the bathroom. The rain had stopped at some point, and there was a chill in the air.
The bathroom was filled with hot steam. Gu Yanling took off his cloak and inner clothes and went into the water. After a while, Xiao Xinghan hugged him from behind.
After helping His Highness undress, Li Youfu and the other servants left the bathroom and closed the door from the outside.
Today was truly thrilling. The atmosphere in the palace was too intimidating, with palace maids kneeling on the ground. His Majesty and the Empress had never expected that the Crown Prince, who had always been so steady and polite and made them proud, would do such an extraordinary and unorthodox thing.
If His Royal Highness the Crown Prince hadn't been so resolute in his attitude, I really don't know how it would have ended.
Xiao Xinghan just said that he was not allowed to do that, but his hands and mouth were never idle. Gu Yanling lost her temper and let him kiss and touch her.
"I think you are a sex-crazed ghost, you are always interested!"
Xiao Xinghan didn't comment on this. Whenever he got close to Gu Yanling, he couldn't help but want to kiss and touch him.
But it's too late.
As they had to go to court tomorrow, Xiao Xinghan took a bath and went to bed with Gu Yanling.
Gu Yanling couldn't sleep because she was worried about going to the palace to meet the emperor.
"Your Highness, you must stay with me tomorrow."
Xiao Xinghan pulled him into his arms and placed a kiss on his black hair, "I promise not to leave your side for a moment."
Gu Yanling held his hand and finally couldn't resist the sleepiness and fell asleep.
Early the next morning, Gu Yanling was still sleeping, and Xiao Xinghan left Li Youfu behind when he left.
When the time was almost up, Li Youfu quietly woke Gu Yanling up and arranged for someone to help him wash and comb his hair. After Gu Yanling finished his meal, he asked someone to go to Gu's house and tell An An that he had something to do, and that he would go to see him when he came back. Then he followed Li Youfu in the carriage to the palace.
In the carriage.
Gu Yanling: "Your Majesty, were you really angry yesterday?"
Li Youfu poured him a cup of tea and said, "Your Highness is here for you. You don't have to worry too much."
When Gu Yanling heard that he didn't deny it, she knew that her guess was correct. She held her face with her hands and sighed.
Li Youfu saw that he was frowning, and didn't know how to comfort him for a moment. The Prince's Mansion was not far from the Imperial Palace. After Li Youfu took out the token at the palace gate, the carriage was allowed to pass. After driving for a while, it stopped at the steps of the majestic and solemn hall.
Gu Yanling quickly rubbed her face, adjusted her expression, got off the carriage, and looked at the layers of stairs, her eyes felt dizzy.
According to the time, the morning court session was over and His Highness and His Majesty had already had breakfast. Gu Yanling and Li Youfu went up the stairs one after the other and waited at the door of the side hall, waiting for someone to go in and pass on the message. Not long after, a palace servant came out and led Gu Yanling in.
Gu Yanling's heart was in turmoil and he was extremely nervous. He stepped into the side hall. Xiao Xinghan came to meet him and took his hand. Only when Gu Yanling saw him did she feel less panicked.
Emperor Xiao sat on a chair in the center of the hall, seemingly sipping tea, but in fact he had been silently gazing at Gu Yanling ever since she came in. With her peerless beauty and ethereal appearance, no wonder the prince was so fascinated by her.
Gu Yanling walked up to him, not daring to glance around. She let go of Xiao Xinghan's hand and knelt down to pay her respects to Emperor Xiao. "I pay my respects to Your Majesty. May Your Majesty be well and safe."
Emperor Xiao saw that he was not as charming as he had imagined, and his words and actions were quite polite. "Get up."
Xiao Xinghan knew that Gu Yanling was very brave and his legs must have gone limp with fear, so he immediately helped him up. Gu Yanling did so and put her arm around him. After standing up, she quickly let go of him and stood up straight, waiting for His Majesty to speak.
Emperor Xiao: "Do you know why I called you here today?"
Gu Yanling lowered her head: "I know."
Emperor Xiao scolded: "You are so bold."
His voice wasn't loud, but it was stern. Gu Yanling was so frightened that she quickly knelt on the ground, wanting to cry but unable to. He said this was the Hongmen Feast! His Majesty would definitely find a reason to cause trouble. He hadn't done anything, yet he was so bold. How could he be so bold?!
It's really like finding a pretext to accuse someone of a crime. Wow.
Xiao Xinghan knelt down on one knee and tried to pick up Gu Yanling. He said helplessly, "Father, please don't scare him. He's timid."
Gu Yanling didn't dare to get up.
Emperor Xiao snorted coldly: "Even a coward dares to seduce the prince. If you are bold, you will be in trouble."
Xiao Xinghan pulled Gu Yanling up from the ground without saying anything. Seeing his little face pale with fear, he couldn't help but feel distressed: "It was your son who had feelings for him, and he dared not disobey."
When Emperor Xiao heard the Crown Prince say that he was the one who had exposed Liu Qingsong's collusion between officials and businessmen and had been actively looking for evidence, he never expected him to be so timid.
"The Crown Prince told me that he would marry you, what do you think?"
Xiao Xinghan had already done this much, so Gu Yanling couldn't ruin his plan. She raised her head and looked at Emperor Xiao, "I, a humble citizen, will obey His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."
Xiao Xinghan held his hand to comfort him and was quite satisfied with his answer.
Emperor Xiao was getting older and not as healthy as he used to be. He held a Buddhist rosary in his hand and placed his teacup on the table. He said, "What if I don't agree? The Crown Princess must come from a prominent family. You are different from the Crown Prince in status, not to mention that you are a man and have never married a man before. You are also incapable of bearing children for the Crown Prince. How can you be the Crown Princess? If the Crown Prince likes you now, what will happen if he changes his mind later?"
Xiao Xinghan: "Father——"
Emperor Xiao interrupted, "I am talking to him. I am still sitting in this position. The choice of the Crown Princess is up to me."
Gu Yanling was afraid that Emperor Xiao would have a problem with Xiao Xinghan, so she quickly stopped him and told him to stop talking. She mustered up the courage to say, "While being well-matched is certainly important, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is the son of the Emperor. Apart from His Majesty and the Empress, who else in the world can be more noble than His Royal Highness the Crown Prince?"
"Nowadays, the seas are peaceful and the rivers are calm. The country is prosperous and the people are well-off. Under Your Majesty's rule, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince does not need a prominent family to add to his prosperity. With Your Majesty's permission, he can choose his wife according to his own wishes."
“Although there has never been a precedent for marrying a male wife, there is no law prohibiting the marriage of a male wife.”
"Your Highness reported my relationship with him to Your Majesty, which shows that Your Majesty is not only an emperor in His Highness's heart, but also his trusted father. And since he and Your Majesty have expressed their feelings for me, I am naturally happy."
"What will happen in the future is a matter of the future. I only know that Your Highness is pleased with me now, and I am pleased with Your Highness too. That is enough."
"As for the issue of offspring... Your Highness is already twenty-five, and the Eastern Palace doesn't have a single concubine..."
Gu Yanling's last words were vague, and he didn't dare to say more about the matter of offspring.
Xiao Xinghan was not surprised at all that Gu Yanling could say these words. He had long been familiar with the other party's sharp tongue. Hearing that he was so nervous and still wanted to flatter the emperor, he was amused but more moved. After all, he knew that Gu Yanling was timid and dared to fight for him in front of his father even when he was scared to death. How could he not like him?
Emperor Xiao did not expect Gu Yanling to say this.
In fact, Emperor Xiao knew very well what the prince was thinking. In another year or two, he would abdicate, and the prince could then enthrone Gu Yanling as the queen, without having to go through so much trouble to get through his own hurdle. He just wanted to make Gu Yanling's position legitimate. He knew his own son very well, and since he had made up his mind, he would not give in, otherwise he would not have summoned anyone into the palace today.
Apart from being a little timid, he was smart and good at speaking, and he didn't forget to flatter him. No emperor didn't like to hear words like "peaceful seas and rivers, prosperous country and people, and a prosperous world", and Emperor Xiao naturally enjoyed it.
Since the prince has already considered the issue of offspring, he must have made up his mind. If he continues to break up the couple, it will only cause discord and estrangement between father and son.
Emperor Xiao: "Your mother is still waiting in the harem. Bring him over to let her meet him."
Xiao Xinghan: "I will take my leave."
Gu Yanling heard Xiao Xinghan say this and followed suit: "I'll take my leave."
After leaving the side hall, Gu Yanling staggered and almost fell. Xiao Xinghan half-hugged him.
Gu Yanling said with a sad face: "I am so scared that my legs are weak."
Xiao Xinghan ordered people to carry his imperial sedan chair.
Gu Yanling: "Do you still need to go see the Empress?"
Xiao Xinghan patted his head and said, "Greet your greetings to the Queen Mother, and then we'll go back."
Gu Yanling: "What did your Majesty mean just now? He just let me go like that?"
Xiao Xinghan looked at him with a smile: "What do you mean?"
Gu Yanling was surprised and asked, "You mean your father agreed?"
Is this agreed???
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