Extra: Past Events in the Royal Palace (V)
In the winter, all the flowers withered. Xiao Chenglan sat under the window, looking at the snow outside through the half-open window frame.
In the past, the four seasons had little meaning and no difference to him, but now he began to look forward to spring, looking forward to the flowers in the nursery sprouting after hibernation.
Unable to see her in the winter, his mood was buried in the cold ground like the hibernating flower roots.
He spent the first and longest winter in his life, a winter so cold that it was bone-chilling.
Fortunately, spring and her bright sunshine have arrived again as we wished.
However, he found that she was not so happy.
Fortunately, Qiuxia was there, and he could understand what she was worried about.
But he got some bad news - she was about to reach marriage age and was going to get married.
Before this, Xiao Chenglan had never thought about such a thing.
Marriage seemed to have nothing to do with him.
However, this matter fell on Jiang Yingli, which made him very sad.
Why can't it always be like this? Why get married?
He wanted to see her all the time.
But he soon accepted that nothing in the world is constant. His mother would leave him, and Jiang Yingli would leave her as well. This was normal.
He began to get along with Jiang Yingli with a feeling of separation.
This kind of mood quietly nurtured his courage. He no longer always watched her silently in the dark. He began to approach her.
He pointed to a half-opened golden hairpin jade flower and asked her, "What is the name of this flower?"
Perhaps due to his identity, Jiang Yingli's reaction was as if she was startled. She quickly lowered her head and replied in a low voice: "Your Highness, this flower is called the Golden Hairpin Thorn Jade."
"Very beautiful." He looked at her and praised her dryly.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
For the first time, Xiao Chenglan was annoyed at his poor speaking skills. He had just walked over to ask about her marriage and whether she was satisfied with it.
But what’s the point of asking?
If she likes it, he will only cause trouble. If she doesn't like it, what can he do?
He doesn't know how to form a family or how to manage a family. He is dull and has a weird personality.
She is so interesting that she would never choose him.
All the thoughts that were stirring in the past became empty and dormant in my heart because of Jiang Yingli's marriage.
But the silence didn't last too long, because after Xiao Chenglan took one step, he wanted to take the second step.
When he saw Jiang Yingli fall because the road was slippery due to the rain, he stopped standing by and watched, but quickly walked over to her.
As she stood up, he extended his hand just in time.
When the warm palm covered with mud and water touched him, he felt his heart skip a beat, so much so that his hand unconsciously tightened around her.
"You want to leave the house? I'll walk you to the door."
Perhaps due to his power, Jiang Yingli did not shake off his hand, even though her expression was a little strange and frightened.
For the first time, Xiao Chenglan experienced the convenience brought to him by the difference in status.
However, she didn't dare to shake off his hand, but he had to let go.
Because in front of her, he has always been a gentle and humble gentleman.
Although he was not like that in real life, it was not difficult for him to deduce that a gentleman would not hold a woman's hand rudely.
He smiled, let go of her hand, held an umbrella for her, and walked her out of the house.
They were silent along the way, but the subtle contact of shoulders and arms, and the entangled hems of clothes made him happy.
Therefore, he was no longer just disappointed about her marriage, but also jealous.
He began to feel jealous at the thought of someone being able to walk beside her like this every day.
One day, Qiuxia told him something in a panic.
——"Miss Jiang has injuries on her body because she didn't like that marriage and was punished by her family."
Only then did he realize that it was not a marriage at all, but a business deal. Her family wanted to give her to a wealthy businessman as a concubine.
For the first time he understood what it meant to be furious.
Jiang Yuanzhou tried his best to show his kindness to Jiang Yingli in the mansion, making him mistakenly believe that she was raised in the palm of his hand. Therefore, her marriage must have been carefully selected for her by her family, and she would have a considerate husband.
But those injuries speak for themselves.
The Jiang family treated her harshly, selling their daughter for fame and fortune, and even brought her to the palace just to show her off to him, like a commodity.
After they realized that he had no feelings for her, they changed their target.
"Miss Jiang has been trying to hide things and never tells me about her family affairs. I think it's because her situation is too embarrassing, so she doesn't want others to know. Your Highness, please help her." Qiuxia begged him.
Help her, how? The first answer that came to his mind made him a little panicked.
He wanted to help her escape from this sea of suffering, but he could never let her step into another sea of suffering.
So Xiao Chenglan prepared a large sum of money, which was definitely more than the amount the Jiang family had agreed with the wealthy businessman. However, he did not want to give the money to the Jiang family. He wanted to give it to Jiang Yingli and let her escape.
Then, he would slowly take care of the Jiang family and make all their businesses go to waste.
However, just as he was about to talk to Jiang Yingli, another piece of news came first.
Qiuxia told him with great relief, "Your Highness, this is great! Miss Jiang said she doesn't have to marry that fool as a concubine. Her distant cousin recently passed the imperial examination and became a scholar. Her family is interested in marrying her to him. This time, Miss Jiang can be the legal wife of a man married in a formal ceremony. The Jiang family is eager to marry someone with an official position, so this is perfect. Miss Jiang said that cousin is a good person. They grew up together..."
The rest of the words were all Qiuxia's gratitude.
Xiao Chenglan listened and breathed a sigh of relief, but then a deeper layer of gloom rose in his heart.
Since she has found a good match, why is it even more difficult for him to let go?
——"Your Highness, the Jiang family's debt has been settled. Today is Miss Jiang's last day at your house."
These words echoed in Xiao Chenglan's ears for a long time, making him feel like a huge rock was pressing down on his heart all day long.
She was about to leave for Qingzhou to marry her cousin Lu.
Qiuxia was reminding him, but what could he do?
She grew up with her cousin, who would marry her in a formal ceremony.
If he wanted to marry her, he could only take her as a concubine. Only a concubine could make his decision according to his heart. If he said that he had a wife he wanted to marry, then this person would become the emperor's brother in the blink of an eye.
They had everything, yet they still spared no effort to take away what was his. Whatever he wanted, he would eventually lose.
Anyone would choose his cousin, he doesn't even have the qualifications to fight for it.
The sun was setting in the west. Xiao Chenglan stood in front of the window, watching the branches of flowers tremble in the afterglow of the setting sun. There was deathly silence all around him.
He watched the figure flash by in the distance and disappear from his sight.
At that moment, he felt his heart suddenly empty.
After he came to his senses, he began to feel genuinely panicked. He pushed the door open almost eagerly and hurried to the gate of the mansion.
At that moment, emotion overcame reason.
What if, what if she chooses him?
How do you know if you don’t try?
The hurried footsteps stopped in front of the flower bed at the entrance of the mansion. The small figure squatted there, as if talking to himself.
Xiao Chenglan approached her step by step.
Jiang Yingli noticed the movement behind her and was stunned when she turned around.
She stood up and stared at Xiao Chenglan, who was obviously very close but still continued to approach her.
She took a step back, he took a step forward.
Xiao Chenglan looked at Jiang Yingli, his hands clenched into a ball hidden under his sleeves, but his expression remained calm as he spoke word by word:
"Are you willing to enter Prince Su's mansion and become my concubine?"
Qiuxia, who came to see him off, dropped everything in her hands to the ground. She covered her mouth, unable to tell whether she was surprised or happy.
The two people, shrouded in the setting sun and the rosy clouds, looked at each other silently, their clothes lifted by the wind and entangled with each other, adding a bit of ambiguity to this sudden invitation.
In the end, it was Jiang Yingli who broke the silence by bowing first.
"Your Highness, please allow me to report this matter to the elders."
Xiao Chenglan opened his mouth, but his voice was a little hoarse because he was too tense.
"good."
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