Chapter 305 Going Mad
Although Wang Yanzhi pleaded for Jue La Yun Dan before the Empress, Pei Huaijin still ordered him to be confined.
The last time he was punished with confinement, Li Yuanzhao came to see him personally that day. Although he did not stay long, he comforted him with gentle words, and afterwards, a stream of rewards were sent to his palace.
The fine silks and rare treasures silently testified that the emperor's favor had not waned.
That confinement was less of a punishment and more of a "minor punishment to serve as a warning" with a hint of indulgence. He even felt a secret, sweet sense of being spoiled because of it.
But this time, more than ten days have already passed.
The palace gates were tightly shut, and the courtyard was quiet. Apart from the palace servants who delivered meals at regular intervals each day, no one else set foot there.
Li Yuanzhao never visited him, nor did he send any gifts, nor even a verbal greeting.
The initial anger and resentment were slowly replaced by a deeper panic in the daily silence of waiting.
He began to fidget and repeatedly asked the palace servants about news from outside.
But all I ever heard were replies like "His Majesty is busy with state affairs" or "His Majesty is staying at Qiushui Residence."
Every word was like a fine needle, pricking his sensitive nerves.
He suddenly realized that the special status he had once enjoyed because of Li Yuanzhao's favor had become precarious after more than half a year of intentional or unintentional neglect.
Huang Mian's skillful maneuvering, Wang Yanzhi's sudden rise to prominence...
Faces flashed before his eyes, easily stealing the attention and favor he once thought were exclusively his.
An unprecedented sense of loneliness and fear welled up in my heart.
He began to feel genuine fear, fear that this time... His Majesty might really not want him anymore.
What chilled him to the bone was that he realized for the first time with such clarity that this was not Tibet.
In Tibet, he was a noble prince, the darling of his father and mother, and the center of attention surrounded by countless nobles and servants.
He can be willful, arrogant, and act according to his whims, because his status gives him the greatest confidence.
But this place belongs to Li Yuanzhao.
From the moment he was sent to the palace, he was no longer just Jue La Yun Dan, no longer the Tibetan prince who could do whatever he wanted, but a "person in the inner quarters" whose life, fortune, joys and sorrows were all tied to Li Yuan Zhao's hands and who was confined within the four palace walls.
She was willing to pamper him and indulge him, so he could continue to be that flamboyant and proud "Imperial Attendant".
If she no longer wishes, then stripped of his magnificent palace robes and the title of "beauty," he is nothing.
This realization was like a bucket of ice water, chilling him to the bone from head to toe.
This was the first time he felt both pitiful and pathetic.
Jue La Yun Dan staggered to the bronze mirror and looked at her unfamiliar reflection.
Two years have passed, and I've changed so much. I'm not like the person I used to be at all.
Her blonde hair was still dazzling, and her blue eyes were still deep, but what she wore was an elaborate and gorgeous brocade robe belonging to a foreign court.
What flowed between his brows and eyes was no longer the fiery and free spirit of the highland sun, but the haggardness and bewilderment worn down by the deep palace walls, and a trace of docility that he himself had not even noticed, which was gradually being assimilated.
The person who once galloped freely on horseback is gone, replaced by a canary trapped in a giant cage.
He suddenly went berserk, violently sweeping the makeup box off the table with his sleeve, shouting, "Wine! Bring me wine! I want Tibetan barley wine!"
The palace servants turned pale with fright and dared not disobey.
Jue La Yun Dan had drunk an unknown amount of alcohol and was acting extremely drunk and disorderly.
She started crying and smashing all the porcelain, jade, embroidered screens, and incense burners in the hall.
He rushed to the tightly closed palace gates, frantically pounding on the heavy doors with his fists and body, shouting hoarsely, "Let me out! I want to go back to Tibet!!"
Finally, he tore off the Qi Dynasty palace robe that bound him, revealing half of his body, and began to dance the Tibetan Hu Teng dance.
The commotion was so great that half the palace could hear it.
The news quickly reached Qiushui Residence.
Li Yuanzhao had just finished a passionate encounter and was stroking Wang Yanzhi's back, which was covered in red marks.
The eunuch reported in a low voice from outside the curtain. Upon hearing this, she paused for a moment, then leaned down and placed a light kiss on the back of the person in her arms.
"You go to sleep first." She got up, her voice still a little hoarse. "I'll go see him."
The emotion in Wang Yanzhi's eyes had not completely faded when he heard this, and his eyes, which were moist with tears, dimmed for a moment.
But he said nothing. He simply sat up, leaned forward, and gently kissed the corner of Li Yuanzhao's lips, whispering, "It's chilly at night, Your Majesty, please put on some clothes."
Li Yuanzhao rode in a palanquin to Ningxiang Palace.
Before even entering, one could faintly hear hoarse, out-of-tune Tibetan songs and the sounds of spinning and leaping coming from inside.
Li Yuanzhao waved to stop the palace servants who wanted to announce his arrival, and pushed open the door directly.
In the candlelight, Jue La Yun Dan, bare-chested and barefoot, was dancing wildly amidst the shards of broken porcelain on the ground.
His bare feet were cut by sharp porcelain shards, and blood dripped down his toes, staining the carpet beneath his feet red.
He seemed oblivious, his dance steps growing faster and faster, as if he wanted to vent all his pain and resentment through it.
After an unknown amount of time, Jue La Yun Dan suddenly spun around, her gaze abruptly meeting the figure standing silently at the doorway.
The palace lanterns cast a dim yellow light, making her shadow extremely long.
She was dressed casually, her long hair unadorned, and stood there casually, looking at him with deep, unfathomable eyes.
Despite his confused state, he recognized the face at a glance.
He was so drunk that he couldn't distinguish between reality and illusion. He stood there blankly, his emerald eyes fixed on her.
"His Majesty?"
He finally found his voice, which was incredibly hoarse, with a heavy nasal tone and an uncertain, tentative quality.
He had spent two years in the palace, so of course he knew the palace rules.
But he had always refused to address her as "Your Majesty," stubbornly using "you" instead.
It seems that by doing so, one can emphasize their uniqueness and difference from others, and thus combat the feeling of inferiority of being subservient to others.
But now, even when he was completely drunk, he still called out "Your Majesty".
He finally realized that those in the harem were inherently lowly.
Li Yuanzhao raised his hand, signaling the palace servants to leave.
Then, after walking through the mess on the ground, he sat down on the tatami mat.
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