Chapter 6: An injured woman is not allowed to sleep with her back to her husband.
It's late at night, time to rest.
Knowing that the man had no intention of consummating their marriage, Ruan Yu was no longer nervous. She slowly washed her hair and took a bath, then dried her hair and carefully applied face cream in front of the mirror.
After taking a bath, Chaolu walked casually to the bed. Ruan Yu silently observed him in the mirror and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw him lie down on the outside of the bed.
That's right, she didn't know where Chaolu slept after he came back last night, but now it seemed that at least the man didn't intend to sleep in a separate bed from her. She thought that after his aggressive attitude yesterday, he would move out today.
Then she can forget about having any face as the Fourth Prince.
Ruan Yu breathed a sigh of relief and continued sending messages.
These things are already trivial for girls, and she deliberately slowed down her movements, so much so that even though Chaolu had already lain down, she had not yet gotten into bed.
The man remained motionless, seemingly enduring the pain for a while.
Aren't you going to sleep yet?
Ruan Yu smiled and said, "I'm going to sleep."
He got up, blew out the lamp, and slowly walked over.
This time, Ruan Yu was very careful and didn't bump into anything. However, since she wanted to sleep on the inside, she inevitably had to step over the man's legs. Ruan Yu was very careful, trying not to even touch the hem of his clothes, before she safely reached the inside and lay down.
The room was quiet, and Chao Lu had his eyes closed, seemingly asleep.
But Ruan Yu knew he didn't.
After thinking it over, she silently turned over, and at the slightest movement, the man beside her opened his eyes.
He was also very uncomfortable. He had been sleeping in the same place for twenty years, and suddenly there was a woman next to him. Chao Lu didn't sleep well, and now this woman was facing him. A faint fragrance wafted over. The man's voice was dry: "Do you have something to say?"
Ruan Yu curled her lips: "Nothing can be hidden from Your Highness. Actually, when I went to see my sister this afternoon, it was the other three Khatuns who came to see me."
Chao Lu: "What is it?"
"They asked me if I wanted to participate in the Zhamuyan competition. My musical skills are not good, and I was afraid that I would embarrass His Highness if I participated rashly, so I asked my elder sister. My elder sister said that I did not need to participate, but after thinking about it, I thought it would be better to ask His Highness."
Chao Lu frowned slightly: "Ignore it."
Ruan Yu breathed a sigh of relief: "Since Your Highness says so, then I am relieved. Your Highness has had a long day, please get some rest."
After saying that, Ruan Yu turned over again, leaving him with her back to him.
Chao Lu was taken aback.
In grassland tribes, women are not allowed to sleep with their backs to their husbands; she didn't even know this rule.
What she just said struck Chaolu as odd.
What do you mean by not being good at playing the piano and embarrassing him? It's obvious that he just didn't want to go. He asked his older sister but she still wasn't convinced. She wanted him to agree in person before she could give him a proper explanation!
Chao Lu felt a strange unease. He stared at the person in the darkness for a while. The person beside him had already fallen asleep without a care in the world, and his long, even breathing could be heard. Chao Lu smiled coldly to himself.
This woman from Chang'an is not as simple and weak as she appears.
-
The next morning, Ruan Yu didn't oversleep this time and got up quickly when Chao Lu was about to get up.
Seeing the man standing by the bed getting dressed, she immediately threw off the covers and sat up.
"Your Highness, let me serve you."
Chao Lu turned around, his tone somewhat cold: "No need, you can continue sleeping."
After saying that, he tightened his belt and strode out.
Ruan Yu: "?"
Early in the morning, she wondered what she had done to offend this person, who was behaving strangely.
But since the other party didn't need her to serve them, Ruan Yu consciously crossed out the requirement of serving them clothes in the morning.
Before long, Xuan Niang and Qing Guo came in and helped her wash up and change her clothes.
It must be said that Xuanniang was competent. While combing her hair, she whispered, "Khatun, I heard that yesterday the Fourth Prince was reprimanded on the spot because of his disagreement with the Khan on politics."
Ruan Yu was taken aback.
"To reprimand them on the spot?"
Xuan Niang: "Yes... so His Highness was in a bad mood when he came back yesterday... but no one talks about it openly, so I didn't find out yesterday..."
Ruan Yu understood; so that's what happened.
Xuan Niang: "Khedun, the Fourth Prince's situation is indeed quite awkward. What do you think, should we try to make an effort..."
Ruan Yu: "How can I try? He can't even handle this himself, how can I?"
Qingguo: "Should we comfort His Highness?"
Ruan Yu chuckled as she thought of the man's sour face that morning: "Forget it, the best I can do for him is to stay away from him."
Xuan Niang and Qing Guo exchanged a glance and remained silent.
After Ruan Yu tidied herself up, she prepared to go to Madam Qiu's place. It was a matter of etiquette for a daughter-in-law to pay her respects to her mother-in-law every day. Since Madam Qiu had not ordered that it be exempted, she had to go every day.
Moreover, she doesn't plan to slack off, after all, she just said yesterday that she would spend more time with her mother-in-law.
When Ruan Yu arrived, Madam Qiu was already waiting for her.
"They've arrived. Let's have a meal together."
Ruan Yu was flattered and bowed before sitting down. Today's breakfast was still the Central Plains style. Ruan Yu couldn't help but ask, "Is this Mother's habit, or is it specially prepared because of me...?"
Madam Wei smiled and said, "It wasn't specially prepared; the chefs here have figured out my tastes."
Ruan Yu breathed a sigh of relief: "Then I will benefit from Mother's favor and will respectfully accept your offer."
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were having breakfast together when Ruan Yu noticed that Haila wasn't there. She was hesitating whether to ask her about it when, unexpectedly, Madam Wei spoke first, asking, "An'an, how is Chang'an doing these days?"
Ruan Yu paused for a moment, then pondered, "It's quite good. With His Majesty's new policies, the people live in peace and prosperity, and the relationship with the surrounding foreign states is also harmonious."
Wei hesitated for a moment: "I am a Han Chinese, as you know. I want to ask, what is the current state of the Prince Chen's Mansion in Chang'an?"
"The Prince Chen's Mansion?" Ruan Yu blurted out in surprise, only realizing her impulsiveness afterward.
She lowered her eyes and composed herself: "Reporting to Mother-in-law, the Prince Chen's Mansion no longer exists in Chang'an."
"What did you say……?"
Ruan Yu was also somewhat puzzled: "His Highness Prince Chen moved to Youzhou fifteen years ago. I think this should be common knowledge throughout the land..."
Wei's hand trembled slightly, "Fifteen years, Youzhou..."
Ruan Yu was a little nervous. She seemed to realize something, but she didn't dare to ask any more questions.
"You mean, in all these years, Prince Chen has never returned to the capital, so are there any rumors circulating among the people about Youzhou?"
Ruan Yu pursed her lips, looking bewildered, and said, "I really don't know much about this matter. I've never seen His Highness Prince Chen since I can remember, but the common people still hold this prince in high esteem. Guarding Youzhou is quite remarkable..."
Wei closed her eyes, clearly calming herself down.
"I understand, thank you, An'an."
"Mother-in-law, you're too kind..."
After breakfast, Madam Wei chatted with her about other things until a maid came forward and reminded her of something, at which point Ruan Yu got up to take her leave.
After stepping out of the tent, Ruan Yu felt a mix of indescribable emotions.
"Xuan Niang, why do I feel uneasy?"
Xuan Niang: "Is it because of Madam's question just now? I didn't expect that. Could it be that Madam has some connection with the Chen Prince's Mansion?"
"Impossible. If she were a relative of the Prince Chen's family, her status would be above that of Princess Hualun."
Xuan Niang suddenly realized that Prince Chen was the emperor's younger brother, while Prince Rong's status was much lower. If Lady Qiu had a relationship with Prince Chen, she would never have such a status on the grasslands.
Xuan Niang didn't know what was going on, so she remained silent.
The two walked back silently. Ruan Yu wondered whether she should go find Hela again. Suddenly, Hela was already walking quickly towards her from not far away, so there was no need to hesitate.
"Sister—"
Before Ruan Yu could speak, Haila grabbed her arm, her voice urgent: "An'an, Chaolu is injured! Come with me to see him!"
Ruan Yu was suddenly stunned.
...
Is Chaolu injured?
In Ruan Yu's mind, the man was so big and of such high status, who could hurt him?
It was clear that Hela was so anxious that Ruan Yu also became anxious.
I only learned the whole story on the way here—
The Kar tribe sent a batch of wild horses, truly wild horses, so fierce that even the strongest horse trainer in the tribe would be defeated by them.
But the Chaha tribe was the stronger one. They sent him a spirited horse and praised the Khan's bravery in front of everyone. Hurile was pleased and immediately sent Chaolu to try taming a horse. In front of both tribes, and with the Khan's personal approval, Chaolu had no choice but to tame the spirited horse, whether he could or not.
In the end, it was successfully tamed, but I also injured an arm.
Hela was truly heartbroken for her younger brother, wiping away tears the whole way: "Father Khan is too much! The Kar tribe can't train horses themselves, and there are so many horse trainers, yet he insists on sending my brother..."
Ruan Yu didn't dare to respond, but she also felt that something was amiss.
Even if Chaolu is not favored, he is still a Taiji. This arduous job is not for him.
Moreover, the Kar tribe was clearly using a provocation tactic. How could the Great Khan not know that if this failed, not only would Chaolu lose face, but the entire Chaha tribe would also be disgraced.
What was the Great Khan thinking?
After a few moments of thought, they arrived at the racecourse, which was heavily guarded. However, when the guards saw that it was Hela, they immediately made way for her: "Dabieji."
Ruan Yu was practically dragged forward by Haila. Just as they reached the outside of a tent, they heard Afu shouting from inside: "Can you be a little quieter! Are you trying to murder the Fourth Prince?!"
The next moment, he said to Lu, "Keep your voice down, aren't you ashamed?"
Afu was clearly very anxious. Hela suddenly lifted the curtain and rushed in, startling the men inside the tent.
"Sister, what brings you here?"
Hela wiped away her tears and cried out, "How are you hurt! What happened to your arm!"
"I fell! That horse was really wild, but luckily I—"
Chao Lu was speaking when he suddenly opened his eyes wide, because Ruan Yu had also walked in and was standing silently behind Haila.
The young man almost immediately composed himself, and deliberately lowered his voice.
"It's nothing, I just bumped into something, the horse didn't hurt me."
He seemed nonchalant, as if nothing had happened, but the next moment, the medic tightened the board, and Chao Lu gasped in pain.
His expression was almost contorted.
But he quickly glanced at Ruan Yu out of the corner of his eye, and only breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that she hadn't seen it.
After recovering, he couldn't help but mutter, "It's just a minor injury, Sister, did you really make such a fuss... Why did you call her here..."
Before Hela could speak, Ruan Yu smiled gently at him: "Your Highness is injured, isn't it only right that I worry? My sister and I rushed here just now, and we were really worried."
She stood there, her voice gentle, her eyes genuinely filled with worry, making her seem pitiful.
Has and the others gasped, their eyes filled with amazement, while a few others glanced enviously at their own Taiji.
Chao Lu was stunned for a moment, then abruptly looked away.
"N-nothing's wrong...you don't need to make a fuss..."
The words were still harsh, but the tone clearly betrayed a great deal of guilt.
A note from the author:
----------------------
Of all his people, his mouth is the toughest.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
