Chapter 2288 Hardships
After hearing his words, Ran Xiaoyu's face suddenly turned pale.
Her eyes flickered as she said, "I, I don't quite understand what you mean."
Ye Zheng said, "That's right. There's a person who appears to be this way on the surface and has this identity, but what he does behind the scenes is completely contrary to his identity and appearance."
“…”
"What would you do if you had someone like this around you?"
Ran Xiaoyu blinked and said in a deep voice: "You, why do you suddenly ask this question?"
“…”
"Could it be that you discovered that the people around you are like this?"
“…”
Ye Zheng did not answer her, but his brows were furrowed even tighter than before, and the expression on his face became more solemn.
Ran Xiaoyu's breathing stopped.
Turning to look at him, she asked carefully, "Who are you talking about?"
“…”
Ye Zheng was silent for a while, then turned to look at her and said, "You, don't worry about who I'm talking about. Just tell me, if you met such a person, and such a thing happened, what would you do?"
“…”
Ran Xiaoyu didn't speak immediately.
She clasped her hands together, her palms sweating. In such cold weather, in the pavilion that was drafty on all sides, the cold sweat made her feel very uncomfortable.
She hesitated for a long moment before she whispered, "Maybe, maybe, she has her own reasons."
Hearing the word "hardship", Ye Zheng fell silent.
He murmured, "Difficulties?"
“…”
"But what difficulties does he have?"
“…”
"What difficulties can make him do this?"
Ran Xiaoyu listened from the side, her expression changing from moment to moment. She was originally speechless, but seeing Ye Zheng's conflicted expression, she struggled for a moment and said, "Hardship, these two words are originally difficult to describe."
“…”
"Ye Zheng, there are too many joys and sorrows in this world."
“…”
"Not everyone is as lucky as you, having lived by the emperor's side since childhood, and he still protects you, allowing you to become an official and giving you a bright future. In this world, there are still many people living in the tangle of love and hate. I'm afraid you will never understand that feeling."
“…”
After hearing her words, Ye Zheng seemed to come to his senses a little.
But when I thought about it again, I seemed even more confused.
He raised his head and looked at Ran Xiaoyu, and said with a smile: "You, why do you seem to be particularly touched by this matter?"
Xiaoyu coughed lightly and said, "You are the one asking some inexplicable questions. If I don't say this, what else can I say?"
Ye Zheng thought about it and said with a smile: "That's true."
Although the matter was not resolved, Ran Xiaoyu's words at least made him feel a little relieved. He let out a long breath, then seemed to come back to his senses. He glanced at Ran Xiaoyu and said, "By the way, why do you say you are so busy? The imperial concubine moved to the bedroom to recuperate after her childbirth. The emperor was afraid that someone would disturb her, so he told the harem that no one would go to pay their respects every day. Are you still so busy?"
Ran Xiaoyu bit her lower lip and said, "The Queen is sick."
"What?"
Ye Zheng opened his eyes wide: "Sick? What disease? Why haven't I heard of it?"
Seeing him stand up in fear, Ran Xiaoyu immediately pulled him back to the bench and said softly, "Keep your voice down, are you going to let everyone know?"
Ye Zheng asked, "The Imperial Concubine is ill. If we don't make it known to everyone, do we have to keep it a secret?"
“…”
"What happened?"
Ran Xiaoyu sighed and told Ye Zheng everything that happened in the imperial study two days ago, including Xue Yun's matter.
Ye Zheng frowned as he listened.
Shen Chen said, "So, the Imperial Concubine was actually taking the blame on behalf of that Nian Qiu?"
"I guess so."
“…”
"Even though the Queen herself said that it was her failure to discipline her children that led to this incident, but, but you should know that people's hearts are hidden. How could she know what we, the people below, think?"
“…”
Ye Zheng was silent for a moment, then said, "That's correct."
“…”
"But after all, Nian Qiu is under the supervision of the Empress, so it's natural that she has some lax discipline. If she hadn't shown such hostility towards Xue Yun on a daily basis, you people under you wouldn't have thought of attacking Xue Yun, right?"
Hearing what he said, Ran Xiaoyu was speechless.
Indeed, this was the first time that Nan Yan felt hostility towards someone who had never harmed her.
Ye Zheng said, "The Imperial Concubine is different from ordinary women. Even if an ordinary woman wants to do something bad, at most she would only harm two or three people in her own family. But the Imperial Concubine—now that the late Empress has passed away, she is the most powerful person in the harem. A single word from her could turn everything upside down."
“…”
"You should be more careful."
“…”
"I didn't realize it before, but now that I'm an official, a memorial or a piece of advice I give can affect millions of people. I've finally realized that the more powerful someone is, the more they need to be self-aware."
Ran Xiaoyu sighed and lowered her head.
Ye Zheng added, "But the one who is sick should be Xue Yun. Why is the Empress sick again?"
Ran Xiaoyu said softly, "That day, after the queen came back from the imperial study, she has been in a daze. She hasn't been able to eat or sleep well for the past two days. This morning, she was paralyzed and couldn't get out of bed. When I touched her, I found that she had a fever too."
"She has a fever too?"
"yes."
"Have you called the doctor?"
"She wouldn't let me. Wang Baizhi used to come and check my pulse every day, but she always gave me a perfunctory reply."
Hearing this, Ye Zheng smiled bitterly.
Said: "Our queen is angry with the emperor again."
Ran Xiaoyu said, "I don't care whether she gambles out of anger or not, but she's hurting herself by doing this. She's still in confinement after giving birth. If she develops a chronic illness like this, what's she going to do in the future?"
Ye Zheng didn't say anything, just looked at the snow falling outside.
The sky was getting darker and the wind was getting stronger.
He suddenly stood up and said, "Forget it, it's getting late. You should go back and take care of the Empress. You are right. Her health is important. She is in confinement now. If she really develops a chronic illness, it will be difficult to deal with in the future."
Ran Xiaoyu also stood up and looked at him.
There was a flicker of uncertainty in his eyes as he said, "Ye Zheng, what did you say before—"
Ye Zheng said: "It's okay, I will find a way myself."
“…”
"Nothing can be difficult for me."
After saying that, he smiled at Ran Xiaoyu, put his hand on her shoulder, and said, "Go back and take good care of the Imperial Concubine."
"Um."
Ran Xiaoyu looked at him again, turned around and left with some reluctance.
After Ran Xiaoyu left, Ye Zheng sighed, turned around, and walked towards the imperial study.
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