Chapter 93: Precognitive Dream (Qin Lie)
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Just as he was about to speak, a rumbling sound suddenly rang out.
Both of them were stunned for a moment. The princess came to her senses first and immediately pulled the thin blanket up to cover her head and face, as if she wanted to shrink into her shell and never see anyone again.
Qin Lie watched her quietly for a moment, seeing that she was wrapping herself up tighter and tighter, almost curled up into a small ball if she weren't heavily pregnant. He then sat down on the edge of the bed and gently reached out to pull the thin blanket up, but she held on tightly from inside. He had to remind her, "Be careful not to suffocate the baby."
At the mention of the child, Lingyi quickly pulled back the covers, revealing her head and stretching out her arms to cover the blanket, pretending to be asleep as if nothing had happened. However, her cheeks and ears were so red they looked like they could bleed, showing just how embarrassed she was.
Seeing her like this, Qin Lie's anger vanished completely, and he even pretended to be kind and comforted her: "Your stomach will rumble when you're hungry, what's there to be embarrassed about?"
He was clearly teasing her on purpose. Lingyi was so angry that she pushed him away. He smiled and stopped her hand, taking it in his and placing it on his lap, asking, "What do you want to eat? I'll take you out."
There wasn't much food in the manor at the moment, but each person might have some snacks in their courtyard. He couldn't very well shamelessly ask for some, so he could only take her outside.
Without a second thought, Lingyi refused outright: "I'm not going."
Qin Lie glanced at her stomach. "It's a little inconvenient. Here, what do you want to eat? I'll go buy it for you."
Perhaps it was a habit he had developed since childhood, but he had never been fond of food. In the princess's residence, he never touched the many snacks and treats that Lingyi had. Given his personality, it was obvious that he would go out to buy food late at night for her. Lingyi didn't want to attract too much attention, so she didn't want him to go out and give people something to talk about. "I'm really not that hungry, and besides, I should go to sleep. It's okay to eat after I wake up."
Qin Lie asked, "Didn't you say you slept too much? Why can't you sleep now?"
Lingyi's thick skin is not what it used to be. She deliberately yawned and said, "That was just now. I'm sleepy again now."
Qin Lie glared at her, but she pretended not to see it, closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep, actually acting like a rogue to him.
But she could feel his heavy gaze. Since he was already shameless, she decided to go all the way and keep her eyes tightly shut, refusing to open them, to see what he could do.
She thought he would get angry, but after waiting for a while, she only heard a soft laugh, so light and shallow that she thought she had misheard.
He secretly opened his eyes, but there was no smile on his face. He still had his usual cold and stern expression. He stood up and was about to leave.
Lingyi, disregarding her pretense of sleep, hurriedly grabbed his sleeve.
He lowered his head, looking down at her, and asked coolly, "Is the princess not sleepy again?"
She looked at him pleadingly, "General, please don't go..."
Her little face was filled with fear as she looked at him pleadingly. Qin Lie put away his teasing intentions, leaned down and pinched her cheek. "Don't worry, I can find you something to eat even if I don't leave the manor."
Since he had said that, Lingyi had no choice but to let go and reluctantly let him leave.
Fortunately, he didn't go out for long and actually came back with two plates of pastries: one plate of mung bean cakes and one plate of hawthorn pastries.
Lingyi is now pregnant, and having eaten so little today, how could she not be hungry? Her eyes involuntarily fell on the hawthorn pastry.
In the past, to ensure the noble ladies didn't lose their composure, the imperial kitchen prepared countless dishes, but rarely made flaky pastries that would flake off easily. Lingyi only got to eat one after leaving the palace and loved it. Actually, all she had to do was lean forward slightly while eating; the pastries would fall to the ground, and someone would clean them up afterward, allowing the princess to remain elegant and dignified. However, she was now six months pregnant, and leaning forward was too strenuous; even sitting was difficult. So, she reluctantly took one last look at the hawthorn pastry before heading to get the mung bean cake.
Qin Lie gently patted her hand, causing her to pull it back, and then picked up a piece of hawthorn cake and handed it to her.
Lingyi shook her head and refused: "This will cause skin flakes and stain my clothes."
Qin Lie was puzzled: "If your clothes are dirty, just change them. Why force yourself?"
Lingyi still refused to accept it. From ancient times to the present, there has never been a princess who got so much creamy skin from eating that she was covered in it.
Qin Lie then realized what she meant and chuckled inwardly at her pretentious act. He didn't stop, however, and stuffed the hawthorn pastry into her hand, placing his hand under her chin, saying, "This way, you won't have to worry about it falling."
Lingyi lowered her eyes, examining his hand closely for the first time. It was much larger than hers, not soft and delicate, with calluses covering his knuckles and palms, and several faded scars on the side of his hand. All of this indicated that it was the hand of a general who had wielded a long spear and a broadsword, killing countless people, yet now it was steadily supporting her chin, just to catch the pastry that had fallen from her hand while she was eating.
Her eyelashes trembled slightly, and for a moment she dared not look again, afraid that he would be anxious with his hand raised. She picked up the red bean pastry, put it in her mouth, and took a big bite, chewing and swallowing as quickly as possible.
"Is it good?" he asked.
Lingyi had no idea what the food tasted like, and simply nodded upon hearing this.
Qin Lie added, "The pastries are too dry, eat slowly, don't rush."
She paused, then nodded again, but this time, with her movement, a tear fell onto his wrist.
Qin Lie was stunned for a moment, then turned his head to look, and saw two tear streaks winding down her jade-like face.
He asked her why, but she just shook her head and refused to say. Her crying annoyed him more than encountering tens of thousands of Hun soldiers.
At this moment, he empathized with his dream self and could only use the child to persuade her, "Don't cry, crying might hurt the child."
Lingyi didn't want things to be this way, but it was as if she was possessed again, and the bitterness in her heart was unbearable and she couldn't suppress it at all.
There was no point in trying to persuade her now, so Qin Lie pulled her into his arms and gently patted her back to comfort her.
She became even more upset, and tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.
Qin Liexin felt as if he were soaking in her tears, his heart bitter and salty. In his dreams, mentioning the child would sometimes calm her down, but today that was clearly useless. There had to be a reason for her incessant crying; otherwise, how would he know how to comfort her?
Hearing this, she finally raised her head, her tear-streaked eyes looking at him, and sobbed, "I...I don't like your bed..."
Qin Lie thought she was going to say something, but it was just this sentence. He was stunned for a moment before asking, "Why?"
"That bed is too ordinary. I want one made of rosewood or huanghuali wood," she said, feigning confidence with this lame excuse.
Qin Lie's face darkened. Since returning to Jizhou, she had behaved quite well, so well that he had almost forgotten how arrogant and extravagant the princess of Dahan had originally been.
When he led his troops into battle, he slept in all sorts of places, from mountain gullies to grasslands, and never paid attention to the material of the bed. He had slept in this bed for more than ten years and didn't think it was anything special, nor did he ever think it was bad. He never expected that she would cry so hard because of her particularity about these things.
What? A mahogany bed is beneath her princess status?
He was displeased. Normally, he would have scolded her, but looking at her red eyes and nose from crying, he decided not to argue with her too much at this moment. He would correct her one by one after she gave birth.
The most important thing right now is to stop her tears.
"Okay," he replied reluctantly, "I'll change it tomorrow."
Lingyi, however, persisted: "No, I want to change today! I won't go to sleep until I change!"
With her personality, she could only be willful in front of him. In reality, she wouldn't even dare to say she was hungry. If people talked about her behind her back, she probably wouldn't even dare to step out of her room again.
Nevertheless, she went too far with her willfulness. Whose bed isn't used year after year?
Even a prince's mansion wouldn't have beds made of huanghuali and zitan wood, would it?
Besides, if we were to inquire, it would alarm the grandmother, the princess. Why isn't she afraid now? Has she cried herself silly?
The maidservant pondered for a moment, then looked troubled, clearly having thought of something but refusing to speak.
Qin Lie had long since lost his patience. With a cold shout, the maid knelt down and stammered out her words. The room immediately fell silent.
Hanmoxuan happened to have a huanghuali canopy bed, which was part of the late madam's dowry.
After she passed away, Qin Lie felt that the canopy bed was cumbersome and stuffy, so he switched back to his old mahogany bed. The canopy bed was put away in the storeroom and even Qin Lie himself forgot about it.
The only sound in the room was breathing; no one spoke.
The maid knew she had caused trouble, so she lay prostrate on the ground, not daring to lift her head.
In the silence, Lingyi broke out in a cold sweat.
It was Qin Lie who asked this question. Although he was ruthless, he was not someone who would take his anger out on others at will.
For this maid, it would at most be a minor punishment, but for her, it could be a catastrophic disaster.
By a twist of fate, her actions just now seemed to make it appear as if she was vying to sleep in Qin Lie's first wife's canopy bed.
Qin Lie was deeply devoted to his wife, while he himself was merely using his looks to please others; how could they be compared?
If this angers Qin Lie, one can imagine what fate awaits them.
At this moment, there is no other way but to open up and gain his trust.
She looked at him earnestly and said, "General, I know that you and your late wife were deeply in love. Even after entering the Prince's mansion, you never dared to compare yourself to her, let alone dream of replacing her. I only ask to live a peaceful life with my child, and I have never harbored even the slightest wishful thinking!"
Qin Lie's gaze was deep and serious as he scanned her face inch by inch before slowly letting out a soft sigh, "You do have some self-awareness."
His tone... Lingyi continued to express her feelings: "Today's events were purely a misunderstanding. This is your and your late wife's house, and I would never dare to disrespect it. Please allow me to live in a side room."
Qin Lie sneered, "You don't need to use this tactic of retreating to advance. The side rooms and courtyards are all for concubines. You racked your brains to get into the Prince's mansion just to get a title, didn't you? What? Have you changed your mind now and are willing to be my concubine?"
For Lingyi, who had been living in constant fear, being a wife or a concubine didn't really matter. As long as she and her child could be together peacefully, she would be content to be a disfavored mistress. But now that things had come to this, and there was always room for better, she couldn't bear the thought of her child being born inferior and having to call other women "mother" in the future.
So she remained silent, biting her lip and lowering her head.
Seeing this, Qin Lie became even more certain of his judgment and immediately sneered: "Liu Lingyi, if you behave yourself, you can live peacefully in this mansion. But if you continue to use those despicable tricks, be careful that you end up separated from your son!"
He knew best how to tear her heart out. With just one sentence, he made her face drain of color. Qin Lie felt a great sense of relief, but what followed was endless desolation and shock.
This realization made Qin Lie's face turn extremely ugly. Looking at the princess who was staring blankly on the bed, his chest felt even tighter than before.
He snapped, "Aren't you coming over here? Do I have to come and fetch you myself?!"
.
This was the only time Lingyi lay in bed without washing up or even taking off her outer clothes.
Qin Lie lay stiffly on the outside, fully clothed, with his eyes closed and silent.
The space on the bed was so cold it felt like it could freeze, making you even have to hold your breath. This was the epitome of sleeping in the same bed but dreaming different dreams.
This is not right. Today's visit to the manor was not only completely different from what she expected, it was the complete opposite.
She had thought that she might be mistreated after entering the manor, but as long as she remained weak and helpless, Qin Lie, having brought her back to the palace, would surely stand up for her. She had always known that how others treated her was unimportant; only Qin Lie could decide her and her child's fate.
But ever since they entered the Hanmoxuan, things have taken a sharp turn for the worse, and now they are almost out of control.
Lingyi lost favor at a young age and understood best that she couldn't change others, so she always looked for the reasons within herself.
This time, it was obvious that it was all her fault for being untimely and affected, and for her inexplicable tears.
She understood even more clearly that in this world, the only person she could truly rely on was herself.
If you don't back down, are you expecting him to be the one to give in first?
Thinking of this, she slowly moved closer to him, wanting to snuggle up to him and fall asleep as usual.
But as soon as she moved a little, he turned over, turned to the side and faced outwards, leaving her with only a cold back view.
Lingyi stopped, pondered for a long time, and felt that if she continued to pester him, she would only anger him more. She sighed almost inaudibly and lay back down in her original position. She should have thought carefully about how to deal with him, but she was pregnant and had just cried. She was exhausted and her mind soon became muddled, and she drifted off to sleep.
When she woke up the next day, Qin Lie was no longer there. Zhao Mama said, "The general specifically instructed me to come back before dinner."
Lingyi hummed in agreement, helped her up, and sat down in front of the dressing table. She noticed an unfamiliar maidservant bringing water, and couldn't help but ask, "Where are Pearl and the others?"
Granny Zhao complained, "These maids are still young and don't know their place. The underfloor heating in the General's courtyard hasn't been used for years. It was only recently cleaned and repaired because the Princess was moving in. It was only turned on these past two days, and the dampness hasn't dissipated yet. They thought they were still in the Princess's residence, so they dressed and covered themselves too lightly. Last night, a sudden cold rain fell, and one by one, they all caught a chill. The Princess is pregnant, and this old servant was afraid they would catch a cold, so I took it upon myself to send them to the back room to recuperate. They can come back to serve you when they're better."
Lingyi instructed, "Provide them with plenty of warm clothing, and use the best medicine and food possible. Do not be stingy with money and delay their treatment."
Granny Zhao said, "This old servant naturally understands all of these things."
He added, "It was also my oversight. I only found out last night when Pearl had a fever that she was using the same bedding from the princess's residence. I was afraid the princess would catch a cold, so I didn't dare come in and stayed outside all night, waiting for her to summon me. Now it seems the princess is in good spirits, probably because of the fever brought by the young general. Even while still in my belly, he already knows how to care for the princess; he will surely be a thoughtful and filial child in the future!"
Lingyi is used to being afraid of the cold, but she slept very soundly last night. Even though she knew that Lingyi was flattering her, she still liked to hear such words. She smiled and said, "Being obedient and filial is secondary. It's good that she can grow up safely."
After washing up and dressing, she went to the outer hall for her meal. Knowing that Qin Lie would only return before dinner, she enjoyed her meal very much.
Zhao Mama's life, honor, and disgrace now rest on her shoulders, and seeing that she had such a good appetite, she felt much more at ease.
With the princess now in the palace and pregnant, two heavy burdens had been lifted from Zhao Mama's shoulders, and she should have been overjoyed, seemingly able to look forward to a peaceful retirement. However, she remained uneasy. After all, this seemingly quiet princess had once committed the "heroic" act of seducing a general's subordinate into escaping. Zhao Mama was truly unsure of her. Yesterday, her obvious displeasure over the bed made Zhao Mama genuinely fear that she might have argued with the general or do something drastic.
All Zhao Mama could do was use her silver tongue to try and bring the two of them together, desperately speaking well of Qin Lie to Lingyi, "The general is so busy, he went to the front yard before dawn. But the craftsmen came as soon as it was light, saying that the small stove could be built in no time, and after drying, it could be used tomorrow. It can be seen that the general has always kept the princess's matter in his heart, more important than anything else!"
As she spoke, she carefully observed the princess's expression, only to find that the princess merely curled her lips slightly upon hearing her words, showing little sign of joy.
Zhao Mama sighed inwardly, racking her brains to continue, when a little maid ran in from outside and stood by the door, looking at her with a hesitant expression. Clearly, she had something to report, but dared not speak because the princess was nearby.
Granny Zhao recognized her because she was the one who informed the craftsmen of their arrival. She was young but clever.
Wanting to curry favor with the princess for the general, she asked with a smile, "What's wrong? Why are you in such a hurry? Is the stove finished?"
The young maid glanced at the seemingly indifferent princess, her face showing hesitation. But Zhao Mama was waiting for her answer with burning eyes, urging her repeatedly, forcing her to stammer, "Reporting to Madam, Concubine Sun is waiting outside, wanting to... wanting to come in and pay her respects to Madam."
[Author's Note]
The extra chapters should be tens of thousands of words long, almost entirely about Qin Lie and the princess's daily interactions. If you don't like that, please don't buy it.
Qin Lie's personality is such that he couldn't possibly have a complete awakening just because of a dream, especially since he hadn't even woken up yet in the dream.
I won't write that he changed his attitude towards the princess completely because of his past life. Instead, I'll look at another possibility: that he's awkward and stubborn in this life, but can't help but bow down to the princess (the dog in his past life wasn't qualified to love the princess in this life).
I was going to say that the side story was a princess-training-dog novel, but I haven't finished writing it yet, and I don't know what it will turn out to be. So I'll skip that part.
Tsk tsk, not having any drafts is really exciting. Having drafts means you can keep posting them and leave clues as you write them (I didn't intentionally leave any clues, it just happened to be the word count).
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