Yes, Tang Ning, I love you.
This straightforward and resolute statement exploded in Tang Ning's heart like a dazzling firework.
The night breeze was gentle, blowing against my face like a baby's tiny hand softly brushing against it.
Tang Ning stood there, staring blankly at Situ Yin, who was only a few meters away from her. Suddenly, her eyes reddened at a visible speed, and with a blink, a tear fell to the ground with a soft thud.
Completely unprepared for his confession to bring Tang Ning to tears, Situ Yin abruptly stopped smiling and walked directly to Tang Ning in a few steps. Seeing her like this, he panicked and didn't know what to do. In the end, he lifted Tang Ning's chin and carefully wiped away her tears with his sleeve.
"Why are you crying all of a sudden?"
"I...I don't know either. I just feel that I'm not good at all, why Your Majesty..."
"Nonsense, you are very good, really very good. There is no better girl in the world than Tang Ning."
She heard Situ Yin say this with a serious expression as he wiped away her tears.
Tang Ning looked up and met the other person's dark, starry eyes. She didn't know how long she looked at them, but suddenly a strange impulse welled up in her heart.
"Actually, I do care."
Under Situ Yin's gaze, Tang Ning suddenly spoke up and said something like this.
After she finished speaking, Situ Yin was a little taken aback. But because she had mustered up the courage to start, Tang Ning's subsequent words were not so difficult to say.
“I’m very unhappy. I don’t want you to participate in the talent show at all. Not only do I not want you to participate in the talent show, but I’m so petty that I don’t want to share the same husband with any other woman, even if I am the legal wife. Wei Jing before, and He Lanruo later, I think you should know what they did in the past. Rather than saying that I was forced to separate from them, it’s more accurate to say that I was unwilling for them to have two women in their hearts at the same time.”
"My thoughts may be a bit outrageous, but I want my husband to have only one woman by his side for the rest of his life. If he can't do that, then I'd rather be alone for the rest of my life."
Tang Ning finally stopped pretending and stopped hiding her true feelings, and told Situ Yin what was really going on.
But as soon as she finished speaking, she immediately lowered her head.
Who would have thought that as soon as her head was halfway down, Situ Yin immediately raised his hand and held her chin, forcing Tang Ning to look at him. He looked at Tang Ning for a long time as if she were some rare object.
"Are you threatening me?"
Situ Yin raised an eyebrow slightly.
Upon hearing this, a flash of panic crossed Tang Ning's eyes.
"My Empress, do you even know what you're called now? You're pushing your luck, you don't know your limits, and you're arrogant because you're favored..."
He didn't say another word, and Tang Ning's panic deepened.
Just as the panic in her eyes was about to overflow, Situ Yin suddenly chuckled softly, released his grip on her chin, pulled Tang Ning into his arms, and sighed.
"good."
He said.
Upon hearing this word, Tang Ning, who was being held in Situ Yin's arms, instinctively narrowed her pupils, but her gaze softened again quickly.
He said, "Okay."
Situ Yin always keeps his word and acts swiftly and decisively.
Almost the night before, Tang Ning had just agreed to Tang Ning's request, and the next morning, Tang Ning heard that the usually quiet harem had suddenly become lively.
Chunmian went out to inquire and learned that His Majesty had actually issued an order for all the concubines in the harem to pack their things and leave. Moreover, based on the length of time they had stayed in the palace, they were all given dowries and he did not mind if they remarried. Not only them, but even the women in the Cold Palace were sent out by Situ Yin.
Meanwhile, the ministers below had just seen their carefully selected daughters leave the palace crying the day before, declaring they would never enter the palace. The next day, they saw that the ladies who had been in the palace for several years were also being sent out, and not only that, each of them received a dowry from His Majesty.
The ministers were all astonished. What was His Majesty about to do?
Is he really going to dismiss the entire harem just for Qin Tangning, for an empress who hasn't even had her wedding yet?
How can this be?
You must know that His Majesty has no heirs yet, and all the princes and grandsons of the emperor have been slaughtered by Situ Yin. Isn't His Majesty's action going to cut off his own lineage?
No, no, absolutely not!
Immediately, almost all the officials knelt down before Situ Yin, pleading with him to reconsider.
If Situ Yin could be easily persuaded, then he wouldn't be Situ Yin.
No matter how passionately the ministers spoke to him, even with tears streaming down their faces, he remained completely unmoved, acting as if he were talking nonsense.
Seeing that Situ Yin's path was almost completely blocked, these ministers turned their attention directly to Tang Ning.
Not only did they launch a public opinion offensive, making Tang Ning's reputation as a wicked empress grow stronger, but they even managed to persuade Tang Ning's mother, Madam Qin, without anyone knowing who was behind it.
So after Tang Ning agreed to let Madam Qin enter the palace, she was met with her biological mother, who, under the guise of doing what was best for her, earnestly and subtly suggested that she should not cling to the emperor. After all, her past experiences were there, and she was very likely to attract attacks. It would be better to take this opportunity to show her magnanimity, since relying on a man is not as good as relying on herself. Only by being virtuous, gentle, and polite can she secure her position as empress.
Tang Ning, who was drinking tea, hadn't even had a chance to speak after hearing these words.
A chilling sound suddenly rang out behind the two of them.
"I never imagined that the General's wife would be such a magnanimous and tolerant woman. Not bad at all. I've heard that the Minister of Rites' eldest daughter, who is divorced at home, has always admired the General of the North. Since the General's wife is so virtuous and kind, I will make this decision today. I hereby order the Minister of Rites' eldest daughter to enter the General's residence as a concubine on a chosen day."
Upon hearing this, Tang Ning suddenly looked up and saw Situ Yin leaning against the palace gate, looking at them with a leisurely air.
Upon hearing these words, Madam Qin's face turned deathly pale.
Before she was married, the eldest daughter of the Minister of Rites had used her pitiful appearance to seduce General Qin and almost succeeded. In the end, it was after she warned him that General Qin turned back.
Now, now...
Madam Qin simply couldn't believe what kind of trouble she would cause if she really entered the General's Mansion.
"Your Majesty..."
Madam Qin looked at Tang Ning with a panicked expression. She knew that it would be useless for her to ask the emperor for help at this time, but it would be different if she asked Tang Ning for help.
Unfortunately, before she could finish speaking, Situ Yin had already slowly walked into the hall, came to Tang Ning's side, and put his arm around her slender waist. "I have bestowed such a favor upon you, shouldn't the General's wife thank me? Why are you calling me 'Your Majesty'?"
Situ Yin's voice was clearly tinged with laughter, yet it still made Madam Qin tremble involuntarily, and regret kept spreading in her heart.
"His Majesty……"
Tang Ning turned to look at Situ Yin beside her, and saw him casually yawn, "I got up too early today, I'm a little sleepy. Someone, escort the General's wife out of the palace. Tang Ning, how about you stay with me for a nap? My head is a little sore..."
"Headache, why would my head hurt for no reason? Should I send someone to summon Dean Fang?"
"No need, just rub it for me and it'll be fine..."
The first thing Lady Qin heard as she left Weiyang Palace was this saccharine remark from Situ Yin.
Because she was so dazed and confused, she almost tripped and fell while going down the steps.
With Lady Qin having failed, the ministers were truly at their wits' end and had no choice but to turn their attention to Princess Qingping, who had always held a special place in His Majesty's heart.
Princess Qingping had no interest in dealing with these brainless fools. If anyone came to her with a request, she would simply refuse to see them. The people in the Duke's mansion were just spouting nonsense, so she and her husband returned to her princess residence and continued to refuse to see anyone.
Soon after, the ministers realized that Situ Yin's efforts to dismiss the harem for Tang Ning's sake were far from sufficient.
After that, almost every day, they would find that after the morning court session, Situ Yin would take his wife out to play as soon as they left the palace. In just a few days, the young couple had almost explored the entire capital.
They hear every day where His Majesty took the Empress to play today, and where they went to play tomorrow.
The two even began planning to expand their influence beyond the capital.
Outsiders had no idea what the two of them were doing traveling around so much. Only Tang Ning knew that one day, when Chun Tan and Chun Mian suggested going to the Imperial Garden, she casually remarked that although the scenery in the Imperial Garden was nice, she would get tired of looking at it every day and that it would be better to stay in Weiyang Palace and make knots.
After Situ Yin found out, he suddenly had a whim and started taking Tang Ning out to explore. As they went, he seemed to get addicted to it. After they finished exploring the capital, they started to explore places outside the capital.
Sure enough, after just finishing a trip to a lake, Situ Yin had already made arrangements with Tang Ning to take her to Xiafei Mountain, which is very close to the capital, three days later. He had heard that the mountain was covered with azaleas, and when they bloomed, the view was a magnificent expanse of red, like the sunset glow, hence the name Xiafei Mountain.
It's fair to say that Tang Ning was already quite excited just from hearing these descriptions from Situ Yin.
Not only is she looking forward to it...
In a secret room of a long-vacant house in the capital, the middle-aged man who received the news smiled expectantly.
"I had thought this young Situ would be a wise ruler, but now it seems he's nothing more than a tyrant indulging in beauty, no different from his stupid, pig-like father."
After the man finished laughing, he said in a cold voice.
"How could I possibly miss such a wonderful opportunity?"
The man pressed hard on the handle on the seat.
"How are things going with the Inugami?"
"Your Highness, the deputy commander of the dog guards, Lin Yi, recently surrendered."
"Very good. Pass down the order: three days later, we will ambush at Yayugou."
"yes."
The man in black kneeling before him simply gave a reply and then vanished from the spot.
Once the middle-aged man was the only one left in the entire secret room, he gently activated the dragon head mechanism in his hand, revealing yet another secret room within the secret room.
Unlike the gloomy darkness outside, the walls here are inlaid with hundreds and thousands of fist-sized luminous pearls, illuminating the secret room as if it were daytime.
This secret room was completely empty, with no decent furnishings whatsoever. The only exception was the four walls, which were covered with portraits of the same alluring woman with a blue beauty mark at the corner of her eye.
Almost immediately upon seeing these portraits, the middle-aged man stood up, his breathing quickening, his eyes filled with fascination and nostalgia.
If Situ Yin were here, he would definitely recognize this woman. Who else could it be but Consort Xiao Rushi, whom he had tortured to death long ago?
The middle-aged man strode quickly to the portrait, his hand trembling as he reached out, but then hesitated just before his fingers touched the paper.
Even if it's just a portrait, he doesn't seem to dare to desecrate it casually.
In the end, all he could do was stand there, staring blankly into space.
After an unknown amount of time, his voice finally rang out, “Your Majesty, I have arranged everything for you. In three days, you only need to wait three more days, and I will surely make that scoundrel Situ Yin suffer a thousand cuts and die a horrible death.”
The middle-aged man uttered vicious words one by one, while his fists clenched tightly.
The Empress died so tragically that she haunted his dreams every day, begging him to avenge her, to avenge her, to avenge her. Yet Situ Yin still dared to dream of a peaceful life, marrying and having children...
dream!
"Soon, Your Majesty, very soon, very soon I will be able to send that scoundrel down to keep you company, very soon..."
At this point, the man seemed to be bewitched by the portrait, and lightly touched the woman's eyes in the portrait with his finger.
He trembled slightly with excitement after just one touch.
No one knows how long the man stayed in the secret room. When he came out, the sky outside was already full of stars.
He looked up at the brilliant stars for a long time, took a deep breath, and then a gentle smile, which he was already used to, appeared on his lips.
After navigating through the city's many twists and turns, they finally stepped into a mansion.
The moment he stepped inside, a woman with a bright and charming smile immediately rushed towards him happily.
"Your Highness, why are you back so late today? Ah Jing and I have been waiting for you to have dinner together for so long that the pork rib and yam soup is almost falling apart."
Princess Jian said angrily.
"It's my fault, it's my fault. Look, I didn't mean to buy you this bracelet that you took your eye on at first sight, so I took a roundabout route. I hope my wife can forgive me."
How did you know I liked this?
"That day when we passed by Jin Yu Xuan, you glanced at this armlet a few more times. If I didn't even know that, I would be unworthy to be a husband."
"Your Highness, you treat me so well!"
"You are my wife, if I don't treat you well, who else should I treat well? Alright, hurry up and go inside, Ah Jingying has been waiting anxiously for a long time..."
"good."
At the dinner table in the Prince Jian's mansion, Wei Jing hesitated for a long time before finally asking his father if he could return to the military camp in three days. After all, he was still young, and what would it mean if he just stayed at home?
Upon hearing Wei Jing's words, before Princess Jian could object, Prince Jian raised an eyebrow.
"Three days later? If possible, let's postpone it by one day. In three days, your father has important business to attend to and needs to take you out."
After hearing what the Prince of Jian said, Wei Jing was slightly stunned, but seeing that the Prince of Jian was unwilling to say anything more after he finished speaking, he subconsciously nodded.
Almost simultaneously, inside the palace.
Situ Yin, who was playing chess with himself, listened to the report from the guards below. He then gently placed a black piece on the chessboard, which was positioned to surround and kill the white pieces. He slightly raised his lips.
"Alright, I understand."
"Your Majesty, in that case, will Your Majesty require us to escort her away that day?"
The guard asked again.
Hearing this, Situ Yin gently stroked the exceptionally smooth chess piece with his fingers. "No need. Wherever I am, the Empress will be there too."
"yes."
After he had eaten all the white pieces, he pursed his lips in boredom, stood up, and turned to walk straight towards Weiyang Palace.
As soon as he pushed open the door of Weiyang Palace, he saw Tang Ning sitting by the window. Hearing the noise, she suddenly turned around.
"You're back?"
"Yes, I'm back."
"What are you doing?"
"Chuntan and Chunmian picked some flowers from the garden, and I put them all in a vase. Doesn't it look nice?"
"ugly."
"I'll give you a chance to say it again."
"……pretty."
"I knew it."
"You're beautiful."
"Okay, I understand."
After saying that, Tang Ning couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Three days later, before the two had even finished exploring the entire Mount Xiafei, the sky gradually darkened, and most importantly, the wind grew stronger and stronger, as if a storm was brewing.
Worried that thunder might start and disturb him, Tang Ning immediately pulled Situ Yin away, saying she didn't want to stroll around anymore and wanted to go back to the palace as soon as possible.
Situ Yin naturally granted her request.
However, the road back to the palace today was destined to be bumpy. Not long after the two got into the carriage, it suddenly stopped.
Coincidentally, inside the car, Situ Yin was holding Tang Ning's hand, teaching her to write.
Putting everything else aside, Tang Ning's handwriting was simply horribly ugly, and Situ Yin had long since stopped looking at it.
However, due to the sudden stop of the carriage, the last stroke of the character "Ning" in Tang Ning's name flew to the very top.
Well, what a beautiful piece of calligraphy, ruined.
But that wasn't the most important thing. The most deadly thing was that as soon as the carriage stopped, the sounds of clashing swords and shouts of killing immediately rang out from outside.
Upon hearing the voice, Tang Ning suddenly raised her head, a look of disbelief flashing across her eyes.
"Your Majesty, outside..."
She had just turned her head when she met Situ Yin's excessively deep eyes, which made her freeze on the spot.
Are you scared?
Situ Yin raised his hand and gently stroked her face, asking with a smile.
Upon hearing his question, Tang Ning was taken aback for a moment, then suddenly shook her head vigorously, revealing a gentle smile as well. "I'm not afraid. As long as His Majesty stays by my side, I won't be afraid."
This time, Situ Yin was stunned, but he quickly chuckled softly, his voice growing more and more mellow with each laugh.
After laughing, he gently cupped the back of Tang Ning's head and lowered his head to lightly kiss her between the eyebrows.
"Don't worry, nothing will happen."
"Um."
No sooner had the two finished speaking than their carriage was cleaved open from the outside.
The two groups finally met.
Actually, Wei Jing had already felt something was off when he saw those guard dogs, and when he saw Tang Ning being held in Situ Yin's arms not far ahead, his eyes widened in surprise.
"Father!"
He called out in disbelief.
Hearing Wei Jing's call, King Jian didn't even turn his head, but said loudly, "How is it? A-Jing. Your father didn't deceive you, did he? Isn't today a wonderful surprise, just as your father said? Your father knows that you have always been thinking about this tyrant's woman, Qin Tangning. Don't worry, as long as this tyrant dies here today, Qin Tangning will be yours."
"Not only her, but the whole world is within your grasp."
King Jian slightly raised his hand, looking smug and self-satisfied.
"Father, you..."
In fact, he already knew that his father had big ambitions when the Prince of Jian told him about the spies hidden in the capital. However, he was unwilling to admit it and instead hid in his shell, ignoring the issue and focusing on strengthening himself, thinking that even if his father went astray one day, he would be able to bring him back.
But he really didn't expect this day to come so soon.
It happened so fast that he didn't even have time to react, and for a moment, he didn't know what to do.
Seeing Wei Jing's bewildered expression, Prince Jian frowned slightly. "I didn't explain these things to you before because I was afraid you'd end up like your mother, so straightforward and unable to keep anything to yourself. But now it seems I made a mistake, raising you to be so naive and innocent, so easily manipulated by Qin Qianqian, so consumed by romantic love, utterly unfit for any good..."
Before Wei Jing could react to what he had just said, Situ Yin couldn't help but burst out laughing, immediately drawing everyone's attention to him.
"Speaking of your son's deep affection for his children, I think you, Prince Jian, are no less so. For the sake of Qin Rushi, you have humbled yourself, pretended to be crazy, and lived an ordinary life for so many years. You have really gone to great lengths!"
Situ Yin gave Prince Jian a deep look.
Hahahaha!
He should have kept quiet, because the moment he spoke, Prince Jian burst into laughter. Then, with bloodshot eyes, he glared at Situ Yin and said, "The Empress is so magnificent, how dare you, a little beast, call her name so casually! Enough said, you little bastard, today this Raven Feather Gully will be your burial ground!"
His words were like a signal, and the group of people standing behind him surged toward Situ Yin.
"If you're scared, close your eyes, okay?"
Just as the swords were about to strike, Situ Yin leaned close to Tang Ning's ear and whispered something tenderly.
Author's Note:
Then the rest of the story is roughly about an ex-girlfriend's attack—the dark moonlight of the Republic of China—the self-cultivation of a parasitic flower—the daily life of a female supporting character in a cultivation world turning evil—an interstellar romance reality show—the love of gods.
This story might be too long already. I'll try to control the pace and length of the following stories, and I might even cut a few. Actually, I really want to finish this book tonight and then write a sequel to this chaotic story before continuing. I feel so anxious and stressed, and I keep setting goals for myself, which only makes the pressure worse. _(:з」∠)_
I hope I'll try my best to improve in the future. I apologize again for disappointing my readers who were looking forward to my updates. I won't be updating tonight; I'll adjust my mindset and try to update earlier tomorrow. Love you all~~~
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com