Chapter 34. Gu Zhan is clearly placing her under house arrest.
Gu Zhan paused slightly, but did not turn around, and walked towards the door.
Shen Mi sat propped up on the bed and heard Gu Zhan instruct the palace servants outside the door: "Consort Shen is delirious. From today onwards, no unauthorized personnel are allowed to approach her. She should recuperate peacefully in Qingluan Palace."
Then, with a "bang," the door slammed shut.
She couldn't possibly be unaware that Gu Zhan wasn't telling her to recuperate; he was clearly placing her under house arrest.
But she couldn't understand why Gu Zhan, who clearly didn't love her and was going to marry Su Yuzhao, would imprison her in this Qingluan Palace.
Could it really be that they wanted to force her to give birth, and then give the child to Su Yuzhao after it was born?
A cold sweat suddenly broke out on her back.
She remembered that when she was pregnant, Gu Zhan told her to stay in Qingluan Palace and not to go out. He also forbade unimportant palace servants to serve her. At that time, most of the people around her were sent by Gu Zhan. The only ones she could name were Cuiwei and Danju.
At first, she genuinely believed that Gu Zhan was only concerned about the child in her womb, which was why he didn't let her interfere with the internal affairs of the Eastern Palace, such as the accounts. Later, she learned that it was during that time that Gu Zhan planned to marry Su Yuzhao, which explained why he didn't let her go out or get involved in any affairs. It seemed that Gu Zhan wanted to pretend with her because her child was unexpectedly miscarried at the Thousand Autumn Banquet.
Is this just another case of the same old trick?
Shen Mi didn't dare to think too much. She immediately got out of bed, not even bothering to put on her shoes, and headed towards the door in her cloud-patterned socks.
However, in accordance with Gu Zhan's orders when he left, the door of Qingluan Palace had already been closed from the outside.
Shen Mi pressed herself against the door, pounding on it, "Let me out! I want to see His Highness!"
However, only the voice of an unfamiliar palace maid came from outside the door, "Consort, please don't make things difficult for us. We are just following orders. His Highness said that you should rest and recover. We dare not act on our own."
"I won't make things difficult for you. Go and inform His Highness that I want to speak with him personally." Upon hearing this, Shen Mi felt a surge of intense panic.
The palace maid outside the door remained calm and emotionless, as if she was not surprised by her reaction at all.
“My lady, His Highness said that he will come to Qingluan Palace to see you if he has time. You should take good care of your health and not make any more futile struggles.”
She still refused to give up, using her last glimmer of hope for Gu Zhan to ask the palace maid outside the door, "Are these His Highness's exact words?"
"yes."
Suddenly, Shen Mi's mind exploded.
Get well soon and wait for Gu Zhan to come. What does Gu Zhan mean by this?
Did he truly treat her as an object, as he claimed?
Shen Mi felt as if all the strength had been drained from her body, and she staggered back into the hall from the direction of the door.
It was midday, and the bright spring sunlight streamed in through the window, bathing the floor in its warmth. Shen Mi basked in the gentle sunlight, yet felt no warmth whatsoever. Thinking of Gu Zhan's words and the palace maid's reaction outside the door, she felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave, as if she were in another world.
She couldn't understand why her life had changed so drastically overnight, turning her into a sparrow imprisoned by Gu Zhan.
She wanted to go out, but Gu Zhan firmly refused. If Gu Zhan didn't allow it, would she be trapped here for the rest of her life?
Shen Mi glanced to the side and suddenly saw a rattle drum, which she had asked someone to buy before she miscarried. She felt even more helpless.
She gave a slight smile, "Shen Mi, you won't be trapped here forever. After you give birth, you should be able to go and keep your father, mother, brother, and that poor child company."
As she spoke, several lines of tears streamed down her face uncontrollably, but her eyes held only a sorrowful yet not painful emotion.
She was afraid of Gu Zhan, and also afraid of being trapped here, not knowing when she would die.
But it seems she can't escape.
Shen Mi didn't know how she had dragged her body to bed in a daze. When she leaned against the headboard, she felt that all her thoughts had been drained away.
She thought about many things, yet it seemed like she hadn't thought of anything at all.
It felt like a long time had passed before the door creaked open.
Upon hearing the sound, Shen Mi stiffly looked towards the door. An unfamiliar palace maid entered, carrying a mahogany lacquer tray with a bowl of medicine on it.
A palace maid stood in front of her and said, "Lady, this is the medicine that His Highness ordered Physician Cheng to prescribe for you."
Shen Mi's voice was hoarse: "Take it out, I won't drink it."
The palace maid persisted, "Lady, please drink your medicine."
Shen Mi felt a tightness in her chest and said, "I said I won't drink it."
The palace maid repeated what she had just said.
Shen Mi was already teetering on the brink of collapse, and the palace maid in front of her was utterly inhuman. She waved her hand and knocked over the medicine bowl, splashing the medicine all over the floor.
She glared fiercely at the palace maid: "Are you satisfied now?"
The palace maid was slightly taken aback by her reaction, but said nothing. She simply cleaned up the broken porcelain bowl and left.
Although the floor had been cleaned, the bitter smell of medicine still lingered in the air, making Shen Mi feel nauseous.
She lay on the edge of the bed, pressing one hand to her chest, as if she was about to vomit, but after a long while, she only choked out tears.
She didn't know how many more tears she could shed; she only felt a stinging pain in her eyes.
Shen Mi thought the palace maid who brought her the medicine would stop there, but that wasn't the case. After a while, the palace maid brought her another bowl of medicine.
She was very sensitive to smells, and as soon as the palace maid brought in the medicine, she knew it was the exact same medicine as before.
Shen Mi ignored the palace maid and said coldly, "You don't need to do this. No matter how many bowls you bring, I will knock them over." She paused and said, "Unless you dare to grab my neck and force-feed me like the Crown Prince did."
The palace maid was startled and immediately knelt on the ground, saying, "You flatter me, Lady Liangdi."
Shen Mi lay on the couch, turning her back to him: "Then get out."
The palace maid retreated tremblingly.
It seemed like darkness fell quickly, and she didn't know if it was because of the approaching night. Lying on the couch, even though she was wrapped in a thick enough blanket, she felt colder and colder, as if she had been thrown into an icy plain. Her consciousness was hazy, and even her bones ached.
Her vision and hearing were blurred. She felt as if someone was pushing and shaking her, but she couldn't react. Then she heard panicked voices in her ears.
"Consort Shen is seriously ill and has fainted!"
"Quickly, go and inform His Highness!"
Did he faint?
For a moment, Shen Mi thought this wasn't such a bad place after all, at least she wouldn't be treated like a toy by Gu Zhan.
When she regained consciousness, she was choked awake and felt pain in her chin.
Shen Mi struggled to lift her eyelids and saw that she was trapped in Gu Zhan's arms. He was holding her chin with one hand, forcing her to open her mouth, and holding a bowl of medicine in the other.
She had lost all sense of taste; only the choked medicine stuck to her chin was still dripping wet down her face.
Gu Zhan stared at her and said, "Shen Mi, do you have to torture yourself like this? Do you want to kill yourself before you'll stop?"
He paused for a moment, and Shen Mi didn't know what he was going to say.
Shen Mi suddenly laughed and said, "If I die, wouldn't that fulfill Your Highness's wish?"
Seeing that she was not willing to back down, Gu Zhan released her and stood at the head of the bed, looking down at her: "Without my permission, you can't die even if you want to."
After saying that, he turned and left without a second thought.
Shen Mi raised her sleeve to wipe the medicine off her chin. Just as she was about to turn around, she saw a familiar figure burst in from outside the door.
It is Cuiwei.
Cuiwei ran towards her crying, and upon seeing her, she pursed her lips and sobbed twice, her tears flowing even more than Cuiwei's.
This time, Cuiwei didn't call her "Liangdi" but sobbed, "Miss, I missed you so much. I'm relieved to see that you're alright."
Shen Mi's heart softened inexplicably. She raised her hand to wipe away Cuiwei's tears, but noticed the medicine stains on her sleeve. Her hand froze in mid-air. In the end, she only gently stroked Cuiwei's head twice and said, "I'm fine, don't cry."
Cuiwei said, "Miss, you don't know, I was terrified when I found out you were unconscious the night before last. I only managed to break free from them in the chaos to take a quick look at you before being dragged back. It wasn't until just now that His Highness finally gave the order to let me come back and continue to take care of you."
Before, Shen Mi was not in a good state of mind and often couldn't even take care of herself. It was at this time that she realized that the reason she hadn't seen Cuiwei for the past two days was because Cuiwei had been controlled by Gu Zhan's people.
Cuiwei sniffed and sat on the edge of the bed next to Shen Mi, coaxing her, "Miss, I know you don't feel like taking your medicine right now, but this fever won't go away. Only by taking your medicine on time and getting better can you find opportunities to do what you want to do."
There were still people left behind by Gu Zhan in front of her, so Cuiwei didn't dare to say everything.
Shen Mi understood the unspoken meaning in her words.
That's true. If she wants to escape, she needs to recover her health first before she can leave.
So she looked at Cuiwei and said, "Go and bring the medicine over."
Cuiwei agreed, took the medicine bowl from the maid beside her, and handed it to Shen Mi.
Shen Mi drank the bowl of medicine in one gulp without any expression.
Cuiwei took a sugar jar from a table and found it filled with small sugar cubes. She picked one out and said, "Miss, you hate bitter things the most. Would you like to have a piece of candy to ease your mind?"
Shen Mi shifted her gaze to the small, white sugar cube in Cui Wei's hand. If she remembered correctly, it was last year when she had a miscarriage and needed to take medicine to recover, that Gu Zhan brought it to her and placed it in front of her.
She thought back to their time together, how they had grown old together, but now it seemed that it was just wishful thinking on her part.
She suddenly felt a lump in her throat, as if the medicine she had drunk had turned into a solid and was stuck in her throat.
She wanted to tell Cuiwei that she had no sense of taste and couldn't taste anything, but looking at Cuiwei's bright eyes, she ultimately didn't say it and swallowed the candy from Cuiwei's hand.
Just when Shen Mi thought that Cuiwei would stay with her forever, she woke up one day and did not see Cuiwei again. It was the same unfamiliar palace maid from before.
Shen Mi's face immediately turned cold, and she asked, "Where is Cuiwei?"
The palace maid said, "His Highness said that you are cured, so there is no need for Miss Cuiwei to serve you. I am a new servant that His Highness has sent to serve you. You can call me Qiuping."
Shen Mi noticed that she was still holding a bowl of medicine and asked, "Now that I'm cured, what is this medicine for? Is he trying to poison me?"
Qiu Ping was taken aback: "What are you saying, Consort Liang? This is medicine His Highness ordered to nourish your body. Physician Cheng said that you are weak right now and need to take good care of yourself."
Shen Mi instinctively wanted to refuse, but remembering what Cuiwei had said that day—that only when she recovered would she have the chance to do what she wanted—she said stiffly, "Give it to me."
After receiving the medicine from Qiu Ping, she picked up the bowl, forced herself to swallow the bitter taste from the back of her tongue, and finished the bowl of medicine in one gulp.
She handed the empty bowl to Qiuping, "Go ask him if he's satisfied."
Qiu Ping dared not reply and could only leave with the empty medicine bowl.
Although she recovered from her illness, Shen Mi was still confined to the Qingluan Palace, watching the greenery outside grow thicker and the weather get hotter. Even the charcoal brazier in the Qingluan Palace was replaced with an ice chest.
She drank her medicine day after day, but she never saw Gu Zhan or Cuiwei again.
She asked Qiu Ping about what was happening outside, but Qiu Ping didn't mention anything, only saying that it was the Crown Prince's order.
She didn't know when she would be able to escape.
As the summer heat intensifies, the entire Eastern Palace has prepared mung bean soup to cool people down.
Gu Zhan sat in the Hall of Diligent Governance reading official documents. He casually took the mung bean soup that Sun Cheng brought him, took a sip, and unusually took his eyes off the official documents in front of him.
He frowned and asked Sun Cheng, "Why does this mung bean soup taste different from last year's?"
Sun Cheng stammered and changed the subject, saying, "I'll go and have the chef make another one."
Gu Zhan put down his bowl. "Just tell the truth."
Sun Cheng took a deep breath before saying, "Your Highness, the mung bean soup sent to the Hall of Diligent Governance last year was made by Consort Shen herself, but this year it wasn't."
That Consort Shen was truly unfortunate. For some reason, she offended His Highness and was confined to the Qingluan Palace for three months, not allowed to leave. Except for the time when she was nearly dying, His Highness was willing to visit her. Naturally, the mung bean soup sent to the Qinzheng Palace was not made by her own hands.
Gu Zhan put down his bowl, pressed his temples, and asked, "How has she been lately?"
Sun Cheng carefully chose his words: "Qiu Ping has been taking the medicine she brought over and has not resisted it anymore, but her health does not seem to be getting better. Instead, she is getting thinner and thinner and more haggard."
Gu Zhan asked, "Has Cheng Lin gone to check on him?"
Sun Cheng lowered his head and said, "I have seen it. Physician Cheng said that Consort Shen's illness is caused by excessive worry and depression."
Gu Zhan stared at the bowl of mung bean soup that he had only taken a sip from, then waved his hand, telling Sun Cheng to leave.
After Sun Cheng left, Gu Zhanfang propped his head up with one hand and repeated what Sun Cheng had just said, "Excessive worry has led to illness." He sneered, "So you're making Su Xingjian suffer like this just because you can't see her?"
Looking at the messy documents at his side, he suddenly remembered the beautiful figure who had once stood in front of him, carefully sorting and organizing all the documents for him. He felt even more annoyed by the documents at his side. With a forceful push of his thumb, he broke the pen in half and threw it on the ground.
Perhaps the government affairs are too tedious; it would be better to go for a walk.
But as soon as he left, Gu Zhan found himself wandering around to the Qingluan Palace in the backyard.
Sun Cheng followed behind, not daring to breathe loudly.
Gu Zhan felt a strange sense of familiarity about the scene before him and actually asked Sun Cheng, "Where is this?"
"Your Highness, once you pass through this gate, you will reach the Azure Phoenix Palace."
Gu Zhan paused for a moment, then stepped into the room.
The eunuchs and palace maids at the entrance of Qingluan Palace bowed to him, but he raised his hand to stop them and looked inside.
Perhaps to allow for ventilation, the windows of the Qingluan Palace were open.
Through the window, Gu Zhan saw the girl sitting by the window. He couldn't see her face clearly, but her figure was indeed as Sun Cheng had said, much thinner.
He had been standing still when he suddenly saw the girl pick up a pair of scissors from beside her.
Is she trying to kill herself?
Gu Zhan's pupils contracted, and he rushed inside, taking three steps at a time.
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