Chapter 42, "Pink and Red Marks".
Chapter 42: The Mark ==
The visitor was none other than Eunuch Zhou, a favorite of the Emperor. Because the Emperor had invited them, Su Wanyue had no time to think about anything else, and the couple hurriedly returned to the palace. Unexpectedly, on the palace road, Zhang Mama, who was by the side of Consort Qin, walked towards Prince Cheng and his wife with polite manners, "Your Highness, Consort Qin requests your presence."
Su Wanyue slightly raised her eyelashes and looked at Xiao Yu. Xiao Yu spoke gently, saying that he would come to find her later.
With that, Su Wanyue felt reassured and left with Granny Zhang.
Consort Qin had a rare moment of free time today, and was playing with the little parrot in the green birdcage. The little parrot was very intelligent and could echo what people said.
Zhang Mama led Su Wanyue inside, and said to Consort Qin with a smile, "Your Highness, the Princess Consort has arrived."
Consort Qin stopped teasing the little parrot and pulled Su Wanyue to sit down. "It's been a long time since Weiyang came to see me, hasn't it?"
Teased by Consort Qin, Su Wanyue lowered her head shyly, saying, "I've always wanted to see Mother Consort."
"Then Weiyang, come and keep me company more often in the future." Upon hearing this, Consort Qin smiled from ear to ear. She lowered her head slightly and saw the hickeys on the woman's neck. Consort Qin's eyes flashed, and she asked Zhang Mama to serve tea.
"Does Weiyang know why His Majesty summoned you to the palace today?"
Su Wanyue gently shook her head, and Consort Qin smiled, "Firstly, it must be because the Crown Prince Qin has left the capital, and His Majesty will definitely inquire about it. Secondly, it is because the marriage between the Duke of Xie's mansion and General Dingguo is about to be arranged. In order to show his favor to the Duke of Xie's mansion and the Duke of Dingguo's mansion, a prince will definitely go to the Duke of Xie's mansion on that day."
If this prince is not the crown prince, then it must be Prince Cheng, Xiao Yu.
Su Wanyue nodded to indicate that she understood. Consort Qin smiled. Although the capital was calm at the moment, everyone had their own schemes. It was just that the Seventh Prince had temporarily disrupted this balance.
The Emperor did indeed mention the marriage between the Duke of Xie's family and the General of Dingguo's family. The marriage between Xie Mo'er, the fourth daughter of the Duke of Xie's family, and the General of Dingguo's family was scheduled for the seventh day of the third month. "The Seventh Prince has already returned to the capital, and I believe that Minister Xie will also return to the capital soon."
Xie Cheng is the eldest son of the Duke of Xie's family, and as his elder brother, he must be present.
The more the Emperor showed favor to the Xie family at this time, the more ironic it seemed. Years ago, the eldest son of the Xie family and the Crown Princess were betrothed since childhood, but the Emperor forcibly separated the lovers because he wanted to win over the power of the Xie family. Now, the Emperor was very generous in the marriage of the fourth daughter of the Xie family. However, the court officials thought this in their hearts but did not show it on their faces.
The Emperor casually mentioned the departure of the Crown Prince of Nanqiong from the capital, and instructed Xiao Yu to treat Princess Cheng well. Xiao Yu nodded slightly and strolled to Chengqian Palace as if taking a leisurely walk.
"Your subject greets Your Majesty."
When Consort Qin saw her son, she rolled her eyes at him. She then smiled and told Su Wanyue that the flowers in the Imperial Garden were in bloom, and that two swings had been set up there. She suggested that Su Wanyue go and take a look if she was interested.
Su Wanyue then took Qin'er to the Imperial Garden. After the girl left, Consort Qin leisurely sipped her tea and said, "I have also heard about what happened at Prince Cheng's residence recently. Yu'er, it is true that the Crown Prince is going to be a father, but whether he is the heir apparent or the future ruler of the country, he must always win people over with virtue and gain the recognition of the people. Your mother does not believe that the Crown Prince's position as heir apparent is as solid as a rock just because the Crown Princess gave birth to the eldest grandson first."
Xiao Yu frowned slightly, seemingly not understanding why Consort Qin said that.
Seeing his attitude, Consort Qin became even angrier and glared at him fiercely. "Even if you are eager to impress your father, you should still consider Wei Yang's feelings. If you are so ungentlemanly, Wei Yang may not want to stay with you anymore."
If it weren't for the good relationship between the two, Consort Qin would have told the girl to let her son sleep in the study.
"I left Imperial Physician Zhang at Prince Cheng's residence simply to help her recover; I had no other intentions," Xiao Yu said calmly, toying with a jade cup in his hand.
He wanted to have a child with her, just to win her heart. It had nothing to do with whether he became the crown prince. Xiao Yu wanted to be the ruler of the world, and he would not rely on a woman, much less scheme against his wife.
Consort Qin carefully examined his face. She knew her son would never lie. Wei Yang was frail and needed proper care, but the marks on Wei Yang's body...
"What's the story behind the marks on Wei Yang's body?" Consort Qin, being an experienced woman, knew that the marks on the girl's body couldn't possibly have been left from just one time.
Xiao Yu rubbed his forehead and said that he had been reckless these days and that he would be more careful.
He belatedly realized that he was jealous, but thankfully her fiancé had already left. Xiao Yu sighed inwardly.
Consort Qin glanced at his face and said, "It's good that you know your limits. Wei Yang's body is so delicate, how can she withstand such torment from you?"
Xiao Yu: "Then I shall take my leave."
It just so happens that the Seventh Princess was also in the palace today. When she heard that her sister-in-law had gone to the Imperial Garden, she hurriedly followed her there. She really couldn't understand why her brother kept such a close watch on his sister-in-law, and he wouldn't even let her go for a stroll in the market with her.
As Su Wanyue and the Seventh Princess admired the flowers, Su Wanyue asked, "Sister-in-law, when can we go out to the market?"
"It will be fine tomorrow." Su Wanyue smiled as she thought of what the man had said before she fell asleep yesterday.
The seventh princess was immediately delighted, but inwardly she thought her brother was stingy and wondered if he was planning to keep a mistress in a golden house.
When Xiao Yu arrived with his guards, he heard these words. He paused, realizing that a beautiful woman was being kept hidden away...
He actually thought the idea was good, but given his wife's temperament, she would definitely not agree.
The Seventh Princess caught sight of Xiao Yu out of the corner of her eye and immediately stood up.
Su Wanyue also stood up, "Your Highness."
Xiao Yu hummed in agreement and sat down beside her. The Seventh Princess felt a little uncomfortable as soon as he arrived. In order not to see her brother and sister-in-law being affectionate, the Seventh Princess left after sitting for a while.
Before leaving the palace, Su Wanyue went to pay her respects to Consort Qin. Consort Qin simply patted her hand and said that she would teach Su Wanyue the art of managing her husband when she entered the palace another day.
***
At three quarters past dusk, the sky had already darkened, and the spring breeze was gentle. After serving the tea, the servants withdrew.
Only the couple were playing chess inside. Su Wanyue lost this round. She glanced at the man and asked if he wanted to play another round.
Xiao Yu saw through his wife's little scheme and chuckled, "Since Your Highness enjoys playing, let's play another round."
He must have noticed that Su Wanyue silently drank a cup of tea to hide her unease.
Xiao Yu did see through it. Before the next round started, Xiao Yu glanced at her and said, "I won't touch you tonight."
Su Wanyue confidently placed a white piece, and Xiao Yu immediately followed with a black piece. Su Wanyue had put all her attention into this game, and her side had a great chance of winning. Xiao Yu calmly placed a black piece, saying, "I would like to ask the Princess a question."
"Your Highness, please speak," Su Wanyue asked softly, seeing his serious expression.
"If there is a man whose only ambition is to do his best to benefit the people and stay with the woman he loves, but due to the situation, he has to give up his beloved woman and get caught up in an endless struggle, and he wants to break free from this shackle but can't, what is the solution to this situation?"
Su Wanyue's eyebrows twitched, and her eyelashes fluttered slightly. She subconsciously knew who he was talking about. Su Wanyue placed the white piece in her hand on the chessboard. The candlelight in the room was dim, and the woman's beautiful face was hazy. She smiled faintly, "If you are determined to break free, you might as well put yourself in a desperate situation and choose again."
Xiao Yu pondered her words and chuckled, "Your Highness is right."
The couple played chess until midnight. That night, Xiao Yu was extremely well-behaved, holding his wife without any inappropriate behavior, and only drank two cups of cold tea in the middle of the night.
The capital was quiet, and so was the Eastern Palace. Crown Prince Xiao Ruofei arrived at the main hall.
Lin Ruohan was alone in the inner hall. In front of her was a pile of portraits, all of them of handsome young men from noble families. Xiao Ruofei walked over and asked knowingly, "What is the Crown Princess looking at?"
Seeing that he was asking a question he already knew the answer to, Lin Ruohan stiffened slightly. "I'm choosing a husband for Zhao Ning."
“With Zhao Ning’s noble status, there’s no rush.” Xiao Ruofei pulled her into his arms, his eyes fixed on her slightly protruding belly, and said meaningfully.
Lin Ruohan pretended not to understand his implied meaning and put away the portraits. "We still need to keep an eye on them, in case the good ones are all taken."
Seeing that she was deliberately ignoring him, Xiao Ruofei's expression immediately darkened, and he retorted with a slightly sarcastic tone, "Even if she's good, is she better than Prince Cheng?"
He hadn't given up on that idea yet. Lin Ruohan's smile was forced. Because of her anger, she felt a series of sharp pains in her lower abdomen. She placed her hand on her lower abdomen and said lightly, "Your Highness is joking."
Xiao Ruofei, as if he couldn't understand her unspoken meaning, grasped her shoulders and said in a soft, feminine tone, "The Crown Princess must feel bored staying indoors all day. She can invite the ladies and young women of the capital to come to the East Palace for a visit. As for Zhao Ning's marriage, I, as her brother-in-law, will keep an eye on it for her."
Lin Ruohan gritted her teeth, but still had to put on a happy and submissive expression. "I understand."
Xiao Ruofei was finally satisfied. He walked around the room before leaving. The strategist and the Crown Prince's advisors were already waiting for him in the study. The advisor clasped his hands in greeting. "Your Highness, the Seventh Prince will arrive in the capital in about half a month. I heard that His Majesty has recently summoned the Duke of Zhou to the palace. I suspect that His Majesty intends to betroth the Duke of Zhou's daughter to the Seventh Prince in order to dissuade him from this idea."
“Father does value Seventh Brother highly.” Xiao Ruofei’s face twisted for a moment, clearly furious.
As the crown prince, his father had never put so much effort into his marriage. His third brother married a foreign princess, and now his seventh brother was going to marry the daughter of a duke. Was his father doing this to make them compete with him for the crown prince position?
Xiao Ruofei's eyes blazed with barely concealed anger. "Do you think there's any way to stop my seventh brother from returning to the capital?"
One Xiao Yu is already enough trouble for him. If there is another person competing with him for the position of crown prince, how can he have the time to please his father? Xiao Yu is one thing, but a prince whose mother is a concubine is not worthy of competing with him.
The advisor remained silent for a while, then approached the crown prince and whispered his thoughts.
At the end of February in the fifth year of the Dingyuan era, the capital city was still chilly in spring, with sudden warm spells followed by cold spells.
In this peaceful February, a shocking event occurred in the capital: the Seventh Prince was once again assassinated on his way there. He was chased to the edge of a cliff by the assassins, but fell to his death due to the steepness of the cliff, leaving no trace of his body.
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