Chapter 61 "Wanwan, say it again." (...)
==Chapter 61: Qin Jue==
Like rain after a long drought, or spring after a long winter, at this moment, all things in heaven and earth seemed to fall silent, and all sounds were still.
The man, who was used to having everything under control, was completely blank for the first time. All he could hear was his wife's words: "Your Highness, I love you and wish to grow old with you."
This sentence was far more powerful than when he was made crown prince. Xiao Yu couldn't help but pull his wife into his arms, suppressing the trembling in his chest. However, the scarlet in his phoenix eyes could not be concealed. He kissed his wife's forehead and said in a deep voice with a coaxing tone, "Wanwan, say it again."
Su Wanyue didn't think much of it when she told him her innermost thoughts, but when he looked at her with murderous eyes and asked her to repeat herself, she refused. She glared at him and went to get the purple jade teacup on the table. "Your Highness clearly heard it just now."
People who are skilled in both literature and martial arts have amazing hearing. She spoke so loudly just now, she didn't believe he hadn't heard her.
“But I want to hear Wanwan say it again.” Xiao Yu was even more decisive than her. He made no attempt to hide his purpose, his deep and sharp eyes fixed on her.
Su Wanyue turned her head to the side, and he cupped her small face in his hands, making her look at him. After a few rounds, Su Wanyue was the first to give in. She pressed down on the back of his hand, where the veins were bulging, and repeated what she had just said. This time, Xiao Yu reacted. He stood up and hugged his wife tightly in his arms, placing his palm on her thin back. "I also love Wanwan and hope to grow old with her."
He was responding to her feelings.
Before, Xiao Yu only had eyes for the vast land and rivers, but now his heart is filled only with his wife. He will give his wife a prosperous and peaceful world, which is her wish and the original intention of her marrying him.
Throughout history, there have been many extraordinary women recorded in history books. In times of chaos, there were heroines and female generals who fought on the battlefield. In times of prosperity, there were female prime ministers who took their brothers' place in the court and female businesswomen who navigated the business world. But a century after the two countries stood in a tripartite balance, a weak woman created the next prosperous and peaceful era for the two countries of Nanqiong and Beili.
In the spring of the fourth year of Dingyuan, Princess Su Wanyue of the Nanqiong Nanwang Mansion married Prince Cheng of Beili in place of her cousin, Princess Weiyang. In the new year of the sixth year of Dingyuan, the situation in Beili changed, Prince Cheng Xiao Yu was made crown prince, and Su Wanyue's identity was revealed. Now, everything has come to light.
This accidental "substitute marriage" led to a "perfect match".
Su Wanyue was Xiao Yu's wife for life and the love of his life.
With his wife's words, Xiao Yu smiled and his lips curled up slightly. He didn't even want to care about her ex-fiancé anymore. With his wife and child by his side, it would be a waste of this peaceful time to think about those things.
“You’ve been eating very little these past few days. Are you hungry? I’ll have the kitchen prepare some of your favorite dishes.” Xiao Yu smoothed out the non-existent wrinkles on his wide sleeves with cloud patterns and stood up.
“But I haven’t finished speaking yet.” The couple, one standing and one sitting, Su Wanyue tugged at his sleeve and frowned slightly.
Seeing that his wife still had something to say, Xiao Yu sat down. He had a feeling that what his wife was about to say was definitely related to that Second Young Master Lu. He tucked a strand of her black hair behind her ear and looked at her patiently. "Go on."
Su Wanyue and Lu Qingchen were childhood sweethearts. They studied together and were taught by Master Huiyuan. Lu Qingchen had been very kind to Su Wanyue since childhood. Among all the young men in Nanqiong, Su Wanyue only wanted to marry Lu Qingchen. During her time as a young woman waiting to be married, Su Wanyue also harbored longings. However, all her hopes came to an abrupt end when she agreed to marry another man. On the way from Nanqiong to the northern road, Su Wanyue felt pain every time she thought of Lu Qingchen or her family. She felt a fear of her nominal "husband" and the unfamiliar capital. However, she could not express these emotions. Not only could she not express them, but she also had to guard against others knowing her identity.
At that time, Prince Xiang would tell Su Wanyue many stories about men, saying that he was exceptionally capable and resourceful, no less than Lu Qingchen. However, for Su Wanyue, what she wanted was never to marry the most outstanding man in the world, because whether someone was good or bad was for her to judge. Later, on their wedding night, she saw the appearance of the man she was going to marry. Later still, she gradually learned what he was thinking and gradually understood this man more deeply. She didn't know when her heart slowly began to stray.
After his wife began to speak, Xiao Yu listened patiently as she recounted her initial bewilderment upon arriving in Beili. His heart felt like it was being repeatedly pulled by a rope. He recalled the moment he lifted his wife's red veil on their wedding night, her eyes brimming with tears, and her gentle and graceful demeanor. He found it all very interesting, little did he know…
"I won't let you suffer in the future." After she finished speaking, Xiao Yu rubbed her slightly red eyelids and asked casually, "Do you still like Lu Qingchen?"
Xiao Yu was not involved in his wife's first fifteen years. If he had been there, he would have patiently accompanied her to enjoy flowers in spring and boating in summer. He would have done even better than Lu Qingchen.
"If I still liked my second brother, I wouldn't like His Highness." Su Wanyue glared at him upon hearing this, her pretty eyes sparkling with vitality.
Xiao Yu smiled and said, "I understand. Wanwan feels guilty towards Young Master Lu."
Men are at ease as long as they don't like someone.
Su Wanyue nodded honestly. Her master said he wouldn't blame her, but she still felt guilty.
“The fault doesn’t lie with Wanwan. Wanwan doesn’t need to think too much. As for Young Master Lu, whatever choice he makes is his own choice.” There is certainly no woman in the world better than his wife, but Xiao Yu didn’t want his wife to overthink things. He would rather be the bad guy. Xiao Yu gently comforted her, “Life is long. Young Master Lu may very well meet his destined one.”
"Moreover, if a mother worries too much, it is not good for the fetus in her womb."
In the morning at Guimin Temple, Master Huiyuan tried to help Su Wanyue figure things out by using divination. On the way back, Su Wanyue also thought about it for a long time. By now, Su Wanyue had slowly come to a realization. She grabbed Xiao Yu's clothes and said, "I also hope that my second brother can find his destined person soon."
Xiao Yu's eyes darkened, and he carried her to the canopy bed.
She calls him "Second Brother" so happily, she hasn't called him "Royal Brother" yet.
***
Meanwhile, Prince Qin Jue of Nanqiong and Prince Xiang were rushing to Beili day and night. Because Su Wanyue was pregnant and the people from Nanqiong had not yet arrived, the emperor had not yet decided how to deal with Su Wanyue.
His delay in dealing with Su Wanyue greatly worried Xiao Ruofei. After thinking it over, Xiao Ruofei decided to pay a visit to Princess Huiyang.
Xiao Ruofei arrived just as Princess Huiyang was taking a nap. Disturbed from her sleep, Princess Huiyang looked quite displeased, but not wanting to lash out in front of Xiao Ruofei, she flicked her sleeve and gracefully sat down in the armchair. "What is the meaning of this, Your Highness?" she asked.
Xiao Ruofei was truly caught in a dilemma by Princess Huiyang's attitude. If it were any other day, he would have turned his back on her long ago if she dared to treat him this way. But today was different. He needed to use Princess Huiyang's power to put pressure on his father. So, after a moment, Xiao Ruofei recovered and said in a gentle and refined manner, "Actually, I came to see my aunt today because of my third brother's matter. After thinking it over, I still feel that my third brother is too protective of his wife. Father trusts my third brother and doesn't punish his wife. Those who know the truth might think that Father trusts my third brother, but those who don't might think that my third brother has already taken over Father's decision."
Xiao Ruofei's words were laced with provocation. If Princess Huiyang were a fool, she would probably fall for his tricks again. Princess Huiyang lowered her long eyelashes. It seemed that the emperor's punishment of merely stripping her of her position as crown prince was too lenient. As long as the eldest prince was alive, the capital would never be at peace.
Princess Huiyang smiled and said, "I think the Crown Prince is overthinking it. The reason why His Majesty has not punished the Crown Princess is mainly because the people from Nanqiong have not yet arrived. Once the Crown Prince Qin from Nanqiong arrives, His Majesty will definitely make a decision. As for the rest, I have no intention of interfering."
Xiao Ruofei gritted his teeth. This aunt really only had love and romance in her mind and didn't care about the situation in the court at all. "But my third brother is already so bewitched by his wife. After my third brother ascends the throne, will his wife interfere in the affairs of the court? I am also worried about my aunt and uncle."
Given Xiao Ruofei's attitude towards Princess Huiyang, what kind of attitude could he expect towards the Right Chancellor? He only knew that Princess Huiyang still harbored feelings for the Right Chancellor, which was why he addressed the Right Chancellor Yan Chenzhou as "Uncle," hoping that both Princess Huiyang and the Right Chancellor would side with him. But Princess Huiyang wasn't stupid. Xiao Ruofei had already made his point so clear; if she still didn't understand, then she had truly lived in vain. Princess Huiyang lazily yawned, deftly deflecting the question, "But the Crown Princess's family and relatives are all in Nanqiong. Even if the Crown Princess interferes with court affairs, can she possibly stuff all her relatives into the palace?"
Sophistry...
Seeing that Princess Huiyang wasn't taking the bait after all that talking, Xiao Ruofei got annoyed and, having no intention of continuing the conversation, hurriedly prepared to leave.
"The Crown Prince came to see the Princess, intending for her to put pressure on the Emperor," a maidservant said tentatively after Xiao Ruofei left, pouring a cup of tea for Princess Huiyang.
Princess Huiyang scoffed. He really was always causing trouble when he was the crown prince, and now that he's no longer the crown prince, he still keeps stirring things up. Princess Huiyang really didn't want to see all this drama; it annoyed her just looking at it.
Princess Huiyang's brows furrowed with barely concealed irritation. Seeing this, a young palace maid tentatively suggested, "How about I go and invite the Right Chancellor over?"
"What do you want with him? I want to go back and sleep a little longer." Princess Huiyang stood up lazily and walked into the room. But she hadn't slept for long when that familiar person arrived.
The journey from Nanqiong to Beili takes anywhere from half a month to a month. Because he was worried that Su Wanyue would be harmed in Beili, Qin Jue arrived in the Beili capital one step ahead of Prince Xiang. As soon as he entered the capital, someone sent the news to the Emperor at the head of the court. Qin Jue went to pay his respects to the Emperor as soon as he arrived in the capital.
Originally, the Emperor admired Qin Jue quite a bit, especially since he was the Crown Prince of Nanqiong and the future Emperor of Nanqiong. The Emperor had always treated him with great courtesy. However, when he thought about what Nanqiong had done—using a member of the imperial clan to replace the legitimate princess in marriage—the Emperor became displeased. Even when Qin Jue greeted him, his attitude was lukewarm. Qin Jue, being of a gentle and refined nature, didn't think much of it, since Nanqiong was in the wrong. After sitting down, he first expressed Nanqiong's apology to the Emperor, explaining that Princess Weiyang had acted impulsively and run away through the palace tunnels the day before the wedding. The Nanqiong Emperor and Empress were worried that a large-scale search for Princess Weiyang would arouse suspicion from Beili, so they suppressed all the news. Since the Beili envoy was scheduled to arrive in Nanqiong the next day, the Emperor and Empress had no choice but to have Princess Zilu of the imperial family marry in her place, who would also be the Crown Princess.
Previously, His Majesty had thought that since Nanqiong had said she wanted to marry Princess Weiyang, and since the choice was wrong, Princess Weiyang should be sent over so that the two women could share one husband. But now, after hearing what he said, His Majesty felt that it was perfectly fine if Princess Weiyang didn't marry over. With this kind of personality, how could she be a good royal daughter-in-law? Running away at the slightest dissatisfaction was treating the status of a princess like a game. Only an ignorant child would do something like "running away from home" or "brainless".
Qin Jue had been observing the Emperor. Seeing that his expression softened, Qin Jue gave his younger sister a severe scolding, then handed a memorial-like document to Eunuch Zhou, who immediately presented it to the Emperor.
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