Chapter 49
Since two people who shouldn't have come still showed up, the eldest princess couldn't say much and had to ask all of them to stay for dinner before leaving.
The meal was served in the west pavilion, and waiters were coming and going to serve the dishes. Yue Qingning only took a look and lost interest, so he lifted the curtain and went into the east warm pavilion.
It was not yet the coldest days of winter, but the burning of moxa was going on in the palace. Yue Qingning looked at the smoke wafting from the Boshan stove with some worry. Although the eldest princess looked well, she could not be sure that she was in her twilight years as her mother had said, and would not tell anyone about any illness she had.
Yue Qingning walked forward and sat on the stool beside the bed. When the eldest princess saw her coming, she put down the book in her hand and asked her with a smile.
"Don't like them?"
Do you dislike them so much that you don't even want to see their faces while eating?
Upon hearing this, Yue Qingning finally smiled sincerely, but she soon stopped smiling. The panic and sadness that lingered in her heart from time to time enveloped her like a thick fog. She seemed to have lost the ability to be cheerful. Sometimes she was here, but her heart had drifted to who knows where.
The eldest princess could tell at a glance that something was wrong with her. The sadness on her face, which was tense and she didn't want anyone to see, seemed to be on the verge of collapse and about to burst.
The eldest princess looked at her quietly for a long while, until she turned her head away, unable to hide her emotion, and then she spoke.
"Want to talk to Grandma?"
It’s not that no one noticed that something was wrong with her, but she was like a well, swallowing up all her emotions so deeply that no one could break through the iron wall she had built in front of her even if someone came to ask.
Besides, who could I tell? Could I tell my mother? Or would that cause my father more worry?
In this case, she could only swallow it deeply. However, when someone really asked her a question, Yue Qingning realized that her disguise in front of others was so fragile, and she was so frightened.
"It's not... it's not a big deal. I just had an argument with a friend before leaving. I don't know when we'll see each other again, so I feel..."
She suddenly stopped talking at this point, and the tears that had accumulated in her eyes kept flashing as if they were about to burst.
The eldest princess held her in her arms and added for her.
"I feel regretful and sad. I'm angry that he's gone so far away and I don't know when he'll be back. I'm also angry that I said those angry words even though I knew he was leaving. They hurt both of us, and there's no way to make amends."
Her face trembled in the eldest princess's arms. She held back her tears for a long time, but they still couldn't help but flow down, landing on her clothes and soaking the fabric heavy.
What the princess said really touched her heart. She regretted, was sad, and was angry with him, but more important than all that was that she had hurt him.
It was the first time she had actually done something to kill him. The confusion and bewilderment on his face at that time were like a sharp knife that pierced deep into her heart, and it pierced deeper every time she recalled it.
He still had to travel such a long distance after that, and the injury on his shoulder from saving her had not yet healed.
Yue Qingning almost didn't dare to think about it anymore, for fear that he would die on the road in his own fantasy.
From that day on, she couldn't sleep all night long, and was extremely anxious, as if she had really killed the last descendant of the Ling family, and that the loyal and brave people of the Ling family would crawl into her dreams and ask her why she hurt people.
So, after she woke up, she regretted it even more, but she didn't dare to speak out and ask him how things were going. After that day, her father thought they had completely broken up and took Que Ming away that night. She didn't even have time to say anything.
Now if Que Ming hated her, he had a reason, and this reason was given by her herself.
Yue Qingning regretted it so much. If she had known that she couldn't do it, she would have let him go. Why did she struggle until today, making it so tangled and giving him a reason to hate her?
When the princess saw her shoulders shaking and trembling, she immediately guessed how important the person who made Qingning cry was to her.
She sighed, and just then the maids came in to tell her that Cui Hu was waiting outside the door.
The eldest princess's brow furrowed, regretting it more than ever before. She had indeed made a mistake, mismatching couples and driving the man of the girl's heart away. They say it's better to destroy ten temples than to break up a marriage. Her marriage was perfect, but she had ruined the marriage of her younger generation. How could she be a competent grandmother?
With a wave of her hand, the maid immediately understood the meaning and asked the man in front of the door to leave first.
The eldest princess helped Yue Qingning up, wiped the tears from her face, and sighed again.
"It's not like the sky is falling. What can't be undone? Besides, with Grandma here, even if the Jade Emperor comes, he won't dare to make us Qingning sad."
"Come on! Where did he go? Grandmother, send someone to find him."
Yue Qingning stared at the princess for a long time. Her gentle features were more compassionate than those of the Bodhisattva on the altar. Seeing that she was sad, he could actually give up this move and let her go free. Yue Qingning was stunned and silent for a long time.
For a moment she wanted to escape at all costs.
Caught up in the political struggles and imperial power struggles, she never had a moment's rest. Others said that being a noble was the lifelong pursuit of a gentleman, but she felt that few of those powerful figures in the government truly cared about the people. Their pursuit was merely a disguised pursuit of power and profit, and they were no more honest than ordinary merchants.
Her disgust at the declining government and her fear of her own death made her not want to stay in the imperial city for even a moment.
She was only sixteen years old, but she would not live to be eighteen and would die. She had not seen many things in the world. She had no idea what the poet meant by "it is difficult to feel the starvation of the dead."
She wanted to take a walk and have a look to see what the land where she lived looked like.
Under such circumstances, the eldest princess said she would let her go.
The trembling in Yue Qingning's heart turned into warmth, wandering around her body. She wanted to catch Que Ming back at all costs, even if it meant locking him by her side through marriage, and she would have to live with him, watching out for each other for the rest of her life.
But the warmth that had just surged into her heart receded very quickly. She understood deeply what it meant to bring him back.
Even if the eldest princess decides to arrange a marriage for her, Que Ming's background will definitely be noticed by everyone. If the emperor wants to investigate him, it will be extremely difficult to protect him at that time, let alone keep him away from conflicts.
Thinking of this, my rationality seemed to return all of a sudden.
Yue Qingning wiped his face, stood up, knelt down and bowed respectfully to the eldest princess.
"This is just a small matter, not enough to trouble you, Grandma. But Qingning still has something to ask for your help."
The eldest princess looked at her red eyes. Because of the deep love and loyalty she had with her husband, and as a woman, she could hardly bear to see Qingning say these words.
"Qingning and Young General Cui are in love, and their families are aware of this. I beg Grandmother to grant me a favor and allow my husband and I to be together."
——
The days passed in the blink of an eye, and it was New Year after the heavy snow. The Duke of Huguo came to propose marriage on the fifteenth day of the new year.
This was the first time that the two families got together, and they held a grand banquet in the New Year atmosphere. The elders of both families drank and got drunk. Minister Yue had admired the Duke of Protectorate for a long time, and he took the opportunity of the banquet to say many heartfelt words that he never said in other days. As a result, the Duke of Protectorateateate, who had been generous for most of his life, also improved his attitude towards the Yue family a lot.
He didn't even stop Cui Hu from leaving the table to go to the backyard to look for Qingning. After all, she was about to be his new wife, so it would be good for them to keep in touch with each other.
Cui Hu saw Yue Qingning through the crack of the open window in the study. Perhaps because she drank some wine during the meal, her face was slightly flushed. Now that the window was opened to let in some air, the frosty cold air hit her picturesque eyebrows, making her look instantly noble and extraordinary.
Cui Hu didn't disturb her, but stared at her for a long time from outside.
Since he returned from the border, the two of them have met almost frequently in the past few days. Although they have only been separated for a few months, Qingning seems to have changed a lot.
Maybe it was his illusion. Since he came back, Qingning had been particularly close to him. She was concerned about how he was doing outside, and she often asked him questions in a gentle and detailed manner, and listened patiently and quietly.
But he always felt that something was different about her. It might be because of the winter weather, which made people tired and quiet. The tranquility was also like the winter weather, giving people a heavy and long-lasting feeling of alienation.
But after all, they are getting married, and it would not be good for both of them to think about useless things now.
Cui Hu rubbed his hands, lifted the curtain and walked in.
Yue Qingning was lazily lying on the windowsill. When she saw him coming, she smiled and nodded at him.
"Does your head hurt?"
Cui Hu walked over and wanted to bend over to pick up the person and move away from the wind vent, but the moment he bent over, the woman in his arms stiffened slightly, and then quickly relaxed.
He saw all her reactions in full, and suddenly didn't know how to get along with her.
Just when he gave up and wanted to get up and walk away from her, Qingning suddenly turned around and hooked his arm to keep him there.
"How much did Third Brother eat? My father specifically asked me to buy Du Kang tea from the restaurant, fearing that you wouldn't be used to the bland flavors in the capital."
She smiled and pulled him onto the narrow couch, resting her head on the windowsill with one hand, as if she was being extremely lazy as usual.
Seeing her expression, Cui Hu didn't want to leave anymore. He took her hand and rubbed it tightly in his palm, trying to warm her hands as if he was afraid that she would be frozen.
"I have to thank my father-in-law for preparing so much. My father is a picky person. I am so happy with the meal this time, all thanks to my father-in-law's careful preparation."
Everyone at the banquet was happy, including Yue Qingning, so she joined in for a few drinks.
Now, as the wind blew, the smell of alcohol immediately came to her head, and her rosy cheeks were like accumulated clouds, and the light reflected by them was like snow gathered in the moon, full of beauty.
This kind of lazy drunkenness made even those who were not drunk drunk get drunk. He held her hand tightly and loosened it for a long time, but he still couldn't let go of his greed.
Yue Qingning tilted her head to look at his increasingly tense expression, and had already guessed what he was going to do.
She stretched out her hand, brushed it around the man's collar, and hooked it on the top button of his collar and twisted it.
Cui Hu also leaned forward while letting her play with him, a rare blush appearing on his dark cheeks. He supported his upper body and covered the petite woman, straightening his arms as if afraid of crushing her.
However, Qingning seemed to be different from him in feeling awkward. She turned her head boldly, looked carefully at the stubble on his chin, and even reached out to touch it.
"Qingning..."
Cui Hu swallowed his saliva and was completely bewitched by her.
Yue Qingning didn't say anything more, just closed his eyes and waited quietly.
This meant letting him do what he wanted. Cui Hu felt a burning pain in his heart and could not help but gently stroke the beauty's cheek and press his lips lightly against hers.
But before he could meet the pretty face he had been longing for, a light cough suddenly came from outside the window, interrupting their youthful love affair.
Cui Hu opened the window and looked over, then quickly got up from the couch and hurried to greet him.
Yue Qingning also saw the person coming, but she was dizzy and couldn't get up. She also felt a little resentful and was even more unwilling to pay attention to him.
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