Chapter 3, of course, is just an invitation for you to watch the show. ...
If you're not going to the flower viewing banquet hosted by the Grand Prince, you should say so earlier. There's no reason to say so on the day itself. Plus, it happened to be raining heavily, which makes it even easier for people to misunderstand that you're being disrespectful.
"Is he really sick?" Madam Lou asked, lifting her skirt with a suspicious look as she hurried into the room.
Lou Xueying lay on the bed, her face flushed, and called out in a heavy, nasal voice, "Mother."
Before she could finish speaking, tears began to fall.
"Oh dear, why are you crying? Are you that sick?" Madam Lou was both surprised and distressed, and her doubts immediately vanished.
She touched Lou Xueying's forehead, then turned to Cailing and asked, "Have you called a doctor? What did the doctor say?"
Cai Ling said, "The doctor said it was because she caught a chill last night and developed a low-grade fever, but it's not too serious. He just sent someone to prepare the medicine, so please don't worry, Madam."
Madam Lou frowned, touched her daughter's hot face, and said, "Did you feel stuffy because of the rain and kicked off the covers again last night? How old are you? Don't you know how to take care of yourself? Cai Ling isn't a fairy. Can she come and cover you with the covers every moment?"
Lou Xueying remained silent, only moving closer to her mother and hugging her waist. Her mother was somewhat plump, her body soft, warm, and fragrant.
She sniffled, her eyes red-rimmed.
In her first year as a concubine, no one from her family came to the palace to visit her throughout the entire winter, and she made no requests.
The following spring, her mother entered the palace and, seeing how thin she had become, wept, saying, "Susu, it's not that I didn't want to see you, but... since you entered the palace, rumors have been rampant, and even your father has been implicated. Perhaps His Majesty knows he has a guilty conscience and promoted your father to Secretary of the Imperial Secretariat, but in such a turbulent situation... Susu, seeing you like this breaks my heart. Things have come to this, and one cannot live in the past forever; one must look forward... Do you still have contact with the Crown Prince?"
She slowly shook her head.
Her mother said, "It's good that there's no more contact. Now that you're a Noble Consort, you can't dwell on the past anymore. His Majesty feels guilty towards you now, and he's letting you have your way, indulging your temper. But what if he loses his patience one day? Susu, no matter what you think in your heart, His Majesty is now your husband, and you can only rely on him from now on. Your fate with the Crown Prince is over. If even His Majesty dislikes you... what will you do? Susu."
Later, her mother visited her in the palace every six months until the new emperor ascended the throne, at which point she lost contact with her family.
The last news she heard was that her mother, upon learning of her decision to be buried alive with the late emperor, fell seriously ill and never recovered. What happened afterward, she knew nothing.
Having been reborn, she didn't want her family to worry about her anymore.
Lou Xueying choked back sobs, and seeing her like this, Madam Lou panicked and asked Cailing, "What's wrong with her?"
Her daughter was well-behaved and clever from a young age. She had hardly ever cried since she started reading and learning to read. She couldn't remember the last time she had hugged her so affectionately.
How did a minor illness turn into this?
Cailing scratched her head and said, "Hmm... she probably had a nightmare. When I got up last night, I also found Miss crying."
Madam Lou gently patted Lou Xueying's back, comforting her, "Alright, alright, don't cry. You're a grown girl now. If you still have to burrow into your mother's arms when you have a nightmare, people will laugh at you."
Lou Xueying said in a muffled voice, "Mother, can I skip the flower viewing banquet today?"
Madam Lou sighed, "You're in such a state, of course you won't go. I'll send someone by fast horse to Huaichang Garden to deliver a message, and I hope the Grand Princess won't take it to heart."
Lou Xueying gave a soft "hmm".
She wasn't faking illness; she was genuinely sick.
That night, after deciding not to attend the flower viewing banquet, she immediately opened the window, wearing only a thin nightgown, letting the wind blow and the raindrops soak her body.
Cai Ling was startled and went to close the window, but she was stopped by her.
She said, "I need a reason not to go to the banquet. It just so happens to be raining, so no one will suspect that I caught a cold and got sick. I can't fake being sick, otherwise I won't even be able to fool my mother."
Cailing asked in confusion, "Why don't you go? That might be the Crown Prince's matchmaking banquet."
Lou Xueying: "Even you know it might be the Crown Prince's matchmaking banquet. Is it not allowed that I don't want to marry the Crown Prince?"
Cailing was even more puzzled: "Why doesn't Miss want to marry the Crown Prince? I've never heard of anything bad about him."
Lou Xueying: "I want to find someone who understands me, loves me, and is devoted to me, but the Crown Prince wants to have many children, so he definitely can't do that."
"That's true." Cailing nodded in sudden realization. "A person as wonderful as Miss deserves a husband who only has eyes for her and who cherishes her like a treasure!"
Lou Xueying smiled faintly.
She didn't actually care about being favored or not. Her desire to return to the palace wasn't due to the trivialities of the harem; she simply didn't want to have any further relationship with those two men.
-
Lou Xueying took a nap at noon, sweated a lot, and slept soundly until evening, feeling completely relaxed.
Upon hearing that she had woken up, Madam Lou led her entire family in to visit her.
Lou Xueying hadn't seen so many relatives in many years. She suppressed the sadness in her heart, blinked, and smiled, "It's just a fever, why did it alarm so many people? Father and Second Brother just finished their shifts and hadn't even changed out of their official uniforms when you called them here, Mother."
Besides her parents, she has two older brothers and one younger sister. One brother is seven years older than her and currently serves as a county magistrate in Okjeon County, Gyeonggi Province, and is not at home. The other brother is five years older than her and was just appointed as a corrector at the Jixian Hall last year. Both of her brothers are her full siblings, born to the same mother. Her younger sister, however, was born to a concubine, who died early, and the sister was raised by her mother. She is now eight years old.
Lou Zhongyan said sourly, "It's because your mother dotes on you. You have a low fever and you don't even have to go to the Grand Princess's banquet. Last month, I had a fever and I was forced to go to work."
Lou Shu frowned and glanced at his son: "His Majesty is pressing hard on the collation of classics. You're not so feverish that you can't get out of bed, so why are you shirking your duties!"
Lou Zhongyan pursed his lips and muttered, "Anyway, it's all my fault."
Lou Xueying smiled.
Her second brother had always been the most lively among his siblings since childhood. His personality had become somewhat more restrained as he grew up, but he would revert to his true colors as soon as he returned home. Listening to her family arguing over such a trivial matter made her feel as if she were slowly returning to her carefree teenage years.
"Third sister, Mother said you didn't eat lunch. Do you want to eat now?" The little sister asked, holding her hand and looking at her with her big, bright eyes.
Lou Xueying lowered her head and gently pinched her little sister's nose: "Is it Pengpeng who wants to eat it?"
The little girl smiled shyly.
"Then let's go eat." Lou Xueying took her hand and got up to walk outside.
She hadn't been this happy in a long time.
Even into the night, she was still savoring the feeling of her family sitting together happily for dinner that evening. She had taken such scenes for granted when she was young, only realizing how precious they were after losing them.
Fortunately, it's not too late.
-
Lou Xueying rested at home for several days.
In fact, her low-grade fever subsided on the second day, but since she had just missed her appointment with the Grand Princess due to illness, she couldn't go out immediately.
Lou Xueying stood by the window, breathing in the fresh air outside, stretched her arms for a while, and then moved her shoulders and neck.
It's so good to be young and healthy. She's had enough of the feeling of having to rest after walking just a few steps in her past life.
Cailing walked in from outside, smiling, and asked, "Miss, would you like to go out and play?"
Lou Xueying nodded.
She wanted to go to crowded places, to hear the sounds of the bustling city, and to see the real, everyday life of ordinary people.
"That's perfect!" Cailing exclaimed excitedly. "The gatekeeper just came to say that Miss Yao sent someone to ask if Miss is feeling better. If she is, she'll invite Miss to dinner!"
Lou Xueying was taken aback.
The Miss Yao that Cailing mentioned was only one person, her best friend, Yao Biyue. Yao Biyue was the youngest daughter of the Vice Minister of Agriculture, and her grandfather had been the Minister of Works. The two families had some connections, and she often went to Yao Biyue's house to play when she was a child; their friendship couldn't be deeper.
But did Yao Biyue invite her to dinner at this time in her previous life? Probably not. They had both been invited to the flower viewing banquet and had only met there. There was no need for them to go out again a few days later.
Lou Xueying pursed her lips and smiled, "Alright, it's been a while since I've seen A-Yue. Have someone tell Mother that I won't be eating at home for lunch."
She dressed up, boarded the carriage, and went to meet Yao Biyue.
Yao Biyue booked the most expensive restaurant in the capital, located in a bustling area, where one could see the lively scene below from the window.
Lou Xueying went upstairs and entered the private room. Sure enough, Yao Biyue was already waiting inside. When she saw her, she couldn't help but smile, revealing a pair of sharp tiger teeth.
"Susu, sit down," Yao Biyue greeted warmly. "I heard you were sick a few days ago. How are you? Are you all better now?"
"Everything's ready." Lou Xueying sat down and quietly smiled at her.
"It's a good thing you didn't go. That flower-viewing banquet was really boring. Not only did I not see the Crown Prince, but I also didn't get to see any flowers. My new clothes got muddy, and I don't even want to wear them anymore, but it's a pity to throw them away. It's so annoying." Yao Biyue shook her head and took a sip of tea.
Lou Xueying asked softly, "Do you want to marry the Crown Prince?"
Yao Biyue: "It doesn't matter. I'll get married sooner or later anyway. There's nothing wrong with the Crown Prince. If he takes a liking to me, then I'll marry him. If he doesn't, that's fine too. It's not like I can't get married."
In her past life, Lou Xueying and Yao Biyue were sheltering from the rain under the pavilion in Huaichang Garden. She asked the same question, and Yao Biyue gave the same answer.
Yao Biyue truly didn't care. After hearing that Lou Xueying had been summoned by the Empress, she excitedly came to ask her if she had met the Crown Prince, and even said that once she became the Crown Princess, she should be sure to introduce her to many talented young men.
However, fate played a cruel trick on her, and Lou Xueying did not marry the Crown Prince, but instead married the Emperor.
In her first year in the palace, during the New Year's banquet, she was ashamed to face anyone and feigned illness to avoid it. Later, it was said that the Crown Prince, seeing her absence, questioned her on the spot, asking why the Imperial Concubine hadn't attended the banquet. The Emperor immediately rebuked him, but he remained unmoved, merely sneering. Finally, the Emperor ordered him to leave, and the banquet ended unhappily.
In the second year after entering the palace, the emperor bestowed a marriage upon the crown prince, and the bride was none other than Yao Biyue.
Lou Xueying rarely left her palace. She met Yao Biyue at the family banquet during the New Year the following year. By then, she had resigned herself to her fate and accepted the emperor, but she felt that she could not hide forever, so she mustered up her courage and went to the family banquet.
At the banquet, she discreetly observed the Crown Prince and Yao Biyue. The newlyweds both wore indifferent expressions, showing neither closeness nor conflict. The Crown Prince's gaze occasionally met Lou Xueying's, but never lingered, as if he no longer cared about her.
Lou Xueying secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that now that he was married, he should have let go of her. However, looking at Yao Biyue, who had married into the Eastern Palace and had a dignified and proper smile, she felt a trace of melancholy.
She didn't know what she was feeling melancholy about, and she also found it inappropriate to have any further contact with Yao Biyue.
The last time I heard news of Yao Biyue was six months before my death. That day, the new emperor drank too much and stumbled into her room, hugged her tightly, and said, "Susu, Susu, do you know, the Empress has given birth, it's a daughter."
She let him hold her without reacting.
He cupped her face in his hands, his fingers tracing her features, and a fervent light suddenly shone in his eyes: "Susu, shall we have a son? As long as he is born, he will be my eldest son, and I will immediately make him the crown prince."
She finally laughed, looking at him with a mocking gaze.
She was nameless and without status, a mere ghost in this deep palace, and had no legitimate eldest son.
"Hey, hey? Susu, what are you thinking about? You seem so lost in thought." Yao Biyue stretched out her finger and waved it in front of Lou Xueying.
Lou Xueying came back to her senses: "It's nothing, I was just wondering why the Crown Prince didn't go to the flower viewing banquet."
If the Crown Prince changed his mind about attending the banquet in his past life because he met her, then why didn't he go in this life since they didn't meet?
"It's too much trouble because of the heavy rain, what else can I do?" Yao Biyue said. "If I were the Crown Prince, I wouldn't bother to move either."
Lou Xueying smiled.
"Oh, let's not talk about that anymore." Yao Biyue smiled mysteriously. "Do you know why I asked you out today?"
Lou Xueying was taken aback: "Didn't you invite me to dinner?"
"What's the big deal about eating? It's not like we've never eaten before," Yao Biyue said. "Of course we invited you to watch the show. Look—"
Following the direction she was pointing, Lou Xueying was surprised to find that the once surging crowd below had been separated to both sides by the capital's patrol guards, leaving a clear path in the middle. The people on both sides craned their necks, constantly looking in one direction, chattering about something.
"Don't you think there are a lot of people on the road today?" Yao Biyue said. "When I came here, carriages weren't allowed to turn into this intersection, so I had to walk here!"
“Me too.” Lou Xueying said in surprise, “But I thought… it was just because there were a lot of people. After all, she hadn’t left the palace for many years, and she only remembered that this place was a bustling city, but she couldn’t remember exactly how bustling it was.
"I knew you'd forgotten what day it is today!" Yao Biyue slammed her hand on the table.
Lou Xueying searched her memory carefully but to no avail, and looked bewildered: "What day?"
"Today is the day that the Grand General of the Garrison returns in triumph with the border troops to the capital to receive his reward!" Yao Biyue exclaimed excitedly. "Our Dayue has been fighting on and off with the Quanrong in the northwest for decades, and now we've finally stopped fighting! If it weren't for the Grand General of the Garrison, how could our Dayue have recovered those cities that were ceded during the reigns of Emperor Xuanzong and Emperor Shaozong? I heard that the Grand General of the Garrison also brought back envoys from the Quanrong this time. In my opinion, the court should give the Quanrong a good beating to vent their anger!"
A note from the author:
----------------------
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com