Chapter 1219 Unwilling
It was late when they returned to the palace. Shang Ruyi had been trying to soothe Xiao Yuan, who hadn't seen her all day and was crying loudly as soon as they met, for quite a while. She finally managed to put the child to sleep and hand him over to the wet nurse. Exhausted, she took a bath and floated back to her bedchamber. She nestled into Yuwen Ye's arms and fell asleep without making a sound.
I slept soundly until dawn.
When she woke up, she first heard rustling sounds outside, which meant that Tu She'er and the others were getting ready to come in and serve her. Shang Ruyi half-closed her eyes and reached out to touch the space beside her. Sure enough, it was empty. She knew that Yuwen Ye must have already left. He had been focusing all his energy on the reorganization of the Twelve Guards these days, and he had only stayed overnight yesterday to accompany her to the Shen family. Of course, he still had to go back. It was just a pity that she was too tired last night and didn't have time to say more than a few words to him.
Shang Ruyi sighed softly with some regret, then sat up and stretched.
Hearing the commotion in the palace, Tushe'er and Changwan immediately came in. The two of them brought hot water to help Shang Ruyi wash up while making the bed and folding the quilt. After Shang Ruyi finished washing up, she sat down at the dressing table and had Tushe'er comb her hair.
Looking into the gleaming bronze mirror, she saw Tushe'er standing behind her, her eyes crinkling with laughter and the corners of her mouth constantly turning upwards.
Changwan, who had just finished tidying up the bed, passed by and saw her smiling face. She couldn't help but laugh and say, "She'er, what's making you so happy? You've been smiling nonstop since you came back last night."
Tushe'er pursed her lips and glanced back at her again: "Don't ask."
Chang Wan looked at her, then at Shang Ruyi.
Shang Ruyi was somewhat helpless. Tu She'er was never one to keep secrets. This time, thankfully, she didn't speak up before her. But with her smiling like that, even if Chang Wan were a fool, she would know that something had happened.
So he coughed lightly and said, "Hurry up and comb my hair. We need to get down to business after breakfast."
Upon hearing the words "serious business," Tushe'er's eyes lit up.
"yes."
She hurriedly and attentively combed Shang Ruyi's hair. Although Chang Wan found it strange, she kept doing what she was doing. After finishing Shang Ruyi's clothes, she went down to deliver a message to the Imperial Kitchen. Soon, a steaming hot breakfast was served. Shang Ruyi's hair had just been combed, so she got up, went over and sat down, and picked up a bowl of thick millet porridge to drink.
Tu She'er and Chang Wan stood on either side of her. Tu She'er still pursed her lips, but the corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up. Chang Wan clearly noticed something was wrong, but still didn't understand what had happened. She just carefully served Shang Ruyi the dishes.
Before long, breakfast was served.
Shang Ruyi wiped her mouth: "She'er, tidy up these things, then you can go. Changwan, stay here, I have something to say to you."
Tushe'er stared at her with wide eyes: "Huh?"
"Huh what?"
Shang Ruyi glared at her: "What else do you want to do here?"
Tushe'er glanced at her, then at Changwan, who looked flustered, and understood that these were things that needed to be said in private, not in front of her. So she could only say softly, "This servant understands."
So he cleared away the dishes on the table and left.
This time, Chang Wan understood that something had indeed happened, and it was directed at her. As Tu She'er withdrew and the entire hall quieted down, her heart suddenly started pounding. She looked at Shang Ruyi cautiously.
Shang Ruyi smiled and said, "Don't worry, it's not a bad thing."
Changwan walked up to her quietly: "Your Highness has something to say to me. What did I do wrong?"
Shang Ruyi smiled and said, "No."
"That is—"
"When I left, I told you to take good care of Sun Xianyue. You did a good job. Yesterday, Prince Qin and I went to the Shen family. Sun Xianyue's injuries are healing well, and she can move around freely now. What reward do you want?"
Changwan shook her head and said, "That is my duty, I dare not accept any reward."
Shang Ruyi looked at her gently for a while, then stopped pressing the topic. She picked up the teacup next to her, took a sip of tea, and said slowly, "Sun Xianyue has recovered and is planning to say goodbye to us."
Chang Wan was slightly taken aback: "He's leaving?"
"yes."
"I see..."
Chang Wan blinked, but didn't say anything and fell silent.
Seeing her like this, Shang Ruyi's smile gradually faded, and she looked at her gently, saying, "Last night, Sun Xianyue said a lot of things to express her gratitude to me, and also said some things to praise you."
"..."
This time, Changwan finally seemed to sense something, looked up at Shang Ruyi, and said cautiously, "That is just what this servant should do."
Shang Ruyi smiled and looked at her: "He's leaving. Don't you have anything to say to him?"
Chang Wan hesitated for a moment, then shook her head.
Shang Ruyi frowned slightly, a bad feeling welling up in her heart.
But she couldn't go back on her promise halfway. Besides, she couldn't make assumptions if things weren't clearly explained. So she beckoned to Chang Wan, who came closer. Shang Ruyi lowered her voice and whispered in a tone only the two of them could hear, "You have nothing to say to him, but he has something to say to you. He asked me to pass on his message because it's inconvenient for him to go to the palace."
Chang Wan's face flushed bright red, her head was lowered, and her exposed ears were red to the tips.
She seemed to have guessed something.
Shang Ruyi said softly, "He sincerely asked me to marry you. If you are willing, he wants to marry you and protect you for the rest of his life."
"..."
"Because you are someone close to me, he asked me first. I have no problem with him as a person, but this matter still depends on your personal wishes. If you are willing, the King of Qin and I would be happy to help make this a beautiful marriage."
"..."
So, what do you think?
"..."
Chang Wan remained silent, her head bowed even lower. Shang Ruyi noticed her cheeks turn from red to white, wondering what she was thinking.
After waiting a while and seeing that she still didn't respond, Shang Ruyi said softly, "You have no other family, so I will naturally make the decisions for you. You've suffered a lot with me over the years, and as long as you're willing, the King of Qin and I will definitely ensure you have a grand and glorious marriage—"
Before she could finish speaking, Changwan said, "This servant is unwilling."
"I see..."
Shang Ruyi paused for a moment, then unconsciously replied, "Well then, I'll go and tell him."
After saying this, she fell silent, and she felt the entire Qianqiu Palace suddenly quiet down, the air becoming heavy. Shang Ruyi took a deep breath to clear her mind, and then looked at Chang Wan. Chang Wan was clutching a piece of her dress tightly with both hands, almost tearing it apart, her fingertips white from the effort.
What she just said was true...
She said she didn't want to...
After thinking for a moment, Shang Ruyi finally said, "Are you really unwilling?"
Upon hearing this, Chang Wan trembled slightly, raised her head to look at Shang Ruyi, and a trace of fear flashed in her eyes: "Your Highness...Does Your Highness want me to marry him?"
Seeing that she had misunderstood, Shang Ruyi quickly said, "Of course not. As I said, everything depends on your wishes. If you don't want to, I will never force you."
"..."
"He won't either."
Hearing this, Chang Wan breathed a slight sigh of relief, and Shang Ruyi finally realized that she was indeed unwilling.
However, something is strange—regardless of their talents, appearances, temperaments, or family backgrounds, this should be considered a good match. Otherwise, Tu She'er wouldn't have been so vocal in speaking up for Sun Xianyue last night. But for some reason, Chang Wan was unwilling and rejected her so decisively.
Does she have someone else in her heart? Or does she have other plans?
Shang Ruyi was genuinely curious, so she said, "Don't worry, I didn't mean to force you. I just want to know why. You don't like Sun Xianyue?"
Chang Wan shook her head: "Young Master Sun is exceptionally talented and handsome, and very knowledgeable. I admire him greatly."
Shang Ruyi nodded, then said, "And what about his character—"
"He is also gentle and considerate. I was ordered to take care of him. Although he has some inconveniences, he rarely asks me to do anything. He is also very kind to the other people in the Shen family."
"..."
"Moreover, he put righteousness first and risked his life to save the Pei family, which I admire even more."
Hearing her say that, Shang Ruyi smiled and asked, "Then why don't you want to marry him?"
"..."
Chang Wan fell silent again, but this time it wasn't because she had nothing to say or had already said everything; rather, she was thinking about how to say it. Shang Ruyi waited quietly for her. After a long while, she finally heard her say, "This servant does not want to get married."
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi's eyes widened slightly: "Don't you want to get married?"
"yes."
"Is it that you don't want to marry him, or—"
"This servant does not want to get married."
That's quite clear.
Shang Ruyi was stunned and looked at the beautiful woman with some surprise. Although the palace maids were all selected and most of them were good-looking, she was, after all, the maid that Guan Yunmu had chosen for Yuwen Ye. Her appearance was even more outstanding. Such a woman actually said that she did not want to get married.
Shang Ruyi thought for a while and was about to say something when Chang Wan spoke first, saying, "Your Highness, if Your Highness wants to talk about the past, this servant didn't understand anything at that time. I followed the arrangements of Madam Guan, no, Empress Tai Mu. I dared not have any disloyal thoughts."
Shang Ruyi said softly, "Mm."
Changwan added, "But after I followed the Princess, I had no other thoughts. Now I just want to serve the Princess."
She paused for a moment, as if making a decision, and then said softly, "This servant only wants to serve the Princess well with She'er until we grow old."
"..."
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi was initially somewhat dazed, but then suddenly realized something: "Huh?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com