Chapter 86: Self-Punishment in the Snow
Before today, every time the two of them were intimate, they were filled with love and joy. But this time was different. There was only sadness in Rong Yin's tears, not joy.
The physical pleasure and psychological pain were intertwined, making Rong Yin lose his mind and left with endless confusion.
The cup of soup not only failed to fulfill its destiny of warming others, but also gradually became cold.
Zong Zhengxiao tidied up Rong Yin's clothes and carried him out of the study. Rong Yin buried his face in his chest and said nothing. Zong Zhengxiao's face was also very gloomy.
Si Xi didn't dare to look up at the two of them. He stood aside with his eyes lowered, waiting for instructions.
Zong Zheng walked without stopping. When he passed by Si Xi, he said casually, "Clean up the inside and take the soup back."
"Yes." Si Xi responded quickly.
The palace maids in Yinjiao Garden saw Rong Yin go out happily, but was carried back by His Majesty when she came back, and there was something wrong with the atmosphere between the two of them, so they all became cautious.
Zong Zhengxiao asked the palace maids to prepare bathing supplies, and he carried Rong Yin into the bathtub in the house. He wanted to help Rong Yin clean up like before, but Rong Yin pushed his hand away.
"I can do it myself." Because she had just cried, Rong Yin's voice was a little hoarse and she spoke with a nasal tone.
After what happened just now, Zong Zhengxiao's excitement had faded a lot. He withdrew his hand dryly and said dryly: "I'm outside. You can call me if you need anything."
"Yeah." Rong Yin responded softly without looking at Zong Zheng Xiao.
Zong Zhengxiao pursed his lips, turned around and left.
When Si Xi finished cleaning up the study and came back with the cold soup, Zong Zheng Xiao was standing alone in the corridor, half of his body was covered in wind and snow, his face as cold as snow.
"Your Majesty," Si Xi asked softly, "The soup is cold. I'll take it to the kitchen to reheat it."
Zong Zhengxiao had no appetite to eat at the moment, but he took a look at the soup bowl and thought of Rong Yin, so he nodded.
Si Xi handed the soup bowl to the palace maid beside him, and after the maid left, he said, "The maid has been detained, and the interrogation result will be released soon."
Zong Zhengxiao raised his eyes and looked at the familiar courtyard in the snow. He said calmly, "I thought this was a pure land for him and me, but I didn't expect it to be stained with filth. Si Xi, what do you think we should do?"
Si Xi was a very smart man. He understood Zong Zheng Xiao's meaning immediately. He knelt down in the snow and kowtowed several times before saying, "It was my carelessness that caused the thief to appear in the garden. Please punish me, Your Majesty!"
Zong Zheng Xiao closed his eyes and stood with his hands behind his back. "You know the rules, I believe there is no need for me to say more. If you can't catch him within three days, you don't have to appear in front of me."
With Si Xi's ability, it wouldn't take three days. Si Xi understood that this was Zong Zheng Xiao's hint, meaning that although he had made mistakes in his work this time, as long as he made up for it in time, he would not be severely punished.
Si Xi breathed a sigh of relief: "Yes, thank you for your leniency, Your Majesty."
By the time the soup was hot and brought back, Rong Yin had finished cleaning.
The two of them sat facing each other, and for the first time they felt the atmosphere was too quiet. If it were in the past, Rong Yin would have started chattering.
Zong Zhengxiao served the two of them soup, took a sip himself, and then raised his lips: "This soup is delicious. I heard from the palace maids that you personally stewed it for me. You obviously don't like fire, but you still stayed in front of the stove. Thank you, Ayin."
"You're welcome." Rong Yin stirred the soup with a spoon, her tone a little cold.
Zong Zhengxiao wanted to ask Rong Yin if she was still angry, but he felt he couldn't ask, so he fell silent again.
In the end, Zong Zhengxiao drank most of the soup, while Rong Yin took a few sips and put down the bowl.
After the palace servants cleared away the tableware, Rong Yin stood up and seemed to be talking to Zong Zhengxiao, but she didn't look at him. "I'm sleepy. I'm going to sleep for a while."
Zong Zhengxiao didn't know whether this was Rong Yin's excuse for not wanting to be with him or if she was really tired. After all, they had just done that.
He wanted to accompany Rong Yin, but he felt that Rong Yin probably didn't want to see him much.
"Well, have a good rest." Zong Zhengxiao left that sentence and fled.
Rong Yin finally raised his eyes, looked at Zong Zheng Xiao's back, and couldn't help but tears welling up in his eyes.
Later, Lu'e came back and heard about this from Si Xi. She immediately went to Zong Zheng Xiao to apologize.
Although her main task now is to help Rong Yin manage the outside business, as the aunt in charge of Yinjiao Garden, she also has a responsibility if there is a traitor in Yinjiao Garden.
Zong Zhengxiao sat behind his desk, looking at Lu'e kneeling on the ground. He did not question her for her dereliction of duty, but instead asked, "Did Rong Yin encounter any bad things outside these days?"
In the past half month, Rong Yin looked unhappy every time he came back from going out. Zong Zhengxiao asked him if something happened, but Rong Yin denied it and just said that the store was busy at the end of the year, so he was a little tired.
Zong Zhengxiao advised him that if he was too busy, he could hand over the business to his subordinates, but Rong Yin said that he would not be able to adapt if he suddenly had free time in the middle of his work, so Zong Zhengxiao had no choice but to let him do as he pleased.
But Zong Zhengxiao calmed down and realized that Rong Yin was really not right today. Based on his understanding of Rong Yin, since Rong Yin knew that the palace maid did that to alienate them, she would definitely join him in condemning the people of the aristocratic family with righteous indignation instead of avoiding him for no reason.
The only thing Zong Zhengxiao could be sure of was that nothing had happened in the palace recently that made Rong Yin unhappy, so the problem could only be outside the palace.
Before Lu'e came, Zong Zhengxiao had already consulted the secret guards who were protecting Rong Yin, and they all said that they did not find anything unusual.
Zong Zhengxiao thought that Lu'e was closer to Rong Yin, and maybe he could hear some different news from her.
"Bad things?" Lu'e thought about it carefully before replying, "With the protection of the guards, no one dares to bully the master. However, there were a few times when the master happened to encounter guests discussing something. However, the master did not respond at the time, so the servants did not pay attention to it. But now that I think about it, the master has recently encountered such an unpleasant thing outside."
Zong Zhengxiao asked, "What are the guests talking about?"
Lu'e knew that Zong Zhengxiao hated procrastination, so she continued, "The guests are discussing when Your Majesty will start selecting beauties. They said that Your Majesty is over thirty years old, but there is no concubine in the palace. If you don't take concubines to expand the family, Dasheng will be without an heir for a long time, which may cause unrest among the people and lead to instability in the country."
After saying the last word, Lu'e knocked her head to the ground and told Zong Zhengxiao in a submissive manner, "I am just a relayer. I hope Your Majesty will forgive me."
Zong Zheng Xiao only loves Rong Yin, and he is also a king with a strong desire to control his kingdom. These words undoubtedly touched both of his reverse scales at the same time.
After hearing her answer, Zong Zhengxiao quickly understood the real reason why Rong Yin behaved abnormally today.
In fact, the secret guard had reported to him before that there were some rumors in the capital about his selection of talents, but they were not spread on a large scale and had no impact, so Zong Zhengxiao did not care.
Because he had been told this before, when he asked the secret guard whether Rong Yin had encountered any bad things outside, the secret guard said no.
If Rong Yin had not acted awkward and evasive today, Zong Zhengxiao would never have linked the reason for Rong Yin's depression to these rumors.
Because on the day Rong Yin decided to stay, the two of them made a promise to be together forever. Rong Yin also said domineeringly that if he broke his promise and was with someone else, Rong Yin would kill him with her own hands.
Zong Zhengxiao thought that Rong Yin would definitely be dismissive of these rumors, but he didn't expect that he would care so much about them that he reacted like that when he heard what the palace maid said before she was dragged away.
But he didn't even notice Rong Yin's worries, and he even went crazy and forced Rong Yin. He deserves to die!
After Lu'e left, Zong Zhengxiao sat in the small study for a long time until dinner time, when he got up and went out to see Rong Yin.
But when he arrived, he found out that Rong Yin told the palace maid that he was not hungry and wanted to continue sleeping, so he did not come for dinner.
Zong Zhengxiao went to the inner bedroom, stood at the door, knocked, and said, "Ayin, fill your stomach before going to bed, okay? You didn't eat much today, it's not good for your health."
There was no sound from inside. He didn't know whether Rong Yin had fallen asleep or simply didn't want to respond to him.
Zong Zhengxiao stood at the door for a long time before leaving. He didn't touch the meal at all. He took it away exactly as it was served.
After Zong Zhengxiao went out, Lu'e also went to persuade Rong Yin. Rong Yin did respond to her, but with the same reason: he was not hungry, he just wanted to sleep.
He didn't even want to eat his favorite food, which was enough to show how bad Rong Yin's mood was at the moment. Lu'e naturally also heard from Si Xi what the emperor had done to Rong Yin today. Rong Yin must be very sad now.
Lu'e sighed, but in the end she was helpless.
While it was still early, Lu'e instructed the kitchen to always prepare hot meals in case Rong Yin suddenly wanted to eat and they could not serve them in time.
After that, she went to look at the store account book.
Unexpectedly, just after she turned two pages, her friend ran in and said anxiously: "Lu'e, something happened, go and have a look."
"What?" Lu'e was pulled out by her friend with a confused look on her face, and then she saw a scene that made her unbelievable.
Zong Zheng Xiao was seen taking off all the ornaments on his body, with his black hair loose, standing in the courtyard wearing only his underwear and trousers, without even a pair of shoes.
It was snowing heavily at the time, and soon his head was covered with snow.
Si Xi held the umbrella for him while begging him to go back, but Zong Zheng Xiao not only asked him to take the umbrella back, but also ordered him and all the palace servants not to find Rong Yin and tell him what he was doing. Anyone who violated the order would be killed.
The palace servants were frightened by his cold tone and shrank into silence, but knowing that he would keep his word, no one dared to think of going to inform Rong Yin.
Seeing that his persuasion did not move Zong Zhengxiao, Si Xi wanted to accompany him in the snow, but Zong Zhengxiao said, "You should work hard on something else now, which is the cause of all these consequences."
Si Xi understood what Zong Zheng Xiao meant, gritted his teeth, and made up his mind to leave, seizing the opportunity to catch the traitor.
Lu'e and the palace maids looked at Zong Zhengxiao, all at a loss. Zong Zhengxiao said in a cold tone: "You are all standing here. Are you very idle?"
The palace maids were frightened, and Lu'e quickly asked them to go about their own business. She and her friend stood where Zong Zhengxiao could not see them but not too far away from him, waiting, in case Zong Zhengxiao suddenly wanted to give orders and could not find anyone.
The friend glanced at Zong Zhengxiao quietly and asked Lu'e in a low voice: "Lu'e, are we really not going to tell the young master?"
Lu'e thought for a moment and shook her head: "Don't go, Your Majesty is not being sarcastic."
Lu'e probably understood why Zong Zhengxiao did this. He was punishing himself for bullying Rong Yin today.
From dusk till late at night, Zong Zheng Xiao stood there straight without moving at all, as if he was a sculpture that would not move.
Even Lu'e and her good friend who were standing by were unable to bear the cold. It was hard to imagine how Zong Zhengxiao felt standing in the snow and ice.
Inside the house, the lights were dim, and Rong Yin on the bed was suddenly awakened.
In fact, he did not fall asleep from the afternoon until Zong Zheng Xiao came to see him in the evening. He just sat on the bed, thinking about those messy things.
Later, perhaps due to the recurrence of fatigue from the day, he fell asleep without realizing it, and was not awakened until he was frightened by an indescribable feeling of panic.
The room was eerily quiet; Rong Yin could even hear his own slightly rapid breathing. He didn't know what time it was, but looking at the night sky outside the window, he thought it was already late.
Rong Yin had long been accustomed to having Zong Zheng Xiao accompany him when he slept. Now he was alone, and there was no sound of palace servants moving outside. It was so quiet that he felt as if he had been abandoned by the whole world.
Where is Zong Zhengxiao? What is he doing right now? Is he sad because of my escape today?
Rong Yin felt an impulse in his heart. He really wanted to see Zong Zheng Xiao, even if it was just for a glance.
He got out of bed, put on his shoes, and opened the door. The palace servant who was guarding outside immediately came forward and said, "Master, do you want to eat? The fire in the small kitchen has been left on."
Rong Yin shook his head and asked, "What time is it?"
The palace maid said, "It's past midnight."
It was past twelve in the morning.
"Have I slept that long?" Rong Yin murmured, and looked around the room. Zong Zhengxiao was not there, so he asked the palace maid, "Where is His Majesty?"
As soon as he said this, the palace maid's smiling expression froze instantly, but she soon softened her expression and said with a evasive look, "Your Majesty is busy."
"Is he in the study?" Rong Yin asked again.
This time the palace maids didn't dare to answer. The emperor didn't allow them to tell the young master what he was doing, and she couldn't lie to the young master either. She couldn't afford to offend both of them, so she could only remain silent.
Rong Yin suddenly felt uneasy, as if something bad had happened.
The palace maid didn't say anything, so he went to look for her himself. Just a few steps out of the door, Lu'e came to meet him.
"Master, why did you come out? If you need anything, just ask the servants to get it. You are only wearing a single layer of clothes, be careful not to freeze."
Even though she knew that Rong Yin was not afraid of the cold, when she saw Rong Yin appear in a completely human form, Lu'e couldn't help but treat him as a real human.
Rong Yin looked at her: "Lu'e, where is His Majesty?"
"This..." Lu'e hesitated.
Seeing that Lian Lu'e had the same expression, Rong Yin realized that his sixth sense was correct.
He strode towards the small study, thinking that Zong Zheng Xiao should be there. Lu'e and the others followed behind him, not daring to make any movement.
The visibility on winter nights was actually quite high due to the reflection of snow, but because Zong Zhengxiao was completely covered in snow, like a snowman, when Rong Yin turned the corner of the corridor and went to the small study, she did not immediately notice him in the courtyard.
But there was suddenly such a conspicuous "thing" in the courtyard that it was difficult for Rong Yin to ignore. When his eyes were attracted to it, Rong Yin's steps gradually slowed down and then stopped.
He looked at the snowman, blinked, felt a buzzing in his ears, and his lips trembled when he opened his mouth.
"That is... Your Majesty."
Lu'e and the others did not answer, which was considered as their tacit agreement.
Rong Yin's eyes immediately turned red, and her voice trembled: "How could this happen..."
After saying that, he jumped down the corridor, waded through the snow quickly step by step, and ran towards the snowman.
Lu'e and the others followed quickly.
Rong Yin came to the "snowman" and raised her hand to remove the snow on the "snowman"'s face. When she saw the familiar face that was frozen purple, Rong Yin could no longer control her tears and they fell.
"Your Majesty..." Rong Yin cried out in tears.
Hearing Rong Yin's voice and feeling the warmth of his fingertips, Zong Zheng Xiao wanted to respond to him, but he couldn't even open his mouth.
Before his consciousness fell into darkness, Zong Zheng Xiao only remembered that he fell down and Rong Yin caught him steadily.
In the middle of the night, the old doctor was sleeping soundly when he was grabbed from his bed and taken to the Silver Shark Garden. When he heard that something happened to the emperor, the little sleepiness he had left was instantly scared away.
When she saw Zong Zheng Xiao soaking in warm water, his face ashen, with a few pieces of ice still on his hair, looking like he was about to die, the old doctor sighed silently, and in her heart she thought it was a sin that so many bad things happened to him.
The tears on Rong Yin's face had not yet dried, and she cried to the old doctor, "Please save him."
"Young Master, there is no need to ask. This is my duty."
Although the old doctor was panicking, she acted quickly. She checked Zong Zhengxiao's whole body, and after making sure that he was not going to die for the time being, she had someone feed him a pill, and then wrote a prescription and asked the palace maids to get and boil the medicine.
Rong Yin knew no medical knowledge, so he could only stand aside as much as possible to avoid causing trouble for the old doctor.
But as she watched the old doctor treating Zong Zheng Xiao, Rong Yin couldn't hold back her tears anymore.
Lu'e had just told him that Zong Zhengxiao stood there just after the You hour until he went over to him. During this period, Zong Zhengxiao refused to give up or move at all, and also did not allow the palace servants to tell him about this.
Zong Zhengxiao did all this because he felt sorry for him and was punishing himself.
Not seeking his forgiveness is simply self-punishment.
Lu'e also told Rong Yin about the time she went to Zong Zhengxiao to apologize after she came back in the afternoon, the questions Zong Zhengxiao asked her, and her answers.
Rong Yin thought that Zong Zheng Xiao should already know why he was upset.
Lu'e handed Rong Yin a handkerchief and said softly, "Master, don't cry. Be careful not to hurt your eyes. Then you won't be able to take care of His Majesty."
There were so many palace maids in the garden, and the imperial physician was present, so there was actually no need for Rong Yin to take care of Zong Zheng Xiao. However, Lu'e knew that he cared about Zong Zheng Xiao, so she advised him like this.
This trick really worked: "Okay, I won't cry anymore. I still have to protect His Majesty."
As Rong Yin spoke, she wiped her tears with a handkerchief, while suppressing her emotions that were about to collapse.
It was not until three or four in the morning that Zong Zhengxiao was put to bed. The imperial physician warned that Zong Zhengxiao might have a fever and that someone had to keep an eye on him and cool him down.
Rong Yin saw that the old doctor was so old and had been busy for so long that she was a little shaky when she stood.
He asked the palace maid to take the imperial physician to rest, and to call him again when a situation arose that he could not solve.
The old doctor was really tired, so she did not refuse and followed the palace maid.
Rong Yin sat beside the bed, holding Zong Zhengxiao's hand, looking into his tightly closed eyes, and pursed her lips in sadness and helplessness.
He didn't cry, but his emotions were so unstable that he couldn't calm down at all.
Although the lovemaking in the afternoon was not voluntary, he was not actually angry with Zong Zhengxiao, because he could understand Zong Zhengxiao's thoughts. His lover ignored him and didn't tell him about his worries. He was worried but could only guess what he was thinking. Anyone would feel uncomfortable.
Moreover, Zong Zhengxiao's possessiveness towards him was too strong, so he did such a thing in the heat of the moment.
After returning to Yinjiao Garden, Rong Yin simply felt that her mind was confused and it was not suitable for her to stay with Zong Zhengxiao, so she avoided being in the same room with him.
This was also the reason why he did not respond to Zong Zhengxiao during dinner.
He never imagined that Zong Zheng Xiao would do this for him.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have been so willful..." Rong Yin put his forehead into Zong Zhengxiao's palm and confessed with sobs.
Zong Zheng Xiao, who was sleeping, seemed to have heard his words. His brows were slightly furrowed, and his eyeballs kept moving, as if he was sleeping very restlessly.
As the imperial physician had expected, Zong Zhengxiao indeed developed a fever.
Rong Yin used a cloth soaked in ice water to wipe Zong Zhengxiao's body, repeating the process over and over again until dawn, when Zong Zhengxiao's fever gradually subsided.
After daybreak, the imperial physician came to examine the emperor and said that everything would be fine once the fever subsided. All that was left was for His Majesty to do was wait for him to wake up and take a few more doses of medicine and he would be fine.
He will remain in the garden until Your Majesty wakes up.
Before leaving, the imperial physician advised Rong Yin: "Young Master, go and rest for a while. I see that you look very haggard. Don't catch a cold by accident."
Rong Yin shook her head and forced a polite smile: "Thank you, doctor. I feel fine. If I really can't hold on any longer, I will go and rest on my own."
Seeing his resolute attitude, the imperial physician did not try to persuade him much.
Near noon, Si Xi came back and brought back good news and bad news.
The good news is that the traitor in Yinjiaoyuan has been caught. The bad news is that the palace maid who tried to alienate Zong Zhengxiao and Rong Yin is dead. She had hidden poison in her teeth, and after enduring a night of torture, perhaps unable to bear the pain, she committed suicide by taking poison.
Rong Yin rubbed his forehead and asked, "Didn't she reveal any information at all?"
Si Xi shook his head: "She was stubborn and refused to admit anything. She only said that she loved Your Majesty and was considering the whole Da Sheng, so she planned to become Your Majesty's concubine... The old slave and the guards are investigating who is behind her."
Rong Yin asked again: "Who is the ghost in Yinjiao Garden?"
Si Xi mentioned a name, a young eunuch. Rong Yin didn't have a deep impression of him and guessed that he was not serving in the front.
Si Xi found out that the young eunuch was led to participate in the underground gambling in the palace. They swindled all his savings and coaxed him into borrowing money to gamble, which eventually led to a gambling debt so high that he could not repay it in his lifetime.
The people who had deceived him revealed their true colors at this time, saying that if the young eunuch did not listen to them, they would spread the news that he was involved in gambling, which palace was a big violation of rules. Not only would he be punished, but he would also be expelled from Ginyamon Garden.
And if he couldn't pay his gambling debts, they would kill him.
Under their repeated pressure, the young eunuch had no choice but to agree to monitor Zong Zhengxiao and Rong Yin's actions and whereabouts for them, and then inform them in time.
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