Chapter 55 Chapter 55 Part 1: End of Prison
"Quanquan..."
He hugged her.
But Du Lingjing stretched out her hand and pressed it against his chest in resistance.
She clenched her fists and pressed them against his chest.
Her strength was insignificant to Lu Shenru, but this insignificant force, when it penetrated his chest, was like a pair of sharp knives piercing into his chest.
The man felt a pain in his heart, but he held her even tighter and held her in his arms.
She naturally resisted more, but she couldn't resist him with her strength, but she seemed to try her best and refused to submit.
If this continues, she will get hurt.
Lu Shenru felt a headache and was about to let her go, but she had already let go of him.
Lu Shenru paused, and when he thought she had finally stopped resisting him, he saw her closing her eyes.
She no longer resisted and let him hold her, but she closed her eyes. She looked cold and didn't even look at him.
The bitterness in Lu Shenru's mouth was like the juice of Coptis chinensis, spreading between the tip of his tongue and the gaps between his teeth.
"Quanquan." he called her.
Only her dense eyelashes trembled slightly.
Outside, snow was falling, and the man's mouth was bitter. He stretched out his hand, gently rubbed the fine hair on her temples with his fingertips, lowered his head to her face, and kissed her cheek lightly.
But she was very indifferent and turned her head away.
The silent resistance penetrated into people's hearts inch by inch more than her insignificant strength.
The man had no choice but to put her back on the bed.
But as soon as he put her back, she turned around in silence and turned her back to him.
The snow fell heavier this spring night, whistling in the wind and almost bending the beams of the house.
The man felt dizzy and stuffy in his chest. He looked back and refused to pay attention to his wife. He didn't know how he would get through the long dark night.
... ...
As soon as the court meeting ended, someone approached Dou Ge Lao's side.
Dou Ge Lao had lost a lot of weight due to the cold he caught a year ago, and his long beard was mixed with a few white strands. At this moment, he heard someone beside him say.
"Have you noticed, Lord? Marquis Lu seems to be in a bad mood today. The Emperor asked three questions just now, but Marquis Lu didn't answer immediately."
As he was whispering, Dou Ge Lao saw the young Marquis Yongding, with whom he had been fighting fiercely, striding out of the hall with a cold and stern look as if no one was allowed to approach him.
When the person who was speaking saw him approaching with a cold face, he immediately shut up, not wanting to provoke him for no reason.
But Dou Ge Lao was not afraid. Instead, he stayed and waited for him for a few seconds.
"My Lord, at this age, it is the right time for him to be trapped by love. There is no need to worry too much. If you can keep him, then keep him. If you can't keep him, then just let him go."
As he spoke, seeing that Lord Lu's face became increasingly gloomy, Dou Ge Lao stroked his beard and advised him even more.
"When I was young, I was also trapped by love. It didn't matter if it was between men and women, but there were always some hard-to-let-go emotions that tied me up. Later, I broke them all off, which made me feel relieved."
As Dou Ge Lao said this, he looked at the young prince with a smile.
He heard everything about how he and the marquis' wife, whom he had just married for half a year, walked in the wind and snow on the streets of the city yesterday, and who his marquis' wife had met in the Pillow Moon Tower before.
Seeing that Lord Lu had an extremely ugly expression on his face, he said.
"People are like this, you can only gain if you give."
When Lord Dou said this, Lu Shenru hummed and laughed instead.
He glanced at the old man who was still silent even though the Shao family was silent.
"Don't worry, Lord. I am reluctant to leave, but I have to do it anyway. Lord, you should worry more about His Royal Highness Prince Yong when you have time. If you keep getting close to Shao, the Emperor will be displeased."
After he said that, he didn't want to say another word to the old man and walked away in anger.
Dou Ge Lao was not angry, but he thought of the Du family and the Du Mansion in Chengqingfang. He stood silently in front of the hall and glanced in the direction of Chengqingfang...
Lu Shenru asked Chongping as soon as he left the palace.
"How is your wife doing at home today?"
Chongping glanced at him and replied in a low voice.
"Madam was at home today, and there was no difference from the past. She was just a little quieter. She was repairing books in the west wing early in the morning and didn't say much."
The man felt heavy in his heart and his pace quickened. After he got on the horse, he rode straight back.
He returned home, strode into the main courtyard, and looked towards the west wing. Sure enough, he saw that she was still editing books in the west wing.
Today's court meeting lasted quite a long time. Now the sun was hanging high in the sky, but she was still editing her book.
Lu Shenru took a step inside, and the noise seemed to be a little louder, so she looked up at him.
The man walked closer and saw a few new books that looked like military books on the side of her desk. He had never seen them before.
But before he could see clearly, she pressed him down with a pile of books and put them back into the box below.
She put the book away and continued repairing it.
But when she looked up just now, he caught sight of her red eyes.
Last night, she turned away and he refused to pay attention to her, but her breathing never became long. It was not until the second half of the night that he heard her fall asleep.
My eyes are so red today, how can I still sit at the desk and edit books?
He took a step forward and placed his hand on hers.
"Your eyesight is not good. You can't keep reading like this."
But when he said go, she just pulled it away from his hand and turned to the bookshelf beside her.
Lu Shenru felt anxious and followed her footsteps, only to see that she had turned to the other side.
He decided to go all the way and simply carried her directly to the couch under the window.
She didn't want to, but he pushed her against the window and put his nose against hers.
"Don't be like this, Quanquan... Don't ignore me, don't not talk to me."
He begged her in a low voice, gently rubbing the tip of her nose, and the bottom of his lips also rubbed the corner of her lips.
He tried to kiss her gently. Du Lingjing raised her eyes and glared at him, then immediately raised her hand to push him away, but he didn't want to. His breathing quickened, but he just pressed against her lips, pecking her lips very gently.
He no longer attacked her as usual, but just pecked her gently, a little at a time, and carefully stroked her face with his fingertips.
He seemed to want to peck her down and make her soft, he wanted to make peace with her.
Du Lingjing felt sad, but inexplicably, her heart softened when he begged for peace so gently.
She didn't push him away or resist anymore, and he noticed it immediately. He pecked her lips a little harder, curved his eyes slightly, and pulled her into his arms.
But Du Lingjing raised her eyes and slowly looked into his eyes.
If he could tell her all the lies and concealments, she could forgive him...
There was a thick layer of snow outside the window from last night, and the sunlight was slowly melting the snow.
She looked at him.
She looked at him with her watery eyes, and Lu Shenru understood what she meant in an instant.
But the man paused and pursed his lips.
The room was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
Du Lingjing also understood what he meant.
She smiled very lightly.
The clouds blocked the sun, and the ice and snow outside no longer melted into spring water, but only turned into solid ice in the cold wind.
He could hug her, kiss her, and coax her, but he couldn't tell her the truth that she wanted him to tell her.
... ...
There was a cold rain in the afternoon, and the snow that had not melted in the morning was covered by the cold rain and turned into ice.
Chongping saw the Marquis in the study of Yuanxiu Pavilion, with a sullen expression, eyes closed and no words.
He didn't say anything, and no one in the entire Yuanxiu Pavilion dared to say anything. Chongping personally brought tea into the study.
The man didn't look at him, but Chongping spoke.
"My Lord, I can actually help you and your wife with those old matters..."
But before he could finish his words, the man interrupted him in a deep voice.
"Don't mention it."
"But the lady..."
The man still shook his head. The atmosphere in the study was cold and depressing, as if all the ice formed by the remaining snow was standing in the study.
Lu Shenru looked out the window, somewhere far away.
"I only met her three years ago when I passed by Qingzhou. There was no earlier meeting."
He called Chongping.
"You shouldn't talk too much."
The Marquis would not say it, nor would he be allowed to say it.
Chongping sighed silently and could only agree.
"yes."
... ...
When he returned to the room at night, Lu Shenru saw that his wife had fallen asleep, but from her breathing, she was obviously not asleep.
"Why don't you let people light the ground dragon? It's still cold."
He went to ask, but no one in the tent paid any attention to him.
The man sighed lightly, took off his clothes and went into the tent.
When he entered the tent, he reached out and hugged her. Du Lingjing moved, but he refused to let go.
Hot palms and iron arms hugged her tightly.
He made it impossible for her to resist, so she just said.
"Go to sleep."
... ...
For the next few days, he held her in his arms until she fell asleep every day, without saying a single extra word.
Just as he didn't need her to know that he had requested an imperial decree to force her to marry him, she didn't need to hear the answer she wanted from him at this moment.
Du Lingjing smiled faintly.
He read and edited books in silence, compiled them into a collection, and asked Manager Zhao to print and distribute them.
She seemed to be doing fine, but Lu Shenru came home more and more frequently. Only when he saw her in the courtyard did he feel a little more at ease.
However, a mutiny broke out in Kaiping Wei, and Tartars infiltrated the army, disrupting the morale of the troops. Upon hearing the news, he immediately sent Chongping to rush over.
The incident was not a big deal, and only injured a few generals, but it was quickly suppressed. However, the emperor was extremely uneasy, and he called him at the court meeting and asked him to go there specially.
"The Tartars have been getting more rampant recently. They injured the son of the Duke Zhongqing in Ningxia a few days ago. It would be better for you to go there in person this time."
Because of the incident with his two evil sons, he transferred Earl Rongchang back to Xi'an to take charge, and he also transferred Earl Zhongqing's son Wei Cong to Ningxia. Unexpectedly, the Tartars launched a sudden attack, and Wei Cong encountered this battle before he had time to familiarize himself with the Ningxia army. Fortunately, he reacted very quickly and drove the Tartars back outside the pass, but he was also injured.
His injuries were not light. Besides being the eldest son of the Earl of Zhongqing, he was also the son-in-law of Prince Yu and the husband of Princess Nianjia. The Emperor took good care of him and ordered him to return to the capital to recuperate.
Wei Cong had not yet returned to the capital, and he didn't want something to happen in Kaiping Wei again.
The emperor was uneasy and ordered Lu Shenru to go in person.
When the man returned home at night, he found his wife had gone to bed again.
He stroked her shoulders and wanted to say something to her, but she just acted like she was completely asleep and refused to pay attention to him.
The man sighed, but in the middle of the night, she suddenly woke up.
She was still a little dazed after waking up, so he immediately got up and put clothes on her.
"Are you thirsty? Would you like some tea?"
She was stunned for a moment, then came to her senses and wanted to get up and go down by herself, but he held her shoulders.
"Don't get out of bed. I'll go get you a cup of warm tea."
The night wind made the door creak. As he spoke, he poured her some warm tea.
She drank the tea and he took the cup.
He did not turn off the small lamp immediately, but said something after thinking it over.
"I will be returning to Beijing in two days. Would you mind bringing back a few pots of flowers along the way?"
She looked over, and Lu Shenru sighed softly and looked at his wife.
"Wait for me at home."
After he finished speaking, he turned around and turned off the lights. He didn't notice that Du Lingjing was behind him. She looked at him several times before pursing her lips and looking away.
Before dawn the next day, the marquis rode out of the capital on the remaining snow.
He didn't know what he said, but Du Lingjing realized that Chong'an had been secretly looking at her.
She read for a while as usual, and when it was getting late, she suddenly gave instructions to Qiu Lin.
"I haven't been out for a while. Ask someone to harness the car and go out for a walk."
Chong'an was secretly looking at her again, but she pretended not to see it and said again.
"Go and invite Guard An over and tell him about this."
... ...
It happened faster than expected.
Lu Shenru had just arrived at Kaiping Wei on horseback when Chong'an, who was in the marquis's mansion in the capital, hurriedly sent someone to report.
"My Lord, the lady is gone! I don't know where she went!"
The news was like a thunderstorm and lightning, suddenly hitting Lu Shenru's heart. Even though he had expected it, his heart went numb when he heard it in person.
She was really leaving. All the intimacy between her and him since they got married no longer counted. She was really leaving.
The general of Kaiping Wei asked and rode his horse and brought people to meet him.
"Why did the Marquis come in person? The rebellion has been quelled, and there are only some trivial matters left. Why does the Marquis need to come in person..."
But before he could finish his words, he heard the Marquis suddenly give orders.
The Marquis gave him more than a dozen instructions. The generals had never heard the Marquis speak so much before. Before they could come to their senses, they saw the Marquis suddenly ride his horse back.
"My Lord?!" The generals looked at each other in bewilderment.
... ...
Chong'an finally waited for the Marquis to come back. His brother followed behind the Marquis and realized that he had not stopped the lady. The look in his eyes at this moment seemed to scare him.
But the Marquis didn't have time to care about all these. He asked someone to report the situation and he discovered the problem in no time.
"Go check the Dou family's carriages. All the carriages that have left the capital since Madam left the mansion should be checked!"
The man gave orders in a stern voice and no one dared to disobey.
Within an hour, we found a clue!
Du Lingjing woke up in the middle of the night.
This place was very remote, but inexplicably, she seemed to hear the sound of galloping horses outside the courtyard.
If she listened carefully with bated breath, there was no sound; but as soon as she closed her eyes, she could feel the familiar sound of horse hooves, thumping on her heart.
Her heart was dulled and ached by the inexplicable sound of horse hooves. She stopped sleeping and called Qiulin, Ruan Gong and the others to pack their luggage and continue on the road.
But before leaving the courtyard, she took something out of her sleeve.
The key, which looked like an exquisite building, still carried her scent and warmth. She wiped it with a handkerchief to remove her scent and warmth, and placed it on the table in the middle of the room.
The night wind was blowing outside, blowing in through the wide open door.
This capital city was not something she wanted to come to in the first place. If he saw this thing, would he understand what she meant?
Let her go back to her Qingzhou.
Tears fell from the corners of her eyes. Du Lingjing raised her hand to wipe them away. She took one last look at the key, turned around and disappeared into the night wind...
When Lu Shenru arrived, the lights in the room were off.
There was still a hint of her warmth remaining on the key, but it was blown away by the wind outside and dissipated at his fingertips.
The man closed his eyes.
"Master, are you still chasing?"
Madam really wants to leave.
But the man's hoarse voice only uttered one word.
"Chase!"
... ...
But she was very sharp. Not only did she evacuate in advance, she also changed the route temporarily.
Lu Shenru searched three or four places, but all he saw was the trap she had set up, and no trace of her was seen at all.
The man felt as if his chest was pressed down by a huge rock, but he also felt uneasy as if it had been completely hollowed out.
He didn't think she could hide completely, but he couldn't find her after searching in several places.
For a moment, even he panicked.
The tightness in his chest became even more unbearable. If he had known earlier, he would have thought of a way not to leave Beijing, or simply take her with him and keep her under his eyes all the time...
The reports from various places were still empty.
The man pressed his lips tightly and whipped the horse forward coldly.
However, just when his way was blocked by a town gathering, he suddenly saw a figure in the crowd.
Lu Shenru's eyes suddenly brightened, he dismounted from his horse and strode forward.
Until he walked behind her, she was suddenly bumped by the crowd and he put his hand on her shoulder.
"Thank you very much."
But the next moment she turned her head and saw him, her eyes widened in surprise.
... ...
"May I ask Lord Lu, what are you thinking about?"
"I am thinking only of you, my lady."
... ...
In the carriage back to Beijing.
The man stopped riding the horse and sat in the carriage with his wife, holding her hand tightly.
Du Lingjing looked at him, and he looked back, his eyes full of deep emotion.
The force in his hand was so strong that she felt a little pain. She wanted to pull away, but he wouldn't let her.
Before, she felt that she couldn't read his mind, but now she just felt that she couldn't understand him at all.
"My Lord, do you really want to trap me in the capital?"
The man spoke softly, but said, "Yes."
Du Lingjing turned her head and looked out the car window.
The wind heading towards the capital city blows through the bamboo forest.
The familiar fragrance of bamboo leaves blew in through the car window, and she couldn't help but take a few more glances.
But the person next to him suddenly said, "Change the route and leave this place."
Before Du Lingjing could react, the carriage had hurriedly changed its route and left the bamboo forest in the distance.
She was stunned. Lu Shenru watched from the corner of his eye and remained silent.
She had never treated him with even one-fifth of the tenderness she had shown her former fiancés Jiang Zhuxiu and Jiang Sanlang, and now she had even less than half the tenderness.
This time, she made up her mind to leave him.
But she and he are the couple who are destined to be together forever.
... ...
He had an imperial decree and could not spend the night in the Marquis's mansion, so he sent her back and left. Before leaving, he just looked at her a few more times.
Du Lingjing was tired.
Looking at the main courtyard of the Marquis' Mansion which she had just left but was brought back to, she sat in front of the dressing table behind the banana window and was in a trance for a long time.
Qiulin was afraid that something might happen to her, so he stayed by her side all the time.
She said she was fine, this was the Marquis's Mansion and where she had lived for several months, not a dungeon.
Of course he couldn't come back that night.
But Du Ling sat quietly under the window thinking all night, she didn't know what he really wanted.
But if he didn't let her go back to Qingzhou, she could always go back to Chengqingfang.
If her father were here, he would definitely take her home.
She and he should both calm down.
That night, she sorted out her mood again and again. Before dawn the next day, she asked Qiulin and the others to pack up and prepare to return to Chengqingfang.
But just as she arrived at the gate of the marquis's mansion, the door was suddenly closed tightly by the guards.
Chong'an stepped forward quickly, and Du Lingjing asked him, "What does this mean?"
Chong'an bowed his head and saluted, "Madam, you cannot leave."
Du Ling was silent for a moment, "I'm not leaving the capital, I just want to go back to live in Chengqingfang."
She didn't want to explain the past, but Chong'an still shook his head.
"The Marquis has ordered that from today onwards, your companions must be accompanied by the Marquis's guards when leaving the mansion. And you..."
When Chong'an looked over, Du Lingjing's heart skipped a beat.
There was a cold wind blowing in front of the mansion gate, and she heard Chong'an say.
"And Madam, you are not allowed to leave the mansion without the Marquis's permission."
The cold wind at the door whipped the man's orders into her ears over and over again.
Du Lingjing was completely stunned.
He is not in Beijing.
But at this moment, the huge marquis' mansion turned into a huge prison, tall, cold and deep, with no one able to pass through.
He imprisoned her in a prison called Yongding Marquis Mansion.
Without his order, she couldn't take a single step forward.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
