The person who went to answer the door was Xie Shiguan. It was clear that there had been no response for more than half an hour, but the concubine and the maid outside the door were still waiting. Moreover, even though they were left outside the hall for such a long time by the master of the mansion for no reason, they did not show the slightest sign of anxiety.
She was a girl raised in a noble family. Even though she and Chen were not actually husband and wife, she always took good care of herself in public.
"Your Highness, have you woken up?" She smiled gracefully and enunciated her words clearly.
Although he knew clearly that she and the mute were not actually married, Xie Shiguan still felt inexplicably jealous. After all, she was the legitimate wife who was married to King Ping in a formal ceremony with the three books and six ceremonies. During her lifetime, her name was engraved on a jade disc along with King Ping's. After her death, someone arranged to bury her and King Ping together in the royal tomb.
But Xie Shiguan showed no emotion on his face. Instead, he politely invited her in. "Your Highness has just woken up. I am sorry to have kept you waiting in the corridor for so long."
Behind a long desk in the main room, Shen, who had changed into a clean casual suit, sat upright. Even after being married for several years, the princess in front of him still made him feel strange and distant.
Today she was wearing a red shirt that was narrow and wrapped around her arms, and a very thin red skirt. This style had long been out of fashion even in Yingchuan, outside the capital.
Since she married into the palace, she had never worn such gorgeous clothes. Such gorgeous silk, powder, and fragrant hair made people unable to take their eyes away: "This is what I often wore when I was thirteen years old. Now it seems a little small."
Chen Que's face was filled with fatigue, and he didn't understand why she suddenly mentioned this to him, so he raised his hand without paying much attention and said, "If the princess likes it, let the embroiderer cut out a piece that fits her."
The princess shook her head slowly. The teeth marks on Xie Shiguan's face were so conspicuous that it was impossible for her not to see them. She was just pretending to be deaf and dumb. Now that she had entered the house and vaguely caught a glimpse of the scars on Shen Que's neck, she began to feel a little suspicious.
"Your Highness, please listen to me," she continued, "It was also when I was thirteen that I met a young man beside my brother. He was a man of great talent and literary talent. Unfortunately, he was born in a humble family. He was just the son of a ninth-rank official. I was destined to have no chance to be with him."
She had never mentioned these words to anyone else, let alone to her nominal husband, but when she mentioned that man, her eyes seemed to sparkle with a smile.
"When I was fifteen, my parents agreed to a marriage with the royal family and promised me to His Highness. I cannot disobey my parents' orders, and I cannot bully the royal family. If I disobey, I am afraid that my whole family will be implicated." She paused at this point, and then continued, "For the glory of the family, and to live up to the kindness of my parents in raising me, I have endured for many years..."
"Last year he passed the imperial examination and ranked second on the list. He thought he would be able to rise to prominence in the officialdom, but he was framed by a villain and was demoted to Lingnan by the government. Today he arrived in Yingchuan and stayed here for a while. I..."
Her eyes fell: "I also want to live for myself."
The princess was very sensitive and understood that although Shen had no romantic feelings for her, he always seemed to have an indelible sense of guilt in his heart.
She dared to take such a risk to be honest because she expected that His Royal Highness Prince Ping would be kind and soft-hearted. Even if he didn't want her to get away, he would definitely not drag her and her family into it.
Before Chen Que could raise his hand, the attendant beside him smiled first: "The princess is so affectionate, it is really touching. Your Highness, why don't you do a good deed and let this unfortunate couple go?"
Although Shen Que knew that he was not her right person, he had always followed the rules. Sending his wife into the arms of another man was such an immoral and unreasonable thing, which was extremely absurd no matter how he thought about it.
So he raised his hand: "Princess, how do you know that person will treat you well?"
She could stay in this palace and be a well-behaved princess, without any concubines or illegitimate children to bother her in the backyard. During the New Year's Day and spring holidays, she could go back to Beijing to visit her parents and sisters. At least she would be rich and prosperous, with no worries about food and clothing.
But the princess seemed determined to go, and she knelt down in front of the table and said, "I am willing to go with him, to fish, to farm, to study, to wash one's mouth with stones and to sleep by the stream, and even if I become a peasant woman, I will never regret it."
Chen had nothing more to say, so he could only turn his head to signal Xie Shiguan to spread out paper and ink, and write a letter of divorce to her.
Xie Shiguan refused to move: "Your Highness, why bother? If you send this letter of divorce, you will inevitably be questioned by the emperor and empress in the capital. By then, I am afraid that the princess's mother's family will also be disgraced. It is better to..."
Shen moved his hands slowly: "Why not what?"
"It would be better to falsely claim that the princess contracted a serious illness and unfortunately passed away, and then hold a grand funeral. From then on, the princess would take off all her old things and live in another place under an assumed name."
This arrangement was naturally more appropriate than the letter of divorce. Even if he was willing to let his wife go home, her parents might not agree to let her go to the place of exile with that poor scholar.
Shen looked at the woman below him: "Have you really thought it through?"
The woman nodded without hesitation.
That afternoon, His Royal Highness Prince Ping led the "Princess" hearse to the royal mausoleum which had already been built, and then watched the servants carry the coffin into the mausoleum.
When the sun sets, the coffin is also buried.
After several days of red tape and torture of drums and gongs, the sudden silence made Shen feel a little uncomfortable.
The clouds in the sky were so faint that they could not be seen clearly. On the way back, a snowflake fell from the sky. The gongs, drums, and suonas all stopped, and all that was left was the coldness and silence that covered the entire mountain.
Shen suddenly felt a little lonely. Now even the person who was nominally with him had left. His life seemed just like the falling winter snow between heaven and earth.
Dry and dull.
But at this moment, a person and an umbrella suddenly approached him and came close to his side. He subconsciously turned his head and saw the person's bright smile again: "I have gone everywhere to borrow an umbrella for Your Highness, but Your Highness won't wait for me?"
It was a very simple oil umbrella with a very small umbrella, which forced the two of them to stand close together. The man must have been running to catch up with him, for when he came close to him, he was slightly panting and his body was full of heat.
Xie Shiguan always wanted to be intimate with him regardless of the occasion, just like now under the oil umbrella, with a funeral procession of servants following closely behind, but he also whispered to him as if no one was around: "You have been busy for so many days, when will Your Highness give me the key?"
But Shen pretended not to understand and said coldly: “You don’t need to serve here.”
After saying that, he grabbed the umbrella handle and tried to snatch the umbrella away.
Xie Shiguan was trying hard to give him the umbrella, but he still had that smiling look on his face: "If Your Highness is unwilling to give it to me, then I will have no choice but to ask the locksmith to come to your house and grind a key for you on the spot."
Ever since the mistress of the house disappeared, Xie Shiguan became more and more reckless. He would stay in Prince Ping's bedroom every day under the pretext of keeping watch, but he just wouldn't stay there and keep watch.
When it was quiet and quiet, this man would squat beside Shen Que's couch, whispering in his ear that he was cold, asking His Highness to save him. Once Shen Que was awakened from his sleep, he would force himself onto the couch...
There were many mourners at the funeral, and he had to attend many procedures in person. He was tortured by the bad guy at night and felt exhausted during the day. After a few days of torment, Shen could not bear it anymore, so he secretly sent someone to the black market to find Hu and order a set of chastity locks.
Although the rubbing was a bit uncomfortable, Shen still endured it in order to protect himself from this madman.
Xie Shiguan couldn't eat the belt for several days, and he felt so itchy that he wanted to saw the belt with a knife.
But Shen was still cold: "That was made by foreigners. How can an ordinary locksmith easily make a lock?"
Your Highness never deals with the outside world, so he doesn't know that as long as one can afford the money and have the connections, there are probably many skilled craftsmen among the lower class. However, a mere key is not a problem for them at all.
Xie Shiguan was reluctant to inquire about the matter because he did not want his prince to be seen naked by others. Even if it was just a small piece of flesh under the petticoat, he did not want others to see it.
"If you are... really lonely," Chen Que suddenly raised his hand to discuss with him, "I can also take the trouble to find a woman for you. If you two are destined to be together, the betrothal gifts and dowry will be paid by the palace. As long as you are willing to be content, I will definitely give you a house and a shop."
The smile on Xie Shiguan's face suddenly fell, but Chen thought he was dissatisfied, so he added: "If you want to become an official, I can also donate a small official position for you..."
Before he could finish his gesture, Xie Shiguan suddenly grasped his wrist, his eyes mixed with light and dark: "Your Highness, do you think this is what I want?"
"Otherwise," Shen opened his lips and asked silently, "How about the zither player singing a little?"
Young men from respectable families would certainly not be willing to commit themselves to a man. Only those actors and singers who make money from men would be willing to follow only one man after spending a sum of money to redeem them.
Xie Shiguan couldn't laugh anymore. He spent days and nights with the mute, and thought he was considerate and caring, but the mute actually thought he was...
He's just after money and lust, so he'll take anyone he wants.
He said nothing, but just stuffed the umbrella into his hand and angrily retreated to the end of the team. Shen turned around quietly to take a look, but couldn't find him.
The bad guy seemed to be angry. He should have hoped that he would be as far away from him as possible, but when he saw the only warmth beside him disappear, His Royal Highness Prince Ping felt inexplicably melancholy, and his heart became more and more empty and cold.
He must be crazy to be attached to that person's morbid enthusiasm.
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