Late at night, Shen Hechuan slowly opened his eyes.
As soon as she opened her eyes, she was met with Gu Jingchun's face, which was inches away from hers.
She was lying on the edge of the bed, her head resting on her arm, fast asleep.
Shen Hechuan's breath hitched, and he subconsciously relaxed his breathing, afraid of disturbing Gu Jingchun.
Just yesterday, after hearing Emperor Rongcheng's words, he had a fleeting thought of letting Gu Jingchun leave.
He became somewhat afraid after hearing what Emperor Rongcheng said.
She feared that she might end up like Emperor Rongcheng, just as Gu Jingchun had described.
She feared that Gu Jingchun would end up like her mother, trapped in the deep palace, gradually becoming numb and losing herself.
But looking at Gu Jingchun's face, how could he bear to let go?!
He may be selfish and despicable.
Even so, he couldn't bear to let her go.
Thinking of this, his gaze fell on Gu Jingchun's face, scrutinizing him carefully.
The lines traveled down her smooth forehead, across her slender eyes and high nose, finally landing on her rosy lips.
Under the dim light, her lips looked like cherry blossoms just beginning to bloom on a spring branch.
Its pinkish-white hue was delicate and soft, as if it were silently extending an invitation, stirring Shen Hechuan's heartstrings and making him involuntarily move closer.
Feeling her quiet breathing, Shen Hechuan almost paused his own breathing for a moment.
Just as the kiss was about to land on her lips, Gu Jingchun frowned, clearly feeling unwell and about to wake up.
Shen Hechuan was startled and instinctively tried to lean back.
Unexpectedly, this aggravated the wound on his back, causing him to gasp in pain and groan.
It was this muffled groan that made Gu Jingchun open his eyes and look at Shen Hechuan.
Despite the pain, Shen Hechuan subconsciously leaned back, afraid that Gu Jingchun would be unhappy if she saw him.
Gu Jingchun was only surprised for a moment before he immediately stood up, turned around and was about to leave to call Dizhi over, but his hand was grabbed by Shen Hechuan again.
"Do you hate me that much?"
Shen Hechuan spoke.
"They wanted to run away as soon as they saw me, and wouldn't even look at me?"
Um?
Gu Jingchun frowned in confusion.
When did she start to dislike him?
When Shen Hechuan saw her frowning, he thought he was right. His eyes dimmed and he struggled to get up.
"In that case, I'll leave, so I won't get in your way."
Seeing that Shen Hechuan was about to get up, Gu Jingchun quickly stepped forward and pressed him down.
"Your wound has just been treated, so you can't move it right now."
As she spoke, she pressed Shen Hechuan back onto the bed and quickly explained:
"I don't hate you, nor do I want to leave. I just saw you were awake and wanted to go out and call someone for you."
Shen Hechuan, however, seemed somewhat disbelieving.
Upon hearing this, Gu Jingchun didn't explain, but simply shouted in the direction of the door.
"Your Highness has woken up."
Soon, Tianji and Dizhi knocked on the door and hurriedly came in.
"Your Highness, you're finally awake."
Tianji spoke first.
"Your subordinate was terrified. Miss Gu was worried about you and stayed up all night to watch over you."
Gu Jingchun: ...
Is she the one who stays by my side?
She was being held by the hand and couldn't walk at all!
******
Meanwhile, in Huian Palace...
Consort Hui paced back and forth anxiously.
"It's been two days already, why hasn't His Majesty come to my palace yet?"
This has never happened before.
Previously, whenever she went to see Emperor Rongcheng, he would always come and tell her, no matter how busy he was.
But now, she has sent people to Wanhe Palace several times to plead her case, yet she still hasn't seen Emperor Rongcheng.
This made her somewhat uneasy.
Could it be because of that woman, Jiang Xianhao?
Thinking of how Emperor Rongcheng had actually gone to Jingyu Palace to find that woman a few days ago, Consort Hui couldn't help but feel angry.
So many years have passed, yet she still hasn't given up on her feelings and is still thinking about seducing Emperor Rongcheng.
Did she think that she could salvage Shen Hechuan's position in Emperor Rongcheng's heart?
That's quite a big face.
Yesterday, after hearing that the Crown Prince had been beaten in public, she was so happy that she barely slept all night.
Unexpectedly, a mere woman threw Shen Hechuan into a state of utter confusion, causing him to disregard everything and hide her in the Eastern Palace.
It seems I'll have to find a way to give them both a push.
Only in this way can Shen Hechuan continue to "ignore everything" and wreak havoc on the position of crown prince.
As for the long-absent, veiled Empress.
It seems she really needs to go and have a proper talk with her.
Thinking of this, Consort Hui disregarded everything else and immediately led her entourage to Jingyu Palace.
Meanwhile, in Jingyu Palace...
Jiang Xianhao was planting flowers with her personal maids Jingtan and Yunshu.
Just as the three of them, master and servant, were chatting and laughing happily, Consort Hui barged in with her entourage.
"Sister, you're having a great time!"
As Consort Hui spoke, she walked up to Jiang Xianhao.
She was wearing a pair of pearl-embroidered butterfly shoes, and stepped on the flower that Jiang Xianhao was about to plant.
"Oh dear, sister, I'm so sorry. I didn't see your flowers and accidentally trampled them. You won't blame me, will you?"
After Consort Hui finished speaking, her maid Qianxue immediately exclaimed in surprise:
"ah!"
"Your Highness, these are the pearl-embroidered shoes that His Majesty recently bestowed upon you. There are only a handful of pearls on them in the entire Dacheng Kingdom. How could you have gotten them dirty!"
Seeing this, Consort Hui glanced at the maid beside her with a hint of annoyance before saying:
"You silly girl, you always make a fuss. It's just a pair of shoes. His Majesty didn't just give you this one pair. What's all the fuss about?"
After she finished speaking, she explained to Jiang Xianhao, "Sister, I spoil this girl. She's always been a bit loud and boisterous. Please don't mind her!"
Jiang Xianhao looked at the trampled flowers but didn't say anything.
Yun Shu, who was standing beside her, was already angry when she saw that Jiang Xianhao's flowers had been trampled. Now, hearing Consort Hui's words, her anger surged. Just as she was about to speak, Jing Tan stopped her.
Jiang Xianhao slowly stood up and glanced at Consort Hui indifferently.
What are you doing here?
"You are not welcome here, and His Majesty is not here either. Please leave."
When Consort Hui heard the words "Your Majesty," her face contorted for a moment before she smiled and said:
"Sister, you've misunderstood. I came here with no ill intentions. I just realized that we haven't seen each other much over the years, so I wanted to come and have a chat with you."
Jiang Xianhao remained expressionless and continued to shoo away the guests.
"I have nothing to talk to you about, you can leave."
As she was about to turn and leave, Consort Hui, seeing this, was about to speak.
Just then, the maid's urgent voice came from behind.
"Your Majesty..."
The young palace maid, panting, said urgently:
"You should hurry back. His Majesty is heading towards Huian Palace and is already halfway there."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
