Chapter 312 I want to sleep well by your side
As soon as she finished speaking, Zhao Mingyan turned over, lifted her blanket, and crawled in.
Ji Qingwu's eyes widened.
Is it reasonable for the emperor to leave his magnificent palace and come to the Wei family's house to take shelter from the rain?
Not only is it unreasonable, but he also refuses to bother to come up with a decent reason.
Ji Qingwu rolled over onto the side of the bed and said, "Even a three-year-old wouldn't believe His Majesty's words."
Zhao Mingyan pulled her into his arms, encircling her arms and legs, and pressed himself close to her.
"Ah Wu, do you believe me?"
Ji Qingwu shook his head frankly: "Of course I don't believe it."
"Awu doesn't believe me," Zhao Mingyan said, drawing out the last syllable. "Are you three years old too?"
Ji Qingwu snorted in dissatisfaction, wanting to get away from him. Although his body was hot, the heat made her uneasy.
Zhao Mingyan stopped bothering her, let go of her arm and let her go, letting out a deep sigh, as if all his weariness and helplessness were condensed in that sigh.
"The rain outside is so heavy, I'm just asking to stay for one night."
If Emperor Wusu maintains his domineering stance as always, Ji Qingwu might still be able to find a way to resist.
But his sudden show of weakness clearly meant he was no longer within Ji Qingwu's ability to resist.
Ji Qingwu was caught off guard by his sudden change in attitude. She did not move away from him anymore, and the two kept an arm's length apart.
She turned to the side, propping her head up as she looked at him.
A dark light flashed in Zhao Mingyan's eyes as he gripped her hand and pressed it against his left chest.
"I haven't slept well these past two days."
Ji Qingwu looked up at his face. The shadows cast by his eyelashes looked like the darkness showing through his skin, and his handsome face was also full of fatigue.
Zhao Mingyan said, "I didn't plan to come tonight, but it suddenly started raining heavily, and this area is throbbing with pain."
Ji Qingwu's fingers, which were pressed against his chest, stiffened. She lifted her knuckles, not wanting to press on his wound.
She said softly, "That's how it is when a wound is healing; it will itch and hurt. Just bear with it and don't touch it with your hands."
But this had nothing to do with the rainy day, and Ji Qingwu didn't call him out on it.
Zhao Mingyan said, "But I still feel uneasy."
His large palm enveloped her fingers, gently kneading and playing with them.
Ji Qingwu's heart raced and her scalp tingled as the calluses on his hands rubbed against her. Memories of being caressed all over by that large hand flooded her mind.
Her throat tightened as she said, "The unease is a mental one, not a physical ailment. His Majesty's health is fine."
After saying that, Ji Qingwu forcefully pulled his hand down, but she couldn't shake it off and there was nowhere to put it.
The hand immediately found a suitable place to rest and placed itself on her shapely waist.
"I..." Ji Qingwu's lips barely uttered a single word.
Zhao Mingyan said in a low, hoarse voice, "I have important matters to attend to tomorrow and cannot afford any mistakes. I just want to sleep well by your side."
He closed his eyes, moved his hand from her waist to her back, and gently patted her back, a peaceful and contented smile playing on his lips.
Ji Qingwu swallowed back what he wanted to say.
She hadn't yet figured out how to explain the origin of the key to Emperor Wusu.
Isn't it too far-fetched for her to say that she found Su Xiang's secret key on the road? It's like an emperor saying that he came to the Wei family to take shelter from the rain and ask to stay overnight.
As Ji Qingwu was gently and rhythmically patted on the back, drowsiness overcame her. She propped up her heavy eyelids and looked at his face.
These days, the emperor has also had a hard time. What could be the important matter he mentioned that must not be overlooked tomorrow?
He came specifically to my side so he could get a good night's sleep.
Thinking of this, Ji Qingwu felt a pang of sadness.
Everyone says it's not easy to be an official, but she always felt that it's not easy to be a ruler, and it's even more difficult to be a good emperor.
With so many troublesome things to deal with every day, Ji Qingwu felt like her head was about to explode just thinking about it.
The hand next to him gradually stopped; his breathing was long and even, and he was fast asleep.
Ji Qingwu could no longer hold on and closed her drowsy eyes.
Who cares, I'll just go to sleep first...
When Ji Qingwu woke up, the emperor was no longer by her side.
Only the slightly sunken bedding showed signs that someone had lived there.
Ji Qingwu always felt that the bedding had been tainted with that person's scent. When Xuemei came to tidy the bedding, she sat in front of the dressing table and glanced at it a few times uncomfortably.
Xuemei said, "Madam, it rained heavily last night, even more so than this afternoon. Did you sleep well?"
Ji Qingwu nodded: "Slept very well."
Xuemei said, "The old lady's maid sent someone early this morning to ask you to come to Yiyangzhai."
Ji Qingwu asked, "Did they say what it was about?"
Xuemei said, "The nanny didn't say, and I didn't dare to ask."
Ji Qingwu put down the comb in her hand and said, "I understand. I'll be there in a bit."
Due to the emperor's serious injury, martial law was imposed throughout the palace, and classes in the Imperial Study were suspended.
Ji Qingwu had breakfast with Qiuqiu, then left the child in Lanzhi's care before heading to Yiyangzhai, where Old Madam Wei resided.
It rained last night, and there are still puddles and potholes on the road.
Ji Qingwu carefully avoided the puddles, but some mud still splashed onto his shoes.
Granny Cao stood at the door, waiting for her to come forward: "Madam, the old lady is in her room, please come with me."
Ji Qingwu followed behind Granny Cao to the room on the west side.
As soon as she entered the room, she was overwhelmed by the smell of burning incense. She held her nose and suppressed the urge to sneeze.
Madam Wei knelt on the prayer mat, her warm, lustrous prayer beads slowly turning in her hands, her brow furrowed, praying for some unknown reason.
Granny Cao moved quietly closer to the old lady: "Madam, the person has arrived."
Old Madam Wei respectfully clasped her hands together, bowed again, and then stood up with the help of Granny Cao.
She didn't look at Ji Qingwu, and said, "Let's go to the tea room next door."
A neat tea set is set with purple clay tea caddies, and a guqin (a traditional Chinese stringed instrument) is placed in the corner.
The instrument has an antique feel, but the strings are somewhat loose, as if it hasn't been played in a long time.
After refilling two cups of tea, Granny Cao left.
Madam Wei sat down on one side where the guqin was placed and said, "Do you know why I called you here?"
Ji Qingwu slowly sat down on the opposite side of her.
"This junior does not know."
Upon hearing Ji Qingwu's self-identification, the wrinkles around Madam Wei's mouth deepened, and she raised her head and said, "I know you are unwilling to marry Ting'er, and you have never regarded yourself as his wife, nor do you intend to live in Wei's family for a long time."
These two sentences really touched her heart.
Ji Qingwu said calmly, "How did the old lady know I was unwilling?"
Madam Wei said, "When you married into the Wei family, the dowry chests you brought with you are still in the storeroom and haven't been counted yet. Weren't you planning to take them back exactly as they were?"
Ji Qingwu hadn't thought that far ahead, but he hadn't had the time to think about it yet.
Seeing that she remained calm and showed no panic at being exposed, Madam Wei noticed that she was not flustered.
He said, "If you don't want to marry me, I don't want you to come into the family. We can't stand each other."
Ji Qingwu's eyebrows and eyes lit up with joy.
"Then how about..."
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