Jie Gua (Hexagram 55) - The Most Auspicious Hexagram
Chapter 60 Hexagram - The Most Auspicious Hexagram - The Confession Game
Rong Yan slept for two days after entering the palace.
This matter not only spread among the Taoist priests, but also reached Princess Yongqing and Consort Rong.
Princess Yongqing couldn't help but make some sarcastic remarks after hearing this, while Consort Rong remained silent, only smiling slightly.
After Princess Yongqing had had her fill of venting, she said, "Little slave, the past is the past. Now that he has married, given your status, I will never allow you to become a concubine. It is absolutely impossible for you two. Even your father, the Emperor, would never agree to it. So give up on that idea."
"Why should I? We're deeply in love. What does she, a country girl, amount to?"
"Mutual affection? Even now, are you still planning to deceive yourself? Has the eldest son even seen you once since the marriage?"
Princess Yongqing's face turned somewhat unpleasant. "That...that was just because he was angry with me."
"Little slave, I've been through this before. If he doesn't love you, why should you, a princess, belittle yourself?"
"Just because I am a princess, he has no choice but to love me, even if he doesn't love me!"
Consort Rong's expression was solemn. She slowly twisted the jade ring on her finger, pursed her lips, and looked up at Princess Yongqing. After Princess Yongqing left, she secretly summoned someone.
The day of the imperial examination came quickly and urgently. With the emperor himself present, the candidates answered questions at a banquet, which was also incredibly fast and urgent.
The questions were all based on Taoist classics, and Xie Chengzhi actually guessed most of them correctly.
Unfortunately, she only glanced at those past exam questions and didn't really memorize them.
So, she began to write furiously, answering entirely according to her own will.
When she handed in her paper, with the emperor's majesty above her, she dared not look up. She could only hear the breathing in the hall, with people gossiping about how she, a mere female Taoist priest, was the first to hand in her paper.
Some looked down on her as a female Taoist priest, so they were the first to hand in their papers.
However, Rong Yan didn't care; once the exam was over, it was all over.
After the exam, no one from the palace bothered her; they simply sent her back to the Marquis's residence.
The people from the Marquis's residence who came to welcome her didn't dare to ask anything when they saw her expression. Even Gao Jushan came to comfort her, saying, "It's just an exam. It'll be over soon."
Rong Yan: ...
No, if she doesn't pass the exam, she doesn't care. Why are they all acting more heartbroken than she is?
Even the Marquis held a welcome banquet for her, which must have been quite a hardship for Rong Shu.
She enjoyed her meal.
That night.
Rong Yan returned to the room and, seeing Xie Chengzhi sitting upright by the bed, suddenly asked, "Why didn't you ask me whether I used the note you gave me?"
Xie Chengzhi smiled slightly, without saying a word.
Rong Yan was slightly startled. "I've always prided myself on my abilities, but I never expected that in your eyes I'm just a clown. You knew all along that I would have moments of indecision."
On his note, he wrote: "Face it calmly."
The answer to this question is that after meeting Consort Rong, she was deeply shaken and confused, so she opened the note.
But the contents of the note provided her with the answer.
There is never a book with answers; it can only prove that Xie Chengzhi is not only a fellow traveler but also highly skilled in the arts, perhaps even on par with her.
He not only foresaw that she would meet Consort Rong and learn about his astonishing background, but he also foresaw that she would be heartbroken by it, so he gave her a note in advance, asking her to confront him.
Xie Chengzhi slowly raised his eyes and stared at her for a moment, then stopped smiling and just sighed.
"I never intended to lie to you."
Rong Yan chuckled, "It was a deception from the very beginning of our marriage. You still dare to say you've never lied? Fine, I married you for my own reasons, so we're even. I just never expected that you actually knew the art of wind and wind, which is why you asked me about the wooden pole when we first met."
After she finished speaking, there was silence in the room for a long while.
She settled herself on the chaise lounge and said slowly, "I don't know whether to call you Young Master or—should I address you as Mr. Qian of Fenglelou?"
Upon hearing this, Xie Chengzhi's expression shifted slightly, and his eyes flickered.
When they first met, he wore a veil, but she always felt that the faint scent of ink on him was too strong. Now that she thinks about it, it was because his silver hair was dyed with ink, and the ink scent masked the medicinal fragrance he had accumulated over the years.
"I never knew that my 'bedmate' was actually the famous Feng Shui master, Master Qian. Oh, no, I should say Mr. Qian. If you really are him, then you must already know about your fate in March."
Xie Chengzhi's expression turned slightly unpleasant, whether from her sarcastic tone or because she had hit the nail on the head.
Rong Yan didn't give him a chance to answer, and continued, "The home furnishings in the Marquis's mansion that are harmful to you must also be your doing. Indeed, after all, who else could be behind the peach blossom arrangement in Ning Ling's room besides you? Only her room has a good layout. I just didn't know that you were such a ruthless person, not even sparing yourself, just to deceive me, or to fool someone else? Oh, you don't need to tell me, I am just an outsider."
"Now that you know the whole story, why bother calling me 'Young Master'?"
Rong Yan pursed his lips and remained silent.
“I am neither a member of the Marquis’s household nor a member of the palace; I am merely a passerby in this world. The fate of being born in the third month is true, but divination is always subject to change, and I believe you understand this better than anyone else. If it weren’t for you, my fate would not have changed.”
What?
His fate changed?
Rong Yan immediately took out the tortoise shell and performed a calculation. After some deduction, the three-month short lifespan had indeed changed!
No wonder, no wonder!
No wonder his hair turned black again; it wasn't thanks to medicine, but because his destiny had changed!
That day, Consort Rong secretly summoned him and revealed Xie Chengzhi's true identity to him.
The reason she told her this was because her informant in the Marquis's mansion had made it clear that she and Xie Chengzhi were already in the same boat.
More importantly, once she learned the truth, she could no longer remain uninvolved.
One reason why Consort Rong told her this was probably because of Princess Yongqing.
She finally understood that her marriage to him was not simply due to the disapproval of the imperial family.
Regardless of whether the Emperor was aware of it, Consort Rong would never allow Princess Yongqing to marry him.
Back then, when Empress Wang and Wang Lan met in the palace, the real Xie Chengzhi died from that cup of poisoned wine. After leaving the palace, her premature son turned out to be the son of Empress Wang and the Emperor!
Empress Wang's dying words were that as a prince, he had no mother's protection, and it was already difficult for princes to survive in the palace. For his sake, she entrusted him to her elder sister, Wang Lan, to take him out of the palace.
We will never recognize each other in this lifetime, and I will never serve as an official.
This was what Wang Lan had promised her sister.
I still vividly remember Wenjun's hysterical screams that day and her face when she threatened Wang Lan.
It seems she already knew about it.
"When did you find out?" Rong Yan suddenly felt sympathy for him.
"Back then, when I was suffering from a chronic illness, I thought I would live out my life like this. My master was originally the head of the Imperial Observatory, so he was the one who taught me these skills."
Xie Chengzhi's eyes changed slightly as he looked at her. "The only thing I ever lied to you about was my identity as Lao Qian. The blood-fiend layout in this room wasn't set up by me either."
Rong Yan: !
"Are you getting involved yourself? Could it be Xie Zhezhi?"
There was no one else besides him.
Xie Chengzhi is still the eldest son on the surface, and as one of the only two candidates to be succeeded, he should be the rightful heir.
Thinking of Xie Zhezhi, who appeared so refined and reasonable in public, she sighed again at how shrewd he truly was.
Xie Chengzhi sighed, "Since I am not a member of the imperial family, it is only natural that he would have ulterior motives."
Rong Yan shook his head, "You don't owe the Marquis's mansion anything, so why be so forgiving? I just find it strange that there are always several forces watching me, and it's true."
"I've only dragged you into this; I'm so sorry. I don't know..."
He didn't finish his question, but he stopped asking.
Rong Yan pretended not to understand and remained silent.
What are your plans for the future?
Xie Chengzhi glanced at her and then smiled, "It will be over soon."
Rong Yan was taken aback. "Do you perhaps want to grant Xie Zhezhi his wish and be killed by him?"
After all, he had seen through the Blood Fiend's scheme long ago, yet he hadn't broken through it. Aside from willingly facing death, she couldn't think of any other reason.
At least, he was once truly determined to die.
"It's late, you should get some rest."
After saying that, he let her sleep on the bed without further ado and went to the chaise lounge.
That night, not only did Rong Yan not get a sleep, but she also saw his tall figure curled up on the small chaise lounge, tossing and turning.
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