Tian Yu gave a wry smile and said, "Alright, you can go now. I want to be alone for a while."
"Alright, I'll stay outside. Call me if you need anything, Madam."
Tian Yu went to bed early that night, but the night was cold. She curled up in a ball, feeling as if she had lost all warmth. Her dreams were also cold, just like the countless lonely nights she had spent as a child.
As expected, after Zhao Moyan and the Cui family set their wedding date, the Emperor issued an imperial edict ordering Tian Yu to enter the palace as soon as possible to learn palace etiquette and adapt to palace life. Tian Yu packed her things, intending to enter the palace alone, but Lvliu cried and insisted on going with her. Fortunately, a gust of wind carried Lvliu away. The weather was bad, gloomy, and although it was already spring, it was still very cold. When she arrived at the palace gate, a light drizzle began to fall. Tian Yu, wearing a dark green cloak, covered her head with her hat when she got out of the carriage. The moment she looked up after stepping out of the carriage, she saw Zhao Moyan standing in front of the palace gate. Standing there in the drizzle, their eyes met. Tian Yu couldn't hide her panic and quickly took Qiuju's hand to get out of the carriage. She told herself a thousand times, ten thousand times, not to waver, not to waver no matter what he said. Only Qiuju knew that Tian Yu was trembling. She held her hand tightly, and Tian Yu pretended to be calm as she stepped forward and bowed, saying, "My Lord."
After waiting for a long time, Zhao Moyan looked at Tian Yu with a deep gaze and said, "Please, Crown Princess!" Tian Yu was completely taken aback by the title of Crown Princess, but she still smiled and faced everyone. Zhao Moyan looked at the increasingly well-mannered Tian Yu before him, who could now move freely even in such elaborate attire. He remembered the simply dressed figure who sang and danced while wiping furniture in Old Zhao Village. Was this the same Tian Yu before him?
Tian Yu felt her body was no longer under her control. She stiffly turned around and said to the people who had brought her there, "Alright, that's enough. You can all go back now."
Then she followed the eunuch who led the way into the palace. Zhao Moyan followed behind her. Tian Yu couldn't remember how she got in. She only felt that the palace road was so long, so long that she couldn't see the end of it. She couldn't hear any sound from Zhao Moyan behind her, but she knew he was there. She wanted to turn around and look, wanted to pull him away and run away together, wanted to shout at the emperor, "I won't marry him!" But she didn't dare to imagine the consequences of being so willful.
With the eunuchs' constant reminders, Tian Yu first met the Emperor. When she came out, Zhao Moyan was standing outside the door. Tian Yu passed by him, not daring to look up, afraid that if she saw those eyes again, she would leave him without a second thought. She hurriedly followed the eunuchs to the inner palace to see the Empress and the Imperial Concubine, finally entering a temporary residence arranged for her in the East Palace. Just as she was able to sit down and rest for a while, the Crown Prince arrived.
"I told you long ago, you couldn't escape," the crown prince said with a smile.
Why should I run away?
"This world is mine, and you will be mine sooner or later."
"As long as Your Highness is happy, I'm tired. Can I rest for a while?" Tian Yu didn't have the energy to deal with him and said directly.
"A matron will come to teach you etiquette tomorrow. You can use these two maids for now. Just let me know if you need anything."
"Thank you, Your Highness."
"There's no need for such formalities between us, Your Highness."
"We're not married yet."
"It's only a matter of time." The crown prince smiled and left.
Sure enough, before dawn the next day, two old nannies came to Tian Yu's palace and instructed her on her speech, manners, walking, talking, and even how to eat and sit. Tian Yu listened attentively and dared not be negligent. Seeing how sensible Tian Yu was, the two nannies did not deliberately make things difficult for her. After lunch, after resting for a while, Tian Yu heard the palace maids gathered together and saying, "Have you heard? A new young imperial physician has joined the Imperial Hospital."
"I've heard about it too. They say this imperial physician is incredibly skilled; he's a miracle doctor despite his young age."
"I've also heard that this imperial physician is very beautiful, even more so than us women."
"I've heard about it too."
"Yes, the head of the Imperial Medical Academy personally greeted them, and the Tang family also strongly recommended them."
"Looks like someone with quite a background."
"Isn't that right?"
Listening with a sense of doubt, Tian Yu asked, "Do you know what that imperial physician's name is?"
The palace maids were startled and turned around to see that it was Tian Yu. They all lowered their heads and remained silent. Tian Yu then asked, "What is the imperial physician's surname?"
"We servants only heard about it. We only know that it was the same doctor who helped Consort Li give birth that night, but we don't know her surname."
"Alright, you may all leave." Seeing the palace maids scatter, Tian Yu knew without being told that it was Li Xingyun.
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