A sachet, being an intimate personal item, especially when used as a token of love, should not contain anything other than the other person's belongings; to do so would indicate fickleness.
Therefore, Wei Shuwan disliked the incense he had painstakingly prepared being mixed with other things, and preferred not to send it, considering it a waste of those days and nights of hard work.
A hint of regret flashed across Li Qingchen's eyes, but he quickly smiled and said, "It's alright, we can give it to you next time."
"I'm afraid we won't be able to give it to you next time either."
The previous "not yet" only indicated that she was slow, but this sentence conveyed a sense of determination. Li Qingchen raised an eyebrow, not uttering a word, but his doubt was written all over his face.
Wei Shuwan met his gaze and understood his meaning. Despite his minor emotions, she had to maintain appearances, so she took the initiative to explain, "I'm probably still shaken by this prison ordeal. My sense of smell has diminished, and I'm no longer suited to blending perfumes. I'm afraid I might create something incongruous and make the young prince a laughingstock."
Whether it was sincerity or an excuse, Li Qingchen could see it clearly in his young mistress's eyes. He curled his lips and said, "Let's leave it for now and talk about it again when my sense of smell returns."
As Li Qingchen spoke, his eyes remained fixed on Wei Shuwan, making her feel somewhat guilty, and she hurriedly looked away.
Moving to the open window, I saw the moon's shadow swaying, already reaching the upturned eaves opposite, and I reminded them, "It's getting late..."
"Hmm." Li Qingchen responded dully, stopping Wei Shuwan from being too direct in her order to leave, and said consciously, "Then I'll head back first."
After saying that, he turned and walked out.
Wei Shuwan silently walked to the window and watched as Li Qingchen stepped over the wall and disappeared into the darkness. Only then did she walk to the dressing mirror, open the top drawer, and take out a box of incense lying inside.
This was the unique incense she had spent several days and nights preparing in response to Li Qingchen's request. But since he already had something he desired, why would he ask her for incense?
Thinking of this, Wei Shuwan couldn't help but feel annoyed. She took the incense box back to the window and threw it out without hesitation.
But just as she released the incense box, she felt a pang of reluctance, after all, it had taken her several days to think about it.
But it was too late.
Wei Shuwan simply stopped looking, closed the two windows heavily, walked to the bed, lowered the curtains, and sat down on the bed inside.
Knowing that the Prince of Xiaoqiaochuan had left, Ziqiao and Miaoxiang came over to prepare to serve him for washing up. However, when they entered the room, they found it strangely quiet. Looking into the inner room, they saw that the curtains in front of the bed had been drawn.
"It seems you're tired after making a fuss for so long tonight," Zi Qiao said in a low voice.
Miaoxiang, holding a copper basin, asked hesitantly, "Does the young lady still need to wash and groom herself?"
"Don't disturb her, just put it by the tatami."
Miaoxiang nodded, carried the copper basin, and quietly went into the inner room. Ziqiao then left and waited for Miaoxiang to come out in the courtyard.
While idly looking around, she inadvertently spotted the incense box and immediately recognized it as the one her young mistress had made for the young prince. She quickly picked it up, dusted off the dirt and grime, and wondered why it had been kept safely in the dressing table drawer and ended up in such a place.
Could it be that the young lady gave it to the young prince tonight, but the young prince didn't like it?
Even if you don't like it, you shouldn't trample on someone else's good intentions like this!
Zi Qiao secretly felt indignant for her young lady, but thinking that if she told her young lady about this, her young lady would definitely be sad. So when Miao Xiang came out, she hurriedly put the incense box into her sleeve, intending to keep it a secret for the time being.
*
The next day at dawn, Wei Shuwan woke up, washed and changed his clothes, had breakfast, and then went to his uncle Sun Xingjian's place.
She had originally intended to explain why her uncle had been refused entry by Li Qingchen when he visited the Xiaoqiao Chuan Prince's Mansion yesterday, but after a few pleasantries and just as she was about to get to the point, the doorman knocked on the door:
"Uncle, please hurry to the front yard to receive the imperial decree! A high-ranking official from the palace has come to deliver it!"
When Wei Shuwan accompanied Sun Xingjian to the front yard, they saw that the entire Wei family, young and old, were already waiting there. Since it was an imperial decree, no one in the household dared to shirk their duty.
The crowd knelt down as the eunuch read out the imperial edict. Just as Wei Shuwan had expected, it was an edict of conferment and reward, the very edict that his maternal grandfather had requested before his death, granting his uncle Sun Xingjian the title of Marquis of Pingyang County.
After receiving the imperial decree, Sun Xingjian was required to enter the palace to express his gratitude in person, according to the rules. Sun Lurong handed the silver pouch as a token of her appreciation to the eunuch, who was in charge of preparing it for her brother. When asked about the matter, the eunuch replied, "His Majesty has not given any special instructions. The county magistrate may also enter the palace today to request an audience."
Having heard these words, Sun Xingjian immediately burned incense, bathed, changed his clothes and hair, and rode in a carriage to the palace to express his gratitude.
This was his first time entering the palace, and his first time meeting the emperor. Even with his years of experience on the battlefield and his fearlessness, Sun Xingjian couldn't help but feel a little nervous and awkward. Fortunately, he was successfully summoned by Emperor Pingjia and led into the Tianlu Pavilion by an eunuch.
"Your subject, Sun Xingjian, kowtows to express his gratitude for Your Majesty's great favor!"
"Marquis Pingyang, please get up." Zhu Xian raised his hand, his tone very approachable, which made Sun Xingjian's tense face relax a little.
As he stood up and looked up, Sun Xingjian noticed that besides the majestic Emperor Pingjia sitting on the dragon throne on the jade steps, there was also a young man standing beside him.
At first glance, he appeared to be just reaching adulthood, adorned with a golden crown and crimson tassels, and a four-clawed python robe—undoubtedly His Highness the Crown Prince. Sun Xingjian bowed deeply and said, "Your subject greets Your Highness the Crown Prince."
“Marquis Pingyang, there’s no need for such formalities.” Zhu Haogan also raised his hand, indicating to Sun Xingjian that he should dispense with the formalities.
After Emperor Pingjia asked a few casual questions, just as he was about to dismiss Sun Xingjian, a eunuch came to report: "Your Majesty, the Prince of Xiaoqiaochuan has arrived."
Upon hearing the words "Prince Xiao Qiaochuan," Sun Xingjian's eyebrows twitched, and his eyes widened in surprise. He thought to himself, "I went to great lengths to see the person I couldn't, and now I've unexpectedly run into him before the Emperor!"
Emperor Pingjia hesitated for a moment, but instead of dismissing Sun Xingjian, he allowed Li Qingchen to enter.
Since Li Qingchen was the emperor's adopted son, he did not need to perform the grand ceremony when he met with the emperor. He simply greeted the emperor like any other prince: "Your subject greets Your Majesty."
This was the first time Emperor Pingjia had summoned Minister Li to the palace since the incident with the pardon. Last time, he had looked displeased, but this time he was all smiles: "Minister, please rise."
In fact, the Emperor's anger subsided so quickly, which was within Li Qingchen's expectations. Last time, the Emperor intentionally made Wei Zheng take the blame, giving the people of Wu County an outlet for their anger, and Wei Zheng disobeyed the Emperor's wishes, so naturally he had to suffer the consequences. But once the Emperor calmed down and thought about the matter again, he would realize that Wei Zheng's actions were actually made with a clear conscience.
The Emperor's bestowal of the pardon was the last lifeline for the Prince of Qiaochuan's mansion—even if any member of the Li family committed an outrageous act in the future, the Emperor would spare their life.
What exactly constitutes an outrageous act? For a vassal king to whom the entire nation submits, it would most likely mean that his descendants harbor ulterior motives and intend to restore the kingdom.
Li Qingchen gave this pardon to the Wei family, which meant that the Qiaochuan Prince's Mansion would not need it in the future, and that the Li family descendants would not harbor any disloyalty and would be loyal to the King of Daye for generations!
This was actually a way of showing loyalty to Emperor Pingjia.
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