Wei Hong frowned and asked, "Where's your aunt? Why are you all alone?"
Li Tai then came to his senses: "I'm busy in the garden, I'll be right there."
Not only were the courtyards of the Li family mansion filled with herbs, but the gardens were too. While others planted flowers and grasses, they planted medicinal herbs for their own use.
After finishing his sentence, Li Tai looked away and continued working. As he worked, he said, "Please come in and sit down. I need to finish all this first, otherwise your aunt will be angry when she comes back."
Wei Hong nodded, but instead of going into the house with Yao Youqing, he had someone take her inside first. He then stayed behind and walked to Li Tai's side, intending to pull him aside and ask him some questions.
Li Tai said impatiently, "Just say what you have to say. I'm busy."
Seeing that he remained silent, she knew he might be saying something inconvenient for others to hear, so she sent the young medicine boy away: "Speak."
Wei Hong then whispered a few words to him, seemingly asking him for something.
Upon hearing this, Li Tai almost jumped up, accidentally knocking over a pile of herbs that had already been neatly arranged.
But he couldn't care less about that now, and stared at him with wide eyes, asking, "You two haven't consummated your marriage yet?"
As she spoke, she subconsciously glanced down at his crotch, her thoughts clearly unspoken.
Chapter 51 Choices (Part 1)
Wei Hong's face stiffened: "I'm perfectly fine, there's nothing wrong with me!"
Is there nothing wrong with not consummating the marriage?
Although Li Tai didn't say it aloud, that was the meaning in his eyes.
Wei Hong pursed his lips and frowned, saying, "She's Yao Yuzhi's daughter, you know that."
“I know,” Li Tai said, “but weren’t you holding her hand just now?”
He had known Wei Hong for many years, and he would never take the initiative to make any intimate moves with a woman he didn't like.
But if you like each other, why haven't you consummated your marriage?
Wei Hong frowned and remained silent, thinking that Guo Sheng was just as dense as a blockhead.
The two stared at each other for a moment, then Li Tai suddenly realized and tentatively asked, "Did you just start holding hands recently?"
Wei Hong: "..."
Li Tai clicked his tongue twice, finally understanding.
“I didn’t like her before because I remembered she was Yao Yuzhi’s daughter. Now that I like her, it doesn’t matter whose daughter she is.”
Wei Hong: "..."
If Li Tai weren't much older than him, he would probably have been scolded back, no, beaten back, just like Guo Sheng.
Li Tai didn't care about his expression, shaking his head and looking at him, rambling on and on.
"I'm not trying to criticize you, but you're a grown man. You married a young girl out of spite, then left her hanging for so long, and now you're changing your mind all of a sudden, wanting to hold her hand and consummate the marriage."
"That's only because she's already married to you, otherwise..."
"I didn't leave her hanging!"
Seeing that he was going on and on, Wei Hong interrupted him with a stern face.
He did not go to the main courtyard on the night of his wedding, but he had to leave Hucheng the next day.
Later, when he returned home, he went to Yao Youqing's courtyard that very night, but she rejected him.
Although it was indeed because of his unpleasant words, she really didn't want to consummate the marriage with him, and he couldn't very well stay with her.
After that, he was always the one making excuses to go over; Yao Youqing never took the initiative. To be honest...
"So she's ignoring you?"
Wei Hong: "..."
His face was somber, and the muscles in his cheeks were clenched as he clenched his back teeth.
But Li Tai continued, "Nonsense! Look at that delicate young girl, do you think she's that kind of person? Only you would do something like this!"
"..."
He was afraid he would really lose his temper and take action if Li Tai continued talking, so he interrupted his rambling by squeezing out a few words through gritted teeth with a dark face.
"Just give me the stuff, why are you making such a fuss!"
In the past, if he wanted to get something from Li Tai, he would have Cui Hao or someone else come over. But this time, the thing he wanted was more private and involved Yao Youqing, so he didn't want to tell anyone and came in person. Who knew that he would be choked up several times as soon as he arrived.
Li Tai pursed his lips, went to the east wing room, rummaged through the drawers and found a box of ointment. When he was about to go out to give it to Wei Hong, he found that Song Shi had already returned and was talking to him in the courtyard.
Song was Li Tai's wife. Unlike the frivolous Li Tai, she was a very serious person.
She rarely smiled, and the two slightly deep nasolabial folds made her look even more stern.
The noise from the side room made her turn her head. She saw Li Tai holding a box of ointment and asked, "What are you doing with this?"
Li Tai hurried over and pointed at Wei Hong: "This is what the Prince wants."
As she spoke, she shoved the item into his hand.
Wei Hong originally intended to have Li Tai give him the things while Song was away, but she bumped into him. His face flushed, but fortunately, his skin was dark from years of being out in the sun, so it wasn't very noticeable.
Mrs. Song frowned in confusion, but did not ask any further questions. She invited him inside for tea.
Yao Youqing had been waiting inside for a while. Hearing the noise, she quickly stood up and greeted Madam Song.
Song looked at her and was stunned. She stood there for a long time without moving.
Li Tai coughed lightly beside her, which brought her back to her senses. She then said to Yao Youqing, "Please sit down, Your Highness."
After speaking, he seemed to realize that his tone was too harsh, and he tugged at the corners of his lips, revealing a rare smile.
But it seemed like he hadn't smiled in a long time; his smile was stiff and looked very unnatural.
The group sat down in the room and chatted about everyday things.
Song was usually a man of few words, but today she spoke more than usual, and in the middle of the conversation she asked Yao Youqing, "How old is the Princess Consort this year?"
She and Li Tai did not attend Yao Youqing's wedding. They only knew that she was the daughter of Wei Hong's enemy, but they did not know what she looked like or how old she was.
Yao Youqing replied, "Fifteen."
Madam Song nodded and murmured softly, "He doesn't look like it. I thought he was only twelve or thirteen."
As she spoke, she glanced in Wei Hong's direction for some reason, her gaze landing on the sleeve where he was holding the ointment.
Wei Hong knew she must have guessed what he wanted this for, and his face burned even hotter than before, his ears turning red. He was annoyed that Li Tai hadn't tried to keep it a secret for him, and had just so brazenly given the item to him in front of Song Shi.
Fortunately, he had only come to pick up something and introduce Yao Youqing to them. Now that he had gotten the item and met the person, there was no need to stay long. After sitting for a while, he prepared to take Yao Youqing away.
Song did not try to keep her, and nodded to have someone escort Yao Youqing out.
Wei Hong breathed a sigh of relief, but before he could fully relax, he heard Madam Song say, "Your Highness, please wait. This old woman has something she wishes to say to Your Highness in private."
Wei Hong: "..."
...
The door closed, and Yao Youqing was taken by Li Tai to the garden to see the medicinal herbs they had planted. He said that although the scenery was not as beautiful as flowers and plants, it was still quite interesting, and she could even try digging up the herbs herself.
Yao Youqing naturally wouldn't refuse and went with him, leaving the main courtyard.
Wei Hong, who remained in the room, sat back down, looking embarrassed.
"I wonder what Auntie wants to say to me?"
Madam Song said, "I would like to ask Your Highness, do you have any plans to have a child recently?"
Wei Hong was slightly taken aback: "If I have one, I will take it; if I don't, there's no rush. After all, I haven't been married for very long, so there's no need to rush."
Madam Song nodded: "I hope Your Highness will not mind my meddling."
“…You say.”
"If Your Highness is not in a hurry, then you might as well have children in two years."
After saying that, seeing Wei Hong's brows furrow slightly, she explained, "I know you are getting old. Others your age have already had children."
"But the princess is still young and her body is not yet fully developed. Giving birth at this time might not be good for her health, so... if you are not in a hurry, you might as well wait a little longer."
Upon hearing this, Wei Hong frowned even more deeply: "I'm not in a hurry, but this kind of thing..."
He can't say for sure about these things; it's not like he can just decide to take it or not take it.
"If I happen to get pregnant, it wouldn't be good to not have it, would it? Wouldn't that be even more harmful to my health?"
"Besides...don't most women get married and have children at this age? I see that they...seem to be doing fine."
Song smiled, a smile that was much more natural than her previous one, but it was full of sarcasm.
"Yes, most women get married and have children at this age, but many women suffer from health problems as a result, or even die in childbirth."
“The dead are forgotten, and the men only see those who are alive, so they naturally think that everything is fine.”
Her tone was sharp when she said this, unlike her calm demeanor just moments before.
Wei Hong knew that she wasn't targeting him, but was just recalling the past. He didn't blame her and sat silently in his chair without saying a word.
After a moment of distraction, Madam Song continued, "I only spoke up because I saw that the Prince seemed to have some pity for the Princess. If you don't care about her, then pretend I didn't say anything. If you do care... then I'll tell you something else. After you hear it, you might not think I'm exaggerating."
"...What else?"
"How my daughter died."
Wei Hong: "..."
...
Yao Youqing stopped digging for herbs in the garden after a while because she was not skilled enough and the herbs she dug up were not as good as those dug by the young herbalist. Instead, she ruined the herbs.
When Wei Hong and Song Shi arrived, she had already put the small hoe aside and started playing with the medicine boy.
The two of them each held a grasshopper woven from straw, looking very happy, occasionally letting out a crisp laugh, until they realized someone was getting close and turned around.
"Auntie, Your Highness."
Yao Youqing called out with a smile.