The Beauties of the Song Dynasty

Chapter 38

To stop him from asking, we need an even more shocking piece of news to disturb him.

"Wanlan—"

“Zehua,” Wanlan quickly interrupted, “Do you know why the person who went to Jiangling to pick us up was the Imperial Uncle? You clearly instructed Lan Wenshang to ask the Empress to send someone to Jiangling, so why was it the Imperial Uncle who went?”

Zhao Defang was taken aback, turned her head and stared intently, "Uncle said that he happened to meet Lan Wen and felt that there was no need to alarm the Empress Dowager, so he went south on his own. Is there anything wrong with that?"

"Alarmed?" Wanlan raised an eyebrow and looked at him with amusement, noticing his delicate brows furrowing slightly. She reminded him, "How can it be called alarming? Since you found me in Jiangling, how could telling the Empress Dowager about this be alarming? It should be something that puts the Empress Dowager at ease. But the Imperial Uncle interfered halfway through, which shows that he was completely overly worried. What do you think of his actions?"

She didn't know what kind of person Empress Song was, so she naturally didn't know how Empress Song would react after learning that the person she was worried about had been found, or whether she could truly put her worries aside. But judging from Prince Jin's actions, he must have known Empress Song. Perhaps he knew what Empress Song would do after learning about Princess Deqing's whereabouts, and because he was worried, he intercepted the news that would cause Empress Song to take any action.

Another possibility is that Prince Jin wants to use this opportunity to get closer to the Empress again. If that's the case, she doesn't know whether to admire Prince Jin or worry about him and the Empress. Does he know what kind of crisis his actions will bring to the Empress?

Zhao Defang's grip on her hand tightened slightly, his brows furrowing as he whispered, "Wanlan, what do you want to say?"

Wanlan lowered her gaze to his slightly pale fingertips, a faint smile playing on her lips, her eyes filled with tenderness. The man before her possessed the softest heart; if born into an ordinary family, he could be the most compassionate and gentle person in the world. However, being born into the royal family, he had no choice but to face and do things. "Actually, you know some things, but you just don't want to think about them in detail. So, Zehua, I won't force you. I won't force you like your royal uncle did. You just need to know these things. In the future, even if you have to face them, promise me you will observe with the same calmness and not interfere. We can't do much more."

Zhao Defang hesitated for a moment, then remained silent.

He didn't know, though he found his uncle's behavior strange, what was going on between him and his mother. Perhaps he was indeed running away again, as Wanlan said, but no matter what, he always felt that as long as he didn't think about it, nothing would happen.

Thinking of this, he focused his mind and asked softly, "Wanlan, is this what you wanted to say? Now that we've finished talking, let's talk about Miss Xue." Seeing that she was about to speak again, he reached out and gently covered her slightly parted lips, quietly watching the panic in her eyes, and continued, "Just now at the Xue residence, when you entered the inner garden, I chatted with Prime Minister Xue for a while and learned that Miss Xue was rescued when she fell ill in Junzhou. If it weren't for that rescue, the people Prime Minister Xue sent to Junzhou would probably have brought back more than just a critically ill Miss Xue."

Wanlan's eyes widened as she pulled his hand down. "What do you mean?"

Zhao Defang smiled slightly and patted her hand reassuringly, "Don't be too nervous. Prime Minister Xue has already sent people to investigate this matter. However, after talking with him today, Prime Minister Xue asked me to ask if you could stay at the Prime Minister's residence for a few days to keep Miss Xue company. After all, you are her only friend."

Wanlan remained unresponsive for a long time.

So… Zehua wasn't asking what she and Suxin talked about in the back garden? He wasn't pressing Suxin about what happened in Junzhou? He actually offered to let her stay and keep Suxin company…

"So... you're going to Guizhou alone tomorrow?"

Zhao Defang said apologetically, "Wanlan, it's only a few days. Once I arrive in Guizhou, I'll have Lan Wen come back to pick you up immediately. I believe Miss Xue should be feeling better by then."

It turns out she didn't even need to make up an excuse.

Wanlan lowered her eyes and smiled slightly. "Okay, I'll stay."

She couldn't refuse Su Xin.

Although she was worried about Su Xin's health, she was even more worried about a potential threat to Ze Hua that might have already occurred. She originally wanted to use the Prince of Jin's secret to disturb Ze Hua, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. Unexpectedly, Ze Hua took the initiative to ask her to stay.

That's fine, so she took advantage of these few days to accompany Suxin to Junzhou.

Volume Three, The Sound of the Axe and the Shadow of the Candle

When the Prince of Qin and his wife bid farewell to Prime Minister Xue, it was nearly noon. They declined his polite invitation to stay for a meal and boarded their carriage to return home. Surprisingly, neither of them spoke a word the entire way. Wanlan was still pondering Xue Suxin's thoughts, while Zhao Defang looked at her with a thoughtful expression.

After returning to her residence and having lunch, Wanlan took the child back to Tingyuxuan in Tongxinyuan and entrusted her to Xuan'er's care. Then she left Tongxinyuan and headed towards Canghan Pavilion. With a heavy heart, she found her way to the door of the study. She silently sorted out what she was going to say later before pushing open the door and entering. She looked up at Zhao Defang, who had finished his meal and indicated that he had official business to attend to.

Zhao Defang looked up at her, and the two stared at each other silently for a long time before he slowly rose and walked to the desk, hesitatingly saying, "Wanlan, about Miss Xue—"

"Zehua!"

Wanlan abruptly interrupted him, a smile curving her lips, and suddenly asked, "Do you know the reason for the unusual relationship between the Imperial Uncle and the Empress?"

Startled by her interruption, Zhao Defang paused, a look of doubt flashing in her eyes. "Wanlan, why did you think of asking this? Do you know why?"

“Yes, I know the reason.” Wanlan looked at him seriously, walked up to him, and pulled him to a chair next to her. “But you have to promise me that no matter how shocking the reason I give is, you can’t do anything about it. You can’t do anything about the matter of the Imperial Uncle. You can only watch from the sidelines. Do you promise me?”

Obediently, Zhao Defang sat down in the chair under her gentle push, her brow furrowed. "You haven't said anything, so what do you want me to agree to? How do you know about the matter between the Imperial Uncle and the Empress?"

Wanlan placed her hands on his shoulders, leaned slightly forward, and looked into his warm eyes with hesitation—should she really tell him? Could Zehua accept it after he found out? She could accept it because she felt sorry for Empress Song. A young woman of twenty-five should have a relationship, and no one had the right to take that away. But Zehua's position was different. One was the Empress Dowager, and the other was the Emperor's uncle. Such an incestuous relationship was hard to accept no matter what.

Zhao Defang quietly looked at her gradually bewildered eyes, her slightly closed lips parted slightly, and as she spoke, she helped her sit down beside her, saying gently, "Wanlan, if this matter is not urgent, then don't think about it. I have something else to talk to you about."

"No! This is urgent, I must tell you today!" Wanlan was unusually anxious. She couldn't let him have a chance to ask about Suxin. Although she told Suxin that she couldn't help her, she couldn't let Zehua know that there was something wrong in Junzhou. She had to find out the truth for herself and couldn't let Zehua get any more tainted.

To stop him from asking, we need an even more shocking piece of news to disturb him.

"Wanlan—"

“Zehua,” Wanlan quickly interrupted, “Do you know why the person who went to Jiangling to pick us up was the Imperial Uncle? You clearly instructed Lan Wenshang to ask the Empress to send someone to Jiangling, so why was it the Imperial Uncle who went?”

Zhao Defang was taken aback, turned her head and stared intently, "Uncle said that he happened to meet Lan Wen and felt that there was no need to alarm the Empress Dowager, so he went south on his own. Is there anything wrong with that?"

"Alarmed?" Wanlan raised an eyebrow and looked at him with amusement, noticing his delicate brows furrowing slightly. She reminded him, "How can it be called alarming? Since you found me in Jiangling, how could telling the Empress Dowager about this be alarming? It should be something that puts the Empress Dowager at ease. But the Imperial Uncle interfered halfway through, which shows that he was completely overly worried. What do you think of his actions?"

She didn't know what kind of person Empress Song was, so she naturally didn't know how Empress Song would react after learning that the person she was worried about had been found, or whether she could truly put her worries aside. But judging from Prince Jin's actions, he must have known Empress Song. Perhaps he knew what Empress Song would do after learning about Princess Deqing's whereabouts, and because he was worried, he intercepted the news that would cause Empress Song to take any action.

Another possibility is that Prince Jin wants to use this opportunity to get closer to the Empress again. If that's the case, she doesn't know whether to admire Prince Jin or worry about him and the Empress. Does he know what kind of crisis his actions will bring to the Empress?

Zhao Defang's grip on her hand tightened slightly, his brows furrowing as he whispered, "Wanlan, what do you want to say?"

Wanlan lowered her gaze to his slightly pale fingertips, a faint smile playing on her lips, her eyes filled with tenderness. The man before her possessed the softest heart; if born into an ordinary family, he could be the most compassionate and gentle person in the world. However, being born into the royal family, he had no choice but to face and do things. "Actually, you know some things, but you just don't want to think about them in detail. So, Zehua, I won't force you. I won't force you like your royal uncle did. You just need to know these things. In the future, even if you have to face them, promise me you will observe with the same calmness and not interfere. We can't do much more."

Zhao Defang hesitated for a moment, then remained silent.

He didn't know, though he found his uncle's behavior strange, what was going on between him and his mother. Perhaps he was indeed running away again, as Wanlan said, but no matter what, he always felt that as long as he didn't think about it, nothing would happen.

Thinking of this, he focused his mind and asked softly, "Wanlan, is this what you wanted to say? Now that we've finished talking, let's talk about Miss Xue." Seeing that she was about to speak again, he reached out and gently covered her slightly parted lips, quietly watching the panic in her eyes, and continued, "Just now at the Xue residence, when you entered the inner garden, I chatted with Prime Minister Xue for a while and learned that Miss Xue was rescued when she fell ill in Junzhou. If it weren't for that rescue, the people Prime Minister Xue sent to Junzhou would probably have brought back more than just a critically ill Miss Xue."

Wanlan's eyes widened as she pulled his hand down. "What do you mean?"

Zhao Defang smiled slightly and patted her hand reassuringly, "Don't be too nervous. Prime Minister Xue has already sent people to investigate this matter. However, after talking with him today, Prime Minister Xue asked me to ask if you could stay at the Prime Minister's residence for a few days to keep Miss Xue company. After all, you are her only friend."

Wanlan remained unresponsive for a long time.