The Beauties of the Song Dynasty

Chapter 54

"I raped her," Xue Weiji said quietly, his voice calm as still water, as if he were completely unaware of how shocking his words were. "Do you know? I raped my own sister, hehehehe!"

A low, chilling laugh echoed throughout the mourning hall. Wanlan stared in shock at the man who slowly rose to his feet. He was disheveled and looked like a madman. He staggered to Suxin's coffin, his gaze falling on the woman inside who lay peacefully asleep with her eyes closed. He then remained motionless.

Wanlan stared at him in disbelief and shook her head frantically, "Impossible...it can't be!"

Xue Weiji was so deeply in love with Su Xin. He would ruin his reputation for the one he loved and would protect her for many years without changing his mind. There was no way he would do anything to hurt Su Xin. She didn't believe it. She simply couldn't believe it!

"Something must have happened!" Wanlan rushed over and grabbed him, her voice trembling and urgent. "You're lying, aren't you? You love Suxin so much, how could you bear to hurt her? There must be some misunderstanding! That's right... that's right! It's Zhao Dezhao, isn't it? This is all Zhao Dezhao's conspiracy..."

“There was no conspiracy. I killed Su Xin. If Your Highness wants to pursue the matter, please come directly to me. But today, please allow me to stay with Su Xin a little longer. You may leave.”

"Xue Weiji!"

Wanlan screamed, her voice choked with sobs. She couldn't control her trembling body or the overwhelming pain that was flooding her heart. She could only cry out instinctively, "I don't believe it! You must be hiding something! Why won't you tell me what happened to Suxin?! Tell me... tell me..."

"Wanlan!"

The closed hall door was kicked open, and a figure rushed in and quickly ran to Wanlan, who was slumped to the ground, and caught her in his arms. "Wanlan, calm down."

"Ze... Zehua... Suxin is dead, what should I do... what should I do..."

Su Xin was her closest female friend in the Song Dynasty. The memories of talking with her and traveling together were still so clear, but now she lay coldly in front of her, never to speak a word to her again.

Zhao Defang held his panicked and helpless wife tightly in his arms, his dark eyes looking at Xue Weiji, who was half-lying and half-standing beside the coffin. He patted Wanlan and said loudly, "Young Master Xue, you can come to the Qin Prince's Mansion to find me anytime you want to tell me everything. Farewell."

The figure lying prone remained motionless, but Zhao Defang paid no attention and walked out with Wanlan in his arms.

"Zehua...I won't leave...I won't leave!"

"Wanlan, calm down... Be good, don't cry."

After patting and coaxing her to leave the mourning hall, Zhao Defang gestured for Lan Wen and Xuan'er, who were waiting outside, to go first, while he picked up Wanlan and followed behind, quickly leaving the Xue residence.

Lan Wu, who was waiting outside the Xue residence, immediately opened the carriage door behind him when they came out, and took a step back so that Zhao Defang could lift the person in his arms into the carriage. Unexpectedly, Wanlan spoke softly at this moment:

"Zehua, I want to go back to the palace."

"Wanlan?"

Wanlan took a deep breath, her body trembling as she stepped out of his embrace. She took a step back and stood still. She bit her lip hard, and blood immediately seeped from her pale lower lip. Xuan'er, who was standing to the side, exclaimed and was about to step forward, but was stopped by Zhao Defang.

“Zehua, when I returned from Luoyang, we were in the little bamboo house, and you asked me what the ending was. Do you remember?”

Zhao Defang stared intently at her body, which she was deliberately stiffening to control her trembling, and nodded silently.

Wanlan took a few quick breaths, closed her eyes, and sobbed and laughed, "I'll tell you... I'll tell you, Suxin wasn't in the ending, but she ended up so tragically. The Empress wasn't in the ending either, but she also lost the Emperor's favor overnight, and... and..."

She gasped for breath, her right hand instinctively clutching her chest, where a sharp, throbbing pain made it hard for her to breathe.

Zhao Defang's gaze sharpened, and he strode forward to pull her back into his arms. He placed his large hand on her chest and gently massaged it. "Wanlan, don't say anything more. I'll take you away from here right now. We'll leave the capital, we'll go to Luoyang, to Guizhou, anywhere. Let's go now!"

Wanlan gripped his sleeve tightly, ignoring his words. "And you, this incident originally had nothing to do with you, but now it seems it started because of us. It's all... all because of me—"

"Wanlan!" Zhao Defang interrupted her sharply, glancing at the questioning gazes around them, and said with a low breath, "I know you're upset, but don't overthink or talk nonsense. This has nothing to do with you, so don't blame yourself."

Wanlan paused, then suddenly chuckled softly, leaning gently against his shoulder, her lips barely touching his ear. "Zehua, today is already the fifth day of the lunar new year. There are only half a month left... only half a month left before the weather changes. Do you understand what I mean?"

The soft words whispered in his ear jolted Zhao Defang awake. His pupils contracted rapidly. He gritted his teeth, swept Wanlan up in his arms, and leaped onto the carriage. Ignoring Princess Yongqing's shouts as she chased after him, he hurriedly drove away.

=== ...

It's almost the end of the month~ National Day is coming soon~

Everyone seems to be very busy lately~

Busy catching up on lessons~ Busy taking time off~

I don't know if Xiaoxian will be home tomorrow~

So I'll post two chapters today~~ haha~

Chapter 62, How Many Tears, How Much Hatred (2)

The Emperor probably knew that Wanlan would not return to the palace after leaving it, so he did not send anyone to bring her back. Perhaps he did not want to have a direct confrontation with Zhao Defang, or perhaps the Northern Expedition made him too busy to care about her, which is why he kept her in the Prince of Qin's residence.

After three days of depression at home, Wanlan gradually calmed down. She did not attend Suxin's funeral. Later, she heard that Xue Weiji had not appeared either. Everyone said that after the young master Xue stayed up all night in front of Miss Xue's coffin, he disappeared. No one knew where he went. Perhaps Prime Minister Xue was angry and resentful towards him, so he did not send anyone to search for him.

So when Wanlan learned of this three days after returning to the Qin Prince's mansion, Xue Weiji had already completely disappeared without a trace, and no one knew where he had gone.

Wanlan suddenly realized that the lack of historical records about Xue Weiji before he entered the court might be due to his departure for his beloved. However, she could no longer concern herself with his affairs; the imminent threat was the impending palace coup.

On the fourth day after returning to the Qin Prince's Mansion, which was the ninth day of the tenth month, Wanlan stepped into the Jin Prince's Mansion and met Zhao Pu, who was known for "governing the world with half of the Analects".

Historical records offer both praise and criticism of this person. Although he was not well-educated, he served as prime minister three times. His rise from being out of favor with Emperor Taizu of Song to being favored by Emperor Taizong of Song shows that he was adept at currying favor with those who had political prospects and was willing to sacrifice his character to curry favor. However, as a politician from the landlord class in the feudal era, he was a historical figure with a certain degree of foresight.

When Wanlan met Zhao Pu, who was over fifty years old, he was sitting upright in the study of the Prince of Jin, waiting for her.

Leaving Xuan'er, who had accompanied her, outside the study, Wanlan quietly observed the middle-aged man with graying hair and beard before her. He wore a wide, bluish-gray robe with a matching belt, and stood before her with his head slightly bowed, respectfully cupping his hands in greeting:

"This humble official greets Your Highness."

Wanlan waved her sleeve and smiled, "Lord Zhao, there's no need for such formalities. Please sit down."

Zhao Pu didn't say anything more and carefully sat down. When he saw Wanlan walk around to the chair next to him and sit down, he suddenly froze and dared not make the slightest movement.

Having learned of the woman's formidable abilities from Eunuch Wang, Zhao Pu was extremely cautious, not daring to relax his guard in the slightest.

Seeing his reaction, Wanlan said, "Lord Zhao, please be understanding. I haven't come here today to question you. My uncle has business with Zehua today, and I specifically chose this time to make a deal with you." Zhao Pu paused, then looked up in surprise, "A deal?"