The Beauties of the Song Dynasty - Chapter 63
Jiaolan froze, her pretty face instantly turning red. "Auntie! What nonsense are you talking about?" Her aunt clearly said it was a dream she had when she was ten years old. What does a ten-year-old child know about erotic dreams?
"I'm not lying!" Yuan Yi snorted, glancing at her with a half-smile. "You did have a wet dream, and you consummated your marriage with a man. You were probably flustered and didn't know what to do, but you told me everything without hiding anything."
Jiaolan turned her flushed face away, refusing to believe it, "I don't believe it!" How could she believe it? A ten-year-old girl already knew how to have erotic dreams? How could she be so precocious?
Yuan Yi chuckled and patted her shoulder. "Whether you believe it or not, you did it. Tell me, you could never see the man's face clearly in your dream, but you remembered how he smiled gently at you. Although I was puzzled at the time how you could remember his smile when you couldn't see his face clearly, I later realized that since it was a dream, there was no logic to it."
She coughed lightly, suppressing her laughter, and continued, "When you were telling me about that dream, I noticed that you said you grasped something very hard when you reached out to grab the man's pendant. Based on your description, that thing must have been quite large, not like a typical jade ornament, and it was square. So I thought it might have been a waist badge worn by ancient nobles to display their status."
Jiaolan listened quietly to her finish speaking, nodded in understanding, and once again held up the token in her hand to examine it carefully. "This belongs to Zehua..." But why is it here? "Auntie, how did you get this?"
Yuan Yi looked at her in surprise. "What did you say? Who is Zehua?"
Jiaolan gave a wry smile and briefly mentioned the dream she had. However, because the story was so long, even though she only mentioned the key points, time passed by unnoticed. The sky outside the window went from bright to dark, and finally became pitch black as if a curtain had been drawn.
When she spoke of her repeated separations and reunions with Zhao Defang, and the suddenness of their final parting, she felt a strong sense of regret, wishing she could have said goodbye to him properly...
“This is what I’ve been trying to figure out these past two days. Zehua is my husband in another world, the Qin King Zhao Defang you mentioned. But—” She shook her head, swallowing the bitterness rising in her throat, “This is probably just another dream of mine.” A richer dream, one that she lingered in, one that she even wanted to return to at all costs.
During this time, Yuan Yi remained as quiet as air, staring at her without blinking, and smiled as she continued, "How do you know it's a dream?" Is there such a long, realistic, and unbelievable dream?
"Susu said that I only slept for six days, but in that time and space, I clearly lived for more than six months."
"In other words..." Yuan Yi raised an eyebrow, murmuring thoughtfully, "If we start counting from when you fell ill and fainted, one day in this timeline is equivalent to one month in that timeline..."
All the questions that had been squeezed together and had no way out seemed to be released in this one sentence.
Jiaolan was jolted awake, her eyes widening as she finally found an outlet for her "dream"—"...Auntie, do you mean that my six months in the Song Dynasty wasn't a dream? I really did live in that time and space, really gave birth to Zehua's child, and even fell in love with him? Is that right?"
Yuan Yi shook her head. "I'm afraid it's more than that..." She looked at the token in Jiao Lan's hand and slowly revealed even more shocking news, "Perhaps, the dream you had when you were ten years old wasn't just a simple erotic dream. I suspect that your soul did indeed travel back in time to the Song Dynasty and spend your wedding night with Zhao Defang." Oh dear! Does that mean her lovely niece had her first sexual experience at the age of ten?
Jiaolan was startled, almost jumping out of bed. "Auntie! Can we please stop talking about this?" Is it something to brag about at ten years old doing that kind of thing? But—as her aunt said, she had been to the Song Dynasty back then, so...the person who was truly married to Zehua was her all along, not Princess Deqing? And Xu'er was indeed her and Zehua's child?
Yuan Yi waved her hand with a smile, "What does it matter? That person is your husband anyway!" After the joke, she suddenly reached out and pressed Jiao Lan's shoulders, looking at her seriously, "Lan'er, when you told me about that dream that year, you mentioned that Zhao Defang originally planned to leave the bridal chamber. In other words, he never intended to sleep in the same bed with his wife. So, what I want to tell you is that Zhao Defang's wife is you, not the woman you possessed, understand?"
Sensing the hidden meaning in her words, Jiaolan stared back at her blankly, "So?"
Yuan Yi's eyes gradually revealed reluctance and sorrow. She closed her eyes tightly and looked at her resolutely. "We can't predict the panic your sudden disappearance will cause Zhao Defang, let alone disappearing under those circumstances. If, as you said, you suffered an axe wound on your back, that wound would probably have been enough to kill you. That alone is enough to terrify him. On top of that, you actually ran back to the modern world..." How exactly did Lan'er travel between the Song Dynasty and the modern world? She couldn't figure it out for a moment, but—
"Lan'er, you must go back!"
As soon as those words, heavy as a thousand pounds, fell, Jiaolan found that her mind, which had been in turmoil for two days, suddenly cleared, as if she had suddenly found the way out she wanted to break through—
She wants to go back.
If it was all just a dream, she would rather sleep forever and never wake up...
Volume 4: Like a Dream, Yet Not a Dream, Chapter 69, How Many Times Have My Soul Been With You in Dreams (1)
On the 21st day of the tenth month of the ninth year of the Kaibao era, Prince Jin formally ascended the throne as Emperor Taizong of Song. His officials paid homage between the pillars of the East Hall of the Wansui Palace. Emperor Taizong, supporting the coffin, wept bitterly, overcome with grief. On the 22nd, the Emperor declared a general amnesty, releasing all criminals who had not been pardoned under normal circumstances.
Emperor Taizu died suddenly, and the new emperor was not his son but his brother. Rumors circulated in the capital, with the most rampant being that the Prince of Jin had murdered the late emperor to usurp the throne, and then preempted the Prince of Yan by entering the palace and seizing the throne.
Another reason why the people believed this rumor was that the new emperor had bestowed titles and ranks upon his officials shortly after ascending the throne. Zhao Dezhao, who was originally the military governor of Shannan West Circuit, was granted the title of Prince of Wugong and appointed as the military governor of Yongxing and concurrently as the Grand Councilor, a position second only to the prime minister. Zhao Defang, the defense commissioner of Guizhou, was appointed as the military governor of Shannan West Circuit and concurrently as the Grand Councilor. Many of the old subordinates of the Taizu Emperor were also granted titles, and the prime minister Xue Juzheng was appointed as the Assistant Minister of Works.
Located right under the emperor's nose, Kaifeng was far more aware of court affairs than other places. In the past two months, besides the two major events of the late emperor's sudden death and the new emperor's ascension to the throne, there was another matter that had caused much discussion among the people—
Princess Deqing, who was both the wife of the Prince of Qin and the adopted daughter of the current Empress Dowager Song, was also inexplicably seriously injured on the night of the late emperor's sudden death. According to rumors circulating in the palace, although the imperial physician was summoned immediately after Princess Deqing was suddenly injured in the palace that night, she has not yet woken up due to the severity of her injuries.
The King of Qin was heartbroken and stayed by his wife's bedside every day, hoping that she would wake up from her deep sleep. He did not respond at all to the new emperor's bestowal of titles upon him. It was said that the King of Qin had stopped attending court. The King of Jin—who was now the emperor—was very lenient towards him and let him do as he pleased.
Zhao Dezhao, who was originally the rightful heir to the throne, did not show any obvious reaction to his uncle's sudden ascension to the throne. People speculated that the Prince of Yan might also be heartbroken over the matter of Princess Deqing, and therefore had no intention of competing with his uncle for the throne.
It was early December, and the temperature had been dropping steadily since the heavy snowfall the night the late emperor suddenly passed away a month earlier. Three snowfalls had already occurred, and everyone was bundled up in thick cotton-padded coats to ward off the cold. At this time of year, if a thinly dressed oddball suddenly appeared in public, it was inevitable that he would attract curious glances.
Inside the famous Qianyanlou teahouse on Tianbo Street in Kaifeng's West Market, the noisy atmosphere suddenly quieted down when a young man stepped into the teahouse. This man had an unusually cold, square face and carried a long sword in his right hand. He wore a thin cotton blue robe and his dark eyes scanned the teahouse. He spotted a seat in the northwest corner and walked over.
Everyone stared blankly as he sat down, and then, after the young man turned around and casually met their gazes, everyone quickly withdrew their unrestrained stares and continued their previous conversation.
Only one person never looked away.
She was a woman wearing a light purple padded short jacket over a plain white cotton long skirt. Her waist-length hair was simply tied up with a wooden hairpin. She had delicate features and a refined air, but her complexion was not good, as if she had caught a cold.
She had been watching the young man ever since he stepped into the Thousand Words Pavilion. After he sat down, the woman hesitated for a moment before finally standing up and walking towards him.
“Lan Wu…” she called out hesitantly.
The young man was Lan Wu. Hearing this, he glanced at her and pointed to the stool beside him. "Xuan'er isn't here. If you have something to say, sit down and tell me. Otherwise, please leave. Miss Su Li." He sneered, "Or would you like me to call you Madam?"
Su Li turned her face away awkwardly, ignoring his sarcasm. "I only asked Xuan'er out today to ask about Miss's situation. Since she didn't come, asking you is the same. Can you tell me about Miss's recent situation?"
"No." Lan Wu rejected her without hesitation. "The Lady has nothing to do with you anymore. You don't need to go to such lengths with all this pretense. Or perhaps—" His dark eyes narrowed, and he glared at her fiercely, "You're actually here to inquire about the Lady's situation on behalf of the Prince of Yan, aren't you?"
Su Li shook her head in alarm, "Of course not! I'm really worried about Miss! Just tell me if she's in any danger, let me know if she's alright, that's all I need. I really have no other purpose, you have to believe me, Lan Wu!"
"I have no obligation to believe you!"
Lan Wu stood up abruptly, sword in hand. "If you have nothing else to say, I'll take my leave!"
"Blue Weapon!"
Su Li hurriedly got up, feeling startled by the curious and inquisitive gazes coming from all around. She bit her lip, lifted her skirt, and followed Lan Wu out of Qianyan Tower.
"Lan Wu, listen to me!" Su Li struggled to catch up with the man who was striding ahead. She stepped past him, spread her hands to block his way, and after catching her breath, said hurriedly, "I'll only say two words and then leave. Please let me finish, okay?"
Lan Wu frowned and looked at her silently without saying a word.
“Listen to me, the Prince of Yan did all those things just for Miss, but he never expected that Miss would be injured and end up like this,” Su Li bit her lip and paused, then looked at him resolutely. “He had no regrets about missing the throne, but he will never let go of Miss. So I’m here to tell you to protect Miss well. The Prince of Yan… may make some moves in the near future.”