The Beauties of the Song Dynasty - Chapter 69
She was so reckless today.
What to do? She had never seen Zehua so angry before.
He hasn't said a word since he came back in the afternoon, nor has he even looked at her properly. They haven't even had dinner yet.
Simply because she didn't dare to approach him and say a word to him.
Zehua's current state left her bewildered and even somewhat fearful and uneasy.
Will he just ignore her forever?
Wanlan sat there restlessly, her head bowed, staring at her tangled fingers, silently berating herself for her behavior today. Why couldn't she keep her composure?
She hadn't expected Empress Song to be a suspect, since she had fallen into a deep sleep that night after drinking poisoned wine. However, her uncle had said that once the effects of the medicine wore off, she would naturally wake up. If her uncle couldn't get back to the Wansui Palace in time, then Empress Song would be a strong suspect in Zhao Kuangyin's death.
Moreover, if the Emperor were to learn that the child in her womb was not the Emperor's son, Empress Song would have a motive to assassinate Zhao Kuangyin, whether for herself, for her child, or for Zhao Guangyi.
Even so, she really shouldn't have said it so rashly today.
Was she so bound by history that she acted rashly? Does the truth really matter that much? If she angered Zhao Guangyi because of this, or if Zhao Guangyi learned of her mother's secret, would that really be the outcome she wanted? Why didn't she think carefully about the possible consequences of her words beforehand?
"Why aren't you asleep yet?"
The familiar gentle words in her ear made Wanlan tremble slightly. She looked up at the man before her, whose expression had returned to calm and gentleness. Her eyes suddenly welled up with tears. She bit her lip and stood up from the bed, her clenched hands stiffly clutching the hem of her skirt. She murmured:
"Zehua...I'm sorry..." She was too reckless and lost her composure.
Zhao Defang looked at her quietly. "Why are you apologizing?"
"I...I said a lot of things I shouldn't have said today," Wanlan said, tears streaming down her face. She quickly wiped them away, looked up at him cautiously, and choked out, "So you're angry, aren't you? I...I apologize to you, please don't ignore me..." For three whole hours, he had kept his cold back to her, leaving her behind in a state of panic and helplessness.
Zhao Defang's heart tightened, and he pulled her into his arms with great pity. "I'm not angry with you, I'm angry with myself."
Unable to hold back any longer, Wanlan sobbed softly in his arms, wrapping her arms around his waist, and said in a hoarse voice, "Why are you angry with yourself? He didn't do anything wrong."
He sighed deeply, rested his chin on the top of her head, and said slowly, "I'm angry at my cowardice, my unwillingness to face it bravely. If I had asked my uncle about what happened that night earlier, you wouldn't have had to do this today. I wouldn't even know about Mother's child..."
He paused, then continued, "You said that child wasn't Father's, so it must be related to Uncle. But in the past two months, Uncle and Mother seem to have had no contact whatsoever. Mother is grieving the loss of her child; if Uncle knew, he would never have remained indifferent. So—he doesn't know the truth, right?"
"Yes, he doesn't know, and Mother doesn't intend to let him know either. I was too impulsive today. I shouldn't have done that, which only aroused my uncle's suspicion."
He gave a bitter smile. "I don't know how to view this matter, so I haven't visited my mother even once in the past two months. As a result, I am completely unaware of the truth. If you hadn't brought it up today, I don't know how long I would have kept running away." He paused slightly and asked in a low voice, "Is my mother... alright?"
"She's fine, just a little thinner."
Wanlan stepped out of his embrace, pulled him to sit on the edge of the bed, and held his face with utmost seriousness. "Zehua, you are not allowed to say those things to the Imperial Uncle today again!" What, never to set foot in the capital again for the rest of his life? Even if Zhao Guangyi had never been suspicious of Zehua, he would have been stirred up by Zehua's words.
"I know he's doted on you since you were little, but that's because of the Empress Dowager. Besides, he took his seat from you—don't say anything!"
She quickly reached out and covered his slightly open mouth, shaking her head. "I know you have absolutely no interest in that position, but no matter what, you and he, and even most of the ministers in the court, understand that the position originally belonged to either you or Zhao Dezhao. But now it's the Imperial Uncle sitting there. Although he's being accommodating and accommodating to you in every way, I can't guarantee that this attitude will continue. After all, he is now the Emperor, the Son of Heaven, and the whole world belongs to him. Do you understand?"
Zhao Defang wearily closed his eyes and leaned against her. "Wanlan, shall we leave here? I'm afraid situations like today will happen often. If my royal uncle insists on involving you in the affairs of our Great Song Dynasty, if he wants to use your 'prophecy' to change situations that shouldn't be changed, you... if you are punished and forced to leave, I—"
"Okay, stop talking." Wanlan hugged him tightly and stroked his hair soothingly. "I'll go with you, we'll leave. I promise you, even if I die, I will never leave you, okay?"
"Don't mention that word!"
He bit her earlobe hard in anger and shock, his lips pressed against her neck, kissing her passionately all the way down to her chin, and said in a low, hoarse voice, "Wanlan, if you dare to leave me again, I will hate you, I will hate you..." He wanted to force her to never speak lightly again, he wanted to force her to never abandon him.
"Zehua?"
Wanlan was startled. She had been awake for four days, and Zehua had always been as gentle as ever. She had always believed what he said—because she believed she would wake up, so she had been quietly waiting for her.
These past few days, they have been busy with matters of state, and have not had the energy to express their feelings and longing for each other after being separated for two months. Today, hearing his resolute words, Wanlan felt deeply apprehensive.
She almost forgot that this man... wasn't strong, especially when it came to her.
She moved her arms from his waist to the back of his neck, and as he looked up, Wanlan offered her red lips, silently promising that she would never make him so panicked and uneasy again.
Zhao Defang kissed his wife tenderly, then stretched out his right arm to lower the veil, covering her body. In that instant, he heard her murmur a soft murmur:
"...Let's go see Mother tomorrow..."
His eyes softened, and he leaned down to kiss her slightly parted lips, giving her the answer, "...Okay."
Chapter 74, The Moon Shines Brightly Over the Sea, Pearls Weep (1)
On the 24th day of the 12th month in the early years of the Taiping Xingguo era, there was heavy snow.
Wanlan was wrapped in two padded jackets, one inside the other, and a light purple quilted shawl was draped over her shoulders. The infant in her arms was completely wrapped up, with only a pair of big eyes peeking out as it looked around, which made Xuan'er chuckle softly.
"Young Master doesn't seem to be afraid of the cold at all! The snow is really heavy today."
Wanlan, holding her child, stood with Xuan'er in front of the palace gate, waiting to go back to her room to retrieve the thermos she had left behind. Suddenly, she asked, "Xuan'er, hasn't Lan Wen returned yet?"
The day after she woke up, she met Xuan'er and Lan Wu and learned that Lan Wen had set off alone to some mountain to find their master. It seemed that it was because of her being in a deep sleep. She planned to ask their reclusive master for advice on how to resolve the matter.
Xuan'er smiled and said, "Madam, he is already on his way back and should be back in the capital in the next few days."
"Really? That's good."
Looking up, Wanlan saw a white-clad man holding a thermos smiling as he greeted her. She returned the smile with a slight smile, "Actually, it's fine without a thermos. There will be a stove to warm you up once we get to the palace."
"It will be cold on the road."
Zhao Defang responded warmly, glancing sideways at Xuan'er, "Xuan'er, you can stay here, you don't need to come along."
"Yes, Your Highness."