Un sueño de transmigración - Capítulo 53
"Lan'er will attend the morning court with me tomorrow, and the army will depart the day after tomorrow. As for Xiyue," this was not surprising, but what was surprising was that he looked at me with an unusually kind expression and his tone was unusually gentle, "If Xiyue is willing to go to the battlefield with Lan'er, Father will not stop her. However, we need to send a few capable people to protect her. Xiyue is going to the battlefield now, so she must remember to be careful and safe."
The fact that I didn't faint on the spot is definitely because I have high moral character and good self-control! I'm not stupid enough to think that I could completely change a cunning old fox like Tianqing Wang with just a few words I said at noon. He only compromised with Xilan's conditions out of necessity, and then said some nice things to save my life. He probably just wants to know if I still have some use to him.
"I will follow Father's teachings." I replied with feigned respect, then straightened my expression and knelt down to plead, "There is only one thing I would like to ask of Father."
"Speak," he said calmly, narrowing his eyes slightly.
"Xiyue's journey will take several months at the earliest, and a year and a half at the latest. My sister-in-law has been kind to me, so I dare to ask that when Father is thinking of Xilan and Xiyue, please allow Hao'er to keep Father company and help him relieve his boredom." My attitude was sincere; these were my true feelings. To save me, the Crown Princess sacrificed Yu Fu, a pawn she had clearly cultivated for many years. If she hadn't sent Yu Fu to guide Xilan, I don't know what would have happened to me last night. I ultimately owe her a huge favor. If I had any reason to refuse her request before, now I must repay it.
"Get up." He was neither surprised nor angry, as if he had expected me to say that.
"tide Yue thanks Father Emperor."
There's probably no need to worry so much. The Crown Prince has held the throne for so many years; he's no pushover. If King Tianqing insists on letting Xilan succeed to the throne, he'll surely wait until we're away on a campaign to let those two fight it out. But given the current situation, Tianqing still has the opportunity to use Hanxing Kingdom, so he probably won't let the Crown Prince and the womanizer suffer mutual destruction so quickly.
After finishing my meal and seeing off King Tianqing and Xilan, I secretly went to the small house on the west side of Xilan Palace to wait for Yefeng. How did the fox fare last night? It was completely dark outside. I lay on the table, taking out the Phoenix Orchid Jade Pendant hidden in my clothes and playing with it. King Tianqing had received a letter from King Hanxing yesterday. Judging from his reaction and today's decision, the alliance should be almost finalized. Thinking of this, a smile involuntarily spread across my face.
"Night Breeze!" A dark figure pushed open the door and flashed in, then quickly turned around and closed the door. I happily got up and looked at the figure, but before I could see clearly, I was pulled into someone's arms.
It was that familiar, faint scent of ambergris! I took a deep breath, trying to inhale the aroma, then struggled to grab the man's arm, opened my mouth, and bit down hard.
He trembled, but did not flinch or make a sound, letting me bite him, while his other hand still held me tightly.
I relented, touched my slightly sore lips, and immediately felt much better. I looked up at the fox and smiled, "I didn't expect you to be able to play the flute, brother!"
But Fox stared at me, his handsome eyebrows furrowed, and his peach blossom eyes narrowed, flashing with a dangerous and furious aura. He stretched out a finger, gently placed it on my lower lip, and then pressed it down hard. My lips seemed to move almost imperceptibly, but in the end, he didn't say a word.
I immediately understood what was going on. The bite wound on my lower lip didn't hurt, but the mark was still there. That fox must have misunderstood. But he didn't get angry, and didn't say a word, which I found very strange. I cautiously glanced at him; his expression slowly calmed down. After a long while, he said earnestly and with heartache, "Does Qianqian resent her older brother?"
I tilted my head and thought for a moment, then nodded my head like a chick pecking at rice.
There was pain in his eyes, and his gaze was fixed on me as if trying to see through me. He then asked, "Qianqian, do you believe your older brother?"
I tilted my head and thought about it for a while, then shook my head like a rattle drum.
His eyes showed not only pain but also anger. He habitually narrowed his eyes, and his voice sounded dangerous: "Didn't Qianqian say yesterday that she understood what her elder brother was trying to do?"
I tilted my head and thought for a moment. Could it be that this dead fox agreed to my persuasion not only to get rid of me and thoroughly investigate the Yun family, but also had other plans?
Seeing that I neither nodded nor shook my head, nor spoke, the fox finally couldn't help but feel like going crazy. Before I could drive him mad, I casually said, "It seems that not only can you play the flute, but you also know martial arts!"
That damn fox! He came here both last night and tonight. It couldn't have been Night Wind who carried him here, could it? I should have known better. The kind of person he is, trusts himself more than others. Why wouldn't he have a backup plan for self-defense? Good heavens, what stupid things did I do during that attack at Qianzui Inn?
"Qianqian!" He suddenly seemed relieved, a lazy smile returning to his lips. He brought his head close to mine, our noses less than three centimeters apart, his warm breath tickling my face. "My Qianqian, are you trying to amuse your older brother?"
I turned my head to the side, ignoring the sly fox's anger, and continued casually, "If you don't confess honestly, I might as well stay here and be a princess in peace."
Hmph, you stinky fox, I'll give you one more chance. If you keep acting all mysterious, I'll kick you to the curb! I'm in high demand now, and besides, you might have a harem of concubines and a troublesome future. If you don't behave yourself, even if I like you, I won't date you.
He turned my head to look directly at me. His peach blossom eyes first flashed with a dangerous warning, then filled with doting tenderness. He seemed to hesitate for a moment, then finally sighed and said, "Silly girl, you always get confused when it comes to this. Qianqian, you are not only the empress I have chosen, but I also hope that you will be the only empress whom the people of my Longyao Kingdom respect, love, support, and recognize. With the blessings of all the people, be the happiest bride."
I was stunned and speechless. The fox touched the wound on my lower lip again with his finger and said, "But it's not just like that. Qianqian, I know you will not like the life in the harem. You will feel bored and annoyed every day. So, Qianqian, you are not only my queen, but as long as you like, you will still be the prime minister of my Longyao Kingdom."
I think my jaw must have dropped to the ground, because I really wanted to speak, but I found that I couldn't close my mouth and couldn't make a sound.
“From the very beginning, I firmly believed that my Qianqian would succeed, but…” He didn’t finish his sentence, but touched my left cheek with one hand, as if he knew that I had been injured there before, and said with heartache, “I will never let Qianqian take such risks again, and I will never let Qianqian suffer like this again.”
I finally couldn't resist and threw myself into the fox's arms, rubbing against his clothes for a while, but my head was spinning. Damn it, when did this stinky fox become so sentimental? He even acted like he completely saw through me, knowing I was a girl and still allowing me to attend court as the Prime Minister. Was he just trying to make me happy?
"Can I really still attend court?" I looked up and asked him in disbelief. If I really became the empress, wouldn't my colleagues at court recognize me? Or was it just that the fox was relying on being the emperor, and by remaining silent, others wouldn't dare to bring up the matter of the empress and the prime minister even if they had doubts?
He raised an eyebrow, looked at me lazily, and said in a languid tone, "If Qianqian only wants to be a good wife who supports her husband and raises children, and only wants to be a gentle and virtuous empress, then of course I will be extremely happy."
Wife? Empress? Oh right, there's one more thing I forgot. Since the fox has already confessed, I might as well be frank too, so I don't have to worry about it later.
"Aren't there enough people like this? Big brother's harem is all empty!" I desperately retreated from the fox's embrace, my tone even sounding sour to myself.
"Qianqian, are you so insecure?" His hand was around my waist, and I couldn't break free at all. But my heart ached. Xi Lan was right. Even if the fox agreed to let me attend court, he was the emperor, and having three palaces and six courtyards was inevitable.
“Qianqian seems a little worried about me taking concubines. Actually,” he looked at me, his smile a mix of teasing, cunning, and mischievousness. Suddenly, he reached up from the back of my neck and into my hair, giving it a gentle tug, and my hair cascaded down like a waterfall. He then grabbed a small tuft of my hair, brought it to his nose, and sniffed it with his eyes half-closed. Then, in that smug, almost irritating tone, he said, “Taking concubines is just for the sake of having children. As long as Qianqian helps me have more children, why would I need to take concubines?”
My face flushed instantly. "Damn you, you vixen!" I snapped. "Is marriage just for having children? If I don't have a few more, are you going to keep marrying one after another, endlessly?"
Oh my god, what am I saying? My brain must be fried, how embarrassing! It's like I'm about to marry him, my face is burning even hotter.
"Does Qianqian doubt my abilities?" He suddenly leaned closer to me, lightly touching the tip of my nose with his lips, his smile lewd and his tone extremely ambiguous. He leaned close to my ear and seemed to be nibbling at my earlobe, saying, "Qianqian can rest assured about this. As long as my Qianqian is willing, having as many children as she wants is no problem."
I couldn't be bothered with this lecherous man anymore. To avoid the conversation going around in circles, I quickly changed the subject and asked, "Brother, have you received the alliance letter from Hanxing Kingdom?"
He nodded with a sly grin, and seeing that I looked like I was about to speak again, he quickly said, "Don't worry, Qianqian. Although we've formed an alliance, I'll still be careful. Leave everything to me from now on. Qianqian just needs to get away now."
I almost forgot that the fox is the emperor; how could he not be more thorough than me? What I can think of, he will think of before I can. I'm just worrying for nothing. Thinking this way, I suddenly felt relieved, as if the mission had been perfectly completed. I was a little smug and grinned at the fox, saying, "Big brother, I'll be going to war with Xi Lan the day after tomorrow. I'll find a way to meet up with second brother then, and we can get away."
"Xi Lan?" he murmured, his expression momentarily unfathomable, his eyes turning dark and deep. He then looked at me, his eyes half-closed, glancing at the hairpin he had placed on the table after pulling my hair down. He said in an exceptionally gentle tone, "Where's the phoenix hairpin your elder brother gave you?"
What an ominous feeling! Although his voice was so gentle, the fox was clearly radiating a dangerous aura. I think I'd better just confess. I gave him an innocent wink and said with an awkward smile, "Um, I forgot it at Qianzuiju."
Before he could speak, I quickly took out the phoenix orchid jade pendant that I always wore around my neck and presented it as a treasure: "But this, I have always worn it on my body, I have never taken it off for a moment, I have not even taken it off when I take a bath."
I gazed at the fox with pleading eyes, but oh no, the fox's eyes seem to have changed color again! 5555, why did I bring up taking a bath for no reason?
(End of Volume 2)
Clouds Drunk, Moon Slightly Sleeping (Revised Edition) Volume Three: If Life Were Only As Beautiful as Our First Meeting - First Victory at Sizhou (Part One)