Feeling that he would be driven mad if he spoke to her any further, Prince Ning stopped wasting words, reached out and grabbed her by the back of her collar, intending to pull her off the carriage. Ling Xiao frowned and pretended to wail, "You bullied me! You bullied me! I'm never playing with you again! Humph!"
This tone, as if speaking to a three-year-old, actually made Prince Ning let go. Afterwards, Ling Xiao sat up, covered his face, and sobbed, though no tears fell.
What exactly do you want?
"Return to the Imperial Hospital."
"Aren't you going to explain what happened tonight?"
Already angry, Ning Wang was further provoked by Ling Xiao's indifferent attitude, and he could barely contain his rage, becoming somewhat irritable. Ling Xiao could sense his change in mood, but still said, "There's nothing to explain. I spent my own money to make myself happy, and it didn't bother anyone."
"What exactly do you mean?" Prince Ning's gloomy face and angry question made Ling Xiao involuntarily shrink back.
She thought for a moment and said very seriously, "It's okay to be frank. I won't consider marrying you. You have someone you love in your heart, someone you can't let go of even if that person becomes someone else's wife. How can I believe you can be devoted to me in the future? But I never wanted you to be devoted to me, so you don't need to feel pressured."
“That night I seduced you, but you enjoyed yourself, and I didn’t ask you to take responsibility. You can think of it as… sleeping with a maid, or something else. In short, there’s no need to use that to bind our relationship. So, I think you don’t need my approval for whatever you do. I spend my own money to have fun, and I don’t need to report to you either.”
Seeing the murderous look on Prince Ning's face, Ling Xiao immediately looked away, patted his chest, lowered his voice, and continued, "What happened that time was my fault, but you... are quite good... You and your future Princess Ning will definitely have a very happy life. The prescription I left for you last time is very good; you can take it occasionally... um..."
What's wrong with kissing someone at the drop of a hat? Can't they just talk things out? With Prince Ning grabbing his chin, cupping his face, and biting and nibbling at him, Ling Xiao felt like he was suffocating. He couldn't push him away, still drunk and with little strength left. "Wine and lust ruin people," Ling Xiao thought silently, tears streaming down his face.
Just as Ling Xiao felt she was about to faint, Prince Ning finally released her. She struggled to breathe, her mouth burning, and she couldn't speak.
Prince Ning gave her a deep look before getting off the carriage and finally instructing her to return to the Imperial Hospital. The carriage then resumed its journey. Ling Xiao leaned against the carriage wall for a while, then wiped her mouth, silently lay down, and closed her eyes to rest.
·
Xia Mingzhe watched as Zhang Xin remained unconscious all the way back to the palace without waking up. He didn't wake her, but simply sat in the carriage watching her. No matter how smoothly the carriage moved, the difference between moving and stopping was still obvious. Zhang Xin had slept soundly through the bumpy ride, but she sensed when the carriage stopped and groggily opened her eyes.
She couldn't remember ever going to Qingfeng Pavilion for a stroll. As she asked, "What time is it?", just as she was about to turn over, Zhang Xin suddenly felt empty beneath her. Startled awake, she was then supported by a pair of large hands. Only then did she realize that she was inside a carriage, and there was someone sitting opposite her.
The carriage was dimly lit. Zhang Xin sat up, and recognizing Xia Mingzhe wasn't too difficult. Recalling what she had been doing, and then seeing Xia Mingzhe, she realized she had a blank memory; she didn't know what had happened in between, nor where Ling Xiao had gone.
In the darkness, sensing that Xia Mingzhe seemed somewhat angry, Zhang Xin smiled, puzzled, and said, "Where are we? Where is Aunt Ling? I must be drunk; I don't remember what happened."
Just as he was about to lift the carriage curtain to look, Xia Mingzhe spoke first, "Physician Ling has been taken away by Prince Ning, and Princess has already returned to the palace."
Zhang Xin nodded and said, "Thank you for bringing me back so late." As she spoke, thinking she should get off the carriage, Xia Mingzhe grabbed her arm. Zhang Xin felt inexplicably awkward and didn't know what to say, so she just smiled foolishly at him and asked, "Is there anything else?"
Why go to a place like that?
Xia Mingzhe asked his question calmly, which left Zhang Xin somewhat bewildered. She asked in return, "Huh?" Just as she realized he was referring to Qingfeng Pavilion, she heard Xia Mingzhe say, "If something happens to Your Highness, the little princess, given how recklessly you've acted, how am I supposed to explain this to His Majesty?"
Zhang Xin, who was usually not very bright, was not fooled by Xia Mingzhe's words this time. She smiled gently and said, "My brother the emperor didn't ask you to take care of me before he went to find Ahao, so he won't blame you. Besides, I'm fine, I just had a few extra drinks. But thank you for bringing me back. I know you find me troublesome, so I won't bother you anymore."
Zhang Xin didn't mean any sarcasm; her words were sincere, yet Xia Mingzhe frowned upon hearing them. When Zhang Xin got off the carriage again, he didn't stop her, but simply followed her down.
The sedan chair that was there to pick up Zhang Xin was waiting not far away. Before she got on, she thanked Xia Mingzhe again, waved goodbye to him, and was helped into the sedan chair by a palace maid and returned to Yongle Palace.
Xia Mingzhe stood there, not responding to Zhang Xin's thanks and farewell. He quietly watched the sedan chair gradually disappear into the night until it was no longer visible. He stood there for a while before finally leaving.
·
Even though he knew about the affair between Ling Xiao, Zhang Xin, Prince Ning, and Xia Mingzhe, Zhang Yu didn't interfere or ask any questions. He let them do what they wanted and didn't tell Ahao.
After throwing a tantrum at Zhang Yu on the very first day of their marriage, Ahao became much more obedient, quiet and well-behaved, and listened to everything Zhang Yu said. Finally, Zhang Yu managed to get a hug from Ahao when he woke up in the morning.
After those few days with Ahao had passed, and while the weather in July was still pleasant, Zhang Yu began to have Ahao learn some martial arts every day, and also taught her archery and the like.
Having faced danger several times and only being able to wait to be rescued, A-Hao didn't mind learning these skills. When Zhang Yu offered to teach her, she readily agreed and studied diligently. From then on, the two of them had an important new task in their daily lives.
Martial arts training also depends on talent, and A-Hao felt she had no talent and seemed not very smart, often feeling like she couldn't keep up. Zhang Yu, however, always praised her, showing patience and constant encouragement, which only made A-Hao put even more effort into her studies. Later, Zhang Yu had many military books brought in, asking A-Hao to flip through them, and she finally realized something.
Zhang Yu was clearly grooming her. In fact, she had been exposed to these things before, but Empress Dowager Feng did not expect her to know too much in these areas, so she learned more about music, chess, calligraphy and painting.
Now that Zhang Yu is like this, with his archery skills, boxing techniques, and military strategy, and considering that Zhang Yu said he would leave together next spring, there's probably only one thing Ah Hao can think of.
"Your Majesty... are you going to take me to the border?" Ah Hao looked at the large stack of military books in front of her, then looked at Zhang Yu, her mind filled with thoughts, but she still asked the question with some uncertainty.
Zhang Yu smiled, neither confirming nor denying. Ahao continued, "But wouldn't bringing me along be a burden? Even if we start learning now, I'm afraid we'll only learn the basics." Then, realizing something was amiss, she asked, "Does His Majesty intend to lead the expedition personally?"
"Do you want to go?" Zhang Yu looked into Song Shuhao's eyes and said to her, "Come with me to take a closer look at what the country we've guarded for so many years really looks like."
Ah Hao also looked into Zhang Yu's eyes. Even though he didn't say anything ambitious at this moment, he suddenly remembered the proud and arrogant demeanor he had once witnessed.
It was during the winter hunt, and Zhang Yu was routinely responsible for shooting the first arrow. It was the first time she had seen Zhang Yu so confident and radiant. Ah Hao remembered that when she saw Zhang Yu perform those amazing feats, he remained remarkably calm, merely raising the corners of his mouth slightly, showing little joy, as if it were nothing out of the ordinary.
But she always remembered that scene, remembered the confidence and power that Zhang Yu exuded at that time, as if he held the world in his hands. Even with his arrogance and conceit, it was impossible not to admire and be impressed by him.
So, when she was considering what to give him for his birthday and decided on an embroidery design, she first remembered this image and decided to embroider the image of Zhang Yu in her mind at that time.
For some reason, thinking about these things stirred a slight excitement within me. Ah Hao looked at Zhang Yu, nodded, and then nodded again, firmly and resolutely, and said to him, "Okay."
Author's Note: So the answer is that His Majesty will take Ah Hao to the border.
︿(￣︶￣)︿︿(￣︶￣)︿︿(￣︶￣)︿
Someone guessed what happened to Ling Xiao! Hehehe, how clever! =3=
*cough* He said he wouldn't guess anything, *pinches cheek*
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Thank you everyone for your comments. Here's a red envelope as a token of my gratitude =3=
Chapter 84 Update
After playing cricket fighting with the young eunuch twice and winning a few taels of silver, Ling Xiao, in high spirits, hummed a tune as she returned to the Imperial Hospital. Suddenly, it started raining on the way. Seeing that she was almost there, Ling Xiao didn't bother to find shelter; instead, she shielded her head with her hands and rushed back through the rain. She ran all the way to the eaves before stopping, shaking off the water droplets and checking the situation outside.