Одинокий город закрыт - Глава 85
When I woke up, I found myself in bed. I sat up abruptly and didn't see Xi Lan. I jumped out of bed, opened the door, and found that only Ye Feng was guarding the outside.
"Where is Xilan?" Not only was Yefeng alone by the door, but the entire courtyard of Youda, which was usually full of guards, was now deserted.
"He went to the palace early this morning."
"He's awake? His injuries are healed?" I asked in a strange tone. When did Xi Lan wake up? Is he strong enough to ride a horse to the palace today? Why did he rush there so urgently? And he didn't wake me up, or even leave a single word, just left like that.
This time, was he the one who turned around first?
"Young master, it's time for us to set off as well," Ye Feng said respectfully, without answering my question.
I looked around. Besides Ye Feng and myself, only the doctor who had come with me stood not far away. This farewell meant I didn't know when I would see Xi Lan again. Although I felt a pang of sadness, I understood that if Xi Lan could let go, that would be for the best. I nodded to Ye Feng and strode outside.
It was another day-and-night journey. I came anxious about Xilan's injury, and left eager to return home. I had originally intended to go back with Qinglin, but seeing Yefeng's resolute attitude, and thinking about the secrets of the palace, I really didn't want to stay in this complicated environment for another day. I don't have a strong sense of curiosity, nor do I want to actively seek trouble. When I intuitively feel that some things are better left unsaid, I automatically choose to ignore them.
Clouds Drunk, Moon Slightly Asleep (Revised Edition) Volume Three: If Life Were Only As We First Met, My Heart Would Be Full of Knots (Part Two)
Chapter word count: 3554 Update time: 08-12-23 14:41
A Heart Full of Knots (Part Two)
Several more days passed on the road. I heard that Qinglin and the others had already returned, but I didn't know what had happened to the secret of the palace. Upon entering Longzhou City, I saw the imperial four-horse carriage parked not far from the city gate. Resigned, I rode over, then dismounted and climbed into the carriage.
"Ah!" I exclaimed softly, almost falling off the carriage. I rubbed my eyes in disbelief. What kind of wind was blowing today? That fox was lying on the bright yellow soft couch in the middle of the carriage like a devilishly flamboyant man. Oh, not flamboyant, but charming and alluring. He was smiling at me with an ambiguous expression. And, surprisingly, he was wearing a white robe today, and the style of it was incredibly seductive.
"What...what are you doing?" I stammered. Luckily, I had enough self-control to not drool, otherwise I would have been incredibly embarrassed. But I had a feeling that something was wrong with the fox's outfit today.
"Qianqian, didn't you see I came here specifically to pick you up and take you home?" He smiled at me very gently, his peach blossom eyes filled with naked love, but it felt a little fake to me.
I couldn't help but shudder, biting my finger, turning around and lying on the soft couch on the left, picking up a cushion and hugging it tightly to my chest, pouting as I said, "And then?"
"And then? What else do you think, Qianqian?" He sat up, turned around, and lay down on his side facing me, propping his head up with one hand, no more than twenty centimeters away from my head, speaking more lazily than a cat.
"No, that's best! I'm tired, I'm going to sleep for a bit, wake me up when we get there." I rolled my eyes, glanced at him, then turned around, facing away from him. After hesitating for a moment, I casually said, "You don't look good in white, you're such a fake innocent!"
I'm absolutely telling the truth! Look at that fox's bewitching face; even in white, he's still bewitching. He's nowhere near as pure and ethereal as I am in white, let alone someone like Xi Lan who can impersonate an immortal. Sigh, that fox is such a failure. Just seeing his face makes him look like a demon; nothing he wears can change his cunning!
For once, the fox didn't fly into a rage. He simply reached out and pulled me to his side, patted my back gently, and said with a tender yet ambiguous smile, "Go to sleep."
I couldn't be bothered with him anymore; I was just too exhausted from rushing around, so I covered my head and went to sleep.
When I woke up, it was already dark. I looked around and realized I was in the palace, on the fox's big bed, and there was no one else there. I sat up abruptly, wondering what was going on, when the fox leisurely strolled in.
"Why am I here? I need to see my brother." I jumped out of bed and blurted out. I wonder if Yun Feng's poison has been cured yet. Doesn't that fox know how much I'm worried about him? Why didn't she send me back to the Yun residence immediately?
He just smiled without saying a word, and pulled me outside. It was really suspicious. Was this guy grinning like that today just because the war was won?
"Brother, you're too ruthless! You make me do things as soon as I get back?" Fox pulled me to sit down in front of the pile of memorials. I sat with my back to him, protesting angrily.
He remained silent, one arm around me, while the other reached onto the desk, lifting a piece of red satin beside the pile of memorials. A scroll of imperial edict came into view, and then his voice sounded behind my ear: "Take a quick look."
I turned my head suspiciously to look at the person behind me who had half-closed his peach blossom eyes and was smiling happily, then reached out and took the imperial edict, placing it open on the table.
"Cough cough cough," I hadn't drunk any water, but I couldn't help coughing lightly when I saw the contents of the imperial edict. 5555, what is this fox up to? This imperial edict is actually to appoint an empress and announce the wedding! He is the male protagonist, and I am the female protagonist. It even says that an imperial proclamation will be issued to announce it to the world. If I do the math, the wedding will be held in a month.
"Qianqian doesn't seem satisfied?" The fox's hand was tightly wrapped around my waist. Yes, it was definitely wrapped around my waist. The force was so great that it felt like she was going to strangle me to death. Her words were full of warning.
"It's not that I'm dissatisfied," I said with a laugh.
It's against my will, really, I'm quite dissatisfied. This kind of wedding seems so...unconventional. If I refuse, it would be disobeying orders, but if I agree, I'm unwilling to give up. That fox hasn't even given me a proper, romantic proposal yet! 5555, what a huge loss! And strictly speaking, we've only known each other for less than a year. Isn't this a bit too much of a whirlwind marriage?
"Then why do I feel that Qianqian is unhappy?" His left hand covered my left hand, his slender fingers moving back and forth over my little finger.
I withdrew my hand and rolled my eyes. He really was incredibly sensitive; in this respect alone, I felt like I was the man and the fox was the woman. I sighed and obediently confessed, "I'm not mentally ready for marriage yet."
Although he mentioned his ex-wife and empress more than once, and I felt sweet listening to it, I didn't actually think about it at all. Besides, he's a time traveler; this body may be eighteen, but he's almost twenty-seven. Is he really going to be an old cow eating young grass? And also, is he really going to settle down here? Giving birth later is terrifying! Natural birth is supposed to be very painful; what if there are complications? Ah, I can't think about it anymore, the more I think about it, the scarier it gets.
"Qianqian." The fox turned me around, making me face him, and then hugged my shaking head, calling out with a rather helpless tone.
"What's wrong? What's wrong?" I was so dizzy that I didn't react at first.
"Would Qianqian be willing to affix the imperial seal?" He handed the jade seal to me, looked at me, and asked with a rare gentleness and seriousness.
I stared blankly at the jade seal in my hand, then turned to look at the imperial edict on the table, only to realize that it hadn't been stamped with the official seal yet. Was this not a "forced marriage"? Could it be that if I didn't want it, the fox would really put the edict aside for now? I lowered my head. Could I really settle down here? Could I really marry the person before me and live a peaceful life?
"Qianqian?" He lifted my face and asked cautiously, his voice unusually tense.
"Would you take a concubine or a mistress?" I think I need to confirm this, after all, this isn't an era where having a mistress is illegal.
"If I wanted to take concubines, wouldn't there be someone in the harem now?" He said helplessly, stroking my hair with a mixture of amusement and exasperation.
I bit my lip and touched my chin. It seemed that what the fox said made sense, and it was quite convincing.
"What about a marriage alliance?" I started to frown at the thought of a marriage alliance.
He actually chuckled softly, nuzzled my nose, and said affectionately, "There's no such thing as a marriage alliance, Qianqian, don't worry."
After saying that, he stared expectantly at the jade seal in my hand. I blinked a few times, closed my eyes, steeled myself, and turned around to stamp the seal on the imperial edict. Sigh, I've sold myself like this, I'm so unwilling. I pouted, returned the seal to the lewd-looking man, and complained, "You still owe me a grand, romantic, and formal proposal ceremony. Now I'm hungry, get me something to eat first."
Once a fox achieves his goal, he reveals his true colors. The smug look in his eyes makes you want to slap him away. Wearing his eyesore of white clothes, he grabbed my hand and led me outside.
There was no one in the outer room, but as soon as I entered, I stopped in my tracks and couldn't move. I covered my mouth with my hand to keep from screaming. That fox demon must have been out of his mind. On the huge dining table, one side was set with food, while the other side was covered with some kind of unknown red flower, shaped like an orchid but as fiery as fire, and as big as a cup.
"This...this..." I held my chin and finally found my voice. 555, where did this devil learn such romantic tricks?
"Qianqian isn't hungry anymore?" He looked at my surprised expression with satisfaction, his peach blossom eyes full of smiles.