usatvline Chapter 456 Why is my beloved concubine sighing?
Chapter 456 Why is my beloved concubine sighing?
When Li Si emerged from the imperial prison, dusk had already fallen.
He boarded the carriage, leaned against the wall, closed his eyes, and the image of Han Zhong kneeling on the ground, his forehead touching the cold stone slab, kept replaying in his mind.
Li Si sighed and shook his head.
The wheels rolled over the bluestone slabs, making a monotonous "clattering" sound that echoed through the quiet streets.
By the time they returned to the manor, it was already dark.
The lanterns in front of the mansion gate were already lit, their orange-red glow spreading out in the twilight like flowers blooming in the night.
Li Si stepped down from the carriage, crossed the courtyard, and walked towards the side hall.
He pushed open the door and froze.
Liu Ruolan stood in the center of the side hall and turned around when she heard footsteps.
The candlelight burned quietly beside her, outlining her slender figure with exceptional clarity.
Today she wore a moon-white dress with a few pale blue orchids embroidered on the hem, and a matching ribbon tied around her waist.
Her long hair was styled into a flying fairy bun, with a jade hairpin inserted in her hair, and the tassels hanging down gently swaying by her cheek.
Her face was lightly made up, her eyebrows were like distant mountains, her eyes were like autumn water, her nose was high and straight, her lips were light in color, and her cheeks were lightly rouged.
She stood there, her hands clasped in front of her, her back ramrod straight.
The candlelight illuminated her face, making her gentle, mature features exceptionally clear.
She looked much younger than her actual age, with both the delicate features of a young girl and the unique charm of a woman.
A hint of amazement flashed in Li Si's eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.
Liu Ruolan also heard Li Si's footsteps, turned around, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes, and whispered:
"Your Excellency, you are back. May I go to the palace to see His Majesty?"
Li Si nodded, his voice steady.
"Alright. I will take you to see His Majesty now."
Tears suddenly welled up in Liu Ruolan's eyes, swirling around in her eyes.
She bit her lip, desperately trying to hold back the tears.
She then bowed deeply, her voice hoarse and trembling.
"Thank you, Your Excellency."
Li Si waved his hand, said nothing more, and turned to walk towards the door.
Liu Ruolan followed behind him, her steps light, her skirt trailing on the ground, making a soft rustling sound.
When they reached the gate of the mansion, Li Si stopped, turned around, and looked at her.
His gaze lingered on her face for a moment, his voice low.
"Madam, there are some things to note before you meet His Majesty, and I must explain them to you first."
Liu Ruolan's eyes lit up slightly, and she nodded hurriedly.
"Your Excellency, please speak freely, and I will certainly keep it in mind."
Li Si stroked his beard, his voice steady and slow, each word like a nail driven into Liu Ruolan's ears.
"First, when you see His Majesty, you must refer to yourself as 'this humble servant.' Now that you are pleading for mercy, you must not only lower your stance but also try to build rapport. The term 'this humble woman' is too formal."
Liu Ruolan listened attentively and silently made notes in her mind.
"Secondly, you may only raise your head when His Majesty tells you to. You must not speak if His Majesty forbids you from speaking. The rules in the palace are strict; one wrong step and you lose everything."
"Third, whatever His Majesty asks, you must answer truthfully. Do not conceal anything, do not lie, and do not try to be clever. His Majesty hates nothing more than deceiving the emperor."
"Fourth," Liston paused, his gaze falling on her face, his voice even softer, "No matter what His Majesty does, you must not resist."
Liu Ruolan's body trembled slightly, she bit her lip, and nodded.
"This concubine...remembers."
Li Si looked at her, his lips slightly parted.
He hesitated for a long time before finally speaking, his voice extremely low.
"Madam, Han Zhong's crime is neither too serious nor too minor. It all depends on His Majesty's mood. If we can please His Majesty... Han Zhong might be spared death."
Liu Ruolan's eyes flickered suddenly. She lowered her head, bowed deeply, and spoke in a hoarse voice.
"Thank you for your guidance, Your Excellency. I understand."
Li Si waved his hand, turned around, and walked towards the carriage outside the mansion gate.
"Keep this to yourself. Never tell anyone that I told you."
Liu Ruolan followed behind him, her voice very soft.
"I know."
The carriage moved slowly through the night, passing through street after street and palace after palace.
Liu Ruolan sat in the carriage, her hands folded on her knees, her fingers trembling slightly.
She lowered her head, looking at her fair, slightly trembling hands, feeling extremely uneasy.
The carriage stopped in front of the palace gate.
The imperial guards lifted the carriage curtain and glanced at Li Si. Upon seeing Li Si's face, they immediately stood up straight, clasped their hands in a fist and bowed, then stepped aside.
The carriage continued its journey and entered the palace.
Liu Ruolan looked out through the crack in the carriage window. The vermilion palace walls soared into the clouds, and the glazed tiles gleamed with a cold light under the moonlight.
The imperial road was paved with white marble, so shiny it was like a mirror, and the carriages passing over it made almost no sound.
The soldiers on both sides wore silver armor, held spears, and had swords at their waists, standing ramrod straight.
Liu Ruolan's heart was beating faster and faster, like a drum being struck, thump thump thump, and even her breathing became rapid.
Her palms were sweaty, her nails dug into them, and the sharp pain brought her back to her senses.
The carriage stopped in front of a palace.
Li Si's voice came from outside the carriage curtain, calm and composed.
"Madam, we've arrived. Please get out of the car."
Liu Ruolan took a deep breath, the air carrying the coolness of the night breeze, which made her more awake.
She lifted the carriage curtain, stepped onto a footstool, and slowly alighted from the carriage.
She looked up and saw a magnificent palace standing before her.
Above the palace gate hangs a plaque with the three large characters "Imperial Study" written on it. The characters are vigorous and the plaque gleams with a dark light under the moonlight.
The palace doors were wide open, letting in a dim candlelight, like a giant beast with its mouth open, waiting for her to walk in.
Li Si walked up to her and lowered his voice.
"This is all I can take you. Go inside yourself; His Majesty is waiting for you there."
Liu Ruolan nodded, opened her mouth as if to say something, but her throat seemed to be blocked, and she couldn't squeeze out a single word.
She simply nodded, took a step, and walked towards the palace gate.
She walked slowly, her legs were weak and her knees were trembling, but she gritted her teeth and walked step by step.
The moment Liu Ruolan stepped across the threshold, she felt as if her heart had been ripped out of her chest, hanging in mid-air, unable to go up or down.
The Imperial Study was very large, with three walls lined with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, the rosewood shelves carved with intricate cloud patterns.
The bookshelves were filled with scrolls, some standing upright, some lying horizontally, and some leaning against the spines of the books on the side.
The candlelight burned quietly on the table, illuminating the room with a dim and warm glow.
Liu Ruolan entered the imperial study, but the hall was empty.
She didn't look around; she dared not, and could not.
She walked to the center of the hall and slowly knelt down.
The knee touched the cold gold brick with a very soft thud.
Her hands were placed flat in front of her, palms facing up, her forehead touching the ground, and her long hair slipped down her shoulders, spreading out on the gold bricks.
Her back was straight, with a soft curve running from her shoulder blades to her waist, and her moon-white dress clung tightly to her body.
Her posture was devout and humble, like a believer worshipping a god, like an ant gazing at the sky.
Even though the main hall was empty, she still humbled herself to the lowest degree, placing herself in the dust.
She didn't know when His Majesty would arrive, which direction he would walk in from, or what his expression would be when he saw her.
She could only wait, kneeling and waiting with her head down, like a caged beast waiting for its master's judgment.
........
At this moment, Qin Mu was not in the Imperial Study.
He was walking along the corridor leading to Huaqing Palace.
Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the eaves, spreading a thin layer of silver frost across the ground.
His steps were unhurried, his moon-white robe fluttering gently in the night breeze, his sleeves billowing like a cloud blown by the wind.
Zhao Qingxue, Jiang Zhaoyue, and Yun Luan did not follow behind.
He came alone; there are some things he doesn't need them to be there for.
The doors of Huaqing Palace were half-open, letting in a dim candlelight, like a half-open eye peering into the night.
Qin Mu did not have the palace maid announce his arrival; instead, he pushed open the door and went inside.
Xu Fenghua sat on a sandalwood couch by the window, her back to the palace gate, her gaze fixed on the deep night outside the window.
She held a cup of tea that had gone cold in her hands, but she didn't drink it. She just held it and gently stroked the rim of the cup with her fingertips.
Her other hand unconsciously rested on her lower abdomen, her palm pressed against the thin fabric, feeling the flat, warm skin.
A life was being conceived there, a child she and Qin Mu were having.
It's been over two months and I still haven't gotten pregnant. From the outside, you can't tell anything.
But she knew that it was there, growing quietly in the darkness.
Xu Fenghua's brows furrowed slightly, her heart filled with complex emotions, a tangled mess of thoughts.
She had thought countless times about aborting the child and using the medicine Wang Jimin had obtained to end it all.
But she didn't make a move because she was afraid of being discovered by Qin Mu?
Is it because you can't bear to part with the baby in your belly?
Or was it because of what the fortune teller said—"You will grow up healthy and strong, and receive endless love in the future"?
she does not know.
All she knew was that she no longer had much of an urge to abort the child.
She wanted to give birth to her, to watch her grow up healthy and strong, and to see her loved.
But she had to help her brother overthrow Qin Mu before Qin Mu found out and before her pregnancy became visible.
Otherwise, once Qin Mu finds out she's pregnant, given his personality, he'll definitely take the child away.
Xu Fenghua sighed, her eyes filled with helplessness and exhaustion.
Overthrowing Qin Mu is easier said than done.
If it were that easy, Qin Mu would have been overthrown long ago, and there would have been no need for him to go through so much trouble.
She recalled everything that had happened in the past few months, from being forcibly taken as a concubine, to her younger brother Xu Longxiang's secret schemes, to Empress Zhao Qingxue of Liyang marrying into the Qin Dynasty, to Liu Hongyan's betrayal, to Jiang Qingxue's increasingly ambiguous attitude, and to the Southwest War, whose outcome she still did not know.
Every step felt like walking on a knife's edge, every step left bloodied, yet there was no retreat.
What worries Xu Fenghua even more is that Qin Mu has recently disappeared for some time, and no one knows where he went.
She felt a little nervous and uneasy, worried that Qin Mu was up to something big again.
The last time Qin Mu disappeared, when he reappeared, he announced to the whole world that he was going to marry the Empress of the Li Yang Dynasty.
Such a momentous event was accomplished without anyone noticing.
This time, he disappeared for so many days again. Did he do something earth-shattering again?
Xu Fenghua used multiple informants and spies to gather information, but found nothing.
Qin Mu's whereabouts were shrouded in an invisible fog, and no matter how hard she tried, she could not see a trace of him.
Her fingers gently stroked her lower abdomen, feeling the life within through the fabric.
Xu Fenghua sighed again, the sound of which was particularly clear in the silent hall.
"Why does my beloved concubine sigh?"
A voice came from behind, carrying a hint of laughter, like a spring breeze brushing across a lake.
Xu Fenghua's eyes widened suddenly, her pupils contracting slightly as if pricked by a needle.
She was so familiar with that voice that her heart skipped a beat the moment she heard it.
She sprang up from the soft couch almost instinctively, with a speed that surprised even herself.
Xu Fenghua then subconsciously moved her hand quickly away from her abdomen, letting it hang at her side, her fingers slightly curled inside her sleeve.
She turned around, facing the doorway, and looked at the pale figure standing in the candlelight.