Chapter 413: Journeying Together (Part One)
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
Yuwen Chu hastily left the gate of Court of the Imperial Clan, about to board his carriage, when he suddenly saw Changxing Marquis coming from a nearby carriage, tremblingly approaching him, bowing and saying, “Your Highness, do you have some time? I have some good tea and would like to invite you for a drink.”
Yuwen Chu frowned, “Does Changxing Marquis have something urgent?” He had a very bad impression of Changxing Marquis because of the forced marriage imposed on him initially. He had repeatedly tried to find Changxing Marquis to dissolve the engagement, but Changxing Marquis either pretended to be deaf or avoided him.
Seeing him displeased, Changxing Marquis felt uneasy but still didn’t give up. As several officials came out of the Court of the Imperial Clan, he wiped his tears and cried, “Your Highness, please have mercy. I really have no other choice…”
The officials glanced at Yuwen Chu with ambiguous expressions. Yuwen Chu’s face darkened, he waved his sleeve and turned away. Jing Song immediately stepped forward to intercept, as Changxing Marquis, without any face left, handed the letter written by Jiang Shanshan to Jing Song and swiftly ran away.
Jing Song didn’t throw the letter away nor hand it over to Yuwen Chu, feeling unsure. Just then, Yuwen Chu spoke up, “What’s that?” He knew that Jiang Shanshan had gone to the mansion to see Mingzhu today, and he knew Mingzhu had caused Jiang Shanshan a great deal of trouble. This letter from Jiang Shanshan likely carried a lot of information; it wouldn’t hurt to take a look.
The letter was indeed written by Jiang Shanshan herself. Yuwen Chu had seen her handwriting before and recognized it. The tone was plaintive and pitiful, expressing her affection for him and the pain and sadness of unrequited love, ending with an invitation to meet at Mudan Pavilion tomorrow for an urgent matter. Perhaps fearing his refusal, she added a hint, “bed crossbow.”
Yuwen Chu smiled, crumpled the fragrant letter paper into a ball, and threw it out of the carriage window, where it landed in dirty water.
Seeing this, Changxing Marquis, who had been following behind, felt indescribably bitter and kicked his servant, “Go pick it up and burn it.”
The servant hurriedly got off the carriage, picked it up, and threw it into the brazier in front of Changxing Marquis, causing a thick smoke to rise and fill the carriage. Changxing Marquis coughed violently and scolded the servant harshly.
Yuwen Chu’s carriage went straight to the Ying Wang mansion. The servants, upon seeing him, looked uneasy, but no one dared to say anything until Zhou Shuyi came over and he asked, “Where’s Wangfei?”
Zhou Shuyi forced a smile, “She’s fine, practicing calligraphy now. I didn’t expect Wangfei to agree to meet her alone. But no matter what, it’s my fault, Your Highness can punish me however you like.” How should he describe this Wangfei? He never expected things to escalate to this point, making it so bloody. Fortunately, it was Jiang Shanshan who suffered. If it were Wangfei, His Highness probably wouldn’t forgive him. No wonder Jing Song didn’t want to stay in the mansion; he wanted to run away, it was indeed difficult to deal with.
Yuwen Chu said, “What should I punish you for? It’s not your fault.” If he were to punish someone, it would be Fu Mingzhu. This woman was becoming more and more audacious.
Zhou Shuyi breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that his Highness was fair and reasonable.
Yuwen Chu walked into Yinghui Hall. Su Lan and a few servants were whispering there. Seeing him coming, they split into two groups, one to help him change clothes and the other to report to Mingzhu. He waved his hand, “Withdraw.”
Everyone looked at each other, none daring to leave. Xiangli walked away decisively, and Zheng Momo hesitated for a moment before also retreating. Su Lan’s servants still persisted, and Yuwen Chu’s face darkened as he silently watched them.
Mingzhu sensed that something was wrong and came out to take a look. Seeing the scene, she said, “You all can leave.” As if nothing had happened, she went up to help Yuwen Chu change clothes, “It’s getting cold, they say it might snow tonight. What does Your Highness think?”
Yuwen Chu brushed her hand away.
Mingzhu naturally understood his anger but didn’t care. She handed over a warm hand warmer to him, “Warm your hands.”
Yuwen Chu frowned and didn’t take it. She then let go of the hand warmer and grabbed his hand to touch her abdomen, “I feel like the baby moved today.”
Nonsense! She dared to say the baby moved before even three months were up! Ridiculous! Maybe she just ate too much and her intestines are moving! Yuwen Chu almost blurted out, but then he saw Mingzhu’s cunning eyes, so he closed his mouth again. However, when his hand touched her abdomen, his heart softened naturally, and his eyes no longer had the sharpness they had before.
Mingzhu immediately seized this moment, gently saying, “Don’t be angry with me. I won’t risk the child. Even if I don’t cherish my life, I won’t let anything happen to him. I have made thorough preparations, and they are done beautifully, right?”
Yuwen Chu angrily said, “Meeting her alone is already a risk! I just don’t understand, what’s so important that you have to meet her? You’ve vented your anger enough in the past few days. Knowing she has ill intentions, why do you still want to see her?”
Mingzhu sighed, “It’s precisely because I know she has ill intentions that I have to see her. This is in my home; if I dare not see her, then what about elsewhere? The road ahead is long, and I will probably encounter even more formidable people. Can I always hide behind you and father and brothers? Those who rely solely on others usually end up with nothing when their support collapses. I don’t want to end up like that!”
If she couldn’t stand by his side, how could she expect him to favor her alone? Even if he was willing, always giving to one and accepting from one would eventually sour the relationship. Thinking deeper into the cruelty of the world, if she couldn’t stand on her own, even if she became the Empress Dowager with a son, she would still be driven out and killed! Did she possess the same capabilities as the Great Empress Dowager to handle things? It seemed not. Without effort, how could she succeed? Without courage, how could she succeed?
Yuwen Chu felt somewhat relieved but still didn’t want to forgive her. “Jiang Shanshan is just a minor character,” he said.
Mingzhu’s expression turned serious. “She is not a minor character, at least not to me. She covets my husband and my status, plots against and resents me and my family. No matter who I lose to, I cannot lose to her! Your Highness, do you remember the time you took me out for food right after our wedding?”
Of course, Yuwen Chu remembered. That time, she insisted on stealing pomegranates hanging from someone else’s tree, and inexplicably got jealous, and finally, they together uncovered the hideout of Zhongshan Wang. At that time, they couldn’t find the entrance to the secret passage, and it was she who found it.
His voice softened. “I remember.”
<Previous Chapter<Table of Contents>Next Chapter>
