Chapter 59 Part 2

 

Xuyu knew that she shouldn’t get involved in this matter.

If Pei Xiaoyuan could really marry her niece, given the status of Prince Ning and his relationship with the emperor, it would be of great benefit to his future. Moreover, let alone the other two families mentioned by Li Wanwan, looking all over the capital, this was probably the most noble young lady that Pei Xiaoyuan could marry.

She also had no objection to having a good nephew-in-law like Pei Xiaoyuan.

But… Li Wanwan’s attitude was so intense and her words didn’t seem like mere threats. Out of her trust for her niece and for Pei Xiaoyuan’s sake, she couldn’t just sit back and watch him suffer such humiliation in the future. So, she spoke up, offering a subtle reminder. Now that Li Wanwan insisted she accompany her, there was no way to refuse. Besides, there was nothing to do here, so she followed along.

Li Wanwan walked very quickly at first, but the closer she got to Ziyun Palace, Xuyu noticed that her steps became slower. Finally, when they arrived outside Ziyun Palace, her pace halted and she showed hesitation on her face.

A palace eunuch who was guarding outside saw the two of them, came over to greet Li Wanwan, and asked what was the matter. When he heard Li Wanwan say that she wanted to see the emperor, he said that His Majesty was currently summoning Wang Zhang, Liu Ceye and others to discuss court affairs.

“If County Princess has something to say, please wait until the grand chancellors come out and this servant will pass the message in for County Princess.”

Li Wanwan seemed relieved, and hurriedly shook her head and said it was nothing, then turned around and dragged Xuyu away. Xuyu followed her out confused. Li Wanwan was extremely depressed, and whispered: “I have never been here once… I’m afraid of Uncle Emperor… or… or forget it… Anyway, you must help me pass on the message to him!”

Li Wanwan was afraid of her father emperor, and Xuyu could understand that. Seeing her sad face and heartbroken look, how could she refuse, so she had to agree: “I’ll try. But whether he will listen or not, I don’t know.”

“Let him know first! If he dares to marry me, I… I will run away from home and travel around the world!” Li Wanwan stared at Xuyu and said with tears in her eyes.

Xuyu hurriedly comforted her and asked her to go home first, saying that she would definitely pass on the message. After sending Li Wanwan away, she also hurried to Shenshu Palace to find Song Bokang.

Song Bokang had long known that she had been commended by the emperor. When he saw that she had returned and her attitude towards him was still respectful, without any arrogance due to being favored, he was very happy and took even better care of this disciple. He said that she didn’t need to do anything here and asked her to rest for two more days before leaving the city together.

Of course, they wouldn’t go for sightseeing, but for capturing scenery into the painting, in preparation for the main long scroll.

Since Song Bokang arranged it like this, Xuyu followed his instructions. She thanked him and went back, but did not leave the palace immediately. During the day, she stayed in the painting department, using the method she had learned from her grandfather, comparing the various records in the Zhaowen Pavilion painting books, studying the extraction of pigments, and practicing painting. She was busy until the evening, when the evening drum sounded. The officials in the southern courtyard of the Imperial Palace were preparing to finish their work and leave the palace. She estimated that there should be no one in Ziyun Palace, so she also finished her work here and went over to ask to see Eunuch Zhao.

Zhao Zhongfang heard her coming and hurried out to bring the person inside. Xuyu then asked him about the emperor’s diet and daily life today. Zhao Zhongfang said that everything was normal today. His Majesty was in good spirits. He summoned many court officials in batches during the day, had a bowl for lunch, and took medicine on time.

“Don’t worry, Princess. If there’s something, I will let you know.”

Xuyu glanced in the direction of the vihara and asked what the emperor was doing at the moment.

In recent years, the emperor had the habit of skipping lunch, and only had a bowl of vegetarian porridge in the evening. Zhao Zhongfang was just cooking porridge for the emperor in the small kitchen of Ziyun Palace. It had just cooled down and was about to be served. Xuyu said she would go. Zhao Zhongfang was more than happy to give it to her, and hurriedly ordered the little palace eunuch to bring the porridge. Xuyu carried the porridge and followed Zhao Zhongfang over.

The emperor was reviewing court affairs when he heard Zhao Zhongfang say in a joyful tone that the princess had come to see him and had personally brought him porridge. He said nothing.

Xuyu placed the gold-lacquer plate of vegetarian porridge on the emperor’s desk. Seeing that he didn’t eat it, she waited for a while then urged him softly, “Father, please eat it. It’s cool down now, just right for you. If it gets any colder, it’ll be bad for your stomach.”

The emperor raised his eyelids and glanced at her, then put down his brush, picked up his porridge and started to eat it. Xuyu knelt beside him, served him attentively, and took the initiative to pass him a towel.

The emperor looked at her again, but did not accept it immediately, asked, “What’s wrong?”

Xuyu shook her head: “Nothing. I just came out of the painting department and thought I would come here to take a look before leaving the palace.”

The emperor snorted softly: “If you have something to say, just say it. Do you think Zhen doesn’t know you?”

She had been like this since she was a child. Whenever she had something to ask her father Prince Ding, she would become attentive and try to please him in every way.

Xuyu did come here with some purpose, and seeing that she was exposed, she did not hide it and asked, “Father, do you know that Wanwan was here during the day?”

The emperor asked, “You two sneakily came and left. What’s the matter?”

Xuyu hurriedly cleared herself up: “It’s not me, it’s Wanwan who has something to say.”

“What does she want from Zhen?”

“She said that Prince Ning wanted to arrange a marriage for her, and it’s with Pei Er. But no matter who it is, she doesn’t want to marry. She also heard that you, Father, seemed to have agreed to Prince Ning’s suggestion of this marriage, and she was very sad, so she came to ask Father for help, wanting to make her mind cleat that she doesn’t want to get married so soon. When she came, she knew that Father was meeting some ministers, and since she was a sensible child, she went back. It happens that I want to see Father, so I’ll just say something to you on her behalf. Father, you’d better persuade Prince Ning Wng on this matter, you know a forced melon is not sweet.”

After hearing this, the emperor stopped eating the porridge in his bowl and put it on the table. “You came here to see Zhen just to talk about this?”

Xuyu flatly denied: “I was planning to come and see Father anyway. I just remembered it and mentioned this matter.”

The emperor stared at her: “Why do you care so much about this? Do you really want her marriage to fail?”

Xuyu opened her eyes innocently: “Father, what are you thinking about? What does this have to do with me? Why should I hope her marriage will not be successful? Besides, Pei Er has taken good care of me before. If he can get married, I will be happy for him. I just mentioned it casually because I saw Wanwan crying so pitifully in front of me and her feelings were as firm as a rock!

“If Wanwan really can’t get over it and something happens to her in the future, it will be too late for Prince Ning to regret it then,” she added.

The emperor scrutinized at her, and Xuyu endured the waves of shame that welled up in her heart, standing still and letting the emperor’s gaze linger on her without any visible reaction. Finally, the emperor withdrew his gaze and said calmly, “The Pei’s son can barely be considered a dragon among men. If this union can be successful, it will only benefit Wanwan’s future, not harm her. She’s still young and naive, but as her elder, you must not indulge her too much. Since she listens to you, go back and properly persuade her. Moreover, this is a matter for Prince Ning’s family. Zhen has no say in it, and neither should you!”

Xuyu stopped arguing, lowered her eyes, and nodded softly.

The emperor looked at his daughter who lowered her head, his expression gradually softened, and said, “Are you hungry too? Father sees that you’re very thin, you should eat more. This porridge is bland, you can’t eat it. Father remembers that you loved to eat golden milk pastry and honey goose when you were a child. Father will ask someone to make them for you now. Tell Zhao Zhongfang what else you want to eat. You can sit with Father for a while. It won’t be too late to leave the palace after dinner.” As he said this, he was about to call someone in.

Even if dragon liver and phoenix marrow were served, Xuyu couldn’t eat any of it and said sullenly that she was not hungry.

It was getting dark, and Zhao Zhongfang was preparing to light the lamps outside the palace when he heard the emperor calling him. Before he said anything, he saw the princess had stood up and said she was going to rush before the gate close. She bowed to the emperor and told him to go to bed early.

“I heard that Father often reverse day and night. The imperial physician said that this will damage the qi and blood, which is a taboo in health preservation.

“Father, don’t overwork yourself. I’m leaving the palace first. Staying too late will arouse suspicion.”

She retreated under the emperor’s frowning gaze.

After leaving the palace, Xuyu hurried back to Yongning Lane on horseback, following the crowds of people returning home on the street.

Pei Xiaoyuan still had not return.

Not only that, that night, Xuyu kept falling asleep and waking up. However, just like the previous night, she did not hear anyone come back.

He still didn’t return that night.

On the third day, although Song Bokang asked her to continue to rest, she rushed to the southern courtyard of the palace early to take up her duties. During the day, Li Wanwan did not come, but sent an attendant to secretly pass on a message to her through an acquaintance in the palace, saying that her grandfather had sent someone to watch her and locked her in the house, not allowing her to go out. Because the marriage negotiation seemed to be still going on, she was almost dying of anxiety, and asked Xuyu whether she had helped her pass on the message.

Evening fell again.

This time, Xuyu left the palace before all the government offices were locked and went straight to Luwu Division.

When she was almost there, she saw Pei Xiaoyuan from afar, who had not been seen for three days.

He must have just returned to the government office from outside. After getting off his horse, he was standing at the steps outside the gate, with his back to Xuyu, talking outside the door with Liu Bo and another military officer.

It was the time when officials were anxious to get off work and passers-by were scrambling to get back to their own lanes. The streets at dusk were full of hustle and bustle with the constant flow of vehicles and people.

Xuyu did not go over immediately. She avoided the river bank across the street from the government office and stopped under a weeping willow, waiting for him to finish speaking. Liu Bo suddenly saw her and was stunned. Xuyu smiled and nodded at him from a distance.

She saw Liu Bo quickly smiled at her, then said something to Pei Xiaoyuan while pointing in her direction. He turned around and looked over at her.

Separated by a distance of more than ten feet, the two people’s eyes met.

He seemed stunned, but soon ended the conversation with his subordinates, turned around, walked diagonally through the street full of hurrying carriages and people, came to the river, and continued to walk towards her.

“Are you looking for me for something?”

He stopped a few steps away from her, his eyes fixed on her face through the long and short hanging willow branches, and asked.

Although he walked towards her quickly and spoke to her with a faint smile in his eyes, the fact that he had not been home for three days and his first question was whether she was looking for him for something, it gave Xuyu an unexpected sense of estrangement.

She casually plucked a willow leaf in front of her, twisted it between her fingers and played with it, nodded, and smiled, “Yes, there is something.

“But it’s not about me,” she added.

He saw the willow leaf between her fingers broken in an instant, and the green juice squeezed out of the fresh leaves stained her white fingers. The two subordinates across from them seemed to be a little curious and still didn’t leave. They kept turning their heads and looking at this side.

He looked around at the foggy twilight and whispered, “It’s inconvenient to talk here. Follow me.”

Xuyu followed him silently along the river bank, brushing the willows, and walked a few dozen steps to a nearby abandoned dock. No one seemed to walking on this part for a long time, and the bluestone dock was covered with dead flowers and leaves, which were hidden by a few lush weeping willows with green leaves by the river.

“What is it?”

After she stood still, Pei Xiaoyuan asked again.

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