LATEST UPDATES

Published at 8th of September 2023 08:59:49 AM


Chapter 143

If audio player doesn't work, press Stop then Play button again




"What do you understand?" Hatred surged in the Second Princess's eyes, as though Consort Xian was responsible for all the misfortunes in her life.

She was born without her mother, some said it was because of her bad fate that her mother perished. During the years she spent in the care of Consort Xian's palace, although Consort Xian treated her the same outwardly, the only person she truly cared about was her own son.

Being motherless and without siblings, she had to carefully please Consort Xian and her eldest brother, striving to be the forever obedient and considerate Second Princess. It wasn't until she turned fourteen that she met the eldest son of the Liu family.

Being with him, she learned to smile genuinely. She could be imperfect, not good at understanding others, and didn't need to be cautious about her words and actions.

They made a pact that when she turned sixteen, Liu Lang would enter the palace and ask her father for her hand in marriage. However, on the eve of her sixteenth birthday, the Liu family was thrown into prison, with numerous executions and exiles.

She went to the prison to visit Liu Lang, saying she wanted to plead for him. But Liu Lang said that the Liu family had committed grave crimes, and their fate was retribution.

He told her to forget about him.

She told him that she would wait for his return.

But he died. He died on the journey of exile. The person responsible for escorting the Liu family was a distant relative from Consort Xian's maternal side. Those who gave her life, those who loved her, all died at the hands of Consort Xian.

She closed her eyes, unwilling to accept the outcome of all her schemes failing, "Leave, I don't want to see you again."

"Even if one raised a cat or dog, they could evoke emotions, let alone raising a person," Consort Xian's gloating expression gradually gave way to sadness, "When your mother gave birth to you, the Empress Dowager and His Majesty were both present. Do you think I had the means to manipulate things under the noses of the Empress Dowager and His Majesty?"

"If it's because you lost your mother that you hold a twisted resentment towards me, I won't blame you for not considering the mother-daughter bond we had these years," Consort Xian stood up, "But you calculated against me at every turn and colluded with a prince from another country, disregarding the disasters it could bring upon Great Jin. When you did all this, did you ever think of your father or the people of the world?"

"Did your father ever mistreat you?" Consort Xian asked, "In these years, has he ever ignored you or treated you coldly?"

"Because I'm not like you, satisfied with the small scraps of kindness Father Emperor gives me," The Second Princess sneered, "Kindness? His favorite has always been the Crown Prince, not me."

Consort Xian fell silent for a long time, "The fact proves that the Emperor's preference for the Crown Prince is reasonable."

How heart-wrenching would it be if the Emperor's most beloved child turned into a white-eyed wolf?

Consort Xian sighed and turned to leave. Suddenly, she said, "I didn't know about your romantic involvement with the eldest son of the Liu family, so there's something I haven't told you. The eldest son of the Liu family didn't die of illness; he committed suicide. The Emperor, out of sympathy for his pure-heartedness, didn't want the world to mock him for being weak, so he announced it as an illness."

The Second Princess stared blankly at Consort Xian's departing figure. After a long while, she touched the tears on her face and burst into laughter filled with despair.

The officials of the Ministry of Justice, who had finally enjoyed two days of good sleep, once again became busy after capturing the big fish they had been after, He Yuanting.

As expected, the person colluding with the Xie family turned out to be the Third Prince.

"He Yuanting is so cunning. Neither the spies he sent to Great Jin nor his advisors knew about his secret dealings with the Xie family," Gou Jingqi flipped through the documents, amazed by He Yuanting's myriad of plans.

"Attempting to assassinate court officials and trying to incite conflicts among civil and military officials, tsk tsk."

Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. No matter how good the schemes were, they couldn't compare to the plan being foiled by a servant girl from the Hua family kicking the poisoned food. Not only did the court official not die, but Fushou Junzhu safely sent the court official on his way to exile.

The servant lurking in Consort Rong's maternal family was planning to kill Consort Xian's nephew during the chaos, but the plan failed due to the unexpected appearance of Fushou Junzhu.

Sending an assassin to kill the Crown Prince and blame it on Ying Wang, regardless of success or failure. However, Fushou Junzhu accidentally misstepped and disrupted the assassin's performance.

There were many more conspiracies and schemes; if any of them were to succeed, it would bring countless troubles to Great Jin. But as the saying goes, the man proposes... Heaven disposes.

"Although Fushou Junzhu is weak and sickly, she has contributed no less to Great Jin than her three brothers," Gou Jingqi put away the documents, rolling them up and sealing them. He took the seal of his position as the Deputy Minister from the table and affixed it to the scroll.

Pei Jihuai looked at Gou Jingqi with a complex expression and took out his own seal of the Deputy Minister, also affixing it to the scroll.

The scroll was then handed over to Zhang Shuo, the Minister of Justice. Holding the weighty scroll in his hands, Zhang Shuo let out a long sigh. This seemingly ordinary scroll contained the turbulent changes of the past few years and the future of two different nations.

Fortunately, Heaven blessed them, Great Jin.

Zhang Shuo placed the final seal on the sealing paper, stood up, and stored the scroll in the highly classified archives of the Ministry of Justice. Perhaps centuries later, future generations would discover this scroll and glimpse at the storms of what had happened during this time.

Click.

The bronze lock fell, sealing not only the scroll but also the conspiracies against Great Jin.

In the scorching heat of July, the capital city had become slightly cooler.

Hua Liuli sat in the cool pavilion of the Eastern Palace, leisurely enjoying a bowl of ice. The palace maids and eunuchs from the Eastern Palace surrounded her attentively, creating a relaxed atmosphere.

The Crown Prince, who had just returned to the Eastern Palace after a busying around in the Chenyang Palace, saw this scene. He walked over and sat next to Hua Liuli, exhaustedly saying, "Liuli, my wrists are tired. Can you massage them for me?"

Hua Liuli fed him a spoonful of rose-flavored ice and put down her bowl to start massaging his hands, "You've worked hard, Your Royal Highness."

"I don't feel tired when I know you're waiting for me in the palace," the Crown Prince said, holding a spoon of rose-flavored ice and looking at Hua Liuli's fair face. In his heart, the girl he liked must be the most beautiful bride in the world.

Lost in his thoughts as he looked at her profile, the Crown Prince suddenly said, "Liuli."

"Mm?" Hua Liuli smiled and looked at him.

"In a little over twenty days, it will be our wedding ceremony," the Crown Prince held Hua Liuli's hand in his palm, "You'll always be by my side, right?"

Hua Liuli looked up at him, smiling softly, "Yes."

"I'm so handsome, once you have me, you won't think about raising male companions anymore, right?" The Crown Prince's heart still had a slight trace of fear.

"Your Royal Highness, have you forgotten?" Hua Liuli extended her finger and lightly tapped the Crown Prince's chest, "I've said it before. After meeting you, all the men in the world pale in comparison."

The Crown Prince pressed her hand against his chest, his gaze gentle and affectionate, "I remember, I will remember it for a lifetime."

On the eighth day of the eighth month, the grand wedding of the Crown Prince was approaching; the Ministry of Rites was in a state of disarray. They ran to the Hua family to discuss the wedding process one moment, then they would go to the palace to report the progress to the Emperor the next.

Emperor Changlong had simple and straightforward requirements for the Crown Prince's wedding ceremony: it should be grand, large-scale, and lively.

Some officials in the capital who had hoped for the Crown Prince to be deposed felt their hopes extinguished almost completely after seeing the proposed wedding process from the Ministry of Rites.

Today, the Emperor was still kind to the Crown Prince; the Crown Prince had not been deposed.

In Qinghe Academy, Du Xiuying had just finished organizing a scroll of books when she received a gilded invitation.

She opened the invitation; inside was Hua Liuli's handwritten message.

After reading the invitation, Du Xiuying smiled silently. From the moment she decided not to marry the Crown Prince, she knew that her life was not meant to be spent with any man.

However, she was genuinely happy for her good friend's wedding.

After spending several months in the academy, for the first time, she made the decision to leave the mountain.

The students and teachers at the academy were reluctant to have a woman serve as the mountain leader, but they reluctantly agreed because Du Xiuying was the granddaughter personally raised by Grand Tutor Du.

Upon Du Xiuying's arrival at the academy, she quickly gained the respect of everyone with her knowledge. So when the students saw her leaving the academy, they were startled. Could it be that the mountain leader didn't intend to stay here anymore?

The students rushed forward to persuade her and the scene became lively.

"Where do you think I'm going?" Du Xiuying's lips curved into a smile, "I have a good friend who is about to get married, so I'm going to attend her wedding."

The crowd was surprised and suddenly realized that the mountain leader, who was always immersed in knowledge, also had friends?

"Mountain Leader, may I ask who your friend is?" one assistant teacher couldn't help but break the ice.

"She is the daughter of General Hua and General Wei, Fushou Junzhu."

The crowd was even more shocked. The mountain leader's friend turned out to be the future Crown Princess? Those who had spoken ill of the new mountain leader felt even more uneasy, afraid of retaliation.

Du Xiuying glanced at the expressions of the crowd, smiled faintly, and turned to leave the mountain.

On the tenth day of August, there was a bustling atmosphere in the Hua Family Estate. Only Hua Liuli, who was about to become the bride, was the most leisurely. The courtyard where she resided was already adorned with red silk and posted with the character "Double Happiness".

Afraid that Hua Liuli would be nervous before her wedding, Yao Jiamin came to accompany her. Eating melons and cracking melon seeds, Yao Jiamin couldn't spot any signs of nervousness on Hua Liuli's face.

Actually, it was true. The one who should be nervous was the Crown Prince. Who would have thought that this seemingly delicate Junzhu was a capable and decisive person?

"So, you were deceiving me when you said you wanted to become a famous weak and sickly beauty in history, right?" Before leaving the Hua Family Estate, Yao Jiamin suddenly said, "With the Hua family's military power in hand, and as the only daughter of the Hua family, no matter which prince you marry, it would cause conflicts among all the princes. No matter which influential family's son you marry, it may also lead to factional struggles."

"Everything you have done is for the stability of the court, for the safety of the Hua family, isn't it?"

Hua Liuli blinked, "So, you think I'm that amazing?"

Yao Jiamin's cheeks turned slightly red, and she turned her head, saying, "If it wasn't for the Crown Prince actively pursuing to marry you, would you sacrifice yourself for a lifetime and never marry even if you met someone you liked?"

"Don't overthink it," Hua Liuli chuckled, "Young girls who think too much will lose their hair."

Yao Jiamin, who had been experiencing some hair loss recently, fell silent. She glanced at Hua Liuli's thick and dark hair and felt numb, "Sorry for disturbing you. Goodbye."

When there is Liuli, who needs Jiamin!

On the twelfth day of August, it was an auspicious day. The weather was clear and the entire capital was surrounded by red.

Hua Liuli rarely wore red, so when she changed into the red wedding dress, her brows and eyes looked even more radiant than the sun in the sky.

The Eldest Young Master and the Eldest Young Madam of the Hua family, as well as the Second Young Master and the Second Young Madam, rushed back to the capital from the border. The family looked at her with a mixture of joy and a hint of worry.

"Little sister," Hua Jingyi, the composed Eldest Young Master of the Hua family, spoke with sincerity, "If there is any conflict, remember to take a deep breath. Whenever possible, we should seek to resolve conflicts through peaceful dialogue rather than resorting to violence."

The others nodded in agreement.

In the palace -- The Crown Prince dressed in a bright red wedding robe rode a tall horse with joy as he left the palace to go to the Hua Family Estate to meet his future Crown Princess.

Emperor Changlong stood on the viewing platform, watching the wedding procession leave the palace gate, and smiled with contentment. He turned to Zhao Sancai and said, "Fushou Junzhu is gentle and kind, she is also the girl that Yuansu likes. Finally, Zhen can rest assured."

"Your Majesty speaks the truth," Zhao Sancai replied with a smile on his face as well.

However, the bystanders gathered outside the Hua Family Estate couldn't help but find it peculiar. In typical weddings where daughters are married off, tears and reluctance often accompany the farewells. Yet, when it came to the Hua family, no one shed a tear. Instead, their countenances were filled with solemnity and gravity.

Hua Jingyi carried Hua Liuli into the wedding sedan and turned to the Crown Prince, who was on horseback, "Your Royal Highness..."

Just take good care.

"Eldest Brother-in-Law," the Crown Prince's face was full of smiles as he looked at Hua Jingyi with shining eyes.

Facing this joyful face, Hua Jingyi's conscience ached a little, and he returned a smile that can be described as the gentlest smile a family member can have when facing their family's son-in-law.

The wedding sedan was carried into the palace, and after going through one complicated ritual after another, the newlyweds could finally sit peacefully on the bed.

When they sat down, they were still sitting on the cushioning materials like longans, red dates, peanuts, and other items placed under the blanket.

"I'm so tired," Hua Liuli lay on the bed with exhaustion, weakly asking the Crown Prince to remove her headdress.

The Crown Prince smiled as he helped her take off the headdress. They lay side by side, facing each other, and couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Your Royal Highness, your face seems a bit red," Hua Liuli tugged at the Crown Prince's cheek.

The Crown Prince replied, "It's a joyful blush."

"I thought you were shy," Hua Liuli's eyes formed crescents as she smiled.

"I am not shy," The Crown Prince held Hua Liuli's hand, "Also, you should no longer address me 'Your Royal Highness'."

"What should I call you then?"

"Call me... husband, or call me by my name, Yuansu."

Their fingers intertwined, just like their lives. They initially thought they would have limited interactions, but in the end, they became each other's deepest bond.

"We are destined to be together," the Crown Prince smiled, "When you were still in General Wei's belly, we had already met. At that time, I secretly wished in my heart for the safe delivery of the baby in General Wei's belly."

"Heaven heard my words."

So it let us meet again, know each other, become acquainted, fall in love, and finally walk together.

Their foreheads pressed against each other, filled with incomparable sweetness.

In the room that was filled with red, they were the most beautiful scenery.

Krish728

Author's Note:

Ji Yuansu: I love you, it's destined by heaven.

Translator's Note:

That's the end of the main text. Two Extra Chapters, and we are done.





Please report us if you find any errors so we can fix it asap!


COMMENTS