Part 2
Zhao Yiyi looked up at him, eyes filled with some laughter, but it was a light, brisk laugh. “Bixia may not know. Although this concubine never said it, in fact, in my heart, I held some resentment toward Bixia. Resented Bixia for not putting this concubine in heart, resented Bixia’s coldness toward this concubine, resented the vexing matters in the palace where anyone could step on my head. Resented even more that Bixia never stood up for this concubine all these years.”
“Even knowing this is bad, knowing I shouldn’t think of these, I still couldn’t help constantly recalling.” Zhao Yiyi’s eyes were slightly dazed, and she suddenly pulled the corner of her lips. “Later when this concubine decided to withdraw, Bixia said you fell in love with this concubine. This made this concubine even more resentful—hating that the affection from before was unworthy, hating that Bixia’s affection came casually and unreasonably.”
She took a deep breath and added, “This concubine… always felt that having given too much these years, it was Bixia who owed this concubine.”
Gu Zhen stood stiffly there, listening numbly. The hand holding the porcelain bowl tightened abruptly, knuckles turning a ghastly white.
“Yiyi…”
He called out with a hoarse voice, trying to defend himself. “It is We who owed you; you are not wrong.”
But after making a sound, he didn’t know what to defend.
Ultimately, they were futile matters.
Zhao Yiyi looked at him, her expression sincere. “Regardless of the past, just this time, Bixia saved this concubine once. Then this concubine will tentatively count it as even.”
“The past matters are the past. Speaking only of this time, this concubine indeed should thank Bixia properly.”
Gu Zhen’s heart pounded, and a light of hope flashed through his eyes.
He looked at her abruptly and asked with a trembling voice, “The past… is even?”
Zhao Yiyi nodded slightly, hooked her lips, and laughed a few times. “Many thanks to Bixia for saving me. This concubine doesn’t want to care about past matters anymore and is a bit tired. Now, let’s tentatively count it as even.”
Gu Zhen was anxious to hold her hand, but suddenly remembered he was still holding the hangover soup. He had to free one hand to reach for her sleeve, saying urgently, “Yiyi, since we are even, can we…”
He choked several times, finally unable to resist asking, “Can we… start over?”
But Zhao Yiyi pulled her sleeve back, looked at him, and said apologetically, “Bixia, the ‘even’ this concubine means is that from now on we owe each other nothing, disturb each other no more, unrelated to anything else.”
Gu Zhen froze abruptly.
His face stiffened there as if struck by lightning. His heart instantly blocked up, not knowing how to speak.
Owe each other nothing, disturb each other no more, unrelated to anything else.
Just these few words, even just recalling them in his heart, seemed to exhaust all his life’s strength.
“Yiyi.” Gu Zhen’s heart was in panic, feeling his heartbeat getting faster and faster, as if about to jump out of his chest. He asked subconsciously, “Since we owe each other nothing, then can we start over in the future?”
Zhao Yiyi shook her head gently, her voice clear and moist. “Bixia, this concubine told Bixia last time: let the past matters pass. Now Bixia doesn’t owe this concubine either; why force ourselves to be entangled together?”
“But you said it, we are even… past matters can all be written off…” Gu Zhen’s eyes stung with sourness, finding it hard to spit out even a complete sentence.
Zhao Yiyi looked at him apologetically, smiling with lips lightly hooked. “Bixia, if starting over were that easy, why would people need to forget all past dust when reincarnating?”
She didn’t want to dwell on the past anymore, but it didn’t mean she could just start over with him like this.
Staring at each other for a long time, Gu Zhen finally took a step back and said warmly, “Drink the hangover soup first.”
Zhao Yiyi nodded and smiled. “Good.”
She leaned against the edge of the couch, holding the bowl of hangover soup, spooning it into her mouth little by little, acting incredibly obedient.
But Gu Zhen’s heart gradually sank to the bottom of the valley.
He always harbored the thought that the two could put aside their grudges and start over.
He never imagined that his Yiyi could have such a decisive day.
Decisive to the point he couldn’t parry.
Watching her finish the hangover soup, Gu Zhen took the small bowl. He suddenly wanted to ask, not saying start over, could she give him a chance to start over.
Just one chance would be enough.
That topic circled in his heart, then circled in his mouth.
Ultimately, he never asked it.
Tucking the thin quilt for her, Gu Zhen stood up and said, “We are leaving. You sleep quickly.”
With her heart relaxed, she slept much more steadily.
Zhao Yiyi slept very comfortably through the night. When she got up the next morning, she felt full of energy, without a trace of discomfort after drinking.
A group of palace servants were waiting in the courtyard. Hearing the news of the Empress getting up, they all entered to serve.
“Why have you come over?” Zhao Yiyi leaned on the armrest, letting the maid comb her hair, and turned her head to ask Yunzhu.
Yunzhu replied warmly, “It was Bixia who ordered us servants to come.”
Yesterday Bixia was furious; all the palace servants were terrified, almost thinking they wouldn’t survive.
But Bixia only gave a small punishment as a warning and didn’t do much.
Thinking carefully, everyone knew Bixia probably did it for the Empress.
Thinking of this, Yunzhu sighed slightly in her heart, chatting casually while bringing the clothes brought from the palace for her to change into.
Coming out of the partition, seeing the small brocade box on the desk, Zhao Yiyi was stunned first, then came back to her senses.
It was what she rummaged out in the room after running back from the pool last night.
She liked writing poetry in her childhood and wrote a lot of random stuff, even corresponding with friends in poems.
It lasted until some time after she entered Luoyang, and there were still letters back and forth.
But the journey was far and truly too inconvenient. With old friends in Chang’an, she could only send a letter every few months.
Digging out the poems written before last night—the time interval was long, and she had forgotten most of them. Flipping through them one by one, she actually read with gusto.
Like reading something written by someone else.
Quite interesting.
Thinking of this, Zhao Yiyi smiled. She vaguely remembered throwing it casually on the desk last night, and opened the brocade box wanting to organize it. But after breakfast, when she opened the brocade box, she found it was already stacked neatly.
She thought Yunzhu and the others tidied it up, so she didn’t mind, closed the lid, and walked out.
When she left the courtyard, she found Prince of Yan waiting in a pavilion outside.
Seeing her come out, Prince of Yan hurriedly welcomed her and laughed, “Sister-in-law finally came out.” Yesterday the Empress went missing, causing Royal Brother’s rage, and the palace was also in chaos. Before dawn today, he had just entered the palace but was sent over by Royal Brother again, told to follow properly.
Zhao Yiyi was stunned, then asked him, “Have you had breakfast?”
“Had it.” Prince of Yan nodded gently and laughed again. “Where does Sister-in-law want to go today?”
Zhao Yiyi walked briskly, turning to smile at him. “Haven’t decided yet. Plan to walk around the ancestral residence first. Although people came to clean up a few days ago, I haven’t looked properly.”
Prince of Yan nodded in agreement.
Unknowingly, the two walked to the pear trees by the pool.
Although early summer was beginning, the treetops were still adorned with snow-white flowers, with sporadic fruits hanging hidden in the stamens. Occasionally seeing them, one felt they were exceptionally abrupt.
“The last time I came to Chang’an, I came with Royal Brother; it was years ago.” Looking at the tree full of snow-white, Prince of Yan suddenly sighed with emotion.
Zhao Yiyi chuckled, speaking with interest, “The first time I saw your Royal Brother was in Chang’an.”
Speaking of these words now, she just treated it as an old matter of the past.
No different from other matters.
It could no longer stir up strange ripples.
Prince of Yan raised his eyebrows. “That is quite a coincidence.” He stood under a pear tree and said softly, “The first time this subject-brother saw the girl I admired was also in Chang’an.”
Zhao Yiyi was slightly surprised and couldn’t help asking, “What about that girl?” She teased, “Since you admired her, why didn’t I see you ask for her hand?”
“She has already married someone.” Prince of Yan laughed loudly, withdrawing his gaze from the treetops and looking sideways. “It’s getting late. If Sister-in-law wants to go out, you have to be fast. Otherwise, the streets will be crowded with pedestrians, and it might be hard to move.”
The earthquake wasn’t serious. After nearly a month, order had returned to normal. People came and went on the streets in an endless stream.
Zhao Yiyi pondered for a moment and smiled. “Then let’s go look at the East Market again. When buying the horse in the East Market that day, I saw many novel spices but didn’t have time to ask the price.”
In these twenty-odd days, officials sent out successively returned to report that there was no news of earthquakes in the counties near Chang’an.
Thus, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
At the juncture of going to war with Rouran, they couldn’t afford any natural disasters.
Gu Zhen dealt with the aftermath of the earthquake while preparing for the war with Rouran. Following closely, many important ministers who had stayed in Luoyang also came over.
Because the Heavenly Dog eating the Sun and the earthquake happened on the same day, various rumors among the people were rampant. Some courtiers even requested a decree for Bixia to quell the rumors.
Quell rumors—how to quell them?
Gu Zhen stubbornly held on, just dealing with matters one by one and ignoring those words. He even dealt with a batch of people.
Recently, there were even rumors mentioning that Bixia insisting on war with Rouran violated the will of heaven, causing heaven to send down such punishment.
Gu Zhen sneered, “We don’t know where the punishment is.” He tapped the armrest and ordered indifferently, “Common people may not think of these things, nor dare to fabricate easily. Go investigate all the way up first and drag the people out for Us.”
Aside, Prince of Yan responded “Yes” and went down with the order.
Gu Zhen rubbed the cup, suddenly thoughtful. “If they say the Heavenly Dog eating the Sun is because We went to war with Rouran, then We let them see such a once-in-a-century spectacle—is that still not enough?”
Jiang Jiayan pulled the corner of his mouth, thinking secretly, Worthy of being Bixia; this confidence is unmatched by others.
Thinking secretly, he stepped forward to report, “Bixia, several Prime Ministers discussed in private whether Bixia has an illness since you haven’t seen anyone these days.”
To prevent the courtiers from detecting anything wrong with his body, Gu Zhen rarely saw outsiders except for a few close officials. Even the important ministers who arrived in Chang’an these days, he didn’t see all of them.
Gu Zhen clicked his tongue lightly, a smile hooking on his lips, and whispered, “Never mind, summon them over. If We don’t let them see, they might think We are dead and you are keeping the funeral secret.”
Jiang Jiayan hesitated, “Bixia’s body…”
Gu Zhen waved his hand, his voice light. “No harm.”
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