Chapter 17: The Small Hound
Under the wisteria trellis, a gentle breeze blew, and the vines intertwined intricately around them.
He suddenly drew closer, and Zhao Yiyi retreated a few steps, raising her head to look at him, dazed.
“Last time, you blamed me, saying it was because you listened to my words. Then why aren’t you listening to my words today?” Gu Zhen chuckled softly, pressing closer, raising an eyebrow slightly, his voice slightly rising at the end, “Hmm?”
Zhao Yiyi’s face flushed red. She retreated, clutching the amber cup, whispering, “This concubine… this concubine…”
“What else do you want to say?” Gu Zhen stood there, patiently watching her.
Zi Chen Palace kept a small hound. The Emperor often took it with him when he went hunting outside the city. He had it for many years and it was his beloved pet. In Zi Chen Palace, not only did the palace servants carefully care for it, not daring to be the slightest bit careless, even the Emperor frequently indulged it.
For a moment, Zhao Yiyi glimpsed the shadow of that small hound in his eyes.
At this moment, she absurdly felt that his expression when looking at her was extremely similar to when he looked at the small hound.
A look of astonishment appeared in her eyes, and Zhao Yiyi gently turned her head away, her eyelashes trembling several times. “There’s nothing I want to say. I didn’t hear clearly just now.”
Gu Zhen looked down at the Empress, suddenly finding her appearance—unwilling in her heart, yet having to admit it—quite pitiful.
A mischievous smile curved his lips, and he softly asked, “Then why are you always disobedient?”
Zhao Yiyi clenched her fingers and mumbled, “Yes, this concubine is wrong. Please, Your Majesty, don’t blame me.”
Her quick admission of guilt, her earnest and docile manner, made him even more uncomfortable.
A fire gathered in his chest, causing his brows to furrow and his patience to gradually wane.
“What does the Empress mean by this?” Gu Zhen’s face turned cold, and the smile in his eyes disappeared. “I hear some reluctance in your voice. Are you dissatisfied with me?”
He pressed closer, making her heart beat rapidly. Zhao Yiyi suddenly felt irritated. She had already admitted her wrong; what else did he want?
“This concubine dares not.”
She said this with her head lowered, feeling extremely wronged. She had only been drinking a few sips of putao wine, and yet he scolded her and brought up old matters. Unknowingly, she had a touch of defiance.
Indeed, she had grown bolder. Gu Zhen silently observed her. In the past, how dare the Empress speak like this?
The two stood in silent tension for a long time, neither willing to yield an inch. Gu Zhen had been the crown prince since childhood, always sailing smoothly. Except for the six months he was confined to the East Palace, he had never had to lower his head and naturally wouldn’t give up easily.
It was just that the Empress’s recent temperament had surprised him.
Gu Zhen sneered, snatched the amber cup from her hand and threw it on the desk, ambiguously saying, “I see how daring you are!”
He had indulged her repeatedly, yet she had grown even more temperamental.
The willows by the Hai Chi embankment swayed gently, and a line of graceful young ladies walked along the embankment.
As Titi passed by, the fragrance of their clothes and the glimmer of their hair disturbed the gulls and herons in the pond.
He Xunling walked along, recalling the Empress Dowager’s rebuke, and couldn’t help but redden her eyes.
When she had spoken to the Empress earlier, the Empress Dowager only looked unhappy in front of others and didn’t say anything. After calling her back to the inner hall, the Empress Dowager’s face darkened, coldly questioning why she had suddenly provoked the Empress.
Having been immersed in the palace for many years, even if her temperament was a bit slow, the Empress Dowager still saw through it.
She pleaded guilty in a mournful voice, and the Imperial Concubine also helped to mediate, but still couldn’t ease the Empress Dowager’s expression.
Finally, the Empress Dowager glanced at her coldly and said lightly, “You should know why your father sent you to the palace. Remember to be careful with your words and actions in the palace. I’m giving you this chance, not for you to cause trouble!”
“Cousin, don’t worry too much,” Linchuan, rarely speaking to comfort someone, said to He Xunling’s gloomy expression, “Mother’s temper is quick, you know. She just wants to give you some advice.”
He Xunling suppressed her tears, forcing a smile. “Yes, I know. It was my fault for being too rude and making the Empress Dowager angry.”
The Empress Dowager most detested those who caused trouble. Before entering the palace, her father had warned her, and after entering the palace, her second aunt had also instructed her.
She thought it was just a verbal sparring, and the Empress Dowager had always disliked the Empress, so it should be fine.
Unexpectedly, the Empress Dowager actually lost her temper.
Linchuan looked at the scenery in the pond and casually said, “Mother’s temper comes and goes quickly. Don’t think about it.”
He Xunling softly said, “Thank you, Princess. I’m fine.” She lowered her head slightly, her expression gentle, “Today, the Empress Dowager was angered by the Empress, showing that the Empress Dowager still has affection for the Empress.”
Linchuan had no doubts, only humming, “How can there be any affection? With my sister-in-law’s dull temperament, she is simply not liked by Mother.” Speaking of this, she didn’t want to say more. She wasn’t a very patient person, and it was enough for her to have lowered herself to coax her a few times. “Okay, okay, it’s not a big deal. If you can really enter my imperial brother’s harem in the future and have a son and daughter, and the Empress has no children, don’t you worry about surpassing her?”
The two of them chatted along the way, leading their entourage further and further away, and their voices gradually faded.
A gentle breeze blew, causing the bamboo leaves to strike each other, making a rustling sound like a sudden downpour.
In the bamboo forest beside the pond, Zhao Duanduan stared at the direction where that group of people left, her gloomy expression making the maid beside her secretly alarmed.
She couldn’t help but call out, “Second Miss…”
“Last time, it was her who slandered my elder sister at the wall, wasn’t it?” Zhao Duanduan slowly curled her lips, her voice lingering, “She really has a glib tongue.”
Without waiting for the maid’s reply, she stood up from the bluestone, straightened her sash, and said softly, “Let’s go, it’s getting late.”
This maid had previously followed Zhao Yiyi, but after Zhao Yiyi entered the East Palace, she didn’t follow, instead staying at home to serve Zhao Duanduan.
After walking for a while, the maid quietly asked, “Second Miss, do you still have the amulet for seeking children?”
“Yes,” Zhao Duanduan replied.
The maid reminded her, “In that case, don’t forget to give it to Your Majesty later.”
“No,” Zhao Duanduan said.
The maid looked surprised. “Miss, you walked up the mountain, concealed your identity and stayed at Lingtai Temple to devoutly practice Buddhism for many days. Didn’t you get the amulet made and consecrated by the great virtuous monk… to pray for Your Majesty?”
“Yes,” Zhao Duanduan subconsciously touched her sleeve, pursed her lips and said, “The great virtuous monk said that as long as it’s carried on one’s person, it doesn’t matter who it is. My elder sister is already worried enough, why should I give it to her and make her feel worse?”
Thinking of the urging of those people towards the Empress, the maid felt that what the Second Miss said also made sense. The Empress was already busy enough. While the Second Miss’s actions were kind, it was ultimately a provocation placed before the Empress.
In this kind of matter, it is enough for the intention to be there. It is not necessary to specifically show it off.
Looking at the sky, the two of them slowly arrived at Wan Chun Palace.
Madam Xu and Zuo Lianzhi looked unpleasant when they saw her. Just as the Emperor and Empress came out from the back hall, everyone stood up to greet them, and Zhao Duanduan simply ignored them.
As they were standing, a boy in brocade clothing suddenly darted out from the side, running and waving his hands. Because his eyes were covered with a silk ribbon, even though the eunuchs stopped him in time, he still bumped into several people.
The scene immediately became chaotic, and Zhao Duanduan was almost pushed to the ground, and the pouch hidden in her sleeve slipped out. She quickly turned around to pick it up, but saw that the boy in brocade clothing had already removed the silk ribbon and picked up the small pouch.
She simply turned her head and pretended not to recognize it.
Looking at the scene in front of her, Zhao Yiyi frowned and asked, “What’s going on?”
A palace maid whispered something in her ear, and she said, “First, help everyone up.” This seventh prince was simply too mischievous!
Just as she was thinking this, the seventh prince curiously opened the pouch, took out an item, and a noble lady exclaimed in surprise, “This… isn’t this the amulet for seeking children from Lingtai Temple?”
The efficacy of Lingtai Temple’s amulets for seeking children was widely circulated in Luoyang, and everyone’s attention was drawn to it.
“I don’t know whose it is, quickly take it back,” everyone smiled.
For a moment, the scene fell silent.
It wasn’t a big deal, but no one dared to speak up, which made people wonder.
Zuo Lianzhi suddenly said, “Eh, Duanduan, isn’t this pouch from you…” Before she finished, she suddenly realized she had said the wrong thing and quickly covered her mouth.
It seemed like she was trying to cover up something.
Even the Empress Dowager looked over, frowning and asking, “Is that true?”
Zhao Duanduan stepped out from the crowd and bowed, “Reporting to the Empress Dowager, it’s this servant’s thing.” The young girl’s expression was calm and composed, without the slightest panic, as if she were simply talking about the weather.
Everyone was stunned.
She even took the initiative to admit it?
What proper young lady would carry an amulet for seeking children on her person?
Zhao Yiyi’s brows furrowed, her heart both anxious and angry. She was about to speak, but her hand was suddenly grabbed tightly, and a strong force pressed her in place.
Author’s Note:
Gu Zhen: I don’t want her to drink, I just don’t want to say it nicely, hehe, I’m just being difficult~
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