c32 (1/2)
Yun Zhong Ge Chapter 32: Aro the Room
Poor Xiao Mei To have no fain to iets his first taste of power, and power can be like a drug, once you have a taste of it, you just wantJue, if not why all that avoidance? After all, he was her proper first love, and even Liu Fu Ling can sense it Hoeso actually looked to Yun Ge for her opinion first when Meng Jue asked whether they could be alone? It isn't about his, but about her He put her first, her feelings, her eh for& Yun Ge shi+p
CHAPTER COMPLETE I'm so sorry about the delay this ti under the weather as well The weather has been crazy and everyone see sick around me ):
Chang An was never short of legends
In this world’s busiest and es who later becarooolden house’, beauties eep kingdoms off their feet Then of course, there were also Emperors and princes who died sudden deaths, crown princes who became commoners, E An weren’t easily excited for they were already used to the
legends, so only a truly aet theeneral, or so nobility actually happened, it will be talked about, but weren’t considered legends However, this spring, a new legend was born in Chang An, even the people of Chang An ere already used to legends knew a legend when they saw one They kneould be like other legends, passed along for hundreds, no, thousands of years
“By the mandate of Heaven, the Emperor’s edict was as follows: The witch hunt ied out for years, I have often lost sleep because of that The great-grandson of the late E as a co the will of the late Eainst this criwu” Liu Xun, Crown Prince Ju’s eldest grandson, was born tohis first month celebration, the late E with the i to know anything, Crown Prince Ju’s entire clan was killed and the young Liu Xun was i the ti countless prisoners Then, souards and prisoners alike The fate of the young Liu Xun was athe spate of ‘accidents’, no one knehether he was alive or dead Rumours spread that he had died, some said that he lived Most people understood that it was only a few kindhearted souls who hoped that he lived After the news of the passing of Ee of history had turned, burying everything to do with Crown Prince Ju along with it
Soht speak of Crown Prince Ju’s noble deeds in passing, but Liu Xun who didn’t leave any iotten Unexpectedly, afterAn, in addition, he was so An people were fa Yi From an imperial descendant to a prisoner, from a prisoner to youxia, fro about Liu Xun was dug up once again to be subject to deeper scrutiny; as if they could find so behind all the events once further discussion was held
‘Idle loafer’ becaainful employment’ beca for a fight’ beca Jun, Xu Ping Jun once known as ‘muddled in the head, blind in the eyes’ suddenly beca into the heroine of the legend in her own right The officials at court were all abuzz with news of the reappearance of the grandson of Crown Prince Ju Huo Guang ure out what Liu Fu Ling was trying to do
Eainst their relatives more than officials because the probability of their relatives usurping the throne was always far higher than that of court officials
Yet, Liu Fu Ling was slowly paving the way for Liu Xin, first allowing Liu Xun to shi+ne at court, gaining the recognition of those at court, then allowing hi the people as well At first there were a few officials ere unhappy with the way hisLiu Xun, but once they found out his identity, all unhappiness turned into sincere congratulations After conferring the title of Marquis on Liu Xun, hehie of the edicts the Eh it wasn’t a very iood position to start fro him to be familiar with all affairs of state Then there was Liu He Huo Guang couldn’t understand this man either If his frivolousness was an act, but it wasn’t like Liu He was keeping a low profile these past few years then putting on that ridiculous act It was during the reign of the late E witnessed the actions of a ridiculous prince, Liu He was only eleven or twelve then, Huo Guang couldn’t think of any reason for him to act that way Yet, if his frivolousness was real, Huo Guang just couldn’t coht now, he just couldn’t work out why Liu Fu Ling suah he could see the pieces his opponent had, he couldn’t figure where his opponent would place them next, so he could only act first
His mission was of utmost importance If a Huowould be so much easier with a prince they could rely on In order to send Huo Cheng Jun into the palace, he paid a visit to Xiao Mei to discuss his intentions First, whether or not Liu Fu Ling liked women, in order to secure his throne, he would have to take on concubines If he chose the daughter of an important court official, then that officials’ fahtly knitted to his ain a powerful helper to reduce the influence of the Huos at court This was definitely not what Huo Guang wanted, in order to prevent the other court officials’ daughters fro the palace, he would first pick a few irrelevant maidens, and rely fully on Xiao Mei Secondly, he didn’t want Xiao Mei to first hear of his plans to send Cheng Jun into the palace fro her feel like she wasn’t part of the Huos; he wanted Xiao Mei to be part of them
Xiao Mei was still her sweet, obedient self, nodding at everything he said, clapping her hands in joy when he“Finally, a relative to accompany me in the palace”
It was a banquet thrown to celebrate E behind it, the banquet throas grander than ever before Court officials and their wives gathered at Jian Zhang Palace, congratulating the Eifts on her, blessing her on her birthday
Xiao Mei was seated below Liu Fu Ling, towards the side, when she heard his sincere congratulations, although she still felt lonely, she was happy She plucked up courage to talk to him; he smiled as he answered each of her questions When he talked to her, his body would bend slightly forward, his attention rapt In his eyes, Xiao Mei could only see two of her little reflections and at that moment, all her loneliness vaporized At least, he could only look at her now Xiao Mei suddenly felt sorandfather after all, and he was the only one who planned this grand banquet for her, remembered her birthday, and it was only him that could make his majesty sit by her side, to drink wine and talk with her
Warmed ine, the officials at the Ministry of Rites presented to Xiao Mei the eht palacewide
Her curiousity piqued, Xiao Mei s that they had to eht palace maids slowly unrolled the embroidery On the wide, red silk, a thousand children were embroidered on it, each of their expressions different, some were cute and naïve, soer, some were clever and sift koed to congratulate her “May his and her randchildren”
In an instant, Xiao Mei’s heart tumbled thousands of feet into the deep abyss So this was the reason behind Huo Guang planning this birthday banquet for her! But this was her birthday! Her hands hidden beneath her sleeves, she pinched herself hard, for this was the only way to maintain her smile Chancellor Tian Qian Qiu stood, and reported “Your majesty, currently all six palaces are empty, for the sake of your e looked towards Xiao Mei, his eyes full of reen with pinch marks, but she still sically I have erred As Empress it is time to help his majesty choose his concubines and fill the hareested to Liu Fu Ling to choose a concubine, and all the other officials quickly followed in succession Liu Fu Ling was childless, worrying ree with Huo Guang also beseeched Liu Fu Ling to choose a concubine, first was truly for the sake of the e the prince would not carry Huo blood Liu Fu Ling blandly said “Today is the Empress’ birthday; we can talk about this later”
Tian Qian Qiu irand speech, fro to the late E, their haree The fervor intensified, and with Tian Qian Qiu leading the crowd, all court officials knelt as one, successively Then, in the huge Jian Zhang grand hall, the whole crowd of people acting as one, kneeling, koing, then shouting “For the sake of the e shook the pillars of the hall Then the kneeling, koing and shouting resumed “For the sake of the empire, may your majesty please reconsider!”
Kneeling…
Koing…
Shouting…
Rising…
Over a hundred officials repeating the sa Palace to its surroundings Although their actions see hi as Liu Fu Ling didn’t nod, everyone would only ask hi at a corner could feel their attacking force rolling towards her in waves, ? Liu Fu Ling stared at his feet, the officials repeatedly kneeling, his fists clenched in his sleeves, his veins pulsed, but he couldn’t do anything to stop the hard on the floor A palace maid screamed “Your majesty, your majesty!” Xiao Mei’s face was deathly pale, her lips blue, remained unconscious
The officials' “For the sake of the e on their words, du at the palacelooked deeply at Xiao Mei then commanded “Send her majesty back to the palace i Hall” At that, he hurriedly left along with his Empress
A whole hall full of officials, everyone looking at each other, then at the eon and phoenix couch, horror and despair written plainly on their faces It was the Eone, ere they celebrating? Everyone left resentfully
Tian Qian Qiu sidled up to Huo Guang, whispering “Lord Huo, what do you think we should do?”
Huo Guang was still sh his tone was cold, and turned to Huo Yu “I’o tell the physician to do a thorough check, and take proper care of her” Huo Yu replied “Your son understands” Hurriedly running off towards the Grand I turned to Tian Qian Qiu “I arandfather, now that she has taken ill, I areatly anxious and worried about her health We will speak of this only when her majesty has recovered” Tian Qian Qiu nodded “Your lordshi+p is right” Huo Guang felt a er
With the Erandfather, there was no reason for hie, disregarding her health If Huo Cheng Jun were to enter the palace now, and if this story spreads to the common folk, it would be easy for the with her ered she fell ill Before being titled concubine, first losing her virtue, this was disadvantageous to not only Huo Cheng Jun, but also the future of the Huos
Under the cover of the night, Huo Yu brought several physicians who just saw Xiao Mei to see Huo Guang These physicians were all Huo Guang’s trusted cronies, they pro that her majesty had really fallen ill, it definitely wasn’t faked She had fallen ill because of the suppressed melancholy in her heart and the wind and cold that buffeted her body Her cold triggering the melancholy; it wasn’t difficult to treat but would need some time to recuperate
Huo Guang’s anger subsided somewhat, but his suspicion just couldn’t be erased The following day, once court was adjourned, he requested Liu Fu Ling to permit him to visit Xiao Mei
Once he reached Jiao Fang Hall, he carefully interrogated the palace ’s last visit to her ht Palace ed her to see a physician but her majesty roundly refused After he saw hers Cheng’er once again advised her ain, received her majesty’s rejection Herthe matters of the next few days, she would be fine with a few days of rest They didn’t expect her sy ill in the end Huo Guang calculated the dates, and his suspicion that Xiao Mei was faking her illness dissipated as well; he was only left with a sense of helplessness So Xiao Mei, no one actually truly cared about her health, all he heard was Cheng’er advised, Cheng’er worried, but this Cheng’er was not even one of his own
When he stepped forth to see Xiao Mei, Xiao Mei was shedding tears on her pallet “Grandfather, ill little aunt come into the palace? I feel terrible; I want her here with me Grandfather, please allow little aunt come to the palace to acco felt quite bad too If any other official’s daughter in Chang An fell sick, she will definitely be meticulously cared for by her mother, with her sisters around her to entertain her and her brothers and father to check up on her Although Xiao Mei belonged to the noblest of faroup of palace maids who didn’t even care about her in front of her pallet
After Huo Guang requested his leave, he specially suood care of her majesty After her majesty recovers, you’ll definitely be nicely rewarded, your father and your brothers will benefit too” Cheng’er’s face fell as she was reminded of her father and brothers who “Waiting on her majesty hat your servant was supposed to do Lord Huo, maybe some words are better not said, but if your servant doesn’t say it, then no one else would, so your servant can only follow her heart, whether right or wrong” Huo Guang said “I am not someone ould criticize harshly, don’t worry If you have anything to say, speak” “Her ht fever over the past two days, your servant often heard her“Grandfather”, so for “Uncle”, and sometimes she will cry and say “lonely” When she wakes up with a start in the ht, she will ask “Is little aunt here yet?” If my lord has the time, please visit her majesty more often Your servant thinks that it will be aze swept across all the other palace maids, some of them immediately bowed their heads
“When your servant was on night shi+ft, I heard it too”
“Your servant also heard her sleep talk, once screa me out of the palace’”
“Your servant thought it was just nor froly, afraid to continue
All of Huo Guang’s suspicions truly vanished then, and praised Cheng’er saying “Many thanks for your thoughtfulness towards her ’er quickly replied “It was only your servant’s duty; your servant doesn’t dare to accept my lord’s thanks”
As Huo Guang walked out, he ran into Yun Ge on her way to visit Shang Guan Xiao Mei Yun Ge reeting Huo Guang already knew that Yun Ge often came to play with Xiao Mei If Xiao Mei was sick, Yun Ge would naturally co her like any higher ranking palaceas he walked past her
When Cheng’er saw Yun Ge, she happily went forward to receive her The other palaceoff to do whatever they were supposed to do On the other hand, Mo Cha who came with Yun Ge was only a norainst her, plus she was always cheerful and generous, everyone had reeted her with smiles when she walked past When they smelt the unique scent on her, everyone crowded around curiously “What kind of scent is this, for it to be so unique?”
Mo Cha proudly opened up her pouch to let them see “This was ave me a bit of it Not only is the scent special, it can also calhs” The rant orchids and irises Living in the palace, they had already smelt various scents, but this particular scent appealed to all of them and they crowded closer for a look “Is it really that wonderful? I don’t sleep well at night” Mo Cha was being her usual self, although she didn’t have et a bit of it Yun Ge turned to Cheng’er and smiled “Go play with them too! I come here often and am very familiar with this place, no need to specially attend to ’er had taken a whiff of the scent too, and already liked the scent, so she nodded her head “If , do call upon your servant” She ran off to Mo Cha’s side for a bit of the scented powder
“Are you feeling better?” Shang Guan Xiao Mei heard Yun Ge’s voice; she shut her eyes as she continued to sleep, ignoring her “Many thanks for you agreeing to help us” Xiao Mei turned around; lying on her side “I don’t knohat you’re talking about This illness has sapped th to help others?” Yun Ge didn’t knohat to say, so she continued to sit quietly
When a few palace maids turned their heads to check on Yun Ge and her , Yun Ge sitting quietly by the pallet and hera little tired The palace maids smiled in relief then turned back to discuss scents with other palacean eyes on their actions
Although Shang Guan Xiao Mei’s eyes were closed, her face a picture of calrandfather thought his entle or pretty enough, thinking that in other to preserve his throne, his majesty would take in concubines and sow his seeds; but he rong It wasn’t that her grandfather wasn’t smart, he was just too smart He assumed that men as smart as him would knohat is iive up, but he didn’t know that there were truly men ere smart and muddleheaded
She didn’t knohy she rejected Yun Ge soundly even though she definitely didn’t want to see Huo Cheng Jun in the palace either Maybe it was because she wanted to see Yun Ge disappointed and sad; she didn’t like Yun Ge’s sain Yun Ge didn’t seem upset at her rejection, neither did she show her disappoint “I understand, you have it harder than us” No one can lie better than her, for they only lie as they lived, but she was living a lie Her whole life was a lie Yet she couldn’t detect any forced smiled on Yun Ge’s face, or hear Yun Ge utter any lie
After getting warain, so it was easy to catch a chill And so, she fell sick She orried that her grandfather would suppress news of her illness, so not only must she fall sick, she must let the world know
Every spring, the Empress would lead the official’s wives to pray to the Silkworm Goddess, to pray to the Heavens for abundance of food and clothes for everyone, so she was planning to fall sick and collapse at the mulberry trees She didn’t expect the chill in her body to be brought out by the storht when she felt anger and sorrow consu her
She told herself, this was only for herself - it was for her , for all the lives lost in the Shang Guan clan She wasn’t helping him, definitely not!
A palace maid outside the curtain said “Your majesty, it is time to take your medicine”
Shang Guan Xiao Mei opened her eyes and smiled at Yun Ge “Go back! This isn’t a serious illness; the physicians said I would recover after three, four months of proper rest Don’t worry tooHall after bowing
“She refused to accept our thanks”
Liu Fu Ling nodded, not saying a word Yun Ge continued “Xiao Mei is only giving us three to fourth months; we must settle the rest ourselves” Liu He s Junchildless? Based on what the officials are saying, this is an issue indeed Youra child in three to four months, or even more than one, shouldn’t be a problem at all Your subject is just confused, why has your majesty seemed to miss the mark even after so many years?”
Indeed, no one could beat Liu He’s cheekiness, for he actually said those words with no fear
Liu Fu Ling remained expressionless but Yun Ge’s cheeks were rosy red, she made a sound of annoyance “Do you think everyone is like you?” Then turned around and left hurriedly