Chapter 232: Under the Candlelight
Xue Sui lowered her eyes and waited for the next part of the story, remaining silent.
Xiao Zhao, however, her eyes shining, eagerly asked, “Who died? How did they die? Tell me quickly!”
Her leaning forward to press for details made her seem as eager as a cat stealing fish, which made Jinshu both amused and helpless.
“One was the third-place scholar from the tenth year of Chongzhao, Young Master Su Jin, and the other was his personal attendant, A Gui…” Jinshu lowered her voice. “When their bodies were recovered, they were unrecognizable, and it’s unknown how long they had been dead…”
Xue Sui understood.
It must have been Ping Le, to cover up the matter of coercing Lu Xi into poisoning, who silenced them.
“Ping Le’s methods are vicious, and her actions have become increasingly decisive lately. It is fitting that the third-place scholar Su met such an end for aiding and abetting evil. After this incident, Gu Wulang should be more clear-headed. I need not say more about how to proceed…”
The lamp wick crackled, spitting out sparks.
Reflecting the mottled mold spots on the stone wall.
Seeing the sickly pallor that appeared on Xue Sui’s small face, Jinshu suddenly placed her palm on her knee, her throat bobbing twice, but no sound came out.
Xue Sui: “If you have something to say, Aunt, please speak freely.”
“Miss…” Jinshu knelt on the damp straw, her voice slightly panicked and complex. “Miss, the Crown Prince has agreed to the marriage with Third Miss Guo. His Majesty has ordered the Imperial Astronomical Bureau to select an auspicious date. After Consort Xiao’s mourning period ends, the marriage will be announced to the world, with the three letters and six rites…”
The light of the oil lamp suddenly dimmed.
Xue Sui chuckled lightly, her voice like a blade dipped in frost.
“The Crown Prince’s wedding is a joyous occasion. Why is Aunt looking so glum?”
Seeing her calmly nibbling on a lotus leaf pastry, showing no sign of distress, Jinshu’s suspended heart settled slightly.
“The Crown Prince also sent a message…” She glanced around warily, holding her cold hand. “The Empress Dowager has suddenly summoned the imperial physician Wang Bo’an, who has been away for many years, back to the palace…”
Before she could finish, Qian Shi’s fawning laughter suddenly came from the corridor,
“Officer, you’ve worked hard. Please be accommodating… This jar of twenty-year-old huadiao wine was specially saved for you. We’ll leave after the young lady finishes eating, and we won’t delay your night patrol…”
Footsteps approached, and the night watchman walked over with a stern face to inspect.
Jinshu hurriedly brought the steaming ginger tea to Xue Sui’s front.
“Miss, please eat something to warm yourself up…”
Xiao Zhao also had red eyes and choked out, “The dungeon is very damp. Miss has been coughing more severely these past two days. If you don’t take good care of yourself, how can you possibly endure…”
Xue Sui clutched the front of her prison clothes and shook her head gently, coughing incessantly.
Only after the night watchman left did she sit up straight, looking at her reflection in the ginger tea, and quietly gave an order.
“Send a message to the Eastern Palace for me…”
Jinshu leaned in to listen, but unexpectedly, she suddenly coughed violently again. This time, it didn’t seem feigned. Her knuckles gripped the straw, turning white.
After a long while, she calmed down and said four words with a stern expression.
“Remain calm.”
–
In the study of Prince Duan’s Mansion, the lights were still on past midnight.
Xue Yuechen, supporting her pregnant belly, stood in the corridor, gazing at the light emanating from the study, her fingertips tightening on the handkerchief in her hand.
Ever since Xue Sui was imprisoned, Li Huan had not entered her Ying Yue Residence again. He left at dawn every day and only returned after being covered in frost and dew…
As his official consort, she hadn’t seen her husband for several days…
Fei Cui supported her, wanting to speak but hesitating.
“Princess Consort, it’s late and the dew is heavy. You are precious. Please return and rest early. His Highness will likely be sleeping in the study again tonight…”
Xue Yuechen’s eyes instantly turned red. She clutched the handkerchief tightly and said sadly, “Is it because I haven’t visited Sixth Sister that His Highness resents me for being cold-hearted?”
Fei Cui gently advised, “Princess Consort, please don’t overthink it. The heir apparent in your womb is the most important. Please rest assured and focus on your pregnancy…”
Xue Yuechen bit her lower lip and, lifting her skirt, walked down the corridor.
Inside the study, candlelight flickered.
Li Huan stared at the neatly stacked files on the desk, and the image of Xue Sui tearing her clothes in Qing Hui Hall that night flashed before his eyes. The peony pattern on her lower back made the old scar look like a ball of fire, causing his temples to throb.
“Your Highness, the Nine Treasures Cake sent by the Princess Consort is getting cold…”
A Ji stepped forward nervously, not daring to look him in the face.
Li Huan looked up. The lacquered box contained neatly arranged nine-colored pastries, piled into a delicate tower and adorned with frosting. They were the same pastries Xue Sui had shown him with a smile on the day they first met at the Xue Mansion…
Very fragrant.
Very familiar.
The Princess Consort was also very thoughtful.
His fingertip hovered above the pastries—
He paused, then withdrew it.
A Ji caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye and lowered his head even further. “The Princess Consort has been suffering from severe morning sickness lately, vomiting everything she eats and refusing food. Will Your Highness visit Ying Yue Residence tonight…”
Li Huan looked at the flickering candlelight, his brow furrowing slightly.
“Instruct Medical Officer Chen to take his pulse diligently and to regulate her condition carefully.”
He paused, then rubbed his temples and patiently instructed.
“Send all the bird’s nest that the Imperial Consort bestowed before her death to Ying Yue Residence for the Princess Consort’s pregnancy.”
A Ji acknowledged and withdrew, but he caught sight of Xue Yuechen leaning against the doorframe, deep in thought.
He was startled and bowed respectfully.
“Greetings, Princess Consort.”
Xue Yuechen forced a smile at him and slowly entered the study.
Seeing Li Huan leaning back in the wooden chair, his pale face sunken into the shadows of the candlelight, with dark circles under his eyes like a layer of thick ink, her heart suddenly ached…
Was it longing that made him so distraught over a woman?
Or was it hatred for her trampling his true feelings underfoot, leaving him unwilling to let go?
Xue Yuechen could not fathom him. After ten years of marriage, her husband felt like an abyss away.
“Why has the Princess Consort come?” Li Huan looked up, closing the files on the desk, his fingertips unconsciously tightening. “Didn’t I tell you to rest well and focus on your pregnancy?”
“I heard Your Highness was having trouble sleeping again, and I was truly worried…” Xue Yuechen said softly, then pushed the Nine Treasures Cake on the desk towards him.
“Your Highness works tirelessly for the case, but you must also take good care of yourself. If you collapse from exhaustion, Sixth Sister in the dungeon will likely not be able to rest easy…”
Li Huan looked at the porcelain dish and suddenly sneered.
How could Xue Liu care about his life or death?
That day in the Dali Temple courtroom, when she publicly tore open her sleeve to reveal the vigilance sand and spoke such unforgiving words, it was like she had personally dug a sharp knife into his heart…
From beginning to end, she had no intention of this.
And neither did he, of course.
Their stubbornness, so similar and etched into their bones, met its match in Xue Sui. The emotions born from their competitive spirit surged like an undercurrent, and he himself found it difficult to clarify, unwilling to discuss it further.
“Does Your Highness resent me?” Xue Yuechen saw his indifferent expression and suddenly knelt down—
“If I had realized Sixth Sister’s difficulties earlier and persuaded her more, telling her not to easily believe the instigation of villains, perhaps she wouldn’t have ended up in this situation today…”
“Get up quickly.” Li Huan interrupted her, bending down to help her into his arms, his voice hoarse and dark.
“This matter has nothing to do with you. You focus on your pregnancy and don’t overthink things.”
Xue Yuechen looked at his knuckles, which had turned white from clenching tightly, and her nose stung. Tears rolled down her cheeks.
Li Huan’s expression faltered slightly: “Why are you crying?”
“In Your Highness’s eyes, I seem like an outsider…” Xue Yuechen sobbed intermittently, her body trembling uncontrollably. In her desperation, her grievances could no longer be contained, and she tightly hugged his waist with both hands.
“There is an iceberg in Your Highness’s heart, and I have tried to warm it for ten years without success.”
Li Huan’s throat bobbed. After a moment, he unclasped her arms and looked down at her tear-streaked face, but what came to mind was Xue Sui’s cold demeanor in the dungeon.
“Your body is delicate, do not trouble yourself further.”
He then turned, his face darkening.
“Someone, help the Princess Consort back to Ying Yue Residence and attend to her rest carefully.”
–
The night was deep, but the time was unknown.
Xue Sui curled up on the straw mat, listening to Xiao Zhao’s steady breathing.
The chill of the dungeon was kept outside by her, leaving the remaining warmth for herself, but she couldn’t sleep, repeatedly chewing over Jinshu’s words…
“Miss, do you really think the Crown Prince is going to marry Third Miss Guo?” Xiao Zhao suddenly turned over, her voice filled with indignation. “Miss took so much risk for him, and he just marries whoever he wants! He completely disregards Miss, suffering in prison…”
“Silly girl, you’re not asleep?”
“I was pretending to be asleep,” Xiao Zhao mumbled. “I thought I could coax Miss to sleep.”
Xue Sui: “…”
Xiao Zhao said, “Miss, the Crown Prince is clearly sincere towards you…”
Xue Sui chuckled softly. “What sincerity can there be among the imperial family?”
She looked at the faint light on the stone wall, recalling the fierce aura in Li Zhao’s eyes when he grabbed the Imperial Guard’s arm to defend her in Qing Hui Hall. Her throat suddenly tightened.
Born into an imperial family, one was often powerless.
She gently patted Xiao Zhao, her voice soft yet firm.
“Sleep. The road ahead is uncertain, and there are more difficult matters to handle tomorrow…”
–
The moldy smell of the Ministry of Justice prison, mixed with the scurrying of rats and insects, kept Xue Sui from sleeping well all night. The next day, her cough seemed to have worsened.
Fortunately, the jailer had been bribed by Qian Shi and brought her a bowl of ginger soup and half a packet of mugwort.
Xue Sui took a sip from the broken bowl. The spiciness went straight to her throat, causing her to choke and cough uncontrollably on the straw pile…
Xiao Zhao rushed forward, shaking the wooden bars with all her might. “Officer, please be kind and find a doctor for our Miss…”
“You suicidal little shrew! What are you shouting about? Don’t you want to live.”
The jailer raised his foot to kick, but Xue Sui stopped him.
“Officer, please calm your anger! This girl is ignorant of propriety, please do not hold it against her.”
The jailer cursed and left. Xue Sui chewed mugwort with cold water, wrapped herself tighter in her cotton robe, and leaned against the corner. She then took a pill brought by Jinshu. Only when the oil lamp burned out did she close her eyes and fall into a deep sleep.
In a daze, she heard faint footsteps outside the door again.
Unlike the usual heavy steps, this person walked very lightly, as ethereal as cat paws, carrying a faint medicinal scent that wafted into her nostrils…
If Xue Sui hadn’t had keen senses, she would have barely noticed his presence.
She opened her eyes and looked up, seeing an old man in a blue robe, led by two jailers, leaning on a staff. His long beard swayed gently in the wind, and his wrinkles were filled with the vicissitudes of life.
“Greetings, Madam Xue.” The old man cupped his fists, his voice like a rusty copper bell.
“I have been ordered to take your pulse.”
Xue Sui stared at the ancient silver ring on his thumb and coughed lightly.
“Thank you, Doctor.”
Wang Bo’an placed the camphor wood medicine box and his wooden staff on the ground, his aged voice carrying a hint of fatigue.
“May I ask Madam to extend her jade hand, so that this old man may examine your pulse.”
Xue Sui lowered her eyelids and obediently extended her wrist, allowing the other’s fingers to rest on her inch, close, and ruler.
Xiao Zhao: Unfaithful Crown Prince, kill him?
Xue Sui: Let him queue first…
Li Zhao: Queue? Queue for what? I heard the Crown Prince offers an 80% discount?
