Chapter 43.2
Ruo Zhen's issue was finally resolved, from all aspects.
But she still couldn't sleep, every time she closed her eyes, she would see Li Wenjian's crimson eyes, and hear his hurried breath in her ear.
The more she thought, the more unsettled she felt, tossing and turning until dusk, unable to fall asleep. She raised her fingertips to her lips. Her whole body was cold, except for the burning heat on her lips.
It wasn't until almost dusk that she finally drifted off into a fitful sleep.
In the middle of the night, Zhao Heng woke up groggily, opening her eyes.
Upon hearing a noise, Lian Zhou entered from outside and helped Zhao Heng dress while sharing the news she had gathered that night, "Prince Ruo Zhen is injured!"
Gathering her clothes close, Zhao Heng whispered, "What happened?"
"I heard that this afternoon, he fell from his horse on the way back to the palace, breaking his leg," Lian Zhou widened her eyes, nodding heavily, "Serves him right, shouldn't have survived the fall."
Ignoring her comment, Zhao Heng looked back at the empty bed and asked, "And the crown prince?"
Lian Zhou looked puzzled, "This afternoon, Mister Liang entered the palace and is with the crown prince in the Yunshui Chamber."
*
In the palace, Prince Ruo Zhen lay on the bed, writhing in pain.
His whole body ached, his palm pierced by a golden hairpin, painful; falling off the horse, breaking his leg, excruciating! His throat scratched by Zhao Heng's fingers, feeling like it was about to burst, painful!
"You useless lot, can't even stop the bleeding," Ruo Zhen felt like howling, holding up his hand that was still dripping blood, wanting to slap it on the table, but too weak due to the pain.
Several physicians were sweating profusely, one daringly speculated, "Could the prince be poisoned? Normally, the bleeding shouldn't persist for so long."
Another physician frowned and agreed, "I think so too. The prince said he was injured only at noon, but the wound is already showing signs of infection and pus, which is not normal for such a short time."
"Oh my!" Ruo Zhen couldn't believe it for a moment. He thought that Zhao Heng was just trying to scare him, after all, it was not easy to slip poison into the strict rules of the Central Palace. But he never expected she actually used poison.
He subtly asked the doctors about what 'hundred days of withering' was, but they all shook their heads, saying they had never heard of it, perhaps it was some unknown poison concocted by a rural doctor.
A cool breeze swept through the summer palace, chilling Ruo Zhen's wracked body.
*
In the Yunshui Chamber.
Li Wenjian held a book in his hands, glancing at Liang Xingyan sitting opposite him, not asking why he was still in the palace at this hour. He just poured a cup of tea for himself and placed it in front of Liang Xingyan.
Liang Xingyan picked up the tea, took a sip, and sat across from him, observing him.
He looked at the tea cup, noticing a tea leaf stuck on the deep blue glaze on the rim. He chuckled to himself and then set the cup back down.
"Do we have any wine?" Liang Xingyan suddenly asked the servant standing outside, staring at him for a moment.
The servant hesitated, glancing at Li Wenjian.
Even Li Wenjian wasn't sure what Liang Xingyan meant.
Liang Xingyan smiled and explained, "I have known His Highness since childhood. It is my duty to help him relax in every way, in fact and reason. However, as His Highness avoids women and gambling, I can only offer you a few cups of wine."
Without lifting his head, Li Wenjian replied, "Who told you I was in a bad mood?"
After all, they had known each other for over a decade, and Liang Xingyan couldn't miss the weight on his heart. Over the past few months, Li Wenjian had not asked him to join the night study at the palace, but today he suddenly summoned him. Seeing him pretend to read, it was clear he was forcing himself to focus.
Li Wenjian rarely showed such emotions.
In his early years, when his worries were not as deep, he was a young man who loved to talk and laugh, sharing drinks and discussing life with his companions.
In recent years, after becoming the crown prince, many things were not meant to be talked about with outsiders. He kept everything buried inside, finding it less enjoyable than before.
Especially palace affairs.
Liang Xingyan was not well-versed in the affairs of the Chengming Hall, and seeing his nonchalant demeanor, he knew he wouldn't talk even if asked. So, he said, "Drinking three hundred cups of wine can dispel eighty thousand sorrows."
Li Wenjian nodded.
Mu Gui went to fetch the wine, and soon brought back two cups for them.
Liang Xingyan lifted a cup, shook it towards him, and drank it all in one gulp.
In his hands was the cup in front of him, but in his mind floated memories of all the complexities of his acquaintance with Zhao Heng. She was timid yet bold, submissive yet proud, self-deprecating yet confident...
She was complicated and contradictory.
And it was this complexity, this silent contradiction that silently attracted him.
Zhao Heng was perhaps the person closest to him in the world, but their relationship remained superficial.
All along, he had seen her as a responsibility, doing his best to protect her.
Seeing her outside the Qingchun Garden in the afternoon, hearing her lie to him once again, his heart sank a little.
He understood her painful experiences, her timid avoidance, and the clear boundary she drew between herself and the outside world.
But in that moment of hearing her plea, he felt absurd: she would rather risk her life to confront Prince Ruo Zhen alone than seek his help...
A person so cherishing of their life, facing life and death decisions, didn't have an ounce of trust in him.
Not even a bit.
Li Wenjian seemed to think about everything and nothing at the same time in his mind.
As he drank, he began to feel slightly intoxicated.
The night was dark, silver moonlight spilled into Renxue Hall. Li Wenjian looked at the drunken Liang Xingyan slumped on the table, allowing Jian Ning to carry him to a side chamber.
Mu Gui entered and asked him, "Your Highness, would you like to rest in your sleeping quarters or..."
"Go to the East Pavilion."
Li Wenjian stood up and walked towards the main hall.
It was already very late, and apart from the guards and attendants on duty, the entire East Palace was quiet.
The sky darkened, casting a dim light.
Two night guards carrying lanterns walked past him, greeting him and moving aside. Li Wenjian stood on the corridor, overhearing one person say to another, "Your Yuguanghua is subtle and understated, elegant and gentle. It's a pity that it was broken. Fortunately, Master Ning from the Repairing Office has skilled hands and has repaired it, looking no different from before."
"But up close, you can see the gold inlay, although Master Ning's craftsmanship is remarkable, but after all, it's a repaired piece, it can't compare to the original seamlessly. Touching the gold inlay and knowing it was once broken, it's still unsettling."
"Sigh..."
Li Wenjian turned his head to look at the two people, and saw one holding a piece of jade necklace in his hand, glossy like the sky, full of water, with a deep blue color, a very rare and exquisite item. However, it was embedded with a piece of gold thread, left from a repair, resembling a scar that couldn't be removed.
Descending from the East Pavilion, he caught sight of Zhao Heng standing under the acacia tree. She stood in the dense shadow of the tree, almost blending into the darkness. Among the ink-black shadows, the gold and silver threads on her dress reflected the light from the palace lanterns.
Approaching with a lantern, the palace light illuminated her pale face.
Zhao Heng had waited outside the hall for a long time, thinking of many things to say. But when he approached, she still suddenly froze, fingers trembling lightly, eyes staring at the fabric belt in her hand. Various thoughts raced through her mind, but they were like white mist, leaving no trace.
Seeing that he was about to leave soon, Zhao Heng reached out and grabbed the sleeve of his large outer robe.
Li Wenjian, about to take a step forward, immediately stopped.
Zhao Heng's long, white fingers rested on the bright gold embroidered dragon, looking up at him with a slight tremble in her voice, "Your Highness, are you not going back to your sleeping quarters to rest?"
Li Wenjian remained silent.
Perhaps afraid he would break free, Zhao Heng slowly tightened her grip on his sleeve. Her snow-white, clean nails were not painted with any rouge, exuding a pure cleanliness in the dark night, "If Your Highness does not want to see me, I will go to the East Pavilion to rest. You have to attend the morning court tomorrow. If you do not rest well, it will affect official matters."
At that moment, Li Wenjian's stiff hand by his side slowly clenched as he said, "It's not necessary."
Zhao Heng held onto the corner of his robe stubbornly, refusing to let go. Hearing this, a slight frown appeared on her forehead, and she looked directly into his eyes, her voice softly tinged with a hint of grievance, "Your Highness..."
Under the acacia tree, everything was dim, and her expression was unclear. But perhaps it was because of her jade-colored attire, or the way she called "Your Highness," striking a chord in Li Wenjian's heart.
In that moment, Zhao Heng, as seen by Li Wenjian, looked so fragile and pitiful.
Li Wenjian let out a soft sigh and gazed into her eyes. Her long lashes were moist, and her ink-black eyes gazed at him unwaveringly, filled with a hint of vulnerability as she spoke softly, "For twenty years, I haven't lived as myself. That's why I misunderstood Your Highness in such a despicable way."
Li Wenjian turned around, intending to switch the lantern from one hand to the other, but before he could speak, Zhao Heng seemed afraid that he would leave, suddenly gripping his wrist tightly. She exerted a strong grip on his hand, completely different from the usual fragility of a woman.
He raised his gaze to look at her, and she slowly blinked, feeling a bit awkward when she saw that he had no intention of leaving. She then released his hand.
Li Wenjian noticed her careful gaze on him, and suddenly felt a pang in his heart.
Subsequently, he felt self-blame. He shouldn't have stormed out in anger from her in the afternoon. She was already timid and cautious, and he didn't know how anxious she must have been after seeing him angry.
Li Wenjian tried to imagine himself in her shoes - a powerless woman being coveted and harassed by a brute. The torment and pain must have been indescribable...
He should have realized earlier, from the moment Ruo Zhen began harassing her, that he should have been vigilant, instead of mistakenly thinking she was grieving for her deceased relatives.
Not to blame and resent her from his own perspective, but to understand her fear of being harassed, her desperation when facing Ruo Zhen alone, and the pain she suffered after jumping from the Fengming Terrace to protect herself.
Zhao Heng gazed steadily at Li Wenjian, unsure of what he was thinking at that moment, but the silent tension stretched time unbearably long.
She had never seen him so angry as he was at noon.
"Actually, it wasn't a misunderstanding, Your Highness," Zhao Heng raised her eyes to look at Li Wenjian, a hint of embarrassment lingering in her eyes after her initial sorrow. "It's just that no one has seen me as a person for so long, that I myself no longer see myself as one. So, when facing Ruo Zhen's harassment, I didn't even dare to openly ask for Your Highness' thoughts. I..."
Before she could finish her sentence, Li Wenjian suddenly hugged her tightly.
He held her arm so firmly that the distance between them disappeared, and he could clearly feel her trembling.
"Are you scared?" Li Wenjian asked softly.
Zhao Heng trembled even more noticeably.
The night wind lifted the light veil of her skirt, gently brushing against her shins. Her clear eyes gradually turned slightly red.
"I'm not scared," Zhao Heng shook her head.
Li Wenjian gazed into her slightly red eyes, wanting to wipe away the tears from her long, feather-like eyelashes.
But he didn't, perhaps because Zhao Heng didn't want to acknowledge her tears.
"It's my fault for not protecting you."
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Author's Note:
Li Wenjian: Not letting arguments linger overnight, we can consider ourselves a model couple, right?
Before COVID-19: Don't stop me, I want to rant!