Free Web NovelChapter 235: Chapter 235: And You, I Don’t Want to Leave You
Tao Wanxin said, "I am pregnant, too. And yet, this concubine has sent her maid to disturb me on several occasions. Is she not worried that I might take ill?"
Du Yufang sat firmly in her seat. ’Why has Tao Wanxin become so difficult to handle?’ she wondered.
Tao Wanxin said, "I had a physician check on you. There’s nothing seriously wrong with your pregnancy. Kneel and pay your respects, Concubine."
Just then, a maid at the door shot a meaningful glance at her concubine.
Du Yufang immediately complied, sinking to her knees like a wilting willow.
From her seat of honor, Tao Wanxin could see every flicker of their expressions.
She nervously clenched her fists.
Then, she said relentlessly, "Concubine, who taught you to bow in such a crooked manner? If you were seen at a palace banquet, people would laugh their heads off and bring utter shame to Prince Yong’s Mansion."
Tao Wanxin lifted her chin and said, "No, I misspoke. The concubine will not have the opportunity to go to the palace."
Du Yufang had been feigning her distress, but now her expression completely crumbled. Tao Wanxin had struck her sorest spot.
Her eyes red, she said, "I have always remained in the rear courtyard, minding my own affairs and trying to continue the Prince’s lineage. I do not understand why you would say such things, Princess Consort. Why come looking for my faults in the dead of night, just to find an excuse to punish me by making me kneel?"
Tao Wanxin said calmly, "You were the one who sent a maid to fetch me, saying you were in terrible pain. You don’t look the least bit uncomfortable."
Du Yufang said, "I am enduring it. It hurts terribly right now. But I respect you as the Princess Consort. If something were to happen to the child in my womb, could you answer to the Prince?"
A tall figure appeared outside, standing at the entrance without coming in.
Tao Wanxin saw him, and her gaze was glued to the door.
She said, "I would be wronging him."
Du Yufang looked up in astonishment. "What is the Princess Consort saying?"
"I said I would be wronging the Prince."
Hearing her words, the figure at the door wavered.
Tao Wanxin glanced at Du Yufang and said, "So, the concubine should remain kneeling." She then raised her voice. "If kneeling really does cause a problem, I will go and plead for my punishment before the Prince myself."
As soon as her words fell, the person at the door immediately turned and left.
Tao Wanxin’s clenched hand relaxed, her palm slick with sweat. ’I wonder if he heard me clearly.’
The maid ran to Du Yufang’s ear and whispered something. Du Yufang confirmed in a low voice, "The Prince just came and then left?"
Du Yufang did not disappoint Tao Wanxin. Almost at the same instant, her body went limp and she collapsed to the ground, not forgetting to let her head fall into her maid’s arms.
Tao Wanxin rose and said, "Take good care of your concubine. I will go find the Prince myself."
On the way to Prince Yong’s courtyard, Mr. Chang appeared.
He said with a broad smile, "Princess Consort, still awake so late?"
Tao Wanxin was just about to ask him where Prince Yong was.
As if prepared, Chang Lu immediately answered, "What a coincidence. The Prince is still in his study reading and has not yet retired. Shall this servant accompany the Princess Consort to see him?"
Tao Wanxin nodded.
「Jiwei Residence.」
Zhao Minghong sat at his desk, a stack of books before him. With every page he turned, he would glance outside.
He said restlessly, "Is someone outside? Go and tell them this Prince is in a bad mood and will see no one."
The little eunuch hurried out to look, then came back and said, "Your Highness, no one has come."
Zhao Minghong slammed the book onto the desk.
"It’s been so long, and she’s still not here!"
The little eunuch, unaware of what was happening, knelt on the floor and said, "Your Highness, it is the middle of the night. The roads are dark and difficult to travel. No one will be coming."
Zhao Minghong took a deep breath. ’The roads are hard to walk at night. She wouldn’t have fallen, would she...’
The more he thought about it, the more a chill ran down his spine. He pushed aside the book in front of him and stood up to walk outside.
Just as he reached the entrance, he saw Chang Lu walking ahead with a lantern, followed by Tao Wanxin dressed in a violet palace gown.
Zhao Minghong walked back to his desk and snapped, "Who said no one was coming? Isn’t the Princess Consort right here? You useless, unobservant thing! Get out and wait outside!"
Tao Wanxin hadn’t even reached the entrance when she heard Prince Yong’s angry roar. A moment later, the little eunuch was thrown out.
Her steps faltered for a moment, her heart filled with apprehension, but she continued walking forward.
Entering Jiwei Residence, Tao Wanxin looked at Prince Yong, who was holding a book and appeared to be reading with intense focus.
Chang Lu said, "Your Highness, the Princess Consort has something to discuss with you."
Then, Chang Lu closed the study door.
Zhao Minghong stared at the book before him, motionless. ’I was going to give her the cold shoulder,’ he thought, ’but now that she’s really here, I can’t bring myself to do it.’
Tao Wanxin stood at the doorway, not daring to step forward.
The study was brightly lit. She had long known that his appearance could be quite intimidating.
When he was quiet, he had an extraordinary bearing, with a straight-bridged nose and delicate features he inherited from the Empress Dowager in the palace.
Tao Wanxin’s throat felt tight. She could only force out two words.
"My Lord."
The fingers of the hand Zhao Minghong used to hold the book twitched, but he still didn’t look up or acknowledge her.
Tao Wanxin clenched her left hand into a fist and again forced out the same two words.
"My Lord."
But this time, her tone held a hint of grievance that even she barely noticed.
After she called out to him twice in a row, Zhao Minghong suddenly felt as if all the characters in the book had turned into the words "My Lord." He furrowed his brow. ’I must be completely drunk.’
Tao Wanxin’s eyes grew red. ’He won’t even look at me anymore.’
’If this is how it’s going to be, then this might be the last time we ever see each other.’
She called out mournfully, "My Lord."
Zhao Minghong roared, "Are you summoning a spirit? This Prince is not dead yet!"
As soon as he looked up and saw her red, swollen eyes, his harsh expression softened, though his face remained grim.
Tao Wanxin said, "My Lord, is the letter of annulment ready for me? When do you want me to leave the Prince’s Mansion?"
Zhao Minghong gritted his teeth. "When do you want to leave?"
Tao Wanxin looked at Prince Yong. For Princess Qingyun’s wedding, he had changed into the prescribed ceremonial attire. His coronet bore a ruby and was inlaid with eight East Pearls.
It was the same coronet he had worn when they were married.
Zhao Minghong spoke again. "You can’t even wait half a night. You’re that desperate to leave."
"I don’t."
Tao Wanxin’s voice trembled. "I don’t want to leave the Prince’s Mansion."
Zhao Minghong’s heart was thrown into turmoil. His handsome face twisted, and he was just about to say something sarcastic.
Tao Wanxin saved the most important words for last.
"And... and... and you. I don’t want to leave you."
The book in Zhao Minghong’s hands was crushed out of shape by his grip.
He said with a terrifying expression, "Say that again!"
Having said that one sentence, Tao Wanxin felt she had already thrown all decorum to the wind; there was nothing left she couldn’t say.
"I don’t want an annulment. This is my home, because you are here."
Zhao Minghong’s mind went blank for a moment.
He couldn’t tell if this was a beautiful dream or reality.
Tao Wanxin said in a soft voice, "I came to say... if you have already written the letter of annulment, could you take it back? If you haven’t written it, could you... give me another chance?"
Under the desk, Zhao Minghong’s legs began to tremble.
He said with a stiff expression, "A letter of annulment? Is this Prince’s ink treasure so easy to obtain?"
He had fled so quickly from the Princess Mansion’s rear garden for fear that Tao Wanxin would chase him for the letter of annulment.
As soon as Zhao Minghong said it, he regretted it.
He had also been afraid that if he had turned back, his wretched tears would have started to fall.
’To hell with the letter of annulment!’
