Free Web NovelChapter 47: Chapter 47: Meet One, Want to Marry One
Such a delicate and pliant demeanor.
Any more and it would have been contrived. Any less, and she would have lacked allure.
Even tempered steel could be made to wrap around one’s finger.
Emperor Wu Su gave a slight nod.
Ji Qingwu’s eyes instantly brightened. "Your Majesty has already said that I am foolish," she cooed softly. "I certainly don’t possess Your Majesty’s peerless talent and divine might. I implore Your Majesty to show me the way."
Flattery that doesn’t disgust the listener is a true art form.
And Ji Qingwu was quite gifted in this art.
Her dark, glistening eyes would lock onto you, filled with such trust and dependence that one couldn’t bear to betray that faith.
Emperor Wu Su watched her and said slowly, "There is a way. The question is whether you have the courage for it."
The last thing Ji Qingwu wanted was a paddling tomorrow, so she asked urgently, "What is this solution?"
"Come here."
’Where?’
The Emperor hadn’t specified.
Ji Qingwu had already misunderstood once. She didn’t dare let her thoughts wander again, so she immediately agreed and followed behind him.
By the time they reached the entrance to Zhaoyang Hall, night had fallen.
The main hall was brightly lit, and two Palace Attendants stood beside the red gates.
Remembering what Eunuch Li had said about the night duty maids, Ji Qingwu gave them a closer look.
Only then did she realize that those who served the Emperor were all stunningly beautiful. Based on looks alone, they were no less lovely than the young ladies of noble families, which made her believe Eunuch Li’s words without a doubt.
After they entered the hall, Ji Qingwu found herself left alone in the vast chamber. Even Li Yuzong had withdrawn.
In the western part of the hall, behind layers of low-hanging gauze curtains, she could vaguely make out the Dragon Bed with its neatly folded brocade quilts.
For some reason, Ji Qingwu’s mind drifted back to what Wei Chi Lianping had said that day at the Princess Mansion. ’Get on the Dragon Bed, and even nine lives won’t be enough to atone...’
She quickly averted her gaze, her ears burning as she stared at the gleaming floor tiles.
Emperor Wu Su returned to his desk and sat down. The antique book he had previously thrown to the floor had been retrieved by a Palace Attendant and placed back on the desk.
The desk was quite wide, a magnificent piece crafted from pale and dark woods in an interlocking fretwork pattern. One was yellow and warm, the other black and cool, and its surface was as smooth as a mirror.
His fingers rested on the surface, tapping it lightly a few times.
Ji Qingwu took the hint at once. She walked over to him, lowered her head, and asked softly, "Your Majesty, what must I do to make the Empress Dowager spare me?"
But Emperor Wu Su asked about something else entirely. freewebnσvel.cøm
"When did you get engaged? I have not heard of the Ji Family performing the formal betrothal rites."
This was the excuse she had blurted out in her desperation by Taiye Lake.
Ji Qingwu said, "For now, it’s just a verbal agreement."
Emperor Wu Su raised an eyebrow. "A verbal agreement counts? I’ve never heard of any young lady’s betrothal being settled by word of mouth, without a single contract."
’In truth, she and Li Chengxun had only just confessed their feelings for each other. They were supposed to start preparing for the preliminary marriage negotiations any day now.’
’But who would have thought that Princess Qingyun would also set her sights on Mr. Li and even find out about their understanding? She had no idea how the news had leaked.’
’And to do so with such fanfare right after the Empress Dowager’s birthday banquet, essentially "stealing" him away.’
Seeing she was distracted, Emperor Wu Su’s voice turned cold. "I am speaking to you."
Ji Qingwu nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "A verbal agreement is still an agreement. I stand by it. Although my word isn’t as inviolable as Your Majesty’s, I trust... him."
That simple declaration of trust made Emperor Wu Su clench his jaw.
But Ji Qingwu remained completely oblivious. She had no grand ambitions, nor did she obsessively pursue any particular goal. But when it came to keeping her word, she was unwavering.
After a long pause, Emperor Wu Su said blandly, "Only sincerity can break the world’s deceptions; only substance can break its illusions. That Miss Ji treasures a promise so dearly... is that man’s good fortune."
Beneath the light of the palace lanterns, her face seemed to glow even more radiantly.
Emperor Wu Su’s lingering gaze shifted away. The shadows in his eyes slowly faded, and he reverted to his usual cool and noble bearing as the Emperor.
Silence filled the hall for so long that Ji Qingwu’s neck began to ache.
Only then did she hear a deep voice ask.
"Do you want to marry him that badly?"
’For a mere verbal agreement, she was willing to clash with Princess Qingyun and now appeared ready to defy the Empress Dowager herself.’
’The price was by no means small.’
Ji Qingwu replied ambiguously, "Mr. Li is an excellent man, of course. Otherwise, Princess Qingyun wouldn’t also wish to marry him."
Emperor Wu Su scoffed, "The world is full of fine men. Surely Miss Ji doesn’t intend to marry every one she meets."
Had she pondered his words more carefully, Ji Qingwu might have sensed something was off. But at that moment, the watchman’s drum sounded from outside, and she was truly growing anxious.
Her brow furrowed on her small face as she pressed him, "Your Majesty, what exactly is this solution you mentioned?"
Emperor Wu Su said nothing, his expression turning cold once more.
Ordinarily, the Emperor’s cold glare would have been enough to make Ji Qingwu bow her head.
But time was running out. She summoned her courage, edged closer, and gingerly reached out to tug on his sleeve.
Her hand on his bamboo-green robe was a warm, jade-like white, with a radiance that even brocade could not rival.
Emperor Wu Su glanced down, and with a flick of his forearm, easily pulled the fabric from her grasp.
The smooth, soft brocade slipped from Ji Qingwu’s palm. The pull wasn’t forceful, yet her hand burned as if it had been scorched.
’He didn’t even want her to touch his clothes.’
「Outside the hall.」
Li Yuzong held a tray with a pile of folded clothes, followed by two Palace Attendants.
Emperor Wu Su said, "Come in."
After entering, Li Yuzong said, "Miss Ji, these are fresh clothes that were prepared for you."
The dress she was wearing was still damp and decidedly uncomfortable. "Thank you, Eunuch Li," Ji Qingwu said gratefully.
She then turned to look at the Emperor, as she couldn’t leave without his permission.
Emperor Wu Su picked up the antique book from the corner of the desk, flipping it open to the page he was on before. He lowered his gaze, clearly unwilling to acknowledge her further.
"You may go. His Majesty was the one who had them prepared, so he has surely given his consent," Li Yuzong said in a low voice.
Ji Qingwu nodded, and the two Palace Attendants led her to the baths in the western side hall.
After her figure disappeared, Emperor Wu Su stared at the antique book, his brow furrowed in irritation.
’To think she’d approach him like this, all for the sake of her engagement to another man.’
The elegant, powerful script on the page before him suddenly seemed utterly loathsome.
It made Emperor Wu Su want to toss the unique, long-lost volume he had painstakingly acquired into the nearby candle flame.
Both the eastern and western side halls had baths. In Beili, the east was the direction of honor, so the eastern hall contained the larger imperial bath.
But that was for the exclusive use of the Emperor and Empress; no one else was qualified to enter.
The entire bath in the western hall was paved with translucent, jade-like white stone, with white stone steps leading down on every side.
The bottom of the pool was covered in bas-relief carvings of fish, dragons, flowers, and birds—everything except a phoenix. As the water rippled, the patterns of dragons and flowers seemed to dance, creating a unique and captivating scene.
’This bath was already so exquisite; she wondered what the imperial bath used by the Emperor and Empress must look like.’
The Palace Attendant assigned to assist her bathing bowed and stepped forward, intending to help her undo her outer robe.
Ji Qingwu shied away, holding up a hand to stop her. "I won’t trouble you, I can do it myself."
She wasn’t being coy or shy, merely unaccustomed to being touched by others.
Her moon-white outer robe, her emerald-green silk sash, her sheer long dress, her under-robe, and her chemise fell, layer by layer, piece by piece, beside the bath.
Long legs, a slender waist, a svelte and graceful figure. Her back was more radiant and flawless than jade.
