Chapter 8: 8

Who do you think you are, that I want to be married to you so badly?

Mu Fulan was left alone in the room, and there was silence in her ears.

Beside the mirror, the wax torch that was inserted on the glass lotus pedestal suddenly burst into flames.

The candle flickered, then quieted down.

The light of the fire was reflected in her eyes, flickering slightly and her eyes were fixed on it. For a long time, as if subconsciously, she raised her slender fingertips and slowly approached the candlelight.

The skin was burned by the flames.

A sharp pain from her fingertips spread rapidly throughout her body.

But Mu Fulan seemed to have no feeling whatsoever.

Only in her eyes, a painful dark look flashed by.

She once again thought of her Xi’er.

She loved her only child the most, he was only four years old when she died.

How could she be willing to leave him like that? Due to her persistence, her soul did not disperse, and a bit of her spirit was attached to the altar lamp in front of her tablet.

Ten long years, boundless darkness, bone-chilling loneliness.

She watched him get what he wanted, to conquer the world. She saw his imperial reign and political and military achievements. And also saw his three palaces and six courtyards filled with numerous beauties.

But all this had nothing to do with her. She was already at peace with herself.

She was stubborn and refused to leave, her sole purpose was to see her Xi’er grow up with her own eyes. When that happens, she she will leave in peace.

However, in the end, what she waited for was such a heartbreaking scene.

The pain of the fingertips being burned by fire, how can it be compared to the pain of watching Xie’er die by slashing his neck in front of her?

Her heart was twisted together. For a moment, she felt like she couldn’t breathe.

She stood up suddenly, raised her hand, and pushed open the window.

The biting cold wind blows on her face.

She stood in front of the window, closed her eyes, tilted her face towards the dark night sky and took a deep breath of the cold air.

The past that she deliberately did not want to think about anymore seemed to burst open with the pain from her fingertips.

One after another, like dense needles, deeply pierced into her internal organs.

…

The first time Mu Fulan met Xie Changgeng began in the spring of her thirteenth year on a trip to Junshan.

After the death of her mother a few years ago, her father’s health deteriorated. As a young girl, she was often worried.

That day, she came to Junshan by boat to ask her master about her father’s illness, and ask some questions about herbal medicine.

When she arrived at the master’s medicine house, she was informed by A’da that master was had a visitor.

According to A’da, the visitor was a young man. It seems that the master was in danger when he was traveling and was rescued by him.

Her own matter was not extremely urgent and the guest is a young man.

A thirteen-year-old girl, who was just beginning to understand human affairs. She told A’da that there is no need to report, she will come back tomorrow.

She went down the mountain and stopped when she passed by the legendary old cypress.

It was very windy that day. A baby bird, blown out of its nest by the wind, fell on a clump of old vines growing on the cliff.

Junshan is opened on the 15th of every month and people are allowed to climb the mountain to worship Emperor Junshan. Because the tombs of the ancestors of the Mu family were built here, people are normally not allowed to climb the mountains on the island.

When she went up the mountain, the guards were waiting at the foot of the mountain and at this moment, there were only a few maids with her.

Mu Fulan wanted to save the bird. But the vines were too far from the head of the cliff, more than ten feet deep and even an adult maid can not reach.

The baby bird is still very small, with a pointed yellow beak, a fluffy body, the feathers of both wings have not yet fully grown. It was lying on the vine, constantly fluttering its weak wings, as if trying hard to fly. But each time the wings were raised, it just moved further and further out. It looked like it was going to fall off the edge of the cliff with just one more gust of wind.

The old bird hovered anxiously on the edge of the cliff, making bursts of sharp chirping sounds.

Mu Fulan hurriedly sent someone down the mountain to call the guards. Before the guards came up, the bird had already rolled to the edge of the vine because of the futile struggle and was about to fall down.

Mu Fulan was extremely anxious, when suddenly there was a sound of footsteps behind her.

She turned her head and saw a strange young man coming down the mountain path.

The man was about the same age as her brother, eighteen or nineteen years old, slightly thin, dressed in a green shirt.

He didn’t seem to notice the anxious girls under the old cypress and passed by the side along the stone steps.

Mu Fulan watched and just as he passed by, she suddenly came back to her senses, and called out, “Hey! Stop!”

The man stopped, turned his face slowly, and looked at her.

“A bird fell! Think of a way to get it up, okay?”

She begged him.

The man paused for a moment, but came over, walked to the edge of the almost vertical cliff, leaned over and stretched out his hand to grab a thick old vine, pulled it hard. He rolled up the corner of his robe,  tightened it, then bent over and pulled out a sharp-edged snow-white dagger from his boot.

He used the dagger to pierce the crevices in the stone wall, stepped on the vines attached to the cliff wall with both feet, climbed down, and quickly approached the chick and brought it up.

The old bird flew up and circled the treetop nest, chirping.

He looked up, climbed up the tree and put the chick back in the nest, then jumped down from the top of the tree, landing firmly on both feet.

When he went down just now, Mu Fulan had been holding her breath while she watched, extremely nervous. Seeing that he successfully brought the bird up and put it back in the nest, she breathed a sigh of relief, lifted her skirt and ran towards him.

He is very tall. She had just turned thirteen, though she was slender and graceful, with the appearance of a little beauty, but standing in front of him, her head barely reached his chest.

She struggled to tilt her head in order to look into his eyes.

She looked up at him with a delicate flower-like face, her eyes bright and incomparable, and thanked him joyfully.

He seemed to be stunned while he looked at her, perhaps infected by her joy that she felt from the bottom of her heart, a faint smile appeared on his lips.

He nodded to her, inserted the dagger back into his boot, put down his robe, and turned to leave.

From the time he was called to the time he left, from beginning to end, he did not say a word.

The moment when he smiled at her, in an instant, the world seemed quiet. The wind that drifted down the mountain steps that he had left also drifted over the girl’s heart for a long time.

A few days later, Mu Fulan received some news.

Someone came to the door to ask for her hand in marriage, and her father accepted.

Mu mama ordered the maids not to mention anything about in front of her. Sister-in-law comforted her, saying that she had seen the suitor with her own eyes. Although his background cannot match her status as a princess, he is still a handsome young man, who is very capable.

After returning, her father looked at her with apologetic eyes and told her that he was not a good father and had wronged her.

Mu Fulan smiled and said her marriage should be decided by her father. What’s more, she is the princess of Changsha, and it is her duty to marry for Changsha.

Her father was relieved and assured her again and again that the reason why he agreed to the marriage proposal was not only because of the overall situation, but also because he liked the man and believed that his daughter would not suffer hardship with him.

Mu Fulan thanked her father.

The old Changsha wang did not know that on this night, his daughter secretly shed tears.

Her tears fell for the man that had quietly entered her heart a few days ago.

She was full of thoughts and sleepless all night. She could not imagine it, but on the second day, things suddenly changed.

The king held a banquet for her future husband.

In order to reassure her, sister-in-law took her to the side of the banquet hall.

From behind the tent, she saw her future husband.

He was sitting beside her father, looking at ease, laughing and talking.

The first moment she saw him, the world was filled with birdsong and flowers, and the flowers on her heart were unrestrained and blooming.

Her future husband is the same man in green shirt that she met by the old cypress on Junshan Mountain.

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The night breeze rushed in from the open window, blowing her clothes wildly. As the candles behind her flickered, her shadow also swayed.

The sound of Mama Mu’s cough suddenly came from outside. It was accompanied by a faint voice, it seemed that someone was coming this way.

Mu Fulan suddenly opened her eyes, closed the window, and turned around.

…

At least a hundred people came to this evening banquet hosted by Changsha, but the atmosphere could be described as cold.

After Mu Xuanqing was seated, he didnot speak much, and he didn’t look in his direction, his expression was cold.

Among the officials in Changsha, except for the prime minister Lu Lin, who was always smiling, the others did not dare to offend their king. Naturally, they also did not dare to offend him. So most of the time, they just eat and drink, and laughed when needed.

This evening banquet was probably the most unusual banquet Xie Changgeng had ever experienced in his life. What big wind and big waves has he not experienced, how can he Mu Xuanqing’s cold treatment to heart.

This young Changsha wang was not only completely incomparable to the old king, but in Xie Changgeng’s eyes, he was nothing but a son of a prince.

Although they came from the same blood, he did not have his father’s ability.

To be honest, he did not expect that Mu’s daughter did not wait for his return and left without a word, nor did he expect that his trip to Changsha would be so unhappy.

Even meeting his new wife is difficult.

Mu shi used the taking of a concubine as an excuse to terminate the marriage and cut off their relationship.

This is certainly the reason, but if you think about it, it may not really be the case.

His position today is far from what it was three years ago. Today’s Changsha has little value for him.

If nothing else, for the purpose of his proposal at the beginning, he is not unable to accept such a situation.

In the future, if there is a change in Changsha, he will do his best to help. In this way, it would not be a disappointment to the old Changsha wang who agreed to marry his daughter to him and to promote him.

However, everyone knows his relationship with Changsha, including Empress Liu and the Liu family behind her.

If the news of the marriage change comes out, it will undoubtedly lead to all kinds of speculation and suspicion, and even break this balance.

This will be a lot of trouble for him.

So after thinking about it, he still decided to maintain the marriage, resolve the matter as soon as possible and take Mu shi back.

Xie Changgeng arrived at the door of the princess of Changsha, his wife who he had not seen since the wedding. 

Mu mama vaguely guessed what the princess was doing.

She could not believe that just because the Xie family had shown their intention to take a concubine, the princess would be so determined to this point.

She was even more worried that the princess would hurt herself.

If necessary, she will not have the slightest hesitation to sacrifice her life for the princess.

But from the morning she left Xie family, the princess seemed to no longer need her protection.

She knew that she was powerless to protect herself.

Mu mama met the glance that the man cast towards her and there was a burst of sadness mixed with unease in her heart.

She calmed down, and loudly said, “The princess’ husband has arrived” and took a few steps back.

Xie Changgeng raised his hand, pushed open the door in front of him, crossed the threshold and walked in.

The house was warm and lit by lamps. In the corners of the outer room, there were a few incense sticks on the left and right, the incense burner on the left, smoked faintly, and the jade bottle on the right offered a plum.

The incense and the fragrance of plum blossoms were intertwined and refreshing.

Xie Changgeng stopped at the door and stood there for a moment, not hearing anything.

He raised his eyes and looked through the door separating the inside and outside.

There was a half-hanging incense-coloured veil, covering the inner room.

There was still no one in sight, only a candlelight swayed faintly across the veil, as if to guide him inward.

Xie Changgeng took a step and walked to the veil, stretched out his hand to lift it and was about to go in when his steps gave a slight pause and stopped.

This is a women’s boudoir that is extremely exquisitely furnished.

In the direction of the bed, there is a beauty couch with a silver lamp beside it and a snow-white felt on it.

A woman with a face like jade, her white wrists like frost, holding a book in her hand, sitting half-sitting, half-leaning on the beauty couch, holding a silver lamp, leisurely turning over the book in her hand.

She looked like a girl of fifteen or sixteen, but she was dressed as a young woman. A Qingluo shawl was loosely placed on his shoulders, a pomegranate skirt was tied around his waist, and her long hair was tied in a lazy bun. The golden hairpin seemed too heavy, so the full head of hair is piled up on the side of the jade neck.

She did not seem to notice Xie Changgeng’s arrival. Even when he lifted the curtain and stood beside the door, there was no response.

She just turned a page of the book in her hand. The two bracelets worn on the jade wrist gently collided with her movement of her turning the page, making a slight but pleasant sound of collision.

Xie Changgeng did not expect that he would be greeted by such a scene.

He did not expect that Mu shi would be in such a posture.

He looked at her face, swept across her body, and finally landed on her feet.

Under the pomegranate skirt, her feet were exposed.

She was not wearing socks, a pair of small snow-white bare feet stepped on the felt without any cover. In addition to being beautiful, it also had a vague connotation.

Xie Changgeng’s eyes were a little dark as he stared at her feet for a moment. He withdrew his gaze, walked over, raised his hand, took the book out of her hand and put it aside.

“You are the Mu shi?” He asked, looking down at the beauty on the couch.

Mu Fulan still leaned there, raised her eyes and looked at him, but did not respond.

Her posture was unbelievably arrogant.

It was the same as her royal brothers.

Xie Changgeng did not get angry when he was treated coldly and scolded by Mu Xuanqing.

However, when seeing Mu shi with such an attitude to himself, a sudden burst of unhappiness surged in his heart. It was the same kind of displeasure he had when he first came home and learned that his new wife had left without telling him.

His expression, however, became more gentle.

He gazed into the woman’s beautiful eyes and slowly sat down beside her.

“Mu shi, I should not have left you on the wedding night, but you also know that the Emperor’s order is difficult and I had no choice. Last month, I finally returned home, but you have already left…”

Xie Chang Geng paused and continued in a gentle tone, “I know that my mother made you angry. As for the matter of Qi lady, you don’t have to be concerned. If you don’t want to, how can I go against your wishes and bring her in? Besides, I have no intentions to do so. You and I are husband and wife, if you have any dissatisfaction, when I return home, what can you not tell me?”

Mu Fulan smiled, but still did not answer him.

The room was silent for a while.

Xie Changgeng stretched out his hand, and his slightly calloused palm pressed on the back of one of her bare feet protruding out of her robe.

He slowly tightened his palms, held one of her snow-white feet, and squeezed it lightly.

“Lan’er…”

He called her by her nickname in a low voice.

Mu Fulan bent her knees and her bare foot, as if it were a slippery fish, drew away from his palm at once.

She pulled down her skirt and her feet were covered tightly by the skirt, and no longer revealed.

As Xie Changgeng watched her movements, his eyes became deeper and his Adam’s apple moved slightly. He withdrew his hand, raised his arm instead and slowly removed a gold hairpin from her bun.

Her long hair scattered like a waterfall.

He took hold of a handful of her smooth, slippery blue silk and pulled half of her soft body into his arms. His handsome face also leaned over, his lips were attached to her ear, and he said in a low voice, “Lan’er, don’t be angry, I’m really sorry. I came here right away as soon as I got home, just to pick you up. Come back with me tomorrow. In the future, everything can be discussed.”

Mu Fulan suddenly exerted her strength and pushed him away. She sneered and said the first sentence of the night.

“Xie Changgeng, why don’t you look in the mirror? Who do you think you are that I want to be a couple with you so much?”

Xie Changgeng was just sitting on the edge of the couch, and when he was not prepared, he was pushed off the beauty couch by her palms. He looked rather embarrassed.

He slowly raised his head and saw her turn her face, her eyes looking at him.

A jade face that effortlessly confuses all living things.

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