Crowned Consort in Golden Age-Chapter 65. Marriage Fell Through
65. Engagement Called Off
"The future Heir of Prince Li must be of Ling Yun’s lineage. Most importantly, Princess Qixia can never hold a title equivalent to or higher than that of a Secondary Consort. She must never bear Prince Li’s children."
Upon hearing this, regardless of age or gender, everyone present was stunned. Their gaze towards Lei Tengfeng was filled with astonishment and dissatisfaction. No one could believe Lei Tengfeng would dare to propose such audacious terms. It must be noted that Prince Li had already married his primary consort before his planned wedding to Princess Ling Yun. Lei Tengfeng’s terms, however, specifically demanded that Princess Consort Li, a noble of Great Chu, could not bear Prince Li’s children before Princess Ling Yun did. Most significantly, no member of the imperial family would welcome a royal heir with Xiling blood.
"This is absolutely impossible!" Almost without a second thought, the Empress Dowager firmly rejected his terms.
Lei Tengfeng raised his eyebrows and laughed, "If that is so, there is nothing further to be said. I bid you adieu. As for today’s insult... Great Ling shall certainly remember!" After finishing, he turned, pulled Princess Ling Yun to him, and said, "Let’s go." Princess Ling Yun initially thought this marriage arrangement would continue. She was shocked by the sudden delight Brother Wang brought her. Without uttering any further words, after a glance at Mo Xiuyao and Ye Li who were seated to the side, she promptly followed Lei Tengfeng in his speedy departure.
On the day Prince Li was to wed Consort Ping, the bride’s elder cousin stormed off with the bride, tossing his sleeves in contempt.
Whether the affair between Prince Li and Princess Qixia had spread throughout Capital City, nobody knew. However, the news of Princess Ling Yun abandoning Prince Li on her wedding day spread rapidly within the entire Capital City. Lei Tengfeng took Princess Ling Yun back to the embassy. After instructing his staff to confine the beaming Princess Ling Yun to her room, he unhurriedly retreated into the embassy’s innermost depths. Kicking open a door, he entered a dimly lit room where a woman dressed in black was leisurely reclining on a couch, reading. Only when she saw him enter did she slowly sit up and smile gently, "You’re back? Did you enjoy Ling Yun’s wedding?"
"SLAP!" Lei Tengfeng glared at her for quite a while before suddenly delivering a heavy slap to the face hidden under her veil. "Wench! I’ve warned you not to act willfully." The woman in black was thrown back onto the couch by this sudden violence. When she recovered, she lifted her head to glare fiercely at the man before her and gritted her teeth, "Lei Tengfeng!"
"Wench! What exactly are you trying to do? Do you truly think I wouldn’t dare kill you?" An oppressive aura emanated from Lei Tengfeng’s gloomy eyes, accompanied by cold, heartless words. The woman in black was taken aback, but she quickly recovered and giggled, "Have you brought Ling Yun back? Heh heh... weren’t you the one who disagreed with the marriage alliance with Great Chu in the first place? Isn’t this just as you wished? What are you displeased about now?"
"You fool!" Lei Tengfeng cursed angrily. "Who do you think you are? East Chu’s Capital City is full of talented people; do you think your little tricks can fool anyone? Get up, we’re leaving Capital City immediately!"
"Leaving?" The woman in black was taken aback, hesitant. Lei Tengfeng snorted coldly, "If you don’t want to leave, that’s fine too. In a while, I’ll send someone to deliver you to Prince Ding’s Mansion. Haven’t you been pining for Mo Xiuyao? Rest assured, when we get back to Xiling, as the heir, I will ensure I give you a thorough ’explanation’!"
"No!" the woman in black screamed as she rose, desperately grabbing onto Lei Tengfeng, "I’ll go with you!" Nobody knew Mo Xiuyao better than her. If I truly ended up in his hands, I would surely vanish without a trace. Lei Tengfeng disdainfully shook her hand off and walked away. Such a woman—bold yet terrified of death, and utterly insatiable...
As expected, Prince Li’s wedding once again became a farcical spectacle. What was worse, the bride had run off before the wedding could even commence. Soon after, Prince Li, Princess Consort Li, and Grand Consort Wise Zhao were all summoned to the palace by His Majesty.
With the bride and groom missing, and their hosts gone, it was naturally rather embarrassing for the guests to remain and enjoy the feast. Hence, after having consumed liters of tea and little food, the guests began to take their leave. Shortly after, the lively Prince Li’s Mansion was once again serene, though the brightly colored decorations and drapery around the mansion seemed a touch dreary.
Because the Emperor had not summoned Prince Ding and his wife to the palace, Ye Li and Mo Xiuyao, whose participation in the wedding was abruptly interrupted, also took their leave from Prince Li’s Mansion with the other guests. However, not long after they left the mansion, they bumped into the leisurely and long-unseen Xu Qingchen. Xu Qingchen always came and went like the wind; even members of the Xu Family couldn’t necessarily meet him when they wished to. Ye Li had only seen him once since her marriage, on the day of her post-nuptial visit home, so she was somewhat surprised to encounter him now. After exchanging pleasantries, the trio proceeded to Chuxiang Pavilion for a meal.
"What is Your Highness’s view regarding today’s events?" Xu Qingchen took a sip of his exquisite wine, gently praising, "Everyone says that the excellent food and drink at Chuxiang Pavilion are unparalleled in Capital City... it is indeed well-earned."
While Ye Li was quietly eating, she listened to the two men’s conversation. After the day’s commotion, she was truly a bit hungry.
"Brother Xu indeed has extensive intelligence," Mo Xiuyao praised. Xu Qingchen directly asked for Mo Xiuyao’s opinion instead of inquiring about the events. This showed he was already well aware of what had transpired at Prince Li’s Mansion. However, Xu Qingchen seemed to ignore Mo Xiuyao’s words. He sighed softly and looked at Ye Li with a somewhat grief-stricken expression, softly saying, "Li’er, why won’t your husband agree to call me ’Elder Brother’?"
Ye Li’s food almost lodged itself in her throat. She forced herself to swallow, then lifted her eyes to look at Mo Xiuyao, then at Xu Qingchen. She couldn’t help but smile faintly. Xu Qingchen was three years younger than Mo Xiuyao; it would be surprising if Mo Xiuyao deigned to call him ’Elder Brother’. Furthermore, if Mo Xiuyao truly complied, he would also have to address Xu Qingze as ’Second Brother,’ and even Xu Qingbai as ’Fourth Brother.’ Mo Xiuyao served Ye Li a bowl of soup, watching her take a sip before turning back to Xu Qingchen and replying with a faint smile, "Brother Xu, you are merely Ah-Li’s maternal cousin."
Xu Qingchen smiled, "I wouldn’t mind if Your Highness called me ’Elder Maternal Cousin’."
A sharp glint flickered in Mo Xiuyao’s eyes, his lips curling slightly as he said, "Then Brother Xu must remember... I once had the honor of being taught by Mr. Qingyun." And you are Mr. Qingyun’s grandson; I am Mr. Qingyun’s student. "Or rather, it seems... my grandmother shares the same surname as First Madam Xu." They’re from the same family: two generations apart in age, but equals in terms of familial generation.
Of course, Ye Li understood that Xu Qingchen didn’t really mean to cause trouble for Mo Xiuyao; he was simply making light banter. She took a napkin and lightly wiped the corners of her lips, then laughed softly. "Elder Brother, since when did you start caring about titles? If His Highness were truly to call you that, wouldn’t he just be calling Capital City’s most handsome man old?"
Xu Qingchen cast a faint glance at Mo Xiuyao and Ye Li, his eyes filled with satisfaction as he noticed Mo Xiuyao’s natural act of passing soup to Ye Li. Pretending to be displeased, he cast a sideways glance at Ye Li and sighed, "Just as I thought. As soon as a woman’s married, she bends her elbow outward. I’m sure Father and Second Uncle regret the decision of agreeing to your early marriage." The only daughter of this Xu Family generation... now she belongs to another family. Ye Li’s beautiful face flushed slightly. "Big Brother, did you come just to make fun of me?"
Xu Qingchen shook his head, the amusement fading from his face, and looked seriously at Mo Xiuyao. Mo Xiuyao contemplated for a moment and asked, "Brother Xu, do you think something was wrong with today’s events?"
"Just now... Lei Tengfeng left Capital City with Princess Ling Yun," Xu Qingchen said. "He left directly without even bidding farewell to His Majesty."
Mo Xiuyao unconsciously toyed with the warm jade at his waist with his left hand and frowned, "There must be someone manipulating things behind the scenes today, but... it can’t be Lei Tengfeng. The alliance with Great Chu was agreed upon before his arrival in Great Chu; it wouldn’t have been abandoned so abruptly. Unless... something unexpected happened."
Ye Li frowned, asking, "Has Lei Tengfeng’s authority reached the point where he can take such liberties?" The marriage alliance between two countries was no trivial matter, even if both countries harbored ill intentions. But Lei Tengfeng had called off the agreement just like that. Even if Mo Jingli was at fault first, Xiling would now appear to be in the wrong. Xu Qingchen gave a soft smile. "It’s not that Lei Tengfeng has this power, but his father, the Southern Garrison Prince, does. The Emperor of Xiling has always been frail and only has a few princesses. Even though the Southern Garrison Prince does not carry the title of Regent Prince, he holds the responsibilities of one."
"So...does the alliance with Great Chu truly align with the will of the Emperor of Xiling or that of the Southern Garrison Prince?" Mo Xiuyao asked.
Xu Qingchen shook his head, admitting that Xiling and Great Chu were natural enemies. However, the Xu Family’s influence was not great enough to penetrate the Xiling imperial palace. Mo Xiuyao nodded. "I will send people to investigate."
Ye Li felt that these two men were thinking too far ahead. She raised her eyes and asked, "Who let Princess Qixia into Prince Li’s Mansion?" Even if Princess Qixia was familiar with Prince Li and regularly visited his mansion, she was still a princess. It was very strange for a servant not to inform the master about a princess visiting Prince Li on his wedding day.
Xu Qingchen and Mo Xiuyao both paused, absorbed in contemplation, then they exchanged a look. Xu Qingchen suddenly chuckled softly, sighing, "It seems we have overlooked many things. After our indulgent years abroad, it seems we are still unaccustomed to Capital City..." Mo Xiuyao furrowed his brow slightly. "Brother Xu is right. These years of closing myself off have certainly brought changes to Capital City that we didn’t expect. I will have someone look into this."
Xu Qingchen nodded, saying, "I trust you with this, Prince. It so happens that I am about to leave Capital City in a few days, so I probably can’t get involved with these things anymore."
Ye Li was taken aback. "Brother, are you leaving Capital City? Going back to Yunzhou?"
Xu Qingchen shook his head and laughed. "No, I plan to go to Nanzhao."
"Nanzhao?" Ye Li was confused. "I remember Fifth Brother mentioned that you just went to Nanzhao a couple of years ago."
Mo Xiuyao, holding his wine glass, frowned and said, "Do you think something will happen in Nanzhao?"
Xu Qingchen sighed, looking at Mo Xiuyao and saying, "I refuse to believe you haven’t noticed that at present, anything could happen anywhere. Once the Ding Kingdom falls completely, various forces that have been suppressed by it for the past century will seize the opportunity. They will rise to take Great Chu. Whether it’s Nanzhao, Xiling, Beirong, or even the overseas Island Country, who wouldn’t drool over the most beautiful and rich land of Great Chu? Yet, those in power only saw the harm posed by the Ding Kingdom. On one hand, they tried every means to suppress it. On the other, they feared that cultivating new military talents would create another Ding Kingdom. Had they never thought about what would happen to Great Chu when they lost the Ding Kingdom and had no qualified talents to replace them? Or did the one sitting high on the Dragon Throne think he could force his way on the battlefield with his trickery?"
"Brother, do you think... Nanzhao will make the first move?" Ye Li asked. Though the people of Nanzhao were fierce and robust, they were not as capable in warfare as those from Beirong or Xiling. Besides, after Mo Xiuyao’s sweep through the Southern Border, Nanzhao might not even be able to battle Great Chu anymore.
Xu Qingchen replied, "Originally, they shouldn’t have, but now... I’m afraid *he* might make the first move against Nanzhao."
"Eh?" Ye Li raised her eyebrows and turned to look at Mo Xiuyao. She saw agreement in his calm eyes. "Has he... gone crazy?" There were already ongoing disputes with Beirong and Xiling; provoking a war with Nanzhao would mean inviting a joint attack from three countries. By then, Great Chu would have no prominent generals. Even if Mo Lanyun and Mo Liufang were reborn, it might be too late for Great Chu.
Xu Qingchen sighed. "Our late Emperor assumed the throne at a young age, but he was indeed carefully guided by the Regent Prince. However... whoever taught our current Emperor seems to have only prepared him for power struggles." When the late Emperor died, he was only forty years old. He had probably intended to live for another two or three decades. Thus, he never thought of cultivating an heir so early, which would only cause him trouble. Who would have known that he would suddenly pass away?
Though the Empress Dowager was regarded as a strong woman of her generation, she was ultimately just a woman from the imperial harem. The only thing she could really teach an emperor was how to scheme and struggle for power. It is this very skill that enabled Mo Jingqi to firmly secure the throne after the late Emperor’s death. But scheming and plotting might be useful to seize a throne, not to rule a land. Mo Jingqi aspired to be known as a wise Emperor. However, he knew very well that his ability to rule was perhaps even less than that of his own father. Therefore, he highly esteemed his own imperial position. Any person who posed a potential threat to his throne was ruthlessly eliminated.
Ye Li frowned and said, "But, Brother, there’s nothing you can do when you go there. What will you do if you encounter danger?"
Looking at the two fretful men in front of her, Ye Li couldn’t help but sigh. This was the way of the world. Some people exhausted their minds for the country and its people, while others schemed and plotted in the dark. Some people suffered greatly in their awareness, while others reveled in ignorant bliss.
Xu Qingchen smiled and said, "I have some acquaintance with the Eldest Princess of Nanzhao; I’m just going to pay her a visit."
The Eldest Princess? Ye Li marveled at Xu Qingchen’s wide social circle.
Mo Xiuyao raised his cup toward him and said, "Thank you."
Xu Qingchen also raised his cup in response, speaking indifferently, "You don’t have to. This is my father’s intention, not for the King of Ding Kingdom’s Mansion." The Xu Family would not betray Great Chu, but neither were they saviors with the power to turn the tide. They could only do what they were capable of.
After Xu Qingchen left, Ye Li understood that he had specifically come to bid them farewell. Even Mo Xiuyao had once praised her great uncle as one of the smartest people in the world. Probably, when the news of Princess Ling Yun’s failed marriage alliance was released, her great uncle had already foreseen the future direction of Great Chu. And, before anyone else, even the Emperor, had reacted, he had wisely sent Big Brother to the Southern Border. "If something happens to Great Chu in the future, the Xu Family can’t escape either, can they?"
Mo Xiuyao looked at her with a gentle gaze, speaking softly, "If you’re talking about living in seclusion, it’s probably not possible." Given the Xu Family’s character, they wouldn’t be loyal to the emperor, but they would undoubtedly die for Great Chu. "Ah-Li, do you know why the Xu Family, despite being officials of the previous dynasty, has still enjoyed a high reputation in Great Chu for a hundred years without decline?"
Ye Li raised an eyebrow, and Mo Xiuyao continued, "At the end of the previous dynasty, there was great chaos. In fact...the last emperor of the previous dynasty was neither a tyrant nor a foolish emperor. He had almost no flaws. He just wasn’t suited to being an emperor. The ancestors of the Xu Family supported the last emperor during the crisis. Although they were a scholarly family, at least seven members of the Xu Family died on the battlefield. Until the end, when our ancestor, Mo Lanyun, led soldiers to besiege Capital City. The then head of the Xu Family, despite his feeble body, personally led the defense. After seven days and nights of continuous fighting, the army failed to break the city. The eldest son of the Great Ancestor Emperor, anxious for military merit, rashly advanced and died amidst the chaos. The Great Ancestor Emperor was furious and ordered his soldiers to arrest and execute the civilians of Capital City every day. As long as the last emperor did not surrender, he would execute five thousand civilians daily. The day the city fell, every person in the city would be slaughtered. The next day, the head of the Xu Family personally killed the last emperor and surrendered. His only condition was that the civilians of Capital City and its vicinity should not be harmed any further. The day the Army of Great Chu entered the city, the head of the Xu family left a letter to our ancestor. He then committed suicide. On that same day, Lady Xu led seventy-three members of the Xu Family to commit suicide in loyalty to their country. They left behind only the thirteen-year-old son of the Xu Family, who was in Yunzhou at the time. This son later became the young Prime Minister of Great Chu, Xu Yanli."
Ye Li was astonished by this previously unknown secret, and a great grief suffused her heart. She regretted her previous offhand remarks about her great uncle. She might not understand what constituted scholars’ pride, but as a soldier, she profoundly understood a soldier’s steadfastness and loyalty. She could not bear to imagine her great uncle’s disappointment and grief at hearing her words. Those words were a blasphemy and the greatest insult to the ancestors of the Xu Family and the seventy-three who had committed suicide for their country.
"So... why did..." Ye Li asked, lowering her gaze.
Mo Xiuyao answered, "Are you wondering why it isn’t the same as recorded in the history books? There’s not much difference. Xu Yanli indeed assisted the emperor of Great Chu earnestly; he even educated the third emperor of Great Chu himself. After the founding of the dynasty, the Great Ancestor Emperor granted titles and enviable ranks to all those who had died in the Xu family." Seeing Ye Li’s surprised look, Mo Xiuyao smiled calmly. "The Great Ancestor Emperor needed a benevolent reputation to stabilize the world after so much warfare."
"What did the ancestor of the Xu family write in the letter to King Ding?" Ye Li asked somewhat hesitantly. Of course, things were not as simple as Mo Xiuyao narrated. The Great Ancestor Emperor certainly would not have comfortably employed a prime minister from a family that had exhibited such loyalty to the previous dynasty. Mo Xiuyao shook his head with a smile. "That is no longer known. Our ancestor seems to have given the letter to the Great Ancestor Emperor in the end. And that letter apparently saved Xu Yanli’s life. Later on...somehow the news of the Xu family sacrificing their lives for the people of Capital City was leaked. Combined with the Xu family’s long-established reputation, it led to an unparalleled renown at the time. Although the history books of the Great Ancestor Emperor’s era have blurred many matters, many things have taken root in the people’s hearts." Many things are gradually forgotten over time, but many people have inherited certain sentiments from the previous generation, such as respect for the Xu Family.
Ye Li finally understood to some extent why, generation after generation, the Xu Family had refused to intermarry with the imperial family. Even if they were no longer resentful, the fact remained that the Xu Family had once been nearly exterminated due to the royal family of Great Chu. This might also explain why, even though the Xu Family always seemed indifferent to fame and power, the royal family never abandoned their attempts to subjugate them. Perhaps what Mo Lanyun did back then was not as simple as Mo Xiuyao lightly put it.
With a slight frown, Ye Li rubbed her eyebrows. Almost in despair, she asked, "Will there definitely be a war?"
"Sooner or later," Mo Xiuyao sighed softly. "Great Chu has been suppressing the other kingdoms for too long. Nearly everyone is eagerly waiting for Great Chu’s downfall. And we... we seem to have become accustomed to the feeling of being the strongest." Even I might have thought so if it hadn’t been for the defeat seven years ago. But it wasn’t until he left the battlefield with his ravaged body, carrying his brother’s ashes and the Mo Family Army, which had lost most of its elite soldiers, that he realized how ridiculous his past arrogance had been. Whether it was Xiling or Beirong, they might not be as good as Great Chu, but they were not necessarily much worse. The once-sweeping Mo Family Army and the Black Cloud Cavalry proved this point with the bodies of hundreds of thousands of their soldiers.
"Ah-Li... it was the King of Ding Kingdom’s Mansion that ruined Great Chu..." After a long while, Mo Xiuyao finally murmured. If the King of Ding Kingdom’s Mansion had not appeared so strong, perhaps Great Chu would have had more outstanding generals and elite soldiers. If the Mo Family Army hadn’t suppressed the border for hundreds of years, perhaps Great Chu could have gone even further in times of crisis.
Ye Li fell silent; she didn’t know who was right and who was wrong. How many people throughout history could claim to have loyally defended Great Chu for hundreds of years as the King of Ding Kingdom’s Mansion had done? Were they wrong? Certainly not. Then were the people they protected wrong? No, they knew nothing. After a while, Ye Li quietly said, "You’re not wrong. It’s human nature that is wrong." Not every generation of emperors has the magnanimity and courage to make room for all. Nor does every generation of emperors have the ability and grandeur to unite all under one house. When an emperor starts seeing his ministers as threats instead of trusted aides, their accomplishments and merits appear more as challenges and threats in his eyes.
After listening to Ye Li’s words, Mo Xiuyao stared at her in a daze for a long while, then smiled faintly. "Sorry Ah-Li, did I scare you with all this talk?"
Ye Li glanced at him calmly. Was she really that easily scared? Mo Xiuyao shook his head. "Speculating about these things now won’t help anything. Ah-Li, why don’t you try guessing how the situation in Prince Li’s Mansion will be resolved?"
Ye Li shrugged indifferently and said, "How else can it be resolved? His Majesty, furious, executes Princess Qixia and degrades Prince Li? Or, His Majesty is persuaded by the elder princes, confines Princess Qixia, and gives Prince Ding a minor punishment. If not that... Princess Qixia changes her status and marries Prince Li." Ye Li always felt that the Empress Dowager, as a mother, had accepted what Princess Qixia did far too quickly. Her eldest son’s future wife had an affair with his younger brother. Yet, the Empress Dowager merely chastised them lightly and then began planning to marry the woman to her younger son. It was as if she hadn’t considered the Emperor’s possible reaction at all. If she were an average mother of this era, she would probably first kill the woman who could cause strife between her sons. Only then would she discuss anything else.
"Which one do you think is more likely, Ah-Li?" Mo Xiuyao asked.
Ye Li thought for a moment. "The third." She frowned. Then, in today’s events, who was schemed against, and who was doing the scheming? It seems... I need to reassess Mo Jingli’s intelligence, or perhaps the intelligence of the people behind him.
"Ah-Li, keep your distance from Mo Jingli in the future," Mo Xiuyao advised. Ye Li nodded absent-mindedly, still contemplating the previous question. "What use is Princess Nanzhao to Mo Jingli?"
Mo Xiuyao seemed a bit surprised, glanced at Ye Li, and replied with a faint smile, "She is the younger sister of the Eldest Princess of Nanzhao, much more useful than Princess Ling Yun."
Ye Li’s brows furrowed even more tightly. "If Mo Jingli really has that kind of mind, am I that much worse than Ye Ying?"
Mo Xiuyao appeared to take even more delight in his laughter. "Believe me, if Mo Jingli really had such a brain, he would rather marry Princess Ling Yun than choose you."
Ye Li’s face darkened. Have I been scorned this much?
"However... their perfect plans might be thwarted. Mo Jingqi... doesn’t really play by the rules." Though this emperor was not as brilliant and strategically minded as he fancied himself, he occasionally made surprisingly unorthodox moves that ordinary people could hardly tolerate.
Thus, by the time they returned to the mansion, news had already spread from the palace—Princess Qixia had succumbed to illness. Of course, this news would only reach the public after a few days. After all, even if the nobles knew well what was truly afoot, they had to find a way to deceive the common people. The incident at Prince Li’s Mansion had happened today, and Princess Qixia had died on the same day. Anybody not completely stupid could connect the two incidents and imagine the rest. As for Prince Li’s marriage and Princess Ling Yun? Since the palace made no comment, everyone was happy to pretend that this had never happened, that the Emperor had not decreed a marriage, and that they certainly hadn’t sent any gifts to Prince Li’s Mansion. Anyway, they wouldn’t need to send gifts when Prince Li eventually married Princess Qixia; they could just consider them sent in advance.
Inside the imperial palace, within an elegantly decorated, somewhat desolate hall, Mo Jingqi was venting his rage. The palace attendants had long since fled in fear, and those who couldn’t escape cowered trembling in a corner. Various valuable antiques and paintings lay shattered and torn all over the floor; tables, chairs, and display shelves were all kicked askew. Noble Consort Liu sat coldly on a carved wooden seat, watching with indifference the man rampaging before her. A seven- or eight-year-old girl, resplendent in beautiful attire, was clutched in her arms, her wide eyes filled with terror. She seemed so scared that not even a cry escaped her lips.
Noble Consort Liu raised a hand to cover the girl’s eyes and turned to look at the frenzied man in the hall. "Are you through with your tantrum, Your Majesty?"
Mo Jingqi paused, slowly stopping. He turned to look at Noble Consort Liu’s icy face, a flash of resentment in his gloomy eyes.
"Someone. Take the princess away," Noble Consort Liu ordered. The palace attendants cowering in the corner, as if granted amnesty, quickly scrambled to their feet, took the terrified girl from Noble Consort Liu’s arms, and hurried away, trembling.
"My dear consort, don’t you have anything to say?" Mo Jingqi’s voice lacked the warmth and magnanimity he usually displayed in court; instead, it was filled with coldness and bitterness.
Noble Consort Liu looked up at him. "What does Your Majesty want this consort to say?"
"You’re mocking me silently, aren’t you?" Mo Jingqi clenched Noble Consort Liu’s delicate chin and whispered in her ear. His cold breath was like a snake hissing. "I know you are. You’re no different from the rest! No... you look down on me even more, don’t you? Seeing everyone going against me, you’re secretly delighted, right?"
"If Your Majesty says so, then it is so," replied Noble Consort Liu indifferently.
"SLAP!" Mo Jingqi struck Noble Consort Liu’s jade-like face, instantly raising red welts. Noble Consort Liu lifted her head, her gaze calm as she met his. Mo Jingqi faltered. "Shang’er..." he murmured. Staring blankly at the red mark on Noble Consort Liu’s face, Mo Jingqi reached out a hand in pity, wanting to touch it. "Shang’er... it’s my fault, I shouldn’t have hit you... Does it hurt? Why don’t you listen to me? Why are you always opposing me?! Why do you always meddle, why do you threaten me? I hate being threatened!" The more Mo Jingqi spoke, the more agitated he became, quickly forgetting his earlier remorse. He gripped Noble Consort Liu’s shoulders and shook her violently.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! You’re wronging Her Ladyship!" A young palace maid suddenly hurried out from an adjacent hall, pleading urgently with Mo Jingqi, "Your Majesty, I beg you to let Her Ladyship go... It really wasn’t her fault..."
Seeing that Mo Jingqi completely ignored her words, the young maid glanced around and spotted an antique vase that had miraculously escaped being shattered. Biting her lip, she went over, picked up the vase, and tried to smash it on Mo Jingqi’s back. Noble Consort Liu’s expression changed; she quickly raised her hand, plucked a pearl hairpin from her hair, and threw it at the young maid.
CRACK! The vase shattered on the ground with a crisp sound.
The previously frenzied Mo Jingqi suddenly froze, as if startled awake. The young maid also turned pale with fright and slumped to her knees. When she had picked up the vase, her mind had gone blank; she hadn’t had time to think. Now, having calmed down, she realized what the consequences would have been if she had actually struck him.
Mo Jingqi appeared to have calmed down considerably. He glanced at the young maid kneeling a short distance behind him, slowly released Noble Consort Liu, and stood up.
As soon as he stood, Noble Consort Liu sat down again. Her face was still serene and cold, as if nothing that had just occurred had happened at all. Mo Jingqi said to Noble Consort Liu, "Shang’er, you rest. I will have someone come and replace everything for you in a while." He only glanced at her once, then quickly turned, kicked aside the young maid kneeling before him, and stormed out.
Noble Consort Liu stared at his rapidly retreating figure, a trace of hatred and scorn flashing briefly in her cool eyes.
