Chapter 97: Disturbing the Sickly Nest

When Xue Qingyin was pushed down onto the bed, she instinctively raised her hand to grab the bed curtain.

With a “smack,” the glass hook hanging above crashed to the ground.

Dazed, Xue Qingyin thought to herself that the two of them sure use a lot of things when doing this…

Last time, she broke the jade pendant from King Xuan’s waist.

This time, she had broken the glass hook again.

He Songning wasn’t wrong either.

She did have a bit of a tendency to waste things.

Just as Xue Qingyin thought this, King Xuan  forcefully grabbed the back of her neck.

He kissed her again, his posture fierce.

It seemed like he was punishing her for her lack of attention.

She pulled her thoughts together and placed her palm on his lower body.

King Xuan  stiffened for a moment.

In that instant, his gaze became even more aggressive.

Xue Qingyin was exactly the type of person who was both clumsy and loved to play.

It wasn’t clear how much time had passed, but she finally looked up at King Xuan’s face, unable to hold back any longer. She quickly pulled her hand away and scolded, “How sour. I was just trying to be helpful, but how did I end up being the one to suffer?”

She struggled to get away.

But King Xuan  held her even tighter and then changed to something else.

The unlucky Du Hongxue had been standing outside so long that his legs were almost numb.

Finally, the door opened.

But it was Xue Qingyin who walked out first.

She staggered after taking only two steps, and King Xuan  immediately reached out from behind to support her waist.

Du Hongxue, the innocent young man, glanced at Xue Qingyin but couldn’t figure anything out. He only noticed that her hair was a little messy.

King Xuan  raised his hand and fixed her hairpin again.

Du Hongxue thought to himself: “Did His Highness just play with someone’s hairpin inside?”

It was only then that King Xuan  looked at Du Hongxue and asked, “What is it?”

Du Hongxue immediately became serious and hesitated before glancing at Xue Qingyin.

King Xuan  spoke in a low voice: “Speak.”

Xue Qingyin thought to herself that she could choose not to listen, but she was too lazy to move, so she just stood there and listened with him.

Du Hongxue reported, “Urgent news from the capital… The Anxi army has caused major trouble. The Inspector of the Imperial Court, Xu Hao, who was sent to mediate, has been kidnapped.”

Xue Qingyin silently thought to herself that it sounded like a military mutiny somewhere.

But that shouldn’t be happening; after all, this was a time of peace and prosperity. How could such a disaster occur?

She glanced at King Xuan’s expression, but his face remained unchanged, as if he wasn’t surprised at all.

Du Hongxue couldn’t help but say, “If His Highness had handled this from the beginning, it wouldn’t have escalated to this point. But His Majesty handed it off to someone else to handle. The civil and military officials don’t get along, and now Xu Hao has gone. Isn’t that just adding fuel to the fire?”

King Xuan  replied casually, “A blessing in disguise? This matter need not be worried about.”

Du Hongxue responded quietly, “Yes. Then, Your Highness…?”

King Xuan  said, “You don’t need to wait for me when entering the palace today.”

Du Hongxue saluted and stepped aside to make way for them.

From this short exchange, Xue Qingyin couldn’t help but feel that King Xuan  must be a man of some skill, not just a “barbarian” who could only fight battles.

But why did such a person choose to walk toward death in the original story?

Was it because he discovered he wasn’t the Emperor’s biological son? But that shouldn’t be the case. In the original story, he had actually begun to vie for power with He Songning after learning about his true heritage.

Why, with a desire for conflict, did she still rush headlong into death without looking back?

Xue Qingyin couldn’t figure it out, so she decided to simply stop thinking about it.

…

King Xuan called for a palace maid to redo Xue Qingyin’s hair, and then they both headed toward the palace.

The Eastern Palace was located to the east of the Taiji Palace. The path leading to it felt increasingly desolate and lonely.

Xue Qingyin subconsciously pressed closer to King Xuan and softly asked, “Why is it so quiet?”

King Xuan explained, “The Crown Prince is recuperating and prefers peace and quiet.”

Recuperating, huh.

Xue Qingyin thought to herself that this explained why this person was barely mentioned in the original story.

As they were almost at the Eastern Palace, King Xuan’s voice came softly. “The Crown Prince’s mother is my aunt.”

Xue Qingyin instantly understood.

So, the emperor had married both sisters?

“My biological mother passed away when I was very young. Afterward, I was raised by my aunt, the late empress. She too passed away not long after, and I stayed in the Empress Dowager’s palace for another two years,” King Xuan said in a calm tone, recounting his past.

Xue Qingyin opened her mouth but didn’t know what to say.

She was most familiar with the feeling of not being loved by a mother.

Only after arriving in this dynasty did she have someone like Madam Xue as a mother.

Quietly, she curled her finger around King Xuan’s hand.

King Xuan paused briefly, then grasped her hand more tightly.

“The late Empress had only two children in her lifetime. The first died before reaching two years old, and the second is the current Crown Prince.”

Xue Qingyin thought to herself that this Crown Prince was the only heir the late Empress left behind. This naturally held significant meaning!

“The late Empress was a deeply thoughtful person, not suited for the position of empress. Ten years passed, and it drained her completely. She could no longer get out of bed when she was severely ill. Even so, she still treated me as her own child, taking care of everything personally.”

Upon hearing this, Xue Qingyin couldn’t help but imagine a frail but determined woman in her mind.

So, the care she received was greater than that of a biological mother. She thought.

“At that time, the Crown Prince was four years older than me, and the late Empress treated me even better than her own child.”

At this point, Xue Qingyin suddenly felt something was off.

She couldn’t help but whisper, “Did the Crown Prince… feel like his mother was biased?”

Would he feel jealous of you?

However, she swallowed the rest of her sentence when she realized they had arrived at the Eastern Palace.

For some reason, Xue Qingyin felt uneasy.

She had an odd feeling that the family bonds in the palace were strange and twisted.

According to King Xuan’s description, though his biological mother had died early, his aunt had treated him well. Yet, this kind of affection inexplicably made Xue Qingyin feel a sense of oppression.

Perhaps it was just her misconception?

“Your Highness, King Xuan.” The palace attendants bowed from a distance upon seeing them.

King Xuan didn’t mention his past anymore; he simply kept holding Xue Qingyin’s hand.

The palace attendants took a moment to look at them, then lowered their eyes and led them inside.

People here followed strict etiquette, speaking in hushed tones, and even the sounds of footsteps were nearly nonexistent.

It was so quiet that it felt unnatural.

Xue Qingyin could no longer tolerate it and took the initiative to ask King Xuan, “Has the Crown Prince married?”

The reply came from a palace maid standing by.

The palace maid replied formally, “The Crown Prince’s wife is unwell and is not suited to meet visitors.”

So, he is married then.

It sounds like the Crown Prince’s wife is also in poor health.

Xue Qingyin calculated mentally and found it rather amusing.

The Princess of Wei had just recovered from a serious illness before her wedding, and now the Crown Prince’s wife was also unwell. She wasn’t much better off herself.

Had they all gathered in a nest of the sickly?

“Your Highness, the Crown Prince, King Xuan has come to visit you,” the maid said, halting in front of a heavy palace door and speaking in a low voice.

King Xuan suddenly spoke up and corrected her, “And my wife.”

Huh?

Xue Qingyin turned to look at him in surprise.

Is it okay to say that?

The maid also looked startled, but clearly, she dared not defy King Xuan. After a brief hesitation, she finally changed her words, “Your Highness, the Crown Prince, King Xuan, and his new wife have come to visit you.”

The door suddenly opened from the inside.

The room was dimly lit and filled with a strong smell of medicine and the stale scent of wood.

Xue Qingyin held her breath, squinting her eyes for a moment, only vaguely seeing a figure sitting in a chair.

The figure smiled and mockingly asked, “Someone like you could even marry a wife? Looks like even Heaven has gone blind.”