Chapter 7.3

Zhao Sui: “No need, keep it for yourself. I prefer staying inside the palace and don’t like going out. If you get bored, you can visit the shops in the capital. If you run out of silver, just go to the treasury, no need to ask me for permission.”

He wouldn’t force himself to spend time with her against his will, nor would he keep her confined in the palace. Allowing her to enjoy luxury was a way of compensating her.

Yao Huang was surprised and sat up: “But that’s a thousand taels of silver, all for me! How long would it take to spend all of that?”

Zhao Sui: “A top-quality gemstone is worth several hundred taels. If you find something you like, a thousand taels would be enough for you to buy two pieces of jewelry with gemstones.”

Yao Huang: “…I wouldn’t want to spend it all. The pearl flowers and jewelry from my betrothal are enough for me.”

Zhao Sui: “Just a few sets. You’ll wear them this year, but if you wear them next year, people will laugh. And if I’m not mistaken, there were no gemstone jewelry in your betrothal gifts.”

Yao Huang murmured, “My pearl and jade crown and the Four Phoenix Crown are both set with various gemstones. Together, they probably have about forty or fifty stones.”

Zhao Sui: “…The two crowns are for formal ceremonies in the future. They must not be damaged.”

Yao Huang immediately felt deflated. She thought the pearl and jade crown, as well as the Four Phoenix Crown, would be put away in the storage room as collections, and then she could take the gemstones off the crowns and turn them into forty or fifty pieces of jewelry.

Zhao Sui: “Not counting the revenue from the palace estates and shops, the prince receives five thousand taels of annual stipend, and the princess receives five hundred taels. That’s more than enough for you to buy two pieces of gemstone jewelry every year, so you need not worry about it.”

Hearing that, Yao Huang’s eyes immediately brightened, brighter than any pearl. She couldn’t suppress the smile that spread across her face.

Zhao Sui suddenly understood—this girl might not like him, but she certainly liked the wealth and luxury of the palace.

With her background, she could only hope to become his legitimate wife among the three princes.

“Go to sleep.”

Zhao Sui closed his eyes and spoke. If it weren’t for the trouble, he would have preferred to turn over.

Yao Huang couldn’t detect any change in his emotions and assumed he was just tired. However, she was very happy. She lay on his chest for a little while longer, then obediently settled down.

Because of his legs, Zhao Sui’s sleeping posture was very stable—he lay on his back to sleep and woke up in the same position.

Before the sky was fully light, Zhao Sui woke up.

Since being confined to the wheelchair, his daily activities were limited. The more restricted he was, the less sleep he got. Lying down any longer would not only be a mental torture, but it would also cause physical discomfort.

If he lived alone, he could do whatever he wanted. However, looking at Yao Huang’s peaceful sleeping face, Zhao Sui didn’t want to wake her up, nor did he want to suffer waiting in silence.

As he expected, having separate rooms was beneficial for both of them.

After waiting a moment, Zhao Sui lifted the blanket and propped himself up with both hands to sit up.

Yao Huang woke up and, upon seeing his seated figure, was momentarily stunned.

Zhao Sui spoke plainly: “Qing Ai should be here soon. If you don’t mind, should I call him in now?”

In front of Yao Huang, a young, well-formed face appeared in her mind. Qing Ai might be a eunuch, but he didn’t look much different from an ordinary man.

Yao Huang wasn’t used to having a man see her lying in bed, so she hurriedly sat up.

Zhao Sui said, “You can go to the washroom first. Wait until I leave before going back to sleep.”

Yao Huang asked, “Don’t I need to serve you?”

Zhao Sui: “No need.”

Yao Huang then put on her inner clothes and went to the washroom.

Once Qing Ai entered, he skillfully helped Zhao Sui change clothes, tied his hair into a neat bun, and helped him into the wheelchair before leaving to wash up in the front yard.

At this point, Yao Huang was no longer tired. She glanced at the clothes basket with Zhao Sui’s clothes that needed to be washed, put on a new inner garment for herself, and called for the maids to come in and attend to her.

Today, they would visit the palace to pay respects to Emperor Yongchang and the empress. Bailing helped Yao Huang dress in formal attire, and it wasn’t until they went to the front yard to have a meal that Yao Huang saw Prince Hui again.

Zhao Sui changed into a red ceremonial outfit. He looked well, though the familiar pallor had returned.

Once the meal was set, Qing Ai and a few maids withdrew from the room.

Yao Huang noticed that he was focused on eating, so she leisurely began to eat as well.

After they finished their meal, Zhao Sui explained the plans for the day: “We’ll go to the palace first, and when we return to the estate, I will accompany you to receive the courtesies from the servants of the manor.”

Yao Huang nodded.

Zhao Sui shook a small bell that was placed on the armrest of his wheelchair. The bell had a small mechanism that only made a sound when it was pressed and then shaken. Normally, it wouldn’t make a sound no matter how much it was jostled.

Qing Ai entered with the maids, and after the couple exchanged pleasantries, they were ready to depart.

The path from here to the main gate of the manor was smooth and flat. Outside the gate, a grand carriage, reserved for the Prince, was already waiting. The back door was open, and a sturdy wooden plank was securely set up as a slope to help him get inside.

The other eunuch, Fei Quan, was standing inside the carriage, wearing only white stockings. Qing Ai turned the wheelchair so that it faced away from the carriage door and carefully pushed the wheelchair up the slanted wooden plank. Once it reached the top, Fei Quan grabbed hold of the wheelchair. The spacious carriage had no main seat; that area was specifically designed to secure the wheelchair. After Yao Huang got into the carriage, she could only sit in the left-side seat, while the right side was occupied by a three-tiered rosewood cabinet.

Throughout the entire process, Prince Hui’s expression remained neutral, Qing Ai and Fei Quan were silent and respectful, and the guards on duty at the manor, as well as the guards who would accompany them on the journey, including Zhang Yue, all had serious and solemn faces.

Ah Ji was so startled that she held her breath and dared not look too much. Yao Huang, on the other hand, was more fascinated by the various methods of attending to the prince and took mental notes of the procedures.

Fei Quan jumped down and helped Yao Huang into the carriage.

After Yao Huang settled into her seat, she smiled at Prince Hui and then looked at the mechanism on the carriage used to secure the wheelchair.

Zhao Sui looked at her.

Yao Huang understood and pointed to a button mechanism. “When the prince wants to get off, I just press here and the wheelchair will move, right?”

Zhao Sui nodded.

Yao Huang smiled. “When the prince needs to get off later, you don’t need Fei Quan to come up. I’ll push you down myself.”

Zhao Sui replied, “It’s better to let Fei Quan do it.”

With the wheelchair and him together, she didn’t have enough strength.

Yao Huang realized he was underestimating her and decided to prove it to him later.