Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 260 A Journey Home Filled with Regret

As night fell, the temperature in the mountains plummeted.

Xue Yuechen woke up half an hour later and immediately looked at her son.

After hesitating for a long time, Jade handed the swaddled baby to the bedside.

"Your Highness is a pretty young princess..."

The wrinkled baby in the swaddling clothes had a faint bluish-purple tinge to its skin, and its cries were barely audible...

"No, impossible!" Xue Yuechen struggled to sit up, shook her head, and frantically rushed to the bedside, tearing open the swaddling clothes.

Upon seeing the baby's features clearly, she screamed in terror.

"No, you're wrong... You've got it wrong... I gave birth to the heir apparent, the prince's eldest son..."

She raised her bloodshot eyes and gripped Emerald's arm tightly with both hands.

"The three officials from the Imperial Astronomical Bureau all said that this child is a Qilin born. He will be extremely wealthy and noble, and will enjoy the highest honors..."

Emerald lowered her eyes, not daring to look directly into her gaze.

"Your Highness, you have just given birth and your body is still weak. You should take good care of yourself and not harm your health..."

Xue Yuechen slumped back down, clutching the blankets, letting out a sob like a trapped beast.

"My son, my son, where have you gone..."

Hearing her cries, Li Huan pushed open the door and entered, his face somber and silent.

Xue Yuechen suddenly looked at him, her eyes filled with madness and stubbornness.

"Your Highness, I have given birth to the eldest son of the legitimate wife, the eldest son of Your Highness..."

Seeing that Li Huan remained silent, she stared intently at the Buddha image on the wall, tears streaming down her face.

“I offer sacrifices day and night and chant scriptures every night, how could I not bear a son… They must have made a mistake. Your Highness, please help me find our son!”

Li Huan approached her silently and gently stroked the swaddling clothes.

"The girl is very nice too."

“They’re different!” Xue Yuechen knew all too well the differences and disparities in status between her children. She gripped Li Huan’s sleeve tightly, looked up at him, and tears streamed down her face.

"How can our daughter bring glory to our family, produce offspring for the prince, and continue the family line?"

The baby was clearly frightened by her, and its crying intensified.

Her little face was flushed red. Following her mother's scent, she cried and her mouth moved, as if seeking her mother's comfort...

Xue Sui couldn't bear to listen any longer, so she lifted the curtain and came in, patted the child who was crying her heart out, and handed her to Xue Yuechen.

"Your Highness, the child is hungry."

What's with this talk about having a son or a daughter?

At this time, the most important thing for a mother to do is breastfeed...

Xue Yuechen, however, paid no heed, lost in the pain of losing her child, her eyes vacant.

“This is not my child. I gave birth to a son, Sixth Sister. You delivered him yourself, so you must have seen my son, right...? Tell me quickly, where is my son…”

Seeing this, Xue Sui silently handed the baby to Emerald and turned to leave.

Li Huan glanced deeply at Xue Yuechen, then quickly went out and chased after her to the corridor.

"Safety."

The north wind howled past, making a piercing sound.

Xue Sui stopped, turned around to look at him, and clasped her hands in a gesture of respect.

"The princess has just given birth and is suffering from severe blood and qi deficiency. She is easily agitated and should not be stressed or upset. Your Highness should spend more time with her."

Li Huan took a half-step closer, "Is Ping An still blaming me for what happened that night?"

Xue Sui lowered her eyes, her eyelashes like frozen frost.

"At a time like this, Your Highness is still concerned with such trivial matters?"

What Li Zhao said in the dining hall that day suddenly popped into my mind.

She suddenly sneered, "So, your Physician Chen went to Granny Wang's pharmacy on West Street really to help the Princess with her pregnancy? Before I left the manor, the Princess's pulse was stable and the pregnancy was going well. How could she suddenly have a postpartum hemorrhage and difficult labor without any warning? Could it be that Physician Chen did not take good care of the Princess?"

Li Huan's expression suddenly turned cold.

He understood the implied meaning and stared at Xue Sui with bloodshot eyes.

"In your eyes, am I such a treacherous villain? Unable to even tolerate my own flesh and blood?"

Eyes facing each other.

Xue Sui stared at him intently, her voice indifferent.

"Your Highness, please return. This humble nun is not in a position to discuss matters within the Prince's residence..."

After speaking, he bowed slightly and left resolutely.

Li Huan watched her retreating figure and finally let out a long sigh...
-
Heavy snow has sealed off the mountain, and Shuiyue Nunnery seems to have been forgotten by time...

For the next two days, Xue Sui did not visit Xue Yuechen again.

But every morning when Xiao Ni was sweeping snow, she would see Prince Duan standing under the east wing corridor, his figure so quiet that it seemed to blend into the red wall covered with snow, whether he was gazing into the distance or deep in thought.

As dusk fell that day, Guo Yunrong came to find Xue Sui with plum blossoms in her hands, and spoke of Li Huan in a subtle tone.

"When I came over just now, I saw the prince staring longingly at Sister Xue's residence..."

She glanced at Xue Sui, as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.

"Prince Duan has a deep affection for Sister Xue."

Xue Sui fiddled with the Buddhist prayer beads on his wrist, his fingertips pausing on the old scar.

He smiled but remained silent, his expression revealing neither joy nor anger.

Guo Yunrong tilted her head and looked at her with some curiosity.

"Both Prince Duan and the Crown Prince are infatuated with you. Who is truly in your heart, sister?"

Xue Sui looked at her innocent appearance and a slight smile appeared on his lips.

The girl was heartbroken just the day before because Li Zhao rejected her marriage proposal, but today she can joke around with ease.

People with simple minds are indeed more likely to forget their troubles. Guo San-guniang was born a bird of the happy forest; her worries and sorrows didn't last long. Unlike her, whose hatred was deeply buried, making it difficult for her to truly find joy and peace…

She lowered her eyes and murmured Amitabha Buddha.

"Both of them are wicked creatures, why even mention them!?"

Guo Yunrong was taken aback.

A moment later, he started laughing to himself.

“Sister, you’re so interesting! I love your straightforward nature. Worldly men are all like that—they can burn their mouths even with a sip of cold tea. They’re not as good as the vegetarian meals at the temple… If all else fails, I might as well cut my hair short and become a nun in a nunnery…”

"Princess, please stop joking," Xue Sui scolded her.

Why can't we make a scene?

"Buddha is angry!"

“Even Buddha has his moments of dozing off… If we really cared about these things, we should have chopped off Prince Duan’s horse bit long ago. And replaced the Crown Prince’s abacus beads with hot Buddhist prayer beads…” “Pfft!” Xue Sui couldn’t help but laugh.

"Sister Xue, you're smiling! You look so beautiful when you smile..."

In truth, Xue Sui always smiled, but it was insincere and unrealistic. This rare, genuine smile, like shards of light emanating from icicles, captivated Guo Yunrong.

Just as they were talking and laughing, Jade arrived in a hurry.

He bowed to the two of them, his brows furrowed and his face showing worry.

"Sixth Miss, the Princess Consort refuses to drink her medicine or breastfeed... The little princess is crying from hunger..."

"Let's feed her some rice porridge first," Xue Sui said calmly. "The roads are impassable, and we can't find a wet nurse in these deep mountains and wilderness..."

Jade was a servant brought from the Xue family, and she knew best about the grudges and entanglements between the sisters.

She choked back tears as she curtsied and bowed again.

"Please, Sixth Miss, have mercy and come with me to persuade the Princess!"

Xue Sui laughed.

"Even the prince can't persuade him, so what's the use of me going? Everything in the world is preordained, and fate has its own destiny. There's no need to add to the trouble..."

Seeing her resolute attitude, Emerald sighed, wiped away her tears, and retreated.

Guo Yunrong watched the curtain slowly fall before speaking with a sense of melancholy.

"Seeing the princess in such a state is truly heartbreaking..."

After saying that, she suddenly trembled, as if she had thought of something. "Does that mean that if a woman can't give birth to a son, she will be disliked by her husband's family, unable to hold her head up, and will be pointed at and gossiped about?"

Before Xue Sui could answer, she slapped her forehead, regretting her slip of the tongue.

"No, no, I'm not engaged yet, why am I worrying about this?"

Xue Sui was amused by her, his eyes sparkling.

"The county princess is blessed with good fortune and will surely give birth to twins, a boy and a girl, to complete the family."

Upon hearing this, Guo Yunrong lowered her head in embarrassment, her cheeks flushing red.

"Don't make fun of me! Sister, hurry up and teach me how to make plum blossom fermented rice. Once the mountain road is open, I'm going to show off my skills to the Empress... Hurry up, don't try to hide anything..."

Xue Sui nodded with a smile.

For the next three days, the two ate and played together, getting along as well as sisters.

Guo Yunrong was a carefree and easygoing person. After spending a few days with her, she felt somewhat fortunate when she thought back to that day...

Fortunately, I didn't lose such a good friend as Xue Liu because of my romantic feelings.
-
On the fourth day, the sky cleared and the mountain road was finally clear.

Just as dawn was breaking, the grand procession of Prince Duan's carriages and horses stopped outside Shuiyue Nunnery.

The wet nurse held the swaddled baby and comforted her. The little princess ate her fill and fell asleep, finally stopping her crying and settling down.

Everyone in the nunnery breathed a sigh of relief.

Xue Yuechen, wrapped in a fox fur coat, was helped into the carriage by a maid. A trace of sorrow flashed in her swollen eyes, and she looked dazed.

Li Huan personally lifted the curtain to signal her, and she, as if possessed by a ghost, turned around to bid farewell to Abbess Huiming and Xue Sui.

"Take care, Master! Take care, Sixth Sister..."

"Your Highness is still weak, please be careful on the road."

Xue Sui clasped his hands together and nodded, his tone calm and even.

As she turned around, she saw Li Huan standing beside his green horse, talking to Guo Yunrong.

The rising sun gilded his sharp features with a golden edge, but it couldn't illuminate the deep pools in his eyes.

Xue Sui stepped forward and bowed: "Respectfully seeing off Your Highness, may your journey home be safe!"

He then bowed to Guo Yunrong in farewell, saying, "Please take good care of yourself, Princess!"

"Take care, Sister Xue!"

Guo Yunrong approached with red eyes, her cold hands tightly gripping Xue Sui's.

"I'll come to see you again when the roads are better in spring. I hope you won't be annoyed by my intrusion."

Xue Sui smiled and gently straightened her cloak, which had been ruffled by the wind.

"It would be more than a blessing for the county princess to stay at our nunnery for a while..."

Guo Yunrong's eyes lit up and she nodded quickly, "It's a promise, I will definitely come! Sister Xue, please take good care of yourself."

As she spoke, she took out a brocade handkerchief from her sleeve and stuffed it into Xue Sui's hand.

"Here you go. I embroidered this myself. Please don't find it offensive, sister."

Xue Sui looked at the plain white handkerchief, with a plum blossom embroidered in silver thread in the corner, the needlework delicate and lifelike. A warmth spread through her heart, and she bowed slightly, saying:
"Thank you County Lord."

The two parted reluctantly, exchanging many words of advice.

Inside the carriage, Xue Yuechen watched their intimate conversation through the gauze curtain, a bitter expression welling up in her eyes...

The wheels rumbled as the convoy slowly began to move...

Guo Yunrong poked her head out of the carriage and waved a silk handkerchief at Xue Sui.

Just then, Li Huan suddenly turned his horse around and went back.

He walked up to Xue Sui, slammed a sandalwood box on the ground, and his cloak swept across it, stirring up a gust of cold wind.

"Old things from the past, it's a pity to throw them away. You often keep company with the dim light in the mountains, and life is hard, so perhaps you can use them to relieve your boredom..."

Before Xue Sui could refuse, he had already ridden away.

Jinshu stepped forward and opened the box, where she saw the familiar ivory and jade chess set lying inside. The black and white chess pieces lay quietly in the box, warm to the touch.

This is truly a precious item...

Xue Sui looked up and gazed into the distance, seeing that Li Huan's figure had disappeared at the end of the mountain path, merging into the vast expanse of snow.

The temple bell rang out softly, startling a few crows into flight.

Xue Sui slowly walked up the stone steps and suddenly saw the old plum tree outside the temple gate. The snow on its branches had just melted, and it was now blooming with bright red spots, and many round flower buds were also emerging...

The weather is getting warmer.

I wonder if there's any chance of a turnaround in the border war...

When the mountain wind blows, the old plum tree's branches are covered with blossoms that resemble spilled rouge, spreading out a warm hue.

As Xue Sui gazed at the delicate flower buds, she suddenly recalled Li Zhao's smile as he turned back on horseback before his departure for the campaign...

Such is fate's... irresistible bait.

"Coo coo." Lingyu pecked her finger, as if to comfort her.

Xue Sui smiled slightly and held it in his palm: "Lingyu, tell me, is it really so hard to let go of this mortal world?"

Lingyu tilted her head and nuzzled against her.

It was so intimate, it felt like he was gently kissing her fingertips...

(End of this chapter)