After the rebellion was successful, I realized that this place was the Red Mansion

Chapter 179 Imperial Court Adjudication (Part 2)
"All right."

Chu Yan smiled at Li Wan and beckoned to her, "Come up here. I see that the palace maid is wearing a very elegant bodice. I'd like to see what kind of material it is."

Although Li Wan was raised with traditional boudoir education, even an unmarried girl could guess from the current situation that he didn't want to see the fabric of the bodice; he clearly wanted to see what was inside...

Before getting into bed, Li Wan had to open her eyes and look at the emperor shyly before slowly sitting down. Because she was only wearing a bodice, her round and full buttocks pressed against the soft couch. The unfamiliar touch made Li Wan's heart tremble, and she couldn't help but look at him again.

"Courtesy lady, come into my arms."

Chu Yan couldn't wait any longer, so he straightened up, put his arm around her waist, and carried her onto the soft couch.

He was still leaning against the pillow, and Li Wan was nestled in his arms. But unlike before, the beautiful and dignified woman in his arms was only wearing a bodice that barely covered her chest and abdomen.

Li Wan closed her eyes again.

Her heart was pounding like a drum, her face was flushed, and she obediently nestled in his arms, determined not to open her eyes no matter how he teased her.

However, the emperor's first touch with his right hand made her body tremble violently, and she instinctively opened her eyes to look at him.

"What kind of material is this?"

Chu Yan lowered his head and examined her round bellyband, noticing that it was embroidered with a luan bird and a phoenix. The phoenix was plump and round.

Li Wan remained silent, reached out to grasp his hand, and whispered breathlessly, "This is my... fabric."

"really not bad."

Chu Yan chuckled and lowered his head to kiss the phoenix.

Li Wan held his head, feeling dizzy, but the emperor released her again, still holding her in his arms, and asked with a smile, "This undergarment looks very new. Is it the one that the palace tailor wore when she got married?"

Li Wan suddenly opened her eyes.

Chu Yan continued to examine the phoenix and luan bird, saying, "I know that Gong Cai is a widow, and she probably wouldn't wear this kind of luan and phoenix patterned bodice on a normal day. Therefore, I guess it was worn by Gong Cai when she got married."

Li Wan was both ashamed and embarrassed, and said in a trembling voice, "At this time, why does Your Majesty need to bring up such a disheartening matter again?"

"Just a disappointment?"

"..."

Li Wan opened her resentful eyes and asked him in return, "Does Your Majesty know that there was an Empress Xianmingsu in the Song Dynasty?"

Chu Yan laughed and said, "I don't remember so many posthumous titles, so just tell me whose empress she was."

“It was…Empress Liu E, the wife of Emperor Zhenzong of Song,” Li Wan said in a low voice.

"Oh, it's her."

Chu Yan held her in his arms and asked with a smile, "Does the palace official also want to be like her, remarrying and becoming an empress?"

Li Wan hurriedly said, "How dare I covet the Empress's position? I was only thinking that she was also a remarried woman..."

Oh, Chu Yan understood. While playing with the phoenix, he comforted her: "Is the palace official feeling uneasy? Why do you have to be like this? Many women remarried during the Han and Tang dynasties. Wasn't Consort Wei of Emperor Taizong of Tang also remarried? Her daughter with her late husband was even granted the title of county princess and married out."

Li Wan murmured softly, blushing as she smiled, "The Wei family is the daughter of five prominent families and seven prestigious clans. How could I possibly compare to them? I am already extremely fortunate to have received His Majesty's favor."

Chu Yan said in surprise, "It seems that Gong Cai has read many history books, not just the Four Books on Women's Conduct."

"Spare me."

Li Wan blurted out something, but Chu Yan didn't let her off the hook. He reached down to her smooth back, fumbled around for the bodice's ties, and easily untied them.

The bodice was lifted up, covering her face, and Li Wan's neck and below were all white.

"……His Majesty?"

Li Wan was puzzled by this. There was another ribbon tied behind her neck, but the Emperor covered her face with a bellyband... Could it be that he thought she was not pretty?

But she soon understood.

Chu Yan buried his head in it, then put the bellyband down, which covered his head.

In this way... the emperor became like her son!
"His Majesty!"

Li Wan was unable to express her feelings at that moment; she only felt weak in the knees.

Chu Yan smiled in her arms and said, "Gong Cai has given birth to a son, and he is indeed very fragrant."

Li Wan covered her eyes with her arms in embarrassment and stammered, "Lan'er was raised by his wet nurse..."

"Really? What about the courtesan's ex-husband?"

Chu Yan asked again.

Li Wan couldn't bear it any longer and sobbed softly, "Your Majesty, why do you still ask? From now on, I am yours and I don't want anything else."

"I only envy the husband of the palace maid, who was able to marry such a beauty as the palace maid."

Chu Yan used a trick. He didn't actually mind, but as long as he said it like that, Li Wan would feel guilty for not being able to give him her virginity and would make it up to him later.

After a long pause, Li Wan hugged his head tightly and whispered, "Your Majesty, there are still two lines of the poem I composed last time that I haven't recited." "What are they?"

"Though years may bring frost and snow, I will still climb the branches until dusk..."

Chu Yan looked up at her, then moved away from her chest and looked down at Li Wan beneath him. He saw that her eyes were full of affection, shy yet passionate.

"It was my greed that made me want both the person and the heart of the court official."

Chu Yan picked her up and laughed, "Since you're marrying me tonight, you'll be like a wife to me. Come and help me undress!"

Li Wan obediently sat up and helped him undress, then whispered, "When I got married, I didn't serve him."

"Really?" Chu Yan saw that her phoenix and luan bird skin was fair, beautiful, and plump, and he reached out his hand again.

Li Wan looked at him with a hint of resentment: "My late husband, Jia Zhu, was a scholar, unlike Your Majesty who uses such sweet words and gets handsy."

She realized that only three-tenths of the emperor's words were true, so she only dared to believe three-tenths.

Chu Yan laughed and hugged her: "The palace judge will soon know the difference between me and Jia Zhu!"

Li Wan's heart was pounding like a drum. She could roughly tell that there was indeed a huge, huge difference.

Struggling to her feet, she undressed him again. Seeing the emperor's powerful and robust physique, Li Wan couldn't look away and instinctively said:

"How could I possibly bear this?"

Chu Yan smiled, pulled her into his arms, and casually untied the only clothing they were wearing—Li Wan's undergarment—and tossed it aside before kissing her.

After a while, Li Wan lay on the couch, her voice trembling, and said, "Please, Your Majesty, have mercy..."

After an unknown amount of time, in the west side room.

Su Yun and Bi Yue gradually couldn't stay awake any longer, and they both started yawning. Suddenly, Su Yun heard a scream, which startled her awake.

“Listen!” Su Yun said hurriedly, pointing to the east side room.

Biyue listened carefully and indeed heard a sound, a woman's voice that came out in fits and starts, but the other firecrackers were going off in one continuous burst.

The two were astonished. After exchanging a glance, they quietly lifted the curtain and found that the curtain of the east side room had been lifted at some point, which explained why the voice could be heard so clearly.

Then, the two witnessed an astonishing scene:
The emperor carried his first wife to the main hall, placed her on a cool table, and lifted her legs with his shoulders.

The two women stood frozen in place for a full quarter of an hour before Li Wan weakly beckoned to them, "Come here..."

Su Yun and Bi Yue then realized that it was their grandmother calling them; no wonder the Emperor was carrying her out.

The two of them went out shyly.

Chu Yan instructed, "Your eldest grandmother is thirsty, quickly find her a cup of tea."

Su Yun went about her business, poured tea, brought it over, squatted down, and fed it to Li Wan, who was lying on the table.

"I already know that Your Majesty is valiant."

After drinking water and regaining some strength, Li Wan said with lingering fear.

The emperor had strong abdominal muscles, and he could easily lift her up with one arm, letting Li Wan toss and turn as he pleased.

Seeing this, Chu Yan had no choice but to let go of her. Li Wan, disregarding her usual image, lay down on the table to rest.

After a while, she struggled to get up and said shyly to Suyun and Biyue, "You two will come with me later."

Chu Yan waved his hand and said, "No need. I will be marrying Gong Cai tonight. Only Gong Cai is needed."

Touched, Li Wan rested for a while and regained her strength, so she took the initiative to climb onto his neck and sit down.

Chu Yan carried her back again.

Su Yun and Bi Yue's heart pounded violently for a long time before it slowly calmed down. They knew in their hearts that they would also have a time to serve the emperor in the future.

The two women were filled with anxiety and uncertainty, constantly thinking about the scene of the emperor carrying his first wife out, and wondering how they would feel when they served her again. Would they, like their grandmother, go from being chaste women to crying and screaming, feeling both sorrow and shame, yet also beautifully oblivious to everything else?

……

Meanwhile, Qingwen, Xiangling, and Yuchuan left Yangxin Hall, obtained two lanterns from a palace maid, and left together.

When they reached the foot of Daguan Tower, Xiangling took the left path back to Hengwu Garden, while Qingwen and Yuchuan took the Qinfang Bridge.

"Qingwen, Yuchuan."

As they were about to part, Xiangling suddenly said to them, "Shall we go back and pack our things so we can help the Emperor get up and change his clothes tomorrow morning?" Then, somewhat nervously, she added, "We don't know the rules for helping the Emperor with his washing and grooming. We'll have to ask the people in the palace tomorrow."

Qingwen smiled and said, "The Emperor has two eyes and one mouth, so he does what he wants. Since you are in such a hurry to serve him, let's arrange a time to go together."

Yu Chuan agreed, and the three of them set a time to get up early the next day and went back to their respective homes.

Yu Chuan and Qing Wen walked past Qin Fang Pavilion. Since there was only one lantern, they went to Yi Hong Courtyard first.

(End of this chapter)