Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Playing chess with the retired emperor was meaningless, and Jia Lian had no interest in currying favor with him at this time.

Seemingly sensing Jia Lian's distraction, the Emperor Emeritus only allowed him to play one game of chess before letting him leave.

After leaving Chonghua Palace, Jia Lian headed straight for Weiyang Palace.

Weiyang Palace was built on the central axis of Chonghua Palace and was the central palace of the rear half of the entire Chonghua Palace complex.

Previously, Jia Lian usually entered Weiyang Palace through the west gate of Chonghua Palace. This was only the second time he had directly passed through the Chonghua Palace area to reach Weiyang Palace. The first time was during the Emperor Emeritus's birthday banquet when he had a secret rendezvous with Princess Zhaoyang.

The palaces surrounding the Emperor Emeritus's residence were far more luxurious and imposing than any other part of the imperial palace. Guards stood in rows between the palaces.

Jia Lian silently memorized the layout and defenses of the area.

Upon arriving at Weiyang Palace, she waited for a long time outside the palace gates before a leading eunuch came and took her to a small courtyard on the west side.

In that pavilion, Jia Lian met Princess Zhaoyang.

"Jiro!"

Princess Zhaoyang came down from the pavilion, looking at Jia Lian with some excitement and eagerness.

Jia Lian understood her meaning and said with a guilty expression, "I'm sorry, Qingran, I couldn't persuade the Emperor Emeritus. He was adamant and didn't give me much of a chance to speak..."

The hope in Princess Zhaoyang's eyes faded at a visible speed, and then she became resolute.

"Erlang, there's no need to say anything more. I understand everything. My grandfather has always doted on my grandmother. Even my grandmother's pleas were useless, let alone Erlang's. I had already anticipated this outcome."

Seeing Princess Zhaoyang, who was clearly sad but still forced a smile, Jia Lian felt a pang of sympathy. He gently hugged her and said, "Qingran, don't be sad. Although I couldn't get the Emperor Emeritus to retract his decree today, I can see that he is still reasonable."

As long as I think of a way, I will always have a chance to persuade the retired emperor.

Besides, we still have His Majesty. As long as His Majesty and the Empress Dowager speak on our behalf, perhaps one day the Emperor Emeritus will change his mind.

Hearing Jia Lian's comforting words and feeling her lover's persistence, Princess Zhaoyang was deeply moved.

But she still pushed Jia Lian away and shook her head: "It's no use. I know my grandfather's temper. He never allows anyone to disobey his orders."

Furthermore, my father would never plead with the retired emperor for our sake... so...

Erlang, you shouldn't waste your energy anymore. Not only is it useless, but it might also completely enrage my imperial grandfather. If he unleashes his wrath, even your father won't be able to protect you. It's not worth it."

Jia Lian frowned and looked at Princess Zhaoyang: "But, our child..."

"Since this world cannot accept him, even if we forcibly bring him into this world, it may not be a good thing for him," Princess Zhaoyang said with a forced smile.

Jia Lian remained silent for a long while before saying, "I'm sorry."

Jia Lian was never an indecisive person. Although he cared about his child with Princess Zhaoyang, he was not so desperate as to risk everything to fight against the imperial power for a child who had not yet been born.

What he truly cared about was Princess Zhaoyang. What he was truly worried about was that Princess Zhaoyang valued the child too much and might become depressed.

That would put him in a difficult position.

Given the current situation, it would be foolish to confront the retired emperor. Even the furious Emperor Ningkang at the birthday banquet could only choose to endure humiliation in the face of the retired emperor, let alone him?

Therefore, retreating is the best option at this time, and there is nothing shameful about it.

After all, as the saying goes, the Emperor Emeritus clearly doesn't have much time left, while he and Princess Zhaoyang are still young.

When the retired emperor is gone one day, there will be plenty of opportunities. Why risk being sacrificed by the retired emperor now and try your best to do something?

Now, seeing that Princess Zhaoyang not only didn't seem confused but also comforted him, it was clear that she had made up her mind. He knew that Princess Zhaoyang must have clearly understood the pros and cons and made this painful decision to prevent them from falling into a predicament.

She was still as rational as ever, no, even more rational than before, so rational that she didn't seem like a woman.

Just as Jia Lian knew her well, Princess Zhaoyang understood Jia Lian's feelings when she heard his apologetic words.

With a sense of comfort, she nestled into Jia Lian's arms and whispered, "Erlang has not wronged me. Although I cannot marry Erlang, Erlang knows that these past few days have been the happiest days for Qingran, ever since the day Erlang said he would marry me."

To be treated so well by Erlang, Qingran's life can be considered without regrets.

I only hate that fate is unfair, determined to make things difficult for me. Or perhaps, Qingran is simply too unlucky, destined not to be with Erlang.

"It's not that Qingran is unlucky, but that I, Jia Lian, am unworthy of Qingran's tenderness."

Both Jia Lian and Princess Zhaoyang are rational people. Jia Lian, in particular, has lived two lives and has great ambitions; he is cautious in everything he does and plans every step of the way.

Princess Zhaoyang was independent by nature, and after experiencing a marriage alliance and undergoing some trials, she became even more mature.

Therefore, even though the blow from the retired emperor was enormous, at this moment, under their rationality, it no longer seemed like a monstrous storm.

"Cough cough."

Just as Jia Lian and his companion were comforting each other, a woman's clear, cold cough rang out.

Jia Lian and the other man quickly separated and looked back to see the Empress Dowager, dressed in magnificent robes and possessing unparalleled beauty, bursting in.

"You two should both be aware of the Emperor Emeritus's decree. From now on, I do not wish to see such a situation again."

The Empress Dowager walked over with a cold expression, first glancing at Princess Zhaoyang, then looking at Jia Lian, her tone becoming increasingly unfriendly.

"Zhaoyang is a woman and is easily swayed by emotions, but Marquis Zhenyuan is a court official. You should be able to distinguish between what is important and what is not. I hope that from now on you will pay attention to your words and deeds and not do anything that would damage the face of the imperial family."

"This is my territory, and even I cannot guarantee that there are no eyes and ears here. If you two were elsewhere and continued to act so recklessly, and someone with ulterior motives saw you and reported it to the Emperor Emeritus, then the Emperor Emeritus would be furious and punish you. Don't blame me for not warning you."

Jia Lian's face darkened. He didn't understand why the Empress Dowager always looked at him with disdain and always liked to give him a cold scolding first thing when they met.

He clearly hadn't offended her in any way. On the contrary, he had saved her life once at the Crown Prince's villa!

Now, let alone repaying him, it feels like we have a grudge against him.

Yesterday you confidently declared that you could handle the situation with the Emperor Emeritus, but things went wrong with him. I haven't even blamed you for being incompetent, yet you're already acting like you're in control.

No one likes to be looked at with disdain, even if that person is an exceptionally beautiful woman.

Therefore, Jia Lian coldly replied, "I understand the Empress Dowager's good intentions. But since Qingran is already my woman, I am not afraid of being found out."

The Empress Dowager, whose beautiful eyes had narrowed slightly because of Jia Lian's disrespectful attitude, raised an eyebrow when she heard what Jia Lian said next.

"Are you really not afraid? Even if the Emperor Emeritus strips you of your official rank and title?"

Jia Lian stood silently without answering.

Judging from the fact that the retired emperor had kept him to play chess with him, the retired emperor probably simply did not approve of his marriage to Zhaoyang, rather than disliking him.

It seems that my flattery at the birthday banquet last time must have had some effect.

Therefore, Jia Lian was not really afraid that the Emperor Emeritus would suddenly turn against him, and even dared to come directly to Weiyang Palace to find Princess Zhaoyang.

It's probably because they're fearless and have nothing to fear.

The Empress Dowager originally wanted to intimidate Jia Lian and also take the opportunity to vent her anger at Jia Lian's ungrateful rejection and defiance.

To her surprise, Jia Lian's attitude was disrespectful, which angered her. She snorted coldly, "I was willing to help you back then, but you didn't appreciate it. Now you have the nerve to say that Qingran is your woman!"

"Hmph, let me tell you, the Emperor Emeritus has already ordered me to choose one of the most talented men in the capital to be Qingran's consort..."

"Royal Grandmother...!"

Upon hearing the Empress Dowager's words, Princess Zhaoyang quickly spoke up to stop her, then looked at Jia Lian with some concern.

As expected, Jia Lian's expression turned somewhat unpleasant, but he couldn't say anything.

This was actually within his expectations. After all, the Emperor Emeritus was so resolute in rejecting their marriage, even forbidding Princess Zhaoyang from keeping her unborn child. It was perfectly reasonable for him to issue an edict to find another husband for Princess Zhaoyang.

Perhaps seeing that Jia Lian's emotions were too stable, the Empress Dowager lost the desire to provoke him and simply said, "In short, all of this is because you didn't cherish it back then, so you can't blame anyone else for what has happened."

Here, Princess Zhaoyang stood in front of Jia Lian, took his arm and said, "Since Qingran has chosen Erlang in this life, she will be Erlang's person in life and in death, and there is no one else in her heart."

Therefore, even though my grandfather ordered someone to choose a husband for me, in my heart, my true husband is only Erlang. Qingran's heart and body have always belonged to Erlang alone.

I'm just afraid that Erlang will forget Qingran in the future...

"How could that be? In this life and for all eternity, I will never forget Qingran."

Watching helplessly as Princess Zhaoyang returned to Jia Lian's arms, and hearing their affectionate yet nauseating words, the Empress Dowager's beautiful face showed a hint of discomfort.

He was tempted to ignore them and turn away, but then felt that doing so would make it seem like he was afraid of them, so he turned slightly to look elsewhere.

She stood there for a while, but found that the young couple was being affectionate and their sweet talk was getting more and more excessive. They didn't act like they were being separated from their lover, and they didn't care that she, an elder, was still there.

She couldn't hold back any longer and said coldly, "It's almost time. Qingran, don't forget what you promised me."

Upon hearing the Empress Dowager's reminder, Princess Zhaoyang realized that she had been so intimate with Jia Lian in front of her grandmother, and shyly pulled away from Jia Lian's embrace.

She looked at Jia Lian tenderly: "Erlang, go back first. Don't worry about me, I'll be out soon..."

Upon hearing Princess Zhaoyang say that she would be able to leave soon, Jia Lian wanted to say something, but in the end, he could only sigh softly.

"Then I'll wait for you outside the palace. Remember to protect yourself. If anything happens to you, send someone to tell me. If it's inconvenient for you to contact me, you can also ask for the Noble Consort Xian..."

Now that Yuan Chun is a Noble Consort, communicating with people outside the palace is no problem for her, not to mention that I have given her a considerable amount of money to cultivate my own power.

"Hehe, Erlang, don't worry. With my grandmother protecting me, no one in the palace can hurt me."

Princess Zhaoyang smiled broadly. Although she felt that Jia Lian's instructions were useless, she was still happy that Jia Lian cared about her.

Turning around, she saw that her grandmother's expression was becoming increasingly unpleasant, and she finally made up her mind, signaling to Jia Lian with her eyes that he could leave.

Jia Lian didn't stand on ceremony; he simply bowed to the Empress Dowager and turned to leave.

His dismissive attitude displeased the Empress Dowager, who was about to lash out when Princess Zhaoyang, quick-witted and agile, grabbed her arm and swayed it ingratiatingly.

The Empress Dowager then gave up, but still said unhappily, "This boy still seems dissatisfied with me. What gives him the right to...?"

"Oh dear, Grandmother, you're overthinking it. How could Erlang be dissatisfied with you? Besides, you usually don't care about these formalities at all, so why are you arguing with him today?"

"I'm not being petty, I just feel sorry for you. This boy, he's not worth your infatuation, your wholehearted devotion to him, without considering your own feelings at all..."

Faced with the Empress Dowager's questioning, Princess Zhaoyang smiled and said, "Didn't you teach Qingran back then, Grandmother, 'May we find one heart to share, and stay together until our hair turns white'? Now everyone knows that Erlang is the one Qingran has been searching for all along."

The Empress Dowager's expression suddenly fell. She couldn't even remember how long ago she had taught Princess Zhaoyang this poem, but it must have been a very, very long time ago.

She raised her hand and stroked Princess Zhaoyang's head, saying softly, "Qingran has grown up. She's no longer the little girl who used to pester me with all sorts of questions."

"Speaking of which, it's been a long time since you've spent time with me since you returned from beyond the Great Wall. Take this opportunity to stay in Weiyang Palace for a while and keep me company."

Princess Zhaoyang longed to leave the palace as soon as possible because she was concerned about the affairs of her eldest princess's residence and the promise she had made to Jia Lian.

This is one of the reasons why she chose to compromise so quickly this time. Once a person has ideals and pursuits, other things become less important.

But seeing the Empress Dowager's forlorn expression, and thinking of her grandmother's loneliness over the years, she nodded and agreed.