GTB Chapter 215

Chapter 217: Red Plum Falling on Snow

Chapter 217: Red Plum Falling on Snow

Song Fuge saw Shí Yan rise and lowered his eyes to look at the tea in his cup. Without looking up, he said:

“Does Your Highness the Crown Prince truly not regret this? After all, your exploitation of me carries great risk. She might… never turn back.”

Shí Yan paused, his fist clenching beneath his wide sleeve. “Master Song is joking. How could this be called exploitation? True exploitation would only benefit oneself and harm others.”

“Rest assured, if I succeed, and if your old flame rekindles, I will never break you apart.”

Song Fuge turned his head, watching Shí Yan’s departing figure. For him, this was indeed a good thing, a thing he had dreamed of.

But for some reason, he didn’t feel much joy. He had no confidence.

He smirked bitterly. ‘Rekindled old flame’ only applied when the flame had died out in the first place.

But his flame had never died. As for her…

Song Fuge recalled Jiang Jiuchu that day. Though she didn’t beg outright, every word was a plea. She was willing to use the peach blossom hairpin, willing to risk her life for him to save her.

At that moment, he knew that her eyes were already filled with another. He was just the past.

But in that life-or-death situation, why did she shield him from the arrow?

Was it truly as Shí Yan said, that he was perhaps just buried in her heart?

And that he only needed a little push to see the light of day again… Was that so?

He picked up his teacup and drained it in one gulp. Regardless, the opportunity had been presented to him, meaning their fate was not yet sealed.

Whether it was to protect her from being targeted by Shí Xiu or for his own sake, he had to strive for it.

At the Seventh Prince’s residence, in the Bamboo Garden, Lüluo was cautioning Ji Shutíng, who had come to visit:

“Madam Gu, His Highness fears that the Crown Princess would be worried, so he hasn’t told her about the changes in the court. Please don’t let it slip when you go inside.”

“Okay, I understand,” Ji Shutíng nodded, instructing the maid behind her to hand over the century-old ginseng she had brought.

“Crown Princess, Madam Gu is here to see you.” Inside the room, Jiang Jiuchu was leaning against the headboard, reading a book, when she heard Lüluo’s voice from the doorway.

She turned her head and saw Ji Shutíng quickly approach the bedside, looking at her with a worried expression. “Jiuchu, how are you?”

“Don’t worry, I have nine lives. A close call,” Jiang Jiuchu put down the book and smiled at Ji Shutíng. “It’s just that I’m bored lying on the bed all day. It’s a good thing you came to see me.”

Ji Shutíng sat on a round stool nearby. “Your close call wasn’t ordinary. You were unconscious for three days. It’s truly not easy to have survived. No matter how bored you are, you have to lie down and rest properly.”

Jiang Jiuchu nodded. She would naturally take good care of herself. The doctor said that if she rested well, her wound would heal completely in twenty days.

There was less than a month until the New Year. It was perfect timing so she wouldn’t miss spending a happy New Year with Shí Yan. This was her and Shí Yan’s first New Year together, and she didn’t want to be unable to even leave her room.

Time passed quickly in the cold wind. Soon, it was three days before the New Year.

That day, snow fell heavily. After breakfast, Jiang Jiuchu put on a white fox fur cloak and stepped out of the house.

“Miss, it’s snowing outside. Please don’t go out,” Lǜyì followed her out of the corridor, trying to dissuade her. “The doctor said that although your wound has healed, it will take another month for your body to fully recover. You can’t be careless. Don’t catch a cold.”

“It’s alright. I’m dressed warmly,” Jiang Jiuchu said, stepping out of the corridor and walking towards the two red plum trees that had been transplanted into the courtyard earlier.

Snow fell on the branches, and the red plums emitted a faint fragrance.

Jiang Jiuchu walked forward and reached out to pull down a branch full of red plum blossoms. Snowflakes immediately fell in a flurry.

She said softly to Lǜyì, who had run over to hold an umbrella for her, “Lǜyì, prepare the carriage. I want to go to the palace to see the Empress Dowager.”

Lǜyì behind her was shocked. She had not expected her young mistress to suddenly want to enter the palace. She quickly said, “Miss, not to mention that your body hasn’t fully recovered, but with such heavy snow today, the road will probably be covered in snow by the time we return.”

Jiang Jiuchu paused, then turned to look at Lǜyì. “Then we won’t come back. We can just stay in the East Palace.”

Lǜyì’s expression immediately stiffened, then quickly composed herself. “Oh, then… then Miss should wait for His Highness to return! Let His Highness accompany you to the palace. If you enter the palace alone, His Highness will be worried when he returns and doesn’t see you.”

Just as Lǜyì finished speaking, Lǜluo walked over with a hand warmer in her hands. She handed the warmer to Jiang Jiuchu. “Miss, warm your hands.”

Jiang Jiuchu withdrew the probing look she had been giving Lǜyì, took the hand warmer, and asked the two of them, “Am I still your mistress?”

Lǜluo and Lǜyì exchanged glances and hurriedly bowed respectfully. “Of course.”

“Since I am your mistress, then I ask, and you answer. If I discover later that you have lied to me today, then neither of you will need to serve by my side anymore.”

After Jiang Jiuchu finished speaking, she saw the two of them looking surprised, confirming that they were definitely hiding something from her.

“Tell me, why has His Highness been so busy recently? And why have we been staying at the Seventh Prince’s residence?”

Lǜluo and Lǜyì exchanged glances. They thought that since their young mistress’s body was already much better, she would find out about this matter as soon as she left the residence. There was no way to hide it for long.

Just as the two of them were about to speak, Shí Yan’s voice suddenly came from the entrance of the courtyard.

“Jiuchu…”

Hearing this, Jiang Jiuchu turned her head towards the entrance of the courtyard and saw Shí Yan walking towards her in a black robe.

Whether it was because of the black robe or the falling snow, although the familiar voice reached her ears, she felt a trace of detachment in his aura.

“Aren’t you cold…?”

Shí Yan walked forward. The words he originally wanted to say unconsciously turned into concern.

He paused and took her hand. “Come, I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”

Inside the study, Shí Yan slowly released Jiang Jiuchu’s soft little hand, then walked to the inside of the desk, sat down, and looked up at Jiang Jiuchu. “The reason why we’re not living in the East Palace is because the current situation is more suitable for living outside the palace.”

“What situation?” Jiang Jiuchu stepped forward, pulled a chair, and sat opposite Shí Yan.

Her face seemed to have expected this, without much surprise.

Shí Yan didn’t hide anything and said, “My father suddenly fell ill during our trip. He couldn’t speak or move. Now the court is in chaos, factions are fighting, and the Empress is uniting many officials to seize power, wanting to abolish my status as Crown Prince and have Shí Xiu take my place.”

Jiang Jiuchu’s eyes widened. Although she had vaguely guessed something, she was still shocked to hear it with her own ears.

She was silent for a moment, then stood up, walked around the desk, and planned to sit on Shí Yan’s lap to comfort and encourage him.

However, before she could bend down to sit, a letter was suddenly handed to her.

“For you…”

Shí Yan didn’t look up at Jiang Jiuchu, only his long, slender fingers with distinct joints held the letter against Jiang Jiuchu’s waist.

But even without looking at her, he still couldn’t bring himself to say the words “divorce.”

No one knew how much courage it took for him to stop Jiang Jiuchu from actively approaching him. He didn’t dare let her get close. He was afraid that if she got too close, he would lose all reason and act recklessly.