Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
I hesitantly pushed the door open and found myself locking eyes with a pair of blood-stained orbs.
In the courtyard lay a man dressed in black, his body drenched in blood. He clutched his left arm tightly with his right hand, clearly injured.
I let out a cold laugh as I stepped inside, thinking that I should be laughing heartily at this moment.
The youngest and most talented Prime Minister had fallen to such a state.
"Zhou Chuyan, I never expected to see you like this," I said coldly.
He had covered his face, trying to disguise himself as an assassin.
How laughable; even if he turned to ashes, I would still recognize him.
A flicker of despair crossed his eyes. Perhaps he knew my temperament well enough to expect me to call for the guards to have him captured.
However, as the sound of approaching footsteps grew louder, I found myself stiffening and dragging him into the room instead.
I couldn't let him die so easily, I told myself in my heart.
I pried open his right hand and saw a broken arrow lodged in his left arm.
After examining it for a while, I attempted to pull the arrow out, but he pressed down on my hand. "Don't move, it's poisoned."
His gaze was calm yet held an inexplicable sense of resignation towards death.
At that moment, I completely forgot to interrogate him about why he had disguised himself as an assassin and what his true intentions were.
As I pulled the arrow out, I lowered my head and began to suck out the poisoned blood, spitting it out repeatedly. My lips turned a shade of purple, yet I continued the cycle step by step.
Suddenly, panic washed over me. What would I do if he died?
I grabbed his collar and shouted with the last ounce of strength I had left, "Zhou Chuyan! Our business isn't finished yet! I won't allow you to die!"
He kept his eyes closed, motionless.
"Zhou Chuyan! I tell you, I hate you. I want to become the Empress, and I want to see you kneeling before me, respectfully calling me 'Your Majesty.' I will make my Prince ascend the throne, and you will bow your head in submission to him. So you must not die!"
As I spoke the last words, I began to ramble incoherently before losing consciousness.
I stroked my belly, counting the time. I was now in my ninth month of pregnancy, but on the surface, it still looked like six months.
I had to continue taking the delayed labor medicine, even though I knew it was bad for my body.
But for myself, for the child, for all the grudges and hatred, I could only persevere.
"Catch the assassin! Catch the assassin!"
I was imprisoned in the cold palace.
The large stains of blood in the courtyard could not conceal that an assassin had visited me yesterday.
Mo Xiaoxiao had maliciously framed me, somehow bringing a dead man in black to my courtyard. Early in the morning, she arrived with guards and accused me of colluding with the assassin.
I had no way to defend myself and feared that Mo Xiaoxiao would burst into my room and find Zhou Chuyan lying unconscious on the bed.
I suspected Mo Xiaoxiao had already planned her next move. If I refused to comply, she would send people to search my room and find so-called evidence.
Of course, that so-called evidence would merely be what she had brought to frame me.
I glanced at the unconscious Zhou Chuyan and secretly placed a kiss on his forehead, my eyes revealing an unexpected affection.
Then I stepped out of the room one step at a time.
The Empress Dowager was heartbroken; she never expected that this vixen would collude with an assassin. But thinking of Lin Ning's only flesh and blood still within me, she did not immediately order my execution but instead allowed me to give birth before granting me a length of white silk for my demise.
Four months passed quickly, and I found myself alone in the cold palace, completely cut off from the outside world.
Every day, I lovingly caressed my belly, imagining what the child would look like.
Would they resemble me? Or Zhou Chuyan?
Occasionally, I thought of Zhou Chuyan. Did he escape safely? Did he know I was suffering in the cold palace for him? Was he now harmonizing with Lin Qing?
At this moment, I almost forgot how much I hated him and how much I longed to stand on higher ground to mock him.
“Tang Wei, you aspire to be the Empress. Why let him ruin everything for you...”
I whispered softly.
Suddenly, the door of the cold palace was pushed open, and the long-lost sunlight flooded in.
Zhou Chuyan appeared in a bright yellow robe, even more dazzling under the sun.
His eyes, once deep as an abyss, were now bloodshot, and his brows bore a heavy weariness.
The moment he saw me, his faint gaze seemed to hold a distant longing.
“Tang Wei.”
Seeing the color of his clothing struck me like lightning. I tilted my head and asked, “Is this what you wanted?”
He nodded and simply stated, “Back then, Lin Yan seized my father's throne. I merely reclaimed what belonged to me. Lin Ning favored beauty over governance; he was never a qualified ruler.”
He stared at me for a while, hesitating before asking, “You said you wanted to be Empress. Would you be willing to be my Empress?”
His voice carried a hint of expectation and caution.
I suddenly laughed out loud, my fingers gently caressing my swollen belly.
How did he manage to become the Emperor? Surely, he has trampled on the blood of countless people beneath his feet. I can even imagine him holding a knife to the Emperor's neck!
It turns out all of this was part of his plan, including marrying the princess and then using her connections to work with the old ministers in the court.
"What if I refuse?"
"Why? Tang Wei, do you perhaps have feelings for Lin Ning? That can't be true; wasn't everything you did meant to take revenge on me?"
He leaned closer, gripping my shoulders tightly. "You want a child; we can have another."
"Zhou Chuyan, I told you, I hate you. I hate how you deceived me, how you used me before, and how even your initial approach was with ulterior motives."
His eyes darkened slightly, anger flickering across his brow, but in an instant, it transformed into heart-wrenching sorrow and loss.
"If the hatred runs that deep, why bother saving me?"
"Because I hate myself more, for wanting to save you."
There was no time for hesitation. As I spoke, tears of laughter streamed down my face. "Unless I die, no one will lay a finger on this child."
I knew Zhou Chuyan had just become the new Emperor; it must not be easy for him.
Marrying me, a former consort from the previous dynasty who was also pregnant, would stir up quite a storm in the court.
His position was still unstable; how could I dare to add to his troubles?
Why did I save him back then?
Simply because love outweighed hate.
Laughing and laughing, I suddenly felt a sharp pain. I cried out, my fingers tightly gripping Zhou Chuyan, my nails digging deep into his flesh.
His eyes were filled with panic as he repeatedly shouted, "Imperial Physician, Imperial Physician..."
"Your Majesty, it's a difficult labor. Do you wish to save the mother or the child?"
"The child."
I used the last bit of my strength to open my eyes, gazing steadily at him, tears welling in the corners of my eyes. "Please save the child."
This child was the glory of my life, the hope of my existence, the only motivation in my aimless years.
Because his father was the one I loved most.
In the end, I heard Zhou Chuyan grit his teeth and say with resentment, "Save them both."
"Father, is Mother still not awake?"
"Yes, your mother is just asleep. She will wake up soon."
He held my hand, whispering in my ear, "Tang Wei, your beloved child is right here beside you. Aren't you going to take a look?"
I wanted to open my eyes, but my eyelids felt as heavy as lead.
"Your maid has told me everything. Why did you hide the child's existence? Why did you bear it all alone..."
That damned Juxiang had spoken too much again.
"You said you wanted to become Empress, to give birth to a prince, to take revenge on me. Now you've only given birth to a princess—are you satisfied?"
Those were merely words spoken in a moment of passion. Back then, I foolishly thought that becoming Empress and the mother of a nation would elevate me above him and redeem my past shame.
I never expected that, just a few months later, he would become the Emperor.
"Tang Wei, I am waiting for you to wake up."
I thought I would never wake up, and I even believed there would be no conclusion to our story.
Yet, he had been waiting for me to awaken all along.
Year after year. My Prince was already five years old. In the entire harem, aside from me, the comatose Empress, there were no other consorts.
A wave of intense sorrow surged within me as I struggled to open my eyes. I faintly sensed a glimmer of light and tilted my head slightly. Through my blurred vision, I saw a youthful face smiling at me with an innocent joy before leaning in and planting a firm kiss on my cheek.
She dashed over to the desk where a man in bright yellow robes was reviewing memorials and joyfully exclaimed, "Mother, Mother is awake!"
A twinge of jealousy stirred within me.
The child I had originally intended to use against Zhou Chuyan had grown closer to him during my unconsciousness than she had to me.
As the memorials scattered across the floor, I turned my gaze toward the source of the voice and saw his face, close enough to reveal a clear expression of shock.
Comment 0 Comment Count