The Perilous Palace Dream - Chapter 123
Chapter 123
Leaving aside the Grand Tutor and the Prince nursing their own gloom, Princess Shaoyang on the other side had indeed been severely shaken. Inside the inner chamber, she clung tightly to Nie Qinglin’s hand, her body trembling slightly as she spoke with a shaky voice: “Such a terrifying man, with a face full of fierce danger—how could I possibly marry him? Could it be that he, too, took me by force, just like the Third Young Master of the Pan Manor?”
Nie Qinglin patted her elder sister’s hand, rendered briefly speechless by her sharp intuition. Although that was indeed the truth, she did not dare frighten her sister any further.
She could only say softly,”A general naturally possesses a somewhat rugged appearance. I will speak to the Prince and advise him not to startle sister like this all the time.”
Only after with great effort soothing her royal sister did she return to her own room.
The Grand Tutor was currently having his dressing changed with the assistance of his maids. The wound on his leg, which should have healed long ago, had surprisingly ruptured. The discarded bandages were entirely soaked with blackish blood.
Nie Qinglin had originally thought his returning to using a cane was merely an act to gain her pity. Remembering the time when his leg hadn’t yet healed, he would always lose all decorum, coaxing and tricking her by complaining of pain so that she would personally rub and massage it for him. But seeing it now, his leg injury had truly relapsed.
Seeing Nie Qinglin enter, the Grand Tutor calmly pulled a light quilt over his legs.
When the maids stepped down, the Grand Tutor took the initiative to remark, “I originally thought Princess Shaoyang merely had a faint memory, but I never expected her amnesia to be so severe. Had I known, I would have had Prince Tuhong delay his arrival.”
This was the maximum extent to which the Grand Tutor could express an apology. Nie Qinglin slightly lowered her eyes and sat down in a chair far away from the bed. This man, after all, had never taken the request in her letter to heart. Her royal sister had suffered so much already; was she to endure the pain of adapting to the Northern Frontier all over again? She spoke softly, “Does the Prince… intend to take sister back to the Northern Frontier?”
To her surprise, the Grand Tutor answered simply,”There is no need to ever go back.”
Hearing this, Nie Qinglin raised her head in surprise, only to hear Wei Lenghou continue,”A month ago, Prince Xiu Tuhong of the Northern Frontier succumbed to severe injuries and died. From now on, that person no longer exists.”
Now Princess Yong’an was truly astonished. After a long pause, she finally said,”He was actually willing to give it all up?”
The Grand Tutor did not care to discuss other men with Guo’er.
Half-closing his eyes, he said, “He never had grand ambitions to begin with, and after suffering such a blow, he had even less desire to dominate the Northern Frontier… He originally planned to take his child and live in seclusion in the Great Wei, so he entrusted me to take care of his child first and properly handle the future affairs of his tribe. I did not disregard the request in your letter, Princess. However, I simply cannot bring myself to commit the act of tearing a man’s wife and child apart, so I brought the Prince here to take a look. He is now a man without power or influence. If you feel he disturbs Princess Shaoyang’s peace, Princess, you may order someone to seize him and execute him to end it all.”
These words were spoken with perfect propriety, simple and lighthearted. Nie Qinglin was left somewhat at a loss for words. She could naturally hear the residual anger in the Grand Tutor’s tone. If it were in the past, she would have possessed the tact to bow low and act submissively to regain the Grand Tutor’s favor.
“The Grand Tutor makes a valid point. Seeing that you are fatigued from the journey, I shall not disturb your rest.”
Saying this, she stood up, intending to leave her bedroom to the Grand Tutor.
“Stop right there!”
The Grand Tutor was so enraged by this heartless girl that his entire body trembled. Utterly ignoring Divine Physician Wei’s repeated warnings not to “allow himself to get angry,” the poison suddenly surged to his heart, his face changed, and he spat out a mouthful of dark blood.
Nie Qinglin’s face turned pale. She hurriedly called for someone to fetch the imperial physician.
Divine Physician Wei had also followed them all the way here. Hearing that the Grand Tutor had spat blood, he sprinted over with his medicine chest on his back. He sealed the Grand Tutor’s meridians with silver needles and had him smell a soothing incense to calm his agitated qi and blood.
Nie Qinglin stood guard outside the door accompanied by Nanny Shan. When the divine physician came out, she hurriedly asked,”Divine Physician Wei, what is… what happened to the Grand Tutor?”
Divine Physician Wei shook his head and sighed,”How can you not know, Princess? When the Grand Tutor went to interrogate the rebel Ge Qingyuan, he was deliberately provoked by that villain. As a result, poisonous blood splashed onto his face, infecting him with a rare and deadly poison…”
Hearing this, Nie Qinglin’s body stiffened. She remembered clearly why Wei Lenghou had gone to interrogate Ge Qingyuan.
Ever since that interrogation, she had never seen the Grand Tutor again… Coupled with her misunderstanding regarding the Grand Tutor and the Princess of the Xiongnu’s Gerfan tribe, she had never considered that he had been poisoned.
“Can this poison… be cured?” Nie Qinglin asked with pale lips.
Divine Physician Wei shook his head,”That Ge Qingyuan’s heart was truly ruthless. He fed himself poison using the Southern Frontier’s method of raising ‘poison men.’ This poison is extremely tormenting. If it enters through the blood, the victim will go mad for seven days and seven nights before dying, with no known antidote. Fortunately, when I traveled to the Southern Frontier in the past, I happened to encounter this poison and studied it intently. I found a method to draw out the poison, purging most of the toxin from the Grand Tutor’s body through his previous leg wound. However, scars remain where it splashed on his face, and the residual poison must be slowly dissolved… But the process of detoxification is excruciating. Previously, half of the Grand Tutor’s body was paralyzed, completely devoid of strength, and every night when the poison flared up, it was sheer torment… Princess, please do not anger the Grand Tutor again. If the anger drives the poison to his heart, even I will be powerless to save him!”
Hearing this, Nie Qinglin nodded slightly, turned, and walked into the inner chamber.
On the bed, the Grand Tutor had fallen asleep after receiving the acupuncture needles. In the flickering candlelight, the eye sockets beneath his thick eyebrows were dark and sunken, and a dragon-like scar on one side of his handsome face slightly marred his extraordinary looks.
Nie Qinglin understood naturally why the Grand Tutor had insisted on hiding it from her. Given his temperament, he had always held defeated enemies in contempt and would never have bothered to see Ge Qingyuan. Yet, simply because she had lost her composure and pleaded with him to perform the interrogation, he had fallen into Ge’s treacherous trap.
He was unwilling to let her know because he feared she would feel guilty seeing him suffer every day.
This man was full of flaws—ambitious, ruthless, arrogant, and always headstrong toward her, doing as he pleased… Yet, why was she time and again moved by his hard-to-detect tenderness? Just when she had finally steeled her heart to break off affection, he came limping along to stir up the quiet waters of her heart once more…
Perhaps hearing the sound beside the bed, the Grand Tutor slightly opened his eyes, only to see Nie Qinglin resting beside his hand, her large eyes closed in deep sleep.
A few loose strands of hair from her messy temples rested against her soft, delicate cheek, making her face appear even more petite… He slowly sat up, gently picked up the lovely woman, and placed her onto the pillow.
Guo’er was just as before; once sleepiness struck, she paid no mind to anything else. Even as she was moved, she merely let out a soft, cat-like murmur, leaning closely against his arm as she drifted back into deep sleep.
The Grand Tutor wanted to press a kiss upon her forehead, but halfway there, his thin lips stopped. With the residual poison not yet cleared, he could not even allow himself to enjoy her warmth. He could only quietly gaze at Guo’er’s sleeping face.
Her delicate brows were knit so tightly… The Grand Tutor finally let out a soft sigh when no one was around. Though he possessed powers that could shake heaven and earth, how was he to erase the sorrow between his beloved’s brows?
—
Life in Jiangnan following this was no longer leisurely and carefree.
Prince Xiu Tuhong was determined to make his consort remember him again, flattering and pleasing her attentively every day. After Princess Shaoyang recovered from her initial shock at Prince Xiu Tuhong’s foreign appearance and saw that he engaged in no further improper behavior, she no longer screamed in fright every time she saw him. When accompanied by others, she could manage to exchange a few words with the Prince.
Meanwhile, the Grand Tutor and Nie Qinglin appeared to have returned to their normal state. Since waking up that day, Nie Qinglin never mentioned spending her old age alone in Jiangnan again, paying careful and considerate attention to the Grand Tutor’s diet and injuries.
On this day, the group went to tour the West Lake.
Although the large lake in the imperial palace was carved out in imitation of the West Lake, it was, after all, man-made. How could it compare to this natural expanse of misty waters? It was not actually the best season for boating; nevertheless, the pleasure boat was fully equipped with warming stoves, making drinking wine aboard the boat in the middle of the lake a uniquely delightful experience.
Princess Shaoyang had recently learned how to fish and was holding a rod to fish at the side of the boat. Seeing no bite for half a day, Xiu Tuhong—being an impatient man—noticed his sweet wife’s face drooping slightly, tears ready to spill over. He suddenly unbuttoned his clothes, exposing a physique of full, sturdy muscle under the lady’s dazed gaze, and leaped into the lake with a splash. Before long, he caught a large fish with his bare hands and tossed it onto the deck.
When he climbed back up, his pants were soaked through and clinging to his body. His uninhibited appearance caused Princess Shaoyang to scream repeatedly once more, forcing Xiu Tuhong to quickly wrap his lower body with clothes, followed by another bout of gentle, soft-spoken coaxing.
Nie Qinglin and the Grand Tutor sat inside the cabin, naturally seeing everything clearly.
Sipping the fine tea in his hand, the Grand Tutor suddenly said,”Prince Xiu Tuhong intends to settle in Jiangnan. Back then, he helped me put down the rebellion in the Northern Frontier and bring down Xiu Tulie, so I intend to bestow this side villa to him as a residence. What does the Princess think?”
Hearing this, Nie Qinglin smiled,”Thank you for taking the trouble, Grand Tutor. That Prince possesses immense pride; bestowing it directly upon him might instead wound his dignity. It would be better to gift it to my sister in my name. I hereby thank you on her behalf… As for whether sister is willing to take him in, that will depend on their own fortune…”
Wei Lenghou naturally understood the implied meaning behind Nie Qinglin’s words: if he failed to win her royal sister’s favor, that Northern Frontier prince could simply sleep under the open sky.
Looking at Nie Qinglin’s gently smiling eyes, the Grand Tutor suddenly remarked,”I will never reach the point Prince Xiu Tuhong has…”
Nie Qinglin’s smile faded slightly as she said softly,”I know. The Grand Tutor has his own vision and ambitions; how could you delay them for the sake of romantic affairs…”
If Wei Lenghou were willing to relinquish his power, he would likely no longer be Wei Lenghou. This man would never be content with mundane years, living as an idle, accomplished-in-nothing person.
Seeing her stand up to walk outside, his large palm reached out and tightly grasped her once more, “Since ancient times, one can rarely possess both the empire and the beauty. But I simply do not believe there is anything in this world that can stump me, Wei Lenghou!”
