Chapter 18

Chapter 18

◎Mid-Autumn Festival◎

"It's late, aren't you going to rest?" Li Cheng leaned against the bed, hinting with his words.

Tomorrow was Mid-Autumn Festival, and after that, he would have to go to Huai-Sui to train the navy, leaving no time for them. The couple naturally wanted to make the most of their time together.

Although Huiyin had repelled Xun Rou, she did not feel particularly happy. She turned her head to look at him: "Hasn't Cousin Xun been staying in your household for many years, prepared to be your fiancée? It’s a pity when I think about it."

Li Cheng hadn’t expected her to be so sentimental. He originally thought she would be pleased with his actions. No one likes to be seen as heartless or unfeeling. He looked at Huiyin and said, "I don’t want to lie to you. If I really wanted to marry someone, it wouldn’t matter if she were the daughter of an official or an orphan; I would still want to marry her."

"Do you mean you don’t like her?" Huiyin asked.

"As a sister and family member, I do like her. After all, we grew up together. Later, when I joined Uncle Wei Wang, they followed me without hesitation, and I am very grateful for that. But when it comes to marriage, I haven’t considered her. She is good, being my grandmother’s great-niece, but just because someone is good doesn’t mean I like them." Li Cheng made his point clear.

In fact, Li Cheng was being quite tactful. When Xun Rou was younger, she had often shown affection towards him. That was why he specifically built a residence in Xuzhou, preferring not to return to Jianye.

Even Grand Dowager Wu had sent him nourishing soups, thrown handkerchiefs, and deliberately made eye contact, using every possible means.

Huiyin was satisfied by his explanation: "I’m really glad you think this way. There was once a man who claimed to be smitten with me at first sight, threatening to die if I didn’t marry him. My father was almost moved, saying he was a fine young man with a good family background, but I just couldn’t stand the idea of marrying someone I didn’t like, no matter how much they threatened me."

Li Cheng hadn’t expected that two people who hated being coerced into arrangements would end up married, and even in a blind marriage. The more he thought about it, the more incredible it seemed.

With the misunderstanding cleared, the slight irritation in Huiyin’s heart dissipated. She offered a way out: "This year is my first as a bride, and I haven’t sent any gifts to my natal home for the festival. I’ll prepare them along with the New Year’s gifts."

Li Cheng smiled: "Good, send a gift to your sister in the Eastern Palace as well, and to your brother."

As the saying goes, lovebirds entwined, how blissful.

On the other side, Zheng Deyin had just received the emperor's favor. This time, the Crown Prince entrusted her with organizing the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet at the Eastern Palace, and she was determined to showcase her best skills, unwilling to be looked down upon.

However, she felt guilty towards Crown Princess Lu Xiao, so while lying in bed with Li Hang, she could not help but say, "Today, the embroidery bureau made a beautiful rose-colored dress. I thought it would suit the Crown Princess well, so I sent it to her. Tomorrow, although I will be in charge of the arrangements, I am also serving the Crown Princess. I only wish for the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess to have a grandchild soon, which would make me very happy."

These words were, of course, insincere. Li Hang, who grew up in the palace, understood these tactics well. Zheng Deyin often used this approach to gain power while still appearing virtuous.

But Li Hang still praised her, saying, "Your thoughts are commendable, but I only want to have children with you."

Zheng Deyin blushed coyly, "Your Highness, if others heard such words, it wouldn't be proper."

"What did they hear?" Li Hang teased, but he found Zheng Deyin too stiff in bed, losing his interest. However, thinking about the need to incite conflict between the Zheng family and the Lu family, he decided to continue. He spoke about the frustrations in court, and when Zheng Deyin heard that the Crown Prince was being controlled by Lu Wei, she felt secretly saddened.

The next day, when Elder Madame Xu came to pay respects, Zheng Deyin confided in her, "The Crown Prince is now feeling frustrated and unfulfilled, but he treats me very well. Grandmother, could you ask Father to help the Crown Prince?"

Elder Madame Xu stroked her hand, "Does the Crown Prince really treat you well?"

"Yes, the Crown Prince has visited the harem for over twenty days in the past month, and twenty of those days were spent here with me. He treats the Crown Princess indifferently, and even because of Lu Wei, he once hit the Crown Princess. But the Crown Princess is fierce and slapped the Crown Prince back." Zheng Deyin shuddered at the memory.

Hearing this, Elder Madame Xu hesitated for a moment before nodding, "Alright, I will try to persuade your father, but Lu Wei's influence is deeply rooted and not easy to deal with."

Zheng Deyin sighed, "If I had a mother and younger brother, I wouldn't have to trouble you, Grandmother, at your advanced age. This is my filial impiety."

Elder Madame Xu shared the same thoughts. Zheng Fang had no brothers and came from a humble background. His most trusted person was Pei Shuo, the eldest son of Madame Ji, but would he be willing to risk everything for her?

While Zheng Deyin was privately worried, Huizhen was happily preparing for the festival. No matter what, she needed to have a child first. Whether a daughter or a son, she needed to have one, otherwise, her family would not be foolish. If her father were to use so many troops to help her, he would first need to feel that it was worth it.

How could it be worth it? For example, if she had no sons, helping her husband would be in vain, as her husband might favor another woman's son.

Her father, after all, was a powerful lord, commanding troops in Ji Province. How could he easily mobilize his forces?

The table was filled with snacks, dried fruits, fresh fruits, mooncakes, and more. Huiyin raised her cup and offered a toast to Li Cheng. "As the saying goes, 'When the flowers are in full bloom and the moon is round, people come together.' We've finally been reunited as a couple, and it's definitely worth celebrating."

Li Cheng raised his cup and clinked it against hers. "Princess, please."

They drank their wine in one gulp. Today, Li Cheng had specifically invited all his subordinates who hadn't returned home yet. Understanding the situation, Huiyin politely excused herself. "I'll take my leave now."

Li Cheng was very satisfied with her for this. She had no excessive curiosity and handled situations with great propriety.

He continued to entertain the various generals. These men were brothers who had gone through life and death with him. To put it bluntly, they were people who would lay down their lives for him. As the saying goes, brothers are like limbs, women are like clothes. He naturally had to keep them on his side.

But despite thinking this way, he felt a twinge of guilt when he thought of his wife.

After a few rounds of drinks, the soldiers tactfully excused themselves, as they needed to set off early the next day.

Li Cheng was slightly tipsy. As he walked inside the second gate, the young servants dispersed. Men were not allowed to move around freely inside the second gate, so Li Cheng walked ahead by himself.

As he passed the rock garden, he was surprised to see someone emerge from the shadows. Under the bright moonlight, he squinted and recognized Xun Rou.

Xun Rou had been waiting there for a long time. The lingering summer heat was still warm, but the night air had grown cool after a while.

"Cousin..."

"What are you doing here, cousin?" Li Cheng asked, turning to face her.

Xun Rou was on the verge of tears. "Are you sending me away because of what your wife said? Think about it—how have I treated you all these years, cousin? My grandmother has already betrothed me to you. I consider you my husband. Everyone in Jianye knows this, so I traveled hundreds of miles to be with you. Are you really going to turn your back on me? I am willing to be a secondary consort and serve you and your wife."

She realized that becoming the primary consort was no longer an option. Though she arrived later, her seductive charm and cunning made her a formidable opponent.

She had actually arranged some auspicious carp in the lake today to create an auspicious sign, but it was ruined by her. This woman was far from ordinary.

Given the circumstances, she might as well ask for the position of secondary consort.

Li Cheng lowered his gaze. "Cousin, how can I let you be a secondary consort..."

"Why not? The whole world knows I am already your woman. What face do I have to marry someone else?" Xun Rou wiped her tears with a handkerchief.

Li Cheng stepped back and pointed at her. "Make yourself clear. You were only taken in because you sought refuge at my home. My grandmother pitied you and decided to keep you. What do you mean by saying the whole world knows you are my woman? For the past few years, I've been either in mourning or at war. When have we ever had any real interaction?"

Xun Rou was taken aback and then said, "Before the princess passed away, I copied scriptures with my blood and used my flesh as medicine. Surely you can't deny that, cousin?"

"Your father's official position, your mother's tomb, and the debts your Xun family owes, weren't these all repaid by me? Moreover, I never asked you to copy scriptures with your blood or use your flesh as medicine. No proper doctor would say such things. I even advised you not to do these things as they are completely useless. If you had really listened to me, why didn't you try to stop my grandmother from inviting those charlatans?" Li Cheng was the type to argue until he won, even if it took all day and night.

He loved Wang Chong, who was a well-known atheist.

He didn't believe in any of this.

Xun Rou had never known that this was what Li Cheng truly thought. She tilted her head in disbelief. "Cousin, how can you say this about me? I did it all for your mother. I even managed your estate..."

"Don't even talk about managing my estate. The people you sent over charged me sixty times the market price for eggs and inflated the cost of salt by tenfold. That's not managing an estate—that's being a leech. I am the only legitimate master of our commandery prince's mansion. How is it that the more money was used, the more there seemed to be?" Li Cheng's temper also flared up.

Xun Rou had followed the habits of when the Princess of Wu was alive. When the Princess of Wu was alive, she didn't expose them. Moreover, since she was managing the estate, she also needed to keep the people under the Princess of Wu's command happy and give them some benefits so that they would praise her.

But she couldn't change things on her own, especially since she wasn't the legitimate princess.

But Li Cheng seemed ungrateful, and it made her angry. "Cousin, I did it all for you. How can you say this to me?"

...

Just as Huiyin finished bathing and changing, she heard someone outside shout, "Young Princess, something's wrong! The Little Prince and Miss Xun are arguing."

What the heck? Who knew a man and a woman could argue so intensely?