Chapter 28 Post House

Chapter 28: The Posthouse

Now that he was no longer part of the Lu family, there was no need to stay at the Lu residence any longer. After confirming that Lu Jiming had recovered from his illness, Wei Yan had Cui Chi arrange their return to the capital.

Team D had come with nine people in total, and Wei Yan left two behind to continue investigating the pirates' movements. Because of the dangers they encountered at sea on the way here, Wei Yan decided to take the land route for the entire journey this time.

Before leaving Mingzhou, Lu Jiming naturally had to bid farewell to Xu Cifeng.

Xu Cifeng had learned about everything that had happened to the Lu family, and upon seeing Lu Jiming, he couldn't help but hug him and cry.

"Alright, there's nothing to cry about. I'm unburdened now," Lu Jiming said. Afraid that Xu Cifeng might get upset and harm the pregnancy, he didn't reveal all of his own pain and inner turmoil.

But Xu Cifeng had grown up with Lu Jiming and knew exactly what the Lu family meant to him. "I don't believe you. You must be heartbroken."

"It's all in the past," Lu Jiming said. "When my nephew is born, you must bring him to the capital to see me."

"Of course," Xu Cifeng replied, his emotions quick to come and go. Hearing Lu Jiming's words, he immediately stopped crying and smiled. "You better prepare a worthy gift."

Lu Jiming smiled and promised he would prepare a rare treasure as a gift.

Xu Cifeng tugged at Lu Jiming's sleeve and whispered, "Jiming, now that you won't be returning to Mingzhou, you mustn't forget me."

Lu Jiming spread his arms and hugged Xu Cifeng tightly. "With you in Mingzhou, I will definitely come back to visit you sooner or later."

Having received this promise, Xu Cifeng finally stopped crying. Lu Jiming told him to go first, but he refused, insisting on watching Lu Jiming get into the carriage before he would go.

Once they had left Mingzhou city, Wei Yan spoke up. "If you truly can't bear to part with him, after we return to the capital, I can find him a position in the Imperial Treasury Directorate so he can come and stay with you."

Lu Jiming declined. "Cifeng has a free-spirited nature. The entanglements and interests of officialdom are the most draining. It's better not to."

Afraid that Wei Yan might feel awkward after his offer was rejected, Lu Jiming added, "He wants for nothing in Mingzhou, and now with Your Highness's protection, his carefree life is something few can match. If it were me, I wouldn't want to go to the emperor's feet to be subject to others' scrutiny either."

Wei Yan smiled. "Xuping, for someone as rule-abiding as you, it's quite unexpected that you could befriend someone who dislikes constraints."

Lu Jiming said, "It's precisely because I know I can't be like Cifeng that I admire him all the more and wish to be close to him." These words seemed to refer to Xu Cifeng, but also to Wei Yan. A smile played on Lu Jiming's lips as he thought to himself, who knows.

Wei Yan looked at him, heart aching, took his hand, and said, "From now on, you can be whoever you want to be."

Traveling by carriage was much slower than by boat, so the return journey took one day longer than the journey there.

As nightfall approached, the group stopped at a posthouse to rest. They would set off at dawn the next day, estimating they would reach Bianjing before nightfall.

It wasn't until Lu Jiming got off the carriage that he felt a sense of familiarity with the place. Only after entering the guest room did the realization strike him like a thunderbolt.

This was where he had given birth to A-Luan in his previous life.

At that time, Lu Jiming had already been released from the palace by Wei Yan and had returned to his duties at the Hanlin Academy. Lu Jiming had been pregnant with A-Luan before leaving the palace. To keep it from Wei Yan, he bound his abdomen with white cloth every day before going out.

He managed to conceal it until he was near term. His body truly couldn't take it anymore, so he took leave to rest and nurture the fetus at home. Unexpectedly, his father suddenly passed away.

Lu Jiming left the capital to hasten home for the funeral. Already weak, and with the jolting of the carriage, he soon began experiencing abdominal pain. He barely managed to hold on until they reached this posthouse.

That night happened to be New Year's Eve, and they were on a remote official road with no villages nearby, making it impossible to find a doctor. Lu Jiming sent away the accompanying servants, entered the guest room, and practically collapsed onto the bed.

The baby hadn't yet engaged, but the waters broke prematurely. Lu Jiming was already extremely weak, having never had a single day of proper prenatal care. It was also his first childbirth, and the baby showed no signs of coming.

In the deep silence of the night, Lu Jiming refused to make a sound. He could only bite his sleeve and kneel over on the bed.

He clutched the bed curtains, the pain making his head spin. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw Wei Yan. It was one of the rare moments of regret in his life—regretting leaving Wei Yan to return home, regretting putting himself in such a situation.

But unlike the diverging paths that came later, at that time, he still had a way back. Yet he only felt regret; he never truly turned around.

After a night of torment, when Ning Jia burst into the room, Lu Jiming had completely lost the strength to get up.

He lay collapsed on the bed. Despite it being the harsh cold of winter, his entire body was soaked in sweat, and the bedding was stained with dried blood.

He didn't even know when Ning Jia had entered. If he had known, he would never have allowed Ning Jia to come near. His pride wouldn't allow anyone to see him in such a wretched state, especially Ning Jia, who was just a half-grown child.

Ning Jia, terrified, ran out. Alone, he went to the nearest village, half-dragging and half-threatening the village doctor back to the posthouse, saving both Lu Jiming and Lu Luan's lives.

Now, Lu Jiming had returned here without warning. Realizing the furnishings in the room were startlingly familiar, it dawned on him that A-Luan had been born on this very bed before him.

In his previous life, this posthouse had been demolished and rebuilt by the time Lu Jiming returned to the capital after his three-year mourning period. That's why Lu Jiming hadn't recognized it when he first got off the carriage.

But this room, that night of agony and torment—Lu Jiming feared he would never forget it for all eternity.

Lu Jiming stood by the bed, bending down to touch the bed board.

The bedding was clean and tidy, unstained by blood. The torment he had just envisioned happened over twenty years ago, and also two years from now... Lu Jiming came to his senses. Clearly, it would never happen again.

Lu Jiming still remembered how he had looked holding the newborn A-Luan. In his entire life, he had never told Wei Yan he loved him, so he poured all that forbidden, unspeakable emotion entirely into A-Luan.

Lu Jiming didn't even dare to think how he would have endured the later years, watching Wei Yan surrounded by children and grandchildren, if he hadn't had A-Luan.

At this thought, an indescribable sorrow suddenly surged in his heart. Lu Jiming leaned over the bed, hugging the pillow.

Why had things with Wei Yan come to that point back then? Perhaps it was because he was on the verge of gaining something, so he began to desire more. Just the thought of how he had pushed Wei Yan away in his previous life, of Wei Yan growing old with someone else, made Lu Jiming feel as if his heart and liver were being torn apart.

He hated his own ruthlessness and decisiveness. His younger self had been so resolute, forever unwilling to turn back.

"Xuping, would you like to go down and eat something?" Wei Yan's voice came from behind. Lu Jiming snapped out of his reverie and hurriedly stood up.

This posthouse was old and run-down, with few passing guests and plenty of rooms, so everyone could have their own. Wei Yan's room was right next to Lu Jiming's. After settling his luggage, he came over to Lu Jiming's room.

Lu Jiming instinctively reached to wipe the tears from his face but found none had fallen. The grief of the past few days seemed to have temporarily drained his tears. Or perhaps that was precisely why his heart felt so heavy.

"Your Highness, I'm not hungry right now. Please go ahead and eat," Lu Jiming said. Wei Yan then went downstairs with Cui Chi.

Watching Wei Yan's retreating figure, Lu Jiming, as if possessed, stood up and ran to the door, wanting to grab Wei Yan's sleeve. But he was a step too late; Wei Yan had already reached the turn in the stairs.

Lu Jiming watched Wei Yan disappear down the stairs with a sense of loss. He sat back down in the room, repeatedly telling himself to get a grip. This was Zhaohe 7. Everything had changed. The future in his mind would not come to pass.

Once he was sure he wouldn't lose his composure again, Lu Jiming stood up once more, intending to go downstairs for a meal. But then he saw Wei Yan and, behind him, Cui Chi carrying a tray.

Lu Jiming blinked several times, thinking it might be an illusion.

"It's crowded and noisy downstairs right now, which is unpleasant. So I had Cui Chi bring the food up. Xuping, let's eat together," Wei Yan said with a smile, sitting down in Lu Jiming's room as Cui Chi set out the dishes.

Lu Jiming didn't refuse and sat opposite Wei Yan.

The food at the posthouse had no color, aroma, or flavor—it was merely sustenance. Wei Yan wasn't used to it and put down his chopsticks after a few bites. He asked Lu Jiming, "Xuping, is there something wrong with this place?"

Lu Jiming looked at Wei Yan, showing a hint of surprise. He believed he concealed his feelings extremely well in front of others. Except in moments of extreme vulnerability, he could almost perfectly mask all his inner thoughts behind a smile. How could Wei Yan possibly see through it?

"There's nothing wrong. Why would Your Highness ask such a question?" Lu Jiming said.

"I just feel you seem a bit unsettled," Wei Yan said. "Is it because we're about to return to the capital, and you're nervous?"

Lu Jiming shook his head. "Not at all. Your Highness and I are so familiar now. How could I be nervous?"

Wei Yan arched a brow. "Then what is it?"

Lu Jiming shook his head again, polished off the last of his food, dabbed his mouth with a napkin, and glanced at the neatly made bed with a smile. "It's nothing. Perhaps I'm just tired from the journey and haven't slept well."

For some reason, with Wei Yan standing before him, the intense pain and resentment that had felt so real just moments ago suddenly vanished without a trace.

Wei Yan wasn't entirely convinced.

From Lu Jiming's expression, Wei Yan felt sure he was hiding something, but it likely wasn't anything too serious. After all, Ning Jia and Lu Guanguan had hardly interacted with him alone these past few days, so Lu Jiming couldn't possibly be planning to escape the marriage.

As long as it wasn't about fleeing the wedding, nothing else could be considered a major issue.

"The wedding date is drawing closer, yet not a single step of the formal betrothal rites has begun. Once we return to the capital tomorrow, you're bound to be pestered to death by the Ministry of Rites," Wei Yan remarked.

Lu Jiming chuckled. "In the end, that's the Ministry of Rites's headache. There's not much I can do."

Mentioning the marriage reminded Lu Jiming of Lu Guanguan, and he couldn't help but ask Wei Yan further, "When I move into the Eastern Palace, Jia'er is one thing, but what about Guanguan?"

After all, Lu Guanguan was a grown man, and staying in the palace wouldn't do.

"Don't worry about it," Wei Yan said. "You're used to having him around, so keep him for now. In a few years, once you've settled into palace life and no longer lack for attendants, you can let him go then. It won't make a difference."

"But the palace rules..."

"Xuping, rest assured," Wei Yan said. "I've told you before, since you're entering the Eastern Palace, I will honor and shield you. If I can't even handle such a small matter, what kind of Crown Prince would I be?"

Lu Jiming thanked Wei Yan. Seeing that he had finished his meal, Wei Yan called Cui Chi in to clear the table. Once everything was tidied up, Wei Yan noticed how late it had grown and made to leave for his own quarters.

Before he could take a step, Lu Jiming suddenly spoke up. "Your Highness!"

Wei Yan turned around. "What is it, Xuping?"

Lu Jiming's face flushed, and he stammered, "Your Highness, tonight... could you... could you spend the night here?"

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Author's Note: Everyone, not only will he stay over next chapter, but they'll also get married directly. We're not dragging this out.