Chapter 80

Chapter 80

"Rest assured, Your Highness, we won't harm him. His Highness will give him silver and gold and tell him to stay far away from Your Highness in the future."

He Ji didn't know how to address Jiang Mo, so he could only call her "Your Highness."

"I am not Your Highness, Guard He. Don't call me that anymore. Just call me Miss Jiang."

"But Your Highness..." He Ji couldn't change his address quickly. He took a deep breath and gripped his sword hilt. "Miss Jiang, during these days you were away, His Highness went through hell..."

"Stop. I don't want to hear it, not a single word. Get out." Jiang Mo pointed at the door, shooing He Ji away.

He Ji took two steps, then turned back. "Miss Jiang, I'm really sorry for what happened that day. I didn't know you stole the roster under the coercion of Duke Qingguo."

One sentence pulled her back to the past.

Looking at the closed courtyard gate, Jiang Mo stood still for a long time.

She thought back over everything that happened after she married into the Prince Yu's Mansion. Except for some unpleasant words Chen Yingchou said at the beginning, he had treated her extremely well. And what about her? She deceived him, hid things from him, stole his roster, made him so angry that he vomited blood, and even now, pregnant with his child, she still chose to hide it.

Jiang Mo heaved a long sigh and muttered to herself, "Jiang Mo, you really are a bad person."

Jiang Bingzhong came out of the house and put a coat over Jiang Mo's shoulders. "Mo'er, I think the Crown Prince is sincere towards you. If you really can't let go, go back. Later, when the Crown Prince ascends the throne, you can be a favored consort by his side, which is better than suffering hardships with me as your father. And the child—this is royal blood. It's best not to leave it out among the common folk."

Long-standing traditional Confucian values were deeply rooted in Jiang Bingzhong's mind. In his view, bloodline was extremely important. By all rights, if Jiang Mo's child was a boy, he would be the Crown Prince's eldest son. Even if not the legitimate eldest son, he would still be the eldest son by a concubine. He should be in the palace, studying the classics and the six traditional arts, learning the way to govern the country and secure the state, and become someone who brings stability to the nation. He should not be stuck in this small Xiling County, living an ordinary life.

"If the child finds out about his identity in the future, won't he blame you?"

Jiang Mo had never thought about this question, and she couldn't ask the child twenty years later what kind of life he would want.

She only knew that if she returned to the capital, Shangjing, there would be thorns everywhere. Forget ten or twenty years—the child might not even survive birth.

In fact, she trusted Chen Yingchou very much at this moment, but she dared not bet her own life, her father's and brother's lives, and the life of her unborn child on a man's lifelong sincerity, on his ability to keep her safe for life.

Even if there is sincerity, so what? Zhu Shiliang still watched Lin Mei perish.

Didn't His Majesty also deeply love Consort Rong, and yet he couldn't keep her?

"Father, if I return to the Crown Prince's side, even with fine clothes, delicacies, and boundless favor, I would be at someone else's mercy and live in constant dread. That is not the life I want."

Jiang Bingzhong put his arm around Jiang Mo's shoulder. "Alright, Mo'er. I'll support you no matter what you decide."

Jiang Mo leaned on her father's shoulder. "Father, rest assured. I will persuade His Highness well these few days. He'll figure it out eventually."

"Let's hope."

The following morning, He Ji brought many people into the yard. They helped her tidy up the flower stands, clean the courtyard, and rearrange the rooms. By noon, they sent food over.

When the dishes were all set on the table, Jiang Mo saw the lily porridge. It seemed Lanqiu must have already told Chen Yingchou about her preferences.

"He Ji, are Lanqiu and the others doing well?"

He Ji averted his gaze from Jiang Mo. "They're fine."

"In the month since I left the capital, how has Wei Ya, the Crown Princess, treated them?"

He Ji dodged the question. "Miss Jiang, I really admire you. What exactly did you say that drove Princess Rong mad?"

Mad? Jiang Mo gave a cold snort. It served her right.

"Where is Dr. Zhu?"

He Ji sighed. "Such a graceful and brilliant man, now his eyes have no life in them. He either buries himself in official duties or drinks himself senseless. His Highness can't do a thing with him."

Jiang Mo thought to herself, Zhu Shiliang must deeply regret it. If given a second chance, would he still marry Lin Mei?

"And His Highness? Prince Rui lost the title of Crown Prince—has he done anything against the Crown Prince?"

"If you want to know something, ask me directly, leave He Ji alone." Chen Yingchou walked in from the courtyard gate, waving He Ji away.

Jiang Bai, catching the scent of food, wanted to go into the courtyard to eat, but Jiang Bingzhong held him back. "Be good, we'll go out after that person leaves. Daddy will play string figures with you."

Chen Yingchou sat down, picked up the bowl and chopsticks. "Jiang Mo." As he spoke her name, the softest spot in his heart ached. They had been husband and wife for a hundred days, and only a few days ago did he finally learn his beloved's name.

He looked up at her, his eyes were red-rimmed, his voice a little hoarse. "A Mo, will you eat with me? Whatever you want to know, I'll tell you everything."

For the first time, Chen Yingchou spoke her name. Jiang Mo felt incredibly wronged. She had been hiding in the shadows, never daring to let her true self come into the light. Now, she no longer had to hide; she could finally face Chen Yingchou with her real identity.

Jiang Mo couldn't hold back her tears. She walked over to the jasmine tree, turned her back to Chen Yingchou, and sobbed loudly. On the day she fled the capital, she felt nothing. After living in Xiling County for over a month, she still felt nothing. But this calling out "Jiang Mo" from Chen Yingchou made her realize that the days of living under someone else's identity were finally over, completely over.

Chen Yingchou came over and embraced her from behind. "A Mo, it's all my fault. I failed to express my feelings in time, didn't earn your trust. At Prince Yu's residence, you must have been so frightened and anxious. That's why you didn't dare to reveal the truth."

Jiang Mo closed her eyes and leaned against Chen Yingchou, the familiar feeling calming her heart.

She said nothing, only wept silently. She had deceived him, yet he said he was wrong—where's the logic in that?

"The person I married at the ceremony was you, not Wei Yalan. We are husband and wife. A Mo, without you, my life is meaningless. I cannot live without you. Come back with me."

Jiang Mo took two steps forward, leaving Chen Yingchou's embrace, still with her back to him. "Where does Your Highness want me to go back to? And by what identity?"

Revealing her true identity would confirm the crime of deceiving the emperor. Concealing it would mean living in the shadows again, never seeing the light.

Chen Yingchou stepped forward. "Come back with me first. I won't let you suffer."

Jiang Mo turned around. "Is Your Highness planning to hide me away in a gilded cage? Let me hide in a splendid prison, daily longing for you to come, unable to stand openly by your side, living my entire life in the shadows? Is that what Your Highness calls 'not suffering'?"

"No, A Mo..." Chen Yingchou clenched his sleeves. "Perhaps it will be like that at first, but it won't last long. I'll put everything back where it belongs."

Even one as honored as the Crown Prince cannot abandon etiquette and disregard royal dignity entirely, revealing the whole truth to the public. It takes time to maneuver and scheme.

She understood that Chen Yingchou had done his best. But she didn't want to spend the rest of her life waiting in uncertainty.

"Your Highness is wrong. I am the one who's the mistake. Now that the rightful person has returned to her place, I, the substitute, should exit. Your Highness, the play is over. I have already taken my final bow."

Jiang Mo lowered her eyes. "Your Highness has just entered the Eastern Palace; there must be many matters to attend to. Please return to the capital early."

Chen Yingchou leaned in and pressed his hands on Jiang Mo's shoulders. "A Mo, look into my eyes and tell me you have never loved me. Say it, and I will leave."

Jiang Mo refused to lift her gaze. She turned her head away, and even when Chen Yingchou cupped her face and made her look at him, she still avoided his eyes, her tears falling uncontrollably.

Chen Yingchou's warm, dry fingers traced her cheek, wiping away her tears. "I won't listen anymore. Don't cry. Look at me. You said my eyes are beautiful, didn't you? Now my eyes can see, and you haven't truly looked at them yet."

Jiang Mo slowly turned her head, her gaze meeting his eyes inch by inch.

The man's eyes were like a clear spring with ripples, reflecting her face, reaching the deepest recesses of her heart.

"Before, I dared not tell you, afraid I couldn't give you the promise of forever. Now that my sight is restored and I am still alive, I only wish to see you every day and be with you every night."

Jiang Mo's heart melted into a pool of spring water. She gazed into Chen Yingchou's eyes, as if trying to imprint them on her heart forever.

"A Mo, whether or not you have feelings for me, I can tell that you have no romantic interest in that Ding Lizhu. Why would you still marry him? How am I inferior to him?"

Jiang Mo instantly snapped back to reality. She pushed Chen Yingchou away and no longer looked into his eyes. "Your Highness, there is no need to compare yourself to him. He and I are the same type of people, while you and I are worlds apart. If we are forced to be together, one side will inevitably compromise and accommodate endlessly until all feelings are exhausted."

"That won't happen. You can't just decide that I'll run out of feelings for you."

Jiang Mo hadn't expected Chen Yingchou to see himself as the one who had to compromise.

She walked to the dining table and sat down. "Your Highness, don't talk about forever. There's no way to prove that. Let's eat; the dishes are getting cold."

The lily porridge was very good. After Jiang Mo took several sips, she saw Chen Yingchou not picking up his chopsticks, and she blurted out, "Still not eating? Are you waiting for me to feed you?"

Chen Yingchou pushed his bowl toward Jiang Mo and looked at her pitifully. "Then just feed me one more time."

Jiang Mo pushed the bowl back to him and added some vegetables to it. "Your Highness, your eyes are fine now. You're not a child. Eat by yourself."

Chen Yingchou reluctantly picked up his bowl and ate a few mouthfuls in silence.

"You asked earlier about Prince Rui and Prince Jing. They have been demoted to commoners, and their allies have been purged. Next is Duke Qingguo. Once conclusive evidence of his treason is found, he will be convicted, stripped of his title and his property seized."

"What do you plan to do with Wei Yalan?"

Chen Yingchou put down his chopsticks and said solemnly, "Treason is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations. Naturally, she cannot be spared."

Jiang Mo was somewhat surprised. Chen Yingchou wasn't someone who killed without reason. Wei Yalan was a helpless woman who had not participated in treason. Why did he plan to not spare her? Was there something else going on?

"A Mo, do you know how I found out that Wei Yalan was not you?"