mtlumby2d Chapter 270 Entering the Palace
Chapter 270 Entering the Palace
Li Zhen realized that it was impossible for him to give Xu Jiaoran the freedom she truly wanted, so it was impossible for Xu Jiaoran to truly love him.
Since you don't love yourself, it's good for people to be around you.
After Qi Shuo finished discussing things with Li Zhen, he wanted to leave, but Li Zhen stopped him.
"If your wife has nothing to do on weekdays, please come to the palace more often and accompany the queen!"
Li Zhen wanted Qi Shuo's wife to advise Xu Jiaoran more. Maybe it would be useful? Even if it didn't work, at least try.
Qi Shuo shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, my wife has never been to the palace, and I am afraid of offending the Queen due to etiquette."
Qi Shuo knew that Cheng Wenwen did not like the restraints in the palace, and she probably did not want to enter the palace.
However, Li Zhen had already made up his mind and said, "No problem, as long as your wife enters the palace, she doesn't have to be too bound by those etiquettes. As long as she doesn't go too far, I won't blame her!"
"Your Majesty, my wife has been ill these days and should not come to the palace. I am afraid..."
Qi Shuo wanted to find an excuse for Cheng Wenwen, but Li Zhen interrupted him directly: "Don't make excuses to refuse. I know you can't make up your wife's mind. You can go back and ask her. If your wife is willing, it's fine. If not, I won't force her. Okay?"
Since Li Zhen had already said this, Qi Shuo naturally couldn't refuse and directly replied: "Yes!"
Afterwards, Qi Shuo left the palace.
……
Jade disks hang on beaded curtains, and cloud shadows fall on screens. In an evening painted softly by the sunset glow, Cheng Wenwen leaned on the soft couch, quietly listening to the melodious bird calls outside the window.
At this moment, Qi Shuo walked in, and her conversation rang in his ears, "I'm back!"
"You're back?" Cheng Wenwen stood up, took him into the house, and asked, "Why are you so late today?"
"Your Majesty told me something. You don't have to wait for me." Qi Shuo looked at the table full of untouched dishes and felt a little sorry for her, afraid that she would be hungry.
"Oh, it would be boring if I eat alone. Of course we have to eat together!" They sat down.
Qi Shuo told Cheng Wenwen about his conversation with the emperor today.
Emperor Li Zhen asked her to accompany the unhappy Queen Xu Jiaoran in the palace.
Cheng Wenwen was a little slow to react.
Seeing her like this, Qi Shuo said, "If you don't want to go, I can refuse His Majesty."
"How can I disobey the Emperor's order?"
Cheng Wenwen thought for a moment and put aside her worries. She knew the plot of the book, and naturally knew that Empress Jiaoran was unhappy and depressed about the life in the deep palace, so she was usually gloomy, and Li Zhen wanted to please Xu Jiaoran, so he became a tyrant in the later period by wasting money and resources and not caring about the lives of the people, which led to many people rebelling against Li Zhen.
If she wants Li Zhen to win, she should appease Xu Jiaoran, which will be good for their situation.
Therefore, Cheng Wenwen tactfully agreed to Qi Shuo's request. She thought that perhaps her arrival could bring some comfort to Jiao Ran, and perhaps free her from this endless loneliness.
Qi Shuo was worried about her: "You don't have to go!"
"I want to go!" Cheng Wenwen explained, "After all, we are all women. I will go to the palace to comfort them. It's okay. Don't worry about me."
Seeing that she insisted, Qi Shuo could only nod and agree.
The next day, she put on gorgeous clothes and stepped into the forbidden area of the palace with light steps. When she stepped into the magnificent palace, a faint sadness came over her. Xu Jiaoran was sitting alone by the window, looking out the window with empty eyes.
"Empress." Cheng Wenwen called softly, with an indescribable warmth in her voice.
Xu Jiaoran turned her head slightly and saw Cheng Wenwen, a stranger, without a trace of surprise or confusion in her eyes.
"I am Lady Cheng, the wife of Duke Xiao." Cheng Wenwen slowly approached her and explained softly, "Your Majesty hopes that I can come and accompany you and talk to you."
"If you come here to persuade me, there is no need. Just get out!" Xu Jiaoran ordered her to leave.
However, Cheng Wenwen did not leave and stayed by her side.
Xu Jiaoran also treated her as air.
"Your Majesty, the weather is nice today, why don't we go for a walk outside?" Cheng Wenwen suggested.
Xu Jiaoran remained silent, which naturally made her attitude clear.
However, Cheng Wenwen didn't care about being ignored. She came to help Qi Shuo change the ending, so it didn't matter if she suffered a little.
This stop lasted the whole morning, and Cheng Wenwen's feet couldn't help feeling a little sore.
"Your Majesty, it's time for lunch. Would you please get up and eat something?" asked the palace maid.
"no appetite!"
"You didn't eat anything this morning, so you should eat something, or your body won't be able to bear it!"
"It's just right to die!"
Xu Jiaoran has been depressed these days, so naturally she has no appetite and just wants to lie down.
When Cheng Wenwen heard this, she followed the palace maid out and said, "Can I make some food for the queen?"
"Madam, you are of noble status, this..."
"It's okay, I'm good at it, let me try!" said Cheng Wenwen.
Then, Cheng Wenwen asked Xu Jiaoran about some of the foods she should avoid, and then went into the kitchen and started preparing delicious food.
Although the food was delicious and made the palace ladies hungry, Xu Jiaoran still couldn't muster any interest.
Seeing this, Cheng Wenwen suddenly thought of a possibility, maybe...Xu Jiaoran, is she depressed?
Cheng Wenwen felt pity for her. She gently took Xu Jiaoran's hand and said, "My Lady, I heard that you have been like this recently, so I specially prepared some food for you. I hope you can try it."
"My queen, no matter how bad your mood is, you must eat well and take care of yourself. If your relatives and friends who care about you knew that you were ruining yourself like this, they would be so worried and sad, wouldn't they?" Cheng Wenwen continued to persuade.
"Who would worry about me?" Xu Jiaoran said in self-abandonment. With her current status, she was afraid that her husband would have already despised her. And her son would also despise her when he grew up, right?
Seeing this, Cheng Wenwen couldn't help but lower her voice and said, "My queen, how do you know that those people are not worried about you? You still have children..."
When Xu Jiaoran heard the word "child", she couldn't help but perk up.
Cheng Wenwen softly mouthed two words - East Palace.
Xu Jiaoran's son Li Mingquan is being held in the abandoned Prince's Eastern Palace.
Xu Jiaoran immediately perked up, looked at Cheng Wenwen, and said, "Since Madam is so thoughtful, I will have dinner with Madam!"
Cheng Wenwen nodded, giving her affirmative comfort.
In Cheng Wenwen's eyes, she saw sincere care and warmth, which made her feel warm.
Xu Jiaoran sat down at the table and looked at the delicious food on the table. She couldn't help feeling moved.
"Madam, please sit down and eat together."
Cheng Wenwen sat down without hesitation, and the two of them ate together.
Xu Jiaoran looked at the maids and palace servants and said, "All of you go out. I want to have a quiet meal with my wife."
The palace servants hesitated for a moment, but eventually retreated without closing the door, fearing that something might happen. After all, His Majesty had specifically warned them that if anything happened to the Queen, they would not be able to survive.
Only Xu Jiaoran and Cheng Wenwen were left in the hall.
Cheng Wenwen pretended to be loud as she added more food to Xu Jiaoran's plate and said, "Your Highness, drink some soup first to warm your stomach."