bookbashuk Chapter 468 Extra: Sisters
Chapter 468 Extra: Sisters
"What does Your Highness mean?" Shen Shiyan was also very angry. "Now that I have entered the royal family, I am a royal wife. I should abide by the rules and regulations. How can I leave the palace at will? If I do something wrong, I will bring shame to Your Highness."
What is my second sister doing leaving the capital? She's a girl; instead of staying properly in the inner courtyard, she's always trying to run around outside. His Highness is her brother-in-law, and there's a distinction between them as ruler and subject; he should be reprimanding her. How could he persuade me to see her off?"
Li Yuanke looked at her for a long while, and just as she was feeling uneasy, he said, "Don't you really understand why she's not in the capital?"
Shen Shiyan truly didn't know why her second sister wanted to leave the capital. "This concubine doesn't know, and Your Highness also knows that my second sister has never taken me seriously."
"But she has never said a bad word about you behind your back. You keep saying she's no good, and you think that makes you virtuous?" Li Yuanke looked on, particularly angry.
Tonight is their wedding night, and Shen Shiyan, unwilling to ruin this auspicious day, knelt down to plead guilty, saying, "I only love my second sister and don't want her to be burdened by the gossip of the world. As the saying goes, the deeper the love, the harsher the criticism. Please, Your Highness, understand!"
Li Yuanke gave her a deep look and told her to get up.
But the so-called "wedding night" turned out to be nothing. She came forward to help Li Yuanke undress, but Li Yuanke avoided her, saying, "I'm tired, you can do as you please!"
Even if Shen Shiyan loves Li Yuanke, she is still a woman. If she throws herself into his arms and is rejected, can she force herself on him?
She lay in the curtained tent, and through the thick curtains, she could only see Li Yuanke's broad back on the couch under the south window.
She had to find excuses for him in her heart: he was tired, and it wasn't that he didn't want to be her husband.
Shen Shiyan didn't sleep a wink all night, but Li Yuanke slept soundly. With Li Gui by his side, he had nothing to worry about. When dawn broke, Shen Shiyan finally got sleepy and took a nap. When she woke up, Li Yuanke was already gone.
This happened only two or three times afterward.
Later, when the late emperor passed away, the emperor observed mourning for a total of twenty-seven months, so there was no need to put on an act anymore.
But everyone in the palace is shrewd; a sharp eye can tell at a glance whether someone is a virgin or has been a concubine.
Han Dan naturally knew that after her mistress entered the palace, the emperor had not consummated their marriage. She also felt that the crux of the matter lay with the second young lady, but since the second young lady was not in the capital for many years, it was hard to blame her.
"Your Majesty's heart belongs only to the Emperor. In time, the Emperor will surely sense it. From now on, please do not speak of the Second Miss in front of the Emperor. You and the Emperor are husband and wife, why cause discord between you because of the Second Miss?"
"I only just realized how capable my second sister is. She was actually involved in the struggle for the throne back then. We're both from the same mother, and she never told me about such a major event."
What's infuriating is that my family has kept it a secret from me! Do they still consider me family?
Han Dan said, "It's all in the past. Fortunately, Your Highness has entered the palace and achieved your wish. Let's not dwell on the past."
Shen Shiyan gave a wry smile, "I am now confined to the palace gates, so what's the point of thinking more?"
She began copying the palace rules.
When she picked up her pen, she couldn't help but recall the time she went to her grandfather's study and saw her second younger sister sitting in the emperor's lap through the window. At that time, her second younger sister was only three or four years old.
She held the pen, and the emperor held her hand, teaching her to write.
Her hand was guided by the Emperor to write. As he looked at the characters, she turned her head to look at him. Although she wasn't paying attention, the Emperor didn't say anything to her. Instead, after a long while, he smiled and asked, "What are you looking at, Xi'er?"
The second younger sister said, "I'm looking at Brother Yuan Ke, he's so handsome!"
At that moment, she truly felt that there could be such a shameless person in the world who would actually praise a man for being handsome.
The Emperor was not annoyed. He pushed her face away and straightened her head. "Focus on writing. You need to write three large characters today. In a few days, there will be a temple fair at Daxiangguo Temple. I will take you out to play."
"Okay, okay!"
When Shen Shiyan came to her senses, she felt as if the pen weighed a ton.
She copied the palace rules stroke by stroke, tears streaming down her face. She loved him more than a thousand pounds, but he never had her in his heart or eyes.
Two days later, Han Dan rushed in, "It's terrible, Your Highness! The old master has passed away!"
With a clatter, the pen in Shen Shiyan's hand fell to the ground. Panicked, she said sharply, "It's Shen Shixi! Did she anger my grandfather to death? Guards, I want to see the Emperor! It must be her! When I went to see my grandfather outside the palace, he was perfectly fine. How could he have suddenly died?"
She was the only one with her grandfather; she must have killed him!
Shen Shiyan cannot leave the palace.
But someone still reported what happened here to Li Yuanke, and a murderous intent surged in his heart.
Li Yuanke left the palace again to offer incense to the old Grand Tutor at the Shen family's residence, a great honor and favor.
Among a large group of filial sons and grandsons dressed in mourning clothes, he immediately spotted Shen Shixi kneeling. Her once chubby face now appeared very thin; in just a few days, she seemed to have lost a lot of weight.
The passing of the Grand Tutor saddened her and filled him with guilt.
She remained kneeling with her eyes lowered. When the eunuch announced the Emperor's arrival, she remained motionless, like a wooden or clay sculpture, without raising her head. Her hands supported her on the ground, and tears streamed down her face, a sight that broke Li Yuanke's heart.
Separated by the crowd, they seemed to be in two different worlds, so far apart from each other.
The Emperor himself came to pay his respects, and the Grand Tutor's funeral was held in a very grand manner. The Shen family did not have the financial resources to support such a large event, but all the funeral arrangements were handled by the Ministry of Rites. In other words, the imperial court paid for it.
When Li Yuanke returned to the palace, his subordinates told Li Gui about what had happened in Shen Shiyan's palace. He came in, but hesitated to speak.
Looking at the bleak scene outside the window, Li Yuanke asked, "What is it?"
Li Guidao said, "Your Majesty, the news has spread throughout the palace that Grand Tutor Shen was murdered by the Second Young Lady!"
boom!
Li Yuanke slammed his hand on the sandalwood table, shattering it into pieces. Ornaments and teacups on the table fell to the ground, their fragments breaking. His violent emotions surged forth like a tidal wave as he roared, "Who is spreading rumors and causing trouble?"
Li Gui had already knelt down with a thud. "Your Majesty, it's...it's Consort Shu!"
Li Yuanke held a shard in his hand, the sharp edge and blade piercing his palm, but he felt no pain. His mind was filled with the lonely figure of Shen Shixi, and the back view he saw when he saw her off when she left.
Why must she be the one to leave for the capital?
He had never acted for himself in his entire life, so why couldn't he be selfish just once? If Xi'er blamed him in the future, he could say it was the Grand Tutor's dying wish.
In the end, however, he suppressed the urge to order Shen Shiyan's death. From now on, Shen Shiyan's life or death would no longer concern him.
He ordered Li Gui to instruct the Censorate to have anyone who spread rumors about the cause of the Grand Tutor's death beaten to death!
A bloody storm brewed in the imperial harem.
Inside Zhaoyang Palace, all was as quiet as ever.
Six months later, Shen Shiyan's confinement period ended, and she went to attend the morning meeting at Fengyi Palace. Consort Chen was late.
Consort De glanced at Shen Shiyan and smiled, "Was it Sister Chen who served the Emperor last night? I heard His Majesty was late this morning!"
She covered her mouth and giggled.