It was late at night and everything was silent. Only the autumn wind was tirelessly blowing the dead leaves in the courtyard and tickling the golden bells on the eaves.
Sui Sui lay on his side on the bed, staring blankly at the moonlight falling in front of the bed, without the slightest desire to sleep.
Just then, she heard the sound of boots coming closer and closer, followed by rapid knocks on the door.
He got up and put on his clothes, then woke up Chun Tiao who was sleeping on the couch in the outer room.
When they walked out of the room, Grandma Gao had already gone to answer the door.
The visitor was a eunuch from Prince Qi's mansion. Seeing that it was Grandma Gao, he became more polite: "Your Highness Prince Qi is coming to the Shanchi Courtyard."
Grandma Gao was stunned: "Isn't Your Highness having a banquet in the East Palace tonight?"
Normally, when his brother gets married, Huan Xuan, as the younger brother, should entertain the guests at the banquet. When the banquet is over at night, he will most likely stay in the East Palace, or return to the palace.
Grandma Gao never expected that he would come here.
But after thinking about it, she understood the reason.
His sweetheart was marrying his brother. He had been patient for a whole day, from the bride-picking ceremony to the wedding ceremony to the banquet. Perhaps something happened during the banquet that made him unable to endure it any longer.
It was natural for him to come to this Shanchiyuan. It was even more unpleasant for him to be alone in the wedding night of the master.
Here is a fake one. Even if it cannot be replaced, it can at least ease the pain of missing you.
When Grandma Gao thought of her own prince, she felt distressed and worried. She couldn't help but blame Ruan Yuewei, the "favorite beauty", in her heart. As the saying goes, distance does not separate relatives, but because of this woman, the two brothers are still estranged until today.
The eunuch said, "Madam, please help Madam Lu to wash and comb her hair."
Grandma Gao still felt that His Highness was fooling around - instead of finding a fake substitute, it would be better to marry a wife and take in two concubines from good families. Wouldn't that be better than hanging out with a country girl like this
But Huan Xuan always kept his word and once he made up his mind, no one could persuade him. Just like when he was in love with Ruan Yuewei, no matter who tried to persuade him, he would not turn back.
Grandma Gao sighed and turned around to dress up Lu Suisui.
He drank the dogwood wine. Although he brushed his teeth with green salt and rinsed his mouth with fragrant tea, he couldn't help but smell of alcohol after drinking so much.
She herself did not take it seriously, but Nanny Gao treated her as if she were facing a great enemy. She fumigated the clothes she was going to wear twice with fragrance, and also found some scented pills made according to the secret recipe of the palace and asked her to hold them under her tongue.
She just let him do whatever he wanted, like a puppet, to be manipulated by Nanny Gao and the maids.
Grandma Gao asked her maid to comb her hair into a popular horse-like bun, and put on a jade hairpin and a jade comb. Ruan Yuewei liked plain and elegant colors, and thought gold was too vulgar and "noisy", so she usually only wore jade and silver hairpins of various colors.
When she was halfway through dressing up, she heard the sound of carriages outside. Huan Xuan had arrived.
Nanny Gao didn't dare to keep him waiting for long, so she hurriedly helped Sui Sui change into a light rattan-colored coat embroidered with white peonies, a silver-green silk skirt, and a white fox fur coat.
After finishing her makeup, Madam Gao stepped back a few steps, looked her over with a critical eye, frowned and nodded: "Not bad, let's go."
She led Sui Sui to the outside of Huan Xuan's courtyard and pursed her lips and said, "My lady, remember, it is your blessing to serve His Highness... It may be painful the first time, but it will happen once in a while, just bear with it and it will pass."
Sui Sui nodded.
"Madam, please serve His Highness well. His Highness is kind and will not treat you unfairly. Later... you must not offend His Highness."
Hello everyone.
Nanny Gao reminded her several times before reluctantly sending her in.
There were only two eunuchs guarding the door outside the Qinghan Courtyard bedroom, and two maids waiting at the steps. The rest of the servants had been sent away by Huan Xuan.
She then walked in through the curtain and bowed at the door: "I, a humble girl, greet Your Highness."
A deep voice came from deep behind the heavy curtains: "Come in."
Sui Sui walked up to Huan Xuan.
Huan Xuan was sitting on the couch. On the table in front of him stood a gilded wine pot with a garuda bird pattern and a pair of matching wine glasses. Red candles were burning beside the couch, giving the atmosphere of a wedding night.
It’s a pity that he was the wrong person.
Huan Xuan picked up the wine glass and shook it. His slender fingers with distinct joints set against the gilded silver cup was truly pleasing to the eye.
"Madame Gao has taught you well." He glanced at Sui Sui and nodded.
He had obviously drunk quite a bit of wine, and his eyes were blurry, not as cold and sharp as usual, and there was even a faint smile at the corners of his mouth.
Combined with his words, it seemed as if he was mocking her for imitating others.
But Sui Sui seemed not to hear. She just stared at him blankly, her eyes moving slowly from his heroic brow to his tall straight nose, and then to his thin lips that were lightly touching the rim of the cup.
The face that I thought I would never see again appeared before my eyes again, so close that I could touch it with just a stretch of my hand.
In fact, even if she drank all of Changan's wine, she knew that the man in front of her was not the one in her heart.
But it's always easier to deceive yourself when you're a little drunk.
At this moment, she just wanted to plug the hole in her heart to prevent the cold wind from rushing in. No matter if it was a handful of snow, a piece of ice, or a knife, just plug it up.
Huan Xuan was also looking at her.
The woman's eyes are like rippling spring water, hiding the tenderness of an entire spring.
Huan Xuan met her undisguised gaze, frowned, and glanced at the wine pot: "Pour the wine."
Sui Sui rolled up her light silk sleeves into her silver armlet, picked up the wine pot and poured wine into the cup.
After she finished pouring, Huan Xuan raised his eyelids and looked at her: "Can you drink?"
Sui Sui nodded.
Huan Xuan pushed an empty cup in front of her.
He filled a glass, put down the jug, picked up the glass and took a sip.
But he never expected that the exquisitely crafted gilded wine pot contained the lowest quality liquor in the army.
As the wine went down his throat, he choked unexpectedly. He quickly put down the glass, turned his face away, covered his mouth and coughed twice.
When she turned around, her eyes were hazy with tears and the corners of her eyes were stained with rouge.
The man held the wine glass in his hand and looked at her intently. Suddenly, he put the glass down, leaned over, grabbed her wrist, pulled it lightly, and pressed her onto the table.
Wine jugs and glasses rolled over, and the remaining wine spilled all over the floor, creating an intoxicating aroma in the warm spring-like tent.
The woman was wrapped in layers of complicated clothes, with her hems open and her belt tied tightly, like a blooming peony.
She kept staring at her like that, the candlelight reflected in her clear eyes like glass, as if they were burning.
How could a person have such a look? It was as if there were two fires burning in her eyes, and the fuel was her soul.
He dreamed of having another person look at him like this, but that person was always ambiguous and unclear, causing him to be suspicious.
No one can remain indifferent to this charming scenery, and no one can escape unscathed from such a look.
Huan Xuan had no intention of retreating. Since he came here in the middle of the night today, he had made a decision.
Sui Sui felt a sharp pain coming over her, as if she was torn in half, worse than an arrow piercing her body. She couldn't help but scream out in pain.
Huan Xuan suddenly stopped, propped himself up with his upper arms, frowned, and said coldly: "Don't make a sound."
Sui Sui bit her lower lip obediently, she was very good at enduring pain.
Besides, this pain was nothing compared to the pain of her heart being torn into pieces. Instead, she felt a sense of indulgence and relief from this pain.
She bit her lips until they turned white, and cold sweat broke out on her forehead, mixing with the painful tears from the corners of her eyes and flowing down.
Huan Xuan usually practiced martial arts and was a little drunk. He seemed to want to vent his anger at not getting what he wanted, and he was unwilling to let Sui Sui go easily.
If it was Ruan Yuewei, he certainly wouldn't want to let her suffer, but the one in front of him was just a fake, so he didn't have any sympathy for her.
Sui Sui's body had not yet recovered from the injury, and it was his first time, so he soon couldn't hold on any longer. His cheeks lost color and his lips turned white.
My body gradually became numb, but my heart began to ache.
The corners of her eyes were dry and wet, and two long tear marks sparkled in the candlelight.
The tears did not win Huan Xuan's sympathy. Instead, they aroused something secret and dark in his heart. Combined with the alcohol, it swept through his limbs like a strong wind. He just wanted to destroy and break her.
He seemed tireless.
The last candle burned out, leaving only the window paper gleaming white. I couldn't tell whether it was the moonlight coming in or daybreak.
Huan Xuan looked at her in this faint cold light.
In the dim light, the seven points of similarity became nine points.
Huan Xuan felt a surge of hot blood rushing to his head, and blurted out in a trance: "Atang..."
Then he realized that he had called Ruan Yuewei's nickname. He paused and his boiling blood instantly cooled down.
Sui Sui opened her eyes, with a hint of sleepiness and confusion in them. After a moment, her eyes became clearer, and tenderness overflowed like spring wine.
She seemed not to notice that he had just called another woman's name, and it was unclear whether she had not heard it clearly or had not understood it.
She raised her hand and gently stroked the side of his face.
Before she could touch him, the man grabbed her and pinned her down on the head.
Her eyes seemed to have magic, making his blood boil again.
He tortured her in a fit of rage. After an unknown amount of time, the window paper became brighter and brighter, the warm morning light shone in, and the morning drum sounded in the distance. This time it was really dawn.
Huan Xuan stepped out, asked the maid to clean up, and went to the clean room to bathe and change clothes.
The two maids were both from the palace and looked unfamiliar.
The two were shocked when they entered the house. They saw the room was in a mess, as if it had been swept by a hurricane, and everything was not where it should be.
Their faces blushed, they lowered their heads and tiptoed to the bed.
Sui Sui was so sleepy that he could not open his eyes, but he was not used to being served by others so he forced himself to sit up.
The thin silk undershirt slipped off her shoulders, and at a glance, Chun Tiao saw the densely crisscrossed red marks on her fair skin.
Sui Sui gathered her clothes, yawned, asked them to put down the copper basin, and took the cloth from one of them: "I will do it myself, you just change the mattress."
He wiped his body and changed into a clean undershirt. The maids had already changed the bed and mattress, so he crawled into the quilt and fell asleep.
After Huan Xuan finished his bath, he left the bathroom and returned to his bedroom. Just as he was about to take a nap, he saw that the hunter girl had taken his bed without any hesitation.
Even though they had done the most intimate thing, he was still a stranger. It was now bright outside and the alcohol had worn off. He could not sleep in the same bed with a stranger no matter what.
He frowned and walked to the bedside and pushed her on the shoulder. The hunter girl groaned through her nose and her eyelashes moved, but she did not wake up. She just turned over and continued to sleep.
Huan Xuan wanted to push her again, but when he saw her pale face and remembered the red plum-like bloodstains on her dress last night, he withdrew his hand.
He put on his coat and cloak, then ordered his men to prepare a carriage and horses to return to the palace.
Sui Sui slept until noon. When he woke up and sat up and moved, he felt pain all over his body. It would be difficult for him to practice swordplay and even walk.
She endured the pain and sat up. Just as she was about to reach for the clothes beside the couch, someone heard the noise and came over. It was Chun Tiao: "Madam, are you awake?"
She had a complicated look on her face, feeling both relieved and worried. Her wife finally got what she wished for, so of course she was happy. However, the lights in Qinghan Courtyard were on all night last night, and Lu Suisui was having sex for the first time, so she must have suffered a lot.
Sui Sui asked, "What time is it?"
Chun Tiao said: "It's noon, my wife has slept for half a day, why does she still look so bad..."
Sui Sui was about to answer when two people came around the screen. They were the two unfamiliar maids from last night. One of them was holding a food table with a large white porcelain bowl on it. The bowl was steaming and a bitter smell of medicine filled the air.
Following behind was Nanny Gao.
Chunjo asked: "What is this?"
The maid holding the case had a twinkling look in her eyes: "This is the medicine that His Highness gave to my wife..."
After all, Chun Tiao was a maid from a wealthy family, so she knew after a little thought that the so-called "decoction" must be contraceptive soup.
Sui Sui's status was certainly not qualified to give birth to the King of Qi's child. She understood this truth, but even so, she couldn't help feeling sad for her - all medicines are poisonous, and the contraceptive soup contains cold ingredients. Taking too much of it would harm the body. In the governor's mansion where she used to live, several concubines drank too much contraceptive soup when they were young, and later found it difficult to get pregnant.
She hesitated to speak, "My wife was injured before and has been taking medicine. I wonder if this medicine will conflict with her... Can you drink less? I'm afraid this big bowl of it won't be good for your body..."
Sui Sui interrupted her: "It's okay, Mammy, give me the medicine."
Grandma Gao looked at the orphan girl's pale face and thought to herself that she was committing a sin.
This contraceptive soup is a recipe from the palace. The medicinal properties are stronger than those used by ordinary people. If taken for a long time, it can cause qi deficiency and body coldness at the very least, or the inability to conceive at the worst.
But His Highness has not yet married a wife, and he must not let her give birth to a illegitimate son.
She took the tray from the maid, her lips pursed into a line, her hands trembling slightly.
Sui Sui picked up the medicine bowl without hesitation, tilted his head back, and drank it in a few gulps.
After Nanny Gao and the two maids left, Sui Sui saw Chun Tiao was about to speak but stopped, so he smiled at her and said, "I know that it is a contraceptive medicine."
After a pause, he said, "I'm not stupid."
"Then why is that lady..." Chun Tiao was surprised.
Sui Sui said, "You have to drink it anyway, the sooner you finish it, the sooner you can be at peace. I'm still a little tired, so I'll sleep for a while, you should go and rest too."
Chun Tiao was still a little worried, but she also understood that anyone who experienced something like this would want to be alone and quiet, so she walked out, looking back every few steps.
Sui Sui was the only one left in the room.
She bent her legs and hugged her knees, sitting with her chin on them for a while. She didn't know if the contraceptive soup was starting to work or if she had been too crazy last night, but her lower abdomen began to ache.
So she lay down and curled up her legs.
This is what she wanted, but is this what she wanted
The coldness seeped out from the hollow hole in her heart, penetrated into her limbs and bones, and soaked into her bone marrow.