ATPnovel Chapter 33 Then I won't leave tonight.
Chapter 33 Then I won't leave tonight.
"Everything is ready," Yunluan replied.
"Three thousand elite Imperial Guards are ready to go, and the Ministry of Rites' ceremonial guards are also prepared."
Qin Mu nodded in satisfaction.
He took another step, the hem of his dark robe gleaming dimly in the moonlight.
"The seventh day of the seventh lunar month, Qinglan Mountain."
He muttered to himself, a playful smile curving his lips.
"Xu Longxiang, I am very much looking forward to seeing the expression on your face."
"When you learn that the woman you've always longed for has become my concubine and will appear before you alongside me..."
"How would you react?"
A night wind suddenly rose, rustling the leaves of the plane trees on both sides of the palace road.
Under the moonlight, Qin Mu's back was as straight as a pine tree, his black brocade robe fluttering in the wind, like a black dragon about to spread its wings, ready to devour this world at any moment.
Behind him, inside the window of Yuxiu Palace, the woman kneeling on the ground was still weeping silently.
Qin Mu walked slowly along the palace path, with Yun Luan half a step behind him.
The two walked like this for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.
Qin Mu suddenly stopped.
Yunluan also stopped and bowed her head, waiting for instructions.
"Yunluan," Qin Mu said, his voice carrying a faint hint of amusement.
"Tell me, what scene do you think I would find if I turned back now?"
Yun Luan was slightly taken aback, then looked up at Qin Mu.
After a moment's thought, a faint smile appeared on her lips: "Your Majesty, it will probably... be quite exciting."
"It's going to be exciting?" Qin Mu raised an eyebrow.
"Yes." Yunluan lowered her head, her voice steady but with hidden meaning, "Xue Cairen was in a state of mental confusion just now and lost all her dance steps. I suppose she is still not calm down."
Qin Mu smiled.
The laughter was soft, yet exceptionally clear in the quiet night.
"Then I'd like to see just how spectacular it is."
He turned around and walked back the way he came.
Yunluan immediately followed.
The two returned along the same route. The moonlight and the night breeze were still there, but the atmosphere was completely different.
A quarter of an hour later, the outline of Yuxiu Palace reappeared in sight.
Qin Mu stopped outside the palace gate.
He didn't have a palace maid announce his arrival and strode in directly.
The scene inside the hall was thus laid bare before his eyes.
The octagonal glazed palace lantern was still lit, its candlelight flickering gently in the night breeze, illuminating the room with a warm and hazy glow.
But beneath this warmth lies a broken, icy landscape.
Jiang Qingxue knelt in the center of the hall.
With her back to the palace gate, her moon-white, flowing dress spread out on the ground like a withered lotus flower.
Her long, black hair was disheveled, and the white jade phoenix hairpin had fallen to the side at some point, gleaming with a lonely light in the candlelight.
Her shoulders were trembling slightly.
It was very slight, almost imperceptible, but Qin Mu could see it clearly.
She was crying.
Crying silently.
Crying in suppressed sobs.
Tears fell drop by drop onto the gold brick floor, shattering into sparkling water droplets that gleamed with a broken luster in the candlelight.
She knelt there, curled up like a wounded little animal, licking her bleeding wounds in a corner where no one could see her.
The entire scene was so quiet it was suffocating.
The musicians had already left, and the palace maids held their breath and lowered their heads, not daring to make a sound.
Only the crackling of the candlelight and the suppressed sobs could be heard.
Qin Mu watched quietly.
He stared at it for a long time.
So long that Yunluan thought he would turn around and leave.
Then he stepped inside.
The footsteps were very light, but in the deathly silent hall, they were as clear as drumbeats, each one striking the heart.
Jiang Qingxue froze.
She looked up abruptly, and before she could even wipe the tears from her face, she turned away in a panic.
When she saw Qin Mu's handsome, smiling face, her pupils suddenly contracted, and her face instantly turned ashen.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty..."
She practically crawled around, turned over, and prostrated herself, her forehead striking the gold bricks with a dull thud.
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty was unaware of Your Majesty's return and has failed to greet me properly; I deserve to die..."
His voice was hoarse, filled with undisguised panic and fear.
Qin Mu walked up to her and stopped.
The hem of the dark brocade robe was right in front of her, the cloud patterns embroidered with gold thread gleaming with a dark luster in the candlelight.
"Get up," he said, his voice calm and devoid of emotion.
Jiang Qingxue dared not get up.
She lay on the ground, her shoulders shaking even more violently.
Qin Mu bent down, reached out and supported her arm, helping her up.
The movements were steady, yet the force was irresistible.
Jiang Qingxue was forced to stand up, her head bowed, not daring to meet his gaze.
Tears still clung to her eyelashes, her eyes were red-rimmed, and the tip of her nose was slightly red. Her once aloof and elegant face was now filled with dishevelment and panic.
Like a rabbit cornered by a falcon.
Qin Mu's gaze fell on her face, scrutinizing her closely.
Then he spoke, asking the simplest, yet most fatal, question:
"Why are you crying?"
Three words.
An understatement.
But it made Jiang Qingxue's blood almost freeze.
Her mind went completely blank for a moment.
All the prepared statements and rehearsed responses vanished without a trace at that moment.
Only instinct remained—
We must never let him know the truth.
She must never let him know who she is crying for.
She must never let him know the pain and struggle in her heart.
In a flash, Jiang Qingxue forced herself to calm down.
She raised her tearful eyes to look at Qin Mu, trying her best to squeeze out a trace of sorrow and grievance.
"Your Majesty..." Her voice trembled with a perfectly timed sob, "I...I am heartbroken."
"Oh?" Qin Mu raised an eyebrow. "What are you sad about?"
Jiang Qingxue lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes trembled, and a tear slid down at the right moment, landing on the back of Qin Mu's hand that was supporting her arm.
Warm and moist.
"His Majesty...did not stay overnight tonight."
She spoke softly, her voice filled with deep disappointment and resentment, "I thought... I thought Your Majesty didn't like my dance, so... so I left in a hurry."
She looked up at Qin Mu, her eyes blurry with tears:
"Your Majesty, I have only been in the palace for a short time and do not know many of the rules. If I have done anything wrong and displeased Your Majesty, please enlighten me and I will certainly correct it."
She spoke with genuine emotion.
She perfectly portrayed the image of a concubine who had just received the emperor's favor and was filled with anxiety and uncertainty.
If Qin Mu hadn't already seen through her true nature, he would almost have believed her.
The hall was completely silent.
The flickering candlelight cast the shadows of the two people onto the wall, creating an eerie scene.
Qin Mu looked at Jiang Qingxue quietly.
Looking at her red-rimmed eyes, her forced composure, and her slightly trembling lips.
Then he smiled.
"I see."
He spoke slowly, a hint of realization in his voice, "Is my beloved concubine upset that I didn't offer her a place to stay?"
Jiang Qingxue's heart tightened, but she maintained a sorrowful expression: "Your Majesty, I dare not... It's just... it's just that I'm heartbroken..."
"Then it is my fault."
Qin Mu released his hand from hers, stood with his hands behind his back, and said, "I just thought that my beloved consort had worked hard practicing dance today and needed to rest well, so I didn't stay."
He paused, his gaze sweeping over Jiang Qingxue's pale face:
"However, since my beloved concubine cares so much..."
A meaningful smile curved Qin Mu's lips:
"Then I won't leave tonight."
The moment the words left her lips, Jiang Qingxue felt her heart skip a beat.
She looked up abruptly, her eyes flashing with undisguised astonishment and... a hint of deep-seated despair.
Not leaving?
He... wants to stay overnight?
tonight?
Now?
She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but all the words got stuck in her throat, and she couldn't utter a single word.
Only one thought remained in my mind—
It's coming again.
Everything from that night is about to repeat itself.
The humiliation of being invaded, the helplessness of being unable to resist, the pain of being torn apart from one's body and soul...
No.
No.
She cried out silently in her heart, but on her face she still had to force a joyful smile.
"R-really?" she heard herself say in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty... Your Majesty really wants to stay?"
"A king's word is his bond." Qin Mu walked to the soft couch and sat down, his posture relaxed. "What, is my beloved concubine not welcoming me?"
"How could that be!" Jiang Qingxue retorted almost instinctively, then realized she had overreacted and quickly softened her tone, "Your Majesty... Your Majesty was just too happy and lost your composure for a moment..."
She walked up to Qin Mu and curtsied.
"Your Majesty, I will go and prepare immediately."
After saying that, she turned around and walked towards the inner hall.
His steps were unsteady, and his back looked so frail that it seemed as if a gust of wind could blow him over.