Chapter 36

  After a while, Yan Yu walked in and saw Murong Feng reading a book with a calm expression. "Fourth Prince's consort, Chun Liu said you wanted to wait for the Fourth Prince to return together for dinner. I think you should eat first, Yun Hui County Princess has arrived, and it's likely that the Fourth Prince won't be back for a while."

  Murong Feng slightly furrowed his brow, "Yunhui Junzhu?"

  "Yes." Yan Yu smiled and said, "The Princess of Yunhui is the Empress Dowager's niece, and she is also the younger sister of the Second Prince's consort. She lives outside now, but comes to the palace about once or twice a year to pay respects to the Empress Dowager."

  Murong Feng nodded, "You go down, if I'm hungry, I'll eat naturally. Today's book is interesting to read, and I'll read for a while longer."

  Yan Yu retreated and went out. Murong Feng put down the book in his hand, outside the window, the autumn night was quiet and desolate, flowers were silent and leaves were speechless, moonlight was like water, sky was like ink.

  Suddenly I miss Sima Rui, how is he now? —— Thinking of this, the book can't be read anymore, and people feel a little empty.

  Simarui returned very late from the Zhengyang Palace, Yunhui brought several jars of good wine. Sima Rui and his brother Sima Zhe, along with Yunhui, drank all the good wine together with the Empress Dowager.

  Slightly drunk, returned to the mansion, all candles were extinguished, quiet and bewildering.

  Chun Liu had not gone to bed yet and was tidying up things. Seeing the Fourth Prince return, she curtsied. "Fourth Prince, you're back. Do you want dinner?"

  Simarui shook his head, "What about Murong Feng?"

  "I had just fallen asleep, originally waiting for your return to have dinner together." Chun Liu said truthfully.

  Simar frowned, "Didn't Wang Bao tell you when he came back that I said not to wait for me? Has she eaten?"

  Chun Liu shook her head and said in a low voice, "No, she said she wasn't hungry. At first, she said to wait for your return before eating, then after reading some books, she was probably tired and fell asleep leaning against the soft couch. Later on, as it was really too late, Miss said she wouldn't eat anymore and went to sleep after washing up."

  Simarui stood there in a daze, not making a sound for half a day.

  Entering the room where Murong Feng was resting, moonlight poured in like water, making it seem like daytime. Murong Feng lay on the bed covered with a lotus-patterned quilt, sleeping peacefully. His black hair scattered across the soft pillow, his head slightly tilted to one side, looking as sweet and endearing as a sleeping infant. However, his eyebrows were faintly furrowed, as if he was troubled by something.

  Simarui couldn't help but reach out and gently stroke Muyong Feng's eyebrows, as if to wipe away the worry from her brow.

  "Should I wake up the young lady?" asked Chun Liu in a very soft voice.

  Simarui shook his head, "Forget it, let her sleep well. Take good care of her."

  Sitting in front of the bed for a while, looking at Murong Feng's sleeping face, she felt a little silly and foolish. She actually waited for him to come back and eat, didn't she not want to love him as she said on the surface? Walking out of the room lightly, her whole person was a bit dazed.

  Soft morning glow, faint mist. Warm jade pavilion, spring colors fill the house.

  Murong Xue's long hair was slightly disheveled, with a faint sheen of sweat on her forehead. She leaned lazily against the emperor's body, her face flushed with happiness and shyness, still panting softly, her complexion rosy.

  The emperor peeled grapes for her with his own hands, feeding them into her mouth one by one.

  Rui Xi hastily rushed in, saw the scene, her face turned red, lowered her head and dared not look up, anxiously and frightened said: "Xue Fei Niang Niang, wife, wife she, she hanged herself!"

  Murong Xue's eyes widened in shock, and she stuttered: "W-what did you just say?!"

  "The people from the mansion came to find the eldest princess, and I happened to run into them. Seeing that they were in a hurry, I asked out of curiosity and only then did I learn that the old master had fallen ill last night, and the mistress had been attending to him. But who would have thought that this morning, when the people in the mansion woke up, they found that the mistress had hanged herself in the old master's study." Rui Xi's voice trembled as she spoke, but her words still flowed smoothly. "The people from the mansion came to find the two young ladies and asked them to go back, I suppose they must have returned by now."

  "Your Majesty, I want to go back and see my mother. My mother must be angry with me." Murong Xue hastily retreated into the Emperor's arms, crying uncontrollably, her mind in a state of chaos, having lost all sense of direction. Her mother loved her the most, although she knew that following the Emperor would cause her mother sorrow, but she never expected that her mother would punish her by taking her own life!

  "Don't worry, don't worry, I'm here, it's alright." The emperor frowned and comforted Mu Rong Xue in his arms. In his heart, he secretly scolded Mu Rong's wife. What was she making a fuss about? It was just that the emperor had favored their daughter - this was a great honor, but she didn't know how to appreciate it. She had ruined a good morning. "Rui Xi, how is your wife doing now?"

  "I don't know," Rui replied nervously. "But judging from the anxious look on everyone's face in the mansion, I'm guessing Madame's situation can't be good."

  "Your Majesty, Xue'er must go back and take a look." Murong Xue said tearfully.

  "I'll arrange for you to go." The emperor patted Murong Xue's shoulder and said to Rui Xi, "Immediately help the Snow Empress change her clothes, and have Gao Gonggong come in to attend to me."

  Rui Xi didn't dare to lift her head, hastily went forward to help Murong Xue put on her clothes, her tense hands were trembling, then retreated and called for Gao Gonggong to come in and help the Emperor with his ablutions.

  Murong Xue cried so much that she was tearful, and the emperor felt very sorry for her in his heart. He kept comforting her non-stop, wishing he could take her place to be sad instead.

  Fourth Prince's Manor, Murong Feng had just woken up and was washing her face when a eunuch from the Murong manor hastily arrived to inform her of the news that Lady Murong had taken her own life.

  Upon hearing the news, Mu Rong Yu was stunned. Although the one who hanged herself was the mother of this current body and had nothing to do with Bai Min, upon hearing the news, Bai Min's heart still felt like it was being cut by a knife. After all, she was not only Bai Min but also Mu Rong Yu; Mrs. Mu Rong was her only relative when she was Mu Rong Yu.

  Tears flowed like a spring, unstoppable. The person stood still and quiet, letting the willow trees and misty jade gaze at their anxious heart, as fragile as glass, liable to shatter at any moment.

  "Miss..." Spring Willow called out in a trembling voice, "Don't be afraid, servant girl. If you want to cry, then cry, don't choke back your emotions and harm your body. The mistress has a good fortune and won't come to any harm."

  Murong Feng remained silent, standing still as the tears fell into the basin in front of him, rippling the water and causing his body to tremble slightly.

  She is not only Bai Min but also Murong Feng, now they are the same person. The death of Mrs. Murong left her at a loss, grief-stricken.

  "Get the horse carriage ready, I want to go back immediately. Where is Sima Rui?" Murong Feng's voice sounded hollow. "Ask him to come with me, if it's really as you said, Mother will be fine, seeing us two return together, she'll naturally feel some comfort."

  The willow nodded slightly and said with some difficulty: "After the prince returned last night, he only stayed for a while before leaving. The slaves don't know where he went either."

  "What about Wang Bao?" Murong Feng didn't move, simply asking, but in her heart there was a pain that couldn't be expressed, an icy coldness that made her feel chilled to the bone.

  Yan Yu immediately went out to find Wang Bao, on the way she asked in a spare moment, heard the answer, and only felt that her heart was trembling. At this time, what kind of sadness would the fourth prince's wife have to endure?

  Wang Bao saw Murong Feng standing quietly by the window, bathed in the pale and chilly morning sunlight that seemed to accentuate her desolation. Upon hearing Wang Bao's footsteps, her tired voice laced with indifference asked, "Has the Fourth Prince gone to Yue Jiao Pavilion again?"

  The sorrow that seeped through the voice made Wang Bao's heart skip a beat, and he struggled to control himself, making his own voice sound calm. "Last night, Moon Jiao fell ill, and someone came to inform the prince. The prince brought the imperial physician from the palace and rushed over, busy for half the night. He should be on his way back by now. Shall I go out to greet him?"