The Gilded Cage - CH 95

Lunar New Year – This feeling of being taken into consideration by others was very unfamiliar to her now. (1)

Today, for some reason, he got drunk a little faster and slept more than an hour longer than usual after being drunk. All the signs made him suspicious. He was afraid that someone secretly manipulated something, which made him so abnormal.

But after he woke up, his body felt the same heaviness as his usual drunkenness. Even though he slept for a long time, his mind was more sober than when he woke up drunk in the past.

The only difference was that his wife was not by his side.

The maids said that the Crown Prince’s Consort returned to the banquet because it was such a big event with so many foreign envoys, and the East Palace couldn’t afford such disrespect.

But it was almost past time for the night banquet to be over, so he was a little suspicious.

Chu Ning’s back stiffened as she fell into a kneel, but the expression on her face was relaxed, and she replied softly, “Just now, when I was about to come back, it suddenly snowed outside, and I happened to be a little tired, so I rested in Getai first and just got back. Please forgive me.”

Xiao Yu didn’t rush to interrogate her and observed her expression carefully in the candlelight.

“So, what happened at the banquet?”

Chu Ning’s heart tensed, knowing that he didn’t believe her words. This was a test to see what happened later to see if she really stayed at the banquet.

She bit her lip. Her cheeks were slightly red, and she lowered her head to murmur, “Something really happened…”

Xiao Yu eased his expression, pulled her up from her feet and sat on the edge of the bed, held her in his arms with one hand, and pinched her chin with the other, forcing her to look up at him.

“What’s the matter?”

Her eyes flashed, and she said softly, “I heard that Second Lady Zhao broke into the side hall where the Emperor rested. The movement was a bit loud, and many people saw it…”

“Zhao Yue?” Xiao Yu paused, immediately remembering what he had heard before, and said contemptuously, “She’s so brave, she doesn’t even want her pride. It’s really embarrassing for the Zhao family. What about the Emperor? Did he not want a woman who was delivered to his front door?”

Chu Ning became more and more uncomfortable, looked at him strangely, and murmured, “The Emperor was not in the temple at that time…”

“Where was he?” Xiao Yu raised his eyebrows and asked.

“The Emperor was in the Chongming Pavilion…” She bit her lip and suppressed the strange feeling in her heart, then continued, “There was also a maid by his side. Her appearance was blocked, and the two walked to the Feishuang Palace, where the road was blocked by the royal guard. The house attendants were cleared, and no one else was allowed to leave or enter…”

She didn’t dare to speak in detail and could only try to tell the matter from the perspective of others. From time to time, the various discussions heard in the Chongming Pavilion echoed in her ears, and her cheeks were almost flushed.

However, her bashfulness in the face of Xiao Yu’s mean and cold demeanor was paired with a secret and nervous pleasure in her heart.

If he knew the truth, would he be as angry and painful as she was when she learned of his betrayal…

Xiao Yu didn’t know what she was thinking. A sneer full of ridicule appeared on his indifferent face, and he scoffed, “My Imperial uncle can really act up. In the past, when I was in Ganzhou, I heard that he was like a saint, but now that he is the Emperor, his womanizing is becoming more and more undisguised. The last time at the racecourse, and now playing with women openly at the New Year’s Eve banquet… he really disrespects the Qi family. How long can he push them until they can’t stand him anymore?”

Chu Ning glanced at him and didn’t answer, but she didn’t agree with him.

She knew that Xiao Yu hated both Empress Dowager Qi and Xiao Kezhi thoroughly, so he naturally hoped that the two of them would fight in secret so that he, the precarious crown prince, could reap the benefits.

But she never understood why he felt that the Qi family had the strength to compete with the Emperor. In her opinion, the emperor had military power in his hands, and the army in his hands was the greatest weapon in the Kingdom of Liang.

In contrast, Empress Dowager Qi was also a sensible person. For so many years, the Qi family had never really coveted imperial power. They assumed their position as an imperial in-law and only sought the unshakable status of the Qi family.

Thinking about it, it was these years of fighting that made Xiao Yu put too much scrutiny on the Qi family, which visibly magnified the Qi family’s fears and augmented the overall situation.

His vision was too narrow, and because of this, people like him were probably not destined to be real wise men.

“What are you thinking?” Xiao Yu patted her cheek and seemed to be in a better mood. There was no more suspicion and displeasure in his eyes. “You are not allowed to stay outside for so long in the future.”

“Understood, I was wrong today.” Chu Ning returned to her senses and admitted her mistake very consciously, which made him feel more at ease.

“It’s getting late, I’ll help His Royal Highness wash up.” She said, putting one hand on his chest and trying to get up, but he gently held her hand and kissed it.

“If you know you’re wrong, you should be punished.”

His eyes darkened. It had been so long since he had touched her, and today, he felt the stirrings of interest.

“His Royal Highness has to meet the courtiers tomorrow and participate in the ceremony, so you shouldn’t be tired…” Chu Ning felt a bit of burnout, trying to find an excuse to refuse.

He squeezed her soft and delicate hand and said in a hoarse voice, “I really shouldn’t be tired, so A’Ning should do the work, okay?”

Chu Ning lowered her head, biting her lips and saying nothing.

He let go of her, and his eyes fell on her dress. He said, “Be good and take off your clothes yourself.”

She took a deep breath, turned sideways, and took off the shawls and long-sleeved shirts that were covering her outside, but she didn’t dare to remove the chest-length skirt inside.

She didn’t know if there were any traces left.

She paused, slowly pulled his hand over her body, and put her hand into his shirt.

He couldn’t help closing his eyes and gasping for breath, but as if he felt it were not enough, he pulled her close and kissed her for a while, then rubbed her lips with his thumb, his deep eyes full of meaning.

She understood. Her body trembled, and she slowly knelt down in front of him, bowing her head.

He tightened his body, then slowly relaxed, leaning back, rubbing the back of her head. His eyes were bloodshot and full of pleasure.

…