She retained her righteous and impulsive nature.
That night, she rushed into the room to save Susu. He knew she was greatly disappointed by his indifference, though she had no idea he had nearly killed Jiang Yuan. However, he could not tell her at the moment that Jiang Wanfu was the commander of the Imperial Guards in the capital, and one of the important figures he had recently managed to win over. He couldn't openly humiliate the Jiang father and son in court; they were too crucial to his plan. Fortunately, through a fortunate turn of events, he managed to have her stay in his mansion.
"Lord Luo's window offers a beautiful view," Wang Zhongze remarked, glancing at the rockery and pond in the courtyard, then at the woman sitting by the window on the second floor of the building opposite, engrossed in something.
Luo Yuan looked up at her on the opposite floor and smiled faintly, "This courtyard is simply furnished. Brother Zhongze is too kind."
Wang Zhongze set down his teacup. "The matter you asked me to investigate, Lord Luo, is already underway, but..."
Wang Zhongze's hesitation tightened Luo Yuan's heart. If even Night Owl found it quite difficult, then...
"I've investigated the identities of those black-clothed men repeatedly, but I've found no clues. Those people are truly not simple."
He had actually guessed it long ago. Those who had attempted to assassinate Ruo Ning in the bamboo forest that night were no ordinary individuals. Ruo Ning had no enemies here, so those people must have been after him.
"Mm, I had already guessed as much," he replied, his brow furrowed slightly.
Wang Zhongze said, "If even I cannot find out who they are, then there is only one possibility."
"Jiang Qi," Luo Yuan stated.
"Precisely." Wang Zhongze glanced again at the woman by the window on the second floor. He had also investigated this woman in Lord Luo's mansion behind Luo Yuan's back. Like those men in black, no one knew where she came from. She appeared out of nowhere in Youzhou city, traveled by boat to Bianliang, and then unexpectedly became Luo Yuan's 'new favorite.'
Yesterday, Hui Niang had been injured after going out with Luo Yuan. He had heard about it and intended to send her some ointment for bruises and pain relief at Fan Lou. To his surprise, he overheard her lamentations outside Hui Niang's room.
It was the first time he had heard Hui Niang weep so sorrowfully. Hui Niang sobbed, saying that although she knew Lord Luo's heart was never truly hers, she didn't care; it was enough for her to have his person. For so many years, he had stayed by her side, but she never expected that the moment that woman appeared, his heart would be entirely focused on her. She truly couldn't understand why such an ordinary woman had captivated Lord Luo so deeply. Today, after she and Lord Luo returned to the inn from an errand, she had grabbed his hand, intending to ask why he hadn't stayed at Fan Lou again today, but Lord Luo... At this point, Hui Niang began to cry loudly. After a long while, she calmed down somewhat and continued, only to find Lord Luo had disdainfully thrown her hand away, telling her he had already pledged his life to that woman.
"But I told him, I don't care if your heart is with me, I just want to be by your side, please don't push me away..."
"But Lord Luo said, 'He cannot accommodate anyone else by his side anymore.' He said, 'From now on, it would be best if we address each other as master and servant. Please do not act like you did today, Ruo Ning would not like it.'"
It was then he realized that Luo Yuan's relationship with the woman by the window was not what he had assumed. Initially, Wang Zhongze thought it was quite normal for men of status in Da Song to have several women around them, especially a man like Luo Yuan. Perhaps Luo Yuan was tired of Hui Niang, which was why he said that, so Hui Niang's words couldn't be entirely trusted. Moreover, the news brought back by 'Little Bird' suggested that this woman's relationship with the young emperor seemed unusual. He mused that perhaps this woman was a pawn Luo Yuan had placed beside the emperor. However, after this meeting today, he observed nothing but adoration in Luo Yuan's eyes when he looked at the woman, and Luo Yuan seemed unaware of the woman's frequent visits to the Royal Jian Gu Temple outside the city. Since ancient times, heroes had been vulnerable to beauty. If Luo Yuan were to jeopardize their great cause due to this romantic entanglement, wouldn't their efforts over the years be in vain? Regardless, he still needed to remind Luo Yuan.
"Lord Luo's maid seems quite extraordinary," Wang Zhongze said.
Luo Yuan had just picked up his teacup and brought it to his lips when he heard Wang Zhongze mention Ruo Ning, and he paused. He took a sip of tea and replied, "I don't know what you have found out, but she is mine."
"So she is Lord Luo's. That explains it. It's the first time I've met someone who can move so freely in and out of the inner palace. It's evident the young emperor treats her very well."
Luo Yuan remained silent. He simply picked up the teapot and poured himself another cup of tea. "Yes, Ruo Ning told me she and the Emperor met by chance on the road and became friends."
Wang Zhongze continued, "The young emperor seems very interested in Lord Luo's maid. Recently, he even took her to Jian Gu Temple to meet the Empress Dowager."
"Oh? Is that so?"
Luo Yuan's expression subtly changed. Though it was fleeting, the astute Wang Wei Yuan noticed it. Luo Yuan truly was unaware!
Thus, Wang Zhongze continued, "To be taken by the young emperor to meet the Empress Dowager and the Prime Minister, the Emperor truly treats her very well."
Wang Zhongze's words filled Luo Yuan with fear for the first time.
He had thought the Emperor's interest in Ruo Ning was merely a passing curiosity. After all, the young emperor was young and playful, often leaving the palace in disguise to travel and explore, but he had never shown interest in any woman before.
"Long time no see, never forget each other." That was written on the jewelry box Qing Ye had given her.
Had he underestimated the Emperor's feelings for Ruo Ning? Yes, the complex blend of moral restraint and unrestrained romance in Ruo Ning was an unknowable beauty that even he himself was irrevocably drawn to, let alone the young emperor.
"Long time no see, never forget each other." It was the longing of lovers. He had lied to her, telling her it was merely the greeting of an old friend.
Luo Yuan looked at the woman eating in front of him. Her cheeks were stuffed full, making her look like a squirrel stealing food. Did this oblivious woman truly not know Qing Ye's feelings for her? She kept emphasizing that Qing Ye was her friend, the first person she had ever met in this world.
Silly woman, I was the first one you met.
Although he told himself that her person and her heart were with him, he was still filled with apprehension and unease.
He couldn't wait. He couldn't wait until the day he regained the throne. Thus, on the bustling street, he blurted out, "Ruo Ning, will you marry me?"
She didn't know that the astonishment, confusion, and joy that flickered across her eyes, followed by caution, pain, and avoidance, had torn his heart to shreds. She couldn't see the immense pain churning within him like a raging tempest. She said, "What's the difference between us now and being married?"
Why couldn't they be? Because you'll eventually leave me again? Or, have you fallen in love with Qing Ye?
************ Kuai Shu Ge
Unexpectedly, on the carriage returning from the Book Exhibition in the palace, she said to him, "Let's get married."
He froze for a few seconds, then pulled her into his arms and kissed her passionately. He was ecstatic. Then she said she needed to go home to get her wedding dress.
She was gone for so long. She didn't know how he spent those months.
But in that small chapel, when he saw her in a white gown, bathed in a radiant halo behind her, slowly walking down the aisle towards him, he choked up. He had waited for her with all his might, and those bone-piercing, heart-wrenching pangs of longing transformed into a tear in his eyes at that moment.
"I do," she said, her smiling eyes filled with a gentle and bright light.
"Wife," he called out softly.
Pfft, she couldn't help but laugh.
"What's wrong?" he asked, puzzled.
"Nothing... I just think that title is a bit funny."
"Why is it funny?"
"I've only heard that title in TV dramas."
"Then what do you call each other?"
"Husband? Honey, darling? Babe, my love?"
"I like 'darling.' It sounds so full of sweetness and affection."
"Okay, darling. I'll call you 'darling' from now on." Her smiling eyes were like two slender crescent moons.
**************
But after that, her increasing intimacy with the Emperor made him increasingly uneasy.
He saw a deeper meaning in the Emperor's gaze when he looked at her, and the soft, endless tenderness that shone in her eyes when she looked at the Emperor. He saw their unspoken understanding on the polo field. He saw the Emperor's hurried figure as he left the bath. He saw them happily playing some game on the steps of an empty ancestral shrine, their unrestrained laughter echoing in the deserted hall, drawing the glances of passing palace maids and eunuchs outside the courtyard. He saw that at the end of their game, the Emperor actually embraced her from behind...
He saw that she often stared into space, and when he turned to look at her, she quickly averted her gaze. She didn't know that a flicker of unease, even pain, had entered her eyes when she looked at him.
Did being by his side cause her pain? He was almost consumed by jealousy and rage.
His gaze towards the Emperor became increasingly cold and dark. He wanted to kill him. That was his throne, his woman.
He accelerated his plan. He believed his plan was perfect and foolproof, but in the end, it was still because of her.
When his trusted subordinate warned him that a strange woman was tracking him and he should be very careful lately, he paid it no mind. He believed she would never betray him.
She was indeed a woman of sharp intellect, wasn't she? He didn't know how she had seen through his plan – his supposedly airtight, perfect plan. When he returned home in a fury and opened her computer, he heard the recorded conversation she had secretly made. Her world was truly magical, truly capable of being like 'a thousand-mile ear and a hundred-mile eye,' he couldn't help but marvel.
He had a huge argument with her and didn't return for several days. He was utterly overwhelmed with work. Jiang Qi had secretly executed his soldiers. Although it hadn't implicated him yet, the look Jiang Qi shot him was already a warning that he knew his intentions. His anger towards her reached its peak, so he didn't inquire about her absence from home. That woman should pay the price for her betrayal! He would tie her up with chains, never to leave his side in this life. He would make her witness him kill Qing Ye with her own eyes, so that she would give up all hope and end that affection.
But when he finally returned home, Uncle Zhong told him that she was already gone!