Chapter 33: Holding the Monarch of a Nation in Her Arms
Gan Qiongying could hardly believe she had just been possessed, because she had actually acted like a rogue toward the Emperor!
This was their first meeting. Even if she were some insatiable lecher, she wouldn’t have gone that far!
And… and she really wasn’t lustful.
Strange.
It was truly bizarre.
Gan Qiongying had thought that entering the palace today would help clarify some mysteries not covered in the plot, but now she realized everything seemed to have become even more perplexing.
Even she herself had nearly lost control!
The Emperor’s look of attachment and his behavior clearly didn’t align with the plot.
Gan Qiongying couldn’t make sense of it. Everything today was too eerie. None of the possibilities she had considered on the way here matched up.
In the plot, the Emperor was like a fledgling bird without feathers, manipulated as a puppet by the Empress Dowager and the Regent. Yet, he was exceptionally close to her, the Eldest Princess notorious for her wicked reputation.
Why was that?
If they were truly this close, why would he have married her off to a mere merchant?
It simply didn’t add up.
Someone, please save her. Her mind was about to explode.
What she could confirm was that the Emperor’s closeness to her wasn’t feigned or an act—it was genuine affection.
Gan Qiongying could absolutely distinguish that. Before she died, she had a younger sister herself. The feeling of familial love was hard to describe, but she could truly sense it.
As for her own “love at first sight” and attempt to act like a rogue toward the Emperor after just one meeting, she had shocked even herself.
But before she could dwell on it further, a young eunuch suddenly arrived with an Imperial Physician.
Gan Qiongying had assumed the physician trusted by the Emperor would be like Physician Zhuang—mature and steady. Unexpectedly, the one who arrived was a handsome young man.
With the curtains drawn, the physician took Gan Qiongying’s pulse. “Your Highness has been overexerting her mind and spirit lately, burdened by excessive worry. The heart pain likely stems from this.”
Gan Qiongying’s heartache had already eased by half. She couldn’t help but grumble inwardly: since crossing over, she had lived in constant fear—how could she not be burdened by worry?
She really wanted the physician to check if there was something wrong with her brain.
Otherwise, why did she still feel a strong urge to hold the Emperor’s hand?
“How could this be?” the Emperor asked anxiously.
“Is there any way to ease her emotions?”
“Will the heart pain leave any lasting effects?”
“Physician Xiao, please prescribe some medicinal dietary recipes for nourishing the body. The Princess has grown much thinner, likely due to poor appetite…”
The Emperor suddenly became talkative, asking the physician detailed questions. Listening to the barrage of inquiries, Gan Qiongying found the scene eerily familiar.
Wasn’t this a replay of yesterday when she asked about Lihua’s health?
Gan Qiongying had become last night’s Consort, and the Emperor had become last night’s her.
Fate was strikingly similar. Finally, Gan Qiongying spoke helplessly, “Your Majesty, I’m fine.”
Hearing her speak, the Emperor looked at her. “Let Physician Xiao perform acupuncture for you, Elder Sister. Physician Xiao’s medical skills are exceptional, and his acupuncture technique is particularly remarkable.”
His tone carried a hint of negotiation, as if afraid Gan Qiongying might refuse. So the Emperor added a promise, “Elder Sister, don’t worry. I usually rely on Physician Xiao’s acupuncture to relieve my headaches.”
This time, the Emperor proactively sat down not far from her, smiling at her as if coaxing a child.
“Acupuncture…” Gan Qiongying stared at the row of slender silver needles and wanted to say it wasn’t necessary—her heart pain clearly wasn’t due to a physical ailment.
It must be because of the plot.
Yet she was momentarily distracted by the emperor’s smile.
Gan Qiongying had never imagined that such a radiant smile could appear on the face of an emperor—he even had a small dimple. At this moment, his Ruifeng eyes curved into crescents, truly resembling an ordinary younger brother. His teeth were white and even, his eyes gently curved, almost adorable.
But as she gazed at that smiling face, the familiar dull ache returned. Gan Qiongying, who had just begun to feel a little better, suddenly felt a pang in her chest again—a sour, stifling pain.
She wanted to reach out and pull the emperor close, to hold him tightly in her arms and draw near to him.
But Gan Qiongying restrained herself.
She held back fiercely.
Alright, she admitted she was captivated by his beauty.
But no matter how bold her desires, she shouldn’t act improperly toward the emperor now!
Seeing her condition, the emperor and the Imperial Physician immediately decided to use acupuncture to alleviate her pain.
A maid helped Gan Qiongying undress, while the emperor withdrew to the outer chamber to wait. His fingers curled again as he paced nervously inside the room.
Gan Qiongying had thought her heartache was connected to the emperor or the plot, and that the physician’s acupuncture would be of little use.
But after being pricked like a porcupine, her heartache actually eased significantly. Clearly, this beardless Physician Xiao had some real skill.
After the acupuncture session, the physician prescribed some medicine and took his leave.
Gan Qiongying pressed a hand to her chest, praying the pain wouldn’t return.
A maid helped her rise, and at that moment, the emperor himself entered, carrying her clothes. Resting on the clothes was a handkerchief wrapped around something.
The handkerchief was made of soft fabric, its corners drooping with each movement. A faint, refreshing fragrance suddenly wafted through the air, and the emperor froze.
He lowered his head in disbelief and saw the radish cake wrapped in the handkerchief. Instantly, his eyes grew moist.
The emperor closed his eyes gently, a pang of sourness rising in his nose. When he looked up again, his eyes were even brighter from the tears. “Elder Sister, is this for me?”
He slowly tightened his arms, pressed his lips together, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he moved step by step to Gan Qiongying’s side.
“Elder Sister still remembers I love radish cake the most…” The emperor’s gaze remained fixed on the radish cake as he slowly knelt beside Gan Qiongying’s knee.
“Elder Sister…” The emperor choked up, his phoenix eyes narrowing slightly several times, the glistening tears on the verge of falling. He looked up at Gan Qiongying from below, and two streams of hot tears finally slid uncontrollably down his cheeks.
The palace attendants, seeing this, all quietly withdrew from the hall and closed the door behind them.
The emperor held the radish cake as if it were a rare treasure. He lowered his head and took a large bite, chewing while tears fell, devouring it voraciously in front of Gan Qiongying.
Tears dripped onto the radish cake and were swallowed along with it. He had been half-kneeling, but by the end, both knees touched the ground as if he were kneeling before Gan Qiongying.
Gan Qiongying was stunned. The pain in her chest hadn’t fully subsided, and now her head was beginning to ache.
She had brought the radish cake thinking that if the emperor punished her, she could sneak a bite.
Now, watching the emperor take bite after bite, crying as he stuffed his mouth, choking until his eyes widened, she felt an uncontrollable pang of sorrow and wanted to cry along with him.
Beauty truly is a curse!
How could things turn out like this?
Gan Qiongying bit the tip of her tongue, warning herself to hold back at all costs!
Seeing the emperor nearly choking, his eyes rolling back, she immediately got out of bed. Flustered, she poured tea but spilled it over the rim of the cup.
The Emperor struggled to swallow the pastry in his mouth, still unwilling to put down the radish cake in his hand. He drank the tea offered by Gan Qiongying.
The radish cake in his hand was almost gone, leaving only a few crumbs. He wiped his face fiercely, his eyes red like a rabbit’s as he looked at Gan Qiongying and said, “I thought…”
He choked up again, his voice trembling, tears as large as beans still falling.
“I thought my sister would never forgive me again in this lifetime, that she would never make radish cake for me again.”
Upon hearing this, Gan Qiongying felt her scalp tingle—this thing wasn’t even made by her…
She didn’t dare speak recklessly, so she stood there with her already stiffened expression, frantically analyzing how she should respond.
“Does my sister still blame me?” the Emperor’s voice trembled, this question asked with great caution.
But Gan Qiongying had no idea how to answer, so she responded with silence.
Not receiving an answer, the Emperor looked deeply saddened, but he forced a smile and changed the subject on his own.
“My sister’s birthday is coming soon. Has the household started preparing?”
“If you lack anything, just send someone to the palace to fetch it. Or perhaps I could send a few experienced Momos from the palace to help my sister with the arrangements?”
Gan Qiongying still didn’t respond. She didn’t even know “herself” was about to have a birthday.
As Gan Qiongying remained silent, the Emperor’s voice grew increasingly despondent.
“I summoned you twice, and my sister refused both times,” the Emperor’s tone carried a hint of grievance. “I thought I wouldn’t be able to see my sister today either.”
“Sister,” the Emperor remained crouched on the ground, looking up at Gan Qiongying with admiration in his eyes.
His voice trembling slightly, he asked her, “In the future… could you come to the palace to see me more often?”
Gan Qiongying remained silent because she had no idea how to respond!
Help!
Ah!
Her heart began to ache again.
“I’m sorry,” the Emperor, receiving no response, placed Gan Qiongying’s clothes on the bed with a heavy heart.
Then he lowered his head, crouched there for a moment, and began to cover his face, weeping bitterly. “Sister, I’m sorry!”
“Marrying my sister to the Consort was the best choice. I truly had no other way.” Buried in his thin hands, he cried until his back trembled.
“Sister… I am incompetent, I’m sorry…”
The rest of his words were lost in his sobs.
Gan Qiongying never spoke.
She still held the teacup in her hand, watching the Emperor kneeling and crying, feeling waves of sorrow welling up in her heart.
Although the Emperor was a head taller than her, he cried so hard that he hunched over, his body curling into a ball before Gan Qiongying like a puppy that had never had enough to eat.
She couldn’t bear it and closed her eyes. He cried so pitifully.
But even with her eyes closed, the sorrow and helplessness of the person before her, accompanied by choked sobs, still seeped into her ears, turning into waves of pain in her heart.
After a moment, Gan Qiongying opened her eyes, reached out to grab the Emperor’s arm, and pulled him up.
Then she opened her arms and embraced the ruler of a nation.
As the pain in her heart gradually eased, she realized the Emperor’s tears had soaked through the fabric on her shoulder.
This should have been a sorrowful scene.
But Gan Qiongying had to muster every ounce of her strength to suppress her inner rogue spirit, resisting the urge to take advantage of the situation and kiss the Emperor’s wet, thin cheek.
It was only during this visit to the palace that she realized this world was far more surreal than she had ever imagined.
Many things had no answers in the books, and reality was even more intricate and complex.
Also, who could tell her what was wrong with her, why she had developed lustful thoughts towards the Emperor?
She really wasn’t lustful…
And she had a Consort!
She and the Emperor… weren’t they siblings?