Vowing to Defend Male Virtue Unto Death
“M-Mother-in-law is a man?”
Lu Ronghuai was so startled he nearly bit his own tongue.
“Mm. My mother’s family possesses a rather unusual constitution. The men of their line are also capable of carrying children, so Your Highness need not be afraid.”
Only then did Lu Ronghuai understand why, when Chu Yuan learned of his pregnancy, he had shown sudden realization without the slightest panic.
Lu Ronghuai touched his cheek gently. “That still will not do. Even the residence physician has never encountered such a situation. Without absolute assurance, I will not gamble with your life.”
“Does Your Highness wish to keep this child?”
“I only want you.” His voice sounded as though it had crossed through blowing sand, hoarse and obscure.
“Ah-Yuan, I never imagined I would have a child. I only wished to grow old together with you.”
Chu Yuan’s smile softened.
“Would that not be even better? This child belongs to both Your Highness and me. We will raise him to adulthood, and he will watch us grow old in return.”
As he spoke, he took Lu Ronghuai’s hand and gently pressed it against his abdomen.
“Your Highness, I wish to give birth to him.”
He had always loved children. When he was young, he constantly hoped his mother would give him a younger brother or sister. Yet Heaven did not grant his wish. In the end, he gained neither siblings nor his mother.
Lu Ronghuai’s throat moved.
He could clearly see the hope within Chu Yuan’s eyes. Moreover, the life within Chu Yuan’s body was his own flesh and blood.
He hesitated for a long while.
“Tomorrow I will send Xian Feng to search for physicians. I have heard that among the wandering healers there is a Physician Jiang of remarkable skill. No matter the cost, I will find him.”
Those words already meant Lu Ronghuai had agreed to keep the child.
“Mm.”
The gentleness in Chu Yuan’s smile deepened.
Half a month later, Fang Xinhai’s remains were escorted back to Ye Jing, and the Fang family held the funeral rites.
Lu Ronghuai went to offer condolences. Chu Yuan insisted on accompanying him. Lu Ronghuai could only sigh helplessly and order thicker cushions placed in the carriage before helping him aboard.
During the past several days, Lu Ronghuai had hardly left the residence gates. Each day he remained beside Chu Yuan and refused to let him go anywhere alone.
Wherever Chu Yuan walked, Lu Ronghuai followed.
He would not even allow Chu Yuan to lift his own chopsticks or cup while eating or drinking. He also ordered the residence physician to examine him every morning and evening.
Everyone in the residence already knew Prince Li cherished his Prince Consort dearly. Even so, they had never seen such vigilance.
When the servants greeted Chu Yuan, they had all become extraordinarily cautious. They assumed the Prince Consort had fallen ill.
Xian Yu even carried away the residence account books, declaring that the Prince Consort must rest properly and that he himself would handle all affairs.
Pregnancy was no small matter. Chu Yuan dared not tell them carelessly. Seeing them all behave this way, he felt by turns guilty and moved.
When the two arrived at the Fang residence gate, Lu Ronghuai’s brows were still tightly knit.
White mourning cloth hung everywhere. Numerous visitors had come to offer condolences. The sounds of weeping mixed with funeral music, creating a scene of deep sorrow.
“Ah-Yuan, this place carries ill fortune air. You should remain outside. It would not be good for the little one.”
Lu Ronghuai clasped his hand.
Chu Yuan merely wished to breathe some fresh air and did not care particularly where they went. Seeing Lu Ronghuai’s insistence, he nodded.
“Very well. I shall wait in the carriage for Your Highness.”
“Mm. Xian Feng and Xian Shuang will remain with you. I will return quickly and take you to Fuxian Tower for a meal.”
Lu Ronghuai stepped down from the carriage, gave instructions for Chu Yuan to be closely guarded, and told Le Shu to accompany him in the carriage. Then he strode into the Fang residence.
Xian Feng drove the carriage to a sheltered corner. He glanced at the various officials entering and leaving the gate while he and Xian Shuang guarded the carriage from front and rear.
“Eh? Is that not Young Lord Ning? Why is he walking together with the Crown Prince? They even appear to be chatting pleasantly.”
Le Shu lifted a small section of the curtain and looked toward the Fang residence gate in surprise.
Xian Shuang also saw Ning Yuqiang. His expression remained cold.
“The Marquis of Xuanning has aligned himself with the Eastern Palace. Naturally the heir accompanies the Crown Prince.”
Le Shu exclaimed softly.
“But the Marquis of Xuanning is Prince Li’s maternal uncle. How could he support someone else?”
Chu Yuan rolled up the book in his hand and lightly tapped Le Shu’s head.
“Such curiosity. Perhaps you ought to go and ask Young Lord Ning yourself?”
Le Shu clutched his head and shrank back into the carriage, shaking it vigorously.
“No, no, no. If they chose not to stand with His Highness, that is their own poor judgement. If one does not support one’s own family, regret will surely follow sooner or later.”
Meanwhile, inside the Fang residence hall.
“His Highness the Crown Prince has arrived.”
The Crown Prince stepped forward and performed the mourning rites with due ceremony. Afterward he helped the elderly Madam Fang, whose eyes were swollen from crying.
“Old Madam, please restrain your grief. When Father Emperor learned of General Fang’s death, he was overcome with sorrow. These past days his health has been weak, so he specifically instructed this Prince to come offer condolences and comfort the general’s spirit in heaven.”
The old Madam nodded repeatedly while clinging to the Crown Prince’s arm and wailing until her voice nearly failed. She almost fainted before being supported by Fang Shuyu and Fang Rouling.
Both siblings wore mourning garments and appeared deeply grief-stricken.
The Crown Prince spoke with the old Madam for a while longer before Fang Rouling invited him to rest in the side hall for tea.
The heir of the Marquis of Xuanning accompanied him.
The Crown Prince and Young Lord Ning had been associating frequently during the past two months. This was no longer a secret in the capital.
Everyone watched Lu Ronghuai as though expecting a spectacle.
Lu Ronghuai did not spare them so much as a glance.
Having completed his condolences, and with no patience even for hollow courtesy, his thoughts entirely on the person waiting in the carriage. He turned and walked out at once.
Prince Li had always acted according to his own will. Although his reputation had improved somewhat recently, most people believed those favorable rumors were merely rumors.
A man as unyielding as Prince Li had already lost even the support of his closest relatives in the Marquis of Xuanning’s household.
How could anyone else dare approach him?
The moment the Crown Prince and Prince Li left the hall, everyone present secretly released a breath of relief.
There was something strange, however.
At General Fang’s funeral, not a single person from Prince Qi’s residence had appeared. Fang Xinhai was Prince Qi’s maternal uncle. Not long ago, when Prince Qi met with disaster in Ping Cheng, it was Fang Xinhai who had personally gone to search for him.
That former bond still remained. Now Fang Xinhai’s body had not even grown cold, yet Prince Qi did not appear even once.
It was enough to chill the heart.
Several officials belonging to Prince Qi’s faction exchanged quick glances before slipping quietly toward the side hall while no one was watching.
Emperor Hongjia had ordered the imperial physicians to treat Prince Qi’s legs. Every physician declared them incurable.
Prince Qi cursed them furiously and drove them all away.
After that came word that Prince Qi had shut himself in his residence, drinking heavily every day, and frequently beating and berating the servants.
When the news reached the palace, Emperor Hongjia merely turned a blind eye.
Lu Ronghuai had just stepped out of the Fang residence gate when he encountered Duke Liu.
“This old minister greets Your Highness.”
Lu Ronghuai halted.
His cold gaze pierced directly into the man’s heart.
“This Prince heard that several days ago you quarreled fiercely with the Crown Princess.”
Duke Liu smiled politely.
“Your Highness jests. They are nothing more than baseless rumors. The Crown Princess is gentle and filial. This old minister truly does not know how such rumors began, nor how they even reached Your Highness’s ears.”
He lifted his eyes toward the white mourning cloth hanging beneath the plaque.
“A person never knows when his life will reach its end. Do you not agree, Your Highness?”
A faint, inscrutable smile curved Lu Ronghuai’s lips.
“Indeed. Some people stand high today, yet tomorrow they may become prisoners beneath the steps.”
“Those who have done too many things against their conscience will face their reckoning sooner or later.”
Duke Liu merely smiled without answering.
While the two stood speaking at the gate, a carriage from the Nie residence also arrived.
Nie Siran stepped forward to assist Nie Chouwen down from the carriage, but the elder waved him away.
“I am not yet so old that I cannot descend by myself.”
When he stepped down and saw the silent confrontation at the gate, he paused for a moment before instructing his grandson.
“Go call Prince Li over.”
As Nie Siran went over, Duke Liu turned to look back at Nie Chouwen.
Nie Chouwen acknowledged him with a calm nod. Duke Liu returned the nod, then lifted his step and went in through the Fang family gate.
Lu Ronghuai arrived shortly afterward.
“Why does Elder Nie summon This Prince?”
Since resigning his post as a Prime Minister, Nie Chouwen wore the cap of a scholar and plain clothing each day. He often spent his time composing poetry and drinking wine with friends.
He seemed far less severe than before.
“How goes the preparation for the Prince Consort’s coming-of-age ceremony?”
Nie Chouwen remained concerned that Prince Li’s careless nature might mishandle such an important event.
Lu Ronghuai gave a short, amused sound.
“Ah-Yuan’s ceremony. This Prince will prepare it with the utmost care.”
“Good.”
Nie Chouwen glanced around.
“Did you come alone today?” Nie Chouwen had not seen Prince Li’s carriage and could not help asking.
Lu Ronghuai answered with perfect composure.
“Naturally. In such an ill-omened place, how could This Prince bear to bring Ah-Yuan?”
Nie Siran chuckled softly beside them.
Lu Ronghuai cast him a warning glance.
“Just as well,” Nie Chouwen said. “Return to your residence first and bring the Prince Consort to visit this old man’s home.”
Lu Ronghuai immediately grew wary, like a man guarding treasure.
“What scheme is the Nie family plotting?”
Nie Chouwen paused mid-motion while stroking his beard. The patience he had cultivated over two months collapsed instantly.
“Prince Li, this old man merely wishes to invite the Prince Consort. I only included you so you would not feel slighted. If you refuse, then do not come!”
Nie Siran raised his folding fan to hide a smile and offered a languid explanation. “Your Highness, Grandfather merely wishes to introduce someone to the Prince Consort.”
“Introduce whom?”
“You will know once you arrive. A little mystery never hurt anyone.”
Lu Ronghuai returned to the carriage and told Chu Yuan of the Nie family’s invitation.
Chu Yuan agreed readily. “It has been a long time since I last saw Prime Minister Nie. Let us prepare some gifts before visiting.”
Lu Ronghuai looked at his bright, happy expression and could not help a faint sourness.
“Why do you favor the Nie family so much? You converse well with Nie Chouwen, and with Nie Siran as well. This Prince grows jealous.”
Chu Yuan cast him a sidelong glance. “Did Your Highness not once converse quite happily with the Young Lord Ning, if this subject recalls correctly.”
Lu Ronghuai: “?”
Chu Yuan continued calmly.
“When I first married into the residence, I heard that Young Lord Ning gifted Your Highness a purebred Ferghana horse. Your Highness was extremely fond of it and even went riding with him.”
Lu Ronghuai: “...”
He laughed awkwardly and edged closer in appeasement.
“I merely admired the horse. He insisted on following along shamelessly. Since the horse was his gift, I could hardly throw him out.”
“This Prince severed ties with the Marquis of Xuanning’s household long ago. Ah-Yuan may rest assured. I will conduct myself with utmost propriety and pledge his life to upholding male virtue!”
Chu Yuan burst into laughter.
The two returned directly to the residence. After selecting gifts personally, Chu Yuan accompanied Lu Ronghuai to the Nie residence.
Nie Chouwen had also just returned from offering condolences. Hearing that they had arrived at the gate, he instructed Nie Siran to welcome them.
Setting down his teacup, he smiled toward the person seated beside him.
“From the moment I first saw that child, I took a liking to him. Once you meet him, you will certainly feel the same.”
✧ A Word from the Author ✧
Lu dog (in an arrogant tone): Keep your distance from the Nie family.
Nie family: Are you certain?
0 Comments