"Your Highness, today's lesson is over. I'll take my leave."
"Take care, teacher." Rong Sheng stood up and bowed to the teacher. After the teacher left, he turned and walked out. The guards and eunuchs outside hurriedly followed, but no one helped him take the bag of books in his hand.
This was His Majesty's order. He said that as a student, His Highness should take good care of his books. It was ungentlemanly to let others take his books.
Fortunately, although the Crown Prince was only seven or eight years old, he was a very sensible child. He didn't feel wronged when His Majesty let him take his books.
Every day after the lesson was over, Rong Sheng would go to the imperial study to have his father check his homework. After the check, the father and son would go back to the harem together to eat with his mother. However, something unexpected seemed to have happened today. He even heard his father reprimanding the courtiers.
His father had always been a person who didn't show his happiness. Someone must have stepped on his bottom line to make him so angry.
"Your Highness," Wang De, who was guarding outside the hall, saw Rong Sheng and bowed to him. "His Majesty is talking with the courtiers inside. Do you want to go in now?"
Rong Sheng thought for a moment. "You lead the way."
He wanted to know who made his father so angry.
"Your Majesty, your harem has been empty for more than ten years. Now that we have won a great victory, the weather is good, and the crops are abundant. If the envoys of the other countries know that our harem only has one Empress and you only have one son, what will they think of us?"
Hearing this, Rong Sheng paused. His expression didn't change. He walked to the center of the hall and bowed to Rong Xia. "Your son greets His Majesty."
"Sheng 'er," Rong Xia saw her son and her expression softened slightly. She reached out and beckoned him to sit beside her. Turning her head, she said to the courtier, "This is the first time I've learned that the measure of an emperor's quality is the number of women in his harem and not his political achievements. How many emperors in history have been destroyed by women? You actually want to persuade me to take concubines and indulge in women. What are your intentions?! "
"Your Majesty!" The courtier knelt down with a pale face. "Your humble servant didn't mean that. I just want you to add more helpers for the Crown Prince."
Rong Sheng's eyebrows twitched. He flipped open the homework book in his hand and did not interrupt. His mother had told him that instead of talking nonsense with these idiots, it was better to think about what to eat next. Anyway, these idiots' words were useless and would only make Imperial Father hate them more.
The more intelligent a person was, the more they couldn't stand idiots. Imperial Father was so wise, how could he tolerate this kind of person?
Rong Sheng was right. Not long after, this official was scolded by his father. He was even listed as a treacherous official because of "leading His Majesty to be infatuated with women." Rong Sheng, who watched the whole process, felt that his father's position in his mother's heart didn't fall because of his shamelessness and persistence.
"These words are good. I can already see some strength of character." Rong Xia commented on Rong Sheng's handwriting and reached out to touch his forehead. "Well, put everything away. Let's go back and have dinner with your mother."
Rong Sheng obediently put away his homework. He held the book in one hand and Rong Xia held his other hand. He listened to his father tell him some stories as they walked.
Imperial Father was not strict to him in the true sense of the word. He heard from a few study companions that some young masters from aristocratic families had to memorize and practice writing since they were young. If they did something wrong, they would be punished by their father. Imperial Father was not so strict to him, but he still worshipped his father because the other teachers were not as knowledgeable as his father.
Staying with his Imperial Father would broaden his horizons. Staying with his Imperial Mother, he was happy every moment, and he would come into contact with many new and interesting gadgets. Every time he heard about other young masters, he felt that he was so lucky to have such parents.
But the more it was so, the more he would not allow himself to slack off. His parents had put in so much effort. If he did not repay them, how was he different from a beast?
The father and son did not walk fast, but the imperial study was not far from the harem, so they soon arrived at the inner hall of the Great Moon Palace.
When they entered, Ban Han was singing. Seeing them come in, Ban Han sat up straight on the chaise lounge and waved to Rong Sheng with a smile. "Son, come and have a look with your mother. Don't you look better today?"
Rong Sheng ran to Ban Han quickly. Ban Han pinched his white and tender face. "You look better today than yesterday, so it's useful to eat obediently."
"Mother, I'm seven years old." Rong Sheng covered his face. His mother had been saying this kind of lie to children for several years. Couldn't she change it?
"You're seven years old, not seventeen." Ban Han touched his palm. After making sure it was not hot or cold, she said to Rong Xia, "I asked the imperial kitchen to make rabbit buns for you and Sheng 'er. Remember to try it later."
Rong Xia laughed. He was a man in his thirties, but he wanted to eat the same thing as his son. However, Momo insisted that he had lived a boring childhood and wanted to make up for his childhood with Sheng 'er. Therefore, he often prepared things for Sheng' er and secretly prepared a share for him, which made him not know whether to laugh or cry.
Although he felt a little helpless, he still cooperated with his mother. "Okay."
After all, it was Huahua's good intention. He could not bear to spoil it at all.
The rabbit buns were charmingly naive, soft and delicious. Rong Xia could not help eating one more. He turned his head and saw Ban Han looking at him with a smile. He lowered his head and whispered in her ear, "Huahua, what are you smiling at?"
Ban Han smiled and said, "I'm thinking that you must be as cute as Sheng 'er when you were a child."
Rong Xia turned to look at Rong Sheng. He was eating a rabbit bun very seriously. His cheeks were bulging. At first glance, he looked like an innocent little white rabbit.
He shook his head and said, "I was not as cute as Sheng 'er when I was a child."
"Who said that?" Ban Han held his hand and said, "You are an old man in your thirties now. You are still so cute, not to mention when you were a child."
Rong Xia thought, "An old man?"
He touched his face. Tomorrow, he would ask the imperial physician to find some formulas to nourish his skin. What if one day Huahua disliked him because of his old age?
After dinner, the family of three chatted for a while. Rong Xia asked someone to send Rong Sheng to rest. He and Ban Han also prepared to wash up and go to bed.
However, he did not know whether it was because he was happy that he ate too much at night. He felt a little uncomfortable in his sleep. When he opened his eyes, Huahua was no longer by his side.
"Your Majesty, are you up?" Wang De stood outside the tent and asked.
Rong Xia looked at the empty space beside him and could not help but reach out to touch it. It was cold to the touch. He could not help but frown. It was just dawn. With Huahua's personality, how could she be willing to get up so early?
However, he saw that Wang De looked normal and did not look like something was wrong, so he did not ask.
When he went to court, he looked at somewhere in the lower right corner. His father-in-law and brother-in-law were lazy and did not come to court. There were also a few old foppish men. Did they discuss not to come to court today? In the past, when they did not come to court, they took turns to be lazy. Why did they do it so openly today?
Rong Xia felt a little uneasy. Fortunately, there was nothing to do at court today. He was occasionally distracted and no one noticed anything wrong with him.
After court, he flipped through the memorials in the imperial study. It said that there was a drought in Xi Zhou. The people were affected by the disaster and did not have enough to eat. His frown deepened. There was a big harvest of wheat beans this year. How could they not have enough to eat?
He threw the memorials aside. His face was like a cloudy day that was about to rain. "Wang De, where is Her Majesty?"
"Her Majesty …" Wang De was stunned. His Majesty was not fond of women and would not mention women in the imperial study. What was wrong with him today?
"Your Majesty, which Her Majesty are you asking about?" After saying this, he found that His Majesty's eyes had become very strange. It was as if His Majesty was sizing him up and guarding against him.
"Who do you think I am asking about?"
Wang De complained in his heart. There were only a few Concubines in the imperial harem, but His Majesty did not value any of them. It was good enough that he could enter the imperial harem a few times a month. How would he know who His Majesty was asking about?
"Maybe … Concubine De?"
Rong Xia's eyelids trembled slightly. The imperial study suddenly quieted down. He stared at Wang De for a long time. "Let me ask you, how is the Duke Of Jingting and his family?"
"The Duke Of Jingting …" Wang De thought carefully. "Your Majesty, are you talking about Ban Shuiqing, the son of the Princess Royal of De Ning from the previous dynasty? His family was stripped of their titles by the King of Violence as early as 12 years ago. Later, it was because of your care that his family was able to live a prosperous and peaceful life in Yujing Province. But perhaps you remembered incorrectly. Ban Shuiqing is not a Duke, but a Marquis. "
"Bang." Rong Xia's hand that was holding the teacup trembled. The teacup fell to the ground and shattered into pieces.
"Your Majesty, what's wrong?" Wang De looked at Rong Xia worriedly. "I will call the imperial physician."
"No need." Rong Xia stared at Wang De. "What about his daughter, Lady Ban?!"
"Lady Ban … Lady Ban." Wang De knelt on the ground in fright. "Lady Ban was assassinated a long time ago. Your Majesty, did you forget? That year, you led the troops into the pass to ascend the throne. Later, you met Lady Ban by chance and invited her to a tea house. When Lady Ban went out … she was assassinated. You pitied her because she was a sentimental person, so you specially ordered her to be buried as a Commandery Princess, and … "
"Assassinated?!" Rong Xia only felt that his head was buzzing. He could no longer hear what Wang De was saying.
The entire world was spinning, and it was bone-chillingly cold.
Pu.
He spat out a mouthful of blood, dyeing the back of his hand red.
"Your Majesty, quickly summon the imperial physician, the imperial physician!" Wang De was so scared that his face turned pale. He scrambled to the door. "Quickly summon the imperial physician."
Rong Xia ignored Wang De, who was lying on the ground. He quickly stepped out of the imperial study and came to the back hall of the Great Moon Palace. This place was both familiar and strange to him. He was familiar because the bricks and tiles here had not changed. What was strange was that there was no trace of Huahua here, as if Huahua had never appeared here.
"Your Majesty, what's wrong with you?"
"Your Majesty."
"Your Majesty."
He turned around and looked at the palace maids and eunuchs kneeling on the ground behind him. He clutched his chest and spat out a few mouthfuls of bright red blood.
Without Huahua, what was the use of him having this world?
Last night, he had just had dinner with Huahua. She was lying beside him and said that she would make him a fruit bag in the imperial study today. Why did he wake up early in the morning and find that everything was gone?
Huahua was dead?
She died 12 years ago, and died in front of him?
He even … buried her with the rites of a Commandery Princess?
This was not true. This was impossible. How could he treat her like this?
Wang De was shocked to find that His Majesty was crying for him.
In front of all the palace maids, he cried bitterly, as if he had lost the most precious thing that he relied on to survive.
His Majesty did admire Lord Ban back then. Otherwise, he would not have buried her with the rites of a Commandery Princess. After her death, he even specially ordered to take care of the Ban Family and let them move to Yujing State so that they would not be bullied in the capital.
But that was all. In the past decade or so, His Majesty rarely mentioned Lord Ban. At most, he would go to the frozen lake in the imperial garden to take a walk and stare at the frozen lake in a daze during the coldest time of winter.
Why did he suddenly mention someone who had not been mentioned for 10 years and was so sad?
Two days later, the Changqing Of Gojoseon, who was imprisoned in the prison, was sentenced to death by His Majesty.
That day, Wang De was guarding outside the palace of the Great Moon Palace. He heard His Majesty crying again and again, like the cry of a lonely goose.
"Huahua …"
He vaguely heard the name.
Was that … Lord Ban's maiden name?
There was a woman like Hou, quiet and beautiful.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, what's wrong with you?"
Rong Xia opened her eyes and looked at the woman beside her. She reached out and held her tightly in her arms, so tightly that there was no gap between them.
"Did you have a nightmare?" Ban Han gently patted him on the back as if she was coaxing him when he was young. "Don't be afraid. I'm here." She had been with Rong Xia for more than 10 years. This was the first time she had seen him cry in a dream. What sad thing did he dream?
"Huahua," Rong Xia choked. "Don't leave me."
"What are you talking about?" Ban Han touched his face and felt tears on her hand. Her fingertips trembled. "You and Sheng 'er are here. Where can I go?"
Holding the woman in his arms, Rong Xia felt warm all over. It was just a dream. Everything was fake. Huahua was alive and well. She was his empress in his arms.
He did not let her lie alone in the ground without a title. He only gave her the dignity of a princess at the time of the burial.
A country without Huahua was so lonely and terrible.
"Huahua."
"Yes?"
"Having you is the luckiest thing in my life."
"Pfft." Ban Han smiled and kissed his wet eyes. "So am I."
There were many accidents in life. The most beautiful accident was that they met, fell in love, and were together.
Only with you in the world can I live.
(The End)
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