Gu Jianli’s heart sank, guessing that it was related to Emperor Chang’s death. Several months had passed, and the new emperor had stabilized the court and begun settling old affairs. However, as long as he still needed her father, he naturally wouldn’t touch her.
In just a moment, Gu Jianli’s mindset shifted from worry to calmness. She followed Dou Hongyan.
Ji Lan stood at the top of the pavilion, looking down and watching Gu Jianli gradually approach from a distance. Ji Wujing walked beside Gu Jianli. A daughter of some minister by the roadside wanted to greet Gu Jianli, but upon seeing Ji Wujing, she fearfully shook her head and stepped aside.
Ji Lan withdrew his gaze and sat behind the long table.
Ji Wujing also noticed the girl who had initially approached but then retreated. From his vantage point, he saw more clearly the regret and sympathy in the girl’s eyes.
He asked Gu Jianli, “Do you know her?”
Gu Jianli nodded.
“Why did she look at you with such sympathy?” Ji Wujing asked.
“Naturally, she thinks I married poorly,” Gu Jianli said honestly.
Ji Wujing gave Gu Jianli a deep look and then said, “Gu Jianli, don’t you think it’s inappropriate to speak like this in front of me?”
Gu Jianli turned her face to look at him innocently and said, “You wouldn’t get angry about this anyway.”
How do you know I’m not angry? Or is it that it doesn’t matter whether I’m angry or not? Ji Wujing remained silent.
After walking in silence for a while, Ji Wujing suddenly asked, “Gu Jianli, do you drink alcohol?”
“I’ve only had fruit wine.”
Ji Wujing said no more.
When they reached the top floor of the pavilion and met Ji Lan, Ji Lan smiled and waived the formalities. He first inquired about Ji Wujing’s health and spoke of waiting for him to return to the Xuanjing Sect.
Then he turned to Gu Jianli and said warmly, “I summoned you here because I have something to ask for your help.”
Gu Jianli lowered her eyes, obedient and respectful: “Your Majesty, your words are too serious. If it’s something I can do, I will certainly obey.”
“It’s about your father.”
Gu Jianli was somewhat prepared and wasn’t too surprised.
Ji Lan paused here and then spoke of caring for Ji Wujing’s health and invited him to rest in the adjacent room.
—This was a tactful way to send him away.
Ji Wujing glanced at Gu Jianli and gladly stepped aside. After all, his hearing was excellent, and he could still listen in.
Dou Hongyan also withdrew, leaving only Ji Lan and Gu Jianli in the room.
A faint fragrance wafted from the Boshan furnace. Ji Lan pondered for a moment before speaking, “Have you told anyone about what happened that day?”
Gu Jianli answered honestly, “I am but a weak woman, reliant on my father for many things, so naturally, my father knows.”
“And your husband’s family?” Ji Lan asked slowly.
Gu Jianli shook her head, “I haven’t mentioned it to anyone else.”
Chen He knew and was even an accomplice, but Gu Jianli had promised Chen He she wouldn’t implicate him. As for the Marquis of Guangping’s household… Gu Jianli wasn’t sure if Ji Wujing knew all the details of that day. She didn’t know how much Chen He had told Ji Wujing, and Ji Wujing had never asked her.
Ji Lan looked intently at the obedient Gu Jianli for a long time before speaking again, “Do you know that Prince Wuxian intends to relinquish power?”
Gu Jianli was slightly surprised; she indeed did not know this. She replied, “These past few months, I have been at home healing my leg injury and haven’t seen my father, so I was unaware.”
Ji Lan’s gaze dropped to Gu Jianli’s leg, recalling her wearing a purple dress before the great fire. He remembered her calm and strategic demeanor. At that time, he hadn’t realized how severe her leg injury was.
Remembering that Gu Jianli was married, Ji Lan felt a pang of regret. He wasn’t a man driven by lust; he appreciated Gu Jianli for her courage and wisdom. A woman with her bravery, strategic mind, and noble background was unparalleled and truly fit to bear the title “Mother of the Nation.”
“I hope you can persuade your father,” Ji Lan said as he stood and walked slowly towards Gu Jianli, looking at her with deep eyes. “I deeply admire Prince Wuxian. He has made great contributions to our country, and it would be a loss to the nation if he lost his loyalty over a wrongful case.”
Being second only to the emperor—Ji Lan’s offer was a blatant temptation.
Gu Jianli’s expression remained unchanged, her face carrying a faint smile as she respectfully replied, “I thank Your Majesty on behalf of my father for your great kindness. I will certainly convey your grace when I return home.”
She avoided making promises and only committed to delivering the message.
Ji Lan nodded and smiled warmly. He returned to the long table, picked up the edict, and looked back at Gu Jianli, saying, “Gu Jianli, second daughter of Prince Wuxian, receive the decree.”
Gu Jianli was taken aback and knelt down, lifting her dress.
Title of Princess Shengyi.
This was the decree to bestow the title of princess, which should have been issued on Gu Jianli’s coming-of-age ceremony.
Gu Jianli’s elder sister, Gu Zaili, was titled “Princess Sheng’an.”
A eunuch with a sharp voice announced the joyful news, from inside the pavilion to outside. Being conferred the title of princess not only came with the title but also with rewards.
Before long, the guests attending the Hundred Flowers Banquet at the palace knew.
When Gu Jianli and Ji Wujing left the pavilion, they received many congratulations.
Gu Zaili also came over. Gu Jianli hadn’t seen her sister for a long time and was very happy to see her.
Ji Wujing sat lazily aside, watching people congratulate Gu Jianli, and couldn’t help but recall the look of regret and sympathy that girl had given Gu Jianli.
Was he really that bad? Unworthy of her? Ridiculous.
Gu Jianli chatted with the well-wishers for a while, then decided to head back to the palace immediately to convey Ji Lan’s words, showing her stance.
She bid farewell to those around her and walked towards Ji Wujing.
Seeing Gu Jianli approach with a bright smile, Ji Wujing sneered. Oh, now she remembered him?
Gu Jianli reached him, her lips curved, eyes sparkling with a gleam of April light. She sweetly said, “Shall we leave now?”
Ji Wujing looked at her smiling face, remaining silent.
Gu Jianli bent down, took his hand, and held his cool thumb in her palm, gently shaking it, “Let’s go. We’ll go to the palace first, have dinner there, and then go home.”
Despite feeling quite uncomfortable, the mention of “going home” melted away his discomfort. Ji Wujing stood up, impatiently saying, “Next time, if you want to come to places like this, come by yourself.”
“Alright.” Gu Jianli followed him.
The palace was large, and it would take at least half an hour to walk from their current location to the main gate. After walking for a short while, they encountered Lin Shaotang.
“Are you leaving already?” Lin Shaotang, now in clean clothes, had a slightly disappointed look on his refined face.
Gu Jianli slowed her steps but didn’t stop, nodding with a smile as a greeting. Ji Wujing, naturally, didn’t even glance at him.
Seeing that Gu Jianli was about to leave, Lin Shaotang hurriedly said, “I’ll visit the Marquis of Guangping’s estate soon with some peonies I’ve grown myself to pay a visit to Brother Ji!”
Ji Wujing stopped and turned to look at him.
Lin Shaotang was startled by the darkness in Ji Wujing’s eyes. He still had dimples in his cheeks, but his expression was frozen, looking quite out of place.
Ji Wujing walked towards him.
Gu Jianli, alarmed, quickly grabbed Ji Wujing’s hand, applying a little force, urging, “We should go.”
Ji Wujing looked back at Gu Jianli, who gently shook her head, her eyes sparkling with a hint of pleading. She softly coaxed, “Let’s go…”
Ji Wujing slowly licked his lips, the shadow in his eyes fading. He heeded Gu Jianli’s words, didn’t look at Lin Shaotang again, and walked out with her. However, after a few steps, he suddenly broke a small branch the length of his little finger. The branch twirled in his slender fingers before disappearing. Immediately after, there was a loud splash and people’s screams from behind.
Gu Jianli was startled and looked back to see Lin Shaotang, who had been standing by the lake, now in the water.
Gu Jianli blinked slowly, then looked strangely at Ji Wujing. Ji Wujing glanced disdainfully at the struggling Lin Shaotang in the lake, casually saying, “Not only is his brain faulty, but his legs are bad too. Falling into the flowers wasn’t enough; he had to fall into the lake again.”
Gu Jianli wordlessly averted her gaze. She watched as the guards rescued the drenched Lin Shaotang, then turned to leave. Ji Wujing’s lips curved slightly in a barely noticeable smile.
Long Yujun frowned and reprimanded, “Are you deliberately provoking people you shouldn’t?”
Lin Shaotang yawned and scratched his head, “No, it was my own carelessness. Falling twice in front of Xiaoli, how embarrassing…”
Lin Shaotang was quite dejected, but soon he brightened up with a smile, “Cousin, I saw her three times today in different places! What kind of fate is this!”
Long Yujun had no interest in dealing with him anymore.
Gu Jianli and Ji Wujing boarded the carriage, heading first to the palace. Inside the carriage, Gu Jianli thought about Ji Lan’s words and her father’s plans, and didn’t initiate conversation with Ji Wujing.
Ji Wujing leaned lazily against the carriage wall, also silent. His complexion didn’t look good. He suddenly thought, if he let Gu Jianli attend these annoying banquets alone in the future, what if she encountered Lin Shaotang again? Without Lin Shaotang, there would surely be Zhang Shaotang or Li Shaotang…
Upon arriving at the palace, Gu Jianli felt a surge of emotion seeing the place where she had lived for fifteen years. However, as she walked inside and saw unfamiliar new servants and changed buildings, a sense of melancholy arose in her heart. She realized this place was no longer what it once was; some things had irrevocably changed.
Madam Tao, upon hearing from the servants that Gu Jianli and Ji Wujing had arrived, personally came out to greet them with a beaming smile. Gu Jianli’s arrival was poorly timed; Gu Jingyuan was out socializing with friends, Gu Chuan had gone to the academy, and even Gu Zaili was still at the Hundred Flowers Banquet.
After chatting with Madam Tao for a while, Madam Tao suggested, “I’ve tried to arrange your boudoir as it was before. Go see if there’s anything you don’t like, and take a rest after the long carriage ride. When your father returns, I’ll call you.”
Madam Tao noticed that Ji Wujing didn’t look well and secretly wondered if the young couple had quarreled.
Gu Jianli thanked Madam Tao and took Ji Wujing to her former boudoir.
Gu Jianli opened the door and looked at her old room. A torrent of emotions surged, and her eyes became slightly misty. She quickly composed herself and first attended to Ji Wujing, saying, “Are you tired, Fifth Master? Please rest…”
Before she could finish, Ji Wujing suddenly grabbed her wrist and pulled her onto the bed. He untied his sash and used it to bind Gu Jianli’s hands to the bedpost in one swift motion.
Staring at Ji Wujing’s cold face, Gu Jianli was stunned.
