Scent Of Time

Chapter 63.2

Extra 1: Zhong Xiwu’s part

In the imperial study, Zhong Xiwu deliberately picked out a folder and handed it to Hua Qian. Watching her trembling but turning eyes like a fox once Zhong Xiwu hunting when he was young, she was obviously afraid that her eyes shrunk into a ball but still didn’t give up the ghost idea. 

Zhong Xiwu inexplicably felt better. 

At that time, Zhong Xiwu didn’t know where his delight at that moment came from and didn’t care about it; he just thought he was seeking a pastime. Only when he saw Hua Qian subconsciously pull Zhong Yelan’s sleeve and the two of them shook hands did Zhong Xiwu sober up a bit; that was — his royal sister-in-law. 

He wanted to divert his attention, but after hearing that Hua Qian had prepared a birthday banquet for Zhong Yelan, he couldn’t help but ask to join. Zhong Yelan didn’t even notice his flickering eyes and readily answered. Zhong Xiwu felt apprehensive during the journey, and when he arrived at the King Jin Mansion, he knew where his apprehension had come from. Halfway through the banquet, Hua Qian invited a person to play qin, and his discerning could see that Hua Qian was arranging people for Zhong Yelan and this person was — Mu Yao. 

Zhong Xiwu was doubtful. He knew Mu Yao’s identity. Previously, Hua Qian used many tactics to get together with Zhong Yelan, but why was she now generous after the marriage? 

Doubts filled his heart, and he couldn’t even enjoy the qin, but he put up a natural pretense of appreciation to cover up. His remaining vision was looking at Hua Qian, who sat aside with complacency. 

Zhong Xiwu asked, “What birthday gift did Princess Consort Jin prepare for Royal Brother?” 

Hua Qian visibly froze momentarily, and Zhong Xiwu could not help but smile. It seemed that she was unprepared. However, Zhong Xiwu suddenly couldn’t speak when he saw the bowl of longevity noodles later. He did not want to admit that his heart was inexplicably sad. An emperor being jealous of a bowl of noodles was so laughable. Yet, Zhong Xiwu couldn’t laugh; something blocked his chest, and he couldn’t bear to leave the banquet. He deliberately stepped away from the topic and tuned out Zhong Yelan, turned cold, and asked unrelated questions. He didn’t realize he wanted to listen to her denials, yet he became speechless because of Hua Qian’s righteous rebuke.

Looking at Hua Qian’s bright face under the moonlight, Zhong Xiwu felt inexplicably uncomfortable in his heart. He uncontrollably said: “Hearing this confession can really make a person red-eyed. Brother, are you touched?” 

5. Ancestor Worship Ceremony

There was a clamor of people, a messy ceremony, and layers of guards stacked like rocks around Zhong Xiwu. Gao Yu stood in front of Zhong Xiwu, protecting him. 

Zhong Xiwu was not disorganized by the sudden attack. Instead, he slightly narrowed his eyes and swept through the whole scene, then involuntarily looked in one direction. His footsteps suddenly lurched as he fixed his gaze on the silhouette outside the layers of the crowd. Compared to the wailing noblewomen, Hua Qian appeared to be too maverick. She kept looking around like she was looking — for food. 

Zhong Xiwu felt suspicious. Why did she seem to have known about this matter before? As he thought about it, his steps slowed down a few beats, and Gao Yu, who was in front of him, immediately turned around questioningly. “Your Majesty?” 

Zhong Xiwu reacted. He could think about this matter later. 

When Zhong Xiwu wanted to withdraw his gaze, his eyes suddenly widened in the next moment, and he could feel his heartbeat stop for a few beats even though he was amid the clamor. In the distance, the figure’s chest, which was still leisurely and calm, slowly bloomed a bloodstain, which also stained Zhong Xiwu’s pupils. His footsteps involuntarily moved forward, but he was pushed back numerous steps by Gao Yu and the layers of guards. They weren’t too far from each other, and Zhong Xiwu could see Hua Qian spitting blood, staining her collar, and the disbelief in her eyes. 

When Hua Qian fell to the ground with a loud bang, and Zhong Yelan protected her, Zhong Xiwu could not get close to her because, even though the distance between them was not too far, there were countless people between them. The guards escorted Zhong Xiwu back to the palace, but in a few moments, Lin Jiang appeared to report. 

Zhong Xiwu saw Lin Jiang’s mouth open and closed but realized he could not hear a word. Finally, he asked, “King Jin ‘s Mansion — how is the situation?” 

Lin Jiang hesitated before answering: “Reply to the Emperor; King Jin wasn’t injured, and his government soldiers have no casualties.” 

“What about her?” Zhong Xiwu was finally unable to hold back, and his tone was no longer smooth. 

Lin Jiang’s heart jumped. He immediately buried his head and replied, “Princess Consort Jin is injured and unconscious; I don’t know the specifics.” 

He forcefully spoke with indescribable pain in Zhong Xiwu’s heart: “Let Yin Xing watch closely. She must report any situation in time.” 

“Your Majesty …… this seems unreasonable ……” Lin Jiang could not help but hinted. 

Zhong Xiwu’s fingers shrunk slightly. How could he not know? 

He forced himself to calm down, but Hua Qian’s calm appearance before the attack, when she ran toward Zhong Yelan without hesitation, and the final disbelief after an arrow hit her repeatedly flashed. There was something wrong here, but Zhong Xiwu couldn’t figure it out. 

Looking at the still kneeling and motionless Lin Jiang, Zhong Xiwu took a deep breath and stabilized his mind before speaking, “I …… have my plans.” 

6. Pledge of love

Finally, he heard the news that Hua Qian was out of danger. At the same time, Yin Xing passed a message that Zhong Yelan had suddenly abandoned the seriously injured Hua Qian.

After staying a few days, Zhong Xiwu couldn’t pretend not to know anymore. He couldn’t tell whether he was suspicious or had other feelings. Thus, he rushed to King Jin Mansion without announcement. The sleeping Hua Qian looked more docile than usual, without any detachment or caution, so Zhong Xiwu was unwilling to wake her and quietly sat down. 

If Hua Qian had woken up a quarter of an hour earlier, she would have seen how Zhong Xiwu looked at her, causing the eunuchs who followed all to bow their heads deeply and dared not to utter a single breath. 

Zhong Xiwu didn’t know when he started to be unable to guess Hua Qian’s mind and infer the intentions of all her moves. What was even more terrible was that he wanted to know her mind. So, after hearing the news that Hua Qian was making a scene in King Jin Mansion to divorce, Zhong Xiwu froze for a moment. Rather than being suspicious, Zhong Xiwu realized he was more pleased after hearing this news. To marry Zhong Yelan, Hua Qian could be said to be full of scandals and evil deeds, but Zhong Yelan believed her words. Now, she wanted to divorce and was like two different people. Perhaps this was the so-called ‘hearing was false and seeing was believing.’

After learning that Empress Dowager had summoned Hua Qian, Zhong Xiwu changed the eunuch who invited her to his people and pretended to be unintentionally guarding the intersection and waiting for a chance encounter. Seeing the lively Hua Qian again, Zhong Xiwu couldn’t hide the upturned corners of his mouth, “Such a coincidence, Princess Consort Jin.” 

However, this time, Hua Qian was extraordinarily cold to him, more detached than ever. Zhong Xiwu thought back carefully; it should be the conversation between him and Hua Qian when he was in King Jin Mansion, which was interrupted by Zhong Yelan sending someone to invite him, that made her indignant. 

Remembering the pale, aggrieved Hua Qian with reddened eyes, Zhong Xiwu’s heart felt guilty, so he softened his tone. He wanted to take this opportunity to persuade her to put herself first in the future and not to stand up for others. But Hua Qian only listening half of his words and left him behind, so Zhong Xiwu could only hold his forehead. The one who annoyed her was him, so he had to coax her.

At the same time, the corners of his mouth kept rising. After meeting Hua Qian, he realized that she never shows any fondness for Zhong Yelan nowadays. Recalling Hua Qian’s solemn appearance in front of him when she confessed her feelings for Zhong Yelan several times, Zhong Xiwu realized that Hua Qian revealed her feelings for Zhong Yelan sensibly and meticulously without any emotions. If she was sincere, how could she talk about it so eloquently? She was trying to trick others into believing that she was in love with Zhong Yelan; probably, she was trying to fool herself into believing it. The better his mood, the more Zhong Xiwu did not care about Hua Qian’s disobedient behavior. However, Hua Qian’s words also reminded him of their current status. How good would it be if he could have known and understood her earlier, safe him from today’s heavy obstacles? However, Zhong Xiwu has been talented since childhood, and his literary and military strategy has not lagged. His mother was also the head of the harem, so whenever he wanted something, as long as he was willing to work hard, he would achieve it.

The Empress Dowager was already old and gradually unable to manage the harem. Hua Qian was born for this post. She was intelligent and sensitive, had visited the palace several times after the marriage, and was familiar with it. She knew when to move forward and retreat and didn’t fight for power and victory. The most important thing was that — Zhong Xiwu couldn’t ignore Hua Qian’s influence on him. The scene when Hua Qian blocked the arrows for Zhong Yelan made him experience ‘lingering fear’ for the first time.

The person he kept in his heart and mind was injured, but Zhong Yelan ignored her. So, don’t blame him for wanting to pull Hua Qian to his side to protect her. He definitely won’t let this kind of thing happen again. 

The Empress Dowager was fond of her nowadays, so Zhong Xiwu wasn’t worried about his mother’s side. Then, there were only two problems left that he needed to solve: one was the powerful Hua Family, and the other was some of the corrupt officials of the former dynasty. Although the process may have been complicated, it was not impossible. After all, he was the Emperor. With his thoughts settled, Zhong Xiwu spoke to Gao Yu at his side, “Give Yin Xing an order.” 

When Gao Yu came to his side, he saw Zhong Xiwu’s eyes smiling, “Let Hua Qian and Imperial Brother no longer have the chance to get back together.”