EWRN - Chapter 53
Chapter 53: Autumn Hunt (VIII)
Hua Ying was gone. After seeing Huo Jinyu, she left Jiangbei Villa.
The following evening, after sleeping for a night and a day, Di An awoke. The first person she saw was not Hua Ying, and it felt truly strange. In the past, whenever she woke, the first thing she would see was Hua Ying's delicate face, her concerned eyes.
But now, that was all gone. Before getting out of bed, Di An's heart was filled with panic. She thought something had happened to Hua Ying. The memory of the wound on Hua Ying's back sent another pang through her heart.
"Where is Hua Ying?" Ignoring the pain in her shoulder and arm, Di An sat up. The palace maids hurried forward to support her as she asked the question.
"In response to Your Ladyship, Sister Hua Ying left after seeing His Majesty," the head maid replied respectfully.
"Left?" Di An sat stunned on the bed, murmuring the word.
"Sister Hua Ying left a letter for Your Ladyship on the table," the head maid continued.
Di An nodded. Supported by the maids, she walked unsteadily to the table and sat down.
Several sheets of paper were stacked neatly on the table, held down by a fine inkstone. On the first sheet were four sharp, powerful characters: For An'er to open personally.
Di An slowly unfolded the letter and began to read. The elegant, powerful characters seemed to leap from the page.
To my dearest An'er:
To my An'er, by the time you read this letter, Hua Ying will already be on the road home.
I am sorry for leaving without saying goodbye, but I have more important matters to attend to. Your injury this time was due to my failure to protect you. You have been with me for so long, you must know that those assassins were coming for me. Staying with me will only bring you harm…
As Di An read, her vision blurred. Finally, tears fell, one after another, unstoppable, landing on the letter and smudging the black ink. The surrounding maids lowered their heads, pretending not to see, and quietly withdrew.
Di An wiped the corners of her eyes with her sleeve and continued reading.
Until I am capable of protecting you, please stay safely in the palace. There are many guards, and it is secure. Following His Majesty will also offer you a measure of security.
An'er, I wonder if you have received my heart's intentions. I ask for nothing else, only that you wait for me. I beg you not to fall in love with another.
An'er, wait for me. I will surely return to take you away. Then, we can fly far away and live our days in happiness.
Sincerely, Hua Ying.
The more Di An read, the more her heart ached. The vast, empty hall was like the gaping, blood-red maw of a man-eating beast, threatening to swallow her whole.
Di An had always been afraid of the dark; it was a problem she'd had since childhood, its origins lost to time. Right now, she missed Hua Ying.
She didn't know when it had started, but she had grown accustomed to Hua Ying's companionship. They talked of things old and new, shared meals, recited poetry and composed couplets, played music and chess, painted and practiced calligraphy, and even slept in each other's arms.
She was used to every morning waking to the sight of Hua Ying. She was used to Hua Ying placing food on her plate at every meal. She was used to every night, falling into a deep and peaceful sleep with her head resting on Hua Ying's arm.
She realized that, without noticing, she had grown accustomed to a life that included everything about Hua Ying. She realized that, without noticing, her entire being had become intertwined with Hua Ying's, inseparable.
"Hua Ying…" When Di An had left the madam who had raised her for over a decade, when she had left the Jade Spring Pavilion where she had lived for over a decade, she had never felt such sorrow. She had never felt such pain, a pain in her chest so intense it felt like she was suffocating.
Even though Hua Ying had repeatedly said she would come back for her, her heart still felt hollow. At the Jade Spring Pavilion, she had often heard the other sisters say that people's promises were often like beautiful butterflies, fluttering gracefully before vanishing without a trace. Even with Hua Ying's farewell letter, even with her repeated assurances that she would return, Di An couldn't see her now, couldn't touch her. It was as if the past few months had been a long dream, a dream where a woman named Hua Ying had briefly stopped, only to leave without a backward glance.
Di An's already poor complexion grew even paler.
She folded the letter and carefully tucked it inside her robes. Using her uninjured right hand, she pushed herself to her feet, shuffled back to the bed, and pulled the covers over her head, letting the darkness consume her.
On the second day of the Autumn Hunt, Huo Jinyu saw that Di An was still asleep and not yet awake, so she carefully instructed the maids to take good care of the Noble Consort. Then, she and Yan Xi left the West Palace and went to the grasslands of the Jiangbei Hunting Ground.
As was customary, the morning of the second day of the Autumn Hunt was dedicated to horse racing. The races were nothing more than an opportunity for the young masters to show off their prowess in front of the ladies, and perhaps even subtly reveal their physiques.
For some unknown reason, the Fourth Prince of the Northern Kingdom fell, horse and all. Bizarrely, the other young masters on the same track simply leaped over him as if he were an obstacle.
The Northern Kingdom was a nation of the steppes, and the Wu Clan was now considered its royal family. Yet, the Fourth Prince, representing the face of the Northern Kingdom, had fallen during a simple horse race and had been leaped over like a hurdle by the young masters of the Great Yuan Kingdom. Having suffered the humiliation of being ridden over, the Fourth Prince was livid with rage.
The other young masters had already galloped far ahead. The Fourth Prince had lost all face before the crowd of noblewomen. He struggled to his feet and, ignoring the pain, tried to remount. But to his dismay, as soon as he was on its back, the horse's legs gave way and it collapsed again. This time, the Fourth Prince was quick-witted and nimble, leaping to land steadily on his feet, but the horse refused to get up again.
Seeing Yan Xi watching with great interest, Huo Jinyu's lips curved into a slight smile. After a moment, she ordered a few servants to drag the horse away and bring a new one.
The Fourth Prince's face was now a ghastly shade of green and black. In the distance, some of the young masters were already on their return leg, while he was still stuck at the starting point. Gritting his teeth, the Fourth Prince leaped onto the new horse and set off again. For the sake of the Northern Kingdom's honor, he had to finish the lap, even if a miserable defeat was already certain.
The Fourth Prince's heart was bleeding. That horse had been a rare and famous steed of the Northern Kingdom, a prized Ferghana horse! He had begged his imperial father for it for a long time. If not for his meritorious suggestion to overthrow the Yan clan, his father would never have even lent him the horse. And now, that horse was crippled.
The young masters returned victorious, with only the Fourth Prince trailing behind, eating their dust the entire way.
Yan Xi was delighted by the sight, which in turn made Huo Jinyu happy. But, she thought, this wasn't enough. Yan Xi secretly resolved that she had to find an opportunity in the next two days to deal with the Fourth Prince—no, the fourth son of the Wu clan. Yan Xi would never acknowledge the Wu Clan as the royalty of the Northern Kingdom!
Wasn't it the fourth son of the Wu clan who had suggested the Wu Clan stage a coup amidst the chaos? Yan Xi knew all of this. A cold smile touched her lips. For the Wu Clan to dare send his son right before her eyes, they must be tired of living, rushing to their own deaths! She would make sure that the fourth son of the Wu clan, who had arrived vertically, would leave horizontally! This was Huo Jinyu's Great Yuan Kingdom; whatever one wanted to do was up to Huo Jinyu's people. Yan Xi had already automatically classified herself as one of Huo Jinyu's people.
Watching from the side, Huo Jinyu was dazzled.
Huo Jinyu: My wife is so beautiful, even when she sneers!
It seemed Yan Xi already had a plan in mind. Huo Jinyu didn't disturb her enjoyment, deciding to wait until her Xi'er had made her move before adding her own finishing touch. Wouldn't that be wonderful? Haha.
In the afternoon, having developed a taste for snake meat, Huo Jinyu once again dragged Yan Xi to the western part of the hunting grounds. They hunted quite a few snakes. Although the meat was delicious, Huo Jinyu still detested the slithery, writhing creatures. She was only responsible for chopping off their heads; Yan Xi was the one who carried them all on the horse's rump.
The two returned with a full load, handing the bags from the horse's rump to the servants before returning to the East Palace to rest in the main hall.
When the servants emptied the two bags, they saw the ground covered in headless snakes. Everyone fell silent.
So His Majesty and the Noble Consort were this fond of eating snake?
The East Palace's junior chef prepared snake soup, stir-fried snake meat, deep-fried snake skewers, and roasted snake strips. When all the dishes were served, Huo Jinyu and Yan Xi could only marvel that this was truly a full snake banquet.
After a wonderful dinner, they rinsed their mouths with tea. The sky had darkened, and the stars and moon had climbed into the sky. A chill hung in the air.
Yan Xi was already seated in the pavilion by the pond. Maids had brought tea and pastries, placing them on the stone table inside.
The moment Huo Jinyu stepped out of the hall, a cold wind gusted against her, making her shiver.
Seeing Yan Xi in the pavilion dressed only in thin clothes, Huo Jinyu frowned and turned back into the hall.
Yan Xi sat in the pavilion, gazing at the bright, nearly full moon. A wave of sadness washed over her. The moon could be whole every month, but she feared she would never be whole again.
Suddenly, a warmth enveloped her. Yan Xi turned to see that Huo Jinyu had draped a long robe over her. Huo Jinyu was a thoughtful person; before coming out, she had warmed the robe over a charcoal brazier and hurried over so the heat wouldn't dissipate.
A warmth spread through Yan Xi's heart. She smiled at Huo Jinyu. "Thank you, Jinyu. You are too kind."
Chrysanthemums were in full bloom around the pavilion. It was truly a scene of flowers under the moon, with a beauty by her side.
For a moment, Huo Jinyu was captivated.
The maids had, at some point, quietly withdrawn, leaving only Huo Jinyu and Yan Xi in the pavilion.
The bright moonlight illuminated Yan Xi's lovely face. Her every frown and smile was deeply etched into Huo Jinyu's heart.
I want… I want to steal a kiss.
This was not the first time Huo Jinyu had been so bewitched. If love was a whirlpool, she feared she had already sunk deep into it, unable to escape. She actually felt desire for Yan Xi.
Huo Jinyu looked at Yan Xi, and Yan Xi looked back at her. Huo Jinyu's fair, well-defined face was clean-shaven, unlike some slovenly men whose chins were rough with stubble. The way he looked at her was so intense. Huo Jinyu's eyes were like a bottomless abyss, threatening to pull a person in. Yan Xi stared at Huo Jinyu, silent.
Huo Jinyu bent down, placing a hand on the railing behind Yan Xi.
The distance between them grew smaller and smaller.
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