Fu Rongxuan steadied his gaze for a while before insisting, "Han'er, you've got it wrong. How could I like her? Who does she think she is? She's the woman I detest most in my life. Even when I was forced to marry her before, it was all for the Crown Prince's grand plan..."
"But I... took it seriously," Shi Aohan said, tottering on her feet. Fortunately, Fu Rongxuan caught her and pulled her into his arms.
"I took it seriously, Master Fu. I can't bear even the slightest bit of your attention on her. I admit it. I did it on purpose. I wanted to harm her and make her your younger brother's wife. Then you and your heart would be completely mine, right?"
Shi Aohan's face was streaked with tears. She looked at Fu Rongxuan in despair and helplessness, as if she wanted to get up from his embrace, but she was too weak to do so.
"I've also regretted it, Master Fu. I did regret it that day. But my cousin is so innocent. Even though she was terribly scared, she still refused to let Lu Wanning get away with it. How could I say no... I'm just an orphan living under the He family's roof..."
Fu Rongxuan couldn't hold back any longer. He immediately hugged Shi Aohan and kissed her. After a long, passionate kiss, he finally let her go. "I know. I should have known earlier that you had your reasons. But Han'er, I, Fu Rongxuan, will only love you in this lifetime. Don't do anything so stupid again, okay?"
Shi Aohan's face flushed. Dizzy from the kiss, she looked at him lovingly. "So... you're not mad at me anymore?"
Fu Rongxuan was also deeply moved. How could he bear to blame her? He even wished he could marry her right away and take her to bed.
The two of them were entangled for half an afternoon. Since Fu Rongxuan was now on duty at the Ministry of War, he didn't have much free time. He said goodbye to Shi Aohan early and left.
As soon as he left, Shi Aohan's eyes regained their calm. She lowered her head and pondered for a moment before calling in her maid.
"Did you tell him?"
The maid knelt on the ground. "Miss, it was my carelessness that allowed the young master to find out. He threatened me not to say anything..."
Shi Aohan bent down to help her up. "Silly girl, why are you kneeling? You've been with me since childhood. In my heart, you're just like my own sister. How could I blame you at all? In this vast capital city, everyone here is supposed to be my relative. But in fact, after my mother passed away, you're the only one who's truly my family."
Hearing this, the maid also started to cry. She hugged Shi Aohan tightly. "Miss, it's all my fault. I've let you down. Miss, don't worry. From now on, no matter who it is, even the young master or the future son-in-law, I won't be threatened."
Shi Aohan felt a little relieved. She then looked up and said, "Now, go find A Jin beside the Crown Prince."
She whispered something in the maid's ear. The maid nodded understandingly and quickly left.
Shi Aohan left the theater with red and swollen eyes. She got into the carriage and headed back to the Duke He's Mansion. But on the way, the carriage was taken to an alley.
A Jin came over to greet Shi Aohan and led her to another carriage parked there.
When Shi Aohan got in, she saw that it was the Crown Prince. She quickly bowed. "Your Highness..."
The Crown Prince looked very displeased. "What happened between you and Fu Rongxuan?"
Shi Aohan quickly shook her head. "Your Highness, nothing happened between us. Your Highness has so many state affairs to attend to. You don't need to worry about such trivial matters."
The Crown Prince frowned. "Originally, I didn't want to interfere. But now is a special time. I can't understand Sheng Jinyu's recent actions. The more this happens, the less we can afford to make any mistakes. Also, what's going on with you? I told you to find a way to deal with Lu Wanning. I wanted you to win her over, but I didn't want Father to think that we were deliberately trying to court her. But look at what you've done?"
Shi Aohan looked dejected. It took her a long time to reply. "It's my fault. I didn't do a good job."
The Crown Prince sized her up. "You just saw Fu Rongxuan? Did he bully you?"
"No, he didn't..." Although she said so, Shi Aohan's eyes were red.
The Crown Prince was very angry. "You're my sister, and he dared to insult you?"
Tears welled up in Shi Aohan's eyes. She shook her head and said, "Your Highness, it's not the young master's fault. He... he was just deceived. Now that we've cleared things up, everything is fine."
The Crown Prince's eyebrows twitched slightly. He gave a cold smile but didn't ask anything. Instead, he changed the subject. "Lu Wanning has entered the palace."
Shi Aohan nodded. "I've heard. The Empress Dowager is seriously ill. It's only right for the princess to attend to her."
"Almost no woman in the entire Great Zhou is as glorious as she is. Han'er, do you want to be like that?"
Shi Aohan trembled. She lowered her head and said, "But I'm not worthy."
"How could you be unworthy? Hahaha." The Crown Prince seemed very satisfied with Shi Aohan's meekness. He waved his hand and said, "Tomorrow, the Guanjv Palace will invite you into the palace. You should perform well."
Lu Wanning didn't care about or listen to what was going on outside at all. She was completely focused. Every day, she would get up and stay by the Empress Dowager's side. When the Empress Dowager went to rest, she would just take a walk in the yard of the Shoukang Palace.
Even Granny Gui felt sorry for her when she saw this. "Princess, if you're bored, you can go visit other palaces. You can go to the little princes in the East Three Palaces or Princess Qin in the West Three Palaces."
Lu Wanning shook her head faintly. "I'm not in the mood."
Granny Gui naturally understood. The Empress Dowager's days were numbered. How could the princess be in the mood to play around?
Lu Wanning asked, "The imperial physician said yesterday that the Empress Dowager's condition had improved a lot. Is that true?"
Granny Gui looked up at Lu Wanning. She really couldn't bear to tell the truth, but she finally just nodded. "If the imperial physician said it's better, then it is."
Lu Wanning smiled. "Then I'll go watch the medicine being boiled."
Granny Gui entered the inner chamber with red eyes. The Empress Dowager was already awake.
"Your Majesty just went to sleep. Why are you awake?"
The Empress Dowager waved her hand. Leaning against the bed, she coughed and said, "That girl has been staying by my side every day. She's lost so much weight in just a few days. If I don't sleep more, how can she go out with peace of mind?"
Granny Gui was silent for a while. "The princess used to be naive, but now she's really filial."
The Empress Dowager's eyes were cloudy. "She's always been filial. She was just too ambitious before. I know the children I've raised. It's a pity that I won't be able to protect them for much longer. Go and tell the Emperor that I want to see Lu Hongxi."
Granny Gui quickly tried to persuade her. "Your Majesty, the Emperor doesn't like you to see court officials. And the prince hasn't left the capital yet..."
"Just go," the Empress Dowager coughed for a while. "I know my own body. If I don't see him now, I don't know if I'll still have the strength to see him later. He's the only descendant of my elder brother. How can I not care about him? The Emperor won't refuse."
Granny Gui choked with sobs. She nodded and turned around, asking the eunuch to go and ask the Emperor for permission first.