Don’t Want a Divorce (16)
“Going crazy.”
The preview of 《The Palace Wall Willows》 successfully ignited the audience’s enthusiasm for the full episode.
There are still two weeks until the premiere, but discussions about the show are already flooding the internet. The official blog of the crew knows exactly how to maintain everyone’s interest by occasionally releasing a still from the show or a behind-the-scenes interaction, constantly keeping the audience’s attention.
The Weibo updates of the main characters, Qiu Yongli and Lu Xun, follow the crew’s frequency. As a result, even before the main episode airs, their chemistry is already palpable to the fans!
In contrast, Xu Jiao and Feng Qingyu have only a single still from a hot spring scene, giving off a unique sense of mystery.
However, the external changes do not significantly affect the atmosphere within the crew. The plot has transitioned from the early stages of calm and is about to enter a minor climax. All the actors are rehearsing intensively under Director Zhen’s guidance.
Today’s scene involves the Emperor returning to the palace with his key ministers and concubines from a hunting ground.
The founding Emperor of the Yan Kingdom conquered the land on horseback, so he did not allow his descendants to lose their edge within the deep palace and forget their ancestors’ legacy. He established the rule that every spring, the Emperor must personally lead a hunt.
Spring hunting is a major annual event in the Yan Kingdom. After the New Year, the palace begins preparing for it. The Empress is especially busy during this time, managing the distribution of New Year’s gifts, clothing, and food for the Six Palaces, ancestral sacrifices during the New Year, and preparations for the spring hunt.
However, the Phoenix Seal is in the hands of Rong Qing, who has boldly seized significant power from Qi Yunshang. She openly extends her influence into key palace departments and has even established contacts with the garrison responsible for the spring hunt under Qi Yunshang’s name.
Although the Emperor has his own Imperial Guard, the significant nature of the spring hunt makes it inappropriate to deploy them extensively around the hunting grounds. The outer clearing and security are entrusted to the Jingji Garrison.
This is also a consistent tradition.
The Qi family has significant influence in the Yan Kingdom’s military.
Coincidentally, one of the commanders of the Jingji Garrison this time is transferred from the Qi family army in the northwest. Qi Yunshang’s brother has a great influence on this commander, and Rong Qing found someone to connect with him and persuaded him.
Subsequently.
During the spring hunt, the Emperor was startled while hunting and called for the imperial physician to his tent overnight. Shortly after, he summoned Noble Consort Rong to attend to him. However, Noble Consort Rong was bedridden with a high fever, and the Empress, upon hearing the news, hurried over instead.
……
Now, it is another palace scene.
Today, there are three scenes to shoot: one in the Chang Le Palace, one in the Emperor’s study, and another in the main hall, where the extras are concentrated.
Xu Jiao has no scenes today. According to her usual habit, even without scenes, she would sit by and study Feng Qingyu’s acting. But today, she is not on set because she has an appointment to shoot a commercial with “Anxin,” so she took leave from Director Zhen early and left the set.
Lu Xun finished his makeup, waved away the water offered by his assistant, and looked around. Originally, he wanted to rehearse with Xu Jiao, but after wandering around the set with the script in hand for half a day, he couldn’t find her.
So he turned to ask his assistant, “Have you seen Teacher Xu Jiao?”
The assistant shook his head, blankly meeting his gaze.
Just at this moment, Feng Qingyu’s voice leisurely floated from behind him: “I helped Jiaojiao secure a commercial deal. She happens to have no scenes today, so she’s off attending to that.”
Lu Xun turned around, smiling as he met her gaze—
One was in a bright yellow dragon robe, the other in a black phoenix robe with blue patterns. Though both wore smiles as gentle as the spring rain, a strange sense of pressure emanated from them.
Feng Qingyu spoke once more: “I wonder what business Teacher Lu has with our Jiaojiao?”
Lu Xun heard her distinctly authoritative “our Jiaojiao” and a playful smile flashed fleetingly in his eyes. Recently, he hadn’t missed the bitter orange blossom scent on Xu Jiao.
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Feng Qingyu’s ostentatiousness seemed to scream to the world that this person was hers.
But unfortunately…
Lu Xun had seen quite a bit of the world. Whether this Omega had been claimed by Feng Qingyu, he could tell with just a glance.
He still had a chance.
As long as Xu Jiao doesn’t like Feng Qingyu, he still has a chance to turn things around.
At this moment, Lu Xun seemed not to notice the hidden warning in Feng Qingyu’s words, smiling with his eyes almost closed, sounding particularly harmless, “It’s nothing important, just mentioned to her before that there are a few restaurants nearby with good food. Wanted to see if she has time today.”
The smile on Feng Qingyu’s face disappeared.
She said, “Not much time, Jiaojiao has to rehearse with me after she finishes the commercial. Sorry, Teacher Lu.”
Lu Xun smiled like a fox, his curved eyes revealing a knowing light, “Oh, really?”
He said, “I’ll still ask her myself.”
Lu Xun’s assistant vaguely sensed something, looking down at the cracks in the concrete floor beside him, focused on counting ants. Fortunately, the director called for preparation, notifying the actors to get ready for shooting.
……
Inside Change Le Palace.
Qi Yunshang sat on a dark-colored grand master’s chair1, propping her head with one hand, her eyes half-closed. On the corner of the table, an incense burner emitted a scent resembling medicine. The incense was made by her, somewhat heavy, a bit bitter, but with a hint of refreshing sweetness at the end.
Director Zhen gave a close-up of Qi Yunshang’s expression, with the background incense smoke blurred, creating a peaceful and serene atmosphere.
The next moment—
The footsteps of the palace maid, Shui Lan, were slightly hurried, but she still tried her best to walk lightly.
Qi Yunshang’s fingertips moved slightly. Shui Lan leaned close to her ear and whispered, “Your Majesty, Imperial Physician Duan has arrived.”
She opened her eyes, her calm pupils like a pool of autumn water, without the slightest ripple, and responded indifferently with a single word, “Summon.”
Immediately after.
An elderly imperial physician dressed in the attire of the Imperial Medical Institute entered, carrying a square wooden box, and greeted loudly, “Your subject, Duan Jingzhu, greets Her Majesty the Empress!”
Qi Yunshang’s face showed a faint smile as usual, “Imperial Physician Duan, no need for formalities. Please rise quickly and take a seat—”
The palace maid, Shui Lan, hurriedly went to assist him. After Imperial Physician Duan sat down, Qi Yunshang slowly asked him about his recent situation in a leisurely and reassuring tone. When the physician mentioned that his family had recently welcomed a grandson, a smile appeared in Qi Yunshang’s eyes.
Then, she slowly revealed that she had been feeling unwell recently, often experiencing dizziness and fatigue. Imperial Physician Duan’s expression turned serious. He then carefully checked her pulse, and the hall remained silent for a long time.
Suddenly, the physician got off the chair, lifted his robe, and knelt heavily before Qi Yunshang, with joy on his face, saying:
“Congratulations, Your Majesty! Congratulations, Your Majesty!”
Seeing his reaction, Shui Lan’s eyes widened in shock. Realizing what it meant, she raised her hand to half-cover her mouth, suppressing her emotions, and whispered to the Empress:
“Your Majesty! This means…”
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She looked towards Imperial Physician Duan.
Imperial Physician Duan nodded vigorously, his wrinkled face filled with joy, his eyes brimming with happiness for Qi Yunshang at this good news. He continued where Shui Lan left off:
“Your Majesty is expecting.”
Qi Yunshang’s expression was momentarily dazed, and for a while, she couldn’t show a positive reaction to this good news. She even forgot to breathe. After a long moment, she managed to force a smile and said to Shui Lan:
“Reward.”
“Everyone on duty today will receive a reward.”
Shui Lan responded crisply, immediately handed a large silver ingot to Imperial Physician Duan, and requested a prescription for protecting the pregnancy and calming the mind. Finally, with a cheerful smile, she saw him out of the palace. In no time, the entire palace knew the good news, and voices congratulating the Empress echoed endlessly.
During this time, Qi Yunshang sat in the chair, her face showing neither joy nor sorrow, raising her hand to intermittently press her head. Until Shui Lan returned, unable to stop smiling, and said to her:
“Your Majesty, this is truly wonderful.”
Qi Yunshang slowly responded with a “Hmm.”
Seeing her expression, Shui Lan’s smile gradually faded. After a while, she suddenly remembered something, looked around, and noticed that none of the palace servants dared to enter the hall to disturb the Empress. She then leaned close to Qi Yunshang’s ear and whispered:
“Your Majesty, now that you are pregnant, do we still need to do that outside the palace?”
Qi Yunshang responded with another “Hmm,” and after a long silence, she slowly gave the order: “Have everyone stop; there’s no need to continue searching.”
Shui Lan let out a big sigh of relief, clasping her hands together over her head and bowing in all directions, joyfully saying: “Heaven bless us, ancestors bless us, our Majesty is finally expecting.”
Qi Yunshang quietly watched her movements, without a trace of a smile in her eyes, as if she were entirely disconnected from the emotions of everyone in this deep palace, unable to share their happiness.
After finishing her prayers, Shui Lan came back to softly persuade Qi Yunshang: “Your Majesty is truly pregnant now; you need not feel guilty about those things yet to be done. If the Noble Consort knew this news, she would be happy for you. She has waited for this day for so long, planning and working tirelessly for you. Now, it has finally not been in vain…”
The “things yet to be done” she mentioned referred to the time during the spring hunt when the Empress returned from the Emperor’s tent. To not let the Noble Consort’s plans go to waste, upon returning this month, she had people outside the palace inquire about and find some newly pregnant women from poor families.
What exactly it was, a discerning person would naturally understand at a glance.
If this matter were to be exposed, Qi Yunshang’s entire life would fall into an abyss of eternal damnation.
When Shui Lan heard this order, she was so frightened that she knelt down immediately, her face full of terror. After a while, her tears began to flow down, and she choked out to her:
“Your Majesty, ever since I followed you into this palace after your marriage, I have been prepared to give my life to you, to go through fire and water for you—”
“But I grew up in the Qi family since I was a child and vaguely understood this world. Since you became Empress, you have been a model for the Six Palaces, impeccable in conduct, and worthy of being a descendant of the Qi family. Only this matter now, if discovered, would lead to eternal damnation… But I am willing to do it, and I swear I will never leak a word.”
Shui Lan followed Qi Yunshang year after year in this deep palace, witnessing the sacrifices Qi Yunshang made for her family. Precisely because her surname was Qi, she was different from all other women in this deep palace. No matter how low others’ status, they always had a chance to earn the Emperor’s love. Only Qi Yunshang did not. From the moment she entered the palace, she stood in that cold high place. No matter what she did, the day waiting for her was the day she would fall into the mud.
But she never gave up on herself.
In the position of Empress, no one did better than her, except for this illicit love affair with the Noble Consort.
Shui Lan knew how much sacrifice Qi Yunshang made to cooperate with the Noble Consort’s plan. To avoid disappointing Rong Qing further, Qi Yunshang even went against her own principles, violated the ancestral teachings of the Qi family, and betrayed the imperial family of Yan Kingdom.
She knew how much Qi Yunshang suffered and how resilient Qi Yunshang was. Now, she also knew how deep Qi Yunshang’s love was.
Precisely because of this, Qi Yunshang being pregnant was a great thing for her, for Noble Consort Rong, and for everyone up and down the harem!
Hearing Shui Lan’s comforting words, Qi Yunshang thought about how Rong Qing would feel upon hearing this news. The corners of her mouth slowly lifted, and she genuinely smiled before slowly saying:
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“I do not feel guilty.”
“We Qi family members, no matter what decisions we make, will never regret them.”
The outside world only knows that back then, the ancestors of the Qi family fought alongside the founding Emperor of Yan and later defended the borders of Yan, worthy of being called a family full of loyalty and righteousness. However, most people have forgotten that before the Yan dynasty’s rebellion, the Qi family’s ancestors were also loyal ministers of the previous dynasty.
What made such ministers resolutely betray the previous dynasty and conspire with rebels to seize power?
It was because of a vow, because of that unspeakable love.
The official history has beautified the story of that minister and the Emperor into a harmonious relationship between ruler and subject. Only the Qi family knows the facts that the official history dares not speak of. The Qi family’s loyalty was solely to fulfill the ancestors’ promise.
Shui Lan only knew the loyalty of the Qi family, not their love. The first rule in the family teachings states that as long as the descendants of the Qi family take up arms, they must protect the country from falling.
Qi Yunshang had always been physically weaker than others since childhood. Her parents couldn’t bear to see her wield weapons like her brother, and they never let her touch those things. But the long spear that every Qi family member had already stood firmly in Qi Yunshang’s heart.
Now, she also wanted to protect the people she wished to protect.
Rong Qing wanted her to have a child, wanted them both to be safe and sound, so she would do it—
But she knew.
Footnotes
- Grand master’s chair (太師椅): A traditional Chinese high-backed chair, often symbolizing authority and status.
