“I have a gift I wish to give Your Highness.”
____
“Yearning yet unable to meet, a promise in the season of peach blossoms.”
Pei Wenxuan looked up and glanced at the words written on there, then he looked down at the cup of tea and chuckled: “Isn’t this the love poem Su Rongqing wrote for you in the previous life when you had to travel to the south with me? Are you practicing calligraphy with this now?”
Pei Wenxuan had a good eye and could tell which sentence had been written by Li Rong at a glance. Li Rong gave a slight cough and calmly said, “Just written on a whim. I write all poetic verses that I have an impression of.”
Having said that, Li Rong quickly added: “I’ve written verses from your poems too.”
Pei Wenxuan cast her an indifferent glance. He did not delve into it and only said: “The ‘Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River’ was originally called the ‘Sentimental Ode to Zhen.’[1] Many people said it was composed because Cao Zhi was saddened by Lady Zhen’s death. The Goddess of the Luo River alluded to Madam Zhen. You are about to be married, so it would appear that you are indeed that Goddess of the Luo River in the eyes of others.”
[1] Gǎn zhēn fù 《感甄赋》(fixed typo in the RAW) — This “Zhen” is the same as Lady Zhen, so it can be read as something like ‘Ode to Feelings for Zhen’ or ‘Moved by Zhen.’ Zhen (甄) means to distinguish or evaluate, so if you were to read it literally, it would be like “distinguishing feelings” or “assessing one’s own feelings.”
“To meet by the waterside pavilion, lest be like the Goddess of the Luo River,” Pei Wenxuan let out a derisive laugh, “Fortunately, you hid it well. Otherwise, you could jump into the lake this time but still not wash away the rumors and accusations.”
“So I had a plan in mind,” Li Rong knew that Pei Wenxuan must be annoyed by her bold gamble and shook her fan as she said, “Didn’t I have you leave a letter with me beforehand? There are only so many little tricks in the harem. If it’s not a matter of slipping in a drug, then it’s catching two people in the act. You don’t have to worry because nothing big will happen.”
“Do you still remember how you died?” Pei Wenxuan couldn’t help but remind her when he saw her like that. Li Rong let out a soft chuckle: “So, aren’t I learning from my experiences and focusing on tidying up the people around me?”
Pei Wenxuan said nothing. Li Rong leaned forward to reach for a cup of tea and raised the small cup to her lips when she suddenly heard Pei Wenxuan say: “Why do you think Su Rongqing came?”
Li Rong did not answer and listened as Pei Wenxuan said: “With his cleverness, how could he take his chances and venture deep into the palace?”
“What do you ultimately want to say?”
Li Rong put down the cup of tea and smiled helplessly. Pei Wenxuan looked at her and asked, “Have you ever thought about…”
“I haven’t.”
Li Rong interrupted him. She looked at him and earnestly said: “I know what you are going to say. You want to say that Su Rongqing likes me, but regardless of whether it was the previous life or this life—at this moment, it doesn’t matter if he likes me or not.”
“Because you have to marry me.”
Pei Wenxuan calmly looked at her. Li Rong was a little irritated and waved her fan: “Yes, this is already an established fact, so Pei Wenxuan, I will ask you to put your clever little head into the lake and wash it out. Don’t always be thinking about things that don’t exist. Never mind the fact that Su Rongqing likes me or not because even if he does like me,” Li Rong looked up at him and just said, “His admiration can only exist in his heart. He will never do anything detrimental to his clan’s interests. Is that clear?”
YOU ARE READING
The Grand Princess
Historical Fiction[I don't own the story and the translation of this novel.] Description: Li Rong and Pei Wenxuan married at the age of 18. Li Rong used Pei Wenxuan's family background to avoid disaster, and Pei Wenxuan used Li Rong's identity as Princess to establis...
