“No, my lady, the imperial palace is not a place where you can visit anytime you want. Besides... The Emperor got seriously ill because of Mr. Gu,” said Gusu Liang in a firm voice, her hand seizing Gu Qiang’s arms.
Nonsense! The Emperor’s health had been deteriorating long before he met her brother! How could they make Gu Huaian the scapegoat? She should have never expected any decent doings from the imperial family.
Or did the Emperor know he was beyond help, so he put her brother in prison out of rage?
It was only because he didn’t get what he wanted?
“How could you also blame him? Haven’t you noticed that the Emperor was already in poor health? How could they think it’s my brother’s fault?” snapped Gu Qiang as she walked out of the yard, trying hard to steady her trembling.
With all guests gone, maids were cleaning the garden in the backyard. This was a grand place, and all the people here were radiant with
The rain outside the window was getting heavier. In autumn, the coming of rains was always accompanied by dropping temperatures. Gu Qiang knew it would get colder once the rain stopped.She walked over to the wardrobe and found herself a thick coat, ignoring Gu Zhihua and Ye who were still sitting in her room with grim faces.They were watching Gu Qiang’s movement, as though wishing to kill her with their stare. Behind the changing of their expressions lay the raging storms that neither of them dared to vent out.Just like what Gu Qiang had said, they knew what kind of person she was.More heartless and cruel, she would speak whatever she liked and didn’t give a damn about the Gu Family.Putting on the coat, she turned her head and smiled, “Where are you still not leaving? Waiting for me to ask you out?”Gu Zhihua dragged Ye’s clothes, motioning to leave.If Shen Zhongbai became the Emp
Gu Qiang raised her eyes, looking at Shen Zhongbai curiously, not knowing what this man was thinking. Was he upset because she didn’t love him, or because things were not going on as he wished?Had everything rolled out as what he hoped for, he wouldn’t have been acting so weirdly now.Perhaps it was because he started to act like an emperor, there was an oppressive evil spirit exuding from him. How could he simply use it upon a vulnerable woman?But in the imperial palace, Gu Qiang was alone with no one to turn to. What she could do was to stare at him, letting him know that she would not give in.“What exactly do you want?” said Gu Qiang coldly.Shen Zhongbai drew closer; a smile curled on his face as he gritted his teeth, “I want you to marry me. The imperial edict on your marriage with Shen Qianshan is no longer valid.”Gu Qiang glared at him as though wishing to kill him with her eyes. Indeed,
This was the least they wanted. Letting out a quiet swear, Gusu Liang dragged Gu Qiang to her back, then said to Jin Ye and Su Ge who were also in great disbelief, “Take Miss Infanta out of the palace if necessary.”Back in Xiaoyao Mountain, Shen Qianshan had made it clear to them that the whole meaning of their existence was to protect Gu Qiang.Surrounded by the torches, their faces were illuminated under the flickering light, feeling a bit hot.Shen Qiangwei walked out of the torchlight, still dressing in white with that plain look on her face. Even at this moment, she couldn’t help feeling timid when she saw Gu Qiang, who was as delicate and pretty as ever. Even the white cloth couldn’t hide the gracefulness of her movement that nobody would forget.Taking back her look, she spoke up, “You are here, Gu Qiang. Have you considered the Third Prince’s proposition? If you agree to marry him, you can take Gu Huaian right away
However, it was already too late. This team of people quickly disappeared in the imperial palace. Shen Zhongbai stood there without moving, as if he was still in a daze.As soon as Shen Qiangwei, who was on the ground, moved and turned around, she spotted Shen Zhongbai standing there. She bit her lips tightly, not saying a word, but her expression was incomparably resentful.Shen Qiangwei seemed to understand the situation in an instant. In fact, Shen Zhongbai had appeared long ago.He had long seen her being stepped on by someone, but he did not reach out to help her. What did he think of her?He had once expressed his affection to her in front of many people. Thinking it was true, she was slowly falling into his arms. Only now did she realize that this was just an imaginary bubble he had given her. She had never seen the truth clearly.Finding it funny, she got up from the ground with difficulty as the people
Gu Qiang only shook her head and did not say anything.She did not feel any warmth in spite of the sunny day. Before noon, her small palanquin arrived at Prime Minister Mansion.Unlike in the past, Prime Minister Mansion was terrifyingly quiet today. Even the passing maids did not dare to breathe loudly. When they saw Gu Qiang, they all knelt on the ground with sad expressions.Gu Qiang was frightened by this kind of aura. She held her breath and walked to the main hall.The fragrance of tea filled the air of the main hall. Shen Zhongbai sat in front of Gu Zhizhang. After drawing two circles on the table, he looked up and just happened to meet Gu Qiang walking up.Unexpectedly, he actually got up first, looked at Gu Qiang with an unknown emotion in his eyes, and then said, "You are back?"When Gu Zhizhang heard this, he suddenly looked up. It was such a memorable expression that Gu Qiang could think
Gu Qiang returned to Qingshui Courtyard. It was very quiet. After Ting Feng came back, she packed up the things in the courtyard and sat there chatting with a girl.When Gu Qiang came in, she saw the girl turn her head. It was Gu Zhiyan.Gu Zhiyan donned a cheerful smile on her face, sweeping away the gloomy haze in her temperament. She even changed her blackish dress into a bright yellow dress, making people's eyes light up.She took two steps forward, walked up to Gu Qiang, and informed with a clear and bright voice, "Elder Sister, I'm here to bid you farewell. We will leave Prime Minister Mansion soon."She sounded calm with a hint of reluctance, but composure was instilled in her tone. Obviously, she had already been prepared."Are you really going to leave?" Gu Qiang asked.On the way to the mansion, Gu Qiang heard that Jiang Min had been lying in bed out of rage for three days because of her,
The Empress looked at Shen Zhongbai coldly. She did not say a word, but Shen Zhongbai continued, "Qiang, you can't do things that I don't like and can't tolerate just because I like you and spoil you. You have never been so ignorant. Also, you don't have the right to be willful."She came into the imperial palace to be Empress to protect Shen Qianshan. Shen Zhongbai never thought that there were women in the world who did not like being Empress.Gu Qiang accepted it so reluctantly. It seemed that sitting in this position would be dangerous, and no matter what, she didn't want to be promoted to this position.Compared to her, Shen Qiangwei and Gu Zhihua both desired to snatch that position, which was quite a funny sight.Some people did not want it, yet some people tried their best to snatch it.The Empress turned her head and looked at Shen Zhongbai coldly. She did not want to say anything. Facing this man, she
But this time, Shen Qiangwei could not bear it no matter what. How could Gu Zhihua pull out the laurel tree? Did she not know how important that tree was to her? That was evidence that Shen Zhongbai once loved her. Of course, Gu Zhihua knew it, or she would not have destroyed the tree."Since you are so unreasonable, we will invite Elder Sister here to see if she really hates this tree. If she doesn't, I'll take you down!" Shen Qiangwei hissed coldly.When Gu Zhihua heard that she was going to invite Gu Qiang over, she immediately became terrified.Gu Qiang had been in the imperial palace for several months, but she had always been in her own Weiyang Palace and never came out without any care in the world. Gu Zhihua had never been on good terms with Gu Qiang. If they brought Gu Qiang here, she could not guarantee which side Gu Qiang would take in the end.But so what if she took Shen Qiangwei's side? In any case, no matter w