Chapter Ten

  As soon as she finished speaking, all the brothers listened attentively, and the tenth brother lowered his head in a contemplative manner. Kangxi said: "It's time!" The concubine smiled again and said: "The other day, Jing Gege just mentioned to me that my daughter Mingyu is about the same age, and asked me to help find a suitable person. I think she matches well with the tenth brother!" When the tenth brother heard this, he suddenly looked up at Kangxi, his face tense. Kangxi nodded: "It's a good match!"

  Kangxi thought for a moment, then looked at the Tenth Brother and said: "Let's establish Guo Luoluo Mingyu as your legitimate Fu Jin!" The Tenth Brother's face immediately turned red, and he hastily said in a loud voice: "Imperial Father, I'm still young..." Before he could finish speaking, Kangxi interrupted him: "Seventeen is still young?" The Tenth Brother was so anxious that he scratched his head wildly, while urgently saying: "Fourth brother, Eighth brother were both established as secondary Fu Jin first, can't you also establish a secondary Fu Jin for me first?" Kangxi's face turned stern and said: "Nonsense! Mingyu becoming your legitimate Fu Jin is already a concession to you!" The Tenth Brother was so anxious that he didn't know how to respond, and hastily knelt down on the ground saying: "I didn't mean it like that! I just... I just... I just wanted..."

  The words were not yet out of his mouth when the Eighth Prince stood up, with a smile on his face and an air of composure, saying in a gentle voice: "Imperial Father, I think the Tenth Brother is just feeling a bit sudden, and for a moment he can't react. Once he comes to his senses, he'll probably be overjoyed." The Tenth Prince suddenly turned his head, staring at the Eighth Prince with wide eyes, his face flushed with anger, pain, and pleading. The Eighth Prince also stared back at him, still smiling, saying: "Tenth Brother, why don't you hurry up and thank His Majesty?" The Tenth Prince just looked at the Eighth Prince, who maintained a refined and elegant demeanor, his eyes deep and mysterious, impossible to discern what was hidden within.

  The tenth brother's face was filled with pleading, heartache and anger all dissipated, leaving only a calm expression. He slowly turned his head back, hands on the ground, slowly and heavily knocked three times, the sound of his forehead hitting the ground clear and loud, saying in a loud voice: "Your son thanks the Emperor!" The eighth brother also sat down slowly.

  I only felt that the three loud knocks were all on my own heart. One sound, another sound, and yet another sound, heavily pressing down, making me breathless! I knew early on that ancient marriages were all arranged by parents, matched by words of matchmakers, with little autonomy for individuals. But when facing this scene in reality, I felt its cruelty. I glared at Mingyu furiously, she also stared at me, her face a mix of sadness, complacency, resentment and hatred.

  Finally, the sadness, complacency and resentment on her face slowly disappeared, and a charming smile gradually emerged. In my angry gaze, she stood up elegantly, thanked me with poise, like a proud peacock showcasing its magnificent beauty. Looking at the tenth brother and her kneeling together, I just wanted to shout out loud: Why? Why? Why? Isn't he the prince? Doesn't he have the most noble status? Why did this most noble status deprive him of his most precious thing: freedom! Thinking of my sister, looking at the scene in front of me again, and the approaching selection date. Is this really the fate of everyone in the Forbidden City? All the hidden fears surged out, and I trembled all over.

  I don't know what happened afterwards, nor do I know how I got out of the palace gate. All I remember is that in front of the mansion gate, as soon as the sedan chair stopped, I rushed out and ran into the gate, with a burst of surprised cries behind me.

  I was just running, running as fast as I could, using all my strength to run. I felt like I had to find a place to hide, or else I would end up marrying someone for no reason. Behind me, the maids and servants were chasing after me, my sister shouting "Ruoxi, Ruoxi..." while Eighth Brother walked quickly, coldly ordering his guards to catch me. I didn't know how long I had been running, but suddenly a guard jumped out in front of me and blocked my way. I tried to dodge him and keep running, but he grabbed hold of me. I struggled with all my might, desperate to break free and find a place to hide. Later, I heard Eighth Brother's voice from far away: "Knock her unconscious!" My neck hurt, and then everything went black.

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  Since the Mid-Autumn Festival, I have been speaking very little. Qiao Hui and Dongyun tried every means to persuade me, but I was unmoved. Every day, I either sat at my desk practicing calligraphy or found a place to stare blankly into space. For the first time, I began to seriously reflect on the fact that I am living in ancient times. I thought deeply about my possible fate. I kept asking myself over and over again, should I just sit and wait for everything to arrive?

  The maids and servants in the mansion all looked at me with strange eyes, whispering to each other. I knew they were all talking about how I had gone crazy for the tenth prince, but I didn't care about any of that. My sister always looked at me with a silent, worried expression. I myself grew thinner day by day, and my sister also grew thinner day by day. Sometimes I heard Cui Hui whispering: "Master, please advise Miss!" My sister softly said: "It's no use advising her. When the time comes, she will naturally come to her senses and accept her fate!" I thought to myself, No, it won't happen. I will never come to my senses. Why should my fate be decided by someone else's casual words? From childhood to adulthood, I only knew that my efforts today determined tomorrow's results. "Today's flower, tomorrow's fruit" was my motto. I couldn't accept that my fate was just a few words from others. No, I couldn't! I hated heaven for bringing me here. Why not let me be born here in the first place? Maybe then I could have accepted my fate. But I had already lived in modern society for 25 years and received an education that taught me that my fate was in my own hands. Now suddenly being told that everything is predetermined, accept your fate! I couldn't accept it!

  It's already deep autumn, the leaves on the trees are falling one after another. I often stand under the tree, watching the leaves dance down with the wind. Each leaf is a dancer, floating left and right, up and down in the wind, suddenly spinning around like a young actress's waist swaying gently on stage, infinitely charming. In the end, they can't resist gravity, slowly falling down, carrying infinite longing for the wind.

  Eighth brother, Fourteenth brother stood beside me, accompanying me to watch the dance of falling leaves for a while. I softly said: "They are all sorrowful, not wanting to fall, but ultimately cannot escape the fate of falling." Fourteenth brother gently said: "You are now 'flowers splashing tears at the time, birds startling the heart with hatred', after a few days have passed and your mood has improved, you won't think this way anymore." I didn't speak, only continued to watch those leaves fluttering in the wind.

  Fourteen Brother waited for a moment, then asked: "Ruo Xi, do you really like Tenth Brother? Is that true?" I casually picked up a yellow leaf flying in front of my eyes and said: "Yes! I really like him. He's sunny, lively, and can make me happy. Most importantly, he treats me well." I threw the leaf in my hand with force, half-tilting my head, watching it sway in the wind, "However, my liking for him is not what others think. He's just my best friend." Fourteen Brother asked in surprise: "Then why are you so upset about Tenth Brother's marriage? People outside are saying 'Thirteen Sister went crazy because of Tenth Brother's marriage'."

  I turned around and looked at him, saying: "I'm sad not because of his marriage, but because his marriage was forced upon him by others! He didn't want it!" I took a deep breath and said: "I'm sad because why should one's fate be controlled by others, why can't one decide for oneself?" As soon as I finished speaking, the 14th prince sucked in several cold breaths, staring at me with wide eyes, while the 8th prince gazed at me sternly, his face cold and serious, saying: "These treasonous words, you are not allowed to say again!"

  I twitched the corner of my mouth. I let out a cold laugh and turned my head to the side. He took two steps forward, one hand grasping my chin and forcing my face towards him, his eyes staring intensely into mine, his voice cold as he said: "Did you hear that?" I twisted my head trying to break free, but found that his grip was incredibly strong, impossible to escape from, so I glared back at him stubbornly. He slowly increased the pressure in his hand, asking in a stern and measured tone: "Did you hear that?" My jaw was hurting more and more, until finally I glared at him hatefully and shouted loudly: "I heard it!" He stared at me, then slowly withdrew his hand, turned and walked away. The Fourteenth Prince spoke in a low voice: "Are you crazy? This person is the Emperor of the Great Qing Empire!" After finishing speaking, he hastily turned around and chased after the Eighth Prince.

  I stood there, frozen in the midst of swirling leaves, becoming a picture in the wind. Until Qiao Hui came to find me, she looked at me, sighed, and gently grasped my arm, saying: "Miss, it's windy here, let's go back!" I followed her, slowly walking back, unconscious.

  As I entered the house, my sister saw me and hurried over to greet me, taking my hand in hers and exclaiming, "Your hands are so cold!" She led me to a seat while instructing Qiao Hui to quickly fetch some hot tea. My sister grasped my hands in hers, rubbing them warm, and the warmth from her palms gradually spread to mine, then to my heart. Looking at my sister's somewhat gaunt face, I felt a mix of sadness, warmth, and resentment, and couldn't help but burst into tears, embracing her tightly. My sister hugged me back, patting my back while murmuring, "It's good that you're crying, it's good that you're crying!"

  I cried for half a day, feeling that my throat was already hoarse, before slowly wiping away my tears. But I still refused to get up, only hugging my sister tightly. My sister didn't say anything either, just gently stroking my back with her hand from time to time. After a while, I buried my head in my sister's bosom and asked in a muffled voice, "Is it because I hit Mingyu that she wants to marry the Tenth Prince?" My sister lifted me up, took out a handkerchief to wipe my face clean, and said, "Whether or not you hit her, she was going to marry the Tenth Prince anyway." She let out a soft sigh. "People like us are just pawns in the emperor's hands! It seems like the emperor suddenly had an idea, but actually it's just the Empress guessing his thoughts and finding a suitable time to put on a show with him!" I was speechless after hearing this, thinking that I had overestimated myself. I thought Mingyu took the Tenth Prince away from me because she knew I liked him and wanted revenge. But this is also good, my feelings of guilt towards the Tenth Prince have lessened somewhat. These palace people! Suddenly a chill ran down my spine, and I felt cold all over. Remembering what was said earlier, I hugged my sister tightly again, thinking in fear that I must not speak carelessly anymore, absolutely must not speak carelessly anymore, or else it would be fatal for my sister.