HLnovel Chapter 384 The Medicine is a Bit Bitter
Chapter 384 The Medicine is a Bit Bitter
"Ruoxue..."
The Third Prince remained silent for a long time.
……
In a suburban village, Cheng Ruoxue, dressed in a red brocade dress, leaned against a recliner under grapevines. The evening breeze blew through the grape trellis, scattering the last rays of the setting sun, which fell on the brocade dress hanging on the recliner, reflecting shimmering, mesmerizing light.
Cheng Ruoxue removed her hand from her eyes and opened them to look at the bunches of grapes hanging from the grapevines above her head. They were pinkish-purple, almost ripe, and weighed heavily on the branches.
"Miss," the head maid Caiwei called softly.
Cheng Ruoxue asked, "Is the medicine ready?"
Caiwei's hands trembled slightly as she held the tray, and she uttered a barely audible "Mmm."
Cheng Ruoxue then looked at her, slowly sat up, and reached out her hand.
Caiwei hesitated for a moment, then couldn't help but ask, "Are you really willing to part with it, Miss?"
Cheng Ruoxue smiled and said, "What's there to be reluctant about? Sigh, if only I had known earlier, I would have been tougher on myself and given myself a stronger dose of the drug. Sure enough, this trouble has come."
Cheng Ruoxue sighed softly.
Caiwei's eyes were red with tears: "I heard that the Second Young Master Sheng has left the capital. He even came to see you before he left. Why didn't you go with him? Since you like him, why don't you just leave here with him? Without the burden of your family background, you can definitely live happily together and even have a child. I've been with you since I was a child, and I really can't bear to see you like this..."
"Even if you can't marry the second young master, we can find an excuse to hide somewhere else, wait until the child is born, and then come back. No one will know."
"Silly girl." Cheng Ruoxue sat up and pinched her cheek.
“It’s almost been a year since the heir of the Duke of Xiao’s family lost his wife. A few days ago, I hinted to my mother that it was time for me to get married. If I’m not mistaken, the Xiao family should have news by the Mid-Autumn Festival at the latest. I’ve waited so long, and finally this opportunity has come. How could I miss it because of a child that hasn’t even been born yet?” Cheng Ruoxue smiled and shook her head. “That’s why I shouldn’t have skimped on the ingredients when I drank the contraceptive soup. Now look what a pity.”
Cheng Ruoxue squinted her eyes: "Ayi is so beautiful, his child must be very beautiful too. If the timing is right, that would be wonderful. Just thinking about having such a beautiful child would make me have no regrets for the rest of my life."
"Miss, do you really have to marry Prince Xiao?" Caiwei didn't understand. She couldn't understand why the usually open-minded girl was so insistent on this matter.
“Not at all,” Cheng Ruoxue shook her head. “I am a bit younger than Prince Xiao. He would have been married long ago. How could I have such thoughts? I was originally thinking of waiting a few years for his fourth son. After all, he is three years younger than me. I should at least wait until he is older. Only the eldest son and the fourth son of the Xiao family are legitimate sons. I would not want to marry a son of a concubine and make things difficult for my mother.”
“But now, the timing isn’t right, we can’t wait any longer,” Cheng Ruoxue sighed.
Caiwei murmured, "Miss, this servant doesn't understand..."
Cheng Ruoxue reached out and took the medicine bowl from the tray, brought it to her lips without hesitation, and drank it all in one gulp.
Caiwei knelt down and grabbed her hand: "Miss... this servant is just worried about your health. Why are you torturing yourself like this?"
"It's not much of a hassle, just a bit of a pity." Cheng Ruoxue stared into the distance, slightly lost in thought. "Go get me a plate of candied fruit, it's a bit bitter."
Caiwei rose while crying: "This servant will go right away."
After Caiwei left, Cheng Ruoxue's wet nurse, Granny Qi, hurried over from outside. Seeing the empty bowl next to Cheng Ruoxue, her eyes instantly reddened, and she hugged Cheng Ruoxue, saying, "Miss, you've suffered so much. Why did you have to do this? Caiwei is right. Since you like her, just live your life well. The past is the past. Your well-being is more important than anything else..."
"The medicine is indeed a bit bitter," Cheng Ruoxue replied, then sighed softly and leaned against her nanny's chest. "But Nanny, I have no regrets. I've loved beautiful things since I was little. Ayi is so handsome, and I was overjoyed to be with him. I know what I'm doing, and I know what I want. The time I spent with him was the only time in my life when I could indulge in unbridled passion and recklessness. I was too happy to have any regrets."
"Everything in this world has its own destiny, whether it's fortunate, unfortunate, or unwilling. But looking back on this life, who doesn't live such a complicated life? I knew from the beginning that there are some things I have to do, and no one can change that. My beloved Ayi can't, and neither can my child."
“If the time is right, I would like to enjoy a little more of the carefree joy of being with him. Or, if I accidentally get pregnant because the contraceptive potion didn’t work, I can find a way to give birth to the child. But is that really a good thing? Wet nurse, even if I keep this child, it’s impossible for Ah Yi and me. He won’t be able to be with his parents after he is born. Instead, he will become our weakness.”
“I deserve everything except a weakness. If I have a weakness, I cannot move forward.”
“I have lived well these years, and I must do what needs to be done in the future so that I can die in peace.”
Cheng Ruoxue's voice was steady, but her face grew paler and paler, and large beads of sweat soaked her hair: "Nanny, Caiwei is young and soft-hearted. In a few days, send her away. Nanny is not young anymore. I have bought land for you in my hometown. After I get married, you can go back to your hometown to live out your days. That way, I can rest easy."
Granny Qi's tears fell one by one: "My girl..."
Waves of pain began to wash over Cheng Ruoxue, yet she still smiled and asked, "How's the matter I asked the wet nurse to inquire about?"
"Young Master Xiao has already returned to the capital. A few days ago, a young lady from the Xiao family's maternal family brought a girl to the Xiao State Duke's mansion. The old lady of the Xiao family kept her there, but yesterday, the Duchess of Xiao took her out to visit someone. She said she was a cousin of the family. Obviously, the old lady of the Xiao family wanted her daughter to be the young master's second wife, but the Duchess of Xiao was not satisfied. As a result, the news that Young Master Xiao is going to remarry will probably spread very soon."
"That's good. Originally, there wasn't such a rush, but now that the Yang family has encountered trouble, the Third Prince's original plan for the Fifth Prince to marry Shujin is definitely not going to happen. The Third Prince is also afraid to marry me because of His Majesty's suspicion. The best candidate is the heir of the Duke of Xiao. The Xiao family will definitely put forward the heir of the Duke of Xiao."
"This opportunity is too rare to miss." Cheng Ruoxue's face turned pale with pain.
"Why don't you consider the Third Prince, young lady?" Granny Qi asked, somewhat puzzled.
Cheng Ruoxue chuckled: "He's too pretentious. He always treats others as prey, but little does he know, he's the prey."
The pain intensified, and Cheng Ruoxue released Qi Mama, lying back on the recliner. The setting sun sank into silence, the sky was shrouded in gray, and blood silently seeped down the red brocade.
Cheng Ruoxue curved her lips into a smile and murmured something almost inaudibly.
"Ayi, it's a bit cold."