As the sun climbed higher in the sky, riders began to emerge from the forest one after another.
Leading the way was Liu Ju.
Wei Zifu watched the attendants following behind him, their hands full of prey, and a smile of relief spread across her face.
"Ju’er has improved," Liu Che remarked with a chuckle. Ah Jiao, stroking the small rabbit in her arms, craned her neck to look, but she couldn't recognize which one was Liu Ju. It had truly been too long; her memories of him had faded.
Liu Che turned back and reached out to pet the rabbit as well, asking in a low voice, "Are you hungry?"
Ah Jiao put on a bashful front and nodded.
Liu Che laughed. "It’s still early. You’ll have to stay hungry a while longer."
Wei Zifu’s lips twitched. *What did I just hear?*
It took everything Ah Jiao had to keep from losing her temper on the spot. What was wrong with Liu Che? Just because she had vomited at his doorstep once, this grown man was being so petty? It was an embarrassment to the title of Emperor.
Ah Jiao turned her face away, listening to the chatter around her to match names to faces: Liu Ju, Wei Kang, Cao Zong, Zhao Ponu, Chen Xuan...
Chen Xuan was her second brother’s child! He looked every bit the young dandy. Ah Jiao sighed inwardly, her teeth itching with frustration. With the honor of three generations marrying princesses, why couldn't the Chen family produce a single useful man?
Liu Che was in high spirits seeing these young men return with such bountiful harvests, and he bestowed rewards upon each of them.
For a time, the viewing platform was a flurry of clinking cups and endless conversation. Watching everyone else celebrate while her own stomach growled, Ah Jiao suddenly found the little rabbit in her arms much less charming.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! General of the Chariots Chen has hunted a bear!" a small eunuch shouted as he ran up. Liu Qing couldn't help but peer down from the platform.
Liu Che stood up immediately and walked to the edge. Ah Jiao followed to look. Chen Chuo was leading a group of men as they dragged a bear out; by the looks of it, the beast was stone-dead.
Liu Che clapped his hands and laughed loudly. "Good, good, good!" He turned to Wei Qing. "Among everyone today, Chen Chuo has taken the top prize."
Wei Qing smiled. "The lad was lucky to be able to hunt a bear to present to Your Majesty."
Liu Che’s delight only grew.
Seeing Liu Che on the platform, Chen Chuo ran up quickly. "Your Majesty, this servant was fortunate enough to hunt a bear for you." He was panting heavily—Chen Chuo was exceptionally handsome, so much so that rumors had circulated over the past two years that he was favored by the Emperor for his looks. Yet now, a two-inch-long gash marred his face, and his clothes were in tatters. He looked wild and rather frightening. Liu Qing frowned at the sight.
"Husband!" Wei媛 could not help but step forward, tears welling in her eyes.
"Yuan'er!" Wei Qing barked, stopping her.
Liu Che waved a hand. "It is no matter. They are a young couple; it is only natural." He unfastened a jade pendant from his waist and handed it over. "My dear official’s bravery brings great comfort to my heart. You are rewarded."
Chen Chuo knelt in thanks.
Ah Jiao tugged at Liu Che’s sleeve. "Your Majesty, quickly let Second Brother go tend to his wounds. He looks quite frightening."
Liu Che nodded quickly. "True. You should head back first. I shall send the Imperial Physician to see you. Apply some medicine, change your clothes, and then come see me again."
Chen Chuo accepted the command and gave thanks, then allowed Wei Yuan to support him as they departed.
***
At noon, the Emperor held a banquet at Xuanqu Palace. Ah Jiao was once again hauled along by Liu Che to sit right beside him.
As she chewed on a piece of roasted venison, Ah Jiao wondered if some minister would jump out to accuse the Emperor of disrespecting the Empress with this arrangement. However, from start to finish, aside from Princess Weichang muttering a few words, not a single person spoke up.
Because she was thinking of the "Yun He" in her womb, Ah Jiao did not dare to drink. Every time Liu Che tried to share a cup with her, she substituted it with honey water. Liu Che did not look particularly pleased by this.
Music and dance filled the hall. Ah Jiao watched the soulful gazes of the beauties performing, pretending to be blind to it all.
Those performing were all *jiarenzi* who had accompanied the procession. Their goal was clear and precise. Ah Jiao looked at Wei Zifu, who maintained a constant smile, and felt that she likely wouldn't have the chance to play the villainess here. She only wondered why she hadn't seen Wei Jin'e.
Ah Jiao felt a weight on her shoulder. She turned to see Liu Che leaning his hand directly on her, before exhaling a breath heavy with the scent of wine into her face.
Ah Jiao: "..." *Stinky!*
Liu Che laughed, his expression taking on the frivolous air of a youth, and blew another puff of air. Ah Jiao set down her chopsticks and asked softly, "Is Your Majesty drunk? Would you like to rest in the side hall?"
"I’m not drunk, not drunk," Liu Che said, his voice rising enough to draw many eyes. "I just think... you don't look as good as you used to!"
A strange sensation flickered in Ah Jiao’s heart again. But Liu Che suddenly pulled himself together and sat up straight, smiling. "That crimson outfit you wore yesterday... that was beautiful."
Ah Jiao decided she was overthinking things. She looked down at her current dull, pine-green robes and smiled. "That outfit got dirty. If Your Majesty likes it, I shall wear it for you next time."
Liu Che closed his eyes. "I’ll have the Weaving Chamber make you several new sets in red. There is no reason for you to go back to your family home just to get clothes made."
Wei Zifu quickly smiled and said, "I already ordered the Weaving Chamber to make Lady Chen’s clothes yesterday. They should be ready in two days."
Liu Che nodded. "The Empress has been thoughtful. Empress, I toast to you."
Ah Jiao lowered her head and went back to gnawing on her meat.
Wei Zifu drained her cup and smiled at Liu Che. "What does Your Majesty think of the new *jiarenzi* who entered the palace this year? I find them all quite lovely."
Liu Che looked at the woman beside him, but he could only see the top of her dark head.
"Not bad," he replied. The little head beside him didn't even budge.
Liu Che said nothing more, and Wei Zifu was in no hurry. The assembly continued to drink.
After a while, Liu Che pulled Ah Jiao toward the side hall. Having eaten her fill, Ah Jiao’s temper had improved, and she gently served the Emperor a sobering soup.
Suddenly, Liu Che gripped her chin. With a *clatter*, the bowl in Ah Jiao’s hand fell to the floor.
"Your Majesty... mmmph." Ah Jiao was caught off guard as her lips were suddenly blocked.
Liu Che released her and laughed. "I didn't actually think your clothes were that beautiful."
Ah Jiao caught her breath and replied, "These clothes were given by the Empress..."
"I thought the way you looked while taking your clothes off yesterday was beautiful." Liu Che smiled, tilting Ah Jiao’s chin up.
"Your Majesty, you are drunk!" Ah Jiao picked up the bowl and set it on a small side table.
Liu Che sat sprawled on the couch, bracing himself with his hands behind him. He laughed. "I’m not drunk. I just think the way you look when you're impassioned is beautiful!"
Ah Jiao: "..." *I can't respond to that.* She couldn't exactly say she thought His Majesty looked beautiful when impassioned too! Besides, he was older now and wasn't as handsome as he used to be!
Liu Che leaned forward again and tugged at Ah Jiao’s skirt. "Take it off."
Ah Jiao clutched her skirt and backed away a few steps, facing the bleary-eyed Emperor. "Why doesn't Your Majesty take off your own?"
The Emperor blinked, then began unfastening his own robes. He chuckled. "Off. All of it, off."
*Tsk, tsk, tsk.* He must be truly wasted. Ah Jiao watched as Liu Che quickly stripped off his outer and inner robes, feeling a headache coming on.
While Ah Jiao hesitated, Liu Che lunged forward, pulling her into his arms as they tumbled onto the bed. The smell of wine washed over her face. A restless hand began to snake under her skirt; she reached out to stop it, but Liu Che used the opening to yank at her collar.
In the midst of the scramble, Liu Che sucked a red mark onto the woman’s neck. He then let go, cupping Ah Jiao’s face instead. "Tonight... I won't be coming back to sleep."
Ah Jiao smiled. "Oh? Is Your Majesty sleeping here then?"
Liu Che went silent for a moment, a serious expression crossing his face. "Wei Qing and Sister Yangxin personally sent a young girl into the palace. Today... I must stay at Yusu Garden."
Ah Jiao felt herself freeze for only a split second before she proactively hooked her arms around Liu Che’s neck. She smiled. "Pity this lowly one’s bitter fate. Only yesterday did I attend Your Majesty, and today I am already out of favor."
Liu Che peeled away her clothes, revealing her delicate body. Between kisses and heavy breaths, he panted, "Nonsense. I will come back tomorrow morning to have breakfast with you."
Ah Jiao looked at the man’s face with a half-smile. "Then I shall have to wake at the fourth watch to wait for you."
Liu Che caught Ah Jiao’s hand and guided her to pull off his undergarments. He laughed. "I fear you’ll be too lazy to get up."
Ah Jiao hooked her legs to block the man’s body. "Nonsense. For Your Majesty, I will certainly get up. Not just the fourth watch—even if I didn't sleep all night, I could endure it." She reached out to catch the thing the Emperor was so eagerly trying to slide into her body, then smiled again. "Your Majesty is acting so wildly while drunk; will you still have the strength to favor a beauty tonight?"
Thinking about it, what people called "discerning the sovereign's mind" was such a difficult task. Every arch of the Emperor's brow, every smile—one had to weigh a dozen different possibilities in one's heart! It was exhausting!
Could it be that Liu Che, in his middle age, had truly fallen for this body of Chen Wan at first sight? To the point where he had to pull her aside and coax her so carefully just because he was going to favor a *jiarenzi*?
He had coaxed her like this in the early years too. If this had been the Chen Ah Jiao of twenty years ago, sitting withered in Longmen Palace, she would have died of bitterness and spite. Ah Jiao felt that she truly had lived a full life once before; aside from a slight melancholy, she didn't feel much grief.
Liu Che moved against Ah Jiao’s hand and laughed. "I’ll let you feast on the meat now; I’ll just leave a bit of soup for the others tonight."
Ah Jiao’s face flushed, and she spat a mock curse at him. Liu Che laughed and let go of her hand. "Be good. Lift your legs."
Ah Jiao hooked her legs around the man’s waist and pulled a nearby quilt over to cover her face.
*Languidly she shifts her weary wrists,*
*A tender grace in her curled form.*
*Sweat falls in beads like scattered pearls,*
*Her raven hair a silken storm.*
Liu Che suddenly spoke. "Do you know I once had another Empress?"
Ah Jiao felt her heart skip a beat. She heard her own voice, broken by the rhythm: "This concubine... has heard a little. I heard... the former Empress Chen was arrogant and jealous... and was... demoted by Your Majesty... to Longmen Palace..."
Liu Che’s voice also came in fits and starts. "I don't expect her to be... like the Wei clan... but if she could have been... like you are now... so sensible... it wouldn't have come to that..."
The man above her increased his intensity. Ah Jiao couldn't help but cry out in pain. Liu Che pulled the quilt away from her face and gently kissed her eyes.
Ah Jiao gripped the bedding beneath her tightly. She thought she had to plan well for her future child. The Chen family had the two brothers, Chen Yang and his sibling, but she couldn't rely on them alone. If only she could have an opportunity like Liu Che meeting Wei Qing!
After the clouds and rain subsided, Ah Jiao lay in the quilt with her eyes closed to rest. Liu Che lay on top of her, his head buried in the crook of her neck, fast asleep. He was so heavy she could barely breathe.
Ah Jiao tried to push him off but failed. She had no choice but to cast a teleportation spell to move Liu Che aside. A bronze mirror, about a foot long and eight inches wide, stood in the hall. Ah Jiao walked over and scrutinized the naked body of the young capital girl: her features were decent, but they didn't compare to her original face. Her figure could be called exquisite, but her former self hadn't been lacking either!
Unable to figure out what Liu Che liked about Chen Wan, Ah Jiao felt a bit melancholy. Lord Yun He wouldn't even be a shadow for another nine or ten months. How was she supposed to raise Yun He’s starting point during this time?
If she ran over and told Wei Zifu and Wei Qing, "Don't worry about your own son, the one in my belly is the son of a god; help him take the throne and I'll ignore the past and grant your son the wealthiest fiefdom," Wei Zifu would think she was insane and kill her before her wings could grow!
If she told Liu Che directly... would there be a greater chance of being elevated as a vessel for a god, or being beheaded as a demon or a lunatic?
Ah Jiao felt very frustrated.
After a moment of frustration, she called for water to be brought in.
After bringing the dazed Liu Che back to Yutang Hall, Ah Jiao was once again blocked outside the Emperor’s bedchamber by Yang Dedeyi. With a cold snort, she went back to the bathhouse on her own. There was no helping it; Liu Che really hadn't cleared out a separate hall for her.
After a short nap, Ah Jiao decided that once she woke up, she would go find Wei Yuan and the others to further cultivate their relationship and exchange some information.
***
Enjoying the story? Rate this novel:
The Han Dynasty Empress is a Ghost | Chapter 83 | A Taste of Meat | Novela.app | Novela.app
