Unparalleled Beauty

Chapter C089

"In truth, if the Princess Consort were to observe carefully, she would discover that the two personalities share many similarities. Furthermore, this additional personality likely carries within him the deepest desires and yearnings of the original self."

For instance, Prince Wei is burdened by many considerations, while Ji Yang acts as he pleases. Prince Wei is proper and adheres to etiquette, confining his words and actions within that framework, no matter what he endures. Ji Yang, however, exists outside of it.

In reality, Song You had slowly deduced all of this through treating Prince Wei. After all, such an ailment was rarely seen, and he was essentially feeling his way across the river.

"The two share memories, and by this point, it is difficult to distinguish who is the primary and who is the secondary. This humble one has inquired with those around Your Highness and collected a great deal of past events. This secondary personality, who appeared later, actually possesses a character more akin to Your Highness's childhood. What is even more peculiar is that he knows some childhood events that the primary personality does not remember."

Therefore, since then, Song You overturned the theory of primary and secondary personalities. Although he still uses this terminology for clarity, deep down, he has begun to question whether the secondary personality only appeared in adolescence, or perhaps even earlier in childhood? Or perhaps the secondary personality is actually the primary one, and the Prince Wei personality is the secondary one.

"Then, can this illness be cured?" Mei Wushuang asked.

"What kind of cure does Princess Consort have in mind?" Song You responded. "This humble one once said that the ultimate result of curing this illness would likely be a merging of the two into one. However, due to the lack of precedent, this is merely a deduction, and there seems to be no sign of such a merging at the moment. If Princess Consort is referring to Your Highness's headaches…"

Speaking to this point, Song You paused for a moment. "Currently, the headaches do not significantly affect Your Highness. This humble one once speculated that Your Highness's headaches might be caused by an incomplete split, or perhaps by the merging of the two. Now, it seems that both of these theories may be incorrect, because this ailment has no pathology. This humble one can only supplement with external objects to alleviate...

Song You spoke at length. By the end, because it involved pathology and the like, Mei Wushuang could no longer understand at all. But even what she could understand was enough to leave her unable to calm down for a long time.

After Song You left, Mei Wushuang sat alone.

Linglong and the others, seeing the unusual expression on her face, did not dare to disturb her.

When she had been sitting like this for a full hour, Linglong and the others could no longer sit still and went to report to Granny Gong. Granny Gong hurriedly sent someone to invite Prince Wei.

Prince Wei arrived in haste, calling out "Chouchou" as he came before Wushuang.

Wushuang looked at him. He, who was usually calm and unhurried, and always confident of victory in everything he did, had a hint of unobtrusive anxiety in his eyes.

She blinked, and suddenly embraced his neck.

The serving maids and chamberlains quickly averted their gazes.

"What's wrong?"

Prince Wei picked her up and carried her into the inner chamber.

She did not speak, but simply held onto him.

The two sat down on the luohan bed in the inner chamber. She, who had been burying her face in his neck, suddenly kissed Prince Wei's chin. Prince Wei lowered his head, and she kissed his lips.

She took the initiative to kiss him, which pleased Prince Wei immensely. However, before he could recover from the shock of her possible pregnancy, his subordinates came to report the situation. He had barely grasped that something was amiss with her when his little darling was already embracing and kissing him. Even if it was a plea for intimacy, it was broad daylight.

It was rare for the usually upright and solemn Prince Wei to acknowledge that it was, indeed, broad daylight.

He felt somewhat helpless, but more than that, a strange sweetness he couldn't quite decipher settled within him. Thinking it best to soothe her, he responded to her initiative.

It was an innocent nuzzle, devoid of any lust. They remained like that for a long, long time, until finally, they returned to tranquility.

"Your Highness, could you tell me about your past?"

Prince Wei stroked her back gently and said in a warm voice, "When would you like to hear about?"

Her eyes filled with heartache, and she sniffled, "Any time will do."

Anything concerning him, she longed to hear.

He looked into her eyes, his heart understanding. His gaze softened as he began to tell her about the time he was 'banished' from the capital to the border regions.

In truth, it wasn't quite right to call it banishment back then.

On the surface, it certainly appeared to be a banishment, but beneath the surface, it was not so.

The events of that day caused a great uproar. The Third Prince's Consort had died tragically on their wedding bed, and the Third Prince, wielding a sword, had charged before Prince Qin, who had just been granted his title, and stabbed him, nearly killing him.

Such a shocking and scandalous affair was naturally silenced by Emperor Taihe.

As Granny Gong had said, many people died that night. In fact, the Third Prince had killed relatively few; Emperor Taihe had eliminated far more in order to maintain the silence.

Prince Qin narrowly escaped death, and the Third Prince went mad.

To protect his favored son, Emperor Taihe had, in truth, done a great deal back then.

Later, although the Third Prince regained his senses, he was plagued by headaches and the inability to control his alternate personality. At that time, Prince Qin was severely injured, and although he could not openly pursue the matter due to the gag order, Prince Qin also had many forces behind him, and they were naturally unwilling to let it go and sought revenge. Rumors spread like wildfire through the city, fueled by countless hidden hands, and the imperial court was filled with a miasma of chaos.

When Emperor Taihe once again bestowed a marriage upon the Third Prince, hoping to quell the rumors of the Third Prince's madness and the murder of his wife, the woman also died of illness. At this point, Emperor Taihe knew that the Third Prince had to temporarily leave the capital, and thus the 'banishment' from the capital came to pass.

The banishment was a facade; the truth was to have him leave the capital, far away from everything, to seek treatment and recuperate.

Emperor Taihe thought this would be for the best, but it was not. He greatly underestimated the madness of those behind the scenes. When he was far from the center of power, far from the capital, and far from under Emperor Taihe's watchful eyes, those people would only become more unrestrained.

In short, from the capital to the border, the Third Prince suffered several assassinations.

The assassinations ceased only upon reaching the border, but they did not end, for once they arrived at the military camp, they shifted to another method.

With the sentiment of ‘a prince parachuting in, making it difficult for lower-level soldiers to be promoted’ as fuel, everyone outwardly treated the Third Prince with utmost respect, but in reality, all sorts of disdain and deliberate obstruction came one after another.

Of course, there were also generals who defended the Third Prince, among whom was Wushuang's father, Mei Zhan.

Towards the Third Prince, Mei Zhan held a relationship that was somewhat like both teacher and friend. When the Third Prince first arrived, Mei Zhan taught him much, including knowledge of the border, the relationships between various factions, and even military strategy, tactics, and matters of leading troops.

Even Mei Zhan's death in battle to save the Third Prince when he was at a disadvantage leading troops had an underlying cause. In truth, someone had leaked the news of the Third Prince's surprise attack, leading to his encirclement by the enemy.

At the time, the Third Prince was besieged at Shacheng and was unaware of the situation in the military camp. Afterwards, he heard from Fusheng that on that day, he had used every means possible in the military camp's main tent to press people to rescue him, but no one stood up. Even after invoking Emperor Taihe, those generals still hesitated and shirked responsibility. In the end, it was Mei Zhan who led a thousand cavalrymen into action.

In reality, this was originally a killing scheme aimed at the Third Prince. The murderous intent had arrived once more, and this time, their hands had reached into the military camp, reaching into the border.

In fact, Prince Wei had seen Wushuang when she was a child, when she was just a little thing.

Many generals who were stationed at the border year-round would bring their families over, and Mei Zhan was no exception. Prince Wei had even held Wushuang, who was then a pink, chubby baby.

Once, Mei Zhan joked with him, saying that if he weren't too old, he would betroth his daughter to him. At that time, the two were drinking. It was the Third Prince's first time drinking the Northwest's liquor, which was different from the so-called fine wines of the capital. It was the kind that was fiery and burned from the throat to the chest with a single gulp.

As he spoke, Mei Zhan then went back on his word, saying that the imperial family had so many troubles, and it would be best if his daughter remained safe and sound. These words struck a blow to the Third Prince, who was feeling depressed at heart at the time, but upon further reflection, wasn't that the truth? He couldn't even protect himself right now, so how could he talk about protecting his woman?

Because of these things, after Mei Zhan died in battle, the Third Prince gave that jade pendant to Wushuang to wear and made a marriage promise.

"Was I really that small back then?" Hearing that Prince Wei had actually held her when she was just a little thing, Wushuang felt a little strange.

He stroked her back as he told her, "Maybe a little over three years old? Not very big, chubby, like a pink dumpling. Very bold, not afraid of strangers at all, clamoring to be held by your father. Your father held you for a while, then went inside to talk to your mother, and just left you for me to hold. You grabbed my finger and called me Big Brother."

Prince Wei still remembered it vividly even now.

That was the most gloomy time of his life. His face was always covered with frost, making people afraid. Yet, this little girl was not afraid of him and even pulled on his finger, calling him Big Brother and asking him to hold her.

"So I was very bold back then. I don't remember any of it…"

In fact, she wasn't born timid.

"So you decided on me at that time," Wushuang exclaimed again, "I actually didn't know. I always thought…"

It wasn't what she had thought, but rather what she only learned many years later – that she had actually been betrothed to Prince Wei. Because the matter had occurred so long ago, and she was ignorant of the details, she had assumed it was a jest, or perhaps out of gratitude for a life saved. How could Prince Wei possibly marry someone like her? At that time, she was self-deprecating, timid, and weak, feeling utterly unworthy, and also fearful of Prince Wei's reputation...

"Actually, I only learned later about a jade pendant. That jade pendant was stolen by Mei Wuxia, and only returned to me later."

If she had possessed that jade pendant earlier, upon seeing it, even if Mei Wushuang had been utterly foolish, stupid, and fearful of Prince Wei's reputation in her previous life, she would not have entertained the thought of breaking off the engagement. After all, a casual remark was entirely different from having a token as proof.

Especially since it was a dragon pendant, sufficient to demonstrate the importance he placed on it.

Fortunately, there was this lifetime…

The two of them leaned against each other like that, and spoke of many, many things.

And after hearing Prince Wei's story, Wushuang felt even more sorry for him.

They lay entwined, embracing for a long, long time. Even later, during the meal, Wushuang unconsciously held his hand, and he allowed her to hold it.

After finishing the meal, they returned to continue embracing, until Wushuang unknowingly fell asleep.

He lowered his head to look at her sleeping face, stroking her cheeks and temples, then his hand drifted to her lower abdomen.

He hadn't even had time to share with her the astonishment of a possible pregnancy, before she had pulled him in to express her sympathy. Now, this strange feeling slowly settled down, gathering in the deepest part of his heart, mixed with her sympathetic gaze, converging into an indescribable sensation.

A wife, a child…

After a long while, Prince Wei finally laid her down, helping her to tuck the quilt in securely. He then straightened his clothes before stepping out of the door.

"Take good care of the Princess Consort."

"Yes."

Fusheng approached, reporting in a low voice who-and-who had come again. Actually, Prince Wei had been in the middle of discussing official business when he was suddenly called away, delaying him for half a day. His subordinates, advisors, and officials did not dare to leave, and were still waiting in the study.

He returned to the study and continued the discussion.

The Mount Xiang affair had indeed caused a great stir in the capital. Although the origin of the crossbows was ultimately not found, the scope had been narrowed to the Five Cities Military Commission, narrowed to Marquis Wuding, Prince Jin's father-in-law, the Vice Envoy of the Five Cities Military Commission, but no evidence had been obtained.

But in this world, some things can be done even without evidence. Emperor Taihe, in a fit of thunderous rage, ordered a thorough investigation of the Three Camps of the Capital, resulting in the replacement of many mid- and low-level officers.

These vacant positions caused by the replacements attracted a swarm of other forces, to the point of muddying the waters. Prince Wei also took the opportunity to install many of his own people.

Prince Wei knew that the matter had reached its limit. Further investigation would not reveal anything else. Marquis Wuding could not have left any handle, and he could not use this one incident to bring down his opponent.

However, there was no doubt that he was the greatest beneficiary of this matter.

Likely also aware of his movements, Prince Qin, Prince Jin, and others appeared outwardly obedient, but in reality, their subordinate forces had already been mobilized. Furthermore, the fact that Prince Wei, residing in the capital, held military power over the Northwest Army was also criticized, and recently, many memorials impeaching him for not relinquishing military power had surfaced.

What Prince Wei and the others discussed today was precisely whether to relinquish this military power, and if so, how it should be done.

By the time the discussion concluded, the sky had already darkened.

Prince Wei sat quietly for a moment before informing Ji Yang of the matter that Wushuang might be pregnant.

Generally, he would not keep Ji Yang in the dark regarding matters of military and political affairs, especially concerning military affairs.

[Pregnant?]

Ji Yang immediately seized control of his body and leaped to his feet.

Little did he know that his wishful thinking had been shattered by Prince Wei. Not only that, but he had also been thoroughly exploited by the other party, who, through Song You, garnered much pity and sympathy from Wushuang, thus advancing their relationship further.

If he had known, he would probably have cursed Prince Wei as a cunning old fox.