The Virtuous Concubine

While the prince was being affectionate and dizzy, Malu suddenly exerted force and pushed him away, then sat far away on the other side of the bed, took off the hairpin on her head and held it tightly in her hand, with the tip of the hairpin facing outwards, and shouted in a low voice: "Don't come near me again, stay away!"

The prince did not expect her to attack suddenly. He was not paying attention and was pushed back by the great force. His body swayed and he almost knocked over the ornaments on the bedside.

He crawled up in a panic, and saw that Malu was so ferocious, with no regard for their past friendship at all, as if he was his mortal enemy. There was no trace of the gentleness and affection he had in the past. He couldn't help but feel sad and surprised.

Malu's eyes were sharp enough to cut people. He really couldn't understand why two people who were once so close to each other now met like enemies.

The prince was afraid that she would hurt herself, so he could only lean back as she wished. With a bit of grievance and confusion, he asked her: "What's wrong? I know I scared you today, and you are still angry with me, but what are you angry about? Can you tell me the truth?"

"I have been thinking about you in my heart, so I resorted to this desperate measure. I wanted to find a chance to be alone with you. At least let me die with peace of mind." As he said this, he carefully moved forward a little, his eyes fixed on the hairpin in Malu's hand, fearing that she would do something extreme in an impulse.

Malu looked at the ignorant boy in front of her, and thought of the child with whom she had no fate. She couldn't help but feel her eyes turn red and tears fell.

Seeing her crying, the prince didn't care anymore. His right hand turned into a fierce palm wind, knocking the hairpin out of her hand. He rushed over and grabbed Malu's hands. His tall body leaned forward and pressed Malu steadily on the bed.

The prince's chest rose and fell violently, and his breath blew on Malu's cheek, burning and eager. His starry eyes were full of panic and confusion. He stared at her tearful face and asked questions one after another: "What's going on? Why did you write such a letter to the emperor? Why did you insist on going to the Nanyuan Palace even though you were sick? Don't hide it from me anymore, don't hide it from me anymore!"

By the end, the prince's clear voice was already choked with sobs and pleading.

He really felt that he knew nothing and was treated coldly and abandoned.

Malu was shocked by his strong action. When she came to her senses, the resentment and grievance in her heart burst out instantly.

She twisted her body desperately, trying to break free from those tightly clasped hands, but the strength difference was too great. Seeing that there was no hope of breaking free, Malu could only give up, tears streaming down her face.

She glared at the prince with tears in her eyes: "How did you see the letter? It was you, wasn't it? It was you, wasn't it?! So he didn't see the letter at all, right?!"

The prince was still confused and had no idea what Malu's excited reaction was. But seeing her so sad, he wanted to explain to her as much as he could so that she wouldn't be so sad: "I was in the Southern Study of the Qianqing Palace, supervising the country every day, so I naturally saw this letter. I was so angry at the time, you...you never said a word of what you wrote in the letter to me!"

The more he spoke, the more aggrieved he felt. He threw himself into Malu's arms without caring about anything else. The tall and straight young man curled up, looking extremely funny.

Seeing that Malu was still silent, with only tears silently falling, the prince sniffed and continued to explain: "We are already... already together. If there are any problems or difficulties, shouldn't we share them with each other? Why did you suddenly not tell me anything and even handed such a letter to the Emperor without telling me? How can I not be angry and annoyed?"

"Although I was angry, I swear to God that I later wrote a letter that was almost identical to yours and presented it to the Emperor. But the Emperor was fully focused on handling the affairs of Jiangnan at that time and was very busy with government affairs. Chen Xin told me that the Emperor probably didn't read those letters."

After listening to his explanation of the whole process, Malu was struck by lightning. He went from being furious to being at a loss, and the bitterness in his heart could not be suppressed and surged up.

She stopped struggling and collapsed on the bed, tears still flowing. Her eyes were empty and desperate. She murmured to herself, "It turned out to be like this... It turned out to be like this... Child, child..."

Is this all fate?

He actually killed his own child! Or was it impossible for this child to be kept?

She covered her face with her hands, but could not hide the sobs and grief that leaked out from between her fingers.

Fate is ruthless and unpredictable. It will crush all expectations and hopes into dust as it manipulates the trajectory of your life.

The prince was stunned by her words, his face full of astonishment and confusion. He subconsciously loosened his hand that was holding the corner of Malu's clothes, stared at Malu with wide eyes, and said stutteringly: "You...what are you talking about? What child, what child? Who?"

After a while, Malu seemed to come back to his senses and refocused his gaze on the prince. There was resentment, pity, and deep helplessness in his eyes.

She raised her hand, and with trembling fingers she touched the prince's face, caressing his outline with her fingertips, with a bit of timidity and attachment.

Malu's voice was hoarse and a little tired: "You, if you are angry, why don't you come and ask me?"

"What is my attitude towards him, what is my feeling towards you, are you still saying that you are insensitive? Have you ever thought about how much disappointment and despair forced me to go to that step and write that letter? The child is gone, and now the child is gone, and you still don't care, and now you come to accuse me, what else can I expect? The trip to Nanyuan was just to find a way to make a living for it, but you come to interfere..."

As he spoke, tears welled up again and he was choked with sobs and unable to speak.

She turned her head away abruptly, unwilling to look at the prince again. It seemed that if she looked at the person in front of her one more time, the bloody wound in her heart would be torn open wider, causing her to feel even more unbearable pain.

The room fell into deathly silence, except for the sound of soft sobbing.

What else doesn't the prince understand?

All the details of the past, the clues that he had carelessly overlooked, the loneliness that occasionally leaked in Malu's words, the haggardness hidden in his expression, at this moment, were like pieces of a puzzle, quickly piecing together, outlining a cruel truth that he could not believe but had to face.

He turned over and got off the bed, then fell to his knees beside the bed with a plop. He clenched his hands into fists and said in a crying voice, anxiously and regretfully: "You, you didn't lie to me? Really... Really... Is that so?"

He turned her body over and forced her to look directly at him. Although he was kneeling, the prestige he had accumulated as the crown prince for many years meant that he would not allow anyone to resist him at this moment.