Water Reflects Peach Blossoms

The main hall of Taichen Palace.

Lian Song sat at the bottom, looking at Emperor Donghua, who was leaning on the couch with his head propped up, flipping through an ancient book. He pursed his lips and asked, "Why isn't your emperor reading the Buddhist scriptures today?"

Donghua's eyes were still fixed on the book, not even lifting his eyelids: "If your mind is not at peace, it's useless to read."

Lian Song glanced at Siming who was sitting opposite him, and asked with his eyes whether it was true that the Emperor had brought back the mortal girl.

When he first heard his father say that, he felt like he had heard a huge joke. That was Emperor Donghua, heartless and emotionless, so how could he be moved? Or even to a mortal woman?

Sima Ming nodded imperceptibly.

None of the two people's little movements escaped Donghua's eyes, but he never wanted to hide anything about Jiang Ruan, so he let them convey his feelings through their eyes.

The hand waving the fan froze. He never thought that an emperor of such an old age would lose his mind due to love. Thinking of his father's order to ask him to persuade the emperor to put the celestial clan first and give up the mortal woman, Lian Song sighed in his heart.

If the Emperor is so easy to persuade, why doesn't my father come to persuade him?

Poor Lian Song, he is going to be used as a gun.

"I heard from the generals guarding the South Heaven Gate that... the Emperor seems to have brought a mortal woman into the Taichen Palace?" As he spoke, Lian Song carefully observed the expression of Donghua above him.

"Yes." Donghua turned the page of the book in his hand and said calmly, "Not only did the gatekeeper see it, but even Sang Ji saw it."

He never thought of hiding it.

Otherwise, he would not have swaggered into the Heavenly Palace from the South Gate of Heaven carrying someone in his arms.

Donghua never hesitates to do anything.

He would not let Jiang Ruan, who was brought to the Heavenly Palace by him, suffer any injustice.

Lian Song: “…”

Such frank words made him at a loss as to what to say next.

The show, which had finally begun, couldn't let it cool down. Lian Song said stubbornly, "The Emperor has devoted so much to the Four Seas and Eight Wastelands. He has been the backbone of the Four Seas and Eight Wastelands immortals for so many years. Why would he sacrifice his own reputation?"

As he finished speaking, Donghua's gaze shifted from the ancient book to Lian Song.

The former ruler of heaven and earth, even after abdicating and becoming the emperor, the murderous aura on his body was still frightening. Being looked at by such emotionless eyes, Lian Song could not help but kneel down.

"Are you questioning me?" Donghua asked.

The pressure emanating from him is even greater.

Lian Song's forehead was covered in sweat, but he managed to calm himself down: "Lian Song wouldn't dare."

"I'm just worried that the rumors that are spreading like wildfire outside will tarnish the Emperor's reputation."

"Oh?" Donghua's lips curled up slightly, a smile finally appearing on his icy face. "Then let them spread the word."

“The wider the spread, the better.”

Under Lian Song's puzzled gaze, Donghua once again looked at the ancient book in his hand and said in a good mood, "They are all telling the truth, and I like to hear the truth."

"..." Lian Song was so shocked that he was speechless. In the end, he could only ask, "Is the Emperor truly moved?"

Donghua thought Lian Song was being silly: "When did I become so hypocritical?"

Having said that, Lian Song knew that he was no longer qualified to continue his persuasion and that his father had to speak in person.

Later, he thought that it would be good for Emperor Donghua, who had been alone since his abdication, to have someone he liked to accompany him, even if it was a mortal woman. After all, he had been alone for hundreds of thousands of years and was really too lonely.

"Then congratulations to the Emperor first." Lian Song held the fan and congratulated sincerely.

Hearing this congratulation, Donghua was about to say something, but suddenly his face changed and he disappeared from the hall.

……

Waking up again, Jiang Ruan looked at the bed where he was lying when he woke up before and slowly sat up.

Her soft hair fell in front of her. She was still a little weak, and her whole body was filled with the fatigue of fainting after exhaustion.

The fairy maiden guarding the bed saw that she had woken up, and pulled up the curtains that had fallen from the bed. The sky outside was bright and beautiful.

A fairy came forward holding a tray, on which was a jade bowl of water and a small dish of elixir.

"Please take this pill, young lady." The fairy said respectfully.

Back here again, Jiang Ruan was full of vigilance about this place. He refused coldly: "I won't eat your food."

She just wanted to return to the human world.

The fairy holding the elixir remained silent, still bending over and respectfully holding the elixir before her. Another fairy came forward holding gorgeous clothes and said, "This is the new dress the Emperor ordered made for you."

Sitting on the bed, Jiang Ruan felt as if she was being stabbed with a soft knife: "I said I won't eat your food, nor will I wear your clothes..."

"Where is the Emperor you are talking about? I want to see him."

"The Emperor is meeting the Third Prince." A fairy answered.

Jiang Ruan got off the bed, and the fairy maiden standing beside the bed immediately and respectfully placed the pills and clothes in front of her, as if they would continue to do so as long as she did not take the pills.

"I don't want to eat," she said.

The fairy advised: "This elixir is beneficial to the young lady. It was specially ordered by the Emperor."

Then you can’t eat it even more!

Faced with the silent urging of the fairies, Jiang Ruan was so angry that the corners of her eyes turned red, and she involuntarily took two steps back.

His unsteady steps were suddenly stopped by a big hand that appeared behind him and held his shoulder.

Startled, Jiang Ruan quickly dodged and looked back like a frightened rabbit.

Opposite her, a handsome man in purple clothes with white hair and a youthful face looked at her. The indifference in his eyes melted away, and his voice was as pleasant as the chanting of Sanskrit.

"I noticed that you were uneasy." Although his voice was cold, one could feel the concern in it.

Everything in Taichen Palace was under Donghua's control. Moreover, although he was talking to Lian Song in the hall, he still paid attention to the situation in Jiang Ruan's bedroom.

After seeing how frightened she was, he dropped everything and appeared behind her, just hoping that she could be at peace.

However, he discovered that the woman in front of him became even more uneasy after seeing him.