Chapter 774: Sleeping Together
Lin Daiyu immediately made arrangements for the dinner.
Since Emperor was here, she couldn't let the servants of Lantai Courtyard serve the usual dishes. She had to make arrangements for some special dishes.
When she left, she whispered in her mistress' ear to buy her some time to make all these arrangements. Yi Huiqing felt that there was no need to do all that. She looked at the man holding her hand as they walked inside her chambers. Lin Daiyu didn't need to make any special arrangements. If he didn't like food of her courtyard then he could simply leave and then never come back She wouldn't mind that. When she thought this, she felt uncomfortable with his hand touching hers and as soon as they were inside her chambers, she struggled.
Zhao Zhang felt her struggled and for a moment didn't want to leave. However, in the end, he sighed and left her hand silently.
His hands felt empty when hers was not in his.
Yi Huiqing had been afraid that he would not leave her hand but was relieved when she was proved otherwise.
Looking at the man wearing the majestic robe, she bowed her head politely and said
"Your Majesty would have to wait for some time to have the dinner. Since Your Majesty's arrival was all of a sudden, the kitchen didn't prepare Your Majesty's portion."
Zhao Zhang Wei looked at his wife's lowered head with dissatisfaction. He didn't mind waiting. However, he didn't like her standing posture. "You don't need to bow your head, gngqing."
Before they were outside so he didn't call her like this but now that they were alone, he didn't want to call her Empress. It felt distant.
The distance between them was already too much and he didn't want to widen it anymore. Yi Huiqing blinked at his words but then said politely. "Your Majesty is benevolent but this is something that is everyone is ought to do." However, Zhao Zhang Wei immediately refuted his words and said solemnly.
"You don't need to do this. You are my Empress, my other half and my equal. There is no need of all these formalities."
Yi Huiqing heard his words. For a moment, she was dazed but soon composed himself and didn't bow her head anymore.
It was not that she was moved or something. She also didn't wish to bow her head in front of anyone. Her neck was hurting. First it was that throne. It was too heavy so she felt difficult to stand with her head bowing. Since he said that she didn't need to bow her head, she would just follow him ...at least when they are alone. Unaware of the thoughts inside his wife's mind, Zhao Zhang Wei was relieved when he saw that she listened to him. A smile graced his lips as he looked at her face. When Yi Huiqing felt his gaze, she unconsciously glanced at him and felt weird when she saw the smile on his lips. How does she say...but he looked a little handsome when he was smiling like that! The next moment, however she scolded herself and said that he looked silly and not handsome. She ought to ignore the beauty trap. But why was he even smiling? Did she make some kind of joke?
She no longer looked at him but his continuous gaze surely frustrated Yi Huiqing. If it was before, she would surely asked him to look away.
However, now he was the Emperor. If she disrespected him, he could behead her whole clan.
Knowing this, she just tolerated and was unable to think of what to do.
Fortunately, Lin Daiyu didn't take as much as time as she had thought and soon they were informed that the dinner was ready.
Yi Huiqing sighed in relief and invited Zhao Zhang Wei politely to have dinner.
Zhao Zhang Wei followed her with a smile on his lips. It has been many days since he had dinner with his wife.
The thought increased his appetite.
When they sat to have dinner, many servants came with many dishes. Zhao Zhang Wei however looked very unhappy on seeing so many servants.
After they had placed the dishes, he simply dismissed them.
Lin Daiyu was slightly reluctant to leave her mistress alone but she could only follow the Emperor's order.
Yi Huiqing sighed when she saw all this. She understood that she would have to serve him the dinner. However, when she was about to pick the bowl and serve him, she saw him picking the bowl on his
own. She sighed in relief. Fortunately, he could do this small thing on his own. She didn't have will and power to serve him at this moment. She was very exhausted. After the coronation ceremony, she was too tired to do anything.
It was not only Zhao Zhang Wei who had been busy after the coronation, even she was not left with any time to rest. Just when she had returned from the Imperial Court, she was greeted by the old Momos of the Imperial Palace who only served the Empress.
They showed her what all things she needed to manage from now on.
Yi Huiqing understood everything very diligently. However, she simply had a headache when the old Momo told her that from tomorrow, she was ought to be trained by the experienced Momo.
It was a training specifically for an Empress where an Empress was taught to be virtuous, soft and gentle.
She knew that they would teach her that she was ought to accept many concubines and consorts in the inner courtyard and even persuade Zhao Zhang Wei to do the same.
This was the main aim of this so called training.
Yi Huiqing had wanted to tell the old Momo sincerely that she didn't have any problem with whatever was going on inside inner courtyard as long as no one bothered her.
She had stopped feel bothered because of all this long ago.
However, regardless of what she thought and wanted to be done, she would have to go through this training.
"Qinqging, why are you not eating? Are you alright?"
Yi Huiqing came out of her trance and looked at Zhao Zhang Wei. She blinked when she saw his concern filled eyes and said "Apology, Your Majesty." After that, she picked the chopsticks and started to eat. It was only after a bit did she realise that she never served the food in her plate then how did.... Her eye widened for a moment and she couldn't help but glance at the man by her side. However, she soon took back her gaze when she saw that he was also looking towards her. She sighed and just decided to put aside her thoughts and have her dinner silently. They finished the dinner in silence.
After the dinner, Yi Huiqing had thought that Zhao Zhang Wei would leave for his chambers. Regarding his coming to her courtyard, she simply thought that he came because today it was the first of the new month.
If he had not come then it would look improper as people would have thought that the relationship between them was not harmonious.
However, he didn't stay for night and could easily say that he was tired and wanted to rest. And as she had thought, she heard her say. "I feel very tired." "Your Majesty should rest." She said politely. However, she was somewhat confused when she heard him say "Yes, you must be tired as well. You should also rest. Come...." Yi Huiqing blinked and then frowned when she looked at his hand that was stretched in her direction.
She thought that she had already expressed her wish to stay away from him many times. Not once but twice... She just asked for separation yesterday. He should understand that she would not want to sleep with him.
When Zhao Zhang Wei saw that she didn't placed her hand in his, he was slightly disappointed. He knew that she didn't want it. But he was not asking for anything else. He just wanted to sleep by her side. "We will just sleep."
He said honestly. In the past few days, he had not been able to sleep peacefully. Since the moment he has realised his feelings for her, he had observed that he would not sleep peacefully when she was not by his side.
She seemed to have ingrained herself in every corner of his body. The unfortunate thing was that when he wanted to by her side, she didn't want the same.
Yi Huiqing merely looked at him. She didn't know if she was really capable of rejecting his offer. He didn't need to stay here. Why was he just getting on her nerves! She didn't understand at all.
"Your Majesty might not be able to sleep peacefully here. This one is still taking her medicines and sometimes move while sleeping."
What she said was true or not, she herself didn't know.
But she just wanted to make some excuse to stop him. However, Zhao Zhang Wei seemed to be more persistent than her.
"Qingqing is speaking as if we have not slept together in the past."
His words only aroused some bitter memories in Yi Huqing's mind. Perhaps Zhao Zhang Wei also realised this but he soon said
"Even if you move, I don't mind. Come now. Take your medicine and then let's go to sleep." After finishing, he didn't give her any chance to speak and simply walked towards the bed. Yi Huiqing could only follow him with a sigh.
He better sleep only. She thought. If he did something then she was not sure of what she would do to him.
However then she thought that he have many concubines to do that and he didn't need her for those things.
Thinking this, her heart was calm and she calmly went to bed after taking her medicine. Fortunately he was already lying on the bed with his eyes closed. She quietly walked to other side of the bed and laid down to sleep. There was significant distance between their bodies. Yi Huiqing thought that it would not be bad if every first and fifteenth of the month could be passed like this. She would not have hear any rumours. With these thoughts, she soon found sleep. On the other hand, the man lying by her side heard the sound of even breathing and opened his phoenix eyes.
He looked at her face with a gentle smile on his lips and then continued to look at her for a long time until the sleep consumed him.
Perhaps it was because he had finally completed his promise or it was because she was by his side but after many days, Zhao Zhang Wei slept without any dreams tormenting him..
The source of this c𝐨ntent is freewe(b)nov𝒆l