NFBE Chapter 455 The origin of the word "Gui"
Chapter 455 The origin of the word "Gui"
It took Wen Jiayue three days to read the booklet, albeit intermittently.
In fact, Shen Fuhan didn't write too much, but he always wrote about the intimate moments and emphasized her expression, making Wen Jiayue pick up and put down the book several times.
After reading it, she simply confiscated the booklet.
“You’re not allowed to write anymore,” she said seriously. “If I find out you’re doing this secretly again, I’ll burn all of this stuff.”
Shen Fuhan raised an eyebrow and asked, "So, you plan to treasure this one?"
"What treasure!" Wen Jiayue's face flushed red. "I was just afraid you'd read it to me again!"
These past two days, she's been avoiding Shen Fuhan, afraid that he'll steal her attention away from her.
“However, there is something I don’t understand,” Wen Jiayue asked curiously. “You wrote in the booklet that the character ‘Gui’ is very good and that you want to use it for Zhaozhao’s name, but you still didn’t explain why it’s good. Can you tell me now?”
Shen Fuhan looked somewhat awkward, and after a long pause, he said, "I just think it sounds nice."
"I don't believe you," Wen Jiayue said, making a move to leave. "Since you won't tell me, I'm ignoring you."
This word must have a meaning, but she couldn't figure it out even after thinking about it for a long time.
Shen Fuhan pulled her back, hesitatingly saying, "I'm afraid you'll laugh at me if I tell you."
Wen Jiayue: "..."
She cleared her throat and said, "I promise I won't laugh, don't worry."
Shen Fuhan observed her expression before deciding to speak.
“Your name is Yue, which in my eyes is Chang’e in the moon palace. There is a cassia tree in the moon palace, so I wanted to use the character “Gui” for Zhao Zhao, to signify “plucking the cassia in the moon palace”.
Wen Jiayue didn't laugh, but fell silent.
How could his thoughts be more convoluted than hers?
She then asked, "Since you like this character so much, why did you change it?"
“You don’t like it, and it reminds me of the story of Wu Gang chopping down the cassia tree, which has a bad connotation.”
"Is there a deeper meaning behind replacing it with jade?" Wen Jiayue pondered. "Let me guess, could it be because Chang'e is holding the Jade Rabbit in her arms?"
Shen Fuhan coughed lightly and nodded slightly.
Wen Jiayue stared at him speechlessly, utterly at a loss for words.
In the end, he could only say, "As expected of Lord Shen, his mind is truly unfathomable."
If Shen Fuhan hadn't told her, she might never have guessed it in her entire life.
"Let's not talk about this anymore," Shen Fuhan changed the subject. "Tomorrow I'll take you to see the Princess."
Wen Jiayue asked in surprise, "So fast?"
"Originally, I did want to delay for a few days, preferably until her death date, but by then she might not even have the strength to speak, so I set it for tomorrow."
Li Zhilan's symptoms worsened starting yesterday.
Wen Jiayue nodded: "That's good, it'll be resolved sooner rather than later, so there won't be any future problems."
The following evening, the two went to the imperial prison.
It was Wen Jiayue's first time in such a place, and she felt a chill in the air, so she had to hold onto Shen Fuhan's sleeve tightly.
Shen Fuhan held her hand and comforted her, "Don't be afraid."
He glanced at the handsome man who was already waiting to the side. The man bowed and followed behind them.
As Shen Fuhan walked inside, he asked, "Did you remember what I told you?"
The man stammered, "Don't worry, Lord Shen, I've remembered everything."
Wen Jiayue turned around and glanced at him. She felt that his voice sounded familiar, but she couldn't remember where she had heard it before.
She asked softly, "Who is he?"
Shen Fuhan said in a low voice, "The eldest princess's male favorite."
Wen Jiayue then remembered that when she met the Princess, the Emperor, and Shen Fuhan on a boat trip that day, she overheard his conversation with another male favorite in the teahouse.
The more spirited and ambitious Li Zhilan was then, the more pathetic and miserable he is today.
Wen Jiayue calmly gazed at the woman in red at the deepest part of the prison.
Li Zhilan was emaciated, pale, curled up, and trembling, enduring the torment of illness.
She kept her eyes tightly shut, coughing repeatedly, her face contorted in pain, and she even appeared somewhat delirious.
Hearing their footsteps, she barely opened her eyes, regaining some clarity.
Upon seeing the man in the lead, she cried out in alarm, dragging her ailing body into a corner, but angrily shouted, "Shen... Shen Fuhan, how dare you... cough cough cough!"
He was already at a disadvantage as soon as he opened his mouth; his voice was weak and he couldn't even utter a complete sentence.
Shen Fuhan asked in a calm voice, "How was the taste of the Bone-Corroding Powder?"
"I didn't mean to harm you!" Li Zhilan gritted her teeth and said, "You insisted on drinking that cup of wine, so who can you blame? Now, you're retaliating against me like this, how cruel you are!"
Shen Fuhan said coldly, "Let's settle both old and new scores. It's only right that the Princess took the Bone-Corroding Powder, and it's time for you to taste the same flavor."
"What about Wen Ruohuan?" Li Zhilan struggled to her feet, leaning against the wall. "What punishment did she receive?"
Shen Fuhan clapped his hands, and the jailer brought over Wen Ruohuan, who was bound hand and foot.
Several months later, this was the first time Wen Jiayue had seen Wen Ruohuan, and she almost didn't recognize her.
Compared to Li Zhilan, she was even more pitiful. Her hair was stuck together with sweat and blood, her face was ashen, her clothes were tattered, and she was filthy, thin and bony, almost unrecognizable.
The jailer dropped her, and Wen Ruohuan, unable to stand, fell straight to the ground, her breathing weak.
Her eyes slowly rolled twice before finally spotting Wen Jiayue.
As if she had come back to life, she reached out and grabbed Wen Jiayue's leg.
She made a series of hoarse sounds, and finally said, "Sister, sister, save me..."
Before she met Wen Jiayue, Shen Fuhan kicked her into prison and protected Wen Jiayue behind him.
Wen Ruohuan was in a daze for a while, but when she caught sight of the eldest princess in the corner, she climbed over with renewed hope.
"Your Highness, please save me! I have served you diligently, even if I have not achieved anything great. You cannot stand by and watch me die!"
Li Zhilan was already preoccupied with his own problems and had no time to care about her. He shouted angrily, "Get out of my way!"
Wen Ruohuan, however, was already desperate. She grabbed onto her leg and wouldn't let go no matter how much she punched and kicked.
She suffered terribly during this period, enduring torture and interrogation every day for twelve hours straight without a moment's peace.
Having finally escaped from that hellish place, she would never go back, even if it meant death!
After watching the dog-eat-dog spectacle for a moment, Shen Fuhan asked, "Is the Princess satisfied with this outcome?"
Li Zhilan coughed as he spoke, "Get her out, get her out!"
Shen Fuhan said quietly, "Has the Princess thought this through? If she leaves, your male favorite will have to go in."
The male concubine spoke up at the opportune moment: "This servant is always ready to relieve the Princess's worries."
Li Zhilan's expression stiffened: "I will never die in humiliation! I want to see the Emperor!"
“His Majesty is too busy with state affairs to concern himself with yours,” Shen Fuhan said calmly. “If the Princess has anything to say, she can simply tell me.”
As he spoke, a figure quietly approached and stood in a hidden corner.