Hu Xiaotian laughed. "My mistake. I just suddenly thought of someone else."
Wen Ya asked, "Did you two ever watch the snow together?"
Hu Xiaotian shook his head.
Wen Ya said, "I'll watch it with you!"
Who's keeping whom company here? Hu Xiaotian thought. It's freezing, the north wind is howling, and the snow won't stop falling, yet you want to keep me company watching it? I'm the one keeping you company. If your period hadn't happened to arrive, you'd probably be warming the emperor's bed right now. So I'm your fallback. Resentment actually stirred in his heart. He said quietly, "The night is cold and the wind bitter. You should go back and rest early, Lady Wen. It would be bad if you caught a chill. If His Majesty blamed me, I couldn't bear the consequences."
Wen Ya walked at an unhurried pace and rested her hand on Hu Xiaotian's arm again. "Getting sick might not be such a bad thing," she said softly.
Hu Xiaotian wondered whether the shock had addled her brain. The unexpected turn of events had dashed her hopes of attending the emperor in bed, ruining an excellent opportunity to get close to him. That was why she felt so disappointed. Was she hoping to attract the emperor's attention again by falling ill? If so, this girl's motives were certainly hard to fathom.
They braved the cold wind and snowflakes back to Bright Moon Palace. Wen Ya released Hu Xiaotian's arm and went straight inside, forgetting her promise to watch the snow with him in no time at all. A woman's words really couldn't be trusted, especially a beautiful woman's.
The maids and eunuchs were all astonished to see Wen Ya return. Once she went inside, they crowded over to ask what had happened, only